Dark elves and the Nox Aeterna

Of the 60 king magi, I had been able to get the innate understanding of about 20 of them. The rest had unfortunately been destroyed by their owners.

I wouldn't finish assimilating these understandings anytime soon but at least I would passively grow stronger.

While I had been immersed in my inner world we had arrived above a clearing in the dark forest below. There were only a couple of wooden huts strewn all over the place. This couldn't be Svartalfheim, couldn't it?

Before I could ask Night Owl what was going on, Tenten swooped down into a rapid dive. With a snap, the ground in the middle of the clearing vanished and revealed a giant hole. Tenten entered the hole and kept diving down into the darkness.

We spent a few more seconds flying down the dark shaft before the walls opened up into a giant underground cavern. Tenten spread her wings to catch our fall and began to glide through the cavern.

The cavern was dimly lit by glowing crystals that gave of a soft purple glow. Since the lighting wasn't very good I couldn't take in the full extent of the cavern.

'How do you guys see in this dimness?'

"Night vision. Dark elf stuff, you know."

Right, since they had dark in their name, it would make sense for them to be able to see in the dark.

Then we suddenly entered a particular cave. The cave had was protected by a thin membrane made of magic that let no light pass. Despite that, there was no darkness in the cave. Just void and a single flower in the middle of the cave.

'What is this place?'

"We call this place the Noctis chamber. The flower there is Nox Aeterna, a flower that swallows darkness to grow. It has been here, collecting darkness for millennia. Studying the darkness within the Nox Aeterna yields much greater improvements in understanding so we dark elves see it as a sacred and ancient flower."

"Don't listen to that old crook's lies! I'm not ancient! I am a delicate little flower, the embodiment of youthful cuteness!"

A young girl's angry voice rang out through the room. Based on the content of that sentence, the one talking was the Nox Aeterna. Was she perhaps like me?

"What? Who's talking? And who are you calling an old crook?"

"I am talking and you're the old crook. How dare you make me look old and undesirable before a fellow plant!"

'So you too have attained consciousness.'

"Yes, I am Nox. Welcome my new neighbor!"

'Neighbor? I won't be staying here.'

"What? No! You can't leave. She will come for you, she will enslave you, she will keep you as her guardian. Stay here! I've blocked her out, this place is safe! Once we grow strong enough we can leave this place for good."

I had only just escaped the divine snake with a killing addiction and now I was told by a probably divine flower that going outside was dangerous...

'So, who is that she you keep talking about.'

"Naturally it's the w- Haaaargh. Nevermind, she still has enough influence over me to stop me from telling you. But that just goes to show how dangerous the outside is!"

I had enough of the crazy flower and left while carrying the still stunned Night Owl out with me. Upon leaving the cave I was once again enveloped in darkness lit by dim crystals.

"The flower was just talking..."

'You're friends with a walking, talking tree. Why is a flower different?'

"But you look human and you talk through the mind."

"I can talk like this too. I just don't like doing it."

"You can talk?!"

'Yes, now don't look so astonished. Assuming people can't do something because they aren't doing it will get you killed. But let's not dwell on what happened in there. You said you wanted to create an area of true darkness, can I help?'

"Your assistance would be most appreciated."

Getting back onto Tenten we flew through more dimly lit caverns until we reached a giant underground tree. Halfway up the tree was a tree hole that we entered.

'So, is this tree going to start talking too?'

"I should be asking you. I didn't even know about the Nox Aeterna."

We waited for a whole minute but no voice came from the tree. Sufficient to say, it was just an ordinary tree.