The first grove they stopped in was much the same as the one they had left. It was slightly larger, and the apple trees were a bit more dense, but beyond that, Cal couldn’t really tell the difference. It even had the same stream with what looked to be deep underground passageways. That look was shortly confirmed when the giant crab popped out of the water, looked them all over, and dived back down.
“Is Tiffany coming with us?” Frank asked after the crab’s brief appearance.
“Only as far as the next grove, he’s going to do some introductions for us. And speaking of introductions, I have arranged a second set of guides for us. Though I am slightly concerned. Apparently, contact between the groves has been lost in the last few years, and in their last attempt to investigate, none of the scouts returned. Our guides have been instructed to flee at the first signs of danger.” Ethel scratched one of the squirrels’ heads gently as she spoke.
“Huh, well, I don’t like that. Frank, be on your toes. I think we’ve got some fighting coming up. Is your crab friend coming the whole way?” Cal wasn’t exactly surprised there was going to be a battle. There always seemed to be, eventually. The crab he hadn’t expected. He was slightly surprised it was still around after finding the cave.
“FRANKS TOES ARE ALWAYS STANDING, FOR HE IS READY.. TO… PUNCH!!!” Frank capped off his statement by applauding himself.
“Glad you’re ready, buddy. Where can we set up camp for the night, Ethel? I don’t want to walk into the next area exhausted if we are about to be overrun by monsters.” Cal saw plenty of potential spots but thought it was best the squirrels gave them permission.
“Anywhere outside of the trees is what I’ve been told.” She answered.
“Perfect, then I choose here.” Cal plopped down on the ground where he had just been standing moments ago and pulled some snacks from his bag. He wanted some food before a nice nap.
*
“So, do the squirrels have any clue what might have broken contact?” Cal asked as they neared their third grove. If the maps were correct, they had about thirty more minutes of walking, and so far, they had seen no signs of issues. Tiffany had volunteered to go on ahead but wasn’t willing to come above water until they had given the all-clear. Who knew an ancient giant crab, capable of wrestling Frank, was a bit of a coward?
“No. Generally, they don’t have any predators down here, but the last grove made it clear they are relatively young in terms of a settlement. They don’t have any long-lived elders and before you ask I’m not a hundred percent sure what that means. Considering our group, it could mean actual immortal squirrels or just really old ones. Hard to say with the amount of magic on this rock. Squirrels can live up to twenty years or more if really well cared for, though, so elder to them could just mean hit two decades.” Ethel answered to the best of her current ability.
Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.
“Is the path to the next grove just a straight shot down this tunnel?” Cal asked.
“Yes, why?” Ethel had one of her eyebrows raised as she stared at Cal.
“Someone needs to scout ahead, and I’m the best person for the job. I’ve got a lot of shadow mana I haven’t really played around much with, and this seems like a good time to test it. Everyone wait here. Give me about an hour or so to get back. If I’m not back, but the loop hasn’t restarted, well, make your own best decision, I guess. Jen and Dad are going to likely have a good idea on what to do. See you in a bit.” Cal started down the tunnel before anyone could complain about his complete lack of plan.
“Alright, how does this work?” Cal thought to himself as he quietly moved down the tunnel. He started channeling some of the shadow mana around himself, trying to disappear into the darkness. He hoped whatever he was going to encounter didn’t have any senses that got around his shadows, but for now, this was the best he had.
As he moved further down the tunnel, he saw some sort of obstruction across the path in the distance. Was there a cave-in? Unsure he moved closer and realized that it was a constructed wall with a gate on it. Not at all what he had been expecting, and this made it much harder to sneak inside, but Cal had an idea.
He knocked hard on the door twice and moved back to the cavern side, covering himself in deep shadow while he waited and watched. The door swung open, and a large squirrel's head poked through. While not human size, the head was still at least five times the size of any squirrel he had seen down here.
“Who’s there? We heard you knock!” The squirrel spoke loudly. That was even more interesting. While Cal had encountered his fair share of speaking animals, this was still unexpected. It reminded him of his first encounter with Many Legs and Many Eyes. Had some of the squirrels been changed by the pool and just decided to cut off contact? That didn’t explain why the scouts had totally disappeared, though.
Cal walked in front of the door, not dropping his shadows. “Hello, I’ve come for an inspection.” He had no idea what he was doing but figured it couldn’t hurt. Everyone panicked at inspections.
“What, really? Hrm, why the shadow routine? What that hell happened out there to make that needed?” Cal now got a good look at the rest of the squirrel and its body matched the size of the head. This was either an alien squirrel or something that had been exposed to magic.
“The invaders above have taken more of the groves, and I did not wish to alert the lessers as I passed their groves. The tunnels are becoming more dangerous.” He answered, hoping they weren’t aligned with the Gryalth.
“Dammit, well, get in here, the sheriff will want to see you. Why’d the governor send you so early anyway?” It stepped away from the door allowing Cal inside.
“We need to assess our various strengths at the groves in case something drastic happens.” Cal stepped inside and looked at the grove in front of him. His rage started to boil at the sight. The larger squirrels had enslaved the smaller ones. He had his answer to why the scouts hadn’t returned now.
Now, how did he solve this before Ethel got here even angrier than he was?