DeviantArt is loaded with fantastic artwork. Every so often while I’m thumbing through them, I discover pieces that plant a seed in my mind. Sometimes those saplings never take root, and the thoughts quickly fade from my memory, while other times, they take root and bloom. When I stumbled onto Ent by Ooki, I had a moment of clarity and jotted something down when I shared the image on Facebook.. After a little thought, I slotted this picture into a world that I’ve explored, and I even pictured who he’d be protecting his domain from. Please pull up a chair and get comfortable as we follow this stalwart tree as he defends his brethren.
Treant patrolling his domain, to ensure its safety…
As the sun crested the horizon, two black orbs snapped open and fixed on the newborn light. The eyelids fluttered as twin branches flexed and swayed to position their leaves to drink in the light. When the glow wasn’t enough, its trunk split, and one half stepped out of the ground. Freed from the soil, the being slowly strode into the patch of sunlight breaking through the forest and spread its limbs wide, drinking in dawn’s first warmth, as if greeting an old and sacred friend.
The sun revitalized the creature as a flock of birds circled above the walking tree. It lifted its boughs, and the songbirds weaved among its extremities. The treant smiled, its twigs spreading like fingers. A bird landed on the massive creature’s shoulder and tweeted. The being gently stroked the tiny bird, voice soft as moss. “How are you doing, little one?”
The creature’s wings flapped wildly as it jumped and drifted in front of the treant’s face. As it hung there, a cascade of fevered notes erupted from its beak.
“Calm down, little one.” The fevered song cut off, and the treant positioned a branch under the bird, letting it perch upon the limb. “This time, speak slowly and explain the problem from the beginning. Leave nothing out.”
As the songbird detailed its message, the flock descended beside it. When it finished, the treant’s face fell, then narrowed into a snarl, roots trembling beneath the soil. The living tree stomped out of the sunlight, and the birds clung tightly to its branches. “How many beings are attacking your homes, and my brethren?”
The entire flock erupted into song.
“I can’t understand this racket!”
The first bird squawked, and the rest of the flock stopped. When the forest’s silence descended about everyone, it sang a short song.
“A dozen invaders are butchering my inanimate siblings?”
The songbird’s shrill tweet confirmed the number.
“Leave! Seek protection among the trees while I handle this problem.” The birds chirped and leapt into the sky, streaking away as the treant rushed for the nearby mountain range. As the clearing came into focus, the treant stopped and leaned against an inanimate sibling. Closing its eyes, the giant tapped the tree and snarled at his siblings’ slaughter.
“I will protect you.” It glanced to its left and its right and clenched its twigs into clubs. “I’ll defend you all!”
The treant strode closer to the edge of the forest and spotted the party of squat warriors. Each of those diminutive creatures hacked at the treant’s inert family with heavy battleaxes. The guardian growled and slammed its branches into the ground, shaking the earth, as if the forest itself cried out, its pain echoing through roots and stone. It rose and howled in rage. “Stop assaulting my brethren!”
The warriors turned, gaping at the living tree, and climbed to their feet. The largest of the brutes whirled his ax. He shoved it towards the guardian. “To arms!”
The other assailants retrieved their weapons and rushed the treant, each screaming their own battle cry.
The treant stood firm, waiting for the invaders. When the first one reached the living tree, its club connected with the attacker’s skull. As the body collapsed, the treant grabbed the necks of two more. Its branches tightened, and lifted a squat figure to its snarling lips. “Stop attacking my defenseless brethren.”
“Drop Berend and Avamir!” The largest warrior’s ax blade embedded itself into the treant’s leg. The invader yanked his weapon from the creature. “Or I swear I’ll turn you into firewood!”
It swung the dwarf in its right hand like a club, smashing another attacker into the dirt. As the leader flew into a tree, the other warriors cried out, “Dain, are you still breathing?”
The treant turned, facing the remaining invaders. Without hesitation, the treant threw the attackers clutched in its hands, and they functioned like cannonballs, knocking the rest of the invaders off their feet. “Leave my forest!”
Dain pushed himself up and lifted his battleax. He glanced at his comrades and growled as he shoved his weapon into the air, his voice dripping with promised violence. “Your carcass will feed my hearth for many winters!”
“Brother, please give me your strength.” The treant backed away as his hand touched a nearby tree. With a loud crack, a limb fell to the ground, and the treant lifted the fallen branch, snarling as Dain charged. It swung, striking Dain’s chest, throwing the assailant into a neighboring trunk. The guardian whirled the improvised weapon down upon another goon, who joined the fray, driving the newcomer into the earth.
Dain ducked under the next strike and drove his axe into the treant’s other leg.
The branch tumbled out of the treant’s grip. Disarmed, its limb swung out, clamping Dain’s skull before it squeezed. “Get out of my forest!”
Dain thrashed against the tree’s grasp, unleashing muffled screams. More of the assailants rose and reclaimed their weapons, inching closer. The treant tightened its grip, drawing a scream from Dain. “Stay right there, or your leader will never return to his home.”
The encroaching invaders stopped as Dain’s squeals intensified.
“Go away and stop attacking my brethren!” The treant tossed Dain like another cannonball at the remaining assailants. But this time, they avoided the projectile. It rose and brandished the branch. “Leave my forest or suffer our wrath!”
Dain coughed as a pair of hands pulled him off the forest’s floor. The leader ground his teeth and scowled. “You’ve won this battle, but we’ll return.”
“I will never surrender my kin!” When the assailants vanished, the treant lurched over to the tree, which lent him the branch. It pressed it against the trunk and waved its limb over the break, coaxing the bark to knit. When the bark finished knitting itself together, the treant moved wearily to another tree. The treant stepped into the trunk and merged with its injured sibling, lowering its voice. “I will protect you all.”