Chương 39: Berry Unmerry Trip 🐹

Blackberry had to be completely honest. He wasn't sure how Lifeberry's plan was going to help. It'd been explained to him several times, much to the druid's chagrin, but it was still quite confusing. He picked up another fallen leaf, still a fresh green, from the ground. Rolling the leaf, he stuffed it into his bulging satchel. That was likely all he'd manage to fit, the seventh he'd collected since morning — since breakfast! Lifeberry had mentioned that the leaves would help elucidate 'path to the plan'.

Whatever in the Prime Strawberry that meant because eating the leaves did absolutely nothing. What could he say? A hamster gets hungry. He'd taken a nibble, only to discover how dry and bitter the leaf tasted. Yet Lifeberry had been adamant in gathering the leaves, so Blackberry collected them. The chore had been his mornings for the last two days. Meanwhile, Lifeberry ventured off with Lula, the friendlier Taloned Terror, in search for other "ingredients". They'd both be gone for hours.

Thankfully, they always made it back for lunch. Lunch was great. However, the true terror was the afternoon tutoring sessions. Hours of studying about the Great Beyond. Terrible studying. There was simply too much to learn about in this strange land. After all, Blackberry always viewed himself as a doer, not a learner. Just the other day, he'd learned about gold and it made his head spin. Supposedly it was a shiny metal that the titans valued and used for bartering. It made no sense.

You couldn't eat it or use it as a tool. Simply silly. Speaking about something one could eat, he patted his soft belly. He'd been ignoring his stomach's grumble, proof of his determination to become stronger. It'd been hours. His belly endured another pang of hunger. Determination. The night sky was clear, and the full moon cast its glow across the landscape. Whipping wind rippled the branches of the True Tree, its noise melding into the chorus of ambient sounds.

Even with the enlightening lessons that Lifeberry taught, the Great Beyond was still a place of excitement and wonder. Blackberry gave a blissful sigh. Almost peaceful. It had been particularly serene; the air no longer thundered with the raucous noise of the humans. Humans. According to Lifeberry, that was what most of the titans called themselves, though supposedly the Keeper was a half-orc. Humans. Half-orcs. These titans were so complicated and, again, Blackberry wasn't much of a learner by his own estimations.

Either way, he was pleased that he hadn't seen one in a while. His soft tummy growled so loudly that it surprised him. He'd endured enough. A tad early for lunch, but perhaps Lifeberry and Lula had returned early. It wouldn't hurt to check. Scampering off on all fours, he darted through the tall grass to the base of the True Tree and climbed through the wiry roots to Lifeberry's hollow abode. He glanced around the dimly lit room, dropping his bag onto a cushion.

"Hello?" he called out. Silence greeted him.

"Anyone here? Lifeberry? Death bird that could gouge my eyes out?" Nothing. Waddling over to the kitchen, he passed by one of the entrances to the staircase that climbed to several doors upstairs. The interior of the entire home was more expansive than he'd imagined. Throughout his stay, he hadn't managed to explore the entire place; most of the rooms served as empty storerooms. He had been specifically warned from entering the topmost floor.

That was where Lula resided and the "owl" — a truly ridiculous name for a creature, it had to be said — was territorial by nature. All that aside, Blackberry's curiosity had been piqued thoroughly. He was a sneak thief by training and inquisitive by nature, a combination that was testing his manners. It felt like the perfect time to lurk upstairs. Curiosity overrode his hunger as he darted up the wooden steps, bounding past all the other doors and heading straight to the top.

Reaching the final flight of stairs, he took a moment before catching his breath. Three identical doors, large enough to squeeze in a serpent, sat evenly spaced alongside the top ring. He took a long sniff and tried to locate the owl's roost. The bird reeked of death, so it shouldn't be difficult to pinpoint which door. His whiskers twitched as he took a lap, hugging the walls. Nothing. He took another walk around to make sure, whiffing the air as he went. Still nothing.

