Chapter 36

Haledon stepped through the veil into a field of tall grass. He paused momentarily, inspecting the new space around him, before Birchbark interrupted his thoughts.

"Taking you to the Hilum, now." She announced before Haledon felt his body tugged forward through the field. After a few moments of flight, he was pushed through the grass of the Hilum.

"Well, that's convenient," Mek-Tek remarked and looked around the room. "When did your Astra design that feature?"

"Today, I'm pretty sure," Haledon mumbled. "I think...I'm on day eight of today..."

"Huh?" Mek-Tek replied, his furry face briefly twisted in confusion. "Right, your journey into the Shaman Tree—how was that?"

"I spent a week below freezing, broke a hand and dislocated a shoulder."

Mek-Tek gave him a deadpan stare. After a slow blink, the small Druid took a puff from the straw of his orb.

"So," Mek-Tek finally replied as vapour flowed from his mouth. "That's a...good?"

"Compared to everything after I woke back up, I guess."

"Hey," The voice of Witch-Hazel interrupted as their body grew from the walls. "How did you two get here so fast?"

"Birchbark sent us through the nutrient lines," Haledon said, turning to face the arbornaut. "What took you?" He teased.

"Grabbed a drink," They replied with a shrug. "I thought it was better than sitting here and twiddling my twig until you showed up."

"I—" Haledon thought for a second. "What?"

"Nothing—you both ready?"

"Yeah." Mek-Tek and Haledon replied.

"One moment," Birchbark interrupted as her bramble form emerged from the wall behind Witch-Hazel. "I would like to enhance your SOILs with my indigenous microorganisms. It will help you outside my protective hull, as it did with Haledon."

"Yeah, okay," Witch-Hazel said as they stepped back and opened their arms. "Touch me, Birchy—one more time."

Haledon watched Birchbark place her hands on Witch-Hazel's chest. Slowly, white aspen branches grew beneath the thick bramble of yellow flowers and thorns. Peaking through the foliage, Haledon could see white-barked limbs begin to replace Witch-Hazel's hardwood skeleton.

"Birchbark?" Haledon asked as he watched the transformation. "How is what you're doing different than the Cosmophyllon foliage?"

"Different biomes," Birchbark replied, turning to face Mek-Tek. "May I genetically modify your—"

"Yeah, yeah," Mek-Tek replied. He twisted a piece of his small helmet, sending roots and vines crawling across his body.

Birchbark approached the now fully covered body of Mek-Tek and placed a finger on the Druid's chest piece.

"The foliage of a Cosmophyllon Druids," She continued. "Is meant to remain connected to my hull at all times, where I feed them nutrients and heat to prevent them from quickly dying. Your SOIL modifications retain nutrients and cycle heat more efficiently. In addition, they can be detached from my hull for quite a while before needing a nutrient supplement."

"How long?" Haledon asked, watching Mek-Tek's hands, chest piece, and helmet slowly drain of chlorophyll.

"Long enough to get you to the other end of the Megacolides," Birchbark said reassuringly. "I estimate."

"You estimate?" Mek-Tek followed up as he examined his pale, rooted palms.

"I cannot see into the Megacolides, so I extrapolated based on what my sisters have told me from their observations."

"Your sisters?" Witch-Hazel asked this time.

Birchbark turned, and with a wave of her hand, figures appeared at the top of the Hilum. Illuminated by a twisting cloud of pollen, Haledon could see a dozen familiar but mysterious hollowed faces of Astralaceaes.

"Lost and present, my sisters and I sit in the Hilum to discuss your Mecharrion," Birchbark replied. "And there is much for us to discuss in a short amount of time."

"Birchbark?" Haledon asked as he stepped forward. "These are...the other Astras?"

"Yes," She replied plainly.

"Wow," He remarked in awe. Haledon stepped forward another foot, hoping for a better look at the different identities of the Astralaceaes. "Can I speak with them?"

"At current, no. There would be too much information for you to process."

"Oh, okay," Haledon replied disappointedly. "Make sure they know how dangerous the Mecharrion are."

"I will, and you be careful." She looked at him and the other Druids. "If you need something, let me know."

The Astras' images at the top of the auditorium faded away as Birchbark stepped back into the wall. For a moment, Haledon stood there in silence, listening to his heart pounding away at his SOIL's breastplate.

"Um, so, where do we go?" Mek-Tek interrupted the quiet, taking another puff off his sphere.

"There," Haledon pointed to a shadowy edge of the room at the top of the stairs. "It's past that bramble."

"How can you tell?" Witch-Hazel interrupted, heading in the direction Haledon pointed.

"It's one of the things we learn to notice and stay away from," Haledon informed Witch-Hazel. "They don't want saplings wandering beyond the hull and being lost to space."

"Yeah, can't have that." They replied, stopping at the edge of the threshold. "So, what—is there a command?"

"No," Haledon said, approaching Witch-Hazel. "They just walked through. I watched it once, as a sapling, our whole undergrowth did. A pair of Cosmophyllon Druids gathered exterior hull bramble for us to see."

"Knowing every aspect of your world at a young age is best." Mek-Tek squeaked before exhaling a cloud of vapour. "That way, you can make an appropriate impact from the start."

"That was the idea—" Haledon agreed and examined Mek-Tek. "You going to be okay out there without your sapience juice?"

"Heh, sapience juice—" He squeaked. "I've got it covered."

