“Refugees?” Rudbeckia frowned.

“Yes sir. From what we were able to piece together from people, there had been a violent overthrow of the Fescunian government. One of the higher up generals in the Fescue Army named Glauca took over. He started blaming everything bad that was happening in Fescue on Scythia. He was going around saying that the only solution was to eradicate the Scythians. The government didn’t agree and tried to fire him, or at least remove him from a position of power. Apparently he didn’t take too well to that and launched a coup.

After he took control he started a campaign to create weapons to use against Scythia.

He had every scientist and engineer in Fescue start to focus on creating new and more powerful weapons. Barring that, they were to make the existing ones even more deadly.

When the Commander heard the stories he decided it was vital that the Council know and dispatched a couple of us to make our way back to Scythia and relay the information.

We made it back just as the first Ortho bombs hit. At first, we had no idea what it was. It was just so drastically different from anything else we had ever seen before. I manage to make my way to the Council chambers and helped escort them to the underground facility.”

“It’s called the M.O.L.E., Mission Control, Lower Environment.”

“Lower environment?”

“Fancy name for ‘underground’. Don’t look at me like that, I didn’t name it.”

“So what happened once you left the shelter?”

“That was actually worse, “ Paeonia continued, “Those that had survived the attack were seriously sick. The air was still saturated with chemicals from the bombs so the decision was to leave Scythia. Commander Quercus convinced the Council to it would be better to move the survivors to a safer location until next Season so we packed what we could and left. The Commander and a couple Council members went on ahead over the Hedge Mountains to Juncaceae to see if they would take us in.”

Paeonia set his cup back down, stood up and walked over to look out at the sky, “They said yes. They said there weren’t that many of us and that we could setup a camp in a huge field just outside Junca City. Can you imagine that?”

“Imagine what?”

“That there were so few Sythians left that we could all fit into a single field. “ Paeonia turned around and leaned against the wall, “The deep frost came and we didn’t really suffer that badly. Fortunately it wasn’t as bad or cold as it had been in recent years. Mild, all things considered.”

“So no one died?”

“Oh, several people died, but none from the elements. A couple passed shortly after we arrived. They both began to wither and got weaker. We gave them all the food and water we could but it didn’t help. The docs said they had been exposed to the chemicals in the Ortho bombs and it had just been a matter of time. Others died from eating food they had brought with them from Scythia that had carried the chemicals on them. Once they ate, it was over fairly quickly. “

“I’m sorry Paeonia.”

“Thanks. It wasn’t as bad as it sounds. I mean yeah, it was horrible, it had never been like this but we survived.”

“So this is survivor’s guilt?”

“What? No.” Paeonia stood up from the wall, a look of anger on his face, “This is survivor’s anger. They destroyed us because of a single lunatic’s rantings. We never did anything to them. The Prunings were just war games, no one was ever intentionally killed.”

“So you’re looking for revenge? Payback maybe?”

“No sir. Looking for justice. Glauca needs to be brought to justice for his crimes. Not just against Scythia, but for the Fescuenian peoples as well. He’s destroying two societies.”

“Calm down captain. I’m not blaming you for anything. Just needed to make sure I wasn’t dealing with some vigilante with an agenda. “ Rudbeckia smiled, “So continue your story. You survived the winter, what happened then?”

Paeonia picked up his cup and took a sip. It had gotten cold but still had flavor, “When the weather warmed we sent what military we had along with couple Council members to check on the homeland. When we got there the Fungi had already taken hold.”

“In less than a single season?”

“We were shocked as well. None of it made sense.”

“So what happened?”

“We came here. There wasn’t much else we could do. We had nowhere near the numbers needed to drive them out. The Juncaceans are worried that the Fungi will spread here next so they let us stay. Councilman Cleome and Commander Quercus talked with their Mayor and sub-Mayors and convinced them to contribute troops to the effort of trying to retake Scythia; taking advantage that fear.”

Rudbeckia nodded, “More tea?”

“Sure. Anyway, after they agreed to help, the Commander and Councilman started talking to the heads of the other clans around and convinced them to sign on as well.”

“How did Amarantia and the Fungi get involved in all this?”

“He just showed up one day and asked to speak with the Council. He told the same story Commander Quercus told you, that a grouped of Fungi had gone rogue and he needed our help to bring them under control. He said he would offer support and logistics in exchange for turning the rebels over to him and his people once we had reclaimed our home.”

“Odd that the Fungi would need our help. They have vastly superior resources.” Rudbeckia muttered to himself. To Paeonia he said, “Did he say anything about why they couldn’t do it themselves?”

Paeonia yawned, “Commander, do you mind if we pick this up tomorrow? It’s extremely late, or should I say early. I really need to get some sleep.”

Rudbeckia smiled, “No problem captain. I forgot how late it was. Got excited and caught up in the conversation I suppose. Thanks for taking the time to talk to me Paeonia. I truly appreciate it. It’s good to finally know what happened while I was away.”

“It was my pleasure sir. Oh, one thing that always bothered me. When Overseer Amarantia got here he knew everything we had talked about to the other Fungi. He claimed not to have had contact with them but it seemed odd that he would know otherwise. Never could figure that out.“

“Actually it does make sense, they have a Hive Mind,” He said at last, “They are all connected.”

“At, that would explain it. Anyway, good night sir.”

“Good night Captain,” Rudbeckia said shaking Paeonia’s hand. He watched as Paeonia walked away, the captains last comments echoing around in his own.

Rudbeckia paused as everything suddenly became clear and looked in the direction Paeonia had gone, “They have a Hive Mind.”

Everything fell together for Rudbeckia. He suddenly realized what had be bothering him about the Fungi Overseer, all the nagging thoughts crystalized as he realized the truth.

A noise caused him to look up. He peered deep into the trees trying to find the source of the sound.

It was then the Marasmius^[1] assassin struck.

1. ^[1] First seen in Rise of the Fungi ↩

© 2012, anthony. All rights reserved.

Seated near the head of the table was Emerson, the ships accountant. Who, as usual, was buried inside a book trying to figure out some way to ensure that the trip was a financial success. It still baffled him that he had let himself be talked into having an official Onboard Accountant but he certainly couldn’t argue with the results. Since Emerson had signed on they had yet to lose money on a contract and in fact had managed to get some of the more lucrative ones, although Remarkable suspected that had something to do with the fact that his accountant had ties to most of the head families in Vintri. Assuming you could call your sister’s husband’s friend a tie.

