236 236 Coconut's Dilemma
Suddenly, there was a heavy booming moving through the forest above them, startling everyone out of their daily tasks even further than the coconut treant had managed to do.
Wolfe raced up through the tunnels, heading for the surface, ready to protect the entry shack from anything that might be coming their way. There could be monsters, a previously unnoticed military unit in the area, or even a group of bandits moving past when the forest was formed.
They would all be dangerous, but to what extent, Wolfe didn’t know, as the Fae Forest had some of its own defensive measures in place to ensure that nobody messed with it.
The booming continued, and it was getting louder as Wolfe reached the hidden door to the Den, but the witch who should have been in the house wasn’t saying anything, and he couldn’t pick out an emotion from the mass of panic and confusion, assuming it was one of those who were more closely bonded to him.
When he stepped outside, he saw why there was no sound from her. The witch had moved outside and was staring open-mouthed at an approaching Treant. It was absolutely huge, a Redwood Tree version of the partially grown Coconut Treant downstairs, and it was slowly making its way down the path toward the Den.
The noise wasn’t as bad up here, more of thumping and cracking branches as it forced its way through the thick trees.
“Wait there, friend. I will come to you.” Wolfe called out, then headed toward the mobile tree.
The treants were the guardians of the Fae Forest, created by the Faerie, so this creature shouldn’t hurt him. He just had to learn what it wanted.
The Treant shifted its attention to him, and a soft voice, like wind whispering through the leaves, reached Wolfe’s ears.
“I have come looking for the little one. She did not come to the meeting of the Treants, and we cannot see her. Do you know who I mean, Magi?” It asked.
“Indeed I do. It was created in the underground gardens of our Den. A partially grown Coconut Tree, perhaps one and a half meters tall.” Wolfe confirmed.
“Good, good. That is perhaps too young for the business of guarding the forest. But coconut trees grow quickly, and it won’t be long before they are ready to join the rest of us at work.
But a Treant cannot grow beneath the ground. We are not an Iron Fae or a Dwarf who thrives in the depths. You should bring them up here to join the rest of us.”
“I will work on it. They returned to the underground garden for now, and they seemed comfortable, but they should know that you are here now.” Wolfe agreed with a smile.
There wasn’t a soul down below that didn’t know the Treant was here. Perhaps it was the nature of a Treant, but the sound carried from its movement to the solid bedrock much better than anything else that had passed overhead.
The witch in the entryway listened as raised voices echoed up the hallway behind him. “Go outside? Why would I do that? I’m working here. I have this tiny forest to protect.”
The Coconut Treant’s voice was loud enough that the witch on duty could hear it by the door, but it seemed that the large Treant couldn’t pick it out from that distance.
“Sir Treant, or is it Madam? The Coconut Treant says that they are guarding the tiny forest in the underground garden. We have magical lights down there, so they’re not stuck in the dark.” The witch called out.
“A Treant, guarding a Garden? I don’t care if it’s an entire Fae orchard. It doesn’t count as a Forest.” The same soft voice replied.
A root from the Redwood Treant began to extend toward the entry shack, and the Witch on duty quickly opened the door into the shack and to the Den.
The Treant was huge, it could easily rip the shack apart, even with the reinforcement magic that they had put on it, so it was only prudent to make sure that the root could reach its target unimpeded.
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There really wasn’t anything in the hallways that could be damaged other than his arrays, but he could fix them easily enough if this battle between the two treants damaged them.
After a few minutes where the sound of combat and shrill insults was all that he could hear from the Den, a large redwood root dragged a small Coconut Treant out by its Foliage.
“That’s what you get for fighting your duty. You should have known that fire would singe your leaves.” The larger tree harrumphed, and Wolfe smirked at the situation.
The smaller Treant had resisted leaving the garden and had been dragged out, but as they were upright at first, they had hit the globes of fire that lit the hallways instead of the magical sunlight that was used in the garden.
“You Damnable Redwood, who will look after my Orchard now? It’s still within the Fae Forest, so you can just bugger off and watch your own grove.” The Coconut Treant complained.
“We treants had a discussion. The request of the Faerie was to protect the Den and the Forest from interlopers, not just one portion of it. I am not the only one who doesn’t get a private grove.
Now follow me, and I will bring you to the space that was chosen for you in your absence.”
“There are no other Coconut Trees in this whole forest above ground. How am I supposed to just stand among random trees and pretend to blend in?” The little Treant complained.
“Well, that’s not my problem now, is it? But the spot we are bringing you to has many other fern and palm trees, plus it’s right by the water so that you will fit in with the surroundings.” The Redwood Treant explained but didn’t let go of the smaller Treant, who showed every intention of returning to the garden.
“Fine, I’m coming, I’m coming.” The Coconut Treant finally agreed after exhausting all options to break free from the much larger Redwood Treant.