FSE

Furry search engine

formerly SoFurry search engine

Chapter 7

Puffball Tea

A thin, just barely visible thread of orange light zips toward the ugly bubble from the tip of Twinkaleni's finger. A loud pop accompanied by a whoosh of flame has everyone shouting out in surprise, ducking with eyes wide in search of danger.

Seeing no threat, Lyca demands, "What the tick was that?!" as she kneels to comfort a now crying Nesu.

Danahlia calls, "Twinkie?"

Surprised herself by the blast, Twinkaleni rolls from her bottom back to her feet, "My apologies everyone, but I believe it worked."

"What worked? What happened?" asks Alice, scanning the forest.

Philip points to the shaken berry bush, "The bubble, it's gone... and there's no powder."

"Indeed. As I suspected, the sporangium was filled with some kind of gas, which is how they are able to float. As it turns out, the gas is highly combustible. Upon contact with sufficient heat, the gas ignited, destroying the puffball and most, if not all, of the spores it contained."

Philip moves in to get a closer look at where the puffball was, "Does that mean it's safe?"

"I, I believe so, or at least, safer."

Philip touches some of the leaves, blackened by the blast.

"Any powder?" asks Lyca, taking a few steps closer, Nesu sniffling at her leg.

"Nope, none," the Echanian replies, "Looks like it's all gone," he then turns to Twinkaleni, "How'd you do that? You didn't have any fire."

"Oh, uh well, um..." Twinkaleni stammers.

"She can use magic," Danahlia announces proudly, giving the mouse mage a rough rub on the head as she passes to crouch by the berry bush.

The forest dwellers murmur among themselves, looking at the Murin mage curiously as Lyca laughs, "Magic? No way. Seriously, how'd you do that?"

"She_can_ use magic," assures Alice, "I've seen her do it dozens o' times."

"Mmm, these are good," exclaims Danahlia, popping another berry into her mouth.

The others swiftly gather around, eager to get a share. As they pick and pluck the bush bare, Twinkaleni is bombarded with questions about her talent. None of the others had ever encountered anyone with such abilities before, the touch of magic being exceedingly rare in the world. Though she tries, the Murin mage's attempt to answer any one question is often interrupted by several more.

The bush isn't large but the group does get a few handfuls of berries before moving on. Eventually, Twinkaleni is tasked with feeling for each of the group's magical potential but has to inform them all that they had none. Disappointed but no less inquisitive, the group continues asking questions about magic, Alice and Danahlia pitching in answers where they can.

As they walk, the group finds several more puffballs, some floating, some still attached to their parent fungi. They make a game of being the first to point them out, eager to see Twinkaleni use her magic, and give a cheer for each one she destroys. Alice notices that even with some time between sightings, Twinkaleni's frequent use of her fire spell is starting to take its toll. The little mouse girl needs to take more deep breaths after each use and starts to slow in her pace. Lyca notices too and orders the group to begin avoiding the floating puffballs as they typically do.

Pressing on, the group encounters more and more of the hovering menaces. They often have to duck and weave past them, careful not to disturb their slow flight paths. The puffballs shift with the slightest breeze and everyone is grateful it isn't a windy day. Gathering food is significantly hampered as several members of the group need to keep watch while the others hurriedly take what they can. Fortunately, Philip is able to locate a young cluster of fungi that he says hasn't yet spawned any spores.

"See how dark it is? Their color begins to fade when they start makin' those floaters," the Echanian explains.

Alice looks over the fungal formation on a fallen tree. The splatter shape and uneven coloration make her think she could create something similar by throwing rotten tomatoes about.

"Is it safe to touch?" asks Danahlia, a clawed finger inches from it.

Philip nods, "Yeah, no one ever got sick from touching the dark patches, only after they were near a floater when it went off."

"How much do we need to make everyone better?" asks Lyca, using her nails to pull up some of the bark the fungus is growing on.

Twinkaleni consults her book, "I'm not sure, but we should probably collect as much as we can just to be safe."