With that said, Emerson was the one person he wasn’t going to enjoy having this discussion with.

Standing a moment and listening to the current topic of interest between his First Mate and Engineer, he caught the eye of Faulkner who only smiled and shook his head.

“That is so like you”, Harley shouted, admonishing Phineas, “You never agree with … oh! Candy!”

The captain had tossed a bag onto the table that contained several small, indelicately wrapped items. Harley and Phineas both leapt from their seats in an effort to grab as many as they could. Harley came away with slightly more, all stuffed in his mouth, and trotted back to his seat with his head held high.

“Great, “ laughed Phineas, “just what we need. Our head engineer on a sugar high.”

Harley sat back in his seat and glared at Phineas, and stuck his tongue out.

“Alright everyone, settle down,” began the captain as Harley looked over to Faulkner and pointed to his mouth. Faulkner smiled and waved Harley off, politely declining the invitation to share in the slobber covered treats. Harley simply grinned, flecks of wrapping showing through his not quite closed teeth.

“We have a lot to discuss and not much time. Phin, I’ve asked Richmond to start the pre-flight process to give us as much time as possible, but I don’t want to delay any longer than I have too.”

“Okay, that’s slightly ominous,” said Phineas.

“Sorry about that, not intentional. Phin and Harley already know that the Knights were on board a few minutes ago,” Faulkner perked up at this news, “and they have asked us to do them a favor.”

The last bit caused Emerson to put down his pencil, pull his head from the book and raise his hand.

“Yes Emerson, it is an actual contract. With money and everything.”

Emerson put his hand down and immediately raised it again.

“Patience Em, I’ll get to you. So here’s the short and sweet. Apparently a dignitary from the underside city of Frumunda (Harley giggled around a mouth full of candy) has disappeared. He and his entourage were coming here to attend the Ceremony of Champions and got… lost. And by lost I mean disappeared off the face of the continent. The Mayor, via the Knights, has offered us a contract to find and retrieve this lost soul. The contract is open ended but I suspect they are going to want some kind of results soon. It appears that the government in Frumunda is threatening to go to war. They have managed to come to the conclusion that we kidnapped their Mayor.”

“Any idea where he was last seen,” Faulkner asked.

“Yea. That answer comes with good news and bad news.”

“Of course it does,” Faulkner replied smiling.

“Bad news,” continued the captain, “is that the Knights suspect he was in Caldor.”

“Oh. That’s just fantastic,” commented Phineas.

“Why not just tell the Frumundians that he was in Caldor, ” asked Emerson.

“You ever try explaining to someone that a city relocates itself every night and shows up in the morning in a different place? Might as well say he ran away to join a traveling circus, or was kidnapped by flying monkeys. It’s about as believable,” replied Phineas.

“So what’s the plan Cap,” Faulkner asked stopping Phineas’ attempted tirade.

“The good news part is that Caldor was last seen near Araxeia. It was a couple weeks ago, and I know that the chances of it being nearby when we arrive in Araxeia in five days are nonexistent. But it’s a starting point. I figured if we make a stop at the Gods Islands and inquire at the GMAP library we might have a shot at finding him.”

“Um…”, Harley chimed in, his candy gone, “You do know that the last time anyone predicted where Caldor would appear was over two thousand years ago. It supposedly took him forty years to do so. And even then it was a guess.”

“Yes, I realize that. However technology has changed in two thousand years. Besides, he didn’t have a genius Dawgerian to help him.”

Phineas rolled his eyes, “Perfect, a sugar high and full of himself.”

Harley sat up proudly and grinned.

“Stopping at the Library will cost us some time but I think if we push the ship a little we should only be delayed by a couple days. I get the feeling that neither of our passengers will mind the time.”

Emerson again looked up from his books and raised his hand.

“Yes Em?”

“Just want to point out captain that the extra two days of travel will cost us around 340 kaymec in fuel….”

“It will be covered.”

“…An additional 220 kaymec in food…”

“Covered.”

“… 420 mec in docking fees…”

“Also covered.”

“… And according to my calculations, potentially another 1000 kaymec in bribes.”

“Ah, yes. That will be classed as general expenses. Maritan won’t question too closely, especially if we find this lost puppy and bring him back before Frumunda declares war. We do that fast enough and I’m pretty sure I can squeeze a bonus out of them.”

“I can’t even begin to calculate the cost of trying to locate Caldor and then the Mayor. Especially if we happen to stay overnight once we find it.”

“I know, lets just hope it doesn’t come to that. Lets find the city first, then worry about the rest of it. Anyone object to taking this contract? Aside from the fact that the Knights are involved.”

No one, not even Emerson raised their hands or paws.

Okay, any further questions or comments? No? Good. Meeting adjourned, lets get this ship out of port and on our way to the Gods Islands.”

Everyone stood up from their chairs and left the table. All that is except Harley. He floated. Faulkner hung back a moment to speak with the captain.

“You know this isn’t going to end well. Harley got way too much candy.”

“Yea, I figured he would. That’s why I got the sugar free stuff.”

Faulkner gave a single deep barking laugh, “Ha!”

“I’ll make the announcement to the rest of the crew and the passengers. I’m getting too old for this,” the captain said smiling.

© 2012, anthony. All rights reserved.

After the disastrous meeting with Commander Quercus, and nearly biting Paeonia’s head off, he had taken a walk around the grounds to cool off. Absently he had picked at the branches and leaves of a couple trees as he passed. As he made his way around the edges of the field he thought back to his time with the Fungi and the things he had given up since the Pruning six long seasons ago. He was grateful to those that had given him a new purpose other than just surviving. In that moment he realized he had yet to let go of the frustration and anger that had built up over the seasons of separation from the life he had known.

A quiet knock at the door pulled Rudbeckia from his thoughts. “Come in,” He said walking away from the window.

The door opened slowly as Paeonia made his way into the room, “Sorry to bother you so late sir. I saw the light on and thought I’d see if everything was okay.”

“It’s fine, just can’t sleep. “

Paeonia simply nodded. He turned to start back out the door when he remember there was something else he wanted to tell Rudbeckia, “One more thing sir. I wanted to let you know the status of the two that came with you from the Fungi camp. The one named Salix left this afternoon for his homeland. I believe the cartographers were able to give him an estimate of where it was from here. He’s from a long way away I gathered.”

