Gordon had seen a weird tree before, but never he saw something like this, its looks dead yet it has several fruit hanging from its branch. its bark didn't looks like a normal tree either because it twisted and moving? like water in the river. He shook his head tried to clear the headache that keep visiting his head these days and looking back at the fruits in the tree, feeling that it calling him. He licked his lips and swallowed hard then moving closer to the tree, eager to see those fruits more closely.

“Grummmm…” His stomach reminded Gordon that he needs to eat because three piece of peanut that he ate yesterday wasn’t enough for his body and its amaze him that somehow his stomach know that there were a lot of fruit in front of him and reminded him to eat it.

But there was no way Gordon will eat those fruit, even if he hadn’t eaten anything for days except a peanut. He still remembers the story from the old John in the village that The forest of Malakit had a lot of dangerous monsters and some of them looks like a stone or tree, this tree must be one of the monsters. But damn him, if he wasn’t eat anything soon it won’t matter whether the monster eat him or his hunger kill him he would dead anyway.

Gordon gulped his saliva and steeled his nerve, his feet moving close to the tree and despite his effort all his nerves goes to its maximum tense. Slowly he creeps closes to the tree, expecting it to move and eats him or punch his face with it big branch, he would dead but he had hoped that at least it will fast dead yet it keep standing there, silent and calm.

After Gordon in the arm reach of the tree, he touches its bark with his trembling hand then closed his eyes. His breath raged and all his muscles was tense, he was ready for an attack that turn out never come.

So after waited for a moment which feels like eternity he open his eyes and looking at his body that looked fine, no blood and no pain, then he look at the weird tree that just standing there without care for his struggle like some Noble that see him as nothing but nuisanse or too busy with its own business to acknowledge his pitiful present.

He sighed, lamenting the fact that even this tree looking down on him and its not helping his confident in front of this Noble tree when all his limb felt like they would come off soon. Unconsciously he straighted his back and up his chin, it was enough that most people on his village was looking down on him, he would suffer no humiliation when he faced his dead.

He keep his heroic pose until his breath shuddered, and he falls down on the dirt, after the tension was gone he felt so weak. Strength was leaving his body and he was trembling from cold. It was normal because he hadn’t eaten anything but three pieces of peanut since three days ago, when he separated from his party.

“……………..”

He can’t blame anyone but himself, one day at the Malakit Forest that was the requirement to become an initiate hunter in his village but his stupid ass decide it was not enough and here he was lost and almost dead. It feels like ages ago when they departed from the village after eating breakfast in the hunter barrack, Jeni, Sharon, Markus, Patten and him with one senior hunter to guard them. The initiate process was hunting a deer which they just helping, the senior hunter was the one doing it then trying to find a river on their own which was easy then camp for a night.

It was just one night camp then tomorrow they would going back and could start their training as a hunter. A simple and easy process to ease them to the life of a hunter but he had different thought about it. Instead just follow the rule he decides that he needs more, more danger to prove his worth. That was what in his mind that time, but now that he had time to thought it trough he was sure that he did it to impress Sharon. He likes her and he had tried several times to ask her to date but she always refuses him, told him that she busies or had work to do, he of course believe her.

Until several days before they departed for the initiate he saw her with Markus behind old John’s house, they were kissing. It was that scene that broke all his reason, made his chest burn for days and left his mind in chaos.

“What an idiot…” Gordon murmured to himself.

I will regret it later if I ever come back to the village.

“Grrummmmmmm……..” His stomach once more reminded him that he needs to eat so his attention pulled back to the fruit on the tree. It was his last chance, if it edible maybe he would survive.

Gordon forces himself to stand up then start to climb the tree, he was thankful that it’s not that tall or he would died of hungry in its root like fungus. He grabs two of the fruits then climbing down to sit on the ground, his breath ragged. But he can't waited long so he starts to scrutinized two fruits in his hand to find something that maybe look dangerous like a tooth or an eyeball, well you never know because it were fruits in the dead tree, it was definitely not normal. Even two of fruits that he took had different color and different shape, one look like an apple and has color of dried leaf when the other more like small pineapple with white color and has a blue gradient on it, it was beautiful fruit. Gordon thought Sharon would like it or maybe throw it if she know where it came from.

