The White Apple Campaign 8 - The Greenwood

Lenny’s heart thumped wildly as she followed Vasher into the dark green wood. But Hemswick had been fine, she should be as well. When her foot finally hit the forest floor, nothing happened. With a sigh of relief, Lenny started taking in her new surroundings.

This was no normal forest. Instead of dirt and leaf litter, Lenny’s foot fell on polished green roots. At least, they looked like roots. The entire forest floor was like a woven dance floor of thick green overlapping tendrils, much like the storage walls back on the ship. She could feel the ridges between each of them as she walked but they fit together remarkably smoothly. All around, the trees weren’t quite right either. For one, they were all identical. Each tree grew thick and straight up into the sky, spreading wide green bows to totally block out the early evening sun. Their uniformity created a strange hypnotizing effect as Lenny walked, like perfectly placed columns in an endless cathedral. It wasn’t long before Lenny couldn’t even tell how far they had been walking. Everyone around her had fallen into the same reverie at the sights around them. It was Vasher who eventually broke the silence.

“Hold on everyone, we need to pause for a bit or we’ll end up well and truly lost.” He said, setting his things down.

“We are actually making progress today.” Hemswick said. “What’s bothering you now?”

“Look around Hemswick.” Vasher replied. “Do you see any landmarks, any unique trees or stones?”

Lenny looked around. If not for the sunlight streaming in from the southwest, the forest was unsettlingly uniform. White squirrels vaulted from tree to tree and in the distance, Lenny could see a lone white deer browsing in the distance. He was right. Any deeper and it would be a true maze.

“Jr., you seem to like marking things. Would you mind putting a notch in that tree so we can know where we started?” Vasher asked when everyone was done assessing the situation.

“Absolutely!” Jr. chirruped. Her knife flashed and a thin white line appeared on the trunk of the large tree. White ooze began to dribble from the line and a putrid smell filled the air.

“Is it just my knives?” Jr. asked, looking at the tip of her knife. “Everything I stick lately bleeds this white stuff.”

Hemswick grunted and poked another tree nearby with his own knife. The same white ooze spilled out from the hole.

“Not my knife then!” Jr. said, then Lenny saw her eyes catch something.

Following her gaze, she saw a white squirrel making its way down to the forest floor. Jr. raised a finger to her lips and quietly hushed everyone. The moment the squirrel rounded the tree on Jr.’s side, a knife flashed through the air and the squirrel fell to the ground. Jr. had caught it right in the neck.

Wasting no time, Jr. ran over to the animal and flayed it much in the same way Lenny had to the rabbit earlier. Then she walked over to the group to show what she had found. Just as before, the animal’s blood was red, but the meat was bright white. Tiny green wooden ribs barely shown where Jr. had made her incision.

“Guess this is where he found the rabbit.” Vasher said, Lenny could hear the disappointment in his voice.

“This is no normal ecosystem.” Johnathan said. “I can’t see any evidence of what these animals could be eating. So much carrion out there, you’d think there would be scavengers, but even the bears here don’t seem to be carnivorous.”

With perfect timing, Lenny saw a white bear meandering through trees in the distance. Though it was near the deer from earlier, neither animal had any change in body language as they passed. No jumping, no posturing.

“Let’s keep going.” Vasher eventually said. “I think this is just the beginning to some of our answers. Jr., can you be sure to mark trees as we go? I know it’s smelly but it might be our only way out if we need one.”

“Sure thing!” Jr. replied and she cut the next tree in the line they were following.

It was hard for Lenny to tell how far they had been walking when the final light began to disappear. The setting sun filled the forest with a burnt orange glow that was actually brighter than the earlier part of the day. The angle of the sunset cut through the lack of underbrush and cast the statuesque trees into long trailing shadows. White animals shone here and there, their albino forms luminous in the fleeting light. Noticing the rapidly growing dark, Lenny decided to speak up.

“How about we stop for the night? I don’t think we have much daylight left. Plus, I think I have some questions since the lich kid is still with us.”