His fur bristled and his face scrunched together. Most hamsters were quite confident in their nose's abilities, and he was no exception, so there was no chance he'd have missed it. The only thing he smelled was the ashy scent, like a smoldering campfire, that trailed from the furthest door.

"That glutton," he said to himself.

"Having a whole secret kitchen. Bet he's snacking up here, stuffing his face while I sleep." He shuffled over to the door and tried the handle. Locked. The tubby hamster resisted the urge to smirk. There was something about the challenge of a locked door that fired him up. He plucked a whisker off of himself, bending it to test the tensile strength. Solid and flexible. Just what he needed. Crouching down to his knees, he pushed his whisker into the keyhole.

He gave it a couple twists while listening for the lock's tumblers. The first few shifted perfectly under his precise fingers, one satisfying click after another. Yet, the back tumblers were not so easily swayed. The mechanism was more complex than he'd expected. How strange — Lifeberry wasn't especially known for his engineering. Still, it was no match for his skill. All it would take is a little more time. He grit his teeth as he set each tumbler into place. Only a couple more.

A door creaked open downstairs and Blackberry nearly jumped out of his fur.

"Blackberry? You back yet?" Lifeberry called out.

"Got some fresh mealworms. Real juicy ones too." The sound of bags being put down panicked Blackberry. He'd have seconds at best to pretend he wasn't snooping around. It was time to go all out. He dived over the railing onto the stairs below, curling into a tightly tucked double front flip and landing onto the lower handrail. From there he back flipped onto the lower staircase. He felt his doughy thighs flex as he burst down the last flight of stairs, embodying speed itself.

By the Prime Strawberry, he was going to make it! He tripped on the last step and crashed flat on his nose into the bottom floor. Approaching steps forced him to resist the urge to yelp aloud. Instead, he got into push-up form immediately, placing his palms against the floor.

"And four hundred!" he shouted, trying to sound exhausted. He performed his push-up just as Lifeberry turned into the entranceway.

"Well, well, look who's taking my advice seriously," Lifeberry said, grinning. The gold-white hamster tossed a writhing mealworm, which Blackberry caught mid-air.

"You need fuel to get stronger though. Eat up." Blackberry didn't need to be told twice. He took a ravenous munch of the larvae. Soft, savory, and satisfying. It was bite-sized happiness. Three bites to be exact as that was all it took for him to finish the rest of the delightful treat.

"Got some more?" Blackberry asked, peeking over to the moving bag around Lifeberry's hand. Lifeberry pulled the bag away and waved a finger at him.

"The rest will be for later tonight."

"What, why? We should enjoy the yummy stuff right away." The druid shook his gray-furred head.

"We'll need it for the plan."

"Right. The plan," Blackberry said.

"How do those grubbies help with the plan though?"

"They will help show the path to the plan." There it was again. Path to the plan, concept of a plan. All words that had been repeated over and over again. Blackberry had the sneaking suspicion that there was no plan. He must've not hidden his doubt well because Lifeberry sighed at his expression.

"I need you to trust me, old mate. We both want the same thing. We want to see the downfall of that damnable human," Lifeberry said.

"That means getting more powerful. More specifically, it means you becoming more powerful." He patted the squirming bag.

"And the stuff in this bag will aid in that endeavor."

"Hmph, if you say so."

"I do say so." Lifeberry had that self-assured poise in his voice that told Blackberry it would be pointless to argue.

"Have you been able to test those poisons?"

"Not yet," Blackberry replied, thinking of the vials that were still in his bag.

"I haven't come across anything that wants to pick a fight just yet. It felt like a waste to coat my blades early. Thanks for making those for me." Lifeberry nodded back.

"Like I said, it's all about getting stronger. It's the only way to overcome that titan." The hamster put a sudden finger in the air.

"But first, lunch!" The food was good; it had been every day. Today they enjoyed a thick chestnut and mushroom stew, a salad of dandelions and scallions, and all washed down with a tangy gooseberry cordial. Lunch was his favorite meal of the day, or maybe that was dinner. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. What wasn't his favorite anything was what came after. Studying.

