Chapter 18: The weight of memory

  I looked around the cavern, checking for exits. There were at least three, but all had woodwraiths guarding them. The slight rustling behind us indicated that there would be no going back either… It had been too easy getting here.

  Frino froze up, clutching his axe in his hands, holding it in front of him as if it was a talisman meant to ward off evil. Stalker was in front of us, a low growl indicating he was ready to defend the pack. I looked at my friend, brave and loyal! I was part of his pack, time to sack up and confront the ancient evil!

  “What do you want with us?” I asked, stepping up to the side of Stalker.

  “...Taaake…. ooovvveeerrr … saaaacreeed… duuttyyy….” at this one of the tentacle like roots made a beckoning movement. Inviting me nearer… Yeah sorry, but a close up with an ancient, mummified corpse in a horrifying treesuit is not high on my list of things to do. That would be a no thanks! I thought to myself.

  “Wha… What do you mean take over? Take over what? And why?” I asked. I glanced back at Frino and gave him an assuring smile. He did not look assured, but right now it was hard to offer more.

  I emoted to Stalker flee? He often saw things I did not, so maybe he had a way out. Stalker responded quickly with Tiny protector flee yes… Pack no. Pack stays together! Ok, if everything else failed, at least Stalker would have a way out. If I could convince him to go that is.

  “...oooolllddd… taaakeee… mmmyyyy… ppllaaacceeee…” The skin on the corpse was beyond paper thin, I could literally see the red sap moving around inside the corpse, and even these few words were starting to damage the corpse.

  “Sorry? You want me to what? Take your place? To rot in that tree monstrosity?” I ask, then shake my head, “No”

  It opened its eyes to reveal a pair of shockingly human looking eyes filled with frustration. It reached the root holding the necklaces down towards me.

  “...Taakkeee…aallll… eeexxpplaaaiiinneed…”

  As the root hovered in front of me, I hesitated, then reached out and touched it.

  …the sun was high in the sky and the heat was slightly oppressive, but I didn’t care, it was finally time! My heart was beating with pride and a little anxiety as I slowly strode up the hill to the waiting circle of robed figures. In less than an hour I would get my own symbol and be part of the Brotherhood of the Gate…

  I looked over my shoulder, my breath haggard, they were gaining! I took down an alley and quickly another and another turn and then saw an open tavern. I remembered to hide my necklace this time, no need to risk running into more of those ungrateful paranoid idiots!…

  I looked on in stunned disbelief, hiding my face, as I watched the crowds cheering and celebrating as they barred the Gate, around it hung body after body of dead or dying brothers and sisters of the Gate, even saw one starsprangled robe of an admin! This was sacrilege! Worse it was doom for Limbo! I turned and began leaving, my heart heavy, but focused on my duty!…

  The room was big and cold, a little pit with some dark moist earth and a container with a thick red liquid at its side, as I tilted it the liquid mixed with the soil and I wondered who else had made it, no! Useless thoughts, my only focus now was on preserving the essence until the gates opened again and as I lay down in the pit and felt the first roots take a hold of me I knew that Limbo would survive this…

  Staggered by the intense feeling of being another person for an extended time, I stumbled back a step, breaking the connection with the root and the flow of memory. I looked at the mummified remains of who I was just a second ago… No.. NO! Who he was! I was Mike, he... he was slowly fading from the forefront of my mind. This memory sharing was not without its dangers!

  Stalker whined worriedly and asked dream hunt danger? Taking a deep breath, I answered him, lost dream hunt danger. Tiny Protector Pack hunt dream? I was not nearly as fluent or elegant in our shared language as Stalker was, but he got the message and agreed to join me in the next dream hunt, as he called the shared memory.

  The blue flashes from my status indicator were going wild… I really should check up on it, but I was in the middle of a conversation, so would be kind of rude!

  While communicating with Stalker, I looked up at the guardian, with terror, disgust, some anger and for the first time also some pity and a good measure of respect. “I’m sorry, I really am, but I will not volunteer my life for your cause, no matter how tired you are!”

