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The first thing Wind Archer Cookie noticed when he woke up was the overwhelming smell of smoke and the characteristic flickering of flame on the horizon. Normally this wasn't much of a problem- some fire Cookie causing trouble in town, lighting things on fire and generally being a pain to deal with. But this time something told him that things were actually wrong- this is what made him leap out of bed and run out of there, weapon by his side, darting as fast as he could back home...
The Forest of the Millennial Tree was on fire.
Well, had been on fire- now it was nothing but smoldering embers, some ashes on the wind, the flickering flames he had seen just being the last remnants of what was once the greatest land in the world. It was his- his to guard, his to care for, and now...
He could barely hear the whispering from a few Cookies by his side...
What happened here?
Oh, I rather liked this place!
Is that the guy who lives here?
...but he heard none of them, not a word, nothing but mumbling and imperceptible speech, nothing that mattered to him. Not even noticing he was moving, he knelt with a pile of ashes in his hands- dark and cold, some of them blowing away on ember-streaked wind. The wind of his own blood, scattering the fruits of his failure...
...no, this was only a bad dream- nothing could burn down this fast, at this speed! Nobody would torch the Forest of the Millennial Tree, nobody even could! Only a day or two away from home.
Ash ran over his hands, soiling them, the almost endless fields of embers and burnt wood stretching forward almost endlessly. The last vegetation he could see was burning as he watched- incinerated boughs of branches and dark green leaves, curling up as they fell, becoming yet another piece of the growing ash and leaf litter on the ground, embers leaping to cover any bit of recognizable land, the earth screaming as it died- shock is a hell of a drug, and the thought of checking on the Tree didn't occur to him for a while- an imperceptible amount of time to the mentally injured Wind Archer- but a valuable loss of time nonetheless.
It was a few moments later when he remembered the Tree- his technical father, his beloved, his creator- if they were one with the woods, would they die like the rest? No- they were too strong for that. If something like...the forest burning would ever happen (this was definitely just a bad, cursed dream), it would be him that burnt to crumbs while the Tree breathed. They would recreate everything- in fact, why hadn't they done that already? Were they unable to stop the flames- was that his job?
He held his head in his hands for a moment, pain wracking his body- and for a moment or two he deeply, deeply believed he would crumble right then and there- where did the wind go when it died?- but the knowledge that he had to do something, anything brought him back to his feet.
With swift movements he started to run, breathing heavily- he hopped over a few rocks, no branches getting in his way as he was used to. No trees to climb. For a bad dream, this was realistic- too realistic, as if he was there, breathing in the smoke-filled air of failure and what should have been his death instead of that of the forest. He should have been there! He should have been burning with it, not laying someplace else, visiting friends and dealing with other people's problems! One more leap over a rock, a stone- he then registered that all sound and noise was gone. No bird calls. No creatures. There was still the bubbling of water from somewhere- so the lake hadn't dried up, at least. Maybe it would have been enough to douse the flames... nothing's wrong! Find the Tree, get out of this dream- or fix the forest. That's it.
The bridge across the lake was broken, so he had to go the other way around- it would take a longer time, but he had no plans to fall into the water before ever reaching his destination. Adrenaline powered his form, quick movements towards the other paths he knew- swift steps bringing him around the lake, past burnt landmarks, following the old path that he had traversed so many times. He never expected the way would be a plane of decay.
It didn't take long for him to go the other way around, reaching the edge of the forest that was revered by so many- but this time the only way he recognized the holy location was by the rocks he had passed by so many times. Everything else- hot underfoot, ashes drifting away as he walked- was entirely different. It reminded him more of a place like Brown Sugar Valley or Dragon's Valley, places so different from home that he never expected to be comparing one to the other. As opposed to the forest they were cold and dark, not filled with life and animals...
