The Ecosystem of the Desolate

The flora and fauna ecosystem in the Desolate has a personified will of its own, and seeks to take over the Desolate. The land is not only barren of creatures, but the plants also form a hybrid alpine-tundra/desert. Survival is difficult for the few creatures that actually inhabit this land, but they can adapt to the new exiles and take advantage of them. Some wolves pretend to be domesticated and wait for an opportunity to gain the upper hand. Some plants quickly spread and leech off of the exile's resources, such as food. The ecosystem doesn't not simply want to dominate over the exiles, but it wants to--someway, somehow--engage in politics with the exiles. How is communication even possible?

The ecosystem is not only intelligent in the ways of its individuals, but it has a collective will as well. This will has a personality, it is a non-physical, location-less entity. There is a magical ability to this entity, and that is to inspire individuals to follow the entity's will.