Greyroot

After what was honestly an impressive amount of time for someone so small, she stopped for a breath. Taking advantage of the pause, I replied, "Usually, people introduce themselves before asking questions. But hello, my name is Adam. I am a human, Zarra is a friend, and I recently took up residence with her tribe. I am here because I was attacked by a treant and killed it in self-defense."

Her expression was fun to watch as it shifted from bossiness born from naiveté to shyness as she hid behind one of Zarra's ears. Peeking up, she said, "You killed a treant? That is bad. You're a bad guy."

Apparently, our presence was drawing attention, as more curious fairies started appearing from around the trees around us, whispering and pointing towards us. Their appearances were similar to the noisy girl before, but most of them were slightly taller, at about 12 inches or so, and their clothing was an eclectic menagerie of styles. Some wore leaf bikinis, while others wore showgirl-esque plumes made from flower petals, with the occasional fairy choosing to go "el natural," their small yet proportional assets on display.

Suddenly, a fairy with large, iridescent wings, wearing an elaborate green leafy tiered dress that slowly transitioned to yellow before finally ending in deep red at the bottom of the skirt, appeared. She also had blonde hair tied into a crown braid, intricately woven with green and red plants, a silver tiara delicately wrapped around her head, resting just above her pointed ears.

Blue eyes filled with mistrust stared straight at me. A scowl on her face as she said, "I am Tallia, Queen of the fairies. Why have you intruded into our home, human?"

Using my upbringing and feeling a refined aura envelop me, I gave a modest bow and replied, "It is a pleasure to meet you, Your Highness. I am Adam Campbell." Standing up straight and looking Tallia in the eye, I continued, "I was attacked by a treant last night and killed it in self-defense. Zarra told me that we should come here to explain what happened, or we might face reprisals."

Shocked momentarily by my sudden change, especially considering that the clothes I was wearing were full of holes and stains, my hair a shaggy, slightly singed mess with twigs stuck in it, and the crude club and basket—all stood in stark contrast to my refined manner and etiquette.

"How interesting," she replied, smiling. "I will take you to speak with the Elder Treant." With this, she suddenly turned and started to fly away. Turning to look at Zarra, she just waved her hand, shooing me on. Quickly, I ran to catch up to the quickly moving fairy queen.

We quickly arrived on the other side of the giant tree. There was a small clearing between the roots. Standing before the tree, two knotted bulges slowly parted, revealing eyes that lazily settled on me before a deep rumbling voice rang out.

"Hello, Messenger of the Goddess. Why have you come to see me?" The tree in front of me called out casually.

While Tallia was staring between me and the treant with her mouth agape, slightly shocked, I stuttered, "How do you know about that?"

"I have been watching over this forest for over a millennium. There are only a handful of places I cannot see within its borders. Once I sensed you getting close, I peered deeper at you and saw your titles."

Having calmed down a bit, I continued, "Then you know why I am here, right?"

"Yes, however, my connection with that part of the forest has been weakened recently, so I don't know what happened specifically," he replied.

"Can I use a skill to show you?" I asked the towering treant. The elder agreed, and I reached out and touched one of the nearby roots. Concentrating, I activated my skill telepathic link for the first time. Feeling my mana drain as I sent out my memories from the night before. After a few minutes of this, I had finally conveyed everything that had happened. Eventually, the elder treant hummed before saying, "I see, I have to thank you for ending my kin's suffering. Those bugs burrow into trees to create their hives. However, they prefer the mana-rich wood of treants to raise their larva. While they burrow, they mix in their black spit that distorts the treants' minds to prevent them from realizing what is happening. Normally, if they are discovered, then it is treatable. But with how infested Ashtip was, it would be impossible to return his sanity."

Breathing a sigh of relief, I decided to ask, "I was simply trying to stay alive, so I think it would be disingenuous to accept your thanks, especially for something so morbid. But if you really wish to thank me, then would you help me find some things?"

"I forget how the shorter-lived races feel about death, my apologies. But if me answering some questions would be enough, then I don't mind."

I proceeded to inquire about the locations of all kinds of materials: green rocks for copper, whitish-grey rocks for tin, and where to find a salt. "I do not know what this salt is?" the elder treant, who introduced himself as Greyroot during our conversation, replied. Thinking for a moment, I explained.

"Salt licks are large white stones usually found around springs or creeks that animals go to lick. They are made of salt that is deposited by water over long periods of time." I explained almost breathless, excited at the prospect of finding salt.

Eventually, Greyroot was clearly becoming annoyed at my many questions and ended the conversation as the sun was already about to set, by saying, "I am not used to talking so much, so please leave me to rest. I believe that I have more than satisfied my debt of gratitude."

Bowing and turning to leave, I noticed that Tallia had fallen asleep sitting on a nearby root, rousing her by nudging with my finger. Startled awake, she looked around lost for a moment, before wiping away a streak of drool that dribbled down her chin as she quickly put herself together again.

The towering elder treant closed his eyes as we departed, returning to his previous unresponsive state. After a few moments of walking, Tallia suddenly stopped and exclaimed, "What did he mean by calling you the Messenger of the Goddess? How can some random human living in the Eversong Forest be related to the goddess?"

Deliberating, I eventually replied, "The Goddess decided that I could help her somehow, but only told me to live my life how I saw fit. She granted me the title of Messenger of the Goddess and told me that it might help me with those that believe in her. But she also said that she mostly lost favor of her children and that it might not prove useful, so I find it surprising that both you and the elder treant seem to care about my title."

"You spoke with the Goddess!!!" she cried out in shock. Hurriedly she continued, "Some of the more intelligent monstrous races still believe in the goddess's teaching about living together. That is why the fairies and treants live together and work to maintain peace in the forest."

"Well, like I said, the goddess only told me to do what I want and gave me the title as a token of her support so I wouldn't think about it too much." I said, feeling a little uncomfortable at how intensely the tiny woman was looking at me. Trying to end the conversation, I asked, "I have been trying to study magic, but my learning resources living with Zarra's goblin tribe have been limited. If you don't mind, do you have anything that might help me?"

"Normally, us fairies don't associate with humans because they tend to only see us as resources, as our wings are sought after to use in powerful elixirs. But since you bear the mark of the Goddess, I will introduce you to Granny Anges." She replied as she changed direction and led me away from the way we had come.