Rest After Battle—Sentience of the White Spore

Chapter 11-Part 1“Thanks Rillia,” Vesha said. The crawfish’s body began to relax as the ant stuffed more and more red algae into the crack in the back of her body. The ant was still amazed at how little damage her exterior had taken from such a fall. She had lost very little stamina from landing so hard on the interior of the dried venom ball and Vesha seemed to be able to walk better than anyone else after their battle injuries.Rillia was under the impression that crawfish had to eat red algae to recover but apparently that wasn’t it at all. When crawfish broke the exterior of their bodies, the proper way for their species to be healed was not to have them eat the crimson aquatic plant but to stuff it into the broken space in their exterior shell. Adult crawfish like Vesha could withstand a lot of damage this way. The ant and her three companions were at the side of the Blue River where they had docked their ship. She had dug up some of the red plant matter growing along the edge and began the process of placing as much as needed into the broken out shell of Vesha’s body. After a few days of doing so, the wound healed up almost miraculously, the break in her outer shell having scabbed over very well. She stood up during the next day on all six legs, testing her balance to make sure she was able to maintain stability.“This feels better,” Vesha said. “Thank you for being so patient with me.”“Don’t mention it,” Rillia replied. “I just hate that you couldn’t heal as fast as me and that others.”Rillia, while not suffering much physical damage, had been thoroughly exhausted enough that she could not produce anymore venom. Even after recovering from her tiredness she still could barely secrete a single drop of the green fluid she used for the Venom Drench. She’d have to wait possibly weeks to be able to restore her body’s natural amount of liquid. But Rillia was still in a favorable position compared to Jason and Melsil.Most of Jason’s bones were broken, his body so bloodied and beaten with bruises that he could not walk without wincing or screaming in pain. He had to be dragged or carried everywhere by one of his comrades as his body was too damaged to move on his own. However, his smile was different. Jason still smiled while being lugged around and even laughed, as though it didn’t matter that his body was broken. However, paradoxically, when Rillia looked closely enough at his face she could see something beneath the bright expression.There was a certain sadness his eyes carried, a certain quiver about his lips that made him more vulnerable than he usually was. Something about his normally unshakeable happiness and unbreakable confidence had been chipped away at. It was so subtle yet unmistakable that Rillia couldn’t help but feel some amount of pain when she looked too close at Jason.Did fighting his brother really give him that much pain? She thought. Or did he remember something he didn’t want to…?Melsil’s injuries, while not as severe as Jason’s, were still very extreme. His body has uncountable cuts that bled green blood profusely along with a stab wound in his chest that had still yet to fully heal after the days they spent at the side of the river. Melsil could walk but not far before he would nearly collapse. Rillia and Vesha routinely had to go and find the edible mushrooms to tear pieces off to give to their viscerally harmed comrades, having to recover their strength small bits at a time.But what Rillia was worried about the most was the fact that Juchil Duchil was literally physically near enough for her to have a plain view of him. The crime lord of the Red Fungus that had slaughtered thousands and waged a war against the strongest species in all of Wassergras was so close Rillia could touch him if she wanted to. The thought was scary enough to make her sleep closer to the edge of the mushroom forest than around her companions at night.However, whenever she looked at him directly, the fear seemed to dissipate. Not only was the fungus person very old but he was very old. He was also in a lot of pain from a blow that Melsil had given him. Juchil’s skin was heavily wrinkled, graying and dried to indicate advanced age. Also, his normally horror inducing eyes were not how Rilli initially saw them when first observing in the Tower Fungus. His eyes now looked tired, full of regret and an indescribable pain. As powerful as he had once been, Rillia could understand why. His entire family was killed by his own son and now he had no heir to rule the Red Fungus. Juchil’s empire was now gone as the head of the main family branch was destroyed. At best, the Red Fungus would remain in tatters and pieces of its once powerful self but even that was generous considering the Knife Claw army had raided their best strongholds.The crime lord said nothing the entirety of their stay together, merely staring at Melsil with a gaze that begged to ask him questions. His son never replied, instead force feeding him pieces of mushrooms collected by Rillia and Vesha. Melsil stood over him after a few days in which they had begun to truly recover. “Do you know why I am keeping you alive?” the mushroom swordsman asked his father.