awakened baden

Baden escaped from the hordes of corruptors and found himself in the heart of the Island of the Exiled. There, in the middle of the thicket, he found a cage of twisting vines, in which he saw a sleeping beauty. She was unharmed. Baden breathed a sigh of relief and called her name softly: "Nevanti! Wake up!" The woman who was sleeping among the trees was the guardian of the Nevanti Forest. Baden first met her on the Island of the Exiles many years ago. At that time, he wandered all over Esperia alone, until he accidentally stumbled upon this mysterious island. Seeing the grave-borns there, Baden prepared for battle, but the years of wandering and the inescapable curse of the grave-borns had greatly exhausted him. Surrounded, he collapsed to the ground. When Baden regained consciousness, he heard a soft voice: "Don't move. Your curse of the grave-born has not yet subsided." A beautiful woman appeared before his eyes. A magic rune flickered on her forehead. She was emitting a powerful breath of life, which, following the stranger's hands, slid over Baden's bandaged body. "These grave-born..." "These are the Defiled. They are just like you: grave-born, homeless." Seeing that Baden had regained consciousness, Nevanti moved aside. It turned out that a crowd of the Defiled had been standing behind her all this time. Good-natured smiles shone on their withered faces. "Welcome to the Island of the Exiled, to the house of the Defiled." Nevanti showed Baden the true essence of the inhabitants of the Island of the Exiled. They were very different from the grave-borns Baden knew. On the surface they might seem creepy, but in fact they were kind and friendly. It seemed to him that the Defiled, who hated immortality, were more like him than humans or fallen grave-borns. Peace reigned on the island, as in an ordinary human village, because its inhabitants avoided conflicts and the turmoil of big cities. "Stay here if you want," Nevanti offered Baden, smiling, but he could not immediately answer her. — I see you miss someone. Who's bothering you? Family? Beloved? Friends?" "My closest and dearest friend." Baden did not accept the invitation to settle on the island, but he did not reject it either. He continued to wander around Esperia, often, however, remembering the secluded Island of the exiles, especially when he silently inspected his native places on the border with the Empire of the Light Bearers. Sometimes he returned to the island to stay and tell about what was happening in the big world. He told himself that he was coming back to get some rest from the curse. Unbeknownst to himself, he began to visit there more and more often. Once, when Baden once again looked at the Island of the Exiled, he found that the discord of the elements had already struck this place. Noxious fumes enveloped the entire island. Trees began to die, and there were hordes of corruptors everywhere. Nevanti spent almost all her strength to protect the Defiled, and sank into sleep. However, before that, she wove a cage of vines for herself, where she hoped to wait for salvation. Baden was circumspect. He understood that by acting at random, he would only endanger himself and the Island of the Exiled. Therefore, he immediately went to the Dark Forest to find and ask for the help of other guardians of the elements. Together with the guardian of the wind, he made his way back to the Island of the Exiled and began to implement his plan. The guardian of the wind distracted the corruptors, and Baden, who knew the island well, managed to find Nevanti. Baden led the weakened Nevanti through the forest quickly but cautiously. The Island of the Exiled, once a safe haven for the Defiled, was devastated. The dying forest was filled with corruptors. They would immediately surround the heroes if they allowed even the slightest carelessness. However, if they managed to reach the shore, they would be able to escape from the chase on the ship Baden had prepared. "Don't worry, I'll get you out of here." "The elements are out of balance… I spent too much effort to contain them. Disaster cannot be avoided... Find other guardians of the elements..." "I will never abandon a friend," Baden's voice was full of determination, as when he saved Thane on the battlefield. — Nevanti, hold on. Reinforcements are on the way." The corruptors swarmed in the forest like ants, and it was impossible to avoid them. Baden managed to find a gap in their ranks, and together with Nevanti he rushed there. The Corruptors were right behind them. "Reinforcements… Is this really your friend?" "We have an agreement with him: he must meet me here on the Island of the Exiles when he finds the guardian of the earth." The corruptors stumbled over roots and vines that Nevanti picked up from the ground, but new ones immediately took the place of the fallen ones. They trampled on their own relatives, but did not stop chasing. Suddenly, a huge monster appeared among the corruptors. His body was made up of twisted dead branches, and the smell of rot spread around. This creature was much more terrible than the corruptors, and it was he who was the source of troubles on the island. Where the monster stepped, the vines immediately rotted, and the ground behind him turned into a stinking swamp. He quickly caught up with the heroes and was so close that it seemed that if he stretched out his hand, he would immediately grab them. "It looks like we won't wait for reinforcements. Nevanti understood the desperation of their situation, but she wanted at least Baden to be able to escape. Instead, he turned around and found himself face to face with the enemy: "Just hold on. Since I'm here, he's DEFINITELY coming." The huge creepy monster looked down on the stubborn warrior who stood in front of him. Baden was overcome with despair. Suddenly, the shining blade whizzed down on the giant corraptor, forcing it to retreat. When the light faded, Thane was standing next to Baden. Baden told Nevanti to return to the forest and recuperate, and he rushed to help Thane. He understood that in his current situation, he did not have a single chance in a fight with a monster. He began to observe the movements of the monster and told Thane where to hit. Baden and Thane couldn't compete with the monster in strength, but they acted as one. Thanks to Baden's hints, Thane could easily repel the attacks of the giant corruptor, but he could not hit it in any way. The fight dragged on, and Baden decided to take a chance to complete it. He swung his bone spear and jagged blade, and the huge corraptor staggered. Then Thane noticed a weak spot and struck it, driving the tip deep into the monster's chest. The corraptor flew into a rage from the pain and, ignoring Thane's blows, rushed at Baden, intending to crush him like a bug. The Corraptor lifted Baden into the air and threw him into the forest, after which Thane had to retreat. In the forest, Nevanti found Baden. His body was covered with scars from constant battles, and it was about to crumble. Gathering her last strength, Nevanti lifted the emblem of the elements into the air right in front of Baden. It was the last hope, but its price was great. "Baden, my friend… I can't restore your body, but with the help of the elemental emblem, you can... change. However, if you accept it, you will lose your peace and become the target of the corruptors..." Baden stretched out his hand and took the emblem of the forest. Her radiance enveloped the hero, and then his calm, resolute voice rang out: "I knew peace only in dreams..." "My destiny is to be the target of these shadows..." "Well, I will never fight alone again!" In the halo of light Baden stepped forward, and the power of the elements of the forest restored him a tortured body. Somewhere nearby, a fierce battle was going on between Thane and the corraptor, but now Baden could participate in it! After exchanging glances with Thane, they understood each other without words. The friends fought together again: Thane's blades began a continuous dance with the speed of the wind, and Baden, with the help of the emblem of the forest, called for vines that constrained the movements of the monster. Seizing the moment, Thane struck the energy shield on the monster's chest with a lightning strike. Behind him, a shining core filled with the light of the elements appeared. Then Baden plunged his spear from the energy of the element of the forest directly into this core. There was a powerful explosion, and a huge corraptor crashed to the ground. The battle was over, and the danger was over. However, Baden could not rest: the elements had not yet come into balance, and the discord between them was becoming more and more violent. Chaos has also reached the distant Island of the Exiled. "Let's fight, Thane. Just like in the good old days." "Just like in the good old days."