Wind Archer Cookie rubbed at his eyes, not sure if the falling tears were from the smoke or from what had happened- but he still felt as if this was only a dream, still shocked into silence, still moving to go find the Tree and check on them. The Tree ran the whole forest- if any bit of it was left, or even the memory of it, he expected that they would still be alive. In fact, he expected the forest to spring back to life even before he arrived- moment after moment he was waiting for lush grass to be below his feet again, or for the air to clear, or-
No use thinking about it now. He was on a mission- to find his creator, the one he was guarding. Most Cookies didn't know where the Tree actually was, or at least they didn't even know where to start looking- one would expect to find a greater deity in a temple to themselves or beneath an old shrine, not wandering in the forest. But Wind Archer Cookie knew better: he would live in the place he created, in his own spot that only another guardian could locate. And as he was the only one...
He brushed a few charred branches to the side, one of them coming back and smacking him in the back of the head before splintering and falling to the ground among its fellows. The trees here- or at least what was left- were more intact than the ones further away, but still were missing the majority of their branches and foliage. One of them broke before his eyes, landing on the ground- he hopped over it before continuing to rub at his eyes, blinking sharply before catching his breath and moving on. There was never one specific spot where Millennial Tree Cookie stayed- of course they stayed around the Millennial Tree itself, but never exactly in the same area. All he had to do was wander around, peer into various clearings and common spots until he found them- all the while moving in a panicked state. He almost passed one by when a strong feeling hit him- an aura of the forest, something that made his heart warm in a familiar way- although not in the same fashion as he was used to. This was weaker, lighter, as if it was only a remnant of the Tree- as if somebody had stolen a branch, a leaf, or if something of its glory had passed by...
There was a figure laying on the ground, head in its hands, burnt wood and smoke drifting off of it. Dust covered their face, the only sign of life being a small displacement due to their breathing- and a slow, labored twitching of eyes as if they were desperately trying to open them. He rushed over, almost yelling out father as he came- but he held it back, knowing that while Wind saw him as a father Millennial Tree Cookie didn't see him as so. He had already messed up once, he wasn't going to get the lord of the forest any more upset with him- he was not a son, he was a Cookie created only for the forest, that was all.
He ran his hands over Millennial Tree Cookie's face, wiping the dust away- they opened their dark optics a touch, focusing on him- this is when he realized how clean he looked as contrasted to everything else. Millennial Tree Cookie was covered in dust, the majority of them burned away- he didn't even see their legs. He was covered in dust and ash but not missing limbs, not bleeding or dead, just a concerned look on his face- would they notice that he wasn't there? Oh, how he would hate lying to them- but at the same time, he would hate admitting he failed in his only task!
But it was fine. It was fine. Millennial Tree Cookie would be fine, they would fix this, everybody would be okay, the forest would be okay, he would...he would be able to pretend nothing happened. They had been through things before, but never was the god of the forest in such bad condition.
"You." Millennial Tree Cookie whispered, sitting up a bit straighter- at least trying to look him in the eyes.
Wind Archer knelt down further, resisting another urge to call him father. "Are you okay? Is there anything left?" He was tense, he was cold- and it felt like an eternity before more words came out of the dying god's mouth.
"You should know that." He breathed in heavily, a shaky noise- "You checked, did you not? I expect you were able to stop at least some of it."
This is when he looked over him- ran his sight over Wind Archer's pristine form, and his face twisted...not into that of a scowl, but a look of disappointment.
"It's all gone, is it not? The woods, the Tree, maybe whatever inhabitants didn't escape." There was a new tone to his voice- and Wind Archer felt it shoot daggers down his spine.
"I saw nothing left, my lord." He bowed his head respectfully before continuing to speak. "The fire spread fast- there wasn't much I could do to stop it befor-"
He was interrupted by wracking coughs. "I fought it." he whispered. "And I got hurt for it. You? You're either the best healer in the whole of the world- or you didn't do as much as you could." He tried to stand, or at least sit up- stretching crumbling hands under his body.
"Please, conserve your strength, my lord!" Wind cried, holding hands out as if to halt him- but to no avail, as they struggled upwards to stare him straight in the eyes. Their unwavering gaze went directly into him, firm as the trunk of a tree, strong as the fire that had ravaged his whole worldview.