“He’d been with the Fungi for over twelve seasons. I think he said his home was called Prosopis or something like that.”

“I believe they said it would take him about a week to get back.”

“And what of Centaurea?”

“Centaurea has chosen to stay with us and join the Scythian Army. He said that his home was long gone and that he would like to repay his debt to you for helping him while the two of you were with the Fungi,” Paeonia took a step further into the room, “If you don’t mind my saying sir, you look extremely tired. You really should try to get some rest.”

Rudbeckia smiled as he set his tea on the table. It had been a long time since anyone had shown any concern for him. He knew that it was part of Paeonia’s job to make sure his transition back to normal life went as smooth as possible, but the fact that he had stopped after seeing the lights on meant it was more than just a job. “Still trying to fit in with the rest of the world Captain. It will take time. I’ve only been back a couple days. By the way, would you like some tea? I just brewed it.”

“Tea?”

“I know, you’d expect coffee from an old soldier like me. It’s a quirk,” Rudbeckia said as he grabbed another cup and began pouring in the steaming liquid, “I’m a bit of a snob however. I won’t just drink any tea, and I definitely won’t drink the stuff they serve in the mess. I prefer to blend my own.”

“Your own sir?”

“This is a mix of Apple Leaves, wild chamomile and a little Willow bark for depth, “ Rudbeckia commented as he handed to cup to Paeonia.

The captain took a tentative sip. It wasn’t as hot at it had seemed and he was grateful not to burn his tongue. It wasn’t what he expected either. It was smoother than the coffee he was use to. Cleaner too. “It’s very good sir.”

“Stop calling me ‘sir’. I realize I’m your superior but right now we or… well, I am off duty. Have a seat. “ Rudbeckia said to Paeonia as he lowered himself into a chair.

“It’s getting late, I don’t want to keep you up…. Sir.”

“I’m already up Captain. Besides I wanted to talk to you for a few minutes.”

Paeonia took a seat across from Rudbeckia and sipped at his tea.

“I realize that you were assigned to help ease my transition back into the military by Quercus, however I have come to have a great respect for you since we first met a few days ago and I’m hoping that we can work together to do what needs to be done and take back Scythia from the Fungi. I’m not asking to be friends although I would like to think we could. Perhaps it is because I have been away from things for so long that I say that, but since you are going to be my second in command I want to get to know you more. I need to able to trust you when we go into battle.”

“Let me first say sir that I may have been assigned by Commander Quercus but I actually volunteered for this assignment.”

“Oh,” remarked Rudbeckia leaning back in his chair his interest peaked, “and why did you do that?”.

“I knew who you were. We never served together before the last pruning but I knew the name.”

“Nice to be remembered. But why volunteer for this assignment? Surely there are more interesting things you could be doing than helping a former solider find his way around again.”

“This was my way of making amends.”

Rudbeckia placed his elbows on his knees and leaned in further, “Amends? Amends for what Paeonia? What do you feel you need to make amends for?”

“I was there and wasn’t able to do anything.”

“There,” asked Rudbeckia leaning forward.

“Yea. I saw everything, saw the bombs come down. I was there when Scythia fell. “

© 2012, anthony. All rights reserved.

“Captain Remarkable, I have an official request from Mayor Theolson. It would appear a dignitary from the province of Frumunda was on his way here to attend the annual Ceremony of Champions when he was… lets just say sidetracked? The mayor has asked if you would be willing to take on a search and rescue contract and aid in our search for him and his party.”

“Not that I’m not flattered Commander, but why would the mayor offer us a contract like this, “ replied Captain Remarkable as he handed the inventory list back to Harley.

The Commander of the Knights of Orange removed his helm and walked away from the group slightly, “May I speak with you in private a moment captain?”

“Of course,” replied the captain as he joined the Commander and together they walked around the cargo bay.

“I’m going to be completely honest Broca, “the Commander glanced over to the captain as he arrived at his side, ”and you can never repeat what I’m about to tell you. We haven’t had any luck trying to locate this guy. It’s been nine days since his caravan vanished. The sub-Mayor in Frumunda has stopped short of threatening to go to war, but he’s not far from it. Somehow he got it into his head we kidnapped their mayor.”

“So why me Maritan? There are plenty other outfits in Vintri that would happily accept this, so why come to me?” “I told the mayor about some of your exploits, leaving out the less than legal parts of course, and suggested that a privateer of your caliber might be able to search in ways we can’t.”

“Privateer? Is that what you’re calling it now,” the Captain asked grinning.

“Call it whatever you want George,” the Commander grinned back, “ point is we… no, I, need help here. You have contacts and connections from here to the Gods Isles. It goes without saying you can get into places we can’t and talk to people that won’t talk to us.”

“And if I refuse?”

“Please. You and I both know you won’t refuse. You won’t pass up the chance to make the Knights look bad.”

The Commander stood watching the Captain. Both tried to prevent smiles from erupting across their faces. Both failed. Now it was simply a contest to see who failed the least.

Finally the Captain burst out laughing, “You win. And you’re right. No chance I’d pass up making you guys look bad. Tell me everything about this incident.”

Phineas walked past the Cargo Bay doors just as Harley floated out on his hover pod,”Whats up short round?”

Harley pressed a button on his hover pod and rose higher until he was at approximately the same height as Phineas. Phineas merely smiled. He caught a glimpse of several Knights of Orange through the open door as they walked out the main bay doors. He turned to Harley just as a small hooded figure made its way into the cargo bay and hid in the shadows.

“The Command of the Knights of Orange and the Captain went for a walk a while ago. They’ve been talking ever since.”

“Any idea what he wanted?”

“He was telling the Captain that Mayor Theolson wanted our help.”

“You were able to hear all that?”

“Only because I was eavesdropping. Then they walked to the other side of the bay and I wasn’t able to follow. What do you think it might be?”

“With the Knights involved who knows. It could be anything from Crab on Crab violence to Killer Tomatoes,” replied Phineas as he walked into the cargo bay. Harley paused a moment and then quickly followed.

“You think there is a chance they are here to arrest us?”

“Why, did you do something else illegal?”

“Well, there are those bones I have.”

“I don’t think they really care about smuggling some bones.”

”Why not? They are important too!” exclaimed Harley, slightly offended that his criminal activity might not be considered all that criminal.

“Are we really going to go through this? Again?”

