Book 2: Chapter 16: Growth


    An ancient being stirred.


    She returned to herself slowly, and as her awareness bloomed, memories returned. Thest she recalled, she was being torn apart, and terror reigned as she sent her awareness down, inspecting the damage.


    Her core was... changed.


    She feared she would find utter destruction. Instead, she found it open and whole. Four channels had been carved into her, creating permanent pathways out. She followed these channels, finding what she expected yet feared at the end of each: the four seedlings.


    What she didn’t anticipate was for her understanding to extend beyond the pathways and into the nts. As she reached the foreign bodies, her vision and awareness split, bing a kaleidoscopic mesh of sights and sensations. Time seemed to alter and warp as four distinct experiences joined her own, all ying out simultaneously. It was a disorienting experience, and the moment her sense of self returned, she threw herself back from them. With a minor flex of will, she easily departed and returned to her original perspective.


    As she returned to the previous bounds of her body, she pondered the sensations of the four nts.


    <em>Lemon trees,</em> the ancient being said internally, tasting the sybles.


    Each of them were individuals, with their own personalities, wants, and needs—perhaps those weren’t the correct words, as the trees weren’t as advanced as she or other sapient beings were. Still, there <em>was</em> an aspect of individuality granted them.


    This merger, whatever this joining of souls was, it felt neither wrong nor right. The ancient being tried to push into her memories, to crack whatever boundary locked them away, but if such a thing existed, she couldn’t find it.Intent on exploring this new bond, she tried to send a tendril of awareness out to one of the saplings, using her significant willpower to keep the other three pathways closed.


    ***


    I woke to a chill in the air, and I pulled my nket up, soaking in the warmth it provided.


    Iy in a half-asleep state for an indeterminate amount of time,pping up the rest after a long day of hauling boulders under the ocean. When I remembered the half-built wall, a spike of wakefulness pierced my slumber, and I threw the nkets off.


    I immediately regretted my decision; the part of my brain that demandedfort told me to crawl back under the covers and curl into a ball. Ignoring the impulse, I stood and stretched, unleashing a mighty yawn as I tensed every muscle in my body. I nced back at the bed, seeking the lump that would tell of a cute little bunny hiding within, but Cinnamon was nowhere to be found.


    “I guess she’s already gone to Maria’s...” I mused.


    Roger’s fields required work over the next week or so, and as a result, Maria wouldn’t have much free time. Cinnamon was free to do as she pleased, and I knew she’d much rather spend time in the fields with Maria than sit around on the shore waiting for me to return.


    I opened my bedroom door and stepped out into an even colder room. Therge window of my living room provided little instion, and the night’s chill had well and truly crept within my walls. It was my first taste of winter, and it hinted at a cold few months to follow.


    I went back to my room and rummaged through sets of sheets, towels, and the thin, everyday clothes I usually wore, having to reach for the back of my wardrobe to find a jacket I’d bought from the tailors what felt like months ago.


    I put it on, quickly made my bed, then left for Tropica.


    ***


    As I walked back home, a croissant and coffee in hand, the sun peeked its head over the eastern horizon.


    Purple and pink hues spread throughout the sky, so I turned and strode toward the coast, intent on watching the sunrise. As I walked over thest dune, I saw some friends.


    “G’day, everyone!” I said, walking down to meet them.


    Barry, his wife Helen, his brother-inw Leroy, and Leroy’s wife, Barbara, all sat on the dry sand, heads turned to look at me. Barry’s son peered over his father’s shoulder, and he grinned wide, revealing a missing front tooth.


    “Hello, Fischer!” Paul yelled.


    “Hey, mate! I see you’ve lost a tooth there.”


    He nodded fervently, exploring the gap with his tongue.


    “I did! Dad says it means I’m growing up!”


    Barry smiled at his overenthusiastic son, and I nodded.


    “It certainly does, mate. You’ll be a grown fe before you know it.”


    “Would you like to join us?” Helen asked.


    “I’d love to. I came here for the sunrise—having some friends to experience it with is a happy ident.”


    I took a seat on the sand; it still held the night’s chill, and a shiver took me.


    “It’s bloody cold.”


    “Winter ising,” Barry agreed, staring stoically at the horizon.


    I let out a softugh.


    “Hopefully the long night doesn’te with it.”


    “The what?” Barry asked, narrowing his eyes in confusion.


    “Nevermind. Do the winters get very cold here? I assumed they wouldn’t be too bad, given the tropical climate.”


    “Aye, they get a bit colder than this, but never enough for frost. The wind can make it feel cooler than it is, though.”


    As if summoned, a breeze kicked up, rushing past us and making Paul lean back into his father’sp.


    Wepsed into silence, all watching the sun as it climbed ever higher in the sky. The pink and purple hues consuming the horizon turned to orange and yellow as the great orb rose above the ocean, shining its warmth down upon us.


    I noticed Barbara shooting furtive nces in my direction.


    <em>So,</em> I thought. <em>She knows about me, and she’s wary.</em>


    It was hard to pinpoint the emotions brought on by the realization, but they weren’t good ones. I thought about it more as the silence stretched, reminding myself that it was entirely reasonable to be hesitant of a bloke that could shoot anime finishing moves from his body.


    “I forgot to tell you guys,” I said, swirling thest dregs of coffee around in my cup. “I made more fishing rods.”