"Damn my strength! I can't live without the forests, and you know that- the Tree itself must be dying same as I am." His labored breathing was more apparent, but they appeared to ignore it- and Wind Archer didn't bother to remind him to stay down. Shivering overtook his body, not from cold but from the gravity of the situation. "You were created from the wind itself to make sure something like this never happens-"
"And I have!" Wind cried out- "I've saved us from numerous things! We're survived for ages!"
"And the one time you needed to save us, you didn't!"
"I did- I did..." He couldn't say it. He wasn't even there- Millennial Tree Cookie was acting as if he had been there and failed- but was it not even worse that he entirely wasn't there? He did nothing- slept while his home burned, messed around in town while his livelihood and reason for being burnt to the ground! He couldn't even say he did his best, couldn't say he did what he could- he didn't, he wasn't even there, he entirely failed in his one job.
"I'm sorry." was what he finally managed to get out, hoping the tears he was feeling weren't showing themselves.
"That doesn't help anything." Millennial Tree Cookie whispered, gasping and falling back to the floor, soot scattering as they collapsed- Wind Archer knelt down further to catch them in his arms, the god without a home catching his breath with labored noises.
"I'm too weak to do anything now- this is it."
"I should have done something!"
"I should have made a second." the Tree sighed, closing his eyes for a moment before opening them with a quick shock. "I should have created a more useful guardian..."
"Father, I-I've done other things!" He shouldn't falter like this- not in front of the Cookie he needed to protect more than anything else in his life. "I've saved us time and time again!"
"You dare to call me a father?! You don't mean anything to me- you exist to keep the forest alive! Instead you were only the wind who spread the fire...or was it due to your own negligence and ignorance that led this to spread? I would be disappointed to call you a son or anything of the like."
Not a single word from Wind Archer- not a breath, not a thought. Just waiting, quietly, anticipating their next words...
They laid down, head falling limp even in Wind's arms- the sound of their breathing rapidly getting quieter and quieter. Wind Archer realized that the Tree itself had probably died- and its Cookie form was doing the same. The two were linked- and as one fell into the ash, so would the other. This is when one thought ran through his mind: this is not a bad dream. You failed, you failed the one thing you were born for, and there is nothing else you can do. The Tree is dead, nobody can repair the forest, everything is dead. Closing his eyes a moment, he felt the aura that he had been living with for his whole life- part of it even inside his own blood- start to disappear into nothing, leaving upon the winds of his own birth and the flames that took it from him, with nothing but the last six words of Millennial Tree Cookie left to keep it alive:
"I am greatly disappointed in you."
The aura cut out, the once revered god falling limp in his arms, pieces of them breaking off before his eyes- and there was nothing he could do but stand there and watch the person he had once called a father lose his life...and the last thing he ever said was to denounce him.
And he did nothing. Everything was ashes, everything was soot and cinders, and he did nothing at all! He didn't even remember the last time he had broken down crying- he tried his absolute best to give his best face, the guardian of the forest who was rarely shaken by anything that happened around him. He barely even realized he was breaking down until he laid in the soot, the body of his father behind him, the cinders around him clumping together due to his tears...
He didn't even know how long he stayed there surrounded by the weight of his negligence, his absolute incompetence, the thought that anything else would be a better guardian than he was. He didn't know how long he stayed there until night came overhead, no fireflies coming to light up the night- nothing but the damp soot on the ground and pieces of wood that stuck into his body.
He came to his senses in the middle of the night. Breathing heavily, having inhaled a fair amount of dust, he rubbed at his face before starting to limp out of there with a languished trot. Maybe he didn't entirely fail- maybe something was left in the Tree for him to rest his head on? He shouldn't be hopeful- he already had a strong feeling what he would be seeing- but there was no reason not to. Maybe he could formulate a plan once he got there- something else he could do with his life.
