The brothers continued their journey, guided by Herodotos' pull. One day, when Herodotos flew over the trees, to get a lay of the land, he caught another glimpse of the tall mushroom in the distance, only the mushroom turned out to be a tree of enormous proportions, towering over the land. From a distance, the tree appeared to be supporting the heavens themselves. Once more, Herodotos became overwhelmed with the certainty that the end of his journey was located at the base of that tree.
Once he landed, he shared his findings with Telamon. While this was a major discovery, it didn't change what the brothers needed to do, follow Herodotos' pull. Along their travels, they encountered many green rabbits, though no more rabbit trees. It appeared as if the rabbit population had spread from the tree and made most of the forest their home. That wasn't to say that there were no other creatures within the forest; in fact, there were many, but no matter how far they travelled within the forest, there always seemed to be at least one green rabbit there.
On one particular day, when their destination was already within reach and the massive trunk blocked part of the sky, the brothers encountered a spiky bear, who in the olden days had been referred to as a stone-furred bear. At the riverside, while Herodotos had been busy washing his clothes, something that had been long overdue, and Telamon was answering nature's call within the forest, a spiky bear appeared, trudging out of the forest underbrush.
It seemed the brothers had unwittingly entered its territory, as the moment that it laid its eyes on Herodotos, it flew into a frenzy, letting out a furious roar. The spiky bear appeared like a regular bear, however, the fur on its arms, legs, and back was covered in spikes reminiscent of a porcupine. Herodotos, who had until now been knee deep in the river, removing mud from his cloak, had been caught off guard, having left his weapons at the river's edge.
When the spiky bear began charging, Herodotos directed his father's blade to fly into his hand, entering a combat stance. Lifting out of the water, he prepared to push the bear back, when out of the wet river shore soil, numerous roots shot out, entangling around the bear's feet. Herodotos felt an explosion of power from the river shore, though the energy he felt was distinctly different from the descendants of Minsol he encountered elsewhere.
He shifted his gaze towards the source of power, seeing a young girl and boy, no more than children, standing on the shore, not far from the bear. Herodotos flew out of the river, settling onto the shore, weapon raised and in position to strike. "Who are you? Identify yourself!" The children looked at him with incredulous looks, the girl's little hands still directed at the incapacitated spiky bear.
The girl pursed her lips. "Is that how you talk to your saviour? You're welcome, by the way, for stopping that bear." For some reason, Herodotos found the girl in front of him to be quite irritating, yet the boy's condescending look irked him as well. "You still haven't answered my question. Who are you?" This time it was the boy who answered. "Rude. Didn't anyone teach you that before asking for someone's name, you should tell them yours first... I think." The last part of the sentence seemed to be phrased more as a question, but the girl resolutely nodded her head, affirming and assuring the young boy.
The boy continued. "Here, since you lack basic manners, let me demonstrate." The boy paused to clear his throat. "Hello, my name is Oleander, what's yours? See? That wasn't that difficult, now was it?" Another spike of irritation ignited within Herodotos' heart, yet something more important piqued his interest. Behind the two children, Herodotos picked up some movement, and upon further inspection, realized that it was Telamon creeping out of the underbrush.
Herodotos narrowed his eyes before lowering his sword, making the two children visibly relax. "You're right, I apologize. My name is Dolo. It's nice to meet you, Oleander, and who might you be?" The last question was directed at the little girl, who was still pointing her hands at the unfortunate spiky bear, still restrained in roots. Herodotos flashed a disarming smile while ignoring the spiky bear, who no longer wanted any part in this.
The children exchanged delighted glances, happy to finally get through to the oaf before them. With a puffed-up chest, the girl spoke up. "Well, since you're asking so politely, my name is Daphne and-" Before she could say anything else, Daphne was suddenly grabbed from behind and slammed to the ground. She could feel a hand grabbing her by the hair, lifting her head, and felt the sharp edge of a blade press against her neck.
Oleander's shrill shriek resounded at the riverside. "What are you doing? Let go of-" Herodotos dashed forward, striking with the pommel of his sword into the gut of the boy, forcing the wind out of his lungs and making him double over in pain. The bear, now free from captivity, discreetly escaped, ensuring it didn't make any sudden moves or loud noise. Herodotos directed the tip of his sword at the boy's neck. "Now, are you going to tell the truth, without playing any games?" The boy eagerly nodded, though he didn't dare move too much for fear of cutting himself. "Good. Who are you?"
The girl was the first to speak. "We already told you, I'm Daphne, and he's Oleander. Can you please lower my head a bit? You're hurting my hair." The girl was lying flat on her stomach, her head raised by Telamon, pulling her hair up, while pressing his knife to her throat, ensuring she had no freedom of movement. Telamon scoffed. "First, answer our questions, then we can talk." The girl winced but didn't say anything more. Herodotos asked the next question. "How did you find us?"
If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.