“To make my torment worse?” he asked. “You have taken everything from me...everything. Do you wish to do nothing but prolong my suffering?”“I want to bring you into the Red Mountain ant colony and Knife Claw army so they may extract any necessary information out of you we don’t already have,” Melsil said. “As much as I’d like to kill you, I need to know if anything I don’t already know could be useful.”“You really think I’d tell you anything?” Juchil asked.His son once again grabbed him by the collar of his red robe and lifted him into the air. The mushroom swordsman glared as the Duchil family head looked terrified at his own son. Rillia was shocked at such a display of weakness on behalf of Wassergra’s number one threat to peace and safety.“You’ll do more than just tell them everything,” Melsil said. “You fold rather quickly and dance like a young girl if they ask it of you.”The old man quivered as squirmed in Melsil’s grasp before the mushroom swordsman let him fall to the ground, the Duchil family head screaming harshly.“You’re nothing like Teres,” he said. “Nothing at all. You don’t have the resolve to keep your mouth shut in the face of danger and pain because you’re so empty of any real strength...lacking the true courage that she had. To watch with laughter as a brave young girl was painted with the blood of her own family...I admit...I fantasize about ways of killing you sick enough they shouldn’t be said out loud. But then I gain solace knowing that you’re so evil you don’t have the courage to stay quiet when the Knife Claw or Red Mountain get their hands on you. You’ll tell them everything at the mere breaking of one finger...and that makes me laugh myself silly.”Rillia, Vesha and Jason were clearly disturbed by Melsil’s words. They had never heard him say anything so downright cruel or vindictive. The idea of the man who preached goodwill and altruism suddenly sounding like a sociopathic murdering with sadistic delight was downright jarring. Rillia had little idea who this Teres was but she sounded like she meant a lot to Melsil. Then she began to remember.Teres...She thought. The daughter of the Ghilroy patriarch? The girl slaughtered by the Duchils to gain power over the rest of Ushujin? I heard their heads were found on spikes as a warning to rebelling fungus tribes...did...did Melsil know about this? Did...did he witness her die?Then it all began to make sense.The Ghilroys were a noble household in title and in ethics. Rillia thought. They sought peace in any deal they made and tried their best to stop wars from happening. When they were killed, it wasn’t just the western fungus people who mourned...it was also many other species’ that did so as well. For Melsil to have seen a family of that reputable character slaughtered...he must feel immense guilt he could not save them.Melsil lowered his father to the ground, wincing as his arm still hurt to exert that much force.“Who’s ready to get going?” he asked. “I’m just itching to throw this scum into the hands of the army of ants or crawfish. Vesha...you said if I proved myself loyal I’d be given reign over the rest of the fungi...instituted as governor over my people.”“I said that it was highly likely,” Vesha replied. “When we depose a government faction, the ants or crawfish will institute a government we find more stable or moral than the last. You could easily fit that bill since you’ve proven your loyalty more than you really needed to and, since you’re a Duchil, you’ll be recognized as a legitimate ruler by many of the fungal tribes. But that choice ultimately remains with the higher-ups of the crawfish and ants who oversee those decisions.”“And who would they be?” Melsil asked.The crawfish sighed and shook her head.“My adopted father,” she said. “General Palvan Urich. He’s not only a general of the Knife Claw army but he’s also gained a position as the diplomat of foreign relations.”“A position he was able to use to justify the massacre of Yellow Spore,” Melsil said. “The crawfish’s government has always had a weakness of allowing military officials to gain political office, blurring the lines between the two distinctions.”“Your father is a general of the Knife Claw army?!” Rillia shouted.“Yes,” Vesha answered. “My adopted father, specifically. He took me into his home after my parents died and trained me in combat, Wassergras politics and more. It’s how I was able to gain such a high ranked position in the Exploratory Pincer brigade.”She then turned back to Melsil.“I’ll put in a good word for you,” she said. “Not only do I have a good relation with my father but most of the officials in the Knife Claw army who also have positions in our people’s government.”“That’s good to hear,” he said. “And I will be fully submissive to your people’s laws and restrictions they give us. So long as they allow us freedom.”“Traitor!” Juchil said. “You trait-!”Melsil kicked him in the side, the old man wheezing in pain before going silent. Jason stood up for the first time in days at the sound of that, doing his best to smile through both the external and internal pain he was experiencing. He was unsteady as he rose to his feet but that didn’t stop him from managing to get up.