The pull led Lu to Wellspring as the sun grew hot overhead. From the air, the village looked broken in half. She could see two groups of creatures living on opposite sides of what used to be a shared square.
Lu landed on the hill above the settlement, her wings folded as she watched the strange sight below. On the east side, Willowkin tended their gardens with careful fences around every plot. On the west side, Stoneward worked at their forges and workshops. Between them stretched empty ground that no one would cross.
A flower bloomed where Lu stood. A Willowkin with soft brown fur looked up from hanging clothes and stared. Then she hurried inside and shut her door tight.
Lu's ears drooped. Even her gentlest magic scared people here.
She walked down the hill toward the eastern gardens. Each plot was surrounded by high fences and warning signs. The Willowkin worked alone, never talking to their neighbors.
"Beautiful vegetables," Lu said softly to an older Willowkin tending golden turnips.
He looked up fast, his long ears flicking back. "What do you want, outsider?"
The cold word hurt, but Lu kept her voice gentle. "I'm just passing through. Everything seems so... separate here."
The Willowkin's laugh was bitter. "Separate keeps us safe. Can't trust anyone anymore. Especially not those Stoneward." He pointed toward the western side. "They think they can trade worthless metal things for food that takes months to grow."
"But don't you need their tools?"
"We do fine alone." His grip tightened on his hoe. "Don't need folk who might steal our food when winter comes. The Winds taught us that much."
There it was. The Harsh Winds' poison, still working through the village like a sickness.
Lu walked on, leaving small flowers behind her. The Willowkin called out warnings, but she pretended not to hear.
The western side told the same sad story. Stoneward worked alone in their shops, building things behind tall walls. She watched one struggling to fix a broken cart while a Willowkin sat nearby with a pile of good wood, neither helping the other.
"That wood might help your cart," Lu said to the Stoneward.
The large creature looked up, her gray fur damp with sweat. "That's Bramble's wood. Bramble would rather let it rot than trade fair. Those Willowkin think we should work for scraps. Don't understand that making something takes real skill."
"Have you tried talking to him?"
"Talking?" The Stoneward's voice rose. "They don't listen anymore. All they do is hoard and complain. Act like we're going to steal their precious vegetables."
Other Stoneward came out of their shops, drawn by the loud voices. They all looked tired and angry.
"You're not from here," said one with hammer-stained paws. "This used to be a place where everyone helped each other. Before we learned the truth."
"What truth?"
"That kindness just makes you weak," said another. "That trust is dangerous."
Lu felt the Harsh Winds' influence like a heavy blanket over everything. The whispers had sunk so deep that people thought they were their own ideas.
"What if there was another way?" Lu asked quietly.
"What if you minded your business?" The Stoneward with the broken cart stepped closer. "We don't need strangers telling us how to live. Especially ones leaving glowing weeds everywhere."
Lu looked down. Her flowers had bloomed as she walked, making a gentle trail of light between both sides of the village. The bridge of light seemed to make everyone more upset.
"Probably some kind of trap," someone muttered.
"Or marking our territory for others."
"Get rid of it."
Lu watched in horror as creatures from both sides began stepping on her flowers. The lights flickered and died. But just before they went out, she saw something that made her gasp.
For one moment, the flower-light had shown her the truth. The magical echo of what Wellspring used to be. A warm place where Willowkin and Stoneward had worked together. Where the square had buzzed with laughter and friendship.
The Harsh Winds hadn't destroyed this place with force. They'd whispered until the people destroyed it themselves.
"You need to leave," the Stoneward said, her voice softer now but still firm. "Your magic isn't wanted here. We learned to survive without depending on others. It's not pretty, but it's safe."
Lu nodded sadly. She understood now why the pull had brought her here. Not to fix what was broken, but to see what the Winds could do to a place that had once known love.
As she walked away, her flowers no longer blooming, Lu felt a heavy question in her chest. If the poison worked so well here, among people who had once cared for each other, was there any hope for healing?
But as she reached the hilltop, she turned back. In the growing darkness, warm lights flickered on in windows. Small glows that spoke of families gathering for dinner, of creatures finding comfort in their own circles even if they couldn't trust their neighbors.
The light was still there. Cut off, maybe, but not gone.
Lu spread her wings and flew north, following the pull that grew stronger each hour. Behind her, one flower bloomed in the center of the empty square. A tiny light that could be seen from both sides of the broken village.
It would probably be trampled by morning. But tonight, it burned bright enough to remind anyone who looked that connection was still possible.
Lu flew into the darkness, carrying Wellspring's sadness but also that one stubborn hope.
Stay Away
We grow the food You steal our grain Stay on your side Won’t share again We make the tools You break our trade Keep to your yard Price must be paid Stay away, stay away Nothing more to say Stay away, stay away This is how we stay safe
🦊 About Lu's Story
Lu is searching for her family in a world that's forgotten how to be kind. When the Harsh Winds turned communities against each other, Lu's people were scattered like seeds. Each step of her quest reveals how deep the corruption runs, and what it will take to heal it.
The Wind's effects are challenging these days
Keep them coming! Lu is my friend now