Growth

The foyer of the courthouse was nice and spacious, and more wild-looking people were moving about. The floors, though cracked like the wooden walls and ceiling, were white marble. The two noticed a waving hand and saw an older woman sitting at a desk.

“Hello, outsiders,” she said without enthusiasm as the women neared. “What brings you here?”

They thought about that. “I don’t know,” Alice answered.

“The dryad said we’d get along,” Clare said.

“Maybe we will,” the woman said. “The Overseer has all the answers but she is a busy woman. You’ll have to come back tomorrow. Don’t give me that look. Be here around noon tomorrow and don’t be late. She’s a busy woman. It’s out of the kindness of her heart that she greets and teaches newcomers herself.”

“Is there a place we can stay the night?” Alice asked.

“There’s a hostel perfect for travelers such as yourselves.”

She gave them directions and the two went on their way. They found the hostel and noted its location before moving on to explore the odd town.

“Why are there so many animals here? It’s freaking me out. They could kill us, you know,” Alice said to Clare. They had just passed a pair of deer.

“Don’t I know it.”

A shop door opened beside them and a wolf trotted out. In its hurry, it smacked right into the two women. “Damn it!” Alice shouted when she hit the ground beside Clare.

“My apologies!” it said. It gently lifted them to their feet with its jaws. “I was careless in my hasty departure. Please forgive me.” The beast then tilted its head at Clare. “I have met you before.”

Alice looked to Clare. “Huh?”

“Yes, you were the frightened human whose friends helped the bear mother. It is good to see you alive. But why are you here and not with the Protectors? I find them more dependable than these Crusaders.”

“They threw us off a boat and left us to fend for ourselves,” Alice answered.

“I am not surprised. I have heard similar stories of abandonment for the sake of training.” The wolf neared Alice and sniffed her. “Interesting.” With that, the wolf trotted away.

“That was weird.”

Hunger set in so the two found a restaurant with a large tree popping up through the roof. To Clare’s delight, the dining area was in the large branches of the tree above. An elevator with a primitive yet efficient pulley system hauled them up. Humans and animals alike feasted around them. Dryads ate dirt with water, herbivores had a variety of grasses and vegetables, and carnivores courteously fasted so as not to offend nearby prey, oddly enough. All of the tableware was wooden.

Clare and Alice found themselves in a weird spot. They were being eyed by most of the customers. “I’m glad we’re up here,” Clare said. “The view is great. I don’t think I’ve ever been this high up either. Hey, are you alright?”

Alice was trembling. “I don’t know about that. The ground isn’t so bad, you know?”

“Are you… Are you afraid of heights?”

“I-I think so.”

“Then why did you agree to sit up here?”

“I haven’t been this high up before. I didn’t know until now. This is awful. Is this branch shaking? It’s shaking.”

“It’s not shaking. Here.” Clare grabbed Alice’s hand. The trembling did not stop, but it slowed. “We’re right in the middle of a wide branch on a strong tree. You will be fine, I promise.”

“Y-Yeah.”

A young man approached the table and set wooden cups of water and menus on planks of wood before the women. Then he noticed Alice. “Is your friend going to be okay?”

“She’ll be fine. She just needs a minute.”

“Take your time.” The waiter left. Clare raised Alice’s menu for her. Reading through the short list of foods calmed her down a little more. But Clare had a problem.

“Hey, Alice?”

“Yeah?”

“I can’t read.”

“What do you mean?”

“I never learned to read.”

“Why?”

“I guess I just never got the chance. Can you just tell me what’s on here?”

“Okay, well that spells ‘mushrooms’, that’s ‘bread’…” Alice went down the list of human food. They agreed upon splitting the “jumbo fruit and veggie bowl for four” and ate the whole thing. It was good, but Clare wished it came with a side of meat. They paid their bill and left.

Alice almost cried tears of joy when she reached solid ground. Nighttime came around. The women returned to the hostel and slept.

