Information

Carnaxa
Legacy Name: Carnaxa

The Hydrus Neela

Owner: Quagsire

Age: 9 years, 5 months, 1 week

Born: November 24th, 2014

Adopted: 9 years, 5 months, 1 week ago

Adopted: November 24th, 2014

Statistics

• Level: 1
   
• Strength: 10
   
• Defense: 10
   
• Speed: 10
   
• Health: 10
   
• HP: 10/10
   
• Intelligence: 0
   
• Books Read: 0
• Food Eaten: 0
• Job: Unemployed

x and x by User not found: viciousduring the warm months

Carnaxa stepped to the bank of the river, shaking water out of her thick coat and allowing it to drip from the buds on her antlers as the fish tail at her rear transformed into the delicate hind legs of a deer. The joy of swimming in the pure, clear water of the river she watched over could be surpassed by nothing else.

As with most spirits, her attachment took place at the moment of her birth. She belonged to Fae River as surely as the river relied on her power to keep the water always clean and running smoothly. She knew every minnow and water sprite by name and they told her of every ripple of news that flowed in from the wider world. Her motto had always been “Be kind and have courage.” It is a phrase taught to all little water creatures that emerge from an egg, for the words of a spirit are words to live by.

Carnaxa feels great compassion for Froseti, the white wolf spirit forced to make his home in a meadow since the place of his birth was destroyed by the fires of man. He comes often to drink the waters of Fae River and to share an hour of gossip about the wider forest. His dryads and faeries sometimes accompany him, exchanging compliments with water sprites in delicate kelp gowns.

For many years, Carnaxa was able to brush aside concerns the other spirits had about the growth of the human population. The seasons continued to come and fade. The blossoms on her antlers changed to thick white strands of kelp as autumn threatened, returning to their former blooms when winter finally surrendered to spring. Humans gradually learned to drop their blades and set their greedy eyes on forms born of metal. They could not know that their industrial revolution would be the start not only of fabulous inventions, but the starting line to the race for human destruction.

A family of sick sea monkeys gave Carnaxa the first warning that something was wrong with her beloved river. This family lived on the northern border of the forest, on the shore nearest to the distant human city. Their eyes were dull and their gills were filled with green gunk that gave off a terrible smell. The mother clung to her two little babies as the father described the condition of their home.

“The water has a stink that was never there before. There is green scum floating on the surface, nasty goo that clings to fins and fur and kills the plants we rely on for food. We beg you to cleanse our part of the river, good spirit, before any more of this foul stuff can cost lives.” He hung his head in sorrow. “The Redfurs have already lost two children.”

He described in detail the great place of stone that bordered the river a hundred feet past his front door. It was a place that had been built by humans recently, one the sea monkeys had readily ignored until their children began to take ill. Carnaxa placed the sick family under the care of Ulela, one of the best healers among the water sprites.

As she approached the northern border of Fey Forest, Carnaxa could taste the taint of toxins in the water. She began to feel a bit ill herself as she stretched out her power to touch both banks, purifying the water as she swam.

When she came to the human factory she summoned a burst of power to place her on the surface of the river. Each careful step raised a small pool of water around her slender feet. A group of workmen set aside their sandwiches and pointed with exclamations escaping their lips as Carnaxa walked along the surface of the water. The foreman came to order them back to work, his jaw dropping at the strange sight.

“Humans, I would speak to your…leader.” It took her a moment to find the right word. All spirits are equally concerned with the good of the forest, eliminating the need for such distinctions of power.

She could not leave the surface of the river. She made this very clear when they tried to lure her to land, giving one man a good soaking when he tried to throw a rope around her neck. He laughed in wonder and went to fetch the boss himself.

Carnaxa could sense the man’s iron confidence and knew she had found the right man to speak with about the pollution. “The beings under my care are taking ill from your activities. I know the ways of Fae Folk are not your ways, but humans have developed filters that can keep poisons from entering the river. I have seen them in your mind.”

The owner of the factory swallowed his Adam’s apple bobbing up and down. There were stories about what happened to men who tried to lie to a spirit. Until now, he had thought them only legends. “I’m well aware of their existence but those filters are expensive and I’ve already got bills to pay for a new air filtration system for my men. You cannot grudge me looking out for the men under my care.”

Carnaxa bowed her head as she thought. “You send your human ships over the water to take your boxes to other human cities, do you not?

“We do.”