“Good idea.” Vasher agreed. “What is our story time going to be about this time?”

“I think we need to know how many of these liches there actually are.” Jr. said, wasting no time.

“I want to know if the animals are safe to eat.” Vasher said, watching more squirrels in the trees above.

“And I want to know where the real mother is.” Lenny concluded.

“That was fast!” Johnathan said rubbing his hands together.

“You should know better than anyone Johnathan, the more you know, the more questions you get!” Vasher said with a grin.

“Quite right!” Johnathan agreed cheerily and came over to Lenny to ready the ritual.

“I wanna ask this time!” Jr. said, and jogged over to where Lenny set the corpse.

“Fine by me.” Lenny said, stepping back to let Johnathan cast his magic.

The corpse sat up as always and scanned its surroundings until Jr. spoke.

“How many are there in your family?” She said pointing a tiny finger at the lich, sounding a bit over zealous.

She’s excited. Lenny thought with a smile. It was nice to see vibrancy in her friend, even after everything.

“Six” the husk rasped in reply.

“That’s three more we haven’t even met if we don’t count the big bad.” Vasher said quietly.

Jr. nodded in agreement and opened her mouth to ask the next question. Then she stopped, closed her mouth, and looked up at the sky. Thinking.

“What was the next question?” She whispered to Lenny, making sure not to face the lich.

“Are the animals safe for us to eat?” Lenny answered.

“Right! Are the animals here safe for us to eat?” Jr. asked

“No” came the corpses answer.

“Storming Hell.” Vasher cursed and started pacing.

“Where is mother?” Lenny whispered in Jr.’s ear and Jr. immediately repeated the question.

“The orchard.” Replied the corpse, and the magic was done.

Darkness had fallen rapidly as the questions were being asked and, with no fire, Lenny found herself in a deep void as she considered the lich boy’s answers. Without Uru, there as a real chance that they might wander this forest indefinitely. If she changed, would it mean she could have answers like he did? Shaking off the idea, she decided to commit what magic she had in the morning to making everyone fresh food. It was time for a break from rations.

Light shone like a star above her. Vasher had lit his spear again to help everyone set up for bed. Johnathan volunteered to take the first watch, clearly overexcited by his surroundings, so Lenny was free to get straight to bed. With the forest’s strange clean floor and thick canopy, she felt no need to set up the tent tonight. Her friends bedded down around her and, while their fatigue hid it, they all seemed a bit more cheery to be sleeping on a dry floor. Lenny finally got settled and turned on her back to stare up into the inky black canopy.

“Got another story in you Vasher?” Lenny asked when the light went out again.

“I’m full of stories.” Vasher replied. “Though tonight all I can think of are the stories of blue fire.”

“Blue Fire?” Jr. asked.

“It’s what happens when you burn methane.” Johnathan said nonchalantly in the dark.

“True.” Vasher replied. “It also happens when the wrong sorts of creatures are around. Creatures that would make our liches seem commonplace and paltry.”

“Sounds like a good story!” Lenny said, rolling over to face the direction Vasher’s voice was coming from.

“It’s part of a bigger story. Like all stories are. But if you really want to hear about some of the scariest, and saddest, things I know right before bed, I’ll keep talking.” Vasher said in the dark.

When no one protested, Vasher began with a poem Lenny had never heard before:

“When the hearthfire turns to blue,

What to do? What to do?

Run outside. Run and hide.

When his eyes are black as crow?

Where to go? Where to go?

Near and far. Here they are.

See a man without a face?

Move like ghosts from place to place.

What's their plan? What's their plan?

Chandrian. Chandrian”

A chill went up Lenny’s spine upon hearing the rhyme, though it only sounded like a child’s playground song. It reminded her of when she learned that one of her bedtime lullabies had been about a long gone plague. Ever since then she learned to listen to such things in a new light.

