Chapter 7-Part 1“We’re here,” Melsil’s words rang throughout those on the lotus vessel.They hadn’t been awake for very long when he said that. Rillia had been manning the steer while Jason was paddling and Vesha was checking the map. When the mushroom swordsman told them the Duchil family’s headquarters were at the bend in the river, he wasn’t lying. Rillia had been steering her lilypad vessel around the curve in the Blue River from dawn until noon before Melsil mentioned they had arrived at their destination.Before approaching the curve of the river there was a subtle but marked change in the landscape. Tall grass gave way to more mushrooms and weird fungi but you wouldn’t notice it very well from the boat. The grass around them seemed to hide the fungus, as if the plants hid the mushrooms and other such organisms. Also, you saw almost no other sentient life forms just by glancing at the shore aside from mushroom people, unlike where other parts of the river. “Are you sure?” Vesha asked. “Positive,” he said. “I’ve taken this route more times than I can count.”“And after we deal with the Duchil family…” Rillia said. “Who will accompany me to the Primeval World?”“I will,” Vesha said. “The species of Wassergras have been foolish giving up in the endeavor of traveling and colonizing the Primeval World as it could help promote peace. With more land discovered and prepared for the various races, less people in Wassergras the less fighting over competition. And Jason seems to want to go wherever you do.”“Sure will!” Jason shouted. “Rillia’s awesome! I’d go to the depths of the earth with a person as brave and excited as her!”“Will the brigade allow you to do that?” the ant asked. “Of course,” Vesha said. “Do you know how up I am in the Exploratory Pincer brigade? I’m a Supreme Captain. Only five of us in the entire brigade and that’s the third highest rank you can attain. I’ve been thinking of conducting an expedition there for years now but I’ve had very few willing to go with me. To go to somewhere as dangerous and uncharted as the Primeval World I’d only want the most dedicated and strongest of soldiers. Not only do I have that in you guys but with the coming conflict between species as a result of the struggle against the Red Fungus, I wish the large swaths of the populace in Wassergras could be transported to another place to prevent further wars.”“I see,” the ant said. “But I hope you know I won’t be venturing out for such a noble intention, I just want to see the most I can of this world. Besides, the Primeval World is too dangerous to safely transport such people, so I don’t think it’d benefit anyone.”“We’ll just have to prepare it,” the crawfish replied. “Wassergras was that way before the species here drove out most of the wild animals and changed terrain to suit them. We do that with a section of the Primeval World that we find habitable and transport whoever’s willing to make a life there. Do you think that’s moral, Melsil?”The mushroom swordsman looked somewhat angry before relaxing his stare.“I’d have to be absolutely sure such a wilderness could be made suitable,” he answered. “But I’d be most worried about people being thrown there against their will. So I’m skeptical of such a proposal.”The crawfish nodded in response.“I respect your criticisms,” she said. “What of you, Melsil?” Rillia asked. “Will you accompany us to the Primeval World?”The fungus person looked hesitant to answer as he met her gaze before turning away. At first, Rillia felt this detour would only hurt her chances of going to the Primvel World. But with more companions, the odds of surviving to venture further into the unknown reaches of the world was almost assured. Melsil going with them would only be a benefit at this point.“I believe not,” he said. “Wassergras has precedent for someone to fight for justice, even with the Red Fungus defeated. The fungus people will need someone to lead them to a better, more peaceful tomorrow and I believe the White Spore sword wants me to do that.”The ant smiled at the knowledge she had two companions who would help her with her dangerous ambition.“Alright!” Jason said. “Time to get ready for a journey to unexplored lands. But first, let’s rough up some bad guys.”“If he’s even telling the truth,” Vesha stated. “Remember...I still don’t entirely trust you. I will once I see you kill one of your own kind.”“Hey!” Jason said. “He will! We all will! I know I’m-!”“Jason,” Melsil said.He gave him a stoic expression, the youth going silent. “I appreciate your...enthusiasm,” the fungus person said. “But I don’t want you to think this is fun...we’re going to be facing my family. And as much I may hate them for what I’ve done...I deeply regret doing this and that they hadn’t used their influence or power for good.”Jason hung his head in shame, almost afraid to say anything else.