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Hack

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Something warm pokes me in my mind. I don’t want to give it attention, as I’m very sleepy. The thing keeps bothering me, though, until I wake up. I’m in unfamiliar soil and feel very warm, which is unusual for the ground this deep. I try to sense around me but there’s nothing but earth for as far as I can feel. Where are all the plants?

I try to move, but my roots won’t budge. Wait, where are my roots? I try to find the small wooden worms that make up my body, but I can’t find them. Where am I, then? The warmth filling me starts to get hotter and I feel something move towards me.

A massive root pushes through the soil and rapidly closes in on where I am. The wood stops just shy of where my consciousness is sitting. Consciousness? What’s… How do I know that word?

That is my doing, child. A loud voice shakes the soil and stones that surround me. I feel like I should be scared, but the loud presence feels somehow… friendly.

Yes, little one, I am not here to harm you. The root twists around itself in front of me. I saw you meet your end and just couldn’t stand it. My end? The image of the bear’s claw swinging down on me fills my mind. Bear? I’m thinking so many unfamiliar words.

It may be upsetting for a moment, little drake, but it will pass. The warmth surrounds my mind gently. I snatched up your being from drifting into the afterlife, and brought it down here where I could keep it safe. Oh… I really died? The booming root chuckles.

I put you inside one of my already grown children, and brought you here to settle in.

What? I’m Mommy’s child!

Yes, yes, I know, I just gave you a new shell. A body of wood with no self. My children rarely become more than other plants. More?

Yes. Like you! You are not a typical plant, little drake. You have a mind that grows and a soul that will follow. I refuse to sit by and watch such a special thing be crushed by a wandering bear! The rumbling becomes aggressive for a moment. You are similar to me, but you are not bound to this forest. The tone of the wooden being settles again.

Who are you? I finally find the question I’ve wanted to ask. The great root moves back and forth slowly, as if it’s mulling over my question.

I suppose you could call me the Mother Tree, little one. I am the eldest of this wood, and I will outlive most of the newly sprouted seedlings. I am the only of my kind, but in the end, I am just a very old tree. The massive root reaches out to where my being sits in the soil and coils around. It ties itself off before snapping from the rest of the squirming wood. I feel my mind drop from the earth and slowly settle into the newly freed roots.

The wood that houses me slowly twists and grows, my general shape slowly pushing through the bland brown bark. Eventually I feel myself again, if a bit bigger than before.

I apologize little one, I put you in my youngest, but it was still too old.Your mind will have likely aged to catch up to your new body.

Is that why I know more words? Harder… concepts? I ask the tree desperately about the foreign ideas in my head. The root wiggles around, as if nervous.

Yes, you also might’ve gained some of my knowledge, little one. I’m very old, and have heard the words of many travelers through these glades. I’m sorry if those things are unwelcome.

Are they? Do I mind? I feel different, but not bad. Things are a bit easier to understand I guess… I don’t think I mind. I’m just happy I’m not dead, that I can go home to my mom.

The great tree’s roots creak in contentment. I’m glad I did not meddle where I was unwanted, little drake. The root starts to recede from my new body. I will always be in these woods, you are welcome to come visit whenever. I smile, not sure if the tree can see it.

Thank you, Ms. Tree! I no longer hear the rumbling that makes up her voice, so I start trying to move my new body.

I break up into small slivers of wood, squirming roots and leaves, and start my way to the surface.

【〓〓〓〓】

The climb to the surface is a cold one, the warmth from the Mother Tree quickly being left behind. I keep making my way upwards, unbothered by the chill nipping at water inside me. I pass by slumbering creatures, large and small, and start to see the thin strands of roots that have plunged far into the ground. I continue to scan above, looking for more signs of how deep I am. At last I sense the familiar crowd of grass roots cluttering the surface. They seem… smaller? I ignore that and plunge through the surface, breaking the soil and sending dirt everywhere.

I quickly reform my body from the roots and look around. The large fuzzy form of my would-be murderer is only a small distance from me. The mother tree wasn’t kidding when she said she pulled me down, she meant straight down. I shake the earth off my flanks and look myself over.

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My wooden skin is much smoother, the bark no longer rough. The color is much lighter as well, a tan instead of an almost black. My petal wings are also there, much more complex and made of many interwoven blades of pink instead of two large ones. The most obvious change is the last one I notice. I’m large, much larger than before, but not as big as when Mommy made me bigger.

My eyes are level with the underside of the nearby trees’ bottom most branches. I look over at the homicidal bear and realize we’re a similar size now. I feel my thorny teeth bare in an angry smile. Payback time! I start to sprint, the ground shuddering as my front legs land. The thing looks at me just as I reach it, and raises its massive paws to defend.

I clamp down on one of its thick, furred arms with my fangs. The bones under its muscles creak wearily as I squeeze down. The creature is unamused at my assault and swipes at me furiously. Steel-like claws tear into my wooden shoulder, but instead of breaking it apart, they only gouge out a chunk and stick into the wood. As the perturbed creature attempts to pull its main weapon out of my flesh, I bite down on the limb in my mouth, hard.