Vasher went on to tell stories of beings the like she had never heard of. Cursed powers that rotted wood with their very presence. A leader cowled in darkness that can never sleep or die. Even here, he spoke of them in hushed tones and never used their names. When he was done, Lenny could see the blue flame in the darkness high above her. It was her eyes filling in the deep dark she knew but, as Vasher had said, for the first time in a while, she went to bed scared of something other than liches.

Lenny woke with wet cheeks. She had been dreaming of her mother. The dreams before had all been so gruesome. This one was personal. It was worse. Balled up in her bedroll, Lenny quietly checked her boots and felt her key. She readied herself for the day. Through the canvass, she eventually heard Vasher and Johnathan having a lively discussion about spiders. Popping her head out, she found everyone else awake and moving about in the deep green light that called itself morning here.

“What time is it?” Lenny asked, pulling her breastplate over her shoulder pads.

“Later than usual, we think.” Vasher replied. “We decided to let you all sleep in. It’s been a long haul.”

“What?” Hemswick barked from where he sat. “Why did you waste my time letting me sleep like that?”

“The two of us woke just before second watch Constable.” Johnathan answered this time.

“We had plenty to keep us awake and you three clearly needed a good solid rest.”

“I’ll be the judge of my own time!” Hemswick said, raising to his feet.

Now is the time! Lenny thought to herself.

“Hold on everybody!” She said, stepping towards everyone. “I readied a spell this morning that lets me conjure food and water. Its simple but it can be something different than rations.

“Why didn’t you do this before?” Hemswick said, turning his frustration Lenny’s way.

“Well, I haven’t been good at it before and, frankly, I thought the rations were fine. I think its worth a shot now that we are all running low and the animals aren’t safe.” Lenny retorted.

Then she rolled out a clean white towel she kept at the bottom of her travel sack. She placed a hand on each corner and remembered every time she had ever been hungry. She thought of the times she had seen street urchins stealing bread from stalls to feed their little brothers. She remembered the first time she had to steal to feed her family. Then she shook the cloth with a quick snap and a dozen round rolls popped out of the cloth and settled on top of it.

“It worked!” She yelped in surprise and then she felt Jr.’s approving sock in the arm.

“Is that why you’ve been so food obsessed?” Vasher asked. “Some kind of research for this spell?”

“No,” Lenny laughed. “I just love food. I think I finally get the spell now because of how desperate we are.”

“There’s a tiny bit of meat in mine!” Jr. said with a mouth full of roll.

“Look at that!” Vasher said, tearing one in half.

A tiny meat ball the size of an acorn sat in the center of the dense bread.

“That is the best pearl I have seen on this island.” Vasher said and began happily eating.

Hemswick silently grabbed two rolls and Lenny thought she saw him nod to her on his way back to sit by one of the large trees. Johnathan thanked her profusely but promptly went back to taking notes while staring at the ground and stuffing his face. It felt good to be able to provide for everyone. Lenny was especially proud she was able to conjure some meat as part of the spell. I must really be desperate. She thought.

So far as she could tell, it was either midday or just past it when everyone was ready to explore. The only way to tell time was by looking at where the light was the most intense in the dark green canopy, or to catch angles of light when you could. These were rare because something about the uniformity of the towering trees made all the light a deep hazy green. Regardless, there was light, and Lenny felt wonderful after the extra sleep on a clean floor. When Jr. marked the tree they had slept by, Lenny started walking.

“What is that?” Vasher said only a few moments into the day’s trek.

“What is what?” Lenny asked, noticing something off about his voice.

“Over there. On the ground. Its brown and round.”

Lenny followed Vasher’s pointed spear and saw it. It almost looked like an egg, but it was being pushed out of the ground. If it was an egg, it would be the biggest egg Lenny had ever seen. It was dark brown but instead of a shell, its surface looked more leathery. Around it, the smooth ground had parted into dark green lips that were squeezing the thing out onto the forest floor.

Lenny became instantly nauseated.

