Very well done! :) Apologies for not finding my way here sooner, but I have been incredibly busy.

Favorite line: "The forest protects who comes in peace... and punishes the ones who don't." beautifully put

You do an incredible job of building tension. The end of the story was undoubtedly the most powerful, as I began to imagine all the possibilities of the "earth shards." Perhaps they are shards from the actual planet on which we live (this earth). Interesting stuff.

I can clearly see that you have writing skills. That's how I know it's ok for me to remind you to double-check for conventions (mostly spelling in this story's case ;)) Not at all a complaint, just a reminder.

I would have loved a bit more imagery on the Sacrifice of the Spirit Shaman - you had the potential to make us cry with that, and it wouldn't have taken much more to bring it home.

Here's a particular thing I'd like to mention:

"A rain of arrows dimmed the dawn's light, as the earth elementals, forest spirits, and headhunters loosened their bows."

You had a good opportunity here to tell us about how the earth elementals and forest spirits attack. Here's an example of how I might have made it a bit more descriptive:

A storm of small arrows was loosed by the Brownies, who had assembled in full ranks at the forest's edge. Earth Elementals flung bough, limb and branch toward the attackers while the Forest Spirits worked together to generate a powerful psychic barrier. A force of Mitica Headhunters charged from the forest with silver spears aglow in the reflection of lightning flashes.

Anyway, just some thoughts - Great job, and thanks for participating!
I'm not selecting you as the big winner (this time) but you can expect some Booster Packs anyway!

It was a great adventurous read!