Arbor

I. Bailu

I. Bailu

Bailu stepped out onto the pathway. From there, she could see the roots of the Arbor, which appeared as a dragon. The Arbor was a gift from Yaoshi, the Aeon of Abundance. It was more of a curse than a blessing, though. That tree's fruits were the reason that so many of her patients had suffered needlessly. Bailu clenched her hands, staring at the root of the Xianzhou's problems. She remembered helping Dan Heng, four years ago. They had restored the Arbor's roots and locked its power away — their only hope for a brighter future.

"The Arbor has been strange recently," A voice said from behind Bailu.

"Fu Xuan?" Bailu turned around, and closed her eyes for a second, sighing. "What's been happening?"

Fu Xuan sighed. "Cloud Knights are disappearing in this area, but only this area. I've seen — with the jade abacus calculations — that it all adds up to the Arbor, and..."

"You mean the Arbor's killing them?" Bailu's eyebrows furrowed. "But it's just a tree. How, and why? Is Yaoshi involved?"

"I...don't know. But whatever it is, it can't be good."

A strange feeling roused in Bailu. Her legs started walking, and she realized that as a doctor, she should help people. But this was reckless. It was...

She didn't know what she felt, but there was something greater influencing the tree.

Bailu sighed. "I'm going to get to the bottom of this."

She ran forward, towards the roots.

"Bailu!" Fu Xuan yelled, "This isn't safe! You can't — "

"I'm sorry, but I have to help!"

Bailu sprinted up to the giant tree's roots. She raised her hand into the air, and it started to glow. Though, she immediately recoiled. She felt as if her soul was going to slip out of her body. The roots shook.

Bailu knew that she had to attack the tree. It wouldn't yield to her.

She felt the sparks tingling in her hands. She stepped in front of her, and thrust her hand forward, willing the electricity to leap out of her hand and onto the roots. Her electricity was deflected, sending it all back at her. Bailu yelped in pain as a shock coursed through her body. She tried her Cloudhymn Healer Magic, to no avail. The tree only tired her. She keeled over, sighing, and toppled over, towards the roots of the tree. Then, all went dark.

She woke up in a cocoon-like wood structure. Tapping the sides, all she could hear was a hollow, song-like noise. For a tree, it was quite peculiar. Bailu pushed her fingers into a crack in the wood, attempting to pry the cocoon open. She ripped a hole in it quite easily, but the tree closed it up quickly. It reminded her of water — it would surround the substance that opened it up. The tree's regenerative abilities definitely came from the Abundance. Bailu was quite sure that she saw the moon of the Luofu, and a few drops of rain. But the next scheduled rain wasn't until the next day, which meant that she was unconscious for quite a while. Frustrated, she clawed at the wood again. This time, everything disintegrated. She leaped out to find herself trapped in a maze. The tree had somehow moved her into its trunk, and that meant that getting out would be quite the hassle. She was trapped by her own plaguemark.

Bailu activated her lightning, rubbing her hands and watching the purple sparks jump around her hands. She pressed her hands on the tree, expecting to be electrocuted, but instead, a burn mark appeared on the tree. Bailu gasped, realizing that the bark of the tree was what caused the strange backlash. Now that she was inside, she wouldn't have to worry. She cranked it up a notch, rubbing her hands together furiously until they were surrounded with lightning, and she shot it everywhere. The tree was badly damaged by the time she was done, and a Bailu-sized hole appeared as she kicked the wood. She jumped out and slid down the trunk of the tree, just as a group of Cloud Knights and Fu Xuan rushed to the Arbor with axes and saws.

"Bailu!" Fu Xuan cried, running over as the top of the tree crashed down onto the ground.

"Oh my god! That was terrifying! I was trying so hard not to cry!" Bailu yelled.

A Cloud Knight picked up the small girl.

Bailu sighed. "UUuugh...I'm...tired...a...lot..."

She fell into a deep sleep, not noticing people's gasps as a tiny branch sprouted from behind her ear.

Bailu woke up in her bed. She tore her purple blanket off and sprinted out the door, into the living room. There was a note on the table, along with some cookies.

You are subject to mara now. Be careful.

Bailu bit into a cookie. She would have to stay calm, or else her emotions could trigger the mara. She remembered the Stellaron Hunter on the Luofu — Blade. His mara was triggered by emotion...kind of. He was a nutcase, though, so hers could be different. Bailu sighed. It wasn't everyday a doctor diagnosed themself.

She stood up, and walked towards her bookshelf, picking out a scroll inscribed with the words, Mara Struck. She opened it, and took in as much information on mara as she could. Mara was a disease triggered by memories and cells. The brain of the homo celestinae is still limited, no matter how long the lifespan. At the end of their lives, most are stricken with grief, which drives them crazy. Cells also played a huge role. The long life granted by the Arbor was brought by a special type of cell that manifested at birth. After injury, these cancer-like cells would spread and rapidly heal an area. At a certain point in life, these cells would overpower the normal ones, and ginkgo tree-like branches would manifest. In her case, the one behind her ear. Most people on the Xianzhou Hexafleet had basic knowledge on the long-life disease, but none delved this deep, usually. She found that she had most likely come down with acute mara, which meant her emotions would play a big role in triggering it. As a Vidyadhara, there was a chance that mara would never strike, as reincarnation may happen before she succumbs to it. Enough with the details, Bailu thought, I want another cookie. And so? She ate another cookie. And another. She then fell asleep on the couch, unaware of the peculiarity of the days to come.