"I mean what on Earth are you thinking Paku!" Ember held his little brother back. "I can take it out" Paku raised another rocksalt and was about to unleash a fierce attack on this creature.
Elysia stepped in between The Sprite Siblings and the fearsome creature. "Everyone calm down, it's not here to hurt us."
The Sprite siblings couldn't see what Elysia saw, nor could they understand how to stay calm when a Lupinara suddenly appeared, towering above them with a wolf-like form, nine flowing tails, and feline paws.
"Look behind her," Elysia whispered, pointing to the Lupinara bristling with protective fury as it shielded its tiny pup. The tiny pup peered out curiously, its wide eyes gleaming with innocent wonder. Oblivious to its mother's fierce stance, it gave a playful, wobbly bark, as if trying to make friends. It looked like a mixture of wolf and a lion.
The mother Lupinara stepped forward, carefully lifting her cub by the scruff of its neck to keep it close. The large mother looked at the cauldron. Elysia understood they were hungry.
"Agua? That looks like a big wolf, can it eat garlic?"
Agua unsure how silly the question her master was asking, "Elysia, that is a Lupinara. It's not a wolf. It's immune to all sorts of poison. Garlic doesn't affect them."
"Then Agua can you.." Elysia started, and Agua understood. Agua poured soup into the bowl and saucer that Fig brought from the hut. "Thank you, Agua!"
In calm, gentle steps, Elysia approached the two Lupinara. The mother's lips curled back, baring her canines in a warning, but her fierce growl softened to a low rumble as Elysia knelt and set the saucer of soup down before them. Keeping her movements slow and respectful, she gave the Lupinara space, offering the meal as a peaceful gesture rather than a demand.
The Lupinara looked at the bowl, hesitating to drink from it. Elysia sat next to their makeshift cauldron "Paku? Could you add the salt?" when Paku added some salt to the dish Elysia started eating the fish soup. And Mother Lupinara started to eat some as well.
After finishing her meal, the mother Lupinara settled down, curling protectively around her little one as he snuggled up close to nurse it. The cub's tiny paws kneaded against her fur, her eyes softly closing.
Gale clasped her hands, her voice barely a whisper. "Look at her, just moments ago, she was all teeth and fury but now she is so calm and loving... She's like a big, fluff" her thoughts were the same as Elysia's.
"It's nice to have someone to eat with," Elysia looked at them calm and relaxed, she scanned the forest, "Tell me, are there many creatures like her in the forest?"
"Yes, I suppose so," Fig replied thoughtfully, glancing out toward the tree line. "Though, we haven't ventured far beyond the view of Master's Hut."
"We'll have to figure out a safe path out to the forest, we're lucky she didn't attack us" Elysia planned.
"Are we leaving the hut? Where will we go?" Paku asked,
"I don't know, did your master say where he was going?" asked Elysia the Sprite siblings.
The Sprite siblings looked at each other and then at Elysia shaking their heads.
"I should go look for clues in the hut then. Maybe there's a map tucked away somewhere." She mentally listed the next task.
"Are we going back to the hut now?" Ember who is usually distant from her siblings found herself buried in the fur of Mother Lupinara.
"How did you get there?" Elysia asked. They must've thought she was a warm heating pad Elysia thought to herself.
"It - it just happened," Ember said shyly.
"We can stay until they wake up they look so at peace." Elysia thought how comfortable it must be to lay on the soft black fur of Mama Lupinara.
The entire afternoon was spent by the river until the Lupinara's ears started to twitch as though she heard the sound of a distant danger. She raised her head and her eyes darted to the trees. She stood up and the Little brown ball of fur that was nursing woke up. The little Lupinara looked at Elysia and barked softly then ran off following her mother.
"I think she thanked you" Fig observed.
"I'd like to think so," Elysia smiled then got to her feet walking back towards the hut. Fluttering around her Fig, Gale, and Paku.
Agua noticed her sister Ember staring into the forest, "Are you alright?" Agua asked.
Ember crossed her arms and said, "Yeah, well who needs those big stinkers anyway."
Elysia spent the next several days inside the hut. Her quest to find a map or at least clues as to where the sprite master was took up most of her time. She scoured through the books that the Master left behind. They were all in different letters and symbols. But surprisingly Elysia understood the contents. Tattered tomes recount legends and lores of bygone eras. Others are dedicated to the study of arcane languages, and there were books about fauna and flora. She also found a book about cooking which the Sprites like.
After seeing that book the Sprite siblings were always eager to show her what recipe they would be serving, "Elysia I've made some grilled fish for dinner this time." Ember was proud of her cooking, Gale happily carried it.
"I also made some soup from the herbs we have, have a taste!" Fig said placing the soup next to her.
"Yes, I should eat now," On this particular day she was buried in books of incantation spells and learning enchantments and magic circles. She also discovered books about practical spells, defensive spells, and some anti-curses and hexes. Oddly, every book she discovered she was able to read and absorb at such a fast pace.
"Did your master ever use these enchantments?" Elysia showed the Sprites the circles on the book.
Fig was the first to answer "Master never needed such, since I was always with Master. Master could just let his intent flow through us and we abide master's wishes."
"Like the time he wanted to rain on a land that was barren." Agua said.
Gale remembered, "That was the first request master asked of me."
"I never got to fulfill master's request." Paku said feeling down.
"Why is that?" Elysia asked.
Agua held her little brother "Paku was only a small sprite then, he had not yet manifested much of his powers. So the master never asked him to use his powers"
Paku smiled at Elysia feeling hopeful "But it doesn't matter now, because I am bigger now and I've grown a lot. And I have Elysia."
