“Not to say this isn’t kind of amazing, because it is, but why? Oakbert explained it a bit, but I know there has to be more of a reason behind this. You always have reasons,” Cal said, sure that Ethel was plotting something big here, but he couldn’t figure out exactly what that was, and that made him nervous, kind of. Sure, the curiosity outweighed the trepidation, but that was just always true. No matter how long he spent in these time loops, it seemed he was always bound to leap before he entirely looked.
“Because I almost died saving you, and someone else was forced to sacrifice themselves to hold this all together. I won’t let that happen again. I’m sorry that I wasn’t able to do this sooner, Twonger, but thanks to the Mother Tree, it will not happen again,” Ethel said. The words briefly caught in her throat as her apologies to Twonger spilled out. Cal wasn’t sure he had ever heard her with that kind of remorse before other than for animals.
“Not your fault. He made his choice, and I’m going to kill everyone who’s really responsible for the fact that he had to, and that ain’t either of you despite what you think,” Twonger answered.
“Are we just calling her Mother Tree?” Cal asked. The symbolism made sense, sure, but it was an odd name.
“For now, if she wishes a new name as she grows, that will be her choice. The next goal is to connect her through the rest of your realms as well; then, she will be able to hold them together as well as my own. Assuming, of course, I have your permission this is as far as I can penetrate easily without it,” Ethel explained. And just how far could she force the tree’s roots in if she really wanted to? Cal knew Ethel had grown far more powerful than she generally let on. He had seen the woman in action enough times to realize her dedication to her own growth far outstripped his own.
“Yeah, go for it, but I’m pretty sure you just recreated a Norse myth here. So what happens after our worlds are realms are stabilized? Oakbert seemed to think you are planning connections with other realities,” Cal asked trying to remember the name of the legendary tree that connected the different realms.
“Yggdrasil is the name you can’t either can’t pronounce or can’t remember. Maybe you need to join the school yourself next loop. And what happens is exactly what that tree did. It’s where I got the idea. This war will eventually extend far beyond our own universe, which became blatantly obvious when their whatever he was that snatched you got involved, and we need to be capable of fighting back against that. I know you are planning your own way of fighting this war to save Earth; well, I’m planning my own way to save everything and everyone,” Ethel answered, with a complete sense of sincerity in her words. Cal could tell she really meant what she said. How had she known he couldn’t remember the tree’s name, though?Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.
“Yeah, that is something I hadn’t fully considered. I figured once we secured our own world, we could work on that later, but you’ve got a point,” Cal said. He had generally tried to avoid thinking about that problem; it caused nightmares at the idea of just how impossible it sounded.
“I always have a point; you just refuse to listen to it most of the time,” Ethel responded, smiling.
“Well, at least Grannus seems thrilled with this change,” Cal said. The mana spirit had been distracted since the path had opened up by the presence of several animals that had wandered into the realm. He was currently playing with what Cal thought were a group of gerbils.
“Professor Ethel, would it be okay if these creatures lived here, they seem to like the idea, and I think this cliff area would be perfect for them if we can just change up the ground composition somewhat,” Grannus asked. It was the first time Cal had heard him refer to Ethel as a professor. Had that been Bug’s doing, or had the mana spirit attended one of her classes?
“Yes, there are also a few more animals that would like to join you here if you are okay with that. I have several bats that I know would love to stay here. Do you have a pond anywhere in here?” Ethel asked, looking around the cavern we were in for the first time.
“No, do you think that would encourage more life here?” Grannus asked, sounding very interested. This was, in fact the most genuine enjoyment Cal had ever seen out of his mana spirit. They had always had a more dour outlook, likely caused by the corruption they had fought for so long.
“I’ve been considering adding several species of fish and looping some of the waterways through your caverns, and perhaps even somehow connecting into the void house itself. That would greatly increase the variety we were capable of housing,” Ethel answered, sounding suddenly lost in thought.
“Not to mention amphibians; I haven’t seen many frogs around here yet. You know you want a tadpole pond,” Cal added, remembering some of his earliest memories of catching frogs with his parents.
“Sometimes your ideas aren’t totally horrible. Gus, have we reached a point where Project Ark is possible?” Ethel asked, turning to the bird creature that served as her second in command.
“Not yet, boss, well, not fully possible. Phase one is entirely doable. We will need more hands to start it, though. The vast majority of the animals have not even started to gain any sort of intelligence, let alone loop awareness. There’s just no way we can handle it ourselves yet,” he answered.
“Well, then, I suppose we will just need to get the children up to speed sooner rather than later. Grannus, I give you permission to visit my realm as much as you wish. Please enjoy yourself, and if you would like to work with Mother Tree to create a pathway for a river, I would strongly support it. I have other things I need to attend to; I spent far too long unconscious in a prison somewhere,” Ethel said, turning and walking out of the cave, surprisingly quickly considering her recent injuries, Gus following behind her.
“What the hell is Project Ark?” Twonger asked the moment she was gone.