A New Beginning-4

Whoosh!! General Meia slashed through the air with her blade, as she got her balance right taking the next step and displaying excellent footwork of her dance. This was the Lightning Sword Dance of the TapperWood Clan. She had never been taught this, she never met her parents nor was she able to set her eyes on a clansman of hers.

Maybe she did but even so, she was too young to remember any of it then or now.

Slowly she moved with the wind, feeling it and merging with it as one. Meia always loved this feeling, being free and without worry just like the wind was all she could dream of. Swirling her sword around, she took two straight steps then leaped up into the air. In that moment the manipulation power of lightning engulfed her as her eyes went dark, her pupil sparkling with electricity.

Landing a strike on the bare earth, an electric impulse flowed from her body through her sword into the earth, charging it up till she was standing in the midst of an electric pool.

Meia had just lit up the ground and this was something she had never done, could she had grown stronger or was it connected to what had hap-

"YOU ARE TRULY WORTHY!"

There was a sudden booming of a voice which almost knocked the spark out of her.

And before she could even react to whatever it was or even process how familiar those words were, a screen she had never seen before popped up before her own eyes.

"What's this?!" Meia thought wildly expressing her shock at this.

...

SYSTEM ACTIVATED_

...

"System what?" She was now as confused as never before.

...

Liferoot1563 Recognized_

Clan scan initiated_

Clan identified_

Welcome Meia of the TapperWoods_

Uploading previous memories_

...

"Memories?!". Before she could think twice about it, memories of places, people, events and things she had never or would never see in her life flooded her mind. From the very first generation of TapperWoods to that of the last living Chief's - her mother - life seemed to be re-lived, every single second of it. Even their private stuff was all included as whatever this thing was, stored everything, making her wish she could scratch those parts off.

...

Uploading complete__

•Liferoot ingenuity: 20/21

•Meia Tapperwood[25]

•Warrior Class

•Title: Chief

•Rank: Tree Lord[V]

...

Still focussed on the gushing memories, Meia had gone into a trance which she wouldn't awake anytime soon. The screen before her kept expanding yet, her mental space was much occupied for her to notice. Unaware, her feet moved her farther and farther away from her tent towards the towering trees, east of the camp.

She passed by the sentries who had long lost the battle with the goddess of sleep itself, as they deeply embraced her.

After what seemed like a number of lifetimes, which it somehow was, she came to herself.

Meia eyes flung open as she slowly returned to the world she had drifted away from minutes ago.

Scrutinizing her surroundings, all she could tell were immobile towering trees which hindered the moonlight, brushes and just darkness.

"Chosen one?" A soft voice as one belonging to a child of about 6 winters, came out of the darkness, echoing through the forest.

"Who's that?!" Using wind manipulation, she tried to pinpoint what or who it had come from as recently even the soils seemed to have a voice.

Meia could swear that if any of this were to continue, she would probably end up nuts.

"Why are you scared?" The voice came again. "You are worthy."

This time round the voice didn't come from a distance or cause an echo through the trees, rather it was said directly into her ears or mind to be precise.

Turning to her left slowly, a face of a child as she had thought, was staring directly into her eyes - her face upturned.

"You like it?"

Meia's burrow furrowed in confusion.

"Amazing right?"

"What do you mean?!"

"The system. Can't you see it there? Before you?" The upturned face now seemed almost unsure, as if she had miscalculated or done something wrong somewhere.

"TaperWood System." Meia said softly as if she just read the words to herself.

"Ahh, so you can see it, great, great." The upturned face had a wide devilish smile, which creeped her out yet didn't affect her demeanor.

"Why can l and what's it about, a system?"

"Ohh, hehehe, a chief who knows nothing about this. Interesting?"

"Am not a Chief!!" Meia bellowed, leaving the upturned face startled.

The face said no more but rather kept its eyes glued on hers. From the perspective of Meia, she could see the system before her glitch for a second, before returning to normal.

"Why do you think you're worthy?"

