Chapter 2

Haledon stared in awe at the newcomers.

In comparison to the practical foliage of the Astralaceae crew, the Earth Druids were a stunning display of blooms and vines. He admired the apparent functionality of their suits as well as the springtime beauty they displayed.

Of the three Druids, the one with golden-grey hair was the most vibrant. Her thick hair was bound by intricately woven branches and reeds with vibrant blossoms scattered along its surface. The front of the suit was a tessellation of flower colours. Reds and oranges blended into greens, blues, and purples. And as the Druid shifted in the ship's bioluminescence, her image shimmered against the light.

Standing to her side was a man with sandy hair. His chest was a curtain of flowers, blooming with red, orange, and turquoise. They loosely draped over his knees, revealing an intertwined rosette of agave leaves that made up his boots and leggings. Desert star-vine crawled from under his prickly-pear pauldrons, dancing with each step he took.

The third Earth Druid had no hair, but their soft features were shaped by locs made of thick roots. The braided mass was packed with moss and swung softly as they moved forward. Eyes of verdant green complemented the variegated foliage that hung to their chest. Vivid purples and emeralds made up the leaves that stretched down to form the coattails.

This one had chosen not to add any shrubbery to their feet in contrast to the other Druids. As they walked, it was as though their toes stretched out and tried to grasp the roots beneath their feet.

"Hello?" The iridescent Druid inquired again.

"Hi—umm—sorry," Haledon stammered. "Me?"

"Yes, you are a Seral Druid?" The woman approached and looked him over. Her eyes were full of curiosity, but also the urgency of the prey fleeing a predator.

"I—umm—yes," Haledon continued.

"And you know the direction of the Hilum?"

"Umm, that way." He pointed down the length of the ship.

The woman stared at him and gave a quick wave of her hand. "Lead the way."

"Oh, uh, sure."

Turning, Haledon quickly stopped and noticed a familiar face staring back at him. Primeval Druid Hannar's faded, earthen colour eyes inspected the visitors. There was a brief moment of unease before she revealed a broad smile that released the tension.

She approached with purpose, but not too fast. Her long white hair was put into a braid that draped over her shoulder. With each step, it bounced and swayed, though never left her chest. The bramble suit she wore was full of autumn colours and hung down to her knees like a coat.

"Welcome," Hannar spoke softly and presented herself with a slight bow. "I am Primeval Druid Hannar."

The three Earth Druids stepped toward to present themselves. The vibrant one took hold of the moment, taking an additional step and bowing.

"I am Primeval Druid Hummingbird of the Evergreen Cascades."

As she stepped back, the Druid armoured with desert vegetation moved forward and placed a hand to his heart. He dipped his head and shoulders before returning his gaze to Hannar.

"I am Primeval Druid Mesa of the Sonoran Desert."

Finally, the shoeless Druid made their way before the rest. Pulling the vines away from their face and tucking them behind their ears, they stare for a moment.

A smile crossed their face. Quietly, the Druid dragged two fingers from their crown to their chin before reaching out and touching Hannar's chest.

The Astralaceae Druid audibly exhaled as Haledon watched her remaining tension melt away.

"Very well," Hannar exclaimed. "Welcome to our Astralaceae. If you would, please, follow me."

"Do I still need to attend?" Haledon enquired.

Hannar, who had forgotten Haledon's presence, turned to face him and, with a smile, placed a hand on his shoulder.

"That will not be necessary, Seral Druid Haledon. Last I heard, you should be tending the Hypogeal Nexus."

With that, Hannar turned and began to walk down the hall with the visitors keeping pace. Hollow thuds echoed with each monstrous step from the arboreal defenders that followed.

Pressing himself against the vine wall, Haledon could feel the ship reaching out and grappling him. Once safely out of the way, the goliaths marched their thick trunks for legs past him.

One looked his way, its face holding a permanent look of distrust across the bark but otherwise paying him no mind. The swaying evergreen arms scattered needles in its wake as it occasionally collided with the edges of the tight corridors. Haledon had never seen something so large or fierce, but he was able to surmise it was likely meant for planets and not the narrow ship passages.

Pulling himself from the wall, he watched as the Primeval Druids and their escort disappeared from sight. As they did, people began to rush to one another, gathering in the passage and chittering among themselves. While others curiously spied in the direction of the visitors before running to tell others.

"Wow, did you see that?" He overheard one person ask as he started his walk back to the Nexus.

"Yeah! They look just like the tales of Earth said they would." Another replied.

Further down the corridor, a passing conversation caught his attention.

"They had these walking trees with them and—"

"Forswyn, that's ridiculous!"

"No, I swear, they were twenty feet tall and had bodies of ironwood."

"Yeah, okay—"

Haledon rounded the last turn and slowed his pace for the final steps to the Nexus.

He allowed his mind to wander for a moment. Druids from Earth had landed on their ship mere moments after the seeding of a planet. On top of that, he was also now in charge of the Hypogeal Nexus. This meant he was going to need to be assigned a Pioneer.

