Sworded Affair

It was a bright and sunny morning, on the 14th of June, when Emma returned to the Decision Tree with her immediate family. Last time they'd used this path, it had led to the Sherwood Gallery, for a very confusing day of shopping. On this special day, however, all paths had been reconfigured to converge upon a singular point: Stonehenge, the beating heart of magical England. They were arriving a week ahead of the main event, as was customary, to meet all the movers and shakers of this hidden society, ahead of the big festivities. Most of them were, at least, since Saint had heard the word socialising and promptly decided to mind the home front alongside the Hydra, who was now mobile and followed her around everywhere like a duckling, albeit one capable of depopulating a village by itself.

Also staying behind were a handful of magical girls, all of whom would rather charge into the mouth of Hell than endure the week of politics to come. Frankly, Emma thought that they had the right idea of things; she'd have preferred to stay out of the scrum as well, but that wasn't really possible in her case. After all, Emma was new to the scene, unlike the veteran magical girls who were skipping out, and as a direct descendant of one of the founders, everybody would want to meet her. This was her debut, for better or worse, so she was going to have to show up, at least this first year.

After considerable thought, Emma had decided to go in her true form. Whilst she'd initially been planning to visit in her homunculus form, hoping to present a more approachable visage, the recent rise in tensions had changed the playbook. By Edith's reckoning, projecting strength would be far more valuable at this juncture, even if it meant potentially intimidating everyone she met. Helpfully, this also resolved the issue of clothing, as the Victorian Gown they'd acquired some time ago hadn't survived to date, and a broken down spacesuit was hardly suitable attire for a gathering such as this. Both her parents were present, Elizabeth already in her magical girl form, complete with duellist's jacket and rapier, while Noah favoured the more traditional suit and tie, albeit with the addition of the glasses procured from Crystal's Emporium, complete with an explosive selection of surprises in storage, pun intended.

"Are we all ready to go?" Elizabeth asked, one hand already placed against the root of the tree, being the only one who'd learnt the activation method, though Emma was pretty sure Edith could substitute, in a pinch.

"All good here," Noah confirmed, giving her a thumbs up; he was probably the most eager to attend, seeing it as a welcome break from the mundane drudgery of overseeing an entire town as it rebuilt the damage from recent demonic incursions.

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"Same here," Emma confirmed, seeing no reason to delay any longer.

She'd tried to send a few messages in advance, but the Weave was still struggling, as communications had taken the brunt of the damage by enemy infiltrators, and was still not quite back to normal. Even so, she hoped to see a few familiar faces there, if only so she wouldn't be stuck socialising with people thrice her age, as was common for a newcomer at such gatherings of old friends.

"Off we go then," Elizabeth concluded, and forced a pulse of mana into the tree, folding a portion of the trunk in on itself to reveal the familiar path downward into the fog below. "Since this tree is only connected to the Gallery, we'll be going there first, before switching at the Sherwood Grove to head to our final destination. Same as before, do not get separated, and ignore any strange voices you hear, as they likely belong to the Fae playing tricks on you."

With that final warning, Elizabeth stepped down into the fog, and the journey was on. It went smoothly, so much so that Emma couldn't help but be a bit suspicious. Nobody accosted their small group on the path, nor attempted to hide them from view like the last time. While Emma had started off on high alert, that had gradually slackened as their trip continued, remaining no more strenuous than any other slow walk down the countryside.

Is this normal? Emma asked, because her sample size of two journeys wasn't enough to draw meaningful data from.

[For this time of the year? Yes. The Fae have their own traditions to attend to, this close to the solstice. The weaker ones in particular will be busy gathering tribute for the opening of the Summer Court, leaving them far too busy to harass travellers on the path.]

Good to know.

With their path free of obstructions, it didn't take long for them to reach the Sherwood Grove, emerging into a nondescript clearing that gave no hints of its otherworldly nature to the untrained eye. Emma wasn't sure how Elizabeth found the next tree, as it appeared she simply stepped at random, before tapping on a thin white birch tree, which spontaneously split open, unfolding into a similar portal as the one before. Feeling no need to repeat the earlier conversation, Elizabeth went straight down, and their journey resumed. This time, Emma felt another presence nearby, albeit not that of the fae she'd fought before. There was a steady beat of magic, akin to a human heart, save for the fact that every pulse filled her frame with power, threatening to drive Emma to her knees.

Emma was tempted to activate Null Zone, but held back, as she wasn't sure what the outcome would be, and didn't want to accidentally delay her arrival. As such, all she could do was steady herself, and ignore the distraction as best she could, for what felt like an incredibly long five minutes, until their path curved upwards once again, terminating at a golden portal leading into the unknown. Elizabeth stepped through first, vanishing from sight the moment her hand touched the gateway, with Noah following after her, and Emma bringing up the rear.

They emerged amidst a sea of tents, beneath a bright blue sky, and a selection of standing stones, faintly visible in the distance.

"Stonehenge."

They'd arrived.