Chapter Text
Scar stares at the pair, surprised, of course that’s nothing compared to the shock on their faces. It makes sense, considering how this whole time Mumbo and Grian didn’t seem like they expected to win. He found it strange for them to put so much effort into this but not expect to win. Yet here they are now with Mumbo as their newly elected mayor.
Scar watches Mumbo nervously give his speech for a while, before deciding to leave. They’re going to be busy for a while, he’ll congratulate them later. He could use a walk anyways. Scar easily slips past the crowd, none of them paying him much attention.
It doesn’t take him too long to reach where the town borders a forest, to reach one of the few trails in it. It’s a nice day out, at the very least. He lets his mind wander as he follows the familiar path, pondering what to do next. He spent so much time trying to win the election, he’s not sure what to do next.
Scar gets abruptly pulled from his thoughts when he trips over a root, barely managing to catch himself from falling. He frowns as he looks around, he was so certain he knew where he was going, but he has no idea where he is now. If he continues straight he should reach the end of the island and reorient himself that way.
Scar continues forwards, looking around for any sign of the initial “trail,” or the ocean, as he goes. He’s so distracted trying to find his bearings, he doesn’t notice the sagging earth until he steps on it. It immediately gives in under his weight, and he falls with a shout. He yells again in pain when he lands.
It wasn’t that far of a drop and the ground wasn’t that hard, but he definitely didn’t land correctly. Scar pushes himself into a sitting position, wincing lightly. He looks around the place he fell into, noticing that it’s some kind of small cave. There are patches of mushrooms everywhere, of all different kinds. Scar only recognizes some of them.
He looks up, sighing at the distance. It wasn’t too long of a fall, but definitely far enough that he can’t climb out again. Scar looks to the only other direction he can go, into the complete darkness. He really doesn’t like his options here. There’s an unfortunately slim chance that any of his friends will find him here, so waiting isn’t a hopeful outlook. Walking farther into a dark cave also doesn’t sound like a good idea.
Scar carefully stands up, wincing again, he really hopes he didn’t get too hurt from the fall. As he contemplates what to do, he notices the earthy scent to the air. It’s incredibly strong and… thick? Something tells Scar not to breath it in, but… he doesn’t understand why, it smells rather pleasant. There is something off about it, something he can’t place.
As he tries to figure it out, the dark tunnel starts glowing. Scar stares in surprise as some of the mushrooms along the walls and floor start glowing in a beautiful blue color. It feels inviting.
Come to us.
Scar starts walking before he can even think if this is a good idea or not. The glow is very enticing after all. He follows the mushrooms in a near complete daze. It only shatters when he notices a fork in the path. The part of him insisting that something is wrong here urges him to go down the pitch black path. Scar considers listening to it this time, but… he turns to look down the other path, faintly lit by the mushrooms. Why go through the darkness when he can continue to follow the mushrooms? Especially with how they encourage him to follow them.
Scar continues to follow them, fully trusting in whatever beckons him closer. It’s not much farther when he reaches another dead end, but this time the whole room is covered in mushrooms and mycelium. Mushrooms bigger than Scar has ever seen before. He looks around in amazement. He walks more into the room, looking around at everything, faintly illuminated with the few glowing mushrooms.
Touch me.
He curiously reaches a hand out, resting it against one of the biggest mushrooms. It feels like nothing he’s ever felt before. Scar covers his mouth as he coughs, fully snapping out of his daze and realizing how dense the air is. He needs to find open air again. He pulls his hand back and turns around.
Scar doesn’t even take a full step before he starts to feel extremely dizzy. He staggers before falling to the ground, which is a lot softer than what he fell on earlier. He should probably feel more panic, but something is whispering in his head, something comforting.
When Scar opens his eyes again, he can only feel ease. He can also feel a lot more than just himself. He sits up, only feeling slightly sore now. The mushrooms are no longer glowing, but he can see perfectly fine in the dark. He feels a purring in his mind and turns to the collection of giant and… strange mushrooms.
“You called me here,” he murmurs, somewhat awed.
He feels some kind of hum in his very being, he takes that for confirmation.
“What do you want from me?”
Flickers of mushrooms and mycelium spreading through and out of the forest flash through his mind.
His blinks the imagines out of his eyes, “you want me to help spread mycelium?”
Another affirmative hum.
Scar takes a moment to think about that. Takes a moment to think of why he didn’t immediately think of that. He carefully stands up, fully. “Of course I’ll help. I’ll help you spread your reach across the entire island.”
He feels a shiver throughout his entire body as the mycelium hums again. Something tingly, but also pleasant. Scar really wants to do what this thing wants, he feels like only good things will come from this.
“I’ll begin now,” Scar murmurs.