“One should always be aware of the inner weaknesses of your enemies,” Melsil stated. “They, like all people, have gifts and talents they’ve used to oppose you. If you don’t consider them people, you start believing in a false dichotomy where they are inherently evil and you are inherently good. Believe that, and you will fall prey to evil just as readily as they do.”He nodded before jumping out of the boat in preparation to bring it to shore. As Rillia steered the boat against the current of the Blue River with Vesha paddling to get near the edge of the river, she saw a group of fungus people gather around the edge of the shore. After Rillia docked their lotus boat and tied it to a mushroom stem with a rope of dried venom, the fungus people stood scared at the sight of Melsil. Jason took a red mushroom head with him, placing it on his head as he left, something which Rillia hoped wouldn’t offend the fungus people too much. The ground they walked on was still covered in rain water, but more of a puddle now than a creek’s worth of liquid.Rillia was fascinated by all the fungus people around them were of more colors and shapes then red or green with hat-like mushroom heads atop them. Some were blue with red squiggly lines that ran across their entire body before decorating the top of their mushroom “hat” with a red spiral. The blue ones’ limbs were not a mesh of wiry, vine looking material but were made of light blue feather-like objects. The blue fungus people had no mouth coverings, instead have multiple gaps in their head to act as different mouths. They also did not have traditional eyes but red strips of material to cover their face.Other fungus people didn’t even have mushroom bodies. Some were giant red, star shaped creatures with five red, tentacle-like appendages that they used as legs to walk. The white center of their body where the tentacle appendages intersected was raised in the air so long as they walked with their long “legs”. In the center of their body was an opening from which they would expose their small, perfectly spherical head with multiple small eyes and were equipped with a large mouth at the very top. But the most exotic of the fungus people were bipedal creatures with two arms but were covered in yellow drapes. From their shoulders to their legs, below and above their torso their body was obscured by the drapes. They were like capes that, on any other creature, would probably weigh it down.Rillia recognized the different fungus people by their colors and varying body shapes. Red and green mushroom people were the strongest of the fungus and could control black venom swords to an impressive degree and were the only kind who could be true fungus swordsmen. The others, while not nearly as strong, were far more important to the ecosystem. The blue mushroom people were able to absorb large quantities of water, mix it with nutrients they collected from the ground and push out a liquid that was nutritious not only to other fungi but for plants and animals alike. The star fungus prevented soil erosion when they dug their appendages into the ground and filtered toxins out of the earth. They were also able to detach parts of their body to give nutritious meals to hungry and tired creatures. The yellow drape fungi were able to decompose dead or dying matter faster than any non-sentient fungi by wrapping it in their drapes. Their heads were also fairly odd as they possessed fin-like appendages on their face that were able to detect body heat and moisture in the air that gave them acute knowledge of weather.Rillia was trying to keep her composure as she looked on at the downright fascinating display of organisms in front of her. She had only read about them and, even though her knowledge was extensive, it was far different from seeing the real thing. She was overcome by a sudden desire to touch them, running her hands along the surface of the fungus people. Rillia walked up to the red star fungus to run her hands along the rough yet pleasant surface, her fingers never having quite the sensation. It was rude not to ask but this was what she traveled for.I want to see everything in this world. Rillia thought. Knowing it is useless. If all I ever did was read about other peoples’ experiences...I’d never live my own life. The Primeval World should have more than even this…“You’re beautiful,” the ant said to the star fungus.The sentient organism barely noticed her, his eyes transfixed on Melsil. Everyone of the dozens of fungus people cowered at the sight of him, afraid of what he would do. The air was tense as Melsil was obviously trying to decide what to say.“Woah!” Jason said as he used his powerful legs to jump atop one of the red star fungus tentacles. He began feeling the creature’s strange-feeling skin, smiling with laughter. “Look at all the plant people! They’re so cool!”Rillia felt a ping of pain as she heard him say that. She looked up at the starfish fungus’s head, shaking her head. She tapped at the creature to get their attention.