019: The God of Plants

HOLY HELL!

That fight with the wolf was awesome.

Scary…

But awesome.

It feels like I'm right out of a comic book or something.

Maybe I should act like a true hero.

"There's no time to hesitate, I must move forward."

Yeah.

That's something they'd say.

This feels so cool.

If you had told me I was going to go on an adventure like this, I wouldn't have believed you.

This is all so crazy.

I gathered myself and headed forward into the forest.

The injuries I sustained during the battle were painful.

Every time I moved, I felt a stinging pain in my body.

I don't quite understand why as all of my other injuries didn't hurt, so why is this one?

Maybe it's because I overdid it.

Maybe I'm just too weak.

If that's the case then I must get stronger.

I'm getting close, I have almost reached my destination.

It is there where I will find the power I crave.

I forged forwards struggling through the dense forest surrounding me.

Sometimes the path would be blocked, and I would have to chop down a few trees that stood in the way.

It was no biggie.

But the forest felt weird.

Every time I tried to go away from the path I walked on, the trees were so thick that I could not pass through them.

And when I chopped some down, more appeared in their place.

This forest is guiding me somewhere.

I feel as if I've already been caught in a trap someone has been setting.

I walked along the path until I eventually stumbled upon a wall of vines.

It was thick and very hard to cut through.

Whenever I tried to cut my way through, It would just regrow.

Truly a conundrum.

But I'm curious, what exactly is all this?

"Walk through, nothing is stopping you."

A voice echoed through the trees.

"Who's there?"

No response.

Freaky.

Yet it really aroused my sense of curiosity.

I smirked slightly as I walked through the vines with anticipation of what monstrous thing might be waiting for me on the other side.

But it was nothing like that.

It was peaceful.

A small area where one could escape the forest.

The walls and ceiling were made of vines strewn together in an orderly yet natural pattern.

The area was lighted by small fireflies and nothing else.

It gave off a beautiful sense of reassurance, and it felt like a place you could only see in a dream.

The only scary part was the massive flytrap growing in the middle of the space.

For many, this would be a sign to not approach it, but I know better than that.

I want to find out more about this thing, and maybe it can provide me with some very important information.

"So, why did you call me in here?"

I asked it.

No response.

"Come on, I know you can speak."

Still no response.

Strange, it looks exactly like the plant from my dream, but how could it relocate itself here?

I'm sure it's able to move around.

I could believe it considering everything I have seen throughout my journey in this strange place.

But maybe it really isn't able to talk.

"You know, you look like an idiot trying to talk to a plant like that."

It finally said.

"I don't want to hear that from someone who led me here on purpose."

I replied.

The plant came to life as it shifted in place and moved around.

"Still, I wonder, how did you know I could speak?"

"Let's just say I saw it in a dream."

"HA! A DREAM?! You really are curious."

"And you aren't?"

"Fair point, now let's get to the point, why are you here?"

"Well, you led me here."

Although it didn't happen, the plant reacted in a way similar to if it slapped its forehead due to my stupidity.

"No, that's not what I meant. Why are you here in this realm?"

"OH! You should have said that in the first place. I don't know."

"What do you mean you don't know?"

"I mean that I don't know why I'm here, I just am."

He had the same reaction as he did before.

"I swear, sometimes I understand My Lady's hate for humans. Some of them are just so idiotic and ignorant that I can't take it."

He muttered.

"What was that?'

"No, it was nothing. So let me get this straight, you have no idea why you are here, yet you are venturing toward the Great Tree."

"Spot on."

"Why?"

"I don't know, it just looked cool, so I wanted to check it out."

"It looked cool, huh?"

"Yeah, I really didn't have anything better to do."

He was silent for a moment, but then he began to laugh menacingly.

Vines rose out of the ground so quickly that I couldn't sense them coming.

They wrapped around me and raise dme into the air.

I couldn't move, and every time I struggled, the vines tightened.

"Don't bullshit me kid. I'm not going to listen to your garbage. Now tell me the truth, why did the Dark family send you?"

"Dark family? I have no clue what you're talking about."

"DON'T LIE TO ME!"

The vines tightened to the point where I began to slightly suffocate.

They were tight enough to make me suffocate, but loose enough for me to just barely get enough air to not pass out.

"There is no other possible way you could have entered the Spirit Realm. So why are you here? What exactly do you hope to accomplish?"

"I have no clue what you're talking about."

"Alright fine, I'll make you a deal. Tell me everything you have to back up your presence here, then maybe I'll let you go."

And so I told him everything.

The entire story from beginning to now.

But, I did leave out a little bit of information.

I thought it best to keep Asol's existence on the down low.

At least for now.

"So let me get this straight, you're following a red string given to you by an old lady?"

"Yup."

"That sounds like the titan of fate. Why would she choose this kid?"