  Its mouth opened in a silent scream and the skin around it tore, letting deep red sap slowly drip down its chest. It extended the root once more and a desperate whisper filled the cavern.

  “ppppllleeease… ssssssshhoowww… MMMOOORRREEEEE”

  Looking back to Frino, still clutching his axe, I asked the guardian “I have seen who you are… And I cannot believe you would let an innocent suffer; my friend Frino is infected by your roots… Can you release him?”

  Frino, suddenly hopeful, one hand on his wound where the threads were spreading through his body. The guardian “nnnnnooooooo… Iiiinnfffeeeecctiiiiooon… pppeeerrrmaaanneeeent…”

  The guardian repeated its plea, “ppppllleeease… ssssssshhoowww… MMMOOOOOORRREEEEE…”

  From my first contact I knew that it didn’t mean me direct harm, but those memories were intense! Watching this wretched being cry tears of red sap, I couldn’t say no to at least hear it out.

  I checked in on Frino, he looked stunned, numb. I went to him and gave his shoulder an awkward hug and said, “I will go back in and see if there is a way.” I returned to Stalker and crouched down and put a hand on his back and reached up for the roots.

  As my hands touched the roots, I said out loud “Let’s go hunt some memories, Stalker!”

  This time as I dived into the memories it was different, the connection with Stalker provided an anchor point for my consciousness, myself so to speak and insulated me from the worst of the dangers, was it safe? No, I was still very much in danger of losing myself in the myriad memories of other beings, but with Stalker at my side, we hunted as a pack!

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  … The roots were spreading, and I started to lose myself in the weave of the Ghostwood… Slowly the essences came to rest here and through them I experienced countless lives and moments… months passed … years … decades … centuries and still the essences came to rest here, to wait until the day the Gate would open again! I experienced horrors, joys, defeat and victory… even calamity once or twice creating huge influxes of essences old and young and still they came, month after month, year after year… more and more… I could not feel my body, a small mercy, but I knew that it was getting older, yet the Gate was still closed, and my duty not ended. I created extensions to hunt for a replacement for me, yes, no believers were found… I was alone with hundreds of thousands of essences and more coming all the time, filling space that was not there, stacking, polluting, and bleeding into each other. Some of the extensions started to be corrupted by the ever-incoming essences and I fought for control of the Ghostwood. Always victorious but tiring. Oh, so tired. The corruption grew and infected the roots. Then a glimmer of hope! A sign seen through the mistfilled night by one of the extensions… a Believer! Rest was finally near!

  When I came too myself again, it was with Stalkers wet nose in my face. Poking me, whining slightly, and emoting safe? Frino had moved to my side as well and had a hand on my shoulder for comfort. Tears were streaming down my face as I slowly sat up.

  I looked at Stalker and emoted pack save sad hunt and he dipped his head in acknowledgement, as he emoted back oldest smell strong sad. I looked at Frino and said, “We have got it so wrong, the forest is not trying to kill us or take vengeance over some woodcutting... it’s… it’s trying to preserve the memories of all that lived!”

  Frino looked concerned and not a bit convinced, as he said, “Mike I have seen what it does to my friends… what it did to me! This is not some misunderstood poor thing! It is a MONSTER!”

  The guardian looked upon us, deep red still dripping down its chest, a branch held out to us in hopes of relief.

  I looked up at the guardian and choking back a sob I said, “You poor wretched man. So long, centuries and centuries of being bound by duty to some gods who never came back for you” turning to Frino, I added, “See how the corruption has spread through the roots? He is not a monster, but he is slowly becoming one”

  At this the guardian’s voice once again came in a whisper that encompassed the whole cavern “Reeeeplllllaaaaccceee… mmmeeeee…”

  Frino agitated, no longer as full of fear, said “That sound like excuses!” I replied, “It may sound like it, but until you have walked a day in his shoes, you have no idea what has happened here!”