No thoughts, head empty, quiet breathing and padding of footsteps, the Tree was never far from the walking grounds of Millennial Tree Cookie. It didn't take him long to find it- and it was just as he expected, a shallow husk of what it once was. It was torn apart, ravaged by flame- parts of it laid on the ground. Sacrificial offerings laid in front of it had faced the same fate, even the ones that Wind Archer had remembered seeing for the entirety of his life- as if the Tree took its offerings with it to the afterlife. Was there even an afterlife for gods, deities that were forgotten and killed? And similarly, was there an afterlife for people who didn't deserve one- like himself?
He leaned on one of the fallen branches, the wood splintering apart as he did so. Running his hand against it, he couldn't even see the original emerald green of its boughs- nothing but gray and shades of black, cuts of red embers that continued to gasp for life- as if they hadn't already taken enough. He snuffed them out by laying a hand on them, a quick flash of heat running across him before the sparks fizzled out just as quickly as they had came. Sighing, he laid limp- thinking, thousands of thoughts running through his head.
He needed to do something now. What caused the fire? Was there anybody else that could help? What was he going to do now? What...what caused the fire? That was the question he kept coming back to- what caused it? Could he take his revenge, have justice for the forest, find whatever did this and make sure they suffered just like its inhabitants were? Yes- he could do that, his last bit of revenge for the forest. If he died on his quest, damn it, that was fine! This was his last stand, the last thing he was able to do- find out who did this to him.
Fire Spirit Cookie. They lived over in Dragon's Valley- he knew them...well, he would say, or at least well enough. They had a strained relationship, rather liking yet despising one another, and they had enough flame surrounding their soul to cause problems quite like this. His hands stretched over to the bow and arrow on his back- they were the closest he got to whomever could start a fire like this. They were the easiest target...and he knew where they lived.
He stood up, rapidly, a new sense of purpose in his heart. Find the source of the Fire- slay the fire, drown the Fire, whatever he could do in order to make them pay for what they have done. Something deep inside felt bad about the concept, but he removed it from his mind- who else could do an act like this against him but somebody of fire who knew him personally? Yes- he would head to Dragon's Valley as fast as he could, find the Cookie who did this, make them regret living...
Maybe it was their fault, not his! This was done with purpose, with intent...! He couldn't stop it, somebody's torching of the woods- even if he was there, it would have just gone badly and ended full of blood and smoke. Maybe that would have been better...no! It...it was Fire Spirit, they hated him, they would have done this ages before... yes, that was it, there was still somebody else at fault here, it was just a shame that he couldn't explain this to Millennial Tree Cookie before they...
He started to run just as swiftly as before, tears still staining his clothing...but now they were tears of rage, tears of justice... past the rocks, through the forest, taking the long way around the lake, swift movements of his feet with weapons in hand.
Fire Spirit Cookie had just put a pot of tea on the fire when his door was broken open- nay, shot open. With a small "Ah!" of surprise, almost dropping the cups, he turned his head to see a familiar- albeit dusty- face at the door.
"Eyy! Neil, my pal, you didn't bother calling? And... ya know, doors cost money, right?"
Wind Archer Cookie- still kind of attractive despite the dust and the rather disastrous state they were in- stayed there, breathing heavily, weapon in hand and standing almost victoriously over the door. He would need to put on more tea.
"Why did you do it?" the forest guardian whispered, taking a step in- Fire Spirit raised his hands, trying to make sure the rather angry archer didn't get much closer.
"Do what? I've been here all day- also you owe me for the door."
The murderous rage in the archer's eyes... was he being accused of something? Did he do a crime that he wasn't even familiar with? Did he somehow get him upset again? Or did he notice that patch of flowers he tore up the last time and covered with a few sticks...?
"You burned it down, didn't you? You burned everything down."
He began to raise the bow, and Fire Spirit realized that he was totally about to be shot unless he said something.
"Dude, what? I...haven't done anything! I've been here all day! And I have not burned anything- at least, nothing that would matter to you."
Wind Archer's face contorted into an animalistic snarl, hands shaking- Fire Spirit would have doubted that he could even make a straight shot, but he knew better. Wind Archer always hit his mark- if he missed, that was intentional from the start. And as an arrow thunk-ed into the ground next to him, he hoped that wasn't his only warning shot.
