Vella came rushing in through the back door. She had a very unhappy expression on her face and when the girls came up to find out what was going on, she quickly tried to sum up what she had seen happen in the Throne Room.
The Troop was worried, they were prepared to spend the next few days doing some remodeling to fix the problems that came up during the soft opening. They were expecting Mike to be back after a short look into what was in the backyard, After hearing what Vella was screaming about none of them were willing to just leave him behind.
Despite Vella's warning all of the troop were insistent on climbing down if Vella wouldn't help.
"Fine!" Vella started to tear up, she didn't know what would happen.
She grabbed the line and held them all as they descended into the hole. Like a beautiful string of pearls, they held on until they reached the bottom. The Magic lights were still working and the trip down into the cavern only took some walking.
The Troop stopped in front of the entrance to the larger room, the Throne Room was very eerie and still. Carvings of creatures lined the insides of the walls depicting battle, triumph, death and rebirth. Mike was covered in a large ball of roots. He was still alive, otherwise the plants would not have much use for him. The glow from injecting energy through the roots was a signal that something was indeed going on.
"What do we do?" Mona asked Cara who was kneeling beside her looking for answers.
"We can only wait. Look at how the roots have entered his body." Cara pointed at the large roots delivering energy like it was its sole purpose in existence.
"I don't want to leave him here. Jodi, March.. What do you think." Cara was unwilling to just abandon Mike. Shaking her head, Cara pointed out how she felt without anything further worry about decor.
Jodi took the opportunity to show some concern, but she was ultimately at a loss at what to do other than wait and hope. It was Vella who was explaining what had happened, and from what she had told the girls about the situation meant that mike would probably come out but none of them would know when.
"The Giant Skeletons said 'Join us or defeat our remains', Mike joined them and then they said 'Take my power'." Vella did what she could to re-explain.
"It could take a very long time." Vella tried to console the girls, but they were freaking out.
Mike was their freedom, their everything.
Vella stood before them and quelled the disruptive crying with a pledge to watch over them while he was undergoing his change.
"We have to make it easier for someone to get in and take care of him, we can't just leave him down here." Cara was defensive, Mike was the man she had absolute faith in. She would not and could not bare the thought of abandoning him.
After formulating a Plan, Vella decided to get a ladder and bring it to the pit. It would take a lot more than just a ladder to make entry and exit easy but it was a lot better than nothing. Securing it at the top, Vella helped the girls climb out.
"We continue like Mike had planned." Vella walked the girls inside and had Harry cover the hole. It would be a while and they couldn't let someone fall down it by mistake, seeing it and reporting it, or going in without their knowledge. For now, it would have to remain their secret.
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Trapped, Mike could only perceive his own thoughts. His body had long since been devoured by the roots. It was a very odd sensation, having tendrils inside of you caressing your every fiber. If Mike knew they were also in his brain, It is doubtful he would be able to remain in a calm state of mind.
'Take our power' the voice rang out again.
'Take our power, you have joined us' Another voice joined the conversation.
'He is new, but we are gone. Take Take Take and Conquer' A third voice broke Mike's calm. He wasn't sure what their goal was but conquer sounded like a lot more work than he wanted.
'He hesitates' The distinct voice of the first Giant Skeleton spoke again, he could feel and hear Mike's thoughts.
'Ahh.. he understands some. Take it, take this legacy'
'Brothers, channel with me.. The Titans Legacy will rise again!!' Mike wanted to interrupt, but he honestly didn't know how to stop them or even if he could. The roots began to pulse harder the longer he watched.
'Start the transfer, his body is small It will contain a piece of us all..' The fourth voice rang out. Its pitch was a lot smoother on the ears, but it was still a shriek that Mike would have a hard time forgetting about.
'These mortal coils bind you no longer. The Titan Source is indomitable, everlasting, and binding. Until you tire of this world as we have, you shall remain. No cause, no feat shall hinder you and defeat cannot be rung by those who oppose you. Command the force of the universe, Shape it, collapse it, turn it to ashes, This reality belongs to you now. Existence is but a toy for the strong, enjoy it.' The Voices took turns speaking, it was dizzying. Perhaps that was the effect they wanted, Mike let himself drift off into the haze in front of him.
Images and memories began flooding Mike's mind, he was starting to wonder if he was even himself. The amount of memories shoved into his mind outweighed his own by (103*r10)3.14159265. In his fluctuating state, Mike could feel his body nearly vanish and be rebuilt. Cell by cell, he was crafted, recreated and energized.
Time outside of the Roots was passing at a much different rate. While Mike was getting knowledge shoved into his mind, the girls were doing their best not to fail in their own choices.
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"When is he going to get out!, its been three months." Cara started to drag her feet while moving some chairs around.
"Even his plants are huge... I miss him and I'm starting to wonder if maybe we need to do more." Cara had been asking this question for a few weeks but she couldn't finish the sentence. None of them really knew what to do but Vella was always a Commander.
