The Magus of Flowers Blooms

It was a clear day. One might even say beautiful, if one was so inclined. There was a light breeze, and the temperature was that perfect mix of warm, but the breeze made it not so uncomfortable. Near the edge of a forest, a strange looking man was sitting in a tree, reading a book. He had left his more extravagant clothing at the bottom of the tree, so he only had on a skin tight, sleeveless black shirt, his billowing black pants, with a six pointed symbol on them, and a pair of black boots. An Ornate staff floated next to him, marking the man as one of true practitioners of magic. He had his long, silver hair tied up for once, while his yellow eyes scanned the book, a small smile on his face. 

He closed it with a loud snap, before sending it away. "It is not often that someone is able to sneak up on me, so I will have to give you a great deal of recognition, my strange new friend."  Merlin turned to look at the tree closest to him, which was now inhabited by another person. Merlin waved very faintly, before looking up at the sky. "I wonder. You have peaked my curiosity, stranger. And, to be quite honest, that can be a good, or bad thing. I never am able to tell." Merlin crossed his arms. "Maybe I'm getting old." He got up, standing on the tree branch, looking directly at the stranger. "So. What brings you to this place? I often come here reading. There is a stillness here that lends itself to a good book."

They watched the magus of flowers from the trees, as the strange entity read his book. For many years they had watched this one, and many years They had no reason to fight him. He was content as was, though his strength had once been so much more. But a darkness was stirring, and while They did not get involved in such things, They enjoyed fighting the people that inhabited this world, testing them and watching them grow. If all those people succumbed to the darkness, They would have no purpose. They would not interfere in the fights to come, but that wouldn't stop Them from trying to help, by giving the right people a push.

They started to take shape, forming into a she, a short blood red staff in one hand, and dark intricate robes. A hood obscured her face, but Long black hair flowed out. She had keen yellow eyes and gently pointed ears. A form the man well know, for he had been raised by her, if he could see past the shadows of the hood. As soon as she took shape, he sensed her presence, commenting on the fact that very few people snuck up on him. She let the man speak, listening quietly as the mage stood up and turned around. He commented on the stillness of the area that made it nice to read as he looked towards the Stranger, who stood in the shade. She took a step forward on her branch as he asked her what brought her here. "You." She said, pointing her staff towards him.

There was very little to say to him. He was not a fighter like the others she had challenged, or someone struggling with mental barriers that blocked their strength. He was an oddity really, but even among non mages he was revered. And his powers were needed. So without another word, she raised the staff and fired a beam of energy that desintegrated the tree beneath him, before following up with six orbs that shot towards him, each dealing very weak damage if they hit.

Merlin's head cocked to the side, when his visitor stated that they had come here for him. The voice sounded vaguely feminine, but familiar. Merlin couldn't really put his finger on it. He continued to look at the stranger, even after they disintegrated the tree underneath him. However, when he saw the the orbs appear, he broke the look, falling to the ground, letting the orbs pass harmlessly over his head. 

He landed on the ground, before looking back up at the stranger. "Trying to start a fight? With me? Is that really the only reason you have come here?" Merlin wasn't sure why, but he didn't actually think that talking would stop this one. There was also something eerily familiar to him, and it wasn't just the voice. Merlin summoned his staff to him, and planted the end into the ground, not hard enough to actually stick it into the ground. "We really do not need to fight, you know? Perhaps a picnic would suffice, if that would dissuade you."

The stranger watched as Merlin dodged his attack by dropping to the ground. He wondered to the stranger why they would want to start a fight with them. The stranger waited patiently as Merlin summoned his staff and stuck it in the ground, before trying to talk her out of a fight. The stranger shook her head and jumped down from the tree, hovering slightly before hitting the ground. She then raised her arm, creating several magic orbs in the air above her, before firing a beam of blue light at the ground with her other hand. The beam hit the ground and travelled along it towards Merlin, razor sharp crystals sprouting up in its wake. The beam was harmless but the crystals were not. At the same time, she swung her staff down and the six orbs above her head shot at Merlin, each doing very weak damage.

She doubted that was enough to make Merlin fight back, so she would have to show him his life was in danger. She held her hand up above her head and a ball of crackling energy appearing in her hand. The ball grew in size, until it was as big as a basket ball, and she slammed it down into the ground. A torrent of cold, fire, lightning and wind burst from the point of impact, expanding out and ripping the forest around them appart. It ripped away 50ft of forest in all directions around her, leaving half burnt trees and cracking rocks in its wake. It did more than just destroy the forest, as birds dropped dead from the air and animals twitched in their final moments of life. If it caught Merlin in the area it would only deal average damage, but it would get the message across.

Merlin sighed when the stranger shook it's head. "Pity." He said, his smile diminishing, if only by a little. It created more orbs, before firing a beam at him. Merlin saw the crystals, and correctly surmised that he did not want to get by that. He moved to to the side, and when the orbs shot at him, as he expected, he summoned his Dragoon Spear, and fired it back. Once it hit one of the orbs, it exploded, taking the other orbs with it. But, in that time, Merlin saw the stranger summon an orb. Reflex kicked in, and Merlin brought his Cherry Blossom Shield up. When the ball exploded, it withered his shield away, with Merlin taking some damage, but not enough to convince him he needed immediate healing. 

Sighing again, Merlin summoned his book of spells, Avalon. "It seems I cannot dissuade you from this path. Very well. Merlin will enter a fight after all." He followed this up by immediately using Mana Storm, firing 20 bolts of Very Weak strength at the stranger. In that time, Merlin tried to move forward, and use Tangle to tie them up.

Merlin sidestepped the beam of crystals, countered her orbs with a spear of magic that swooped through them before detonating, taking out the rest. When she followed up with the more devestating attack, he noted the seriousness of it and used a shield to protect himself. As the dust cleared, she noted that he was mostly unharmed, and She watched Merlin as it finally settled in that She had no intention of backing off, and finally resigned himself to fight. With a flourish, he summoned a spellbook, and unleashed a spray of mana bolts in her direction. With a flick of her staff, The stranger summoned a dome of energy, and the mana bolts pelted off it harmlessly, and the shield disipated as the last one hit.

Merlin stepped in, and followed up with a tangle spell, which the Stranger countered it with Shockwave, before firing a windsnare at Merlin to drag him closer, if it hit. If he did get pulled in, she would take a step forward, magic exploding from the end of her staff in the shape of a blade, and she swung it, attempting to slice him. If the wind snare missed or failed, She would instead fire a bolt of lightning from her finger tips that would deal average damage if it hit Merlin.