level_act15mini_st04

Hiss—

Huff—

Hiss—

You can take off the breather, Magallan. There are no spores here.

Oh, okay.

Whew... hah...

I've never been so scared of mushrooms in my life.

I warned you, Maggy: Don't touch anything, don't touch anything, and don't touch anything.

Now you know why.

M-My—

The empty box you gave me? I put the mushrooms inside and sealed it. Here.

Th-Thanks.

*pant*—*pant*—

I didn't expect the spore density to be so high, or that it could paralyze the respiratory system.

It's a carnivorous mushroom. Where do you think its food comes from?

Ugh...

So how come you aren't affected at all?

We hunters have ways to deal with them.

If I died in one of those mushroom swamps, I'd never live it down.

(Sami) Typhon, the sacrifice.

(Sami) Sacrifice... are we there?

(Takes a deep breath)

You're right.

Where are you going? Wait for me!

And what do you by 'sacrifice'? Me?

Of course not, you birdbrain.

This is the heart of Sami, the First Forest.

Where we come from, and where we go.

Prepare some food as tribute to Sami, and we can enter.

Would bad things happen if we don't?

Who knows? Do you want to find out?

Er, never mind.

Is hardtack okay?

No idea.

Crush it and spread it on the ground.

A-Alright.

(Sami) Great land, we ask your leave to pass over you.

(Sami) We offer you this sacrifice, that you may watch over us, and protect us from bloodshed, from being hunted.

(Sami) Sami says it's okay, ladies.

(Sami) It will eat well thanks to your generosity.

Isn't that a little... casual? Young shaman.

...Apprentice shaman.

This isn't really a formal occasion, after all. Sami wouldn't mind the presence of a child of the Santalla Tree.

...Oh?

A shaman, a hunter, and an outlander? That's a rare sight.

I don't suppose you're here just for the experience?

We're in a hurry to head south, and don't have time to go around the First Land.

I see. My teacher often takes this shortcut too.

Not this time, though. He left me here alone to 'experience the Samivilinn.'

I've been here for days, wandering the woods without a sliver of revelation to be found.

You should know what I mean, child of the tree.

Please, call me Santalla.

Very well, Santalla. Can you tell me what our teachers expect us to bring back from here?

I do not know, oak-child. I have only been here to witness. This is not where my trial was.

Is that so? What a shame.

We have a long road ahead of us. Let's hurry.

Hmm...

Wait!

I'll come with you.

I know the trees with the best shade, the cleanest streams, and the safest animal trails.

I can be your guide!

There's no one more qualified!

Let me come with you, Santalla. I'm so bored here I could turn into a tree.

What do you think, great shaman?

And what about you, hunter? Or our outlander friend?

I guess I don't mind...

We're all agreed, then?

Let's go, then! Welcome to the First Forest!

Hmph...

One more question, oak-child.

Hm? What is it?

What should we call you?

Me? Hm...

My Sami name might be a little hard to remember... My teacher calls me Oakcup, so you can too.

May I ask how you got that name?

Because he always grabs my horn and tries to drink from it when he's drunk.

Oh...

Hey, are we being watched?

Like, by a deity...?

Big predators. One on the tree, one behind Simone in the bushes, and one behind that tree to the left.

Oh, is that all?

After all the weird stuff we've encountered, dealing with carnivorous wildlife seems almost quaint.

Should I be ready for a fight then?

No need. They're not hungry enough to risk attacking.

So stop worrying about their dinner and start worrying about ours—!

Huh? Look out!

Need help?

No thanks, I'm done.

A tuskbeast lies prone on the ground, glaring at Typhon.

A gaping wound stretches from its cheek all the way to its foreleg.

I guess one of them <i>was</i> hungry enough. Terrible choice of prey, though.

Go. Your meat tastes terrible anyway.

The tuskbeast does not seem willing to leave. It crouches down in the shadows, ready to attack again.

Bang!

A loud bang rings out in the air before it, sending it scampering into the distance and leaving behind only a scattered trail of blood.

Did you just shoot something with your finger, Typhon?

Yeah, for scaring away big guys like these.

A roll of leaves?

You wrap up air with leaves until it forms a ball.

(Takes notes)

But how do you wrap air with leaves?

Don't ask. I've tried to teach others, but no one's ever been able to learn it.

Easy, it's just an unlucky hornbeast that got its neck bitten in half. Maybe by the one that attacked us, maybe by another.

