Miko:

I rubbed my shins with fury, a failed attempt to push the pain out of the bone. It did offer some relief or at least a distraction, but then the pain in my head throbbed in my eyes, forcing me down to my backside. My thumb and middle finger squeezed against the side of my skull near my eyesockets in an attempt to recover my vision. A few moments later, I was able to sit up and take in my surroundings. I was surprised the crashing fall didn’t knock me out, so this was much preferred. Although, the nap would have been much appreciated.

A pouch in my bag comfortably held the apple like with the rest of my belongings as I slung the pack over me. This place didn’t change, the green veins still flowing to their point despite the fruit being plucked. I had half expected a rumbling earthquake to shake the tree from the roots, but nothing had occurred or changed. The apple most likely regrows if not eaten after a certain amount of time as a precaution if a fruit ever accidentally comes loose from natural occurrences.

Despite the pain in my legs from the jump and previous practices, the walk back to the trunk was enjoyable. Every day I got to walk on my own was a reminder of how far I had come. No more piggybacks on Maleki’s back needed; I can get around just fine by myself. The growth spurt I experienced in my time here would probably make carrying me more difficult anyhow. Making it to the stairs, I turned right to proceed further down the steps and walked until I found the other colored vein. After climbing down the steps and passing another branch, I found the violet vein humming with life and streaming forward, guiding me to another colossal limb. This limb was similar in size, stretching out far into the distance like the rest, but there was a subtle difference in the shape. There was perfect symmetry in the way it grew. Sub-branches coiled back onto the limb and underneath at odd intervals, creating a coiling effect. Every ten feet, a twig grew on the left side; another ten feet and a twig would grow on the right. The very middle of the branch was cut inward a step, revealing the inside layer of the tree and providing a soft walking area to the end.

Advancing through the perfectly manicured walkway, I arrived at a fork in the path where the veins split into two directions. The left side branched off, arching upwards; the right side arching down about seven feet. You could walk up and down them with their degree of curvature, so I took the left side, stepping down and being more careful as the width of the branch had diminished significantly. Twenty feet ahead, the branch began to shrink and cone upwards like a tentacle. The top side also did this, meeting the bottom wooden tentacle at a center point, where a violet fruit lay in the middle.

How would I get up there? It was approximately seven feet up, which was a jumpable height for me, but a slight arc over the side of the void prevented me from snatching the fruit and falling to safety. Sliding down was possible if I approached from the top, but grabbing motions would be complicated with one arm. Shimmying up the bottom with two legs would be safer, but holding on while getting the fruit would be hard. I can’t throw anything, so the second idea will have to work. There’s no real way to test it either, so I’ll just have to go for it!

I placed my hand against the bark of the wooden spike, preparing myself mentally for the movements, and then an idea popped into my head. Maleki strapped us together by our belts by tying them around us during the climb, which assisted in holding us together in the event I slipped. What if I used mine to assist me in shimmying up? That would allow me to effectively grab the fruit more safely. During the climb, I was able to confidently switch the part of my body that stopped working, so I would go to sleep today with the idea of both my arms working and try again in the morning. I found a comfortable spot to rest that was safe from sliding or drifting over the edge in my sleep; waking up while falling to my death was not on my agenda.

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Laying flat on my spine, I looked to the sky, which was mostly blocked by the upper crown of the tree’s large leafy branches. Enough light peered between the leaves to see almost everything around, but the thick leaves and branches prevented me from seeing the moons. Maleki always liked to look at them and talk about the fictional environments they hosted. He would go on and on about the terrain, the hypothetical creatures, and the events that happened up there. Banter with him was what I found myself missing the most. Those conversations we had, even if they were silly or about nothing, still meant a lot to me.

The tree swayed as I slept, and I awoke to a whistling sound that passed through the twigs and leaves. Time was difficult to track here, where ever here even is. The old maps don’t even include The Garden or any of its features. Likely because no one had ever been here and returned or made it back with enough knowledge or memory of where they were and what they had seen. I wasn’t sure how long I had slept, but I did dream. The details escaped me so quickly after I woke, but glimpses of images scanned through my mind; a quick summary of what I felt or saw was all that remained. I stood up with one leg, finding my balance quickly.

Stretching my hands wide, I undid my belt, pulling it through the loops until it drooped loosely in my right hand. No point in packing up if I die, so I left all my belongings strewn about. Walking over to the apple’s cage, a flick of my right wrist wrapped the entire belt length around the circumference of the wooden finger-like protuberance. I bounced back and forth between my heel and bridge as I prepped mentally for the motions I had planned. Finding a position on the tree with my foot, I stepped up as high as possible and placed my foot sideways against the bark. I pulled hard against the belt and held myself by arching my back. To move forward, I would have to slide the belt and my hands up the bark while releasing enough tension to prevent it from getting caught in the chips in the rigid outer layer. My first attempt was admittedly rough. The timing was challenging to track, and to be fair, I am hanging over thousands of feet of dead air. There’s a slight chance I could hit another branch during the fall, but at this height, that would kill me, too. A few more awkward tries and I had the motion down. I slid my foot up the arc a couple of inches, and at the same time, I pulled the belt up slightly. A small accomplishment, but progress nonetheless. This repeated until my hands were close enough to the purple veins to feel the vibrations causing the hum to be heard. Up this close, it felt more like a thumping, like that of a heart.

What would happen to this colossal tree when all the fruit was plucked? What would happen to The Garden without the tree? No time to worry about that. I took the excess length of my belt and passed it over to my left hand. Now clutching the leather belt with one hand, my entire body was supported by my left leg and left hand. My free hand found the whole of the apple, gripping it entirely in my hand tightly. The thumping was strongest here in its violet core. I ripped it from the tree’s grasp and brought my right hand close to my chest. The base of the branch was just a few feet away, and with my newfound confidence in jumping, I pushed hard off the wooden tentacle, unleashing the excess length of the belt I had gripped in my left hand. To protect the apple, I fell on the side of my foot, transferring the bulk of the force built up all onto my rear, which hit the branch’s tough bark with a firm thud. Not too bad…

After a few moments, the tree didn’t groan or recoil in anger from what I had done. The last two apples in the tree had been plucked and removed from its’ grasp. No creatures came to the tree’s rescue, nor did beasts arrive to swat me away. All those months I spent trying to get my body capable of movement had culminated at this moment. My plans, although primitive, had been successful. Now I have to get to the ground, get to Maleki, and finish this.

With one good leg, I hobbled over to my bedspread and collected all my belongings. The violet apple hummed sweetly as I placed it next to the lime green apple in my bag’s inside pouch. I wasn’t tired; this place prevented that feeling, so it was difficult to sleep in the first place. I would have to hobble around like this for a while until enough time passed for sleep to be possible, and then I could try and wake with two working legs. Where to go next? Should I try and climb down the colossal tree? That feels much harder than the initial climb for several reasons. If I have to, I will, but for now, I want to visit Ananke again.