Chapter 5 - The Hidden Grove

The next day has arrived, and Kiichi and I have set out to find a suitable grove to plant Dodona trees. Kiichi brought his staff, and I brought every piece of farming equipment we could use. As usual, Kiichi makes me do all the heavy lifting, not that I mind too much. My arms are burning something awful, though.

Kiichi: "Adachi, we've arrived."

I couldn't see anything over the mountain of equipment I was carrying, so I turned around and set it down as gently as one could. Then, I turned around to look at our location, and my curiosity turned to confusion.

Adachi: "Kiichi, this is just a mountain face covered in ivy. I don't see anywhere to plant the trees."

Kiichi: "Patience, my friend. We still have a little way to go, but we need to make sure it's clear first before hauling in equipment."

I'm not sure what he means by clear, but if it means I don't have to carry tools for a little while, I'm okay with it. Kiichi pats my head and begins walking toward the mountain face. He puts his hand to the ivy coating and starts moving it aside with significant effort.

Kiichi: "Adachi! Come help me with this, would you?"

I jog over and begin clearing the ivy, curiosity driving my every movement. When my arm finally broke through the thick wall of ivy, it didn't hit a rock face but instead shot forward into a cold pocket of air. I remove my hand and begin clearing the ivy enough to see through. I can see a bit of light a bit further into the darkness, but not much else. After a few more minutes, we've finished removing the ivy. A thin tunnel leads through the rock face to the other side. Kiichi and I walk through silently.

As Kiichi enters the light, he gasps and quickly runs back to the cave.

Adachi: "Kiichi, what are y-"

Kiichi claps his hand over my mouth and motions for me to come back to the other side with him. We silently move back to where we began, and Kiichi brings me a little further into the woods to talk.

Kiichi: "Adachi, we're going to have to get our hands dirty. Are you okay with that?"

Adachi: "That's what we came here for, is it not?"

Kiichi chuckles and sighs.

Kiichi: "That it is, that it is... so I have some good news and some bad news. Which do you want to hear first?"

Adachi: "The good news, I suppose."

Kiichi: "The good news is that on the other side of that mountain face lies a grove completely protected from the outside world by sheer rock faces. Nobody would stumble upon this place unless they previously knew of its existence, and that's not all. The grove is saturated fully with midst energy. I can only assume it lies over a rather large pocket of Novite ore which is leaking midst into the soil. Because of the nature of the Dodona tree, I can think of no better place to grow it than in a midst saturated area."

Adachi: "That's great, but isn't there some bad news?"

Kiichi: "I'm getting to that. The grove's midst energy has caused it to become a nest for the midstless."

Adachi: "A Midstless nest in our territory? That is bad news. What are we gonna do?"

Kiichi: "What else would you do when pests move onto your land? We exterminate them."

Kiichi gives me a wink and explains his plan in detail. I nod and attempt to memorize the plan in its entirety. After all, if I mess up here, both Kiichi and I might die.

A couple of hours have passed, and the plan is ready to be executed. My body is tense with anticipation. I've seen a couple midstless before, but I've never actually had to face them. I hope everything goes as planned.

Kiichi: "Ready, Adachi?"

Adachi: "As ready as I'll ever be, I suppose."

Kiichi: "You'll be fine. Go!"

I sprint through the tunnel into the grove, yelling at the top of my lungs all the way. As soon as I set sight on the massive group of midstless before me, my breath stops, and my voice goes silent. Before me lies a beautiful grove with fruit trees and flowers. It might be a beautiful scene if there weren't over thirty midstless staring directly at me from within the grove. Kiichi is counting on me to pull this off, so I need to pull myself together. I gather my breath, and with my arms spread wide, I shout.

Adachi: "COME ON, MONSTERS! A COSMIC DELICACY HAS APPEARED!"

The midstless begin to move towards me. Their movement is slow at first, and then they begin to pick up speed.

Adachi: "It's working!"

My excitement changes to fear as I realize just how fast they're approaching me. I scramble to run back into the tunnel as the first midstless slams into the wall where I stood just moments earlier. These things are fast! They may be unintelligent, but I really shouldn't underestimate their physical ability.

As I'm about to reach the end of the tunnel, I can feel a midstless almost breathing down my neck. This is gonna be close! Exiting the tunnel, I grab a rope and spring the trap. We had piled many rocks and logs above the cave entrance on top of a simple trap that would drop them when I yanked the rope. Behind me, rocks and logs fall to block the cave access, and I fall over in relief. That's the fastest I've run in my entire life. Wait a minute...

I turn around and see three midstless. One is crushed beneath the rubble, but the other two are standing strong and raring to attack. This isn't good.

FROM KIICHI'S PERSPECTIVE:

I sure hope Adachi made it out of the cave fine. As for me, I've scaled the mountain face of ivy and clambered down to the other side. Before me lies a tunnel filled with midstless. It's narrow, but that's great for me. This way, I can face each midstless one at a time without getting overwhelmed with their sheer number.

Kiichi: "HEY, IDIOTS! TURN AROUND!"

Inside the tunnel, I hear shuffling, and the first midstless emerges into the entrance. I can't let a single one of them escape this cave. They've seen Adachi, meaning that they won't stop until they get to him. Deep breaths, Kiichi. You can do this.

I grab my Novite staff and brace myself. The first midstless begins to launch the first attack with its paw. This one is shaped sort of like a lion, but without the mane, and much larger. Most midstless take on a beast-like appearance, but no two are exactly alike. As the beast's claws approach me, I parry with my staff. The beast's arm goes straight into the cave wall, offsetting his balance. Here's my chance. I grab the staff by one end and charge it with midst energy. This technique will unleash a blast directly following my strike. It wouldn't work against quicker enemies, but it shouldn't be a problem here. I strike the beast's arm with my staff right at the elbow. The strike smashes into his arm, and I can see the arm begin to give way. Here it comes...

*CRACK*

The staff lets forth a mighty force and shakes the very air around us. Then, almost as if time slowed down, I observe the beast's arm snap at the joint. The midstless are powerful creatures, but they can also be brittle if you know where to strike. The monster's arm is hanging by just the flesh.

*GROOOOAAAAHHH!!!*

The monster lets forth a cry of pain and stumbles backward. The beast lets forth a desperate attack, attempting to crush me between his jaws. Finally, it's time for the decisive blow. I slam the beast's head into the ground using a midst enhanced kick, then imbue my staff with a piercing technique. I drive the tip into his head, and his black blood sullies my pants.

Kiichi: "Tsk. Disgusting. Who's next?"

The beast begins to evaporate as all midstless do when destroyed, leaving behind nothing but a condensed ball of midst it had no doubt collected from this very grove. The next beast steps forward, and it appears to be relatively strong.

Kiichi: "Hey there, big fella."

I sigh and ready my staff. This is going to be a rather long day.