"I can get it," says Alice, unsheathing her sword. The others step back and the fox girl places her sword against the downed tree to slowly and carefully remove as much of the fungus as possible. It has a sort of spongy texture that gives easily to Jellybane's razor edge, letting Alice take off much of it in one hunk.

"Good work, Red," Lyca comments, holding open a burlap sack reserved for the stuff.

Alice grins, placing the fungus into it. Cutting the fungus has produced a scent similar to damp soil but much stronger. Angling the sword, Alice manages to get a few more slices off the tree.

Once she places the rest in Lyca's bag, the wolf girl closes it, saying, "Well, this'll have to do for now. Let's get back before-" As she turns, her nose touches a floating puffball.

All their attention on the harvesting of the young fungus, no one noticed the puffball closing in on them from behind. With a subtle pop, a cloud of rust colored dust coats the two canines' faces. The others immediately leap away calling the girls' names in distress. Twinkaleni warns them not to breathe it in, but it's too late, they both inhale in surprise and begin to cough. The density of the spores makes Alice's throat go dry as she waves the cloud away. Lyca kneels to Nesu, who was also caught in the cloud, to blow and brush some of the powder from his light tan fur.

Philip shakes his head, "Oh no, we, we have to get back, we need the cure!"

Danahlia approaches Alice only to have Lyca growl, "No! Nobody get near us!" She then dusts off the fungi filled sack and tosses it to Philip, "Take the others back to camp and get that tea brewin'."

Philip catches it, "But Lyca-"

"Go!" Lyca orders, "We'll catch up."

"Alice?" Twinkaleni calls, as the others head back.

"Go on, I'll be fine," Alice assures, "We'll meet back at their camp."

Danahlia puts her tail around the Murin mage, urging her on while waving back, "We'll save you a cup!"

Once the others have left them, Lyca continues to clean off a frightened Nesu, "We have to get as much of this stuff off us as we can."

Alice rubs at her face and pats at her fur, releasing a thin haze of spores, but after a moment her dry throat prompts her to take a drink from a waterskin. The forest dwellers hadn't been carrying any water and she offers the skin to Lyca. The wolf girl accepts it with a grim smile.

She lets Nesu have a drink before taking any herself, and then returns it, "Thanks, you're all right, Red. Sorry about earlier, with the whole stealin' your sword thing. Where'd you get that anyway?"

"My dad left it for me," Alice replies, recorking her waterskin.

"He fightin' in the war?"

"He... was. He isn't anymore."

Her tone must have conveyed the message because Lyca's tapered, tan ears droop, "Oh, sorry."

"Don't be, I figure it's the same for everyone else in your gang," says Alice, brushing off an arm.

"Gang, huh?" the wolf girl smirks to Nesu, the tiny Murin smiling as she cleans his fur, "Yeah, that's about right."

Curious and a little worried about their predicament, Alice asks, "Has anyone... died? From the sickness?"

"Oh, no, no," Lyca is quick to say, "But, uh, no one's gotten better either."

"Mmm," Alice groans.

"Yeah. We're really hopin' that Murin friend o' yours knows what she's talkin' about."

Alice assures the pair that she does, hoping its true herself. After a time, Alice squats behind Lyca and begins brushing and blowing away the dirty orange spores from her fur much like she sees her doing to Nesu. The wolf girl glides her tail along Alice's calves thankfully. It's a slow process, but eventually Nesu and Lyca are relatively spore free. Lyca returns the favor, brushing away the spores from Alice's fur, while Nesu does his part in dusting her off as well, though in doing so, he ends up with more spores on him.

Alice asks about the quite boy and Lyca tells her that when she found him he was wandering the streets in a small town. The Murin says he has many brothers and sisters but no father. Lyca theorizes that his mother may have abandoned him in favor of trying to keep his other siblings fed.

"But you fit right in with us, don't cha, buddy?" the wolf girl says, giving the newly cleaned Murin a hug. Nesu hugs her back, rubbing his soft furred head into her chest.

The trio begins the walk back, being cautious of anymore floating puffballs. With the smaller group, they're easier to avoid. Not long into their walk, Lyca spots a snake resting in a beam of sunlight coiled high around a tree's trunk. It's easily as thick as Alice's thigh and long enough to wrap around the thick tree several times, but high enough up that it doesn't pose an immediate threat. It's brown for the most part and blends in well with the bark of the tree though its head is hidden somewhere behind a branch.