  I looked from the guardian, with his outstretched branch, to Frino with a stubborn and angry look on his face, not entirely without cause, if you took him being infected with killer roots into consideration.

  Wiping tears away from my face, I said to the guardian, “I need a minute or two to gather my thoughts” looking at Frino I said, “You should try to see it with your own mind… There is danger, but no malice and I think it might do you good, at least you will know what you are dying for… Small comfort, but many don’t even get that”

  The guardian reached its branch towards Frino and as he reluctantly took it with one hand, the axe in the other. I turned to the status screen, to see what all the blinking was about:

  Quest: Lorekeeper

  Duration: Completed

  Objective: Delve into the lore and history of Limbo, unearth stories, artifacts and places of cultural import. Maximum completion reached.

  Reward: Skill selection: Appraisal (Novice), Knowledge is power (Passive), Sense Archive (Passive)

  Wow! It seemed like the quest had hit the maximum completion and the rewards sounded pretty great!

  Quickly looking over the offered skills. Appraisal would let me see levels and eventually classes and professions at higher levels. Very useful, might help me navigate around powerful individuals in the future, there was a slight catch in that higher leveled people had a chance to discover me looking.

  Second skill called “Knowledge is power” was exactly what I had been looking for! It enabled me to gain experience through other means then killing, so I could level up by uncovering truths, stories and unearthing the past… Just like the lorekeeper quest, but there was a slight decrease in experience from killing as a result of taking it.

  The last skill was Sense Archive, and that would let me sense nearby archives as I moved around and eventually over longer distances and maybe echoes and other glitches. This one could be very helpful, if nothing else to know what to steer clear of!

  I wanted them all, but I knew that there could only be one choice since I so boldly had declared “no one writes my story!” I chose “knowledge is power” and felt like I finally took a step away from the cycle of killing for power.

  But the blinking wasn’t done, a new quest had appeared during my interaction with the guardian:

  Quest: Cleanse the Corruption

  Duration: 23 hours 48 minutes 33 seconds

  Objective: Clear the corruption from the Ghostwood overflow facility.

  Reward: Gain the Custodian of Lore profession

  Wow, a profession reward!? Custodian of Lore sounded pretty good! No idea what it was, but some preservation and maybe sharing of lore?

  A sound of a clattering axe woke me from my thoughts. I turned towards Frino and the guardian and saw the antlered man stagger back from the connection, the axe lying on the ground. No tears in his eyes, but a look of sympathy and sadness had erased the anger. He looked like he had to process this experience. Having been there I could certainly understand that. I turned to the guardian and said:

  “I am sorry, I cannot offer myself to take over your duty… I have nothing but respect for your sacrifice, but I have a life to live and a world to explore, with my pack…” Looking at Stalker and smiling.

  “But maybe my friend here and I can help you with the corruption that has spread?”

  The guardian, looking positively ghastly with all the red tainting the body, reached out his branch and said:

  “… Ppppllleeeeeaassseee…” Whether it was a plea to reconsider or acceptance of my offer to help? Unclear, but I chose to interpret it as the go ahead for cleansing.

  I turned to Stalker and emoted hunt bad smell dreams? And Stalker always ready to help his pack emoted back Tiny Protector hunt smelly dreams with pack.

  Cleansing the corruption would certainly be dangerous! With my friend at my side, I hoped the danger would be manageable. From my dive into the memories and seeing the corruption spread, I felt I had a pretty good understanding of how the corruption had started. It also was something I recognized.

  It was an issue that cropped up in library systems from time to time, naturally not on that scale or with comparable consequences, but still it was a known issue. Finite space slowly being filled and overfilled with incoming books and other materials, resulting in lopsided, damaged, redundant collections… The answer? Weeding… God I had hated weeding, it always pained me to throw out perfectly fine books, but it was necessary for the good of the system.

  This? This was a million times worse; every discarded moment or memory was a person; this was going to hurt…