Haledon watched as Mek-Tek took another deep inhale from the sphere before tucking it away in his backpack. With a twist of his fingers, the sack immediately bulged over, transforming Mek-Tek's back into a thick turtle shell. He exhaled, and with a muttering of Druidic, a transparent epidermal window encapsulated his head. It hardened into a hollow dome which he swivelled his head to inspect.

"Yeah," Mek-Tek spoke as he nodded and inhaled through a straw that had grown before him. Exhaling a cloud of vapour, the helmet quickly became a globe of swirling clouds. "No leaks, and filtration plants appear to be processing."

"I approve," Witch-Hazel nodded to Mek-Tek and laughed. "Where can I get one?"

"Okay, we're all good then." Haledon looked between his companions. "I guess I'll head out first?"

"Oh, dandelion, my dandelion!" Witch-Hazel gave a mocking Sequoia Squad salute.

Haledon waved a hand over his ear with a smile, and the woven helmet formed around his face. Looking over to Mek-Tek, he allowed the epidermal window to harden before speaking.

"Hold on," Haledon said and stepped forward into the bramble.

As he moved, he felt a range of sensations against the exterior of his SOIL. There were soft leaves, followed by scratching sticks, leading into a dense thicket of brambles and viscous sap. It felt like he was forcing his body into the muck of a swamp before Haledon's path shifted. 

Looking up, he emerged from a shallow hole beneath the inky black void. Then, quickly moving forward, he felt the roots grabbing his feet with every step.

After the first few feet, Haledon no longer inspected his feet but tilted his head back to look at the sea of lights he floated through. He felt a moment of calm as he remembered his dream of drifting among the stars. Then he remembered the Mecharrion ship that tore through the waters, and he sobered up from his drunken daydream.

"Well, that's nice," Witch-Hazel remarked, their voice echoing in the back of Haledon's mind. Looking to the arbornaut, Haledon followed their hand as it pointed to the bioluminescent growths spotting the hull. "We have some ambiance for our walk."

"And a long walk it will be," Haledon responded, pointing down the length of the Astralaceaes. "We have five pods between us and the Megacolides junction, and then there’s that ship's length before our stop."

"Putting it into Earth terms," Mek-Tek said, briefly mumbling various numbers before continuing. "Five kilometres until the Mega, another six after that. If we pushed our pace, we're looking at about a four-hour journey."

"We'd better get moving then," Witch-Hazel said, their bark face showing signs of frost.

"So, no helmet for you?" Haledon asked as they began their march.

"Guess not. What's the point? Just different bark for looks' sake."

"So you don't need to breathe?"

"I mean, yeah, but it's not as though I have lungs," Witch-Hazel explained. "Everything I need is stored in my heartwood, and these modifications made that even heartier."

"Well, that's convenient."

"Mmhmm," Witch-Hazel continued. "Bit chilly, though, if I'm being honest."

Haledon laughed momentarily before his conscious mind reached back to the thoughts of the Arctic desert. The recollection of the bitter cold haunted his memory, and before long, a chill raced through his body. He caught himself, taking a breath and allowing his attention to drift from his thoughts back to observing the hull of the Astralaceaes as they walked.

Haledon had only seen the hull from the safety of the Astralaceaes or while spinning through space and was excited to experience it finally. He observed every root and impact site, randomly stopping to examine the bioluminescent mushrooms that released their glowing pollen.

Occasionally, Haledon would notice unusual spots of twisted roots and vines firmly holding to oddly shaped hills. As he observed more intently, he saw the mound shift as something scurried over the surface.

"You see that?" Haledon asked Mek-Tek, but the helmet was an orb of swirling vapour.

"See what?" Mek-Tek coughed.

"Over there." Haledon pointed, grabbing Witch-Hazel's attention as well.

Nearing the hill, the shapes became easier to see as they skittered and crawled over the mound. Crabs, the size of watermelons with carapaces made of stone and roots, rushed around the small hill.

"Birchbark, what are those?" Haledon asked.

"Cosmobrachyura—decomposers." Birchbark's voice snuck into the back of Haledon's mind. "They're breaking down the last of my felled sisters so we can access those nutrients."

"Have these always been here? On the outside of the ship?"

"Yes, but not with the same decomposition rate. Another benefit of the Megacolides modifications."

Haledon neared one of the crabs and watched as its serrated claws gripped a large burl. After a moment of sawing, it broke away a piece of wood and pulled it to its mouth. Quickly consuming the meal, it latched its claws again and repeated its process.

"This is how you break down micrometeor impacts on the hull," Haledon remarked.

"Yes, among other things." Birchbark finished, the coolness leaving Haledon's mind.

"Space crabs," Witch-Hazel laughed to themself and released a pleased sigh. "There's a joke in there somewhere."

Haledon looked to Witch-Hazel, waiting for them to finish. But the punchline never came, and eventually, their bramble form began to walk again toward the Megacolides in silence.

Haledon waited behind, looking at the crustaceans' rocky shells. He stood there thinking about the obsidian exoskeleton of the Mecharrion and what was hiding beneath the armour. The memory of Sparrow reached into his mind, asking herself whether the Mecharrion he saw was Mecharrion at all. A small hand tapped at his visor.

"Hey, you doing alright there, Seral?" Mek-Tek asked, pointing to Witch-Hazel. "Don't mean to rush the existential crisis you appear to be facing. But we do have limited time."

"Yeah, sorry." Haledon laughed and started walking. "Got lost in thought." He finished.