Hm.

Looks like our outlander friend has grown accustomed to the ways of this land.

A few more weeks of this, and she'll be a fully-fledged Sami.

Ahaha...

An outlander who understands Sami. How nice.

I remember working as a guide for some Columbian tourists while on a pilgrimage.

They started screaming when they saw some carnivores doing their carnivoring. Apparently, they thought it was too bloody and uncivilized.

Not that I'd call myself civilized, but didn't they pay good money to come here and see the 'untamed wilderness'?

One of them even tried to stop the beasts, and nearly ended up as their next meal.

Their clothes were dignified enough, but certainly not the people wearing them.

You have quite a mastery of Columbian.

(Ursine) Not just Columbian! I just can't keep my mouth shut. Guess I'm a natural-born chatterbox.

And I suppose my teacher was a weird old man for teaching me all that.

(Broken Sami) Know.. a bit... ah, yes, true.

The folks back home hate it when I just strike up a conversation with southerners. One time, there was a regular Ursus caravan that passed through the tribal market, and...

(When was the last time I returned?)

(The breath of the wild continues to echo through this place...)

(Does Amma still watch over this forest?)

(Something isn't right.)

(The influence of Amma lingers... but it's not alone.)

(The Black Mark of Ursus...)

What is it, Simone?

Nothing.

Has our guide found somewhere we can spend the night?

Yup, inside that tree up ahead.

Cup says it's hollow, with enough room for the four of us.

I've never seen a hollow tree before.

Then now's your chance.

Wow, we could easily fit another person or two in here!

It's the largest tree house around. Could hold close to a dozen.

Where's Typhon?

The hunter? She went looking for musbeast fruit stashes. She wanted something extra for dinner.

You should rest. I'll set up some protection.

Is that really necessary? The tree's already been blessed, and there are even talismans hanging off of it.

She's so serious.

That's how Simone is. I'd have frozen to death three, maybe four times by now if she weren't here to help.

Simone? Hm... Simone... Santalla... I think I've heard that name.

Is she someone famous in Sami?

Oh... No, not at all. I must be remembering wrong.

I have a hard time keeping track of anything I haven't seen for myself on my pilgrimage.

So maybe I'm mixing her up with someone else.

Mm.

(Opens notebook)

You seem to know a lot, Cup. Mind if I ask a few questions?

Shoot.

I picked up two pieces of bark from a tree. And they had symbols on them.

I want to know what they mean.

It's a code that Sami uses to communicate with us.

They could be messages about the past, the future, or about nature.

The same symbols can also mean very different things, depending on who is receiving them and when.

May I have a look?

I have them right here.

This is... the old tree's bark...

'Snowpriest'... 'Delight'...

Looks like a message from a clan tree to its shaman. You can have them back.

Mm-hm.

What's the difference between a 'Snowpriest' and 'shaman'?

Think of a Snowpriest as the head shaman or a greater shaman. He may not be the oldest, but he's certainly the highest in status, the most powerful, and the local leader.

Incidentally, my teacher is a Snowpriest.

Will... you become one too?

Nah, it's such a pain taking care of the tribe and solving all their problems. Leave that to someone who wants the job.

So... are you a shaman now?

Nope, just an apprentice. I have no idea what Sami wants, or even what it wants from <i>me</i>.

Which is why my teacher made me come here to feel the Samivilinn.

And have you felt it?

Nope.

Leaves fall, rivers flow. It's all the same. I don't feel anything unusual.

I have plenty of complaints for him the next time I see him.

You're back, Simone!

Mhm.

Let me have a look.

Wow. You can really do that with ground frost?

By the way, I heard that the one who serves the old tree can control the wind and snow, making them dance at her fingertips.

The old tree takes no servants, nor does it need one like me.

Well, if you don't want to talk, I'm not going to press the matter.

Old tree... Is there a difference between the clan trees?

There's only one tree that can be called old in Sami.

It represents the Past, and often appears with the heralds of the Present and the Future.

The three are separate but one, transcending Sami.

The Past...

By your outfit, I thought you were an explorer.

I am.

You seem more like—

What's the word?

A folklorist?

As an explorer, it's always good to learn more about an unfamiliar place.

I'll bring you some Sami books if we ever meet again, explorer.

That'd be great!

