The screams get louder until I can no longer hear anything else.
I know the snow on the ground is crunching beneath our rushed feet, and the wind is howling in the sky as another snow storm approaches. But, all of that is moot.
Nothing matters when nature is in such agony.
It’s not much longer before the sunrise peeks through the snow covered treetops, painting the forest with a pink and orange glow.
I finally come to a stop, hands on my knees as I take deep gulps of air.
Dread collects and forms like heavy lead in the pit of my stomach when I’m no longer able to push forward.
After explaining myself to Sapling sometime in the late hours of dusk, he grew silent. Mulling my words over. He’s been that way ever since.
When I glance ahead of me, Sapling is sitting at my feet, his head tilted to the side.
“What is it?” Something flashes through his eyes, like he’s finally come to some sort of revelation.
“Harlan, do you know of the Earth Bearers?”
Now my head is the one tilted to the side.
“Yes, Miss Sienna spoke of them—though rarely. Why do you ask?”
“I. . .think- hm,” Sapling starts, but quickly decides against whatever he was about to say, “never mind. We’re getting close. Do you think you can fare the rest of the way?”
“Yes, just give me one moment.” Inhaling a deep breath, I get my bearings in order. Take a sip from the water filled leather flask in my messenger bag.
In no time at all we are running through the snow filled forest yet again.
When I felt the pain beginning to cease, I knew the trees were gone, merely leaving behind they’re rotted corpses.
Yet, in knowing that, nothing could prepare me for the actual sight of it.
A harsh line of life to death is what welcomes us first. Clean and straight, as if it was an act of magic, and not from a natural disaster. I figured as much.
Trees for miles in all directions past the line were filled with holes in their trunks, rotting still, even though they were all passed dead.
Dark, matte goo drips from the trees. Some of them have fallen over, and others are near to joining. Every trunk is squishy to the touch, and hardly holding itself up.
The worst part is the smell.
My knees almost give out at the scene, but I push through when I see Sapling still running ahead. His little body weaving through all the death.
Thousands of dried up leaves rest on the forest floor and my heart aches at every new layer of death that lies beneath.
“We’re almost there, Harlan!” I snap my head up and move to a faster pace, catching up with the quick fox.
It’s not much further before we reach a new sight. One tree that’s still alive, I can feel it. But, it doesn’t have much time left.
The tree is a big one, a breathtaking Nothofagus Moorei—also known as an Antarctic beech tree—well over 100 feet tall. And right in the center, a gaping hole of rotting bark.
My hand instinctively covers my chest, the pain slight in comparison to what it was previously, but still heart stopping.
A tiny stream rolls over a slight cliff behind the tree, and continues down through the forest floor, encircling it. As if the Nothofagus Moorei is the heart of the entire forest.
Maybe it is. The thought crosses my mind when I see that Sapling has stopped right in front of it.
“Here. I know it’s here. Don’t you feel that?” His tone takes on one of awe, pupils dilating to take in the sight. As dead as the forest is, this little spot in the middle of it all remains a sight to behold. I could only imagine what it looked like before death sunk its nasty claws into the earth around it.
“Yes.” A pull of the forest takes hold of our breaths, moving them in tandem with the only oxygen source left for miles around.
Unsure of what comes over me, I step forward. A slim and shaky hand reaching out for the tree in the center of it all.
I almost believe for just a second that my hand will go straight through the bark, as if to say the heart of the forest is merely an illusion. Not really there for any reason other than to spark a flame of hope in my chest.
However, what happens instead is not something I could have anticipated.
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