The two returned to the courthouse at the agreed upon time. They stayed with the old receptionist for a short time before a young Crusader led them through a few clean hallways until they came to a plain conference room with a large round wooden table in the center. On the opposite side with two Crusaders at either hand sat an older woman. She had long dark hair with strands of grey mixed in. Though stern, there was an approachableness air to her that made the women feel comfortable.

“Please sit,” the woman said. The two complied. “I am the Overseer of the Crusaders. This town, the town of Terra, welcomes you. I’ve been told you don’t quite know why you’re here.”

“A dryad eavesdropped on us and led us here,” Clare explained. “It said we were likeminded.”

“We may well be. What story were you telling that had the dryad so interested?”

“We freed some slaves and killed their slavers,” Alice answered.

“Oh, my. Even without details I think that the dryad may be right. Let me start by saying that we are the Crusaders, if you haven’t heard already, and we are on a mission.”

Alice cut in. “We can’t really join any causes,” she explained. “We have our own mission to join the Protectors.”

“The Protectors? May I ask why you’d like to join such an organization?”

“Revenge,” Alice answered almost immediately.

“And I’m starting a new life.”

“What if I told you that we Crusaders can offer you the same means of accomplishing those goals? Accepting our ways wields results equal to or perhaps greater than the Protectors’.”

“No disrespect,” Alice said, “but we have our goal and I think it’s in our best interest to stick to that.”

Clare nodded in agreement.

“It seems you’ve already met Protectors. Am I right again?”

The women nodded.

“Protectors are only concerned with self-preservation. When humans or Nature attack, Protectors simply defend themselves. There are no sides. There are only Protectors. And their precious Elixir is just a utility for them. Crusaders have chosen a side: Nature. We fight for Nature because it gave us life. It fills our lungs with air and our stomachs with food. Long ago, before the Growth, humans cut down trees and ate to excess. Years passed in this manner. The time came when humans were forced to battle to the death for the scarce resources that they depleted. And then Nature had had enough. The Growth may have killed many, but long-term bloodshed and destruction ended. Such is the power of Nature.” The Overseer collected herself. “Now allow me to show you what we Crusaders have discovered.”

The Overseer stood and led the way out the door. Clare and Alice shared a skeptical look but followed with the Overseer’s attendants. They proceeded through and out of town and into the woods. An old facility was situated quite some ways in, one with a rusted barbed wire fence and watchtowers.

“Is this was they called a prison?” Alice asked.

“No, this place is a laboratory. In fact, we learned that it was more heavily defended than most prisons.”

“Why? Just what is in there?”

“Patience, my dears.”

Armed Crusaders had taken over the guard towers. They let the Overseer and her entourage through the front gate, through the iron door entrance within the compound, and down clean white hallways to a door roughly in the center of the laboratory.

“This is our greatest treasure and blessing. Behold!”

The Overseer threw open the door to a wide storage room. Yet another massive tree had burst through the roof but Crusaders were posted around the breach. The storage room was full of rows upon rows of tall tanks that held vials full of a blue-green liquid. There must have been dozens of full tanks throughout the room but dozens more were empty. Vines and roots from the flora above crawled over many of them and spread out across the floor but otherwise everything was in decent condition.

“What are those?” Clare asked.

“Vials of ‘Primal’. In the thousands of years of mankind’s existence before the Growth, being alive meant something else than what it meant in the decades just before the Growth occurred. During those decades, people had grown complacent. There became nothing to be wary of, nothing that could swoop down from the skies or burst from the bushes to drag you out of sight and out of existence. And then the Growth occurred and humanity was sent back to the Stone Age. Primal was created to combat the Growth by making ‘super soldiers’, people with increased strength and dexterity. Its mission was to put humans back on the top of the food chain.” The Overseer kicked a vine. “But as you can see, tragedy befell this laboratory and Primal never saw the light of day.”

“You don’t sound the least bit upset,” Alice said.

“It was meant to defeat Nature but in our hands, we Crusaders will take this man-made weapon and turn it against its creators.”

Clare was scratching her head. “But you Crusaders are humans too.”

