🍄The Rise Of The Baked

The sun rose over the clearing, and the Octopies awoke bleary-eyed to see two stacks of buckets—one was overflowing with berries, the other with what appeared to be some delicious-looking Mushrooms. The Fellowship took charge in distributing out the buckets to different groups of the militia, who promptly began to share these foods around. Some chose the strawberries, too afraid of what transformations awaited them. Others took a serving of Mushrooms without fear. They all began to devour the food they had. After days without much sustenance, the raw fruits and fungi tasted incredible.

Within an hour, it was obvious which Octopies had chosen which delicacy. The ones that had taken the strawberries continued about their business: seeing to the camp chores, making sure the perimeter was secure, rationing out the remaining supplies—all their usual tasks.

The Octopies made quick work of devouring the fruits and the Mushrooms left for them

The other Octopies instead behaved quite differently. As the day went on, their senses became heightened. Sharper. More acute. It was as if they had become more attuned to the subtle nuances of the Haunted Forest. Many of them stood at the edge of the clearing, staring into the abyss of the trees. Yet they didn’t just see trees and bushes; they saw all manner of shapes and colors. Vibrant colors that danced and swirled, painting the Haunted Forest with a newfound beauty. What had been scary before, now seemed enchanting and inviting.

As time went on, they engaged in conversations amongst each other. Laughing, crying, embracing. All manner of emotions were shared. There were Pierates laughing with Vampiers, Doughbots embracing Piesces, Piesons inspecting the missing body parts of Zompies. It was a connection between different Slices unlike they’d ever seen. The boundaries between Slice and nature blurred. They were one. They’d discovered a deep connection with the Haunted Forest that surrounded them. A living, breathing, magical Forest.

The rest of the Militia looked on in bewilderment at these events. They couldn’t fathom how simply eating some Mushrooms would trigger such a change in behaviour. Some of them felt envious that they’d chosen the strawberries—but it was too late, all the mushrooms had been shared out already.

As the day came to a close and night started to creep in, the Octopies that had consumed the Mushrooms began to gather in a group at the edge of the clearing. Their behaviour was more subdued and quiet. They looked at one another, nodding in agreement, as if they were communicating without uttering a word. The Fellowship approached the group, and as they did, a voice from the small crowd spoke out. “We must go now. To find the rest of our family in the Forest. We thank you for your protection as we embraced our true selves today. We hope to see you soon, as we are all but children of the forest.” And with that, the group headed into the Haunted Forest, serenely walking through the dark tree line. The Fellowship was concerned. Perhaps the strange effects of these Mushrooms were still ongoing. They gave word to the rest of the Militia to stand their ground at the campsite while they left in pursuit of the other Octopies to make sure no harm came upon them. They hurried into the forest to try to catch up...