"Ooo, let's get it," Lyca bubbles excitedly.

"What, why? How?" asks Alice, the Lobovan licking her lips in anticipation.

"Look at all that meat! We can't just leave it there," points out Lyca, reminding Alice very much of Danahlia.

"It's big," puts in Nesu.

"You said it. We can eat off that for a day at least."

Alice eyes the massive snake, "But how are we gonna get it? Is it poisonous?"

She had little experience with snakes but knew they were largely to be avoided because of the potential for a venomous bite. This was by far the largest such creature she had ever seen.

"Nah, it's a constrictor, only a problem if it wraps around you. So, you know, don't let it do that," advises Lyca, still too excited about the encounter for Alice's taste.

"Ok," says Alice with little enthusiasm, "So, how do we get it down?"

"Let_me_ worry about that. You go hide in the bushes and be ready. Nesu, go with 'er and watch 'er back."

"But-" Nesu whines.

"No buts, she doesn't know the forest like we do, you gotta protect her, go go go," says Lyca, giving the tiny boy a push in Alice's direction. He reluctantly approaches Alice and they pick a bush to crouch behind. Through it, they watch Lyca announce, a dramatic hand to her forehead, "Ugh, I can't go on. I'm done for." The wolf girl then falls to her side, tail wagging.

The snake doesn't react at all.

After a minute her tail slows to a stop and she peeks up at the unresponsive reptile before wailing, "Oh! It's so unfortunate that a delicious meal, such as myself, would perish in this way, alone, in the woods, defenseless." She then rolls to her back, spread eagle, with her tongue hanging from her mouth.

Alice, unsure what to think, asks the Murin boy, "Has, she done this before?"

Nesu gives his head a quick shake before worriedly looking on. After another minute, Lyca peaks from under a hand to the snake, a tapered ear angling toward it. The snake hasn't budged an inch. She then reaches for a rock and throws it at the snake, hitting the trunk just below its coils, shouting, "Hey! Free food!"

The snake's body doesn't move but its head comes from around the branch to peer at Lyca, long black forked tongue flicking in irritation. The wolf girl immediately begins a pathetic crawl as if both her legs were useless. After maybe two feet, she collapses back into stillness. The snake watches for a time, suspiciously, if snakes can be suspicious, before very slowly making its way down the tree. It stops frequently to eye Lyca, who peeks at it without moving.

Once on the ground, the snake gathers the rest of its lengthy body before moving closer to the prone wolf girl. The snake's head is kept lifted from the ground while it slithers over to its prey as if examining the Lobovan, its tongue flickering out rapidly.

"Anytime, Red," Lyca calls as the snake gets within a few feet of her and she begins to shift uncomfortably. The snake recoils at her movement, tucking back into itself and hissing angrily, revealing many sharp teeth. Alice takes her cue and charges as silently as she can for the thick serpent's flank.

"Now would be good!" Lyca shouts, crawling away from the menacing snake as it rapidly moves in.

It senses Alice's attack and looks to her, but the Tokala brings her sword down hard in an overhead chop that severs it two feet below its head. Despite being cut in two, the snake trashes about wildly on the ground, baring its array of backward facing teeth. Alice manages to remove it's head while Nesu leaps on the wiggling tail end, biting at it repeatedly until it stills.

"Nice one," Lyca comments as she gets to her feet and dusts herself off.

The fox girl lets out a breath, "It's Alice, by the way."

Lyca passes her with a negligent, "Uh-huh," and then to Nesu exclaims, "Wow, you really saved my tail there buddy," while pulling the weakly coiling snake away from him.

The little mouse stands over the snake breathing heavily, glaring at it as if daring it to move again. Lyca gives him a big hug and he beams, a little blood staining the fur around his mouth and down his neck.

"How can so much brave be packed into such a little guy?" she coos to the Murin.

Sighing, Alice cuts the snake's body into two more halves and as she does, Jellybane begins to glow.