Various sounds of intrigue and discomfort came from all around her as the others each laid eyes on the object. No one approached, but when everyone had seen Vasher spoke again.

“Anyone want me to check it out?”

“I don’t think that’s a good idea!” Lenny said, suddenly concerned about what she had been sleeping on last night.

“Don’t worry!” Vasher said with a gesture of his hand. “I can look at it without lifting a finger!”

Vasher raised his right hand and snapped. From where his fingers had crossed, a blue puff fizzed into the air and coalesced into five spidery lines. Vasher made a fist and the lines shot towards the brown object. They wrapped around it gingerly and twisted the thing out of the orifice, like a hen turning her eggs.

Lenny was nearly sick again at the sound but kept it together. Vasher lowered his hand and the egg floated slowly towards the group.

“Snapping counts as lifting a finger.” Jr. said.

“Hush.” Vasher replied keeping his eyes on what Lenny now decided was undoubtedly and egg.

It came within five feet of the group and then hung there in space. Sure enough, it was leathery and clearly something alive.

“Are you gonna look inside?” Jr. asked Vasher.

“Don’t know. Could have spores or something inside.” He replied, using his magic to spin the thing in place.

Hemswick brushed past Lenny and promptly sliced the top of the egg with a dagger.

There was another sickening sound and Lenny was immediately reminded of when Jr. had stabbed the apple without any hesitation. She was with some brash people. Vasher and Johnathan made mild sounds of protest, but when Hemswick showed them what he had found, silence.

In his hand, Hemswick held a translucent baby bunny.

“There’s more in here.” He said. Then dropped the whole mess to the ground.

Voice quavering a bit, Vasher asked, “Any thoughts on this Johnathan?”

Lenny turned to see Johnathan look up from furious note taking only long enough to say “I have so many thoughts!!”

Lenny and Jr erupted in laughter. It echoed through the wood and made her forget of the horror Hemswick had just laid bare.

“Think about where babies come from a lot do you Johnathan?” Jr. ribbed.

“He only likes it when they’ve got green bits.” Lenny added. Further stoking their laughter.

Johnathan however didn’t hear a word of it and was lost in his scribbling.

“Can we move on?” Vasher eventually asked. “I don’t want to be near this sad mess anymore.”

“At least now we know where all the white animals come from.” Jr. pointed out. Then she marked a tree and stared walking.

Nightfall was easier to tell in the green wood. Slowly, a band of burning gold would form far behind them near the ground. A kind of horizon where the setting sun shone through the open understory. Around this time, Lenny saw Hemswick jog ahead followed by another one of those squelching sounds. She was not interested in seeing more translucent mess so she just kept walking and waited for his report. As expected, when Hemswick rejoined the party, he simply said “Deer in that one.” And kept walking with the rest.

Lenny imagined a gelatinous fawn then suddenly had to catch her breath. The memory of one of her dreams flooded back to her. Dreams of being stuck in a membrane and struggling to breathe. Was that why she couldn’t look at the animals? Did they remind her of her dreams?

The dark came surprisingly fast, but then, Lenny had slept in most of the morning. Being deeper in the woods also likely made light more fleeting as well. Apparently chagrined by not being woken, Hemswick volunteered for the first watch again for the first time in what must now have been a week Lenny realized. Still thinking of Vasher’s stories from the previous night, Lenny didn’t ask for any this time. Instead, she just summoned all the hunger she could muster to feed everyone again before bedding down. There was no meat in this batch, she’d have to work on that, but the rolls instead were buttery and wheat. A welcome grain for needed fiber.

Lenny had trouble falling asleep after all the extra rest from the night before. The strange sense of time in this place also had her feeling out of sorts. She tossed and turned and fell in and out of sleep for a timeless stretch. Every now and then she would hear others doing the same around her. No sooner had she fallen into real sleep than was she woken by Hemswick’s yelling. She snapped.

“What the hell is going on?” She yelled, sitting up in her bedroll.