“I’m so, so sorry he said that,” she apologized. “He’s new here and doesn’t know what-”“We fungi are not offended by such things,” the surprisingly feminine voice of the star fungus said. The ant’s eyes went wide as he said that.“Wha-what?” Rillia asked. “But-but I thought that was offensive-”“It’s not,” a blue mushroom person beside her said. “We’re not plants, but it’s a common misconception that we’re offended by such.”“Only the Red Fungus,” the star fungi said. “Care about such petty non-insults.” The ant felt slightly embarrassed at their words. She supposed not everything she read could be true. Rillia shrugged before turning back to Melsil, the mushroom swordsman doing everything in his power to look non-threatening. He had his arms at rest so if he was attacked he couldn’t react quickly enough and was doing his best not to touch his sword. If Rillia didn’t know any better, she almost would think Melsil was trying to make himself a sitting target. He also wasn’t keeping himself silent, possibly waiting for the right time to speak. “So,” one of the yellow drape fungi said. “Is it true you have defected from the Red Fungus?” “Yep!” Jason said as he stood atop the red star fungus. “We’re here to save everybody!” “Impossible,” the blue fungus person that corrected Rillia said. “Why would a Duchil family member leave their privileged and honorable lifestyle? I don’t care how many stories I hear, I can’t believe any of his murderous kind would leave their cushy home?” “Why would he need to?” a red mushroom man said. “You act like it's a bad thing to stay with the Duchils. Do you think that our race can survive without them? Why are we not allowed to have the prosperity that stronger species are allotted?” “I agree with Gestin,” a yellow drape fungi said. “Without the Red Fungus our species would be lost. Now, thanks to an increase in support for them, they help our kind grow strong when no one else can.” “You think the Red Fungus are our allies?” the star fungus Rillia spoke to yelled. “They’ve brought nothing but destruction to our kind! Their constant warmongering has robbed us of countless lives not only of the fungi but other races as well!” “That’s right,” Vesha said. “I have recently...changed my mind about how my kind have treated the fungus but the Red Fungus are good for no one. They are murderers!” “So?” the yellow drape fungus man said. “Soldiers die in battle all the time. Our soldiers died and there’s did as well. And since the Red Mountain ants actively prevent any of us from having an army there’s no way to defend ourselves!” “They kill soldiers as well as innocents all the same,” Vesha stated. “Yeah!” Jason said. “So let us go and beat them up!” Rillia remembered the agreement the fungus man was referring to. The ants were the most powerful ruling species in the land and used their might to broker peace deals that would allow for better relations between species. The ants, as Melsil pointed out during the first night they meant, were not completely altruistic in this manner but knew peace between species would maintain their own kind’s safety and control over Wassergras.One of their deals was that the fungus were not able to hold an army if they wanted to host trade and other interspecies necessities. They had been disbanded after the war where the Red Fungus allied with the acorn people to fight the crawfish, ant and pinecone alliance. Since the Red Fungus crime was supported even by some of the different clans of the fungus people, they saw it as necessary to send their own armies out to fight with their allies. The Red Fungus were a guerilla and crime group so there was no law the ants could raise to prevent them from gathering up but in order to break the power of the fungus, the agreement was made that they could no longer host an army. While many saw it as fair, even Rillia knew it was a thinly veiled ploy to take a potential rival for the ants’ territory out. The fungus people used to be the species with the second most territory in Wassergras before much was reclaimed by the ants after the war. With no official army, there was little the fungus could do to defend against the Red Mountain colony from taking their turf. This meant the fungus were the only species in Wassergras without some official military. This was why the opinions of the fungus people over the Red Fungus were deeply split. While everyone not a fungus person feared and hated them, the fungus people’s feelings were deeply mixed. While some hated the violence they instigated, others saw them as the best hope for their species becoming competitive enough to rival the ants and crawfish. And with the red mushrooms that sucked up nutrients in the soil and poisoned the land unless they properly bribed, that looked to be a reasonable estimation.“Look!” the red mushroom man said. “He even brought an ant along with him! This proves he’s a traitor to our kind!”“Exactly!” the yellow draped fungus said. “Melsil is a traitor to our species!”