A slash at the dryad, a burst of magic at the gorgon, the fury of battle all around. Zavi leaped in to the battle, about to dispatch the evil invader with a blast of powerful magic, when it turned around and faced him. He made eye contact and knew he was doomed but the thought never had time to fully sink in before he was a statue of white marble, hitting the ground with a thud. But his sacrifice was not in vain, in the time it took for that to happen, Trostani leaped out and slammed the creature into the wall of the throne room, summoning branches to reach out and bind her, cover he petrifying eyes. With one final blast of energy, she slayed the monster, neutralizing it, leaving nothing but a pile of nonthreatening dust.
...
Alani reached the crown of Vitu Ghazi in seconds, using magic to summon branches that carried him up. He looked, seeing no sign of attack, no disturbance of the natural peace.
Something isn't right he- his thoughts interrupted by a burst of air and biological mass bursting through the trees in front of him, knocking him off his perch. He landed safely in a patch of branches ten feet below. Barely conscious, he stood up and looked to the sky and saw what he didn't want to. Floating above him was a large skyswallower, modified by the Simic Combine, brought back to life by the Golgari Swarm and given shadowy enchantments by House Dimir.
Alani drew his sword and called on the branches to bring him up and face the monstrosity that was his opponent, still barely coherent. The thing lunged toward him, he sidestepped and slashed at the soft underbelly, dodging a razor-like spine as it hissed over his head. Thinking he had succeeded at possibly injuring the creature he turned and looked, hazily assessing his opponent. What he saw did not please him. where he had cut was little more than a thin sliver that was already beginning to heal, the magic in it taking effect.
Then, from nowhere another burst out of the trees, this one smaller. This second burst was Trostani herself, growing out of the crown. The guildmistress drew a mighty sword that shined and reflected green with the Ravnican sun. The skyswallower saw her and lunged forward, on the attack. A skillful dodge, an efficient slice, the creature fell, beheaded, and landed far below on the ground with a thud.
...
Dinia reached the base of Vitu Ghazi, sliding down the vines until she reached the ground. All was quiet, a few leaves fell to her feet.
What is the issue down here? I don't see anything... was all she had time to think before the ground below her began to tremble. There was a burst of earth as a giant wurm broke out of the ground. The wurm made savage by the Gruul Clans, a zombie of the Golgari Swarm, trained in killing and torture by the Rakdos Carnival. A sixty ton mass of killing, and it was after her. As it trailed after her, it kicked up rubble and chunks of roots. One of these chunks of rubble flew and struck Dinia across the back of the head, lights flashing across her eyes. She tripped over a root and turned to face what she thought would be her doom.
A bright flash, a whiz, a screech from the wurm. Dinia looked up and saw Trostani with a drawn bow and another arrow aimed directly at her target. Dinia shot an arrow of her own but it missed, shooting past the creature.
Rapid fire, more flashes of metal, more strikes to the behemoth before her. Trostani was finished with the monster in seconds, not a movement left in its body.
...
Alani and Dinia sat in the throne room over the statue of Zavi. The three parts of Trostani stood over them and watched.
"Is there anything we can do?" Alani whispered, choking back tears over his fallen comrade.
"A way to reverse the process?" Dinia turned to Trostani, her eyes full of question, defeat.
The guildmistress merely stood there, deep in thought. She began to sing, a song like a Conclave Call, but the words were different and more powerful. They were different, yet they seemed very familiar to the two Selesnyans...
"The Whispering Tree!" the two looked at each other, realizing that this was the lullaby of their childhood. They immediately joined in, running from the throne room. They went out to the streets of Vitu Ghazi, continuing their song and encouraging the inhabitants of the mighty city-tree to join in. As the song rang loud throughout the tree, echoing off the bustling city about them, they ran back to the throne room.
Zavi sat in the middle of the room, the stone flaking off and turning to dust, swirling as it touched the air, the Vernadi leader himself glowing green and gold and white, brighter than the sun. As the song came to an end, the glow subsided, the dust fell and Zavi, back to his original and living self, collapsed at Trostani's feet.
...
Five years later...
"On this day, five years ago, the attacks on Vitu-Ghazi were established. They were the paramount of the many sieges laid on our Vernadis. They were successfully stopped with the help and courage of these leaders within our guild." Trostani called out across the throne room, and at their cue the three heroes of the day stood. Zavi glowing with pride, Alani bearing a gleaming smile, Dinia blushing bright red. All was well within the nature guild.
But guild wars are never quiet for long.