“Fucking giant spider!” Hemswick bellowed as he hacked at the ground with his sword, the measly candle he used for watch guttering on the ground near by.

The others began to rise at the commotion rubbing eyes and mumbling.

“Its been watching us off and on for a few days.” Johnathan said.

“Yeah.” Vasher added. “Lenny and I saw it on the other side of the river. Just didn’t know it was a spider then.”

“Why didn’t you tell me” Hemswick asked, lowing his sword.

“Its been totally harmless.” Johnathan said. “Wouldn’t even let me get close when I approached it. If it’s a spy or an assassin, it isn’t good at either job.”

“Well if you wake up in a cocoon, I won’t cut you out.” Hemswick said. “Its your watch now elf. I don’t care what time it is.”

Then he scooped up his candle and stalked off behind a tree to sleep, leaving the sleepy group in the dark again.

“Well I don’t care about the spider.” Lenny said, and started getting ready to stand watch.

The group murmured in agreement and started to go back to bed one by one.

Instead of worrying about the spider, Lenny wanted to try to orient herself to how time worked in this place. She lit a candle to keep some semblance of watch but tried not to look at its light. Instead she scanned the dark, waiting to see if the band of gold would appear on the opposite edge of the forest. Hours stretched on and no gold came. Instead the forest just slowly changed from inky black to a deep luminous green. Still a long way to the other side then. Lenny thought to herself, blowing out her candle. When she looked up, she could barely see the shape of a white robbed figure become visible as the light rose. There were more of them. One by one, she shook her companions awake. Shushing them as they began to ask what was going on. Luckily it seemed she had spotted them in time and by the time the white robed figured arrived, everyone was dressed and ready.

Twelve figures slowed as they drew near Lenny and her friends. No one spoke for a time and Lenny was happy to see Hemswick restraining himself. For now. The robed figures were of all kinds of races but the one in the lead was an elf like Uru had been. Mint green skin and long black hair, he was the first to speak.

“What have you done with Uru. What became of the six we sent to find you?”

Vasher, having apparently accepted his role in the group and point man, stepped forward.

“Uru was the one who led us here. We know of the six you speak of. They were taken by a black robed figure and made to attack us. Uru fought with us against them but fell later to a greater foe.”

“So, they met evil.” The lead elf said and all twelve hung their heads. After a moment, he continued, “Uru was supposed to lead you too us. I see you still carry one of the monsters with you.”

Lenny remembered the lich boy on the ground near her belongings. Apparently, he still had not regenerated.

“Yes.” Vasher answered. “We have killed three of them so far. The eldest is the one who killed Uru.

“To slay three so quickly.” The elf gasped. “You truly are our salvation.”

“Salvation?” Jr. snorted. “We’re the ones that need salvation.”

Lenny’s stomach growled as if on que.

“Yes, that is right. You must have faced many hardships. Come take our hands and we will take you to the grove.” The elf said, and the other figured gathered around with outstretched hands.

For a moment, Lenny backed away, but then Vasher was there with a hand on her side. He looked up at her, winked, and looked totally at ease. Curious, she gave in for now and threw her stuff over her shoulders. Vasher’s lead seemed to comfort the others and before she knew it, Lenny was standing in a circle with the robed figures and her companions. With a snap, the green wood vanished.

When Lenny could see straight again, she found herself in a bustling market square. Everything was still green, from the buildings to the floor, but there were actual houses and shops. People of all kinds bustled from place to place like any town she had ever seen. Except, everyone was in white.

“I know this all must be so much.” The lead elf said. “My name is Jacobin. Let me escort you to your hosts. They are excited to help you recover from your trying journey.”

Jacobin turned towards one of the small streets leading out of the main thoroughfare and made for everyone to follow him.

“What makes you trust him?” Lenny whispered at Vasher when she got close.

“I have a lot of experience with his type. He means well, we just need to find out what his version of well is.” He replied under his breath.