On the other hand, there's only so much I can carry in extreme environments... Maybe the equivalent of two volumes of the 'Encyclopedia Columbiana.'

It's about this long, this wide, and this thick... hardcover.

Yeah, not sure why you thought that'd help me at all. Just give me your luggage and let me feel the weight.

Oh, it's all bundled up to be carried on my back. One second.

There.

It's all on the ground.

Hm. Good, looks like you can fit it.

Huh?

That's about the same weight as two Sami books.

Oh.

Er... what sort of books?

Legends, tribal history, that sort of thing.

But a full tribal history takes up enough wooden tablets to fill an entire tree house, so I'll spare you that.

I-I thought the paper books I saw in the Cyclops's cave were Sami books...

Maggy!

Oh, welcome back.

Do you have any more of those flare sticks?

Yeah, why?

I tried one when I was picking the fruits, and it worked even better than the leaf ball.

You mean you ran into a tuskbeast?

Why wouldn't I? I was walking alone in the forest and they're hungry.

Anyway, do you have any?

Half a bundle. How many do you need?

Give me two for now.

And here, fruit from a musbeast stash. I've washed them with water.

Thanks!

Let's eat together and get to bed early. I don't want to wake up and find the door blocked by a bunch of hungry beasts.

I'll take the night watch.

You already stayed up the other night. It should be my turn.

It's safer here, and I won't be up all night. Consider it a chance for me to relax.

Alright... if you say so.

(Whisper) Be careful. There are demons in the forest.

I know.

Let's make a campfire, Simone.

Absolutely not!

Do you want to draw the attention of every predator in the forest?!

A-A lamp, then?

Not much difference between a lamp and a fire, light-wise.

If you can't sleep, then try this.

A dreamcatcher. Helps you pass the night in peace, with no dreams of becoming prey.

Thank you.

I'll be going to bed, then.

Good night.

As Oakcup promised, Magallan was not troubled by nightmares that night.

Instead, she dreamed another dream.

In it, she is still in the forest at night.

But she is not alone.

She is a creature like Emperor.

Beside her, a massive white hornbeast slumbers in the dream of another.

It was serene and beautiful. Magallan could not help but reach out to caress It.

But It is so dignified and solemn that her hand stops in mid-air.

She decides to lay down next to It and dream together with It.

A dream within a dream.

In it, a dark shadow shambles towards the tree hole where the group is sleeping.

Behind it is a trail of darkness and filth.

Black snow falls from the sky, burning away Santalla's frost and creating a gap.

The shadow walks towards the gap, leaving its vile trail on the ground.

Suddenly, a hornbeast catches its attention.

The hornbeast leaps and disappears. By the time the shadow turns around, the gap is filled with frost again.

It gazes upon the frost, and shambles towards where the hornbeast disappeared.

The hornbeast is still by Magallan when she wakes up.

But Its horn had begun to melt.

Then Its body, then the forest.

Magallan sits upon the snow, snowflakes falling on her beak.

For some reason, she feels regret.

She never sees the hornbeast's eyes, until the dream vanishes.

Oh!

You're up early today.

I just happened to wake up...

Perhaps that was not the entire story. Her sleeping bag is wet near the pocket.

She remembers pulling the pocket's zipper shut before sleeping, but it is open now, as if something fell out.

There was nothing missing though—

Except a little Sami souvenir.

Typhon...

What's the matter? Got out the wrong side of bed?

Does Amma's Affection disappear?

Mother has to take care of so many. She can't stay by your side forever.

Did the Affection I gave you melt?

Yeah...

Maybe that's a good thing.

Maybe she took care of a big problem for us, without us even realizing.

If possible, I'd have liked to keep it with me.

Well, we can always find another. It's not that hard.

Oh, okay!

That's... the beast that attacked us the other day.

Hasn't been dead for long.

Looks like it was rammed to death by a large herbivore.

Self-defense, to avoid being eaten?

No, it came for revenge while the predator was weakened.

Maybe it lost a friend or family when it was little, and sought vengeance once it grew up.

Animals, seeking revenge...

The hunter kills its prey, and the offspring takes revenge. Humans do that, and so do animals.

We're not as different from them as you 'civilized' folk believe.

But that aside... hunter, shaman, over here. We have a bigger problem.

Simone... this rockhorn...

Yes, a demon did this.

Take the foal away, oak-child. Don't let it lick the mother's blood.

Gotcha.