Ember then confidently said, "That's right it's better to have a master like Elysia. I like her more than that stupid guy." Fig and Agua looked at each other because they knew deep down Ember was saying this out of spite. They knew that Ember loved their master the most so she was hurt the most when he left. But they could not say these things aloud and kept it in their hearts.
Fig sensing the awkwardness in the room then returned to the transmutation circle at hand "Why did you ask about these Elysia?"
"Well according to this book," Elysia points at the page "In this world people use these circle drawings - some sort of magic circle or enchantments."
Fig looked at the drawing "Master called this Transmutation Circle, but you won't need such things you have us!"
Elysia flipped through the book each page as complex as the other "It drawing a circle on the ground then infusing mana on it to create the desired effect. Then this book" she lifted another book "Talks about stones that can amplify the transmutation circles."
Agua looked at the book "These are mana stones, each one corresponds to a different type of magic. Master would use it to replenish his mana. Mana stones are stones that have absorbed mana from its surroundings. Some say stones buried beneath the earth have more mana stored in them." Agua then looks at Elysia "but I don't think you'll need that. Since your mana seems to be infinite Elysia."
Elysia looked at her hand again still unable to see what mana they mean.
"I think you right Agua, I've been tending to the gardens these past few days trying my best to overdo my mana absorption but when I use my powers just to grow a plant" Fig goes to a dead flower pot by the window, he held his hand to the plant, "A surge of mana always escapes me" the dead plant now flourished with abundant flowers blooming.
Elysia went to the window looking at the plant, its abundant flowers looking healthy and colorful.
Agua then looked at Elysia "And yet not a single bit of your mana is gone"
"Yeah you look like a walking ball of infinite light," Ember added.
Elysia's gaze was at the flowers when Paku started yelling "They're here! They're here!"
"I wonder what game did they bring this time!" Ember flew to the door to see.
Gale said with much enthusiasm, "I hope it's a bird and some eggs we can try the chicken cottage pie I saw, maybe Elysia would like it"
"I should prepare carrots and corn to go with it!" Fig happily shares.
"I just hope Sera and Phine aren't hurt, last time Phine had wood stuck between her Paw and Elysia had to wrestle her trying to help," Agua said in a worried tone.
Elysia was following them as they went out the door. Elysia named the Mother Lupinara Sera and and Phine the baby Lupinara, have been leaving the game outside the small hut. At first, Phine did it with small prey like Lizards and rodents. Then he started bringing Birds and Elysia found it endearing so she would always cook them food and wait for them to come each sunset. Since Phine has warmed up to her. Elysia would often give Phine pats on the head for doing a good job.
Then, this somehow awoke the competitive side of Sera so she started bringing game but hers were always bigger. When Pine shared a small bird Sera's would be bigger than a turkey. When Phine caught a unihornedhare Sera one-uped her by catching a deer.
"Last time it was a deer and I can't bare watching it butchered." Elysia would normally have the Sprites cook the game they got but Elysia did not have a single clue how to butcher a deer.
"That's weird, Sera didn't hunt for anything," Paku observed.
When they opened the door Sera was holding Phine by the scuff of her neck - as though she was still a puppy despite having grown so much. When Phine sat on her two back legs she was as tall as Elysia and quite the glutton.
"You're not giving me your kid right?" Elysia asked Sera jokingly as if the Mother would speak to her.
Elysia stroked the messy hair of Phine who unlike her well-groomed mother always had a rough and rigid look to her. Phine when she was a pup was only up to Elysia's knee and despite the short time she grew rapidly. Sera deposited Phine on Elysia's doorstep. She turned away and started to head to the forest. Phine barked at her and took a step forward wanting to follow her Mother.
But Sera growled and Phine stepped back. "Hey!" Ember called out and Elysia's heart sank as she watched Sera retreat into the forest - alone.
Phine started to whine as though she was pleading with Sera not to go.
"You're coming back right?" Elysia asked a heavy weight settling in her chest at the thought that Sera might not return
"You better come back here!" Ember's voice echoed after the Lupinara and Sera bolted towards the thick of the forest.
"It's alright girl," Elysia whispered, giving her a comforting scratch behind the ear.
Feeling the heavy emotion in the room and seeing Ember fuming in a corner, Agua was the first to break the silence "Well since we don't have eggs and new game, shall we have some of the unihornhare meat?"
"Should we try it as cottage pie?" Gale held Ember's hand trying to lift her spirits. Ember did not want to relent but Pine licked her and barked as though she really liked the idea of cottage pie.
Ember begrudgingly but in a cute voice said, "Geez, alright already, you're such a simple-minded Lupinara! It's all about food with you."
"Great!" Agua took the opportunity to lead her sisters to the basement "Let's go to the basement and defrost the Unihornhare." The basement became a cold storage room in the little hut. Elysia built it with the Sprites siblings, despite the preservation magic of plants that Fig could do. Fig could not keep the fresh meat so the sprites were very happy to learn the method called freezing. Freezing was essentially using water and wind energy to form ice.
The sprites went on their usual way, Ember, Agua and Gale defrosting the unihornhare meat while Fig went gathered more vegetables and herbs in the garden.
Elysia "We just had lunch, now they're preparing for dinner - " . She looked at Paku who was looking at her expecting her to assign a task, "Well then Paku," Elysia started. "Shall we read some of the books we still haven't finished?"
"Okay, I will go with sit with you!" Paku responded.
Paku and Elysia were browsing the lower-end shelf when she came across the book The Wayfarer's Compendium: A Guide to the Realms Beyond. She was about to return it to the shelf when a small portrait painting fell from its pages.
Elysia then realized it was a picture of The Master!