“That’s awesome!” Jason said. “I need to know others are free in order to be free myself!”“That’s a good spirit to have,” Melsil said. “We couldn’t have done this without you,” Rillia said. “If you hadn’t been here, I don’t think we could have beaten Garret.”His joyful smile turned into a regretful frown.“Yeah,” he said. “But the memories I dug up...I wonder if it was worth it.”“What do you mean?” Rillia asked.He shook his head.“Rillia…” he said. “I’ve killed thousands...I was a psycho soldier where I come from. I was a conqueror and oppressor…”They all stood there, shocked at what he said. “You?!” Rillia said. “A psycho soldier? That can’t be right! You’re too good a person for that!”“No,” he said. “I’m not...and neither is my family. You see, the Treborns...we’re a race of devils.”While Vesha and Rillia looked on with confusion, Melsil gasped in surprise.“Treborns?!” he said. “You’re a Treborn!”He nodded.“I now understand what that means,” Jason admitted. “And I did their bidding before arriving here.”Melsil immediately went for his sword, having to control himself from drawing it as his hand wrapped firmly around the sword hilt. “Whoa, whoa, whoa!” Rillia said as she gestured for him to stop. “What...what are you doing?!”The mushroom swordsman sighed, shaking his head before letting go of the handle of his weapon. He visibly tried to relax but there was still something about him that kept him on edge. Melsil shook his head, obviously trying to keep himself from getting overly tense.“There’s a Red Mountain outpost not far from here, isn’t there?” he asked.“What?” Rillia asked.“If memory serves right,” Melsil said. “There’s an outpost here where Red Mountain colony soldiers stay. The fungus people aren’t allowed to have armies and, as a result, the ants make outposts to keep tabs on the fungus people to monitor their movements and make sure they don’t form militias. Correct?”Rillia shrugged.“Yes,” Vesha said. “They’re scattered around all of Ushujin but I do believe there’s one not too far from this area. I think I’ve been to it once or twice.”“Good,” Melsil said. “I’ll explain on the way.”“The Treborns,” the fungus swordsman said as they sailed along the Blue River. “Was the surname of Giants who ate of the Black Poison thorns before growing to the size they are now.”“Are you sure?” Vesha asked. “Who told you this?”Melsil tapped his sheathed sword.“The White Spore did,” he said.They all gathered around the mushroom swordsman, intent on listening to his explanation of Jason’s family. The young man weakly sat on the lilypad floor of the boat while Vesha and Rillia were able to stand, the ant steering the ship onto the right path. The four of them were near the stem of the lotus growing from the center of the lilypad vessel so they could all hear.Juchil laid in the corner, obviously too weakened to continue on. Melsil sat down, his eyes grave with somber displeasure as he told of Jason’s heritage. The normally chipper looking boy was so distraught he looked like he was about to cry, something that made Rillia about to cry. She’d never seen him so depressed.“Maybe that’s why the White Spore drew me to him,” Melsil said. “It’s faint but...it’s attracted to him for some reason…but that doesn’t make sense as the White Spore was repulsed by his brother on account of him being the ancestor of the one who spilled the poison of that tree onto the ground…”“I’m sorry,” Jason said. “I wished my brother would have stopped being evil and become my friend but...I had to beat him…”“The White Spore revealed to me that one of the ancestors of the original Giants,” Melsil explained. “His name was Tezreel Treborn. He not only plucked the thorns from the Black Poison to eat of it but convinced the others to eat of it as well. That was their fatal mistake, not only for them, but for the rest of the world when the poison that spilled from tearing off the thorns infected the soil and thus all plant life that originated from Wassergras.”“But who were the Giants?” Rillia asked. “One of the reasons that no one believes in the legend of the Black Poison and White Magnolia is that the Giants were said to be puny...our size...before growing taller from the poison’s influence. There are no signs at all of the civilization of any peoples like that. We know Giants build homes and roads longer and bigger than they are but there is nothing of smaller size that they would leave behind in Wassergras. No ruins of the civilization they built before.”“The Black Poison did not just increase their size and strength but their intelligence,” Melsil said. “They were only able to attain that by the poison’s influence so those constructions were not possible beforehand.”“But there would be other evidence of their existence,” Rillia said. “Their skeletons upon dying, their effect on the environment...something…no one even knows what they were called before growing bigger-”“Humans,” Jason said. The other three turned to the sad looking boy.