Gordon decides to eat the one that look like an apple first, he bit it slowly and surprised that it tastes like a milk, but more sweet than what he used to drink on the village.

After taking his first bite Gordon eat it with gusto, warm and strength start to fill his body, he no longer trembles and his hope to return had bloom again in his heart.He finishes it in several seconds then eat the other one, he smiles after his first bite because it tastes like honey, Gordon chew it slowly to savor it deliciousness. After thinking it through Gordon decided that this white pineapple was actually more tasty than honey and the apple also more tasty than milk, he can’t explain why it tastes better it just felt like that to him.

Definitely not normal

Gordon takes a deep breath after finishing his second fruit. His body was full of energy, and he felt better than ever. He clenched his fist and felt strong like he can beat a hundred Gordon by himself.

He thought if he had this strength back then he would give Markus a piece of his mind.

Gordon sighs when he remembers Markus, punching his face won’t made Sharon loved him, in fact she might hate him and never spoke to him again.

Gordon pushes the thought way then glanced over to the other fruits in the tree, suddenly it looks very tempting to take it all, he could sell it in the village.

He stands then get close to the tree but before he touches it he heard someone speak.

“I thought who would dare to steal our sacred fruit. It must be that filthy Spring Court, and they truly are dirty creature, a disgusting court.”

Gordon surprised with the sudden appearance of the man and going to run away but he can’t move his body, all the strength in his body suddenly vanished, what he could do was only kneeling in the ground trembling once again.

“But imagine how surprised I am to find you instead, a mortal, a human, the worst species ever walking in the land of Arth” the man walking to Gordon side and He want to see the man but he can’t even lift his head, he felt unseen pressure from the man, it muddles his mind and sapping at his strength.

“At least you know to kneel in front of me, huh, thought it surprised me that a human like you can find this place” the man walk around Gordon then stop in front of him.

“Raise your head human!” the man said and suddenly Gordon can lift his head, he can look at the man and what he saw disturbed him even more than the weird tree because what standing in front of him wasn’t a man at all, he looks like a man with two hand, two legs and one head but that was where the likeness stop.The man hair wasn’t hair but dried leaf with many colors, brown, golden, and black, blue, red and many other colors, it was stacked on top of other cascading down until his waist. Gordon can’t see what made it stick to each other like that thought it wasn’t ugly at all instead it give the man ethereal look, beautiful like nature. His clothes look like a bark of the tree. It covers his whole body except his head and when Gordon look more closely it not even rigid, it move when the man move and his skin was golden color with some pattern that he can’t see clearly. The man wore no boot, and his leg was a goat leg, truly fascinating creature.

“Look at me, Human” The man giving order to Gordon and his head snap to look at the man eyes, it greens both of it, the man hadn’t a pupil. Seeing those eyes was like seeing the fall of a leaf, the beginning of hibernation, and the circle of life. Gordon can’t look away captured by those mesmerizing eyes.

“I am Loksum, The Prince of Undying Bark from the Autumn Court, and you human had eaten from our sacred tree, if you from our kind the punishment is to be sealed inside of a tree for three thousand years, unable to move yet have to endure all the tree pain, when its bark cut, or when an insect burrow inside of it, hollowing it from the inside” The main said, his voice echoing strangely which made Gordon ear hurt just from hearing his voice.

“But you are human, a mortal, something like this is unprecedented” Loksum said to himself then he just freeze like that, Gordon stared at Loksum wonder if it just died, but his body still can’t move so he thought Loksum must be still alive.

Gordon mind still muddle but his instinct screaming at him that he can’t stay in here, whatever creature the man is Gordon will died if he keeps kneeling in front of it.