The next few hours were listening, and attempting to retain, everything that Lifeberry lectured him on. If his eyes drooped too much, sleepiness overtaking him, a quick rap from Lifeberry's redstone staff woke him up. After a lecture about cities and towns, strange settlements where the humans gathered, Blackberry finally could sense the light at the end of the tunnel — the wrap-up of the lesson.

"And that's why it's important to understand how these titans live," Lifeberry concluded.

"You got all that?"

"Mhmm," Blackberry lied. His mind had wandered off an hour ago and his stomach had already begun to grumble again. Surely it was time for dinner by now.

"And now it is time…" Lifeberry trailed off dramatically. Blackberry's ears perked up.

"Time…?" For dinner?

"To find the path! Follow me." They left the study room and, to Blackberry's surprise, headed up the winding stairs. Every door that he thought they would stop at, Lifeberry continued past. All the way to the top floor. Blackberry recognized the door they were approaching. It was the very same that had that lingering smell of a campfire, the same that he'd attempted to lockpick into. He gulped as Lifeberry unlocked the door and swung it open. The burnt smell wafted out of the wide, circular chamber.

At its center, the room contained a fire pit, outlined by scorched stacks of stones. Though he expected to see charcoal of some sort within the pit, there was nothing there. It did seem a tad hazardous to attempt to light such a fire within here, but the smell and charred marks were undeniable. Although it was a spacious room, there were no windows or openings. In fact, other than the fire pit, there was little else here.

"So what is this place?" Blackberry asked, watching Lifeberry rummage through his bag.

"A sacred place," Lifeberry said somberly.

"Perhaps the most sacred place in the True Tree." It didn't look like much, but he didn't want to pretend like he knew anything about the druidic ways.

"Then are we training here or something?"

"You could say that," the druid replied.

"Now behold! The unbridled magic of this venerated place!" The rotund hamster flourished his staff, striking its red bulb against the stone outline of the firepit. With a hiss, the end of Lifeberry's staff was aflame. He spun the staff, almost as if he was waltzing with it, before placing the fiery bit at the pit's empty center. Blackberry's eyes went wide as the fire spread, forming a swirling torrent that was fueled by nothing but air, yet the smell of a campfire filled the room.

The flames appeared alive as it licked away at the ceiling.

"Glorious!" Lifeberry yelled, holding his arms up to the roaring flame.

"Absolutely sublime!"

"Is this safe?"

"As long as you are willing to bask in its glory, you will be unharmed!" Blackberry winced from the spiral of fire. This didn't feel safe.

"Do not shy away from the Enduring Flame!" shouted Lifeberry, his squeaks melting into the hiss of the flame.

"This is but the first step to the path… to a plan!" His voice was serpentine. The druid turned away, rummaging through his bag. As the flames continued to spiral, Blackberry frowned.

"I don't plan on getting roasted any time soon."

"But you shall become toasted!" Lifeberry spun and lifted his arms. His hands held a familiar leaf — the very same that Blackberry had spent the last few days collecting — dried and wrapped into a tight bundle as big as a flute. It was a smoking stick.

"Really," Blackberry scoffed with a shake of his head. He was beginning to wonder if Lifeberry had gone completely crazy out in the Great Beyond.

"The plan is to go into a syrupy mind fog? We aren't pups anymore!" He folded his arms across his chest. It wasn't that Blackberry was a prude. He considered himself anything but that. Reekleaf was something that he'd indulged in before, a dopey temptation that every juvenile hamster has partaken in. Puffs of it provided a smoky comfort, but as the elders said, it addled one's mind. Lifeberry waltzed over, a happy jig in his step, as he put a paw on Blackberry's shoulder.

"I've been here in the Great Beyond much longer than you, old mate," he said with a sudden seriousness. He lifted his other paw toward the ever-cycling fire.

"I've been the first to witness and survive the Enduring Flame. The first to have been blessed by its power. I am powerful."