This time, it was the boy, Oleander, who spoke. "Mom said you would be coming from this direction. It was purely by chance that we were so close when you encountered the spiky bear." Telamon and Herodotos exchanged a glance. Telamon was the next one to ask a question. "How did your mother know we were coming?" Oleander shook his head, careful not to cut himself. "We don't know. She said something about how Dad was calling someone to her and that the person was close. She told us to meet the person, although who it would be she didn't say. She didn't mention anything about a second person, though."
The last part was murmured in a sulking tone of voice. The brothers exchanged another surprised glance, specifically when Oleander mentioned that their father was calling someone. Telamon spoke up. "So what are your intentions?" The boy Oleander, was about to speak, but Telamon silenced him. "Not you. Her." Saying so, he pressed the knife harder into the girl's, Daphne's, neck. She showed a desperate facial expression and quickly answered.
"We were told to escort you to the giant tree in the middle. There you would be able to meet her and speak with her." Telamon narrowed his eyes and pressed the knife harder into Daphne's neck, the blade drawing the slightest amount of blood. "And what would happen once we arrived there?" Tears were forming in the girl's eyes, her voice gaining a tint of desperation. "I don't know. We were told to bring you to Mom, and that's it, ok? I really don't know anything else. Please, believe me."
Telamon scrutinized her and Oleander's faces, searching for a hint of deception. Finally, Telamon glanced at his brother. After a brief second, the brothers came to an understanding. Telamon released Daphne's hair, letting her plop to the ground. "Alright, we'll believe you, for now." Unbeknownst to the brothers and the two children, roots just below the surface stilled and relaxed, retreating deeper into the earth.
The two children led the brothers through the forest, navigating the enormous trunks and the roots covered ground with great ease and familiarity. At times, the brothers had difficulty keeping up, so quick were the small children. What didn't help their speed was that Telamon and Herodotos always kept their guard up, insisting the children walk before them and continuously scanning the surroundings for traps and ambushes.
Herodotos especially, kept tabs on the energy he felt around him, ensuring the children, or anyone else for that matter, wouldn't surprise them by using their strange powers. It seemed as if the previous events hadn't impacted the children too greatly, as they were already playing and laughing while leading the brothers forward. Telamon and Herodotos found it a bit peculiar, but didn't think much of it.
What did catch their notice, however, was the abnormal shape of their ears, as well as their unusual skin color. Their ears were somewhat pointed, and their fair and soft skin had a green sheen to it, not too dissimilar to the rabbits they had encountered previously. Telamon considered asking the children about their peculiar traits, but thought better of it. It may be considered rude to ask about such things openly.
Telamon let out a little chuckle at that thought. Here he was, ready to slit the throat of a little girl at a moment's notice, yet was preoccupied with thoughts of accidentally offending that same girl. Despite his musings, Telamon's muscles were tensed, his body ready to pounce in any direction. His eyes were trained on the children, not letting a single thing slip his watchful gaze.
Under these circumstances, the four youths approached the trunk in the middle of the forest. The massive trunk of the large tree dominated the western sky, the great mass originating from the ground and reaching high into the sky, covering a large portion of the sky. Telamon and Herodotos had to crane their necks just to see the canopy far above, casting light shade upon all those below.
Below the tree, within the large clearing around the massive trunk, stood two structures. The first was a large temple made of marble, though it seemed somewhat out of place within the otherwise untouched nature. The only other man-made structure was a rough-looking shack made of earth, wood, and large dried leaves. The architecture was abysmal, as the shack appeared to be haphazardly slapped together using whatever was lying around at the time using mythical power, which, now that Telamon considered it, was probably not far from the truth.
The children gestured at the enormous tree, excitement and pride evident on their little faces. Striking a confident pose with dainty arms crossed in front of his small chest, Oleander raised his head high and gestured vaguely behind himself. "Behind me is Mom, though it's weird if you call her that, so you can call her Zoe. It's what Dad calls her." Telamon looked behind the boy, yet except for the rough-looking shack, the temple, and the tree, Telamon was unable to see anything.
Telamon glanced at his brother, expecting to see an equally confused expression, yet instead he saw his brother gaze in awe at the massive tree. Seeing his brother's shocked expression, Telamon followed his brother's gaze, yet all he saw was that large tree. It was truly peculiar, but it wasn't the most bizarre thing they had seen, and they were already aware of its existence long before.
Considering all of these points, Telamon felt there was only one thing that could shock his brother, and that was something that he, Telamon, was unable to perceive. It meant that something mythical was afoot, and while Telamon didn't exactly know what, he knew that it meant danger. Telamon narrowed his eyes and glanced at the children, his mind becoming even more confused once he saw the pride reflected in Oleander's and Daphne's eyes. Her high-pitched voice rang out in the clearing. "So you've finally realized? Mom is the tree, and Dad is the roots beneath. They are big and powerful and won't allow you to bully us." A tiny finger pointed at the flabbergasted brothers.
