NOVEL NEXT X2.4.3: The Dying Tree of Life
X2.4.3: The Dying Tree of Life
The creature was three times the size of the boy. It looked like a giant, black wolf. Its jaws opened, revealing long white teeth as it growled at the hero. The Sunflower stood up, placing his body in a defensive position.
"Go away! I don't want to hurt you," he shouted.
The animal then spoke. "You—hurt me? I am the one who will hurt you, boy," it said in a deep, menacing tone.
"I am not here to hurt you, but if you attack me, I will have to defend myself," Roa said.
The wolf lunged forth, its jaws opening wide. The Sunflower used Haste, missing the bite my a few centimeters. He swung at the creature, but to his surprise, his fist was stopped by a shield of energy.
"A Scutum?" he said, as his eyebrows raised. "How do you know this Gift?"
The wolf seemed to smile, as it caught its breath. "Isn't it obvious?"
"You're a Jumper."
The animal attacked again and again, but each time, the boy was able to evade each strike, until he noticed an opening. He lunged for the wolf's tail, grabbing it, boosting his aura until he could lift the giant body off of the ground. He swung him, slamming him upon the rocks.
"Stay down!" the Sunflower shouted, panting, as his golden tattoos appeared over his body. His aura glowing around him, his infection—spreading on his arm.
The creature shook the pain off, climbing out of the rocks with a limp. However, upon seeing the glowing tattoos on the boy's body, it froze, its eyes opening wide, and its mouth opening as if left speechless.
"You—I know you, Sunflower," the wolf said, causing Roa to let down his guard.
"How do you know that name?" the boy shouted. "Are you a Shadow? Speak, or I will have to force you to speak."
The wolf pointed up with its snout to a small house on a peak. "If you really are the boy they call the Sunflower, and my mind is not playing tricks on me, then follow me to my home."
"Are you alright?" shouted the monk, peering from above.
"Yes, I am fine. Tell my friends that I will be back. I must meet with someone," Roa shouted as he went after the wolf.
He reached a small, humble shack on a lake. The air was crisp and the breeze swayed the trees around it. The wolf circled around the boy, sniffing the air.
"Tell me who you are," Roa shouted again.
"It is you," the wolf morphed with a poof, revealing behind the smoke, an old man. He was short, skinny, dark skinned, and head dreadlocks on his head. He wore harem pants and had no shirt on. He opened his arms wide, and said, "remember me?"
Roa looked at him confused. Still unsure whether he was an enemy or friend, he said that he did not recognize him.
"So, it is true. They did reset you," the old man said.
"Supposedly, I reset myself," Roa added.
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The man laughed. "It really is you, then. I am Master O—your old teacher."
Roa's eyes grew wide open. "How do I know you are telling the truth?"
"Because I know you—probably better than you know yourself, at this point," the man laughed again, took a sip of tea and offered some to the boy. "For example—you were born on Earth, although where exactly, is something you never revealed to me, and at this point—will probably never know."
"So, what, plenty of people know my home world," Roa said, suspiciously. "Do you know how to get to Earth?"
"No. I've never heard anyone talk about such a place, other than you. Sometimes, I've wondered if even that memory had been reset in you," the master said, looking up at the boy, who began to grow worried that even that aspect of his identity was not safe.
"Who was with me at Black Fortia?" asked the Sunflower, testing the man.
"Pardus Vay, Ditto, Nirvana and many others lead the revolution with you. And of course—myself," O said.
"You?"
"Yes. I am the one who taught you how to fight," the man said. "We met centuries ago in the world of Paradise East. You had asked me to train you, to prepare for a most-sacred revolution."
"The Greatest Fight," Roa said.
"The fight to awaken ourselves, liberate Humanity, and save Nature—from destruction," Master O said, with a nod. "I'm sorry that the revolution has failed."
"It hasn't," the Sunflower said, determination in his eyes. "It hasn't. There are still those that fight, who carry forth the light of hope."
The man shook his head. "I am too old for revolutions, sonny. I do not wish to fight anything, anymore. I've been stuck on Elevar's Heights for several lifetimes now. I am old and beginning to forget all that exists outside of this world. My life—what's left of it, is here now."
"Then help me fight, if you will not. I must help the others."
"What do you want from me?"
"I must grow stronger again and win the tournament in Parallel Valley."
"You wish to win the Seven Wonders?"
"Yes, and gather a crew of the strongest warriors to join us,"
"Fool," Master O said.
Roa did not say anything for some time.
"At least tell me what you know about my past. You can help the revolution that way," the boy said, causing the old man to sigh. "Like my tattoos—do you know what they mean—what they are?"
"After Black Fortia, we met one last time, somewhere in the Palace. You had told me that you were heading to Default World's capital to give yourself in, and that you would erase your own memories to keep the Lord from knowing the way to the Heart of Hearts. You said that you had met one of the ancient Ambrosians, but that knowledge was too dangerous in the wrong hands. So, you asked me to find a way to secretly save some of that knowledge, without allowing the enemy to notice it."
"I don't understand," said the boy.
"So, I brought you to Branky," Master O said, sipping on his tea.
"Who?"
"Branky—she's the greatest tattoo artist in Free Society, and one of the few able to concoct a mix of aura and ink, to create art that only appears on your skin when it reacts to one's energy. You see, my boy, the tattoos on your body—they're the instructions you left behind for yourself."
"I see," the boy said, reeling with the realization. "Do you know what they mean?"
"Too many centuries have passed and my mind—is not alright anymore. Plus, you had not explained most of them to me. But, I think I still remember two."
"Tell me," Roa said, shifting in his seat.
"The one with the frozen continent from Earth, with flowers sprouting from it."
"Antarctica?"
"Yes. Flowers are Blooming in Antarctica."
"What does that mean?"
"It means—revolution."
"I don't understand."
"You told me that Default World's actions had also begun destroying Nature in your world, to the point where most of the species had gone extinct, and the climate had changed. The Earth was beginning to burn due to the unrighteous action of the few and the apathy of the many, to the point that even the frozen continent of that world—began to sprout flowers."
"Flowers are blooming in Antarctica." The Sunflower sat there in silence. "And the other tattoo?"
"The Tree of Life. Inside of the Palace is a giant tree that snakes through endless rooms and floors. Some say that it reaches all the way to the top. The Ambrosian you met had revealed to you that the Waters of Immortality—they exist--thanks to that tree."
"What? How?"
"The tree produces a lymph, a sort of—sap. Ingested or touched directly would kill anyone in an instant, but when mixed with the waters of the Palace, produces what we know of as Ambrosia, reversing one's biological age. And here we come to the main problem."
"What problem?"
"The tree—is dying."
"The Tree of Life—is dying? Why?"
"Why else? The Great Death caused by the spread of Default World is killing it, along with everything else. The Ambrosian had revealed to you the nature of such a sacred tree—it is the very essence of all living beings in Existence. As Nature withers, so does she, and when the tree will finally die—so will all of life--along with it."