“I remember now,” he said. “Humans. That’s the name of our species before we became Giants.”He was obviously trying to hold back tears as he stared up at Rillia. “I remember now,” Jason explained. “Humans were what we called ourselves both before and after we ate of the Black Poison. The reason that there are no remnants of us in Wassergras is because no one died back then. Eating the petals of the White Magnolia, the tree that all life originated from, gave one immortality. Since all creatures fed on a diet of the White Magnolia consistently then no one could find bodies of us because no one died for there to be any corpses.”He then turned to Melsil.“We don’t call ourselves Giants because,” he said. “To us, we’re about all the same size. We retained our name of humans after growing taller and set ourselves as the dominant species of this planet. So powerful, in fact, no other creature had any chance of usurping us.”Rillia turned at him with an inquisitive expression.“How do you remember all this?” she asked. “How did you forget it?”“I-” Jason said. “I-I...I don’t know. I get bits and pieces of it when I find things familiar to me. Like I almost remembered nothing except my original language...when I saw Garrett a whole bunch of...of stuff just came flooding back in...memories I didn’t want, a life I hated...and people I wish were not who they are.”He shook his head.“But now I remember how dominant us humans were,” Jason said. “We were so powerful, so intelligent and independent that our only real competition was other humans.”“That’s impossible!” Vesha said. “No species, no matter how strong and intelligent, faces competition from others!”“Maybe in this world,” Jason said before shaking his head. “But not where I come from. We’re so powerful that every animal, even those stronger than us, cower before us and flee out our sight. And they’re right to as we’ve stripped them of their territory and made many extinct at our whim. The only reason any other species even has anything to begin with is because humans let them have it. Usually because those animals give us something we need, like food.”“Even animals stronger than humans?!” Vesha shouted. “I-I can’t believe that! As powerful as us crawfish are...us crawfish are nothing compared to crows and birds if they choose to make a meal out of us. It’s absurd to think that just because us crawfish are the second most dominant species in Wassergras that we’re invincible.”“That’s insane to think about,” Rillia said. “But remember...the Giants don’t live in Wassergras. They live all over the world.”She looked up at the night sky as they sailed down Blue River in the dark, the stars making her feel melancholic. “I know that from the travel logs and information collected from the explorers who left Wassergras that our region is a very isolated area,” she said. “Not only is it nowhere close to even half the world’s total territory, it’s also very separated from most other civilizations. There’s no telling what the outside world is like considering that we know so little about it. Jason could say that there are giant snakes big enough to swallow birds whole and fish larger than houses somewhere in a lake out there and I’d believe it. The explorers were constantly shocked about what all is out there that they didn’t know before so why would it be any different for us?”“I know,” Jason said. “From what I remember...us humans are powerful because of what they can make...not their physical might. I-I think...there are machines that mostly do everything for us. They’re bigger and stronger than we are. And...and even smarter than we are.”“Constructions even stronger and smarter than you are?” Vesha asked. “How much better do you need to get?”“If any other species was in their position,” Melsil said. “That group would do the same. All beings are inherently self-interested and evil. It only makes sense they would make things that would only further cement their status as rulers of the Earth.”“But…” Jason said. “As much as ingesting the Black Poison has given us, even us humans have forgotten about it as well. My memory’s a little fuzzy as to whether we don’t know of the story of the White Magnolia and Black Poison or we have but don’t believe in it but...the Treborns are really the only family that knows of the secret history of this world.” “You mean they’ve kept the secret of the Black Poison and White Magnolia from the entire world?” Vesha asked. “I thought everyone knew that.” “If the older generation died out,” Rillia said. “Then that’s very possible. No one was there to tell the future generations of the legend. The Giants could have explained it to their children but after their children explained it to their children’s children...it devolved into nothing more than old folktale.” “But then how did they die if they ate the White Magnolia?” Vesha asked. “Even if one needs to consistently eat of it to survive, they could have just continued eating the petals and become immortal on top of the advantages the Black Poison gave them. Why would they forget such a crucial detail?” “Yeah,” Jason said. “If the petals of the Magnolia give you eternal life then why don’t us humans live forever? I can’t remember the reason for that...” “Because the White Magnolia doesn’t work that way,” Melsil answered. All eyes were on Melsil now, the