"Somebody burned it. The whole Forest of the Millennial Tree- ashes. Every last thing...don't tell me you don't know!" The archer's hands shook as if he was in a hurricane, jaws twitching as if he was trying to get out more words but the breath stuck in his throat, choking him from the inside...
"The whole thing?"
"The WHOLE THING!" His screaming sounded more like sobbing than actual anger- while Fire Spirit sure did like to cause problems, burning down the entire Forest of the Millennial Tree was NOT something he would ever do. That was just wrong, bad, and would hurt literally everybody. It wasn't a prank or joke, especially not to the person who actually guarded the place.
"I...I didn't do it." He needed to talk fast, just to make sure that no arrows entered his head- "I like to cause...problems, sure, but that is BEYOND what I would ever dare to do. You live there! I understand how much you enjoy living there! I...nobody would do that. Nobody in their right mind would burn down the freakin' Forest of the Millennial Tree!"
"Somebody did." And now Wind Archer was physically crying- and Fire Spirit had never seen something like that. Not now, not ever- even in the face of adversity, they never did such a thing.
"Can...can the Tree-"
"Dead."
"Both?"
"Yes."
Silence from the two of them, Wind Archer's weapon finally being dropped back to his side.
"I...I don't know anymore. I was so sure you did it! I was so sure that...upon taking you down, I would avenge the forest... I would make Fath- I mean the Tree-'s memory worthwhile... now what? If you didn't do it, then who did? WHO DO I NEED TO SHOOT, WHO-"
Fire Spirit took a step forward, hands still held out, a bit of worry for his tea in the back of his mind- but hey, he did feel a little something for the rather different archer. Maybe it was because he was kinda very cute but kissing him right now would be such a bad idea.
"Nobody could have done it." he said in the softest voice he could muster. "Things happen- random chance, things going wrong. A storm, a strike of lightning, a torch or spark falling in the wrong place- and then things spread too fast and too far." He paused, checking to see if any more arrows were being aimed at him. "It could just be pure happenstance. You were just very, very unlucky."
"I was." Wind Archer said, speaking through his tears. "But...if nobody did it, then... I can't blame anybody for this, can I?"
"I suppose-"
"I can't." He stared Fire Spirit in the eyes, heavy sobs wracking his now frail and dusty body. "I can only blame myself for not being there- for screwing around when I should have been doing my job! He was right- I did fail everybody. And there's nobody in the world that I could blame for it." The lightning? The earth itself? He couldn't fight those, and if he was there, he would be able to stop the sparks. Lightning strikes, he quells the flames- sparks fly in, he shifts them to another corner of the world. Hell, he could even have stopped Fire Spirit if they really did start the whole thing! He...he knew that they wouldn't continue doing their crimes if he had caught them. He needed to have been there, and it was way too late for that.
Fire Spirit was silent, very much so, and Wind Archer couldn't stop the words from spilling out.
"I should have been there- success or not, I should have died in that fire. It should have been me, not Millennial Tree Cookie- they could just...just make a replacement."
He turned away, standing at the doorway for a moment before looking back at the rather shocked Fire Spirit. "Your door- forgive me. I wasn't thinking straight, but I am now."
He threw his bow- not an arrow, the actual bow itself- at Fire Spirit's feet.
"Sell that- it should make the cost back."
"Wait, dude, no way! Absolutely not. Absolutely am I not doing that." He kicked it back over, shaking his head. "That's yours. I am not taking that."
"Then do you want this?" His hands reached up to the emerald on his head, creating a rift in the soot covering it.
"No! D-dude, forget about the door. It doesn't matter."
He let out an inaudible sigh of relief when Wind Archer took his hand back off the stone. Sure, it would sell, but he kinda wanted the Cookie it was attached to, not their stuff! And this would probably still be a bad time to try to kiss him.
"You sure?"
"Very much sure. Forget about the door."
The archer sighed, limp in stance- staring towards the outside before giving one last glance to the rather worried Fire Spirit. "Then...goodbye, friend."
