"I was born in this forest," Kigen announced proudly, "what about you?"
"A fairy tree, native to the forest? Never heard of such a thing, and I have been here a long time," the beast answered. Looking keenly at the fairy before it, it was suddenly shocked, not that Kigen could notice, since he didn't know how to read facial expressions of basilisks.
"You are so young? Were you born recently? Is your mother tree the first of your line?" Kigen could now hear the excitement in the voice of the basilisk. It seemed to have thought of something.
"Why do you ask?" Kigen asked, instead of replying to its question. He had noticed the interest, which set off alarm bells in his head.
Seeing Kigen so cautious, the beast chuckled, before saying, "I understand your worry. It was rude of me to begin questioning you all these sensitive questions without first introducing myself. I am Erebus, chief of this brood."
As he introduced himself, multiple basilisks' heads protruded out of the water. They were of varying sizes and age. Kigen was utterly shocked. All this time, he did not know there was such a dangerous family living nearby.
"I am Kigen, Guardian of the woodland fairies," As Kigen spoke, he tried to exude as much majesty as he could. Without his expectation, the fairies in hiding came out, crowding around him and also exuding a mighty aura.
This presented a novel and majestic sight, especially for the young basilisks who were captivated by everything they saw.
"Say, noble fairy, since you brought your family along, how about a friendly competition," Erebus said, once introductions were made.
He was not stupid, he understood why the fairies had come. At the moment, he could easily thwart them. However, he was not interested in their current strength, but what they could become.
All this time, he had allowed the fighting to play out without interference as a test. He wanted to see how powerful the fairy was, especially since it was a guardian taking action.
At first, he had not been impressed, until he realized the little fairy had been fluttering to deceive. It was only after the breakthrough that he started viewing the fairies differently. However, all this was eclipsed by the shock of learning just how old the fairy was.
Usually, it took several years for fairies to grow this impressive. Moreover, this was the guardian, and he had seen the others, this could only mean one thing, their heritage was a rank above noble. If that was the case, he couldn't help thinking of the possibilities. Better still, he had known these fairies while they were this young, how fortunate.
This was why he had suggested the competition. He wanted to see the depth of their talent. Perhaps he could have just picked up a valuable ally while he was not looking.
Kigen was suspicious of the serpent, but also curious, "what kind of competition do you suggest?"
"You have your juniors, and there are plenty of juniors around as well, how about we have them engage in a friendly fight? Of course, we will ensure that none goes overboard, and that no one is injured," The powerful basilisk answered.
Staring back at the huge beast, Kigen was a little hesitant. He had been courageous enough to face off with the basilisks, but it had taken all of his power to bring one down. He also knew the capabilities of his juniors, and they were not that powerful. Facing off against the powerful and ancient beasts like these might kill their confidence.
On the other hand, maybe this was what they needed. Facing off such powerful opponents in a safe and controlled environment might not be such a bad idea. It could be the boost they needed, just like he had received his boost while fighting the basilisk earlier.
Similarly, while the likes of Nina might not be a match against the mama basilisk, they would certainly wipe the floor with the smaller basilisk. That much he was confident.
Seeing Kigen give that tacit approval, Erebus lit up with joy. Of course, the fairies could not tell, since they couldn't read a serpent's facial expression.
"Juniors," He suddenly shouted. After he did, five powerful looking basilisks stepped forward. They were not as powerful as the mama basilisk, but they were also not toddlers. Each of them had the pride of heroes.
Kigen could see several other basilisks, some bigger, some smaller than these five, but these seemed to be hailed as the champions of the younger generation. As such, if he was going to compete, he would have to match the same.
Kigen turned around and called out, "Nina, Tande, Foli, Nixa, and Luita, call forth the best juniors under you."
Luita was stunned. When the competition was first announced, and after listening to the rules put forth, he was eager to be among those stepping forward. Matter of fact, when Kigen called out the names, he was somewhat angry to be called last, but he did not expect the next part of his command.
They, the top seniors, would not be fighting themselves. Rather, it would be the juniors under them. Looking around, he noticed similar expressions among his fellows. They too had expected they would be the one fighting. A fact that Erebus easily understood.
When he took note, Erebus turned his attention towards Kigen, understanding something. They fairy wanted to keep some cards hidden, he mused.
After recovering from the shock, the five fairies each called someone. Foli was somewhat excited. If he was the one fighting, he was not sure how well he would perform. However, among the juniors, even in other groups, none shone brighter than Sifa. She was young, excitable, and all rounded. He was even shocked she had joined his team.
When the proposal had been put forth by Kigen, everyone knew he would call her forward. They even eyed her with envy.
Nina was unlike the rest. Her compassion made it such that she knew all the powers of each of the fairies under her. This made the decision before her quite difficult, especially since several top talents had come looking to join her team.
After much consideration, she turned to look at a somewhat tall fairy, with bulging muscles. Of the others, only he had come close to understanding her particular method of attack. Seeing her look in his direction, Sawe flew forward.
Small, silent, somewhat shy, but absolutely lethal in the air, Asha was the most promising archer under Luita. He didn't even say her name, just simply glanced at her. She flew forward, seemingly shy, but inwardly, bursting with pride.
Tande's pick was just as muscular as he was. The bright and bulky wings made Fidha look bigger than he actually was. This gave him an edge over his kin since he could lift much heavier obstacles.
Finally, little Medina. Known around to be just as nosey as her elder, Nixa, Medina's choice to be under Nixa had come so naturally. She was like her shadow, and the two had hit it off. Nixa seemed quite proud to have a little shadow to boss around. Medina did not want to miss on anything new.
The two had bonded over their exploration, but Medina was no slacker either. Just like Nixa, she had learned the fastest ways to put down her opponent so that she can go back to sightseeing.
Kigen watched all this quietly. He had very little interaction with the juniors. Hence, he relied on their seniors to pick out the cream of the crop, and it seemed they had. He too was curious to see the extent of their skills, and how bright the future was for the fairy kind.
Once the contestants had been decided, then came the match. The fairies were gathered together in a small cluster. Kigen was at the front, while the youngest juniors crowded at the back, eager to see the action.
He did so to be able to swoop in and rescue a contestant should their life be in danger. He still did not trust these basilisks. At least, not with the lives of his kin.
Meanwhile, the rest of the space was occupied by the many basilisks, who came out to watch the spectacle as it unfolded. Kigen finally got to see a glance of the terrifying power in that river basin.
Other than Erebus, there were four more adults, though none seemed as ancient or ferocious as Erebus. This number included the basilisk that had tangled with Kigen. Then came the juniors, about twelve in total, among those visible. Kigen did not see the first toddler in the mix, which meant there could be more underwater.
Once the circle was complete, the competition kicked off. With a loud booming voice, Erebus shouted, "Let the games begin!"