He mumbled to himself.

"What did you say?"

"Nothing, just talking to myself."

"So can you put me down now?"

"This kid is special. Why is My Lady so fearful of him? What power does this kid hold?"

"Excuse me?"

"And the red string…why him? There had to be a reason behind all of this."

"Umm…"

"Now the important question is, what stance should I take?"

"HEY! STOP MUMBLING TO YOURSELF AND LET ME DOWN ALREADY!"

"Sorry, but I cannot do that."

"What? But you said you would let me go."

"Change of plans, you die here."

The vines tightened to the point where they almost broke every bone in my body.

Damn.

I guess this is it after all.

I've been close to death many times, but now it's real.

This is it.

I can't fight back against this guy.

His white fire is larger than a skyscraper.

I don't stand a chance against him.

No.

What am I talking about?

I've been over this.

I don't give up, and I won't just sit back and die.

Even if all of the odds are against me, I will fight back.

I have found my reason for living now.

Every second I've spent here has been eventful, and my heart has been beating so fast.

It feels different from anything I have ever felt.

I refuse to give that up.

I will discover all there is to know.

I will defeat Asol…

And I will protect those I love.

My entire body began to heat up.

I never really tried this during my training, but I'll do it right now.

If I feed as much energy into the vines as I can manage, then they should break.

I fed it all the energy I had, but they still squeezed me as tight as they possibly could.

I guess it is all over then.

I was right at first.

I never stood a chance.

As my body began to relax, and my eyes began to roll back, an extreme dosage of red energy came over me.

"YOU WERE ONLY ABLE TO USE 1% OF MY POWER AT MOST! I'M DISAPPOINTED, YOU'RE BETTER THAN THAT! HERE, I'LL GIVE YOU A LITTLE BOOST TO 5%."

The red energy surged out of my body.

It was as if my entire body caught on fire.

It burned the vines, and I stood tall in front of my opponent.

My eyes had changed color, and were now a dark red.

"HA! NOT BAD! BUT DO YOU REALLY THINK YOU CAN DEFEAT ME!?"

He screamed as more vines popped out of the ground and made their way toward me.

But they would not reach me.

If I could chanel my energy into the vines, then maybe I can chanel it into the atmosphere itself.

The vines burned to a crisp, including the ones that made up the wall and ceiling.

The fireflies that illuminated the area burned to the floor.

They fell to the ground one by one as I walked over the burnt ground toward the plant.

He was perfectly fine, unfazed even.

"Fine, I won't kill you."

"Wait what?"

"I said I won't kill you."

"But I thought that…"

"I'm not like those two idiots you fought before, if I have no reason to fight then I will not fight."

"But why would you…"

"I have my reasons, now shut up and go. Take the path behind me, you shall reach the base of the tree. It is there that you shall find the power you seek."

"And why should I trust you?"

"For the same reason you trusted a random piece of red string."

As I walked past the plant and onto the path behind him, the flames surrounding my body went out.

It was strange.

Everything in its range burned, but I was perfectly fine.

Not even my clothes were burnt.

Maybe it only burnt whatever I wanted it to burn.

Whatever caused that surge of power, thank you.

I feel even stronger than ever.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA! THAT KID'S A DAMN GENIUS! HE HANDLED 5% LIKE IT WAS NOTHING! HE REALLY IS TALENTED! AND NOT TO MENTION THAT SKILL HE PULLED OFF, I DON'T EVEN THINK I CAN CONTROL MY OWN ENERGY THAT WELL!"

This is the power that I need.

I will do it, with this power.

"Hey, kid."

He called to me.

"What?"

"I will let you through, but I request one thing. I want you to swear that if you ever use the power we offer you for something unjust and evil that you will allow me to end your life."

"Sounds like quite a commitment."

"It's not just any commitment, it's a contract."

"I can't promise that I'll just hand you your life, but I can promise that I will not use my power for evil purposes.

"Then go."

And just like that, I left the small clearing.

"That kid was one hell of a guy. That skill, it felt as if the atmosphere itself intensified. I could feel gravity push me down to the ground with an immense amount of force. I've never seen such skill."

The plant mumbled to himself.

"I will support you, and speak to My Lady on your behalf, but there is no telling what her decision may be. Her guidance is blocked by an old grudge against humans, no, maybe something even more ancient and dangerous than that. Good luck, kid."

He looked around at the once peaceful area of the forest.

"I can't believe he destroyed such a peaceful place like that. No, I guess I was waiting for this after all. It's a sign, peace is no longer achievable. We will have to start making drastic and violent moves if we hope to win the war."

The plant looked at the burned ground covered with the dead bodies of living insects and plants.

"I had him swear that he would never use his power for evil, but that does not assure me. I have a feeling that that kid will come to be known as a God of Destruction."