“Sorry, I’m just antsy. I don’t like not knowing. If those soldiers weren’t here I’d have been able to listen in a little more and figure out what’s going on.”

“In the meantime why don't you head down to the engine room and start making preparations for life off. The passengers are all onboard and the provisions and cargo are stowed. I have a feeling that the captain is going to want to launch as soon as possible.”

“Fine, “Harley stormed off as best he could in his hover pod. Which had less than the desired effect considering it wasn’t that fast. Or that imposing. It more resembled the bottom half of an egg more than anything else.

As Harley floated out the cargo bay door the captain and the knights commander shook hands and patted each other on the shoulder. The Commander then spoke to the soldiers, who gathered their gear and shuffled their way out the hold’s large doors. Once the last soldier was clear Phineas walked over to the captain as he closed the large bay doors.

“What’s up Cap?”

“Let head up to the bridge, I’ll fill you in on the way.”

© 2012, anthony. All rights reserved.

“I’m not surprised sir, there have been a lot of changes since…”, Captain Paeonia trailed off with a glancing look at Rudbeckia.

“It’s okay Captain. You can say since I’ve been away from the military. Almost seven Seasons. A long time to be away from everything you know.“

They walked in silence for a few moments. Suddenly Rudbeckia stopped as a wide grin spread across his face. Paeonia turned and followed Rudbeckia who had began walking into a line of Crabgrass Tanks.

“Now this I remember,” he said when he stopped and began running his hand across the vehicle that sat in front of him, “I used to build models of the Honey Bee when I was a kid. Rode one twice during my time in the service. Feisty little buggers.”

“Yes sir,” replied Paeonia, “Unfortunately they don’t see much action anymore. Not many of them left. I imagine this is… or likely was, someone's private Bee,” Paeonia pointed further into the field to a sleeker, more modern vehicle, “The Diamondbacks are the new thing now. They are incredibly maneuverable and since they are heavier and have a larger core, can carry some fairly heavy weaponry. Gives them a bit of a nasty bite.”

“They had just released the predecessor to the Diamondback when the Pruning come on. Copperhead I believe it was called. Never had a chance to ride one, but they looked very sleek and deadly."

Rudbeckia stood for a few moments longer admiring the vehicle. Finally he gave it a gentle pat and turned to Paeonia, “Okay Captain. Let’s get back to that inspection. And stop worrying about offending me. “

Paeonia smiled, “yes sir!”, he shouted as he threw up a mock salute.

They passed out of the line of vehicles into a semi open field, much like the one Rudbeckia had seen when he first arrived.

“So are these newer editions of the Dragonfly?”

“Yes sir. The Lilicans have some fairly advanced aerial craft. Our engineers took the designs from the Lilican Dropwings and Mayfly and did some updates on the Dragonflys. As a result the maneuverability and speed are greatly increased. In addition the created the Firefly gear by scaling down some of the designs and combining them with design from the Clover clans.”

“Firefly?” asked Rudbeckia, giving the captain a quizzical look.

“Oh, your going to love this.”

Paeonia stepped up to the Dragonfly and reached into the cockpit. He pulled out a small backpack looking device and turned back to Rudbeckia with a giant grin on his face, “If I may?”

“What?”

“Just lift your arms for me a second. There is nothing to be concerned about.”

Rudbeckia did as he was asked and raised his arms out to his side. Paeonia stepped forward and passed the pack around behind the Commander then reached around the other side and pulled a belt out of the device and attached it around Rudbeckia at the waist. He then reached over the Commander's shoulders and pressed a small button on each side of the pack on his back, just to each side of the Commanders head. Straps disengaged and popped out the top, which Paeonia pulled up and forward before attaching them to the strap around Rudbeckia's waist. Paeonia stepped back and placed his hands on his waist and smiled.

“Okay, am I supposed to just stand here all days like this? “ asked Rudbeckia.

“No sir," replied Paeonia, “just press the button on the upper right strap."

Rudbeckia again did as asked and jumped a bit at the sound and jarring that came from the pack attached to him, “What the…”

Looking left and right he saw the tips of a duel set of translucent wings extending out from the device on his back.

He turned to look back at Paeonia, “What? Do these work? How much weight do they support?”

“Told you you’d like this. Yes they are functional. The will support plenty of weight, up to three passengers at a time. They been field tested quite extensively. A couple test subjects have even jumped from moving aircraft and engaged the wings. They worked perfectly, which is why they are standard issue on each aerial vehicle. If a craft suffers damage and is no longer air worthy the pilots can abandon ship safely.”

“Amazing,” said Rudbeckia in awe as he removed the device by reversing the steps Paeonia had taken to put it on him, “Absolutely amazing.”

He handed the Firefly back to Paeonia who replaced it in the DragonFly cockpit, “Shall we continue our tour sir?”

“Yes. I’m curious to see what types of ordinance they’ve come up with,” Rudbeckia replied, still smiling.

“These are our Dandelion Bombs. Creative little invention. I’m proud to say I have a small part in the design of these.”

“And what do these do?”

“The yellow-orange shell is pressure sensitive. So what we do is launch them high in the air in the direction of the enemy. When they reach a certain altitude the outer shell breaks off. Inside are a bunch of, what looks like sticks attached to a central ball. Each stick is a bomb and when the outer shell breaks they drop off the core and release a small parachute and float down to the enemy territory.”

“Sounds like a lot potential for innocent casualties.”

“Well, we only plan to target the Gravel Pit, so the risk is minimal if not nonexistent, since there are no civilians anywhere near there.”

“Gravel Pit?”

Paeonia carefully set down the orange ball he was holding and looked at Rudbeckia, “Didn’t Commander Quercus tell you about it?”

“I didn’t get much of a briefing, Amanita said something about having things to do and Quercus called you in and asked you to give me the nickel tour. So what is the Gravel Pit?”

“Um, I’d rather let the Commander explain that.”

“I’m not surprised you haven’t heard about the Gravel Pit. They are clever about it,” began Commander Quercus after Paeonia explained the situation, “Two separate groups of guards, one for the Pit one for the … guests. Never a cross-pollination between the two. Meaning the Pit guards only ever guard the Pit, the dorm guards only ever guard the dorms. That way there is no chance of an accidental slip of the tongue. They don’t make an overt effort to keep it a secret so no one ever thinks to ask.”

“What is it?” asked Rudbeckia as he leaned back and folded his arms across his chest. He wasn’t comfortable with the thought that something so important had been practically under his feet and he had known nothing about it. No clue it had even existed.

