Our Heroes travel upwards. But in some cruel twist of fate, only greater dangers await them?? Dang! I thought they were already through the vexing obstacles!!!
Summary[]
The party continues to herd the spiders through the path to the surface set by Lemon and Paris’ map. Linus worries about being with strangers and heading so far from home but Ulysses assures him that they’ll all return safely.
They travel on until they reach a dead end, realizing that it shifts upwards into a shaft. When Linus sends a sonar ping up the hole, a faint pair of voices from overhead invite them to join them. They navigate past running water, rushing air pockets and massive roots before they are prompted to enter the sucking air vacuums. This takes them to a chamber full of vibrant plant life and fresh fruit where two talking bushes welcome them. They mention meeting travelers before but never having been given names, so they call them Wrestling and Bush.
The plants offer them their fruit since it helps spread their seeds. Paris remains suspicious while Linus prefers the taste of bugs, but as Lemon, Ulysses and the spiders eat more fruit they start to fall asleep. The plants drop their ruse, confident that they can overpower the remaining two. Linus’ sonar blasts the leaves off of Bush, revealing him to be a monstrous thing of thorns and fangs. Paris sets Wrestling on fire with his magic ring, making the plants call off their attack rather than risk burning down. They agree to let them leave, having only eaten a few of the spiders before they woke. They point out the exit being located across the nearby lake. When the party refuses the offer to make a boat out of man-eating trees, Linus realizes he can use his sonar to part the water for them to walk across. He struggles but starts to lead the party through the lake while Paris worries about what dangers could lurk in the surrounding waters. Lemon agrees to light up and check while Paris closes his eyes, revealing that there are hundreds of sharks swimming around them.