“I may not like the Red Fungus much more than I do an open wound,” the blue mushroom man said. “But I don’t trust ants. Along with the crawfish, they crippeled our species entire way of life.”“Rillia’s not like that!” Jason said.He jumped from the fungus he stood on to land beside the blue fungus.“She’s not a bad person,” he said. “None of us are. We just want to help in whatever way possible. And right now, that means stopping a war between the Red Fungus and everyone else before it even happens.” “You mean the Red Fungus trying to reclaim our lost territory?” the yellow draped fungus asked. “We were cheated out of land until we were the weakest of everyone in Wassergras. If anything, it’s justice what they’re doing by trying to give us back what we lost.” “Is poisoning everything a part of that justice?!” Jason screamed at him. “What they’re doing is good for no one, not even other fungus!”“Jason is right,” Vesha said. “You don’t think even those not affiliated with the Red Fungus won’t be drawn into the coming war. And with no proper army, who knows what chance you have of winning?”“Let’s hear what the traitor to Red Fungus has to say,” the red mushroom said.Melsil drew the blade at his side. The brilliant white flash that accompanied the drawing of the sword along with the elegant, white particles that floated around it caused everyone to give it their undivided attention. Most every fungus person that saw it gasped. “This,” he said. “Is the White Spore sword. A secret weapon that the most elite of the fungus people were not allowed to be made aware of. It was said to be a legend. I found it upon traversing through the land of oak and pine that we share with the acorn and pine people.”His statement caused a murmuring among the crowd.“Yes!” Melsil shouted. “We share the land of Ushujin with the pine and oak! I know that’s controversial but it’s the truth nonetheless. While travelling through the area I heard of the intense bickering between the oak and pine peoples and how brainwashed they both seemed by the hatred forced down their throat from an early age. And I realized...that the irrational hatred we fungus share for other species is no different.”He then swept the sword forward, the blade extending past him to cut the grass just beyond him. The towering plants were sliced in half before more dainty spores filled the air. There was something mystical about witnessing the white blade do the most ordinary things.“It is the closest descendant of the legendary White Magnolia,” Melsil stated. “The tree that bestowed upon all sentient species the ability to know good and evil, putting us above the animals we hunt for food and break down into decay. I believe this sword is that very tree incarnated into a fungus. This sword has shown me things that haunt me even now and drive me to sacrifice myself even without reward. And I pledge with this weapon not only to destroy the Red Fungus but all who terrorize the fungus people. Don’t rely upon the mob of criminals that have forced you all into a hopeless corner but believe in the strength of my blade descended from the origin of all life!”Jason was absolutely star struck by the heroic speech and clapping while Vesha sighed, obviously annoyed. Rillia couldn’t decide what to think of it. While she knew Melsil meant well, he was asking them to all turn their entire lives over for the sake of an ill-defined cause and backed by a story no one over the age ten believed in. He was asking them to trust him on something so flimsy. Just as the ant guessed would happen, the fungus people murmured at his words. Some took it better, not really having a huge objection to it while others shook their heads and sneered at him. The more particularly angry fungus members looked ready to fight him.“I still don’t understand why the heir to the Duchil family would just go around doing good deeds for everyone,” the blue mushroom said. “Seems rather naive to me to think he’s any less than a charlatan villain.”“He may be a good person,” the star fungus that Jason jumped on said. “You...you don’t know if he’s bad or not.”“I say he’s bad if he claims he is who he says,” the yellow drape fungus said. “The Red Fungus is the only chance of prosperity left for us.”“Fine,” Melsil said as he sheathed his sword. “Don’t believe me. I’ll fight regardless of whatever happens. Now...move.”Everyone looked afraid at his words.“Yes, that’s right,” he said. “Move. I came to destroy the Duchils. Now get out of my way or fall in behind me.”The fungus people around him did as Melsil said. They all parted ways for him, the crowd forming a path for him to walk through. As Rillia and Vesha awkwardly between the fungus people, Jason spiritedly moved forward while Melsil walked rather somberly. Jason was in high spirits, his fists raised in the air as they walked past the row of grass to enter the forest of mushrooms around them.
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