Quercus frowned, “From what little we’ve been able to piece together, and the information we have from Amanita, we think it’s where they are performing their experimentation.”

“Something about Amanita bothers me.”

“I realize that you have some misgivings about trusting any Fungi after what you’ve been through, but he is on our side.”

"The Fungi aren’t on anyones side but their own,” snorted Rudbeckia.

“For now do me a favor and steer clear of him.”

“Will do,” replied Rudbeckia as he left the tent.

Paeonia quickly followed with only a cursory glance back to Commander Quercus.

“Don’t be too hard on the Commander sir. He’s doing the best he can under the conditions. After all, he’s managed to assemble all these armies together to help stop whatever the Fungi are trying to do over there.”

“I know Captain, and I doubt the Commander needs you looking out for him. Besides it isn’t him, it’s Amantia. Something about him isn’t right.”

“How so?”

"I don’t know. I just get the feeling there is something we are missing. Something about the rogue Fungi or the experiments they are working on that he isn’t telling us.”

“Such as?”

Rudbeckia stopped short and turned to face Paeonia, “I don’t know. I don’t have enough information and I’m not getting anything from Amantia or Quercus except them telling me not to worry about it. That worries me. We are being used somehow and by Scythia, I intend find out how.”

© 2012, anthony. All rights reserved.

Two figures stood in the middle of the room looking around at the flurry of activity and seemingly lost. One looked as if he had seen better days, wearing a grey suit that appeared to be several sizes too large for him and was slightly tattered. The other appeared as if he had just stepped from a high-powered boardroom, his dark suit immaculate, with not a hair on his head out of place.

“Greetings gentlemen! My name is Phineas Willowman, Space Ranger and I am the First Mate of the Daedalus. This is our Chief Engineer Harley. Welcome aboard, what can we do to assist you?” Phineas said as he walked across the room.

“Well…”, muttered the rumpled gentleman.

“Space Ranger Phin?”

Phineas spun around and looked back towards the voice that has just spoken, “Captain! I didn’t see you there sir.”

“I repeat, Space Ranger?”

“Uh, sorry sir. Got a little carried away. Won’t happen again.”

“I suspect it will,” smirked the captain as he strode across the cargo bay, hand extended, “Gentlemen, I am Captain Remarkable. I see you have already met my First Mate and Pilot as well as the Chief Engineer.”

The perfectly suited gentleman stepped forward, ignoring the captain’s hand, “I am Doctor Sandal Morigan. If you can show me to my room I would be most appreciated. I have a few things I need to secure away if you don’t mind.”

“Not at all Doctor. Jansen! Would you please escort Doctor Morigan to…”

“And I would appreciate it if no one disturbed me. I have very important work on do on a project vital to the Empire,” Morigan interjected.

“I will see that no one disturbs…” the captain began again.

“And I would also like to examine the arrangements made for Trilofax”

The captain stared at the doctor, “I’m sorry. Trilofax?”

“Yes, Trilofax. My pet Sunarian.”

“Phineas?”

Flipping through the pages on his PAD, Phineas looked even more confused. After a few seconds he stopped and peered closer at the screen, “Yes, I see a ‘Trilofax’ listed here under cargo. You said it was a pet? Do you carry it around in your pocket?”

“Pocket!”, Morigan spat as he glared at Phineas, “He’s standing right beside me!”

Phineas glanced at the captain who merely shrugged and glanced at Harley who shook his head.

Morigan sighed, “Oh I see, you’re one of those.”

“Those?” interjected Harley.

Morigan sighed again, “Yes, a single dimensional being. I do wonder how you cope with it. Must be so difficult. Poor thing. Limited mind, with I assume limited technology. If you would please set aside a room for Trilofax, I will tend to him as it is obvious you have no idea what a Sunarian is.”

“Jensen, please show Doctor Morigan to the Orange Suite and make sure the room next door is set up for, Trilofax was it?”, Morigan nodded to the Captain, “My apologies, it is the best I can offer. Limited technology and all.”

The captain turned to the remaining passenger and again extended his hand, “And you are sir?”

“Captain, thank you very much for your hospitality and taking me onboard. I realize I was a last second faire, hope I’m not imposing.”

“Not at all mister-“

“Oh, sorry. I’m Reynolds, Professor Reynolds. I teach at the academy on Treelonk.”

“Not a problem Professor Reynolds.”

“If you don’t mind my saying so Professor, you look rather… how can I put this…”, commented Harley.

“Like I’ve been hit by a bus?”

“Something like that yes.”

“Your pardon, I had to borrow a suit from a friend yesterday, mine was destroyed in a rather unfortunate accident.”

“Accident? Are you okay?”

“Oh yes, yes. I was here studying a group of native animals when I was suddenly attacked by a herd of nomadic giraffe.”

“Um, nomadic giraffe”?

“Yes, absolutely horrifying experience. Although it was nothing like the incident last year let me tell you.”

“Last year? You've been attacked by these giraffe before?”

“Hm? Oh heavens no! Last year it was the Famous Fruit Fly Invasion! Thankfully the Loafbread Calvary arrived in the nick of time to rescue the research team.”

Captain Remarkable simply stared for a moment, ”Right. To the Green Room then please Phin.”

“Um…”, muttered Professor Reynolds.

“Is there a problem Professor?” asked Phineas as he rejoined the group.

“I don’t mean to be a bother but, is there possibly another room? I’m allergic to the color green.”

“Well,” Harley began, “It’s only named the Green room, it’s not actually green. It’s more a tan-ish brown actually.”

“Oh, well in that case… can I still have another room. Even a small one will be fine. Just the fact that it’s named green is giving me hives.”

“Certainly Professor. Phineas, can you escort the good professor to the Brown room please?”

“Right away captain.”

“Harley floated over next to the captain as Phineas picked up the Professors bags and started walking towards the cargo bay door, “We have a Brown room?”

“It’s the same room I just called it Brown. I figure he won’t know the difference.”

“Interesting,’replied Harley, “Captain? You expecting company?”

“No why,” asked the captain as he turned around and looked across the cargo bay as a group of soldiers in bright orange armor arrived.

The Professor followed Phineas out into the hall, his head twisting and turning in every direction trying to see as much as he could of the ship, “This is a fantastic ship! What kind is it?”