"Whoa, what's with that?" asks Lyca, pointing to the luminous, green blade.

Alice grins, "Yeah, it does that sometimes. It's enchanted."

Nesu, mesmerized by the sword's magic, reaches out for it only to have Lyca grab his hand, "No, Nesu, that's sharp," she gives his fingers a squeeze, "Ouch."

The mouse boy frowns but Alice lets them watch the sword glow brighter as the snake blood dries and flakes away from its keen edge, leaving it spotless. After Nesu is cleaned up, they each grab a length of snake, the small Murin taking the shortest chunk while Lyca and Alice drape the larger pieces over their shoulders for the trip back to the forest dweller's camp.

As they walk, Alice tells them about her previous adventure in the forest near her hometown. She goes over how she met Danahlia and Twinkaleni, the trouble in Toki, the pixies, and all their battles with monsters. Nesu is enthralled by the tale, asking over and over, "Then what happened?" though Lyca seems less impressed.

It's late in the afternoon when the trio nears the camp and they can hear the others hustling about.

A young Lagomorph carrying branches spots them and shouts, "Hey, they're back! Lyca and Nesu are back!"

The brown furred rabbit girl jogs toward them as calls further back relay the message. Soon most of those well enough to walk, including Danahlia and Twinkaleni, are there to welcome them.

"Look at you, the big game hunter!" greets Danahlia happily.

"Ali, Alice, are you alright?" Twinkaleni huffs.

"Yeah, fine," Alice says, letting Danahlia take the length of snake from her, "What happened to you?"

Danahlia answers for the breathless little mouse girl, "Twinkie managed to get a fire goin'."

"Really? But the wood around here is so damp," says Alice, surprised.

Danahlia grins down at the mage, "Yup. Got everybody gettin' wood to keep it goin', don't think she, oop-" Danahlia catches Twinkaleni against her leg as she topples over, "There she goes again."

Alice picks up the unconscious Murin, letting her head rest over one shoulder, and they all head back to the heart of the camp.

After giving Philip her load of snake, Lyca, comes up to Alice and asks, "What happened to your friend?"

"Using magic takes a bit out of her and she used a lot today," Alice replies, cradling the small girl in her arms.

"Huh. They're sayin' she got a fire goin' and that the fungus tea is brewin'. Plus we got this huge snake to chow on, so," Lyca looks away, "you guys should stick around."

Alice looks to the Lobovan with a smirk, "Are you inviting us to be part o' your gang?"

Lyca puts up her hands, "Whoa, hey, nobody said that. I'm just sayin', while you're in the forest, maybe we work together."

"Yeah, I guess you guys can tag along with us for a little bit," says Danahlia laying down the snake beside where Philip set down the hunk he received from Lyca.

Lyca makes an irritated noise with her lips, "Like we'd need you. We been doin' just fine before you showed up."

Danahlia barks a laugh, "Ha! You already needed us a whole bunch today and we just met."

"You know what?!" Lyca shoots back as Philip gets in between the two, trying to placate them.

Alice decides to stay out of it and feels wise for doing so. She instead examines the fire Twinkaleni somehow started. It cracks and sizzles with wisps of steam fuming from the broken ends of damp branches but is nonetheless going strong. Someone's set the iron pot the girls bought in Carton over it. The heating water within slowly mixes with the fungus to make what they all hope will be the cure for the sickness. The rabbit girl from before offers a place for Alice to lay Twinkaleni down, but for now she chooses to hold onto her.

As the tea brews and forest dwellers drop off the driest leaves and branches they can find in a pile near the fire, Alice sits down holding the Murin mage in her lap. She pets Twinkaleni's soft, fine fur wondering how someone so tiny and adorable could have such incredible power. The smaller girl's breathing reaches a more relaxed pace and Alice gives her a hug.

Apparently done with her spat with Lyca, Danahlia asks from behind, "How's she doin'?"

"Good, I think. Just needs to rest 'o bit," replies Alice, smiling.

"Wags. Mind if I borrow Jellybane? Everybody's waiting to get this guy on the fire," the Liguna says, hooking a thumb at the snake.

