Just to be safe, I climbed my way on a tree. Since making my way back to the safe house was futile, I thought to myself maybe those massive branches could offer me a good night's sleep. I was proud of my decision to sleep on a tree, not just any tree, it was a massive, skyscraper-sized pillar of bark that looked like a hybrid between an oak and a jungle gym. Vines hung from its branches like it wanted to cosplay Tarzan. The air was clearer up here, and nothing had tried to eat me for, like, a whole hour. Progress!
Barry nestled in my hood, snoring like a squeaky toy someone forgot to deflate.
I leaned back against the bark, taking in the view. The sun was setting behind glowing purple leaves and firefly-like spores. It would've been peaceful… If only Shiv didn't choose that moment to pop into my vision.
He hovered midair in a smug hologram. His fake fur was suspiciously well-groomed for a panda AI, and his voice? Still painfully sarcastic.
"Sleeping' in a tree like a proper forest hobo, are we?"
"Shiv," I muttered, too tired to swat at the air. "I just ran from salad-Rhinozilla and nearly drowned in salt soup. What do you want now?"
He wagged a clawed paw.
"Time for a little chat, Captain Bota wannabe."
"I told you not to call me that."
"Well, Captain Bota-wanna-be ever wonder why your quests are always weirdly vague? Like 'Find a plant' or 'Don't get digested today'? Why are the rewards always seeds and not cool weapons or lightning fists like the other Chosen?"
That hit a nerve.
"Yeah, I kinda did wonder. Suspicious. I was kind of wondering if you purposely left me fully unarmed."
Shiv snorted.
"Well, you didn't ask. So, I assume you're not that interested or were too dumb to ask."
I rolled my eyes.
"Anyway," Shiv said and nodded like a teacher pleased and the dumbest kid finally asked a question. "It's because you, John Maple, darling of chaos, chose Botanist. You didn't just pick the weakest class, you picked the one that needs to build an army to survive."
I blinked.
"Army? As in… soldiers?"
"As in plants. Your own leafy legion," he replied. "I wasn't built to guide a botanist since I assumed my player would choose something unique, something stronger. I got swordsman or battle mage chips, installed it within me only to find out you choose another path. I had to reprogram myself to be able to guide you."
I looked at him in a most unbelievable reaction.
"You assumed I would either choose what you think is more awesome." I crossed my arms.
"Well, now that I'm fully rebooted and freshly installed some botanist drive, let's dive into something."
He flicked his paw and summoned glowing images of the seeds I'd collected so far: the Pod Lily, the Verdisaurus Seed, and the Shimmercap Spores. Each hovered like a glowing hologram in front of me.
"Each time you get a seed from a monster-plant, it's not just a souvenir. It's a soldier. With training—and, well, not dying, they'll grow into your own personal army. You'll need them."
"Because?"
"Because if you actually made it alive in this trial, you'll be officially a participant of a bigger, more dangerous game as I said in the Multiverse Game. Your enemies are terrifying. You think Coilroots are scary? Wait until you meet your future opponents."
I went cold.
"But…I mean, why me? Why not just send someone with actual skills? I'm just some guy with a stolen journal, a stolen glowing bonsai-like flower plant and a backpack full of granola!"
Shiv sighed.
"Because fate loves irony, your patron saw how you become weird out of normal. Abnormal, if you want to think about it. Imagine growing unusual and illegal plants in your home? Not to mention you stole a journal that you'll be using in the near future plus you chose to bring a live plant by your side."
"He's not just a plant. His name is Barry."
"Okay whatever you name it."
"What about the journal?"
Shiv smirked and casually looked at his paw.
"The journal will be in use once you complete round one of the Trial of Chosen. If you are still alive by then, you will be given a sub-class. Until then I'm not explaining anything about Subclass to you right now."
I looked at my pack. The journal was tucked inside like a sleeping dragon, looking important now but definitely more than just scribbles and pressed leaves.
"And what now?" I asked. "Just keep collecting seeds like some weird forest Pokémon trainer?"
"Pretty much. Right now, you're still in the first level of this planet, the Aniplants. All the monster plants here are based on animals. Like the Verdisaurus? Herbivore. Sort of. Next up? You'll meet flying ones. Aquatic ones. Maybe a giant sloth-fern hybrid if you're lucky."
I groaned and leaned back.
"So, if I don't collect these seeds?"
"You'll die. You need all of those seeds."
I let that settle in.
"So I build an army of killer plants... and if I don't, Earth loses the game?"
"Yep."
"And the stakes are?"
"All of humanity. Oh, and your soul."
"Cool. No pressure."
"But just to remind you, not all fighting or escaping the monster plants will give you seeds. Not all plants grow in seed. Some are in other methods."
Barry snorted in his sleep, probably dreaming of stabbing something.
I rubbed my face and looked at the glowing seeds one more time.
A general of plants. A commander of foliage. The guy whose army photosynthesizes before battle.
"What do you mean?" I was confused.
Shiv smirked again.
"You think plants grow only with seeds? No. There are a lot of ways of growing plants, especially on this planet and you'll learn it soon enough."
"Fine," I muttered. "Let's collect my future warriors"
Shiv grinned like he'd won a bet with the universe.
"That's the spirit, General Green. Sleep tight. You'll need it."
Then he disappeared with an obnoxious poof, leaving me with stars above and killer vines below.