easiness of the steering in the slow current allowing Rillia to keep paying attention to him as well as the course she was charting. “The Black Poison’s effects are permanent when the venom dripped from the tree and infected the soil,” he said. “I’m not sure how it works...I don’t believe the White Spore has explained it to me but...from what I can understand...but any creature infected with the Black Poison cannot gain the immortality-inducing effects from eating the Magnolia tree’s petals. And since all life is infected with the Black Poison...I believe no one can gain eternal life from ingesting the petals.” “But I ate the petals of the Magnolia!” Jason said. “What?!” everyone said as he turned to him. He nodded vigorously as he sat. “Yeah…” he said. “All this talk of the White Magnolia...it’s making me remember…” He gestured with his hands as if he was holding something before opening Jason placed it in his mouth.“The petals I plucked from the tree,” he said. “It...it called to me...and...and told me to eat it.”“Did it have a requirement?” Melsil inquired. “Did it say why it called to you?”“Be-because…” Jason said. “The White Magnolia said...it said…”He grabbed his head, trying to remember as he squeezed his scalp.“It said I could eat it because…” he said. “I was the only one of my family to feel sorry for the actions we committed.” Melsil narrowed his eyes.“So that’s it,” he said. “The White Spore invited me to you not only because of our shared history but because you’re a vessel of the Magnolia. The tree must have sensed you as the incarnations of the Magnolia are drawn to those who also possess the incarnation.”“So the White Spore is…” Jason asked. “I don’t get it. They’re two different plants.” “One,” Melsil said. “A fungus is not a plant. And two, the White Magnolia and White Spore are of the same substance as the Spore is the Magnolia’s fungal incarnation. My sword sensed the petals you ate and drew me to you. But the effect that the petals had on you...I still don’t understand…”“It has to do with repressing my memories,” Jason said. “My old life...I don’t think that the petals have that effect on everyone who eats them but it certainly did on me. The White Magnolia obviously wanted me to forget my life as a soldier for humans so I could do it’s will instead. But...honestly I haven’t really been told what to do. I just do whatever I want.”Melsil nodded.“Peculiar indeed,” he said. “The White Magnolia directly tells you to do something, erasing your memory to such an extent that you can only remember pieces of it at a time and connecting with you no more after that. That’s very strange.”“Wait!” Rillia said. “There is no magnolia in Wassergras! If you ate it then...then-” “Then I must have at one point traveled to the world beyond Wassergras,” he said. “Either while I was big or small...I don’t remember but-” “But it was in the Primeval World!” Rillia said. “What was it like?! What did you see?! Was it as amazing as they say it is?! Was it as dangerous for you humans as it is us?! What-?!” “Rillia!” Vesha said. “You’re bombarding him with questions!” The ant sighed, feeling guilty as she looked at the sullen boy. “Sorry,” Jason said. “I...I don’t remember anything about that place I ate it beyond eating the White Magnolia...it’s even hard to remember the battles I fought but...but I think I killed people who didn’t deserve it…”“But how does that even begin to explain why the Duchils were in league with the Giants?” Vesha asked. “And how did the Giants shrink down to our size? And more importantly, why?”“Well,” Melsil answered. “I only knew about the Duchils allying with the Giants after the White Spore told me they were. So whatever Duchils knew of such an alliance, they must have been very few and far between considering Juchil wouldn’t even let his own son know. Makes no sense.”“But as to how they did,” Jason said. “I remember us having machines that could do most anything like fly into the air, fly into space-” “Knew it,” Rillia and Vesha said. “And even move mountains,” he said. “I’ve even heard there’s technology that humans have that is so strong it can create earthquakes. So the idea we can return to a size we once were with some contraption is not something that’s hard to grasp. But as to why we did it...it may have had to do with some war we were fighting.”“Against the people of Wassergras?” Vesha asked. “Or...or another species that was non-human?”“I just told you that us humans are so strong no humans can compete with us,” Jason answered. “Why would we do something this crazy to shrink ourselves for an enemy that poses no real threat?”“And that there is a question none of us have an answer to,” Melsil said. “Not even the White Spore is telling me.”“How does a mushroom...sword thing tell you things?” Vesha asked. “I mean...I know it’s a strange object but...does it have a brain in there or something?”“Nah,” Melsil said happily. “More like a spirit that exists within every incarnation of itself that can perceive things in ways that no other sentient creature can. The White Magnolia is as mysterious as it is beautiful, like a wind that pierces your being without ever ripping through your skin.”