So Lenny followed. This place did feel welcoming compared to the last few days. What was the difference between this place and any other strange town where she had stopped in the past? She ate their food with no suspicion. She slept in their rooms with no hesitation. A little more trust wouldn’t be the end.

Eventually, Jacobin stopped in front of a house no different from the rest and gestured for them to enter. Lenny could smell food cooking inside. It was almost too much to bear. Walking inside, she found a warm and comfortable living room like an inn in a large city. There were carpets and lounge chairs, and, in the center, a long table was decked with every kind of food Lenny could imagine. Tarts and meat pies, bread and jams. It was beautiful. Doddering around the table was a middle-aged couple. They wore white robes with aprons and smiled at everyone with warm rosy faces.

“This is Todd and Linda.” Jacobin said. “They will be taking care of you while you are with us. Let them know about anything you might need.”

“Pleased to meet you!” Linda said. Todd nodding beside her.

“We’ve got everything ready just for you.” Todd said, gesturing. “We thought you would be here sooner with Uru. But ah well, you’re here now praise mother.”

“Praise mother.” All the people in white echoed.

Hemswick and Johnathan dove immediately into the fresh food, Johnathan managing a thank you before picking out a fruit pie. Vasher and Jr., on the other hand, held back from the table, eyeing the food suspiciously. Lenny’s stomach growled and she remembered the seeds already inside her. Anything they can give me I already have. She thought and let her mouth water as she found a rack of pork ribs surrounded by ears of corn.

It was the most delicious thing she had ever tasted. Whether it was the days of rations and death or the quality of the food she could not tell, but it was real meat. Red and succulent the only white on it was the fat and bone between the ribs.

“Aren’t you hungry?” Linda asked.

When Lenny looked up to see who she was talking to, she found Vasher and Jr. still hanging back from the table.

“I’m not feeling well.” Jr. lied. “We saw some upsetting things in the forest. Can I just go to bed?”

“Of course.” Linda replied. “Let me show you to your quarters.”

Todd looked to Vasher.

“Would you happen to have a bath? I will see how I feel after I’m right clean.” Vasher said.

“Certainly.” Todd replied and led Vasher away into the back of the building.

This left Lenny with the munching Johnathan and Hemswick. Jacobin excused himself and mentioned that he would return in the morning to explain more, any Lenny felt herself grow content for the first time in ages. Her body felt limp at the sudden relaxation and then she was very tired despite the early hour.

Eventually Linda and Todd returned having put Jr. to bed and Vasher to bath, and asked Lenny if she needed anything. Lenny truly had all she could dream of in front of her, so she waved them on and ate until Vasher returned. He was spotless and had recreated the illusion of his hair, so he appeared as he did back on the ship. As if nothing had happened. Looking at her own hands, Lenny decided she needed a bath as well and realized she did need something from Linda after all. Watching Vasher politely rebuff more offers of food, Lenny followed Linda into the bath chambers.

The entire area was polished green wood with a lacquered wood tub in the center. The last of Vasher’s bathwater was draining out a pipe that ran through the floor and Lenny noticed Linda take two large empty buckets from the room. In a few moments, she returned with them full of piping hot water.

“Need any help with that?” Lenny asked but Linda refused and quickly set off to fill the next round.

Lenny waited till she was done before stripping and getting into the miraculous warm water. She kept her boots right next to the tub to be sure. Soon, she was dozing off from the warm water and full belly. To avoid the risk of drowning, Lenny used the last of her will to scrub off the layers left by the rotten sea. The muddy plains. The bloody river. All of it came off easier than the memories, but she was happy to be here. It wasn’t familiar, but it was a house, that was plenty.

Credits:

Matt Holden - World Builder and Head of Story, Johnathan, Uru, undead, Hemswick

Gabriel Durham - Author and Historian, Vasher, dialog polisher

Sarah Durham - Ashlyn "Lenny"

Ruth Tully - Jr.

Special thanks to Patrick Rothfuss for Chandiran Bedtime Story.