For the Record

Abaris is right, I think. These plants are growing way too fast.

I’m outside the house we claimed in Darkwell, the empty town on The Husk.

In fact, I’m not going to call it that anymore. This is The Shadowed Plane.

My plane.

(Since when?) Nyx asks.

Since...

…

Wait, what?

My Assistant laughs at my confusion.

You know what, just...

(Just what?) she asks between her guffaws.

Nothing!

I’m just going to forget that for now, I think. Anyway, this plant.

It’s tall. And spread out, and leafy.

And it’s eating the other ones around it, with little toothy mouths on the ends of its many branches.

[Plant]

Great. Thank you.

The door opens and closes behind me. Abaris, the one who exited our dwelling, promptly joins me in my observations.

“What the hells is this thing?” I ask no one in particular.

Abaris rubs his chin thoughtfully, disturbing the thin layer of hair growing there. “It appears to be a variety of plant monster. Appraisal returns that it’s called a ‘Razorvine’.”

“I see, I see,” I answer. “So not something the academic community is aware of, right?”

“Correct, at least not that I’m aware of. It also doesn’t appear to be referenced in any of my texts.”

That’s not remotely helpful. At least so far it’s only attacked other plant life, so – oh?

Startling me, the plant thing lashes a length of growth at me from its roots. I strategically dematerialize my body where it would have touched and let it pass through me entirely, and it retracts immediately.

“Aha, maybe don’t stand too close,” I say to my conversational companion, as he’s already rapidly stepping back.

“Worrisome!” he says.

Well, whatever. I hit it with a full power burst of Consume and it almost immediately shrivels and bursts into dust.

[Razorvine Slain – 50 Experience has been awarded!]

The obounis looks upset at first, probably at losing an incredible specimen, so I interrupt his complaint before it begins.

“It can’t be allowed this close to the house. It may grow larger and stronger and become a threat to mortals.”

“Oh. I suppose you are right. Still, so unfortunate...”

I shrug and turn to head inside, as the other plants the razorvine had been chewing on visibly continue their growth.

***

Yeah, she’s still asleep.

It’s been two days. If she sleeps too much longer, I’ll have to forcibly feed her mana again like the last time, I guess.

I can’t even blame this on human things. She’s not human anymore.

I sigh. The ash would probably be building up by now if I didn’t keep reabsorbing it.

Why don’t I use Will Surge to wake her? I tried that yesterday. Nothing, other than a few quiet moans. I didn’t expect losing control would take that much out of her, considering how quickly I’ve recovered in the past, but then. She’s not me, she’s different.

(Good, yes, recognize that other people aren’t you.)

Refusing to react to her obvious bait, I instead shift the blankets to cover my wife again and turn to leave.

I walk past the others and leave the building, toward the growing swarm of wraiths filling the town. When I’d first returned with Izahne, I’d deposited her in our room and moved on to reprogramming the spawn still fruitlessly searching to instead return to town and gather in the square. Then I took the hundred I had working to reprogram the others, reduced their numbers to ten, and sent them with instructions to scatter and periodically repeat reprogramming all nearby to return to town.

So far, it’s working, I should be too. I begin my task of dismantling the ever-expanding swarm.

***

Four days and another forced mana feeding later, my death knight finally wakes. I feel her stir through our bond, which I’ve been monitoring just in case.

I phase through all walls, people, and other materials obstructing the path to my room and stop at the side of the bed where I observe her being disoriented. Not at all a surprise, I’d say.

Unlike her usual waking, she doesn’t leap from the bed and shriek something about not having set an alarm before it registers that she doesn’t need to prepare for her lectures. Instead, she simply lays still, staring at the ceiling and trying to get her bearings.

“Welcome back,” I say.

Her eyes snap toward me, still showing a fair amount of confusion.

I disperse some ash from my person and form it into a simple chair and sit on it in one smooth motion. This is going to look amazing to humans in the future!

I lean my head on one hand. “You will recover soon, no doubt. And when you do, we need to have a serious talk about preventing this in the future. You’ll have more options, of course, since the plane has begun spawning monsters, but that isn’t an excuse for rejecting your present reality. You need to eat. Humans eat other animals and even monsters. But now you aren’t human, and you need to accept it. There is no harm in monsters eating humans, and you are no different.

“Soon,” I continue, “I’m going to have to force you to learn this. At least, if you continue refusing to learn it yourself. Did you flee before you lost control, or while you were in the process of it? No, don’t respond to that, not that I think you necessarily can. I doubt you even understand what I’m saying. Why I’m even spending the breath right now is a mystery to me. But I’m at least confident that you’re going to recover soon, and when that happens, we will discuss this again. For now, rest and recover.”

I take a long breath and slowly exhale, feeling a relief I hadn’t expected.

***

Yet more days later, Izahne is finally walking again, although gingerly. She’s not going to be moving quickly again any time soon, but her recovery is at least steady and ongoing.

From what Abaris and Pearl were able to figure out, it looks like her Mana Thirst not only overwhelmed her mind in a frenzy to feed, but it also consumed almost every bit of mana from her soul. If she’d been left in that state too much longer, she likely would have died in a similar way as those I’ve Consumed to death.

I’ll admit that I find it concerning, more concerning than I would have even a month ago.

Nyx has been mercifully silent lately, although she does wander around and watch what the others nearby are doing. I’ve let her go about her business.

The razorvine patch continues to spontaneously grow out of control, which we’ve been taking turns pruning down to the root. Another sprouted fifty yards from the house, so I’ve been letting it develop out of curiosity – both mine and Abaris’. Over the past several days it’s not only expanded to the size of a patch by itself but has begun growing spiny globes on the ends of some branches, which then bow toward the ground.

Using a feeler, I quickly retrieve one as the plant monster’s own vines lash ineffectually where the fruit used to be. I carry it a moderate distance away before presenting it to Abaris, who has Omorth split it with his large sword.

Inside, we find a colorful and firm yet juicy material, interspersed with black hard things that the mage informs are seeds.

“The important question, though,” he continues, “is whether this is edible.”

I shrug and promptly rip off a chunk of the outside, inserting it into my mouth as my companions both try and fail to stop me. I chew the tough material, relying entirely on brute strength to crush it since it doesn’t seem to have any give at all.

“Tough. Tastes like a plant,” I say as I spit out the mush. “I don’t know if it’s poison, but it didn’t do anything to me at least.”

And they both sigh.

Omorth is the first to respond. “Normally, if fruit has a hull, the hull itself won’t be edible. The edible part is typically the inner flesh. Wait, let me finish before you try to eat more! Let Abaris examine it!”

That’s... not a bad idea. I give the mage a pointed look.

For his part, Abaris knows exactly what I’m getting at and promptly starts babbling something about ‘{detect something something}’ whatever. When he’s finished, his eyes sparkle green.

“Strangely enough, this isn’t toxic at all. I doubt it will keep very long, and it looks like the seeds are already trying to sprout, so we’ll need to be careful to manage harvesting. We also don’t know just how nutritious these are, or if they’ll become toxic if they’re prepared in a specific way.”

Omorth nods and then takes a bite of the meat, causing him to smile as he wipes juice from his chin. “I know how I can use this. I’m going to prepare something with this for dinner tonight, would you test it for poison when it’s done?”

“Yes, that is fine,” the mage answers. “Do be sure to make a second batch without it, just in case.”

I guess the humans are going to be eating better tonight. Probably.