"All because you smoked this stuff?" At those words, a vacant look flashed across Lifeberry's face. Once he returned from wherever his drifting memory stole him off to, the golden-white hamster shook his head adamantly.

"I have merely… enhanced this with my empowered magicks and my vast knowledge of the Great Beyond. The true ignition is from the Enduring Flame." The druid held the smoke-roll, expertly wrapped, as if it was a precious gift.

"You must light from the sacred fire, and then inhale all of the enlightening smoke. Once you do, it will be like you are consuming a part of my accrued knowledge."

"That's super vague!" Blackberry wrinkled his nose from the pungent odour of the reekleaf roll.

"What does it actually do?"

"That even I cannot answer. The power endowed upon you by the Enduring Flame, and myself, are as wide and deep as the ocean."

"The what?"

"It's what humans call a massive body of salty water."

"Okay, if you say so." The titan were mighty weirdos.

"Now take this bestowed boon, and soak in its gifts!" Lifeberry poked Blackberry's chubby cheek with the smoke-roll. Blackberry swatted at it, which left Lifeberry aghast as the druid scrambled to catch the leaf wrapped cylinder. This all felt crazy.

"Is this going to help me at least locate where the others might be?" Blackberry asked impatiently. Lifeberry put his free paw on his chin contemplatively.

"Very possibly. The guardians had a strong bond with one another so such manifestations could occur."

"And you're sure about this?"

"Yes, yes, yes. You must trust me, Blackberry. Is it not said that, for the hamster, in unity is strength? So lean upon mine." Unity is strength. The elders often did say that to calm resentments and in-fighting within the guardians. Every hamster struggled with their aggressive nature; they wanted to overcome and take from others, to dominate all. However, those of Sellar, through the guidance of the elders and the tenets of the Prime Strawberry, understood to rise above those instincts and impulses.

It was why it hurt so much when the other six had abandoned their sacred fraternity. Beyond broken bonds, they'd succumbed to their ambition, their weakness, their baser tendencies. Blackberry looked at the smoke-roll. Unity required the others though. Was this the path to a plan? His tummy rumbled. Was that hunger? Unity is strength.

"Alright, let's get this over with then," he finally said, taking the roll in his hand. As he gently approached the blazing fire, Blackberry lit the end of the smoke-roll. A musky and sour odour accompanied the haze that filled the room. Hot smoke filled his lungs with every inhale, and coughs followed every exhale. The fit of hacking didn't seem to clear the burning itch that tormented his throat. He tried to lower the smoke-roll, only to have it pushed back to his lips by Lifeberry.

"Do not stop," Lifeberry said, only his silhouette visible in the cloud of smoke.

"Not until you feel the magicks at work."

"I don't remember magicks tasting this bad," Blackberry sputtered back between puffs and coughs. The smokestick provided an immense amount of smoke, enough to fill the room in a fog. He rubbed his eyes, stinging from the fumes; none of this was enjoyable.

"Do I have to smoke all of it?"

"Yes, keep breathing it in." Lifeberry's dark silhouette seemed to grow larger, as if growing with every puff of the reekleaf. He took another long puff, the last of the smokestick burning away into ash. Coughing, he exhaled as his eyes watered. Blackberry rubbed his eyes again and looked back towards Lifeberry. Yup, that was happening. Lifeberry's hazy silhouette rose toward the room's ceiling, blocking the light of the swirling flame, and his gravelly voice turned thunderous.

His words became incoherent and ear-shattering, and the entire tree seemed to quake in its strength. He tried to turn away, but his feet sunk into the floor, now a whirling quicksand. Lifeberry's booming voice unraveled into a chorus of shouts, in the same strange utterances of those titans. Blackberry dropped to his knees and went to fold his ears from the noise.

"Inhale!" Then he heard a whisper within the storm.

"H-help me," cried a faint voice that Blackberry recognized. It was Thimbleberry's voice — reaching out for him. Barely. Blackberry tried to twist his tubby body, but his hind legs were now sinking ever deeper. He threw his head over his shoulder, trying to see anything, but only the din and smog raged back at him.