Alice nudged Clare to stop but the Overseer answered, “Of course we are. But we are also the only ones who will freely admit that they were wrong. We humans ruined Earth. I believe it is only right that we try to make amends.”

“What kind of amends?” Alice asked.

“On to the next room.”

The Overseer led the women across the great room of vials and into a long white hallway. Both sides had long glass windows. The group stopping in front of one. On the other side of the glass was a large classroom full of children. They sat on the ground and listened to a Crusader teacher.

The Overseer crossed her arms. “The people of this world have learned nothing. They want to take over the Earth again. Well not this time. This time, Nature will win with help from its own natural enemy. The Crusaders will one day very soon wage war with humanity and with Primal, we cannot possibly fail.”

“But they’re just little kids,” Clare said.

Alice looked down the long hallway. “There are so many rooms. All of these are from Terra?”

The Overseer took a deep breath. “Not exactly.”

“Then where exactly did they come from?” It was Alice’s turn to cross her arms.

“The Crusaders will create a future that begins with these children. Besides, who would ever strike such an innocent-looking child?”

Clare was about to shout something but Alice noticed Crusader guards down the hall turning their gazes towards them. She grabbed Clare’s arm. “Easy, sister.”

“I do not expect you to understand,” the Overseer said. “And perhaps I am not making myself clear, or maybe you simply lack the vision of us Crusaders. But we can make you see. I ask you for more of your time. Let me show you exactly what Primal does and maybe the fog in your minds will clear.” A Crusader abruptly advanced and whispered into the Overseer’s ear. She sighed. “Never mind. It seems that I must go. In the meantime, return to town and rest. Consider my offer. You may meet with me at your scheduled time tomorrow if you do choose. Dianne!”

A young blond Crusader stepped forward from the Overseers’ posse.

“Women, this is Dianne.” The Overseer lovingly brushed the women bangs from her eyes. “My precious Dianne. I am assigning her to watch over you while you are here. If you have questions about the town, ask her.”

“Alright.”

“Oh, and one more thing. It’s one or the other. Crusaders or Protectors. I trust you will make the right decision.”

Dianne wordlessly, and reluctantly, led Clare and Alice back to town and to a hostel where she let them be in their own room before claiming hers in the adjacent room. Clare and Alice had not spoken during the trip either, as their thoughts were on the day’s events. Only when they dropped sat on their beds did they converse.

“So what do you think?” Clare asked, trying to keep her voice down lest Dianne be eavesdropping.

“I think these people are crazy,” Alice admitted. “These Crusaders are a cult. We have to be careful around them.”

“You think so?”

“Absolutely. They’re worshiping Nature like it is a god and are completely okay with killing. And that Dianne girl? She’s keeping tabs on us for the Overseer. We know their secrets and they don’t want us wandering off with them.”

“I think the Overseer was trying to discredit Protectors too.”

“Yeah.”

“But what about that Primal stuff, Alice? Do you think it will make us as strong as the Overseer suggested?”

“Maybe. And then finally there’s whether or not we should abandon the Protectors.”

“No,” Clare declared firmly. “Calvin rescued me from hell. I plan on repaying that kindness no matter what.”

“Then we are in agreement.”

“But I really wouldn’t mind that Primal. If we were stronger, we’d make it to New Orleans a whole lot faster.”

“So let’s figure out how to get both…”

“We are willing join the Crusaders,” Clare and Alice announced to the Overseer in the courthouse building the next day with Dianne behind them, “but only if you show us what Primal can do first.”

The Overseer clapped her hands with a smile. “Excellent! Two more young servants of Nature. I cannot express enough joy for the week I’ve been having.” Then she slowed down. “But how can I be sure that two allies of the Protectors are telling the truth?”

Clare stepped forward. “Can you and I have a moment in private?”

Alice and the Overseer shared similar expressions of surprise. But the Overseer agreed to the request and the two moved out of earshot of the others.

“So what do you have to say?” the Overseer asked.

“I want to tell you something that I haven’t even told Alice yet. I would appreciate it if this conversation stayed between you and me.”

“But of course.”