    I shot a look toward Leroy just in time for his head to whirl on me, and I nodded, giving him a knowing smile.


    “You’re all wee to use them whenever you like—they’re on my back deck.”


    “Maybe I’ll take you up on that offer.” He nudged his wife. “I’d be happy to show you.”


    Barbara made a nonmittal noise and leaned into his shoulder.


    “Paul,” I said, “seeing as though you’re almost a man, could I give you a task, mate?”


    His eyes lit up, and he nodded so hard I thought his head might fall off.


    “Could you go buy four coffees and five croissants? I wanna buy everyone some brekkie.”


    I flicked him a coin, which he deftly caught.


    “You don’t have to do that, Fischer...” Helen tried.


    “I don’t have to, but I’d like to. It makes me feel good shouting my friends.” I shrugged. “Call it a selfish request you begrudgingly ept.”


    “Alright,” she conceded, knowing me well enough to understand I wouldn’t back down. “You be quick, Paul.”


    He was already sprinting away, coin in hand and responsibility powering his stride.


    When the youngd was out of earshot, I spun to Leroy.


    “One more thing—pretty sure there’s some sort of ancient tree spirit living in that light-blue tree we nted the lemon seeds around. I’ve been feeding it fish in the hopes it helps the lemons grow. Maybe you should check it out?”


    My statement had the desired effect, and all four heads turned to me, giving me various looks somewhere between confusion, bewilderment, and doubt.


    Iughed.


    “Really? After everything you’ve all learned over thest few weeks, <em>that’s</em> what surprises you?”


    Barbara was white as a sheet, her lips pursed.


    “It’s nice to meet you, by the way. I’m not sure we’ve been introduced...”


    “O-oh,” Barry said,ing back to himself. “Sorry. I’d totally forgotten—as you said, it’s been a crazy few weeks...” He pointed at his sister-inw, then me. “Fischer, Barbara. Barbara, this is Fischer.”


    “Nice to meet you too,” she replied softly, some of her color returning.


    “The pleasure is all mine!”


    Before I could say more, Leroy leaned all the way forward, nting his hands in the sand.


    “<em>What in hades’ realm do you mean there’s an ancient spirit living in the tree?</em>”


    “What do you mean? It’s pretty straight forward, mate.”


    I kept my face straight, causing Leroy to grow even more incredulous.


    “Why are you acting as though that’s the most normal thing in the world? A nt spirit? What does that even mean? Is it already ascended? It must be, right? How else could a nt gain sentience? When did it...”


    His voice lowered, and he continued rambling too softly for me to hear.


    While watching her husband’s impassioned mutterings, Barbara’s mask shattered for the first time; she practically glowed, her eyes bright and blood returning to her cheeks.


    “Well, I’d better get going.” I stood and brushed off my pants. “Lots of work to do and all that.”


    “I-it really was nice meeting you, Fischer,” Barbara said, so I turned to her.


    “Likewise! Come around for a fish or a chin wag any time.”


    “... a what?”


    “A yarn,” Barry answered.


    “... that doesn’t help, Barry.”


    He and I bothughed.


    “It’s fun, right?” I asked.


    Hellen batted me on the leg.


    “Stop leading my husband astray, you.”


    Barry patted her on the shoulder reassuringly before turning back to me.


    “What are you working on?”


    “Me?” I smiled, delighting in the confusion that would follow. “A big underwater wall made of boulders.”


    I turned and strode away before anyone could ask what I was talking about.


    “Catch yater!”


    Barry, Helen, and Barbara blinked after me, while Leroy raised a single hand to wave goodbye, still muttering to himself beneath a furrowed brow.


    ***


    With my body low, I snuck up on my quarry.


    I walked into the breeze, ensuring I was downwind from my prey. The sun continued its rise before me, meaning my shadow wouldn’t give me away.


    I grinned, hunched, prepared to leap... and the hunter became the hunted.


    Sergeant Snips, billowing blue clouds of power, flew from the water, hissing with victory. She mmed into my chest, and given my utter defeat, I let her throw me from my feet.


    I let out an <em>oof</em> as I hit the sand, then groaned with bollywood-level dramatic ir.


    Snips let out a hissed giggle, puffing her body up and flexing her ws.


    “Oh, the pain! Woe is me who attempted hunting Sergeant Snips, protector of the pond!”


    Rocky leaped from the saltwater pond, streaming water as he went. The moment hended, he began nodding gravely, having heard our conversation and agreeing wholeheartedly.


    She smacked him lightly on the head, and he blew bubbles of thanks.


    “Alright, you two—are you up for another day of moving rocks?”


    Snips hissed and danced from side to side, ever happy to help. Rocky peered down at a w and projected indifference despite the fact everyone knew he’d do whatever Snips did. The pond’s water roiled and the head of a leviathan emerged.


    I held out a fist and Pistachio bumped it.


    “You free too, mate?”


    He nodded immediately, dipping his impressive body to do so.


    I nced toward the distant treeline, wondering for a moment if I should go get a particr otter, but I decided against it—she might need more rest if she tended to the weird tree-spirit-thingst night, and she’de and find us when she was ready.


    “Cheers, everyone. I don’t know what I’d do without ya. How about I make us all some delicious lunch and dinner as payment?”


    Three heads bobbed up and down—even Rocky was unable to resist the temptation of a good meal.


    I set off for the shore with three crustaceans scuttling after me.