"Thimbleberry?! That you?" he screamed out desperately. As the distant cries of his companion — his once cheery and hawkeyed friend — echoed, Blackberry struggled harder, flailing his arms to no avail.

"What's wrong? Thimbleberry!" His friend's wail mingled into the chaos around him. He yanked at his own legs, trying to unglue himself from the sticky floor, only one of his feet getting clear. The swirling smoke and flame, combined with the roar of titans, mocked him. He could almost hear what they were saying as the shadow loomed closer.

"... the power!" He could understand the words.

"Come and partake of true power," shouted the deafening chorus of titans.

"Join our strength." Power? Strength? Screw all of that! His friend was calling for his help! Blackberry finally freed his other leg, stumbling back onto his tushy. With all the deftness he could muster, he spun around. The blurry form of his companion laid no more than ten feet away. The dark stripe across his back, interrupting the grayish-brown fur, couldn't be mistaken. It had to be Thimbleberry, yet the hazy form seemed too small to be so.

"H-help me, Bl—" Thimbleberry's reaching arm fell with his words. Shadows seemed to swarm around him, dark chittering masses that refused to let go. Something evil lurked there. Blackberry leaped forward into the smog. Stars exploded as something struck his face, and murky oblivion consumed him before he hit the floor. If smoke, fire and shadow is what he succumbed to, it was water that revived him. He felt himself being shaken awake, his drenched fur spraying water everywhere.

"Snap out of it, you dolt." Lifeberry stood over him, winding up a paw for a slap.

"Stop, stop, stop," Blackberry sputtered.

"You've slapped me more than enough during my stay here!" He wiped his eyes to look around. They were in the same room. The smoke and pillar of fire had disappeared, and an unsettling quiet replaced the commotion of both. Talk about a bad trip.

"What did you see?" Lifeberry asked, helping him to his feet.

"Here, eat." He held out a juicy mealworm from his pouch. Between voracious munches, Blackberry recited whatever he remembered to the druid. Lifeberry told him to be careful and specific in his recollection, so he took his time in describing things — exactly three mealworms' worth of time.

"So you're sure it was Thimbleberry?" Lifeberry said, his face scowling at Blackberry's words.

"I'm certain." Blackberry pawed at himself, massaging his arm and belly. All were still as chubby as ever. Frankly, other than the fright from the vision, he didn't feel any different.

"What gives? I thought you said I would get stronger." Lifeberry waved dismissively.

"You are more powerful. We just don't know how yet."

"Then what about finding the others! I heard Thimbleberry calling for help. I saw him. He needs us." Lifeberry's whiskers twitched before he sighed.

"I may be able to get you to him."

"Really?"

"If you've heard and seen Thimbleberry, truly, I can use that connection to channel my magick to send you to him." There was another pause.

"I can get you close to him. You'll have to find him on your own."

"Do it. He needs my help."

"I can't guarantee the distance. You may be searching for a while." Blackberry shot him a determined look.

"I'll find him."

"Alright." Lifeberry relented with a nod. The druid stood tall, as tall as a hamster could, and marched back to the fire pit. With another strike of his staff, and unintelligible mumbling, he summoned a ring of fire that traced the walls of the pit.

"I'm not smoking again!" Blackberry shouted. His throat was still burning from whatever substance was in the smoke-roll. It was certainly more than just reekleaf. He rubbed his throat and gave a suspicious look at Lifeberry.

"You won't have to smoke anything," Lifeberry replied, waving him over.

"Come, it won't burn you." Blackberry approached and peered into the fire pit. His eyes went wide as the flames burned out. Within the center of the pit was a porthole that opened to the bustling street of a town, or so the titans called them. There were as many so-called humans as he'd ever seen.

"What is it…?" he gasped.

"Go find him."

"Wha—" Blackberry felt a shove in and the ground charged up towards him.