Phineas grinned. He knew that people who had never encountered a ship like the Daedalus typically had the same reaction, “This Professor, is a Prometheus ship. “

“Prometheus? I’m not familiar with that.”

“Its fairly new, only a few exist as of yet. It comes from the Nardinian Ship Yards.”

“It seems to be composed of a metal I’ve never encountered before,” commented the Professor as he ran his fingers across the surface of the wall.

“ That’s because it isn’t metal, this ship is grown.”

“Grown! Fascinating! Please, can you tell me more?”

He didn’t know why, but he had taken an instant liking to the Professor when they had met in the cargo hold.
“The Prometheus class ship is special. It’s the first ship in the world that’s not built but grown. The ship yards in Nardinian are tended primarily by semi-sentient borgs. From what I’ve been told this is because if human hands, or anything organic touches the ship during its growth it causes problems. Harley and I have tried to verify that theory many times. Security there is very very tight, “Phineas continued as he rounded a corner, “Anyway, it takes about ten years to grow a ship this size. Some of the smaller ones can take as little as five, others upwards of twenty. Once the ship reaches maturity it’s harvested and taken to a holding facility on the southern coast of Axia.”

“I’ve never been to Axia.”

“Oh, you really must go some day. It’s wonderful. The metal works museum is interesting. Harley could stare at the exhibits for hours. In fact, he has on occasion.”

The professor laughed at the thought of the Dawgerian he had met in the cargo bay staring at the exhibits, “So what happens once the ship is at the holding facility?”

Phineas stopped and set the bags on the deck and waved his hand in front of the door release. The door quickly slide open revealing the darkened room inside. “This is your room Professor. Unfortunately I can’t talk more right now, I have to get to the bridge. We should be taking off soon and since I’m the pilot, “Phineas smiled.

“I would love to know more about the ship, perhaps even a tour later?”

“Tell you what I will do, I’ll ask Faulkner, our head of Security if he would give you a tour and tell you about the ship. If you like you can meet me in the mess hall then and I’ll gladly take you on a tour and tell you all about it.”

“I’d appreciate that but uh, I’m not sure where the mess hall is on this ship.”

“Okay, I’ll let him know to stop by here then, if you want the tour just be waiting outside your cabin. How does that sound?”

“Sounds wonderful ,”the professor shook Phineas’ hand vigorously, “absolutely wonderful.”

“In the meantime, ,” Phineas smiled again, “I’d suggest you get your things stowed away and please make yourself comfortable until then.”

© 2012, anthony. All rights reserved.

Sure they worked them hard during the Growing season and allowed them to rest and live normally during the winter, letting nature weed out the weak from the strong.

Rudbeckia stood and stretched his aching back, occasionally flicking his hand to wave away whatever it was that was buzzing around his face. He reflected on the four Growing seasons he had spent as a guest of the Fungi. He wasn’t technically a prisoner since he could leave anytime he wanted, but considering this was his home and that he was out numbered by something like ten thousand to one, he had no choice but to stay and try to find a way to reclaim Scythia from the invaders. Others stayed for varying reasons. Lack of hope and other options being among the most common.

Not that there was much left to reclaim. After all this time the land that he had known as a sapling had been changed by the influence and activities of the Fungi. No one actually knew what the invaders were planning or why they had chosen to stay. Normally they would use up whatever resources brought them benefit and move on, leaving the land essentially barren and unable to support all but the most stubborn of flora and fauna.

He waved again at the thing that had been buzzing around his head. It had been pestering him for some time so he began tracking it with his eyes, trying to anticipate where it might land. As he tracked it he began to notice that something about it was familiar. At first it was just a feeling in the back of his mind but the longer he watched it the more convinced he became that he knew what it was.

On a whim he extended his right hand out in front of him. After a few seconds the thing stopped buzzing around and hovered over his open palm. As he got a better look at it his eyes widened in shock. He did know what this was but had never expected to see another, much less one after all this time.
The creature landed and turned to look at Rudbeckia.

“Impossible.” he whispered to himself.

He smiled as he realized that he was holding in his palm a Homing Gnat. He had bred and trained them when he was younger, growing up on his grandfather’s farm. They were used by the military to deliver messages between the front lines and the command center, but he hadn’t seen one in almost six Growing seasons.

With a shaking hand, he reached out to check the legs of the Gnat, knowing there was little chance there would actually be a note but hoping anyway.

He gasped when his fingers found the tiny metal cylinder on the back legs. He carefully held his enthusiasm in check, knowing there was also a chance this particular Gnat was carrying an old message that had never made it to him all those years ago. He carefully removed the cylinder and placed the Gnat on the table beside him, smiling as he did so. Regardless of the message in the tube, assuming there actually was one, the little creature had done its job. It had brought him a little glimmer of happiness.

He slowly removed the paper within and unrolled it carefully. He read the message that had been written there:

Rb, The morning of the first frost, be ready. -Q

He read it again three more times before he allowed himself to consider the possibilities it presented.
Rudbeckia didn’t know what to make of the message. The note was both obviously new and meant for him. Was it possible that others had survived he wondered. He paced, trying to work out what it all meant.
As he walked back to his room he decided that whatever it meant, he would be ready and began to prepare himself for the possibility that his time among the Fungi might soon be coming to an end. He contemplated whether he should alert the other residents of his dorm to be ready to leave and decided that presented too much risk since he himself wasn’t really sure if anything would happen. Finally he settled on the idea of informing a few close friends he had made in his time here.

The frost came three days later.

Just before sunrise he was standing outside the dorms watching the sky when he heard the signal. It was an old call that he had used during his time in the Scythian Army to alert his fellow recruits to the arrival of an officer. Carefully he made his way toward the edge of the compound, watching in the half-dark for anyone or anything to appear. He looked to his left and right to make sure those that had chosen to come with him had heard and followed.

After passing into the tree line he encountered several others all wearing what looked like a Scythian military uniform. They quietly beckoned him to follow as they began walking away from the compound.
The extraction from the Fungi controlled lands was relatively uneventful. They encountered a patrol once but everyone simply nodded and passed by without incident. Mostly it reminded Rudbeckia of hikes he had taken through the Garden Forest.

After walking in silence most of the day they eventually stepped in out of the overgrowth and onto a wide expanse of open field. All around he saw tents and equipment in various conditions and states of repair.

Several pieces of equipment he recognized, others were completely new to him. Among the vehicles he didn't recognize there were a few bearing the insignia of Scythia.

