Day 13 – Part 2

I was relieved that dryad wasn’t dead and genuinely curious about her. But she didn’t wake up and I still needed to collect wood for the fire. Besides, It’s generally considered creepy to sit around and watch people while they sleep so I left to gather more sticks. I figured I could always check on her later.

Once I had enough fuel for the night, there was still extra time. I spent it combing the meadow for dandelions. I got the idea from my Aunt. She lived a hippie lifestyle out in West Virginia with her horses and collection of spirit crystals. In between spouting the benefits of clear quartz and fluorite for my upcoming exams, she had also been a natural foods fanatic. Not natural as in organic. More like if she couldn’t visit food while it was still alive, it had no place on her table. For instance most of us throw away our dandelions but she added into her food for as long as I could remember. Truth be told though, I was never a fan of Aunt Debbie’s salads but at least I know they’re edible.

Ever since the berries disappeared, I’d been thinking about foraging plants to add a bit more to my diet. The problem is that almost nothing growing around me seems remotely food-like. That will take some time to get accustomed to. My views are still pretty heavily biased from my former life. Funny how there’s virtually nothing is natural about the produce section in your average supermarket. Our entire food chain has been tinkered and adjusted for millennia, which gave us fun facts like cabbage and broccoli being the same species of plant. The strawberry as we know it hasn’t existed for longer than two hundred years. They first came when botanists crossed a North American weed with a South American one. Think you can find a seedless banana or watermelon in the wild?

At the moment, I’ll start small with the dandelions and experiment some more later. As an aside, I don’t know what I expected when I sent Red and Bandit to hunt. Ok in fairness, I thought they’d bring back rabbits or similar types of game that the pack had previously traded with me. You know how people assume that the Japanese frequently eat Sushi and are surprised when one casually mentions how they hadn’t eaten it in a couple years. It’s sort of like that. Except Sushi, in this metaphor, was any type of meat that I’d consider edible and mice are what the Dogkin actually brought me.

How does one eat mice? When encountering unfamiliar food, it helps to observe the locals and try to copy. In that regard, my companions weren’t any help. They just popped them in their mouths whole and started chewing. It’s fair to say I struggled a bit and made a mess trying to skin mice and eating weeds. I wonder if the Dogkin are having second thoughts about putting me in charge?

Day 14

Over the night I had a really strange dream. At first I didn’t think it too remarkable as I’ve had dreams in this new life before and never thought to record them in the past. But this one was different. Back in New York, there was a farmers market in an overgrown lot next to the interstate. When she wasn’t busy working, my mother drove almost an hour to get the freshest produce straight from the farms. She took me there fairly often. Well, in this dream she asked me to go with my sister Felia and pick something for a summer barbeque.

So how is that weird? I don’t have a sister named Felia. And if I did, I doubt she’d be two and a half feet tall with moss-green hair and red eyes. Long story short, we picked some fruits and vegetables out and Felia made me promised to share in the future. Then she warned me that rain was coming. The sky darkened and we ran off to shelter where I woke.

Dawn hadn’t come yet, but a faint orange glow from the imminent sunrise hovered just over the horizon. At first, I didn’t think much beyond, “that was an interesting dream. Must be more hungry than I realized.” Like every other morning, the first thing I did was crawl over to the stream. I drank my fill and checked the progress of the cursed ground. It remained unchanged in the same place where it was last night and the water still seemed as healthy as ever.

At that point the dream still bothered me. It felt more real than any I’ve ever had before and more urgent. Typically dreams fade from my memory quickly. But I still remembered tiny details clearly. Things like the exact varieties of the fruit and vegetables we selected and precisely how much I paid the farmer ($11.25).

It wasn’t just a weird dream, and the warning given at the end must have been important. I left camp armed with a dagger and strode into the woods. The dryad, I suspect named Felia, was easy to find. The anger she radiated functioned like a beacon and drew me in the direction where it felt stronger.

Soon enough I saw the destination, a fire, located deep within the forest. It had been fed throughout the night and still burned bright in the low pre-morning light. A cowled and cloaked figure stood watch hunched over the campfire. As I crept closer, I noted several more individuals sleeping on the ground. Two of them were Dogkin. The poor things weren’t there willingly, but hogtied and chained to a tree.

The sentry stood and walked a circuit around its camp. The creature seemed like some sort of goblin. Firelight illuminated a lean wiry body with long fangs and grey-green skin. I held my breath, crouched lower into the undergrowth and let him pass.

Movement on one of the upper branches drew my attention to a diminutive figure seated along the bough. Felia cupped her hands against the truck and leaned close as if whispering. Her glowing red eyes darted my way and she made a slight motion with her hand towards the sentry.

A lot happened in a short time, so it’s hard to describe exactly what happened next. The tree groaned like a heavy weight leaned against it. Roots rose free from the earth and covered the two goblins that had been sleeping next to the tree. They shrieked and struggled against the roots restraining them.

Alarmed, the sentry pulled a burning brand from the fire and stalked over assist his companions. I brandished the dagger and stepped forward. The remaining creature didn’t wait for me to demand its surrender. Instead he tossed the flaming stick into the tree’s branches and ran away.

The brand scorched a few leaves, but I hurried and grabbed it before it did any considerable damage. With my dagger I cut the ropes that tied up the Dogkin. The second they were free, the ungrateful little scamps ran off without saying thanks or anything.

The dryad slid down the trunk and glowered hatefully down at the trapped goblins. I’m not entirely sure what to do about them. I eventually dug the out and brought them back to camp. But, caring for prisoners is a giant bother that I can’t afford right now. Maybe I should have let them go. But then again, if they came here to cause trouble I couldn’t allow that either. Felia looked like her vote was to kill them, maybe she’s right. I also really hope letting that one get away wasn’t a huge error, but fortune hasn’t been great for me lately.