Stars shone brightly in the sky when Willow awoke, though from his position the foliage blocked much of the night sky. From deep sleep to fully awake, he woke without any sense of drowsiness. Birdsongs made him aware of the happenings in his surroundings, and he smiled as he pushed himself to his feet. Balanced on a branch some distance from the ground, he glanced around for a few moments and then stepped forward to fall. From branch to branch, he slowed his descent to the forest floor before he patted his attire smooth and slipped through the underbrush to rejoin his pack.

Without any attempt to hide his approach, he could feel hidden eyes watch him return. Pausing for a moment, he looked up at some of the nearby trees before he raised a hand in greeting. He smiled at the lack of any response, dipping his head slightly, before he continued on towards the camp.

A few dying fires illuminated painted the clearing with flickering shadows, and Willow took the time to admire the varied styles of shelter that made up the camp. Yet another reminder of exactly what had been accomplished and those that had been brought together. It took him a moment to pick out a specific tent among the dozens, but after doing so he quickly made his way towards it. People slept soundly for the most part, even with his passing, but his keen ears picked up slight stirrings as some of the early risers began to wake.

Approaching the tent, Willow’s ears twitched as a hand dropped to grasp a piece of wood hooked onto his belt. The other hand rose to brush aside the tent flap and he took in the surroundings as he stepped inside. It wasn’t too odd to find the place empty at this time, but there was something else that made him uneasy… It took him a few moments to finally notice what set him on edge. A pair of white orbs slinked forth from the folds of the tent’s fabric, shadowy vapors wisping around and coalescing into a vaguely humanoid form. Lightning crackled as the piece of wood rapidly reshaped itself into a bow, but the creature had slipped away by the time the string was drawn. 

He held the stance for awhile longer before he allowed his magic to fade away with an uneasy sigh… “That was a Primordial,” he murmured to himself as he wandered about the tent, searching for any hint, beyond those of legends, to why the creature had appeared. A sigh of disappointment at the lack of any results, and he resolved to ask Myra about it later. Perhaps the scholar would know more…

Considering their practice chased away the darkness with bright displays of magic, it wasn’t particularly difficult for Willow to find his two acquaintances. He stopped a fair distance away and returned [url=http://puu.sh/rqUI7/4e1374c8c9.jpg]Myra’s[/url] nod before waiting in silence for the pair to finish their lesson. Another [url=http://puu.sh/rqUJo/26bf44fa69.jpg]werefolk[/url] stood at the center of the clearing, arcane sigils and glyphs swirling in the air around him. His expression was one of concentration, but it faltered with each of Myra’s motions. A gesture here would cause a glyph to flicker, and a quick swipe all but erased another as the Werefolk tried to salvage the first. The Neodragon examined and broke apart her student’s arrays without any show of effort, and she simply smiled when he finally collapsed to a knee; unable to keep up any further.

“That’s a new record I believe,” she remarked as she strode over and hauled the boy up onto his feet. Still in the midst of catching his breath, the Werefolk could only nod in response as his posture remained unsteady. Sure he would not collapse once more, the Neodragon ruffled his hair briefly to his annoyance before she turned to Willow. “Morning. You’ve received the message?”

Seeing his raised brow, her expression betrayed a hint of exasperation before she shook her head slightly and gestured flippantly at one his pockets. While Willow busied with unfolding the piece of parchment, she turned her attention back to Elliot for a moment. “I’m sure Willow’s wondering how much you’ve learned. Up for a demonstration?” A hesitant look in his direction by the younger Werefolk wasn’t missed, and he paused his reading briefly to look up. 

It was hard to tell if his acknowledgement bolstered or shook Elliot’s resolve, as he tensed, but eventually the young mage nodded. Raising the lantern that served as his focus, Eli blew on the flame gently and numerous tendrils lashed out, burning sigils and marks into the air. They shifted and rotated quickly, arranging themselves before the Werefolk, and a few gestures caused them to glow bright with power. A quiet mutter from Eli released the gathered energy in great gouts of flame that bathed the clearing in a sea of flames, the heat and light so intense that Willow had no choice but to turn away.

Shielded from the conflagration, he whistled in admiration as he folded and pocketed the message. “So when did this arrive?” 

“One of the Boars came back from town with it,” Myra replied as she worked to contain the damage from Elliot’s display. Layered barriers isolated the heat and destruction and actively smothering the flames now that the show was over with. “You will respond?”

“Don’t really have a choice now do I?” He scoffed as the barriers fell away and a wave of hot air rushed over him. Irritated expression as he squinted aside, Willow walked forward and reached out towards Elliot. Ignoring the younger boy’s flinch, he pat the kid a few times on the head and nodded before he turned to look back at Myra. “Think you’ll be free to accompany me?”

“Perhaps. I’ll send word ahead?” Once he nodded, she stepped past him towards Elliot. With that taken care of, Willow left the two alone as he faded seamlessly back into the treeline and returned to camp. Preparations needed to be made for travel.