"...", She was silent, having no idea.

"Fine, I'll get on with it eventually."

"It's quite simple though, you are worthy since Jokl died with your own sword."

"Jokl!! How did you-"Meia mouth was dumbfounded as the one crime she had ever committed - a grievous one - was mentioned before her.

"Jokl was the ruler of the Whitewoods, deserving my submission as l was the one of the various Cores -the most powerful one though." The upturned face smiled proudly, making it seem quite creepier than before.

"I didn't kill Jo-"

"Oh, shut it. Am not going to kill you. I need you - we need each other."

"We?!" Meia repeated, quite unsure of what she heard.

"We both have something to protect, yours is your clan right?"

Meia nodded instinctively, still exploring the screen before her eyes, though she wasn't distracted.

"What's yours?!"

The smile came again, having much little effect on her this time. "I am obligated to protect you, your people and the forest. One thing l dare not tolerate are enemies - your enemies!"

"I don't have any enemies, Master has obviously dealt with them."

A frown appeared on the upturned face as it was somehow annoyed by Meia's words.

However, she had her gaze down as she was somehow lost in thoughts, thinking about something or someone.

"Worry not, I will deal with them myself, no one can dare harm the worthy one. After all, the dead are inanimate."

"You're going to kill someone?"

"No, no, no, it's something - he shouldn't be breathing by now....oh he's actually a tough one, didn't lie about those mastered manipulation skills."

"Mastered mani - Disam?" Meia muttered.

"What the hell are you doing to Disam?!"Meia bellowed.

"Trying to break his neck of course?"

"You dare not do any such thing, you hear me!!! You don't ever touch my clan?!" Meia turned around, walking away as if she knew the way out.

"It's for your good and that's not even your clan to begin with." The Core Root protested.

"Shut up, shut your damn bird hole of a mouth. My own good, tsk. In Fact, you can keep what you were ranting about worthiness to yourself and this - whatever it is also."

"Buh, you are worthy, l serve you." The upturned face continued to protest.

"Then take me back to my clan, now. Dare touch anyone and I will personally straighten up your face."

"...sure, l will right away." The upturned face said in a low tone, almost inaudible.

"Don't touch Disam, or anyone." Meia added once again, her thoughts drifting to what might be happening without her there. Remembering what this being had done previously, she could only imagine what this one would be. Lost in her own thoughts she was transferred back, failing to hear its words.

"I will, you'll thank me later. I'll be waiting for it." The upturned face smiled, its eyes going white as it seemed to have transferred its consciousness into another being.

In a blink of an eye, she was back at the camp.

The camp lay behind her. Coming from there she could hear grunts and signs of battle as metals clashed with each other.

Without any delay, she lashed out towards where she could hear sounds from.

Arriving at the spot, what lay before her was a dome encasing a particular spot, area and tent - hers.

Step by step she approached the dome, she could see the Knights of the clan strive to break through it.

There had to be a reason for their aggressiveness in breaking up the dome - something she was yet to find out.

Closing up near the dome, she could see her tent quite destroyed and battered up. Before the tent though was a badly wounded and weak-looking Disam. He seemed to grasp onto every single minute of life he had left, as he slowly pulled himself towards the dome, resting his back on it.

Meia now was screaming as high as her voice and the wind could carry her, she landed blows after the other aggressively and more powerfully on the dome.

Yet with no avail all she could do was watch with tear drained eyes, as a being she recognized aimed to slice and dice her fellow General.

Lost and now hopeless just like all the other Knights, Disam seemed to be left for dead until he figured something out.

Using the power of the being to destroy its own shield, Disam managed to render the dome as useless as glass.

Though the dome was quickly shattered, she was too late as all she could do was hold onto his weakened body as the remaining life drained out of him, into the soils.

The attacker had disappeared with the shield, yet it didn't matter - she knew what had done it, she would find it and straighten up its upturned face as she said.

"Ahhh!!!" Meia screamed at the top of her lungs, mourning the death of her comrade.