"Yeah, sure."

Alice feels the weight on her back lighten as Danahlia draws her sword. She then sets Twinkaleni down on a bed of grass, giving her a last pet on the head before watching Danahlia clean the snake. The lizard girl proudly shows Alice the skins she gets off the pieces before removing the guts and then cutting the meat into U shaped chunks of a few ribs each. Alice begins to smell a heavy earthy scent and looks to see that the tea is bubbling with little bits of the fungus floating to the top.

She turns to ask Danahlia for her spear and sees several of the forest children gathered around the Liguna, watching in awe as Jellybane glows bright to rid itself of snake entrails once more.

Danahlia swells from the attention and looks back to Alice with a wide grin when she calls, "Danny, I think the tea's ready. Let's get it off the fire."

The lizard girl rushes over with her spear in one hand and Jellybane in the other, giving Alice the latter. She then puts the haft of her spear through the looped handles of the iron pot, lifts it off the fire, and sets it on the ground to cool. The children gather around, murmuring their excitement over finally being able to help their friends.

"Ok, ok, it's going to be a while before its cool enough to drink. Meanwhile, the fire's free, let's get some food cookin'!" Philip announces to happy cheers.

Sticks are put through bits of snake and mushrooms while various tubers are placed beside the fire to cook and hopefully soften. The sacks of picked greens and berries are passed around and everyone grabs a hand full to munch on. Alice doesn't find the leaves particularly appetizing but mixed with the occasional saccha berry and her own hunger, she eagerly eats and grabs more when the sacks pass again. Somehow the greens only make her feel even hungrier and she, like many of the others, eagerly waits for the snake to cook.

The serpent's light pink meat turns pale, almost white, as it cooks and, along with the mushrooms, smells wonderful. Danahlia becomes impatient and tries to bite into one of the pieces cooking on the tip of her spear. She lets out a cry, finding it far too hot and begins fanning her tongue, much to the amusement of the others. Alice pulls away her own and brings it to her nose, feeling the warmth radiating off of it and smelling the sweet scent. Mouth already watering, she takes the time to blow on it before having a bite. She moans in pleasure as her teeth sink into the tender flesh, hot juices dripping to her tongue. Pulling the meat from the bone, she sees Lyca doing the same and they share a smile, greatly enjoying the meal and the company.

A second round of snake is being put over the fire when Twinkaleni comes to sit between Danahlia and Alice. She sleepily rubs her eyes and yawns as Danahlia greets, "Hey! Look who's up. How ya feelin'?"

"Ravenous," Twinkaleni replies.

"Good, good, here," Danahlia grins, handing her a cooked piece of snake.

The mouse girl accepts the meat, gives it a sniff, and then begins nibbling on it. Philip comes up to the trio and kneels before them, "You really saved us today. We're all grateful, thank you."

The girls give him a warm smile, Twinkaleni having bits of meat stuck between her two front teeth.

Lyca is blowing over the steaming pot with several others. Looking over at Philip she says, "Don't start prayin' to 'em just yet. We still don't know if this tea's gonna work."

Unfazed and smiling brightly, the Echanian replies, "Maybe, but there is a chance, and that gives us hope. Somethin' we've not had in a while."

By the time everyone has had something to eat, the tea is cool enough to try. Danahlia offers one of her empty waterskins and they carefully fill it with the steaming brew. The first swallows are given to those who have been sick the longest until it reaches Lyca, Nesu, and Alice. Alice finds the tea tastes remarkably like liquid dirt. Everyone who had been exposed to the puffball spores is given a mouth full but the pot is empty before a second can go all the way around.

Tipping the pot to get the last lingering drops, Lyca asks, "How much o' this stuff are we supposed to drink?"

"I'm not sure," admits Twinkaleni, peering at the back page of the entry, "It only says the tea will help alleviate the symptoms. There is no mention of the necessary quantity or time it will take to recover."

"We should try to find more fungus then. Keep makin' more tea until everyone's better," suggests Philip.

"I agree, and I have a few ideas that might make our search easier," Twinkaleni adds.