The following morning, he found that the vines hadn't eaten much; rather, they had grown more violent in their actions. The scattered bodies of the wolves showed clear signs of torture and hardly being eaten. When he asked them about it, the pair turned their flowers to him and simply said they didn't need as much food as before anymore, that what they did want and need was to hurt those who bring pain, to make them feel it and to kill.
Their words worried and scared him far more than he wanted to admit. It further reinforced the notion that whatever happened when the old man passed had caused a rather fierce and negative ripple across the plants. He had even noticed the vines had slowly been changing in appearance, their previously green vines now having spots of red as if dyed by the spilled blood. Even their thorns had begun to turn an ugly black color that he swore seemed to drip but could find no liquid at all.
He had also noticed how they seemed to have moved in the night, their bases in a different place from where he knew he had planted them. It wasn't far off, but he knew they were somehow moving. He just had no way to prove it yet, feeling it, even going so far as to try and explain it away as a trick of his grief causing him to see things that couldn't be true.
He slowly began his routine after that, clearing away the meat and bits that couldn't be used before taking what could be used for drying or immediate use and storing it all in the storeroom, then having a small breakfast of cooked meat and berries.
"I have no clue how the old man survived only eating dried meat." He said, looking to the storeroom while pulling a face. "Maybe I should plant some more food growers in case the meat supply starts to run short." He muttered to himself before finishing his meal and bringing the bowl to the cloud tree, letting its rainwater fill it, telling it that it was a way to practice its control as he went and inspected each of the plants.
The pitcher plant had mostly remained the same as the day previous, but was noticeably full again and asking him to help empty it. Something that proved slightly difficult and resulted in him needing the ancient Ent to use one of its roots to help dig a hole for it to empty its honey-like amber into, along with tipping it over for the fluid to run out. It gurgled its thanks before promising him the next lot would be edible, which he felt rather happy about.
The ancient Ent had seemingly taken its task seriously; already he could notice many strong-looking trees spreading out in a strong and firm line with a slight curve around the front of the village, while the spike bushes, refusing to be outdone, had begun to multiply and spread just as aggressively, going so far as to stick themselves to the outside of the Ent tree walls.
He almost smiled at their enthusiasm, hearing them talk about how 'the big trees could toss them this way,' but then he thought of how the old man would have reacted to such a thing, how he would call it crazy or stupid. It caused the sting of his absence to once more settle inside him with a sharp pang.
Choosing to examine the newest berry plants as a distraction, he found they were still softly singing, their song now one that clearly tried to lift his spirits and had the strange effect of putting him at ease as their pollen continued to softly float in the breeze.
The shadow berry vines grew out a bit more through the night. Surprising him by asking how far they were allowed to spread and then asking for permission to test their roots during the next wave, far more polite than any of his other plants and clearly not wanting to do anything without his permission.
It was then that he realized they may have been blaming themselves for what had happened. And looking across all of them, he realized it wasn't just them; they had been feeling his guilt along with feeling their own, which they chose to use as reason to push themselves as far as they could. They, too, had been blaming themselves for the old man's passing.
He tried to argue with them, to make them see it was his fault and not theirs, but then the little world tree with all its innocence asked why he was blaming himself for it if he was unconscious and unable to do anything, while they were conscious and aware. He tried to explain it was different, only for the cacti to point out how they were there and he wasn't. They were conscious and tried to fight but weren't good or strong enough.
He didn't know what to say to that. He wanted to argue but had no words to counter the truth of what they said.
It was later that evening, having tried to move onto a new subject that turned into a long conversation with the various plants to try and figure out the best new additions to grow, only for the cloud tree to tell him someone was approaching and seemed to be wobbling unsteadily.
It caused him to freeze for a few moments before demanding to know more details about the figure and from what direction they were coming from.
The cloud tree slowly told him it was from the dungeon's direction and coming towards them, before the small world tree told him the person was leaving a trail of blood behind them. Without questioning how it knew that, he chose to focus on taking action that would be the most help.
Making his way to the storeroom for a bowl and then to the shadow berries, he gently took a few leaves before asking them to put a small amount of their sap into a bowl, before rushing out to the ancient Ent, his new watcher of the entrance, while trying to ignore the bloodthirsty whispers of the vines asking if it was an enemy before excitedly explaining in far too much detail about what they would do to them if it was. It made him slightly wish for their old hungry form to come back.
Standing by the Ent, he mentally made a note to have a proper door made for the entrance rather than leaving it open as an extra means of defense. He could faintly spot the figure limping towards him, yet he didn't risk leaving his spot, choosing instead to wait where he was so that he could flee to the vine hut if needed.
The figure seemed to pick up speed upon seeing him, and Chris could faintly notice he was wearing shining silver armor with gold accents by the way the light was almost blinding from the sun.