“How long have you been here?” Rudbeckia asked one of those that had guided him to the plains.

“Three seasons.”

“And the Fungi haven’t found you?”

“As you know, we are a good day’s walk from the Scythian borders. Their patrols do not extend this far that often.”

“What about when they do?” Rudbeckia continued asking as they passed more tents. He could see the colored banners and uniforms of various Kingdoms and Realms assembled on the field, from the purple of the Irisian Army to the Green of the WinterHazel clans.

“The perimeter is protected with Kudzu and Mycota bombs.”

“I know Kudzu bombs, but I’ve never heard of Mycota. What are they?”

“They react to spores, so only the Fungi set them off. They release spores of their own that attach to any Fungi passing near. They affect the nervous system, drive them insane. Our friends aren’t too keen on having them around.”

“Friends?”

“Everything will be explained to you. Please step inside," the soldier said holding back the flap of a tent, "I believe an old acquaintance is waiting to say hello.”

Rudbeckia looked at the soldier for moment, then stepped inside. He figured with the Gnat message and the army surrounding them that stepping into a tent without knowing who was inside was the least of his concerns.

“Captain! So glad to see you!”

“Commander Quercus? You’re alive?”

“Yes my boy. Sorry it took so long to get you out of there, it took a while to find you. We have given you up for dead.”

“No worries. The Fungi didn’t mistreat anyone.”

“Good, good. Now, I’m sorry to make this short and sweet but are you ready to help take Scythia back from the Fungi invaders?” asked the Commander.

“Yes sir I am.”, replied Rudbeckia.

“Excellent. I knew I could count on you son.” Quer­cus said, stepping around the large table in the middle of the tent and grasping Rudbeckia’s hand, giving it a firm shake.

”We have a lot to prepare for. We should get started.” came a voice from the shadows.
“Captain, allow me to introduce to you our ally, Overseer Amanita.”

Amanita stepped out of the shadows slowly and stopped at the edge of the table. He stood taller than either Rudbeckia or the Commander and was dressed in deep red battle armor speckled with white. His wide brimmed hat matched the rest of his uniform. Rudbeckia turned to look at the Commander with doubt in his eyes.

“I know what you’re thinking. You just spent several seasons as a guest of the Fungi, you aren’t inclined to have one as an ally. Well, trust me when I tell you that Overseer Amanita is no happier than you are, but we have a common enemy. The group that took over Scythia is considered by the rest of the Fungi to be rogues. They’ve killed several of their own kind and are wanted by the High Elders. Things are apparently not what they seem. Amanita says there is something else going on but he isn’t completely sure what it might be. Somehow the renegade Fungi have been able to modify the genetic code of their Hivemind. To what end no one knows.”

“Will you help us?” asked Amanita?

Rudbeckia paused for a moment and looked from Quercus to Amanita and back again, “I will,” he said coming to full attention, “for Scythia!”

© 2012, anthony. All rights reserved.

The biggest problem, at the moment however, was his tail. He was excited. When he got excited his tail tended to wag with a mind of it’s own. He had off and on tried to stop the wagging, or at least limit the degree in which it wagged but again, being a dog, had very little control over the actual wag.

As he sat his mind drifted and he contemplated a new device to try and minimize the amount of wag. Originally he had tried to devise a way to stop it but after several failed attempts and a night in the hospital with a pull tail muscle he decided that minimization might be a better way to go.

Of course, all of this went out the window when he heard the shout from the next room.

“Marco” came Phineas’ shout, methodically searching the room. He didn’t really expect a response, but occasionally he could catch Harley off guard.

For Harleys part, it took every ounce of reserve for him not to shout “Polo” in return. He knew by keeping quiet he was technically cheating, but he also knew that by responding now Phineas would find him and he would have to wash the dishes for the next month. Again.

Frankly he was getting tired of losing. And washing.

Although the idea of inventing a machine to wash the dishes began to have huge appeal. At least that way even when he lost, he won. Sort of. He’d have to calculate how many dishes he would likely break before everything worked, and he was quite sure that number would be higher than the captain would have been comfortable.

So he sat quietly until the room was empty then maneuvered his chair out the other door when he heard Phineas move into the next room, hoping he could hide in another compartment until he could calm down and plan his next course of action.

Or at the very least tape his tail still.

—

Phineas stopped, stood and spun slowly around the room. He knew this was the third time he had checked this room but he also knew this was where Harley was hiding.

“Marco,” he shouted. Hoping that Harley wouldn’t be able to control himself and make some kind of noise.

He waited a few seconds longer, straining to listen to the slightest sound.

He knew, just knew, he was around here somewhere. It was Harleys favorite place to hide after all. Maybe because he thought the recesses and duct ways gave him ample places to maneuver his hover pod that Phineas wasn’t able to reach. Or maybe because there were multiple ways in and out of the compartments in this area.

Whatever the reason he had always found him around here the last several times they had played.

“MARCO!”

“Polo!”

Phineas whipped around and stared out the door he had come in from.

After a second pause he took off at full speed out the door and down the hall outside. It was time to end this.

—

“Phineas. Harley,” came a voice from Phineas’ wrist, “Sorry to interrupt your game but I need you both in the cargo bay please, our passengers are about to arrive.”

“Passengers captain?”

“Yes, passengers. You remember those? People who pay to be taken from one place to another. “

“Roger that Captain, be down in a moment,” Phineas laughed as he clicked off the communicator, “Just what we need, passengers walking around onboard right above our illegally transported goods.” Phineas muttered to himself. He sighed and started to turn around just as Harley’s hover pod floated into the room.

“Illegally transported goods?”, asked the floating brown and black Dawgerian, “What illegally transported goods?”

“The biscuits you’re smuggling into Ithilgan.”

“What?! I would never do that,” replied Harley in mock disgust. An expression he had practiced for hours in the mirror.

“Please, you’re not going to try and tell me you aren’t stashing some dog biscuits for your friend .”

“Maybe. I can neither confirm nor deny that.”

“Right, “ Phineas said grinning, “I’m just glad you aren’t trying to smuggle stuff into the God Islands. The Sisters would skin you alive.”

“I’m not afraid of them. Anyway, they will never find the hidden compartment. Even if they were looking for it.”

“Oh? And why exactly is that?”

“Uh… because it’s well hidden.”