“We will make a bargain to benefit both out worlds. In exchange for a promise that you will care for the river, I will teach your builders to make a ship that will cut your travel time in half. This ship will fly like a bird over the surface of the water and there is no force in nature that will be able to capsize it.”

The man envisioned selling plans for such a ship, making millions off a design from a creature that could never sue him for stealing the invention. “If you can truly produce this ship, we have a deal.”

For nearly a hundred years, the bargain was upheld. All new factories in the area saw to it that filters caught the worst of the filthy waste products they produced. Carnaxa’s ships were even better than the most innovative designs of a growing nation. Clever humans manipulated the design over time, aiming for less beauty and more speed. The bargain faded into myth and was forgotten so that once again the river began to stink of pollution.

Carnaxa came upon a cluster of starfish washed up on the northern bank, their suction cups slick with greasy black oil. The journey back to the human place took three days. Even with her powers, there were limitations to her strength and she could only filter so much of the horrible slime before she was forced to rest.

The humans on the water’s edge were very different from the last group she had encountered. They looked at her glorious antlers with indifference, laughing and lamenting the fact that nobody had a shotgun. One man holding the leash of a Rottweiler tried to order the dog forward but the unfortunate creature tucked his tail and firmly planted his bottom. He yelped and dodged the man’s half-hearted kick, cowering a few feet away as Carnaxa began to speak.

“We had a bargain, humans. My ships have served you well, yet you one again pollute my home with your filth.”

A man with a bushy orange beard took a long swig from his beer can. “You made a deal with the old boss, the one who ran this place when our grandparents were still riding their bikes in the streets. Your ships are as out of style as they are, venison. There’s nothing you can offer us anymore and we’re all too old for fairy tales.”

A man with bushy black eyebrows sneered at Carnaxa. “Go back to your magic weed patch, you freak of nature. We don’t want your kind around here.”

A third man threw his can high into the air, striking Carnaxa between the eyes and joining in the laughter of his friends. She snorted her disgust as beer sprayed all over her face and neck. The disgusting water was hardly any better.

“Two points!” The obnoxious man’s comrades slapped him high fives as Carnaxa returned the way she had come. There would be no reasoning with these monsters. It was time to have a conference with the other spirits.

She arrived at the bank where she made her home as the sun reached the middle of the sky. She slept a full day, too exhausted and upset to leave the healing influence of the river until she had recovered from the cruelty she had endured.

She awoke to find Froseti crouched on the other side of the river. He looked toward the human city, eyes filled with sorrow. “The destructive nature of the humans has reached the point where they will bring about their own extinction. Their doom is already sealed. There are many lives that may still be saved, Carnaxa. You have the power to seal the river at the northern pass, to ensure these human poisons cease to spread and to cleanse the water flowing through the trees."

Carnaxa leapt to her feet as she realized the ground was trembling. “I must see to all river folk, Froseti. I have the power to cleanse these human poisons from the water and I will not condemn so many to die!”

“No Carnaxa! Wait!”

She ignored the warning, plunging beneath the surface of the river. She could feel the pain of thousands of creatures already affected by the radiation sweeping toward the forest in a deadly cloud. All creatures within five miles of the bomb’s point of impact were beyond her help. Many more would die before the setting of the sun. Carnaxa commanded all water creatures that had the strength to answer to help every single one out of the water, regardless of species. All petty rivalries must be put aside for the good of all. She could no longer fight the waves of agony washing over her sinking body. She sank to the carpet of rainbow pebbles at the river’s bottom, offering no resistance as weeds snagged her fur, pulling her toward shore.

Froseti licked her face, whining low in his throat as he did what he could to revive her. He hated to leave her like this, but he had his own dear faeries and dryads to look after in this harsh hour.

Carnaxa called on her powers with a shudder, apologizing silently to those creatures she could only pity. The barrier she placed on the northern border cut through the water like a blade, sealing out the waves of radiation that crept over the surface of the river, an invisible menace that would continue to kill all life outside Fey Forest for many years to come. She could now hear only those voices within the borders of Fey Forest and it was as if a dam gate had come crashing down, cutting the river of her birth in half. Even out of the water, she could feel the separation of a part of herself as an acute stab of pain.

A family of water sprites came to lay aqua hands on her shoulders, lending the great strength contained in their tiny bodies. Carnaxa struggled to her feet with a bellow of grief, once again slipping below the surface to see to those she could save. This was still her home, and she would do everything in her power to see what was left of it restored.

Story by Pureflower

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