“Good.” Clare took a deep breath and relaxed herself. “I was until very recently a common slave. Life was terrible. I was lucky if I was only struck once a day. But then I escaped and saw what wonders existed outside the walls of oppression. If I can help rid the world of human trash like my owner and return it to its free and natural state of beauty, I will gladly serve the Crusaders. And I know Alice will do the same.”

The Overseer set a hand on Clare’s shoulder as they returned to Alice. “I’m sorry such a tragedy befell you. Let’s get that overdue demonstration under way. Marco, please come here.”

A young man left his desk and approached the three. “Yes, Overseer?” The man had scruffy, twig-filled dark hair that fell to his shoulder blades.

“Please show these young women the power of the Primal.”

“Yes, Overseer. Please come with me.” Marco led the way out the door and through the streets of Terra. Dianne followed as silent as ever behind the women. The walk was not long and took them to an area on the edge of the town that looked like training grounds. There were other, very muscular Crusaders dueling each other with their fists or training with weapons a bit further away. Children were present as well, either sparring or watching demonstrations.

“So, Marco, how long have you been a Crusader?” Alice asked along the way.

“My whole life. Would you believe that the Overseer is my mother?”

“I would not.”

“Well, she is.”

“Your upbringing must have been challenging,” Clare said. “I mean, your mother is in charge and everything.”

“It was rough but nothing I couldn’t handle. Following Nature’s every command is daunting at times, especially if you do not always want to.”

“Do you ever question your mother?”

Marco hesitated but answered, “Never. I have served the Crusaders my whole life and follow every order. My faith is unwavering.”

“You know it’s only human to be curious of life outside the nest,” Alice said.

“You tempt me.”

“I do.”

“But I am unmoved. Now back to the matter at hand. Look here.” He led the way to an erected log about his height and a foot in diameter. “Test this, is you would.”

Alice stepped forward and knocked on it. “Pretty solid.”

“So you wouldn’t punch it?”

“Fuck no.”

“Crusaders don’t mind.” Marco wound up, and then struck the log with a straight punch. His fist sent toothpick flying and his entire hand was lodged in the log. He pulled it out with not a scratch on it. “Not bad, wouldn’t you say?” The women remained motionless in a stunned silence. Marco waited for any response but got none. He gave up on waiting and said “Well I think I have shown you all that is necessary. What little remains, you will be told at your acceptance ceremony. Feel free to look around Terra some more. It will be your new home, after all. You can expect to hear from a messenger soon as well regarding your ceremonies.” Marco smiled. “You chose a very exciting time to arrive.”

“Why’s that?”

“We are on the verge of war.”

“War?”

“That’s right! Mother… The Overseer has been talking about just needing an excuse. Any excuse. Congratulations on joining the winning side.”

Clare and Alice and Dianne were back to touring Terra again. It gave them time for individual thought as they strolled. Passing Crusaders no longer batted their eyes at the two, but the animals displayed odd behavior. They went out of their way to be closer to the women to give them a sniff and inspection.

“Why are they doing that?” Alice whispered to Clare after a few deer passed by. “I don’t like it one bit.”

“I don’t know. Do you think that wood was fake?”

“It didn’t feel fake. Not one bit.”

A fox suddenly trotted up from behind and stood in the women’ path.

“Hello,” it started.

Clare and Alice shared quizzical looks. “Hello.”

“Would you mind following me to the edge of town?” the fox asked.

“Why?” Clare asked.

“Yeah, what’s waiting for us there?”

“Only I.” The fox looked behind the women at Dianne. “May we have some privacy?” it asked her.

“That’s not in my best interests,” the young Dianne responded.

“Please? It would only take a moment. If anything it would strengthen these women’ resolve to serve the Crusaders.”

The excuse worked. Dianne frowned but allowed it. Alice looked to Clare. Clare nodded and Alice shrugged. “Alright, we’ll go with you.”

“Follow me.” The fox casually led the way out of Terra and up a hill that provided a very nice view of the town. It was larger than they had originally suspected. The fox thoroughly sniffed the area before sitting down.