Dreaming Red

The black smoke rose steadily from the smoldering trees as Eletha ran toward the water for the fifth time.

As time passed, the fires set by the bandit meat-men had spread, consuming more of the sacred forest than she or any of her sisters had ever imagined possible. The scorching heat of the flames could be felt even when far away, and the smell of burning wood lingered in the air like an evil cloud. In every direction, meat-men screamed.

Eletha darted towards the stream, two water lilies spread out on her back, ready to be filled … yet a voice in the back of her head told her it was futile.

The forest will burn, that voice said. All of it will turn to ash. Gather your acorns. Save yourself, Eletha.

Furious at herself for having had such thoughts, Eletha leaped the final stretch of the distance towards the stream, tossed the water lilies into the water, and pushed them under the surface.

Nelippe appeared beside her a moment later, doing the same thing. "Hurry, hurry," she muttered to herself, her fingers trembling, her breathing shallow. "Come on…"

"Nelippe," Eletha said. "It's going to be okay. You'll come back, after the long rest."

Nelippe turned to her, her face quivering. "I can't do it. I'm not strong enough. I don't know if my acorns absorbed enough—"

"They did," Eletha interrupted. "Trust me – they did. They had to have. You're as strong as life itself. Now you should start deciding where to put them."

Nelippe hesitated for a couple of moments, then nodded. "I've still got half a day to choose," she said. "One I won't remember later. I want to spend it helping the rest of you."

With her hands, she grasped the sides of her water lilies, lifting them up to trap water in their centers, then tied the sides together with vines. She ran off like a storm, delivering water to one of their sisters somewhere.

Eletha held back a tear, watching her go. Then she did the same.

But the forest kept burning. No amount of water could save it. It was when Eletha and her sisters were at their most hopeless that the Oakmother finally gave the order.

"I'm sorry, my daughters," her voice echoed through the trees. "Our forest is lost. Whoever hasn't done so already, gather your acorns now."

Although Eletha had already halfway expected to hear them, the words hung in the air like a blanket of fog, leaving her utterly stunned.

"It's really happening," she stuttered. "The meat-men really came … and destroyed everything."

Time seemed to stand still as she stood motionless amidst burning trees, her mind succumbing to a wave of numb despair.

"Gather your acorns, my daughters," the Oakmother's voice repeated. "Gather them quickly. Then, we meet at the stream and offer one last prayer, before our long rest."

Eletha ran towards her heart tree, to gather her acorns.

It stood amidst a plume of black smoke and hissing orange flames. The leaves she had previously so meticulously organized had already shriveled up, turned black, and crumbled away. The flowers she had planted at the base of the tree had been reduced to ash, gray and lifeless, like the remnants of a forgotten dream.

Her heart tree's trunk was charred and crackling, already halfway devoured by the fire. She leaped onto it anyway, rapidly climbing as the flames seared her palms and fingers.

Swiftly, she leaped onto one of the branches and grabbed her first acorn, then climbed higher and did so again and again, until there was only one left.

The last acorn smelled of smoke, just like the others. It hung on the highest branch of her tree, where it must have been used to seeing the sun.

It … it would never do so again.

She grabbed it, held it close to the others, then leaned her forehead against them all and whispered a prayer, trembling.

"Goddess Phosyphia, bless the seeds in my hands. Take me, protect me, and carry me to my new life, so that I may yet defend again against nature's enemies."

Eletha remained silent for a few moments, listening to the crackling of the fires surrounding her. Standing perfectly still, she allowed a single tear to slip from her eye. It glistened in the firelight as it descended, then landed softly on the smooth surface of one of the acorns, pooling like a tiny droplet of silver on top of it. She pressed her hands together, her fingers wrapped tightly around the acorns, and shook. Her head began to ache as magic sizzled out of her heart, sparkling as it twisted and curled through the smoky air and enveloped her acorns.

"To my heart tree," she said, "There are no words to describe how sorry I am. I will never put my faith in a meat-man again."

The tree offered no response.

"Die with grace, old friend," she whispered, choking back a sob. "The goddess waits for you in the forest beyond."

Eletha's head suddenly exploded in pain, and she lost her footing. The air swirled around her and she fell and crashed to the ground, her body quickly growing stiff and numb. Her vision blurred for a moment, her senses dulled.

Yet she could see a figure standing over her. From far away, she heard the sound of crying.

"Eletha, get to the stream!" cried a voice. It was May, her seed-sister … but she was really far away. "Eletha, come quickly! We've got to start the ceremony!"

After a few moments, her vision cleared up, and she saw Luvelye standing over her, trying desperately to pick her up off the ground.

"Dryad!" he shouted. "Honored dryad, you have to get up! Get up, they're coming! They have fire, they're coming!"

Eletha grimaced, roughly pushed the little meat-man aside, and climbed to her feet, her hands searching for her bow and an arrow.

"I don't know if I can still make it," she replied to May, sending magic through the ground. "I've already started infusing my acorns … they're sapping my strength."

"What? That's too early!" May shouted through the magic.

"I know, but they were charred! I thought I'd have more time, but … I'm weak. I should have fed my heart tree better."

"No! Don't say that, Eletha! Tell me where you are, and I'll come get you! I'm not going to leave you behind—"

A stab of agony shot through Eletha's head, and she lost her grip on the magic. Her connection with May disappeared in an instant.

"Dryad! Get up!" Luvelye cried in front of her. "We have to go!"

Eletha ignored the little meat-man. Looking around the smoldering ground, she quickly got up, then found and picked up her acorns. She tucked them into a small pocket formed by the leaves and vines wrapped around her hips, then took up her bow. Over the crackling of flames, she could hear heavy footsteps approaching.

As her headache worsened, she squinted and spotted a group of four meat-men bandits approaching. They were smelly, ugly things. They held longbows, with arrows nocked that were aflame. Little Luvelye panicked at the sight of them, scurrying behind Eletha and trying to pull her away as she raised her bow and took aim at them.

"I always knew the accord was a mistake!" Eletha hissed.

As her arrows flew, beautiful as the dying screams of nature's enemies, she knew that for once in her life, she was finally doing the right thing.