41 Joining

I look at the map, and the Quarters are paired. Quarter 1 and 2 are above ground level making up the mountain, with Quarter 3 and 4 directly under, continuing onto Quarter 6. A Quarter has roughly five thousand feet of tunnel separated into twenty-five Sections. Meaning there are about thirty thousand feet of tunnels to cover trying to save people. My eyes lower, they won't be able to get to everyone. Especially when I see there are about four hundred people trapped, most of which are slowly bleeding to death.

I quietly listen as a plan quickly forms. When the question of who is going to take the lead comes up, the Maleficent Four immediately volunteer and everyone agrees. It seems there's an unspoken agreement that Garon, Ede, Alistar, and Lex are the strongest of the youngest generation. And since the Elders will Spell Weave, that leaves them in charge.

When they're going to move on I speak up, "I'll go in as well."

Elder Agron stares at me like he's trying to read my soul, "Why?"

My eyes narrow, "Do I need a reason?"

His stare darkens, "In this world, there's always a reason."

/Such darkness is his eyes. I wonder what put it there./

"That's not what I asked," I point out.

His brow twitches, "It will go along way to get me to trust you."

I shrug and look at the Maleficent Four, "Then consider it as me helping my new found friends."

The darkness in his eyes lessens as he looks at them with a questioning gaze.

"You don't know," Alistar says with a wide smile, "but our little Emma has been here since the explosion first went off."

He walks towards me, likely planning on putting an arm on my shoulders again. But he stops when he hears Lark growling under his breath. He quickly changes directions to Garon.

"Without her and her companions, we wouldn't have been able to save as many people we did, right, Garon?" Alistar asks as he loops an arm around Garon's shoulders.

Garon grunts out a single word, "Trustworthy."

Elder Agron's eyes nearly fell out in shock. "D-did you just speak?" he asks in hesitation, as though he's questioning his hearing.

Garon grunts. Elder Agron whips his head back to me and stares me down even harder than before.

/Why is he looking at me like I just grew a second head?/

"If even Garon is willing to speak up for you, then I'll trust their judgment," he shakes his head with a wry smile.

/He acts like Garon's never spoken before. He speaks little, but not so rare it's a shock to hear his voice./

I'm confused, but since he agreed to let me go, I drop it.

Lark speaks up, "If she goes, I go."

/I really should have seen that coming,/ I think as I roll my eyes.

I opened my mouth to dissuade him, but upon seeing his gaze that left no room for arguing. I don't bother saying anything and await Elder Agron's decision.

"Having one more couldn't hurt," and with that said, Lark joins the Maleficent Four and me into the mine.

Everyone breaks up and focuses on doing their part. A large group of thirty gathers around Elder Agron and Elder Uless with Elder Ozora resting off to the side. I assume they're the Mind Mages who are going to Spell Weave together. They stand in a large circle with the two Elders in the center. They close their eyes to channel asura. The invisible force and wind generated are enough to knock everyone standing too close to the ground.

Excluding Uless who glows the orange of Asura of Soma, everyone shines green for Asura of Mind. Multiple green threads congregate towards the center. Elder Agron's left hand radiates green while Elder Uless' right hand glows orange. Each grabs half the strands hovering in the air. Working in tandem, the Elders weave the threads together. Since all the threads come from Asura of Mind, they easily merge, and the process finishes rather quickly. After about half an hour, a large pattern the size of a boulder is complete. The writing in the middle of the two outer circles is a prayer to the goddess of nature to provide support. Once again, using a single line, an image is created from an elaborate combination of swirls. This time, they're coming together to form a tree.

There's a flash of light, leaving a transparent creature hovering in the air. The main body is a small ball of fur with no eyes and a tiny beak for a mouth. Its feet consist of three wicked claws and thick webbing in between the toes. The arms are flat and widen at the tips, so it looks like a pair of thin fans with claws attached. It breaks off into multiple smaller versions before diving down and joining with the ground. The earth ripples and as they move towards the mine, the land rolls like waves.

As the mages were working, there are faint tremors as the ground shifts to stabilize the mine. After about ten minutes, the Elders give the go-ahead for us to start.