Vella had one of the girls waiting with Mike at all times, when he woke up there would be someone present. Rather than hiring someone to stand next to Mike, they took turns and hired people to work the tables.
"We've made a lot of profit and bought half the port already, If we keep this going we will have this City in our grasps before winter and before Mas...Mike even wakes up." Vella had done right by Mike, even though she had left him in the hole she didn't abandon him.
Vella had gone through a similar experience. She hadn't been awake in her buried state, but she was aware to some degree to the changes around her. To Vella at that time, she was just a rock. It wasn't until Mike placed his hand on the rock that she gained her form and memory. If Mike was her lover, her master.. perhaps this was her chance to reunite with that portion of her distant memories.
Pushing it to the back of her head, Vella had the Girls opened the doors. They had hired a dozen more girls who were in the area that seemed mistreated or alone. It wasn't like she was building her own Harem, She would have whatever Mike would share and nothing more.
Vella had a soft spot for troubled women who were forced to settle down in a place they didn't choose. She too had some resentment for Mike's decision to settle down in the City, but It was her priorities that kept Vella working hard. Mike had told her that 'she could leave anytime she wanted, it was always going to be her choice.' She smiled and started to work the floor by the door.
Harry had gotten much healthier over the last month, his diet had been changed, with the help of some of the extract, he had even gotten freed from his long standing sickness. Harry really enjoyed the dinners with Cannabis, he was able to get real rest and finally let his body start to fully heal.
When closing time arrived again, Vella handed him a hundred gold coins for watching the door and started to pay the rest of the crew. The City Nightlife was crawling with new people and the port was always bringing in more.
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Another night like any other during the end of summer and the beginning of fall brought a cool breeze from the Ocean, it drifted new boats to port. One of them was carrying Diplomats.
Boats were arriving at the port. A strange banner was written across the sails. Greensong City.
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Mike laid adrift in his own consciousness, searching through what he was seeing. After a time, Mike's thoughts began to manifest and he could finally speak within his own mind.
'Why choose me?' Mike thought in his head.
'You are the same as us, a world traveler, only the titans can cross worlds.' The third Voice responded.
'Yes, you are the same as us.' As if an echo happened, the second voice repeated the third.
'Your power is young, in a thousand years you will be stronger than anything that remains.'
'A thousand years!' Mike Exclaimed in his head, he was not interested in waiting around for a thousand years.
"I do not have that kind of time, all I care about, will cease to exist long before that time has come.' Mike spoke with some clarity, but his words failed to sway the Titans.
'No matter, No matter' The fifth voice sounded pleasant rather than shrill, almost like a woman's. 'Yes, I was female. No matter the course, your power will grow. Our Release and end comes at our knowledge passing'
'Just how long will it take for me to gain your knowledge?' Mike wanted to know, this power he kept feeling course into his body was leaving him itching to try it out, they hadn't told him what it was for.
'Your power will depend on your choices. A Titan will become the pinnacle, of all pinnacles' The First Voice finally spoke again.
'Pinnacle, Do you mean my magic power will grow?' Mike was still unsure why they even chose him but he had some questions.
'Magic is temporary and your power is eternal, have you not noticed it? We have scanned your memories, we know of your past. Why do you believe the Ice wouldn't melt, Why do you believe your creations grow so fast in this world. Because your magic's have absorbed the energy around them.' Third let a bombshell drop and Mike could feel some anxiety rising.
'Absorb energy? does that mean I can take the power from others and use it as my own?' Mike had a plethora of questions and one by one they were answered. The pain in Mike's head started to disappear for a moment before it flared back up.
'No. It means you can do better. do stronger. do longer.' First Titan said with pride.
'I'm not a robot, I want to remain myself. I don't want to become a conqueror, dictator, or even a king. Those positions mean nothing, and keeping such a position only grinds those around them into dust. My home world had Kings, every great king brought death before it ever brought prosperity' Mike tried reasoning but it didn't work.
'Death is but a pretext' Fourth Titan had some more to say and started his rant.
'Death is just the beginning, as we are dead does that not prove that life exists after?'
'Death creates life, usually smaller life, but smaller life feeds bigger life and so on.'
'Life after Death constitutes will power, knowledge and strength. What remains may pass on, but what leaves does go elsewhere.' In mike's opinion, being vague were these Titan's Superpowers.
Mike asked again, 'Please, explain your power and show me!'
'We already have, the first thing you saw was just that.' First spoke again to remind Mike, but it was useless.
'How can he not remember, we put it directly into his head!' Second was infuriated, If Mike couldn't manipulate their power by now that meant that they failed. Titans don't fail.
'We must begin again' Fifth Titan's voice boomed and the cavern vibrated.
'What do you mean, Again?' Mike was struggling to grasp everything they were talking about but if they had to start again, he would lose even more time.
Mike clearly felt the entire world spinning around him and nearly lost the ability to concentrate on his surroundings. 'uhhh, that sucked' Mike kept waiting for more information, but the Titans were silent.
Another Month passed.