He tried to fought Loksum’s presence in his mind to no avail; it like his mind was buried in the deep hole full of mud, whatever he tried his mind won’t move, and the second after he failed Gordon had forgotten what he should do, why he struggles.

Both of them stay in that position for several hours, until Loksum move again from his freezing and look at Gordon. “Stand up human!I had decided what your punishment is.”

Gordon body jerked upward, following what Loksum order him.

“What is your name?”

“Gordon sir…” Gordon mouth moves without him even knowing it.

“I, Loksum The Prince of Undying Bark has judged you, Gordon guilty, of trespassing to our land and steal from our sacred tree, your punishment is to steal the Crown of Spring and give it to me or your humanity will faded every year until you fulfill your punishment, and if you can’t fulfill it then you died your soul will be mine to I treat whatever I want.”

Gordon body gone cold after hearing his punishment, it was impossible task and the penalty was to cruel, Loksum sentence was as good as doomed him for sure without possibility happy ending for him.

Loksum smile at Gordon, it a cold and cruel smile only a creature like him can show. He beckoned Gordon to come close and his body move without his control.

“Do you accept it human?” Loksum asked Gordon.

“No, it’s too hard for me, can you give me a different punishment,…please…I beg you; I don’t mean to steal it” Gordon said to Loksum but Loksum cruel smile only got wider hearing Gorgon’s plead.

“The alternative is that I seal you inside of a tree, for three thousand years…How about that"

Gordon despair when he heard the alternative, it even worst that the first one, let alone three thousand years, he was sure that in one week he would have died.

Or maybe that is the better way, suffers for one week then died is better than giving my soul to this creature; at least I am free when I died.

“you can’t die when you sealed inside of a tree, the magic will keep you alive even when your hunger eating you from the inside and your thirst destroying you mind, you will stay inside until three thousand year” Loksum smile got wider, it stretches across his face with unnatural wide, he seems capable reading what in Gordon’s mind.

“But I am free after three thousand years.” Gordon said to Loksum without hope anymore, whatever his choice he doomed for a long torturous life.

“if your soul still exists, that is.”

“what…What do you mean?

“Long torture can change your soul, yours may get destroyed a long side your mind or mutated to become an abomination without mind” Loksum said slowly to look straight at Gordon’s eyes.“Chose human and choose wisely, you have time to think it through until sundown or I will choose it for you.”

Gordon doesn’t need to think it through; first choice was giving him chance while the second was a sure fate without chance at all.

“I chose the first punishment.”

Loksum smile got even wider than before stretch from ear to ear forming half circle in his face, made him look like terrifying mad creature which he was and comes closer to Gordon.

“Kneel!” Loksum ordered, and Gordon body follow his command right way.

Loksum right hand goes to his own chest and pierces it, his hand moving like he searches for something. He did it for a while until he pulled his hand back holding a seed the size of a thumb between his fingers. Golden liquid covered his hand which Gordon sure was his blood, Loksum clenched his fist then open it again to look at the seed which had become dust, then he said something Gordon can’t heard but something heavy hung in the air when he said it, magic. After Loksum finish it all gold liquid in his hand moving to his palm, converge with the dust from the seed which made it gold dust.

“Open your mouth!” Loksum ordered and Gordon mouth open even when he tried with all this might to keep it close.

Loksum pour the golden dust into Gordon’s mouth and all of it just slides inside of him without him doing anything.

“I Loksum The Prince of Undying Bark recognize you as one of ours, I give you title and right to use the power of Autumn Court, you will paid it with a Crown of Spring or your humanity will diminishing for every year and if you died before fulfilling you payment, I will have right to collect your soul”

The wind goes wild, the sky was going darker every second, Gordon realize that it was a start of a hurricane and He can see it in the sky an enormous tornado was going to descent.

All the tree starts to swing until the wind was blowing so hard that Gordon can’t hear anything except Loksum’s word.

“With my title and blood, I named you Baron of The Howling Dust.”

The moment Loksum finished speaking, Gordon felt so much pain like someone had punch his mind with a hammer then he pass out.