Friends. "You're coming back, right?"
He didn't expect Wind Archer to look away- and for somebody who reveled in causing trouble, he was surprised by just how much this got to him.
"Wind Archer Cookie. What are you going to do?"
No answer, and that was terrifying.
"Don't you dare do something reckless!"
No answer- and he was walking away. Catching the wind was hard- it would only take a moment before he lost sight of them, and just one more moment before he went back to gasping for breath.
"Wind Archer, you...you better not- where are you going? Damnit, you're coming back, aren't you?"
He was running, fast as the wind, and Fire Spirit darted after him, the tea forgotten in the heat of the moment. Just as expected, the green Cookie got ahead of him at a rapid pace, and he had to take a second to catch his breath.
"I'm coming after you, don't you doubt it!"
Wind Archer knew that Fire Spirit was going to follow him. It was obvious- so along with his ultimate goal, he would make sure that no fiery Cookies would show up at the last minute for a rescue.
Father, I'll do what I should have done from the start.
I'll be seeing you soon, Father.
Feet on ashes, eyes watching the still clean waters of the lake- still reflecting the sky, but gray fading over it from the clouds of smoke still leaving the air. Dust had sullied the once pure waters- now if he looked close, bits of plant matter and branches floated on top and sank to the bottom of the cold liquid. Dipping part of a leg into it, he recoiled from the cold- perfect. This whole thing would be over fast.
Checking around for any signs of Fire Spirit- or anybody else that would lay a damper on his plans- he threw himself into the water, the chill soaking through him, dragging him downwards- of course he couldn't swim, but he could paddle further out, liquid dragging him down at a rapid pace- instinctively he should struggle at the top of the water for dear life, but he instead clutched both hands onto the weapon by his side. It wasn't as fast as he expected, but at least he wasn't burning.
Faster, faster... Fire Spirit knew where he was going. Home- where else? That was where the archer had went, and it shouldn't be hard to find them now that there was nothing but dried crispy leaves and dead trees that were collapsing in on themselves.
Faster...
Wind Archer never knew crumbling apart could hurt this much- but it did make sense, as losing pieces of yourself probably should come with some sort of suffering. Water already lapped at his head- and with a soft dip of his head he finally went under, breathing darkened by water, a small hint of regret hitting him-
It was either this or burning.
I should have been there.
I was born to save the forest. And I didn't.
It's too late now, anyway.
As his father, the last thoughts of a dying man was on failure and ignorance to do so- the replaceable nature of his whole existence, the last words of the Cookie he respected most in his life, and an overwhelming sense of shame.
It took Fire Spirit a while to get there, the forest being a rather long distance away- and he stopped in shock at the sight of it. He would have mistaken this for an entirely different location- so something really did burn the place down, straight to the grass and all. Kicking some of the crispy leaf litter on the ground he continued walking, moving at a quick trot- he didn't have much time, something told him, and he needed to find the guardian before it was too late.
With the increased visibility due to the...clearing, it didn't take him long to find the lake. To him it looked much like the one at home, and he almost passed it by- the deep green scrap in the water is what turned his head towards it. How did he get out there? was his first thought, until panic set in- he couldn't swim, there was a chance that he could lose his own fire- and that's it, he was dead after achieving nothing by doing so. There was no time to get anybody else to help out, and besides- he didn't want to subject too many to what was happening here. Every Cookie he saw on the way was giving the place a wide berth, as if they didn't want to think about it for the time being- heck, he couldn't blame them!
It would take a while for somebody to get Wind Archer out of there, and he felt horrible that he couldn't be the one to do it. He should be the one- but there were no ropes, no vines, nothing but tossing dried branches into the water. He tried that, the branch shattering in his hands, before he turned back and realized he was probably already too late.
He stayed there for a while, watching the drowned person in the waves, hoping that somebody would be there to get them out, or that along with the Tree and all the holy stuff in this forest, people would remember the forest guardian who at least tried his best.
Fire Spirit turned away, quietly- as a few faraway chirps of birdsong pierced through the silence.