Prelude 3

Picchuoco scurried along the ground in the dark. He looked up on the hill to see the destruction that had happened to the farm house. His ears perked up and around the other side he could hear someone mumbling something. He crawled his way over making sure to stay hidden.

"...I'm sorry," The low mumbling voice said. "I'm sorry things ended like this."

Picchuoco leaned his head around what was left of the house to see a knight with three swords on his back kneeling over the body of a woman with short black hair. She seemed to have been decapitated somehow.

"I swear I'll make him pay for what he's done! To all of us!" The knight shouted to the corpse before chuckling to himself.

He laughed loudly into the sky while holding his head in his hands. He turned to The World Tree. It stood there, unmoving. Perfectly still as if everything that it had just witnessed in this town didn't even exist. The knight looked down on his hands as they began to shake. His eyes strained in his skull as if they wanted to leave his body and chase whatever made him so angry with a hunger ten times that of the dire wolves.

"You BASTARD!" The knight screamed into the darkness toward the tree. Picchuoco wasn't sure if it was sweat rolling down his face..

..or tears.

Xen walked away from the farm house and towards the tree, making sure to avoid the village before getting back on the trail. He walked for days without stopping, just wallowing in his anger. He was so close now after all this time. Picchuoco however was dying of exhaustion, praying with everything he had to the mole gods that this knight would take a rest sometime soon.

The foliage around them started to rustle. Three giant dog sized snakes surrounded him and hissed aggressively. Picchuoco burrowed under the ground immediately. Xen drew his swords and quickly dispatched them before looking up as a fourth dropped from a tree above him which he sliced into thirds before it reached him.

Looks like I'm getting close, I better make a fire soon. Xen thought as he walked off the trail and into the exotic and dense forest surrounding him.

I think this knight might be broken.. Picchuoco thought as he followed Xen into the unknown.

After around an hour Xen found a clearing and began to build a fire. He cooked the snake slices over it and watched the sun disappear behind the tall trees of the forest. Picchuoco's stomach grumbled as he watched Xen take big bites out of the snake.

"So rat, why are you following me around?" Xen asked Picchuoco who had been hiding behind a tree.

Picchuoco froze, petrified. He had been spotted.

I HAVE BEEN SPOTTED AHH! He thought. Now he's going to cook me over that fire as well! I knew I was a goner as soon as he said: (Picchuoco lowered his voice in his head to make a bad impression) 'So rat,' Picchuoco fell to the ground and began to sob quietly.

Wait a minute! He thought DID HE JUST CALL ME A RAT!?!

Picchuoco charged from around the tree wearing makeshift soldiers' gear of leaves and twigs, before crashing into Xen's leg and hitting his head on the real armor. He fell over, rubbing the head injury before quickly springing back up with an annoyed look on his face.

"Who are you calling a rat you broken knight!?!" Picchuoco screamed at Xen before realizing he had talked to another human.

"Ah so you are a talking rat, either way you should leave or something out here will make a meal out of you." Xen laughed, unphased by the fact he was talking to a mole.

"I'm a mole! And my NAME is Picchuoco!" Picchuoco shouted again, offended by another rat comment.

"Rat, mole, what's the difference?" Xen said in a mocking tone.

"Don't compare me with those greedy freaks! Us moles are much more sophisticated in the arts! Like Picaso, Da vinchi, Van Gogh.." Picchuoco rattled off names. "Rats are big dumb brutes who live in cities and have no respect for the country lifestyle!" (Picchuoco said that last bit with a southern accent)

Great, either I've really lost it or this guy is just insane.. Xen thought.

"Hey, why aren't you surprised by the fact I can talk?" Picchuoco asked

"Believe me, mole, almost nothing phases me anymore." Xen stated.

"My name is Picchuoco! What's yours?" Picchuoco scowled.

"Xen, why are you following me? You'll get eaten out here.. I might even eat you myself-" Xen chuckled as Picchuoco backed away from him a few feet.

"Hera sent me on a super secret scouting mission to find your weaknesses!" Picchuoco shouted before immediately covering his mouth.

Xen looked down at his right hand, recalling the night before. The fire flickered, illuminating the small clearing they had been resting in while the darkness of the unknown surrounded them.

"Why don't you just run on home to Hera, mole. She probably needs you." Xen looked away.

"Besides, if you try to follow me past this point, you might not live to finish your mission." he gestured towards the trail.

Picchuoco shivered with fear. "Th-th-there's monsters out there! I can't go back now! Can I just come along with yo-?"

"No." Xen refused immediately.

"If you come along with me, I'll cook your mole ass." he stared at the fire.

You're so mean! Picchuoco thought to himself before going to secretly cuddle up next to Xen.

Xen turned around and threw two knives at Picchuoco as he ran behind the tree again.

"DON'T TOUCH ME!" he shouted at the mole as he wrapped himself up in a ball.

"No one.. Touches me…" he mumbled before turning back over, he was shaking.