(Imitates a rockhorn cry)

The foal hears the call and staggers away from its mother and towards Oakcup.

(Sobbing cry)

It's scared. Don't worry, I'm here.

(Licks the baby rockhorn's forehead)

(Picks up her camera)

Click—

Magallan looks at the photo.

With her own eyes, she can clearly see the rockhorn bleeding blood as black as ink.

But the blood doesn't appear in the photo at all.

It wasn't caused directly by a demon, just a corrupted creature, some kind of beast.

It won't be turned.

Can you save it, oak-child?

One second. Watch over the baby for a bit, Magallan.

(Imitates a rockhorn cry)

Oakcup leads the foal to Magallan, then heads towards the injured rockhorn.

H-Hello?

Magallan stretches out her hand, and the foal happily rubs its head against her palm.

Hehe...

(Low cry)

(Pained cry)

Not good... We might've had a chance if we'd arrived earlier, but now...

All we can do is ease its pain.

Stand aside, hunter.

Don't let the foal see.

Hmm...

(Long call)

(Stifled moan)

No need to be afraid. It won't hurt.

(Waves staff)

Sleep now. Roam free in dream.

Over hills, over swamp♪

(Puts down staff and takes out dagger)

Rest in Amma's woods, for she watches over you♪

No more pain, no more suffering♪

With the souls of all life—

(Pierces the rockhorn's throat with the dagger)

Roam free on Sami's back♪

Rest now, soul of the land...

Oo... (imitates rockhorn mother's cry)

Oh...

Hearing the call, the foal hurries to Oakcup's side.

(Low cry)

(High-pitched call)

Fear not. Your mother is with you.

With her blood... her tears...

(Draws the bloodied dagger across the mother rockhorn's eye)

Her horn.

(Criss-crosses with the dagger)

Stopping at your...?

The foal lightly kicks Oakcup's knee with its hoof.

(Hoof.)

(Draws a mark on the hoof with the dagger)

Go, friend. Your life has just begun.

The foal continues to circle Oakcup, seemingly seeing him as its new family.

Well... I suppose that works.

Only until we take care of your mother, though.

The foal does not answer, only rubbing itself against Oakcup.

What's the plan?

This is more than an apprentice can handle.

(Sharp whistle)

Screw training. I'll let my teacher take care of it.

That way will take you out of the forest towards a nearby marshfolk village. They'll give you a warm welcome.

I'll stay here with the kid and stop the rockhorn's bleeding until my teacher arrives. I can't let it become food for scavengers.

Say hello to the Canopy Sage for me.

Oh, so you knew—

Tell him that this is connected to the Black Mark of Ursus.

Black Mark of Ursus? Alright, I'll pass it on.

Nothing good ever comes of Ursus being involved.

Do you have enough rations?

I'm not about to become the first apprentice shaman to starve to death in the forest.

Here, take this.

A flashlight?

I can see well enough in the dark, but it might be useful to the old man. Thanks.

Farewell, friends.

May Sami keep you safe.

Finally, out of the woods!

Hey, I think I'm getting a signal.

The marshfolk trade with you guys a lot, so they've got some of your metal things set up.

What will Cup do with the rockhorn's carcass?

Cleanse the corrupted soil and blood, clean the wound, then leave it.

Shouldn't it be buried?

No point. Scavengers would just dig it out.

Is it the same with people?

More or less.

Like Oakcup said, here in Sami there's not much difference between humans and beasts.

Hunt and be hunted. Eat and be eaten.

The best we can do is show our prey a bit of kindness and make sure they're dead before we eat them.

That's the law of nature, the will of the north, the Samivilinn.

If you want to change that, there's only one way.

What's that?

Become Sami itself. Become the All-Father.

Of course, that's just a legend. No one's ever seen it happen, haha.

Stop messing with me...

'Checking status of Black Mark. Liebafowl is about to trade with those upon water.'

Another carcass, another victim.

The hunter steps over the hunted, with no intention to feed.

This was not to satiate hunger, nor for revenge, but pure and simple killing.

It is a hornbeast, a corrupted one, with an empty hole on its abdomen, but it is still 'alive.'

Its blood, tears, and saliva are all black as ink.

The hunter roams the animal trail, looking for a new victim.

There is a figure swaying at the same frequency, not far away.

It is clearly human.

Its unique and rhythmic breathing can be heard clearly, even without approaching.

Hiss... huff...