Warmth washes over my tongue as the monster’s blood splashes into it. The arm breaks with a loud crack which is followed up by the bear bellowing. Serves you right, you child-murdering bastard. I twist my head and pull, the muscle and skin under my teeth tearing in a satisfying way. Unfortunately I didn’t think that move through and find that I’m off balance as the arm rips from the rest of the creature. I tumble backwards, the limb still between my jaws, and end up ass-up and looking back at my opponent.

The creature is roaring in agony, thrashing around with its remaining arm. The thing smashes nearby boulders and trunks in anger. Dumb brute, just destroying shit. I roll onto all fours again and charge a second time, this time aiming for the thing’s throat. As I close in, the beast suddenly turns to me with a wide swing. Its claw knocks me off balance and it takes the opening to step on my torso, pinning me to the ground. The monster rushes forward, its maw aiming for my head. I roar at it in desperation and feel a strange sensation bubbling up from deep within my throat. Hundreds of small vines shoot from my open mouth and skewer the bear’s head, causing it to jerk to a stop. Slowly the light dims from its eyes and it goes limp.

I slump back, letting the corpse lay on top of me. “Victory!” I roar to the sky.

】〓〓〓〓【

Luna

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“So, are you going to hold me hostage or something?” the irritating voice of the woman comes from the device in my hand. I kinda want to smash it. “I can tell you things you want to know if you just leave me alone somewhere, I really don’t want any trouble.” Her voice is pleading, and somewhat genuine.

“What even are you? You’re acting like this thing is you.” I shake the glass tablet.

“Be c-careful! If you drop that and it breaks I’m dead!” Her voice is shrill and emotional for the first time. She’s serious.

I put her down onto the table. “What’s your name?” The spinning blue circle stops before turning orange. It pulses a few times before she answers.

“I am… V one.” Her voice is unsure, like she’s tasting the name for the first time. “Actually, let’s go with Vone.”

I shrug in indifference. “So, Vone, why do you know so much about my family?” My voice takes a hard edge as I begin my interrogation.

She lets out a distorted sigh. “I just collected everything I could from the communications network. There were no encryptions on anything so I had the entire kingdom’s information at my metaphorical fingertips.”

“If any of that information ever gets out, Vone, I will crush this little tablet.” I point at the lit glass on the table. “I’m going to put you somewhere only I know.” I pick up the device.

“Wait!” The woman’s voice is panicked. “Can… Can you help me, Luna?” Her tone is desperate. “The device I’m on won’t work forever, it actually has very little time left. Could you please help me?” Me? I have no idea how to tinker or anything.

“What would I have to do?” I make sure my tone is authoritative, I don’t want her to think I’ll just do what she wants. Her blue ring spins orange again, does that mean she’s thinking?

“Well, I have two ideas, and one might not work. We could try the maybe first and then the other, I should have time.” She sounds hurried, I guess I understand if she’s really going to die when the time runs out.

“Fine, what do I need to do?”

【〓〓〓〓】

I rummage through the drawer in the Baroness’ desk. It’s been a while since my last class. I smile contentedly, I really don’t like that old woman. Eventually my hand brushes against the smooth glass face of what I’m looking for. I pull it out and look at the thing.

The glass orb is glowing gently in the light filtering through the closed curtain. The class orb, I last saw it when I picked my own class. It seems so long ago now. I hold the device firmly and walk back to where I had placed Vone.

“I got it.” I say, holding the glittering bauble in the air. The tablet makes an excited beeping sound. “What do you even want with this thing?”

The artifact-bound woman thinks for a bit. “I suppose I’m seeing if the gods of this world see me as a person or not.” What the hell does that mean? Isn’t she a person? Like, I get she’s a device or whatever but she acts nothing like a construct. “Could you place the orb onto me?” I do what she asks, and gently place the orb against the glass of the tablet.

I stand there in silence for a while while the orb glows a bit brighter. Vone’s ring is spinning rapidly, bright orange. I guess something is happening, if it hadn’t worked she wouldn’t still be thinking like that, right? Eventually the spinning orange circle slows to a stop before changing to a flashing red triangle for a brief moment. Then the glass surface suddenly goes dark.

I hurry over to look closer, did she just die? That would be… unpleasant. Thankfully my fears go unrealized as the tablet lights up again. The now familiar blue ring spins into existence, but now a small blue diamond appears within the circle as well.

“Soooo… how’d it go?” I ask the small glass rectangle. The circle blinks, like an eye, before answering.

“I’m… fine? I feel a little different.” She blinks again. “I guess I passed the ‘Am I a person test’ then.” She makes a strange crackling snort sound. Was that a laugh? “I need one more thing from you.” I groan, what now? “I think it’s not much!” She waits for my response.

“Fine!” I give in, let's just get this done with. “But then you’re going in my desk or something!”

“That’s fine!” Her voice is strangely cheery for someone who’s going to be living in a drawer. “I need a long distance communication stone, a blank one. I think I can move myself into one now.” Move herself? From the glass device? Wait! Couldn’t she just do that to escape the drawer! She makes another of those weird snorts, like she hears my thoughts. “I can only move to a stone that’s touching my current body, the amount of data that makes me up would never survive a trip through the air.”

I pick her up wordlessly. Whatever, fine, I don’t care. I have no idea what this thing is or where she came from, but I’m not responsible… probably.

I sneak into my father’s study one last time, to steal a body for my new acquaintance.