Aw great, now I'm stuck in this monster jungle with a lunatic.. Oh salvation, salvation, wherefore art thou salvation.. Picchouco thought before drifting off to sleep.

Xen couldn't sleep, despite finally being free from the dire wolves, it was instinct to him. To stay awake, or die.

The sun rose and Xen got up to make a torch. He looked around but saw no sign of Picchuoco anywhere.

Either that stupid mole is just in my head or he got eaten by something. Xen thought as he walked on with his torch in hand.

The overgrown path slowly became narrow and Xen brushed his armor and cloak past the foliage. He held his torch out in front of him as the canopy became thick, blocking out the sun. He was getting close now. He lowered his torch to the ground so he could see where he was walking when all of a sudden he stopped. There was no more ground, instead there was a giant canyon. The torch wasn't bright enough to shine the length or the depth of it. Xen walked across the perimeter to the left and found a downed tree that made a path across. He climbed up quickly and started walking across.

"HELP MEEEE!" Screamed Picchuoco as he came running from the trail towards Xen.

"What the hell are you doing mole?! Don't shout! You'll only attract more!" Xen whispered loudly.

Thick and thorny vines slithered across the ground and through the trees, chasing Picchuoco. He ran up onto the log and got behind Xen.

"Th-they followed me underground!" The terrified mole exclaimed.

"Stay behind me, they hate fire." Xen whispered as he held the torch out.

They were both on the middle of the log walkway when Picchuoco noticed that there was rope connecting one log to another. It wasn't just one tree. Xen slowly backed up as the vines crept closer to them, at the end of each vine there seemed to be a mouth of sorts with sharp needle-like thorns as teeth. They snapped their mouths down but stayed back away from the torch. Picchuoco turned around to keep walking to the other side when he heard more snapping. He looked up to see even more vines on the other side. He covered his mouth quickly to prevent himself from screaming but he still let some squeaks out.

"Hate to break it to ya mole but," Xen grabbed a piece of the torch and tossed it down the canyon to reveal hundreds of vine snappers crawling up the sides at them.

"AHH!" Picchuoco couldn't keep it in that time. "What do we do!?!" he shouted.

Xen grabbed another tiny piece of the torch and tossed it over to Picchuoco.

"We run!" he shouted as both of them ran off of the log into the snappers.

Picchuoco wailed as they waved the torches around to keep them at bay before finally reaching a clearing out of the Jungle. They had finally made it. Xen looked down, trying as best he could to not even look at it, but Picchuoco looked up.

"Woah.." the mole was speechless as he stretched his neck up at the absolutely massive tree standing before them.

He was completely encapsulated by its beauty. Green crystals formed on all sides of it, lighting it up in such a way that it was beaming through the sky. Its long dense branches stretched out along the atmosphere, about the clouds, a green blanket for the blue sky. Its trunk was almost completely pure white, the sunlight bounced off of it in a blinding way, only adding to its divinity. It was truly a gift to all living things.

Xen stared, his jagged armor and black cloak made him stand out against it. His clothes were bloodied and torn. His skin was covered in marks, scars and blemishes. His long black hair dripped with blood and sweat. He trembled in anger and his eyes were bloodshot with rage. His bloodied mouth was visible when he grit his teeth again, like a rabid animal baring its fangs. He looked like a demon hellbent on destroying the world.

The base of the tree was still far and now they were going to have to get through the roots. The roots were huge, like giant worms sprawling through the terrain, they seemed so exotic and yet without them the area would've been.. Missing something.

"C'mon, we're here." Xen said as he walked forward in between the swirling roots.

Picchuoco stopped for a moment taking in the scenery but also focusing on Xen, the demonic man standing in front of him, wondering why he didn't push him away again. Then he began to wonder about other things.

"Hey, Xen?" Picchuoco asked nervously.

Xen turned silently, his eyes were still full of rage but his face remained calm and steady.

"How did you know about the fire and the vine creatures? Have you been here before?"

Xen looked down and back at Picchuoco, the rage left his eyes and all that was left was sorrow. The mole watched as the man in front of him played back thoughts in his head. Xen took his right hand and covered his face, his eyes once again fell into a state of blind rage as he chuckled before laughing out loud.

"Why the hell should I answer the questions of a dumbass mole?! I should've honestly used you as bait for the vines!" He cackled loudly before turning around and pulling up his hood.

Darkness seemed to emanate from him. Picchuoco fell backwards, he got back up to see a very bright light shining from the tree. Xen even stopped and looked up at it with shocked eyes.

"What is that..?" Picchuoco asked, completely blinded by its beauty as it floated down to them.

Xen tensed up and stared with an intensity that was unmatched by anything he had done before. He quickly drew his swords and trembled with anger. Sweat dripped down his face and his muscles bulged as hard as his strained, bloodshot eyes.

"It's Him," Xen barked, "The Soul of The World Tree."