“You mean like your Super Secret hiding place for bones is well hidden?”

“Yes, I mean no… You don’t know where that is.”

“Oh? The second box marked ‘Relays’ in the port side conduit tube?

At that Harleys jaw dropped. It had taken him months to ferret out a location that was inaccessible by the rest of the crew, “How…?”

“I’m the First Mate. Nothing happens on this ship I don’t know about,” Phineas said as he turned to face Harley.

Harley stared for a moment then, deciding his best course of action was to keep his mouth shut, spun his pod around and hovered his was out of the room.

Phineas watch as his friend left and smiled to himself, “Oh yea, this is going to end well.”

© 2012, anthony. All rights reserved.

Rudbeckia stood at at the foothills of the Hedge Mountains and looked out over what was left of Scythia.  It had taken him nearly two growing seasons to make his way home.  Two seasons to think about what the Fescue Army had done to his homeland.  

It hadn’t been enough to prepare him for what he found.  

Scythia was gone.  

Cuttings and broken Saplings lay everywhere.  The earth had reclaimed the places where the Crabgrass tanks and Dragonfly aircraft had come to the end of the lifespans. Mounds of displaced dirt were scattered everywhere. Even the Garden Forest hadn’t be left unscathed. What once had been a beautiful, well cultivated place was now in shambles.

As he walked through his former homeland he did see some hope. Small families had managed to stay together, or had come back together and began to put down new roots. He smiled to himself, knowing that some day Scythia would once again be a place to call home, even though it would never be anything like what it had once been.

And yet, through it all something had been bothering him. Something that he has seen out of the corner of his eye, glimpsed as he passed by a new hill or fallen Log.

Something about it nagged at him, a sense that he knew what it was but he just couldn’t connect thing together. The sight of everything had a deeper impact on him that he had first thought.

As he came upon the old Palace and laid his eyes on the rotting corpse of the wooden palace it hit him. The white flashes, the dead and dying, the various bits of upturned soil in seemly random places; the Mushrooms has come.

He heard a scraping sound behind him and turned to see a troop of Fungi coming up the trail he had just taken.

“Hello” said Rudbeckia as he approached the group, not knowing what to expect.

There was a slight pause as the lead fungi spoke, Rudbeckia remember that the mushrooms have a hive mind and that it took a second to process and respond to all the sensory information.

“Welcome. We are Agaricus.”

“Pleased to met you Agaricus, I… we are called Rudbeckia”, replied Rudbeckia as he remembered that because of the sharing of a mind the Fungi had no concept of personal pronouns.

“You are here. Why?”, again the pause.

“I am from here. This is my home. I just returned.”

Rudbeckia heard a small snap off to his left and turned to look. He saw, hidden among the debris and leave thin, stalk like Fungi. He recalled that they were called the Marasmius, often referred to by people as assassins. They were well know for their stealth, which meant he was meant to hear the snap. Which also meant that for every one he saw there were probably ten more he couldn’t. He decided he had to be very careful.

“Come. Calvatia would like to speak with you.”

“Who is Calvatia?”

“Our current overseer.”

Rudbeckia followed, knowing he had very little choice. By nature the Fungi tribes didn’t kill since they were typically foragers but would not hesitate if they felt he was a threat. His best hope now was to convince them he was peaceful and meant them no harm. If they knew he had been a commander in the Scythian military there was no telling what they would do.

He lowered his head and follow Agaricus, knowing the Marasmius were watching his every move.

He closed his eyes and made a fist, forcing himself to stay calm, “For Scythia” he whispered to himself.

© 2012, anthony. All rights reserved.

Commander Quercus looked out over the fields, surveying the army that was now his. It was a task he didn’t want, but it had been his prediction, a prediction that had come true, that had made it happen.

Every year the armies of the Yard empire gathered up and choose sides. It had come, over the years, to be known as the Pruning. It had been coming earlier and earlier each year and this time Quercus had been ready. Ready to protect and defend the Scythian stronghold no matter the cost.

In the distance the yellow flags of the Scythian army fluttered, limp in the non-existent breeze. The day had turned hot, and early season heat wave. It was hot enough to force the Commander to turn up the sides of the command tent while he gathered with the various military leaders and advisors.

“Sir, you were about to explain your current strategy.” called out Viceroy Apium.

Quercus pulled himself away from watching the wizards practicing their magic, preparing to defend the Scythian capital from the yearly Pruning event.

“I’m sending a battalion of troops to the west to the Hedge Mountains as well as east to the Garden Forest. The rest I am leaving here to protect the city proper.”

“What of our rear flank?”

“We have an HOA in place with our neighbors there.” replied the Commander.

Viceroy Apium spoke up again, “I’d feel more comfortable with a Watch alliance. The HOA is merely an agreement not to attack, it doesn’t stipulate coming to our aid,”

“I agree with you Viceroy. However ours is not to make policy but to defend our nation for future saplings.”

“Sir!” exclaimed a soldier as he made his way to the tent while the others had been studying the map on the table.

“At ease Private Cerasus. What do you have for me?”

“Sir, a report from Captain Rudbeckia.”, The soldier says, pulling a sheaf of papers out of his backpack, “He says he has encountered the Fescue army just outside the Gates of Fence.”

Everyone around the table looked up, making the Private very uncomfortable.

“Go on, does he say anything about estimated forces? What kind of hardware they have, anything?”

“Yes sir” replied the soldier, licking his lips nervously, “He states there are a battalion of CrabGrass Tanks as well as Dandelion and Thistle Aerial Assault ships. He also mentions seeing Clover transports and a group of Ragweed carriers”

“Very good, thank you private, “ replied the Commander keeping the shock off his face, “You are dismissed.”

Commander Quercus turned back to the map and began to again explain “I don’t expect….”. Turning around he noticed that the soldier he had dismissed was still there, still standing at attention.

What is it soldier?

Well sir, it’s just…

“Spit it out son.”

“It’s just… there is chatter from the Squirrels sir. They say they’ve seen Axes and Shears as well.”

Everyone around the table gasped as the Commander covered his eyes with his hand. “My god, they really are going to do it aren’t they. Well, we will give them a fight they will not forget. This is a Pruning that will be sung about for ages to come.”

The other leaders gathered around the table began to cheer and applaud the Commander who stepped back, and carefully drew his sword, “For Scythia!”

“For Scythia!” came the rumbling echo.-

© 2012, anthony. All rights reserved.