With a smile, he looked at the grass screen, separating him from his station.

"Just go in and work like you would if Primeval Druid Farran were there." He muttered to himself and stepped through the grass.

It rustled against him, opening up into the same oblong room as before. He exhaled a sigh of relief as he stretched out his arms in preparation to begin.

At that moment, something took hold of him. The being thrust him against the wall as though he were a piece of bark adrift in a storm. He hit against the surface hard, and with a gasp, the air was forcefully expelled from his body.

Vines begin to constrict around his wrists and ankles. Opening his mouth to speak, a thick root wrapped around his neck and crushed down on his voice box.

Emerging from an adjacent wall, a bramble body of thorns and vines pulled itself free. Slender strap-shaped petals of gold began to bloom over the torso, while two purple and white pentagram flowered eyes blossomed into existence.

"The Nexus is secure." The creature hissed, its voice cracking like twigs underfoot.

A gnarled staff of oak grew from its palm and rooted itself to the floor of the room. The top began to branch quickly as a dense mass of shoots began to fractal out from its peak. Tapping the staff to the floor with two hollow thuds, the wicker-looking head snapped to the side.

After a moment, a woman wearing a long, pleated leather coat appeared in much the same way as the creature before. Her emerald eyes were complemented by the faded freckles of her cheeks and grey hair at her temples. A crown made of interlaced antler sat atop her head. Moss had begun to latch itself to the headdress, taking on the look of shedding velvet.

"Witch-Hazel!" She yelled. "What are you doing?"

"Securing the room?"

"It's our ship. Ours. They're friendly." She pointed to Haledon. "He's wearing plants for Viridios-sake!"

Witch-Hazel looked to Haledon and then back to the other woman. With a flourish of its staff, the being tapped it again to the ground.

Haledon felt the aggressive plants begin to retreat from him. Collapsing to his knees, he started to cough, taking in air once more. As he did, the floor began to shift, pulling him up and into a sitting position. A comfortable seat formed around him as soft leaves budded from the rough vines.

"Better?" Witch-Hazel asked sarcastically.

"Much." The woman replied, turning her attention towards Haledon. "My apologies for Witch-Hazel. That one has got more thorns than blossoms."

Haledon, confused by the entire situation, sat in awe. He tried to wrap his mind around what had happened and how a chair had been grown beneath him so quickly.

"W-who are you?" He gasped while catching another breath. Rubbing at his throat, he could feel something warm trailing down from where the vine had been.

"Ah, yes, where are my manners?" The woman said with a smile and approached a single step. "I am Primeval Druid Sparrow of the Apalachen Forest."

"You're an Earth Druid?" He stammered.

Withdrawing his hand from his neck, Haledon stared at the droplets of blood that he had smeared in.

"Really, Witch-Hazel? Thorns?"

"They have anesthetizing properties. So at least they didn't hurt."

Sparrow sighed as she walked towards Haledon.

"And if—" She directed her attention towards Haledon. "What's your name?"

"S-Seral Druid Haledon."

"And if Haledon had been a Mecharrion, what would have been the purpose of numbing thorns?"

"I would have put him to sleep...permanently."

Sparrow released another long sigh as she placed a hand on Haledon's neck.

"Go sit in a corner, I'm mad at you." She muttered toward Witch-Hazel while rubbing a thin layer of algae on Haledon's wounds. With a series of quick hand gestures, she smiled and began to wipe the algae away.

"There we go, Seral Druid Haledon, no more punctures."

"Th-thanks." Haledon rubbed at his throat again. As she had said, the wounds had healed over in an instant. "So, you're really from Earth?"

"My whole life," Sparrow muttered as she began to explore the room.

Running her fingers along the walls, Haledon watched as the vines and bark seemed to twitch and reach towards her. Algae grew thick over the walls, transforming into moss a moment later, which eventually draped down to the floor.

"I think you're in the wrong place, then. All the other Primevals are in the Hilum."

"No, I’ve arrived at the correct plot."

Sparrow slid her hands into the wall as fluidly as reaching into a pond.

"Umm, excuse me, please don't." Haledon panicked and jumped up. "This is a critical part of the ship. You're going to—"

"I know." She spoke cooly, looking towards Haledon. "Calm down, Seral."

With a few quick motions of her free hand, Sparrow slowly removed her arm. The hole she created quickly revegetated and looked as those it had never been altered.

"Look," She continued, revealing a fist-sized mass in her palm. "Dwarf accumulator nodule. It could have caused problems with planetary integration three dispersals from now."

Tossing it back to Haledon, he fumbled to catch it. The orange goo around it was still warm as he stared at the organic mass.

"How did you—" He placed the nodule on a small workbench jutting from the wall. "How do you know so much about the Astralaceae?"

"How do I—?" She turned to face him. Her eyes shifted to Witch-Hazel and back, confusedly. "Haledon, I grew this ship. I grew all your ships."