The Dare and the Great Tree
Told by Deev along a wooded path:
Long ago, when the world was still new: Belarius was roaming the Kingdom breeding all manner of new plants. After grasses, shrubs, and the like, he decided to work on something else, something more grand. He had seen how Sherax was revered for creating things of great scale: towers, bridges, castles, and the like, and wanted to create something that was just as impressive, but that could also convey the calm and peace of nature.
Thus, Belarius bred the tallest grasses and the stoutest shrubs until he had created a tree. This was a great and mighty tree, far bigger than anything alive today, and far bigger than you can imagine. It reached skyward for miles and would have taken an hour to walk around it. While Belarius was quietly pruning, the First Men came to inspect his creation.
Hyrium smiled and clapped Belarius on the back, "This is indeed wonderful. It is tall, strong, and robust. I am much impressed my friend!"
Giggling, Galeena noted to her husband that size was not everything, and perhaps this one was a bit too large to be of much use. Hyrium blushed and the pair departed.
Kragga shrugged. "No way to tell if it's too big unless you try first," she noted indifferently. But she did note how the birds, squirrels, insects, and other beasts took to the tree as their new home, and she thus judged it to be good and departed.
Sherax too was impressed, noting that although not as complicated or having as many features as many of her creations, it had a certain beauty in that it was natural and simple. Thus she departed.
Salaazari merely noted its dimensions, density, and other statistics calmly and carefully, but made no judgement, especially "without other specimens to compare to". He too departed.
Besides Belarius, only Ruuk and Juggernaut remained. Ruuk carefully circled it, knocking on this part or that as if testing its strength. "Certainly it is impressive," Ruuk noted
absently. "And certainly it is the largest."
Juggernaut bristled. "Perhaps. But it could not stand up to me."
Ruuk nodded knowingly, as if absorbing great wisdom. "Oh certainly. None in any Dream is a match for your power. Why, even the mountains would fall to but one of your mighty fists."
"This is true," Juggernaut agreed.
Ruuk paused before rushing on, "That much is known. What is not known, what COULD, by some fools obviously, be called into question, is the might of the rest of you."
Juggernaut raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"
"Well," Ruuk continued, "your hands and feet, most certainly are feared by all, but what of your cock? Is it as mighty as the rest of you?" Ruuk glanced at the tree suggestively. "Is it as mighty as this tree?"
By now, Juggernaut was red with anger. Muttering something about "actions vs
words", he stomped forward, dropped his trousers and lunged, slapping the great
tree with his cock.
The pain from the impact was so painful that Juggernaut fell to his knees, leaving Ruuk rolling in laughter, as this was angling for.
However, unseen by both Ruuk and Juggernaut, Magalan was standing on the other side of the great tree. Seeing the trap Ruuk was laying, he waited to the moment just before the blow, and went to work on the opposite side of the tree with his axe. So quick was Magalan, that he had hewn more than halfway through before Juggernaut fell back to the ground.
Then, as Ruuk laughed himself into fits, he and Juggernaut looked up to see the great tree crash down onto the ground, smashing the countryside for miles.
Thus, though he limped slightly, Juggernaut walked away with a smile on his lips while Ruuk was left scratching his head in awe and confusion.
Belarius, seeing his work toppled, sighed and went about making more trees, ones of more modest size that would not inspire such foolery.
In the years that followed, the great log was hollowed out by the people who followed the Fist Men, and made into a great city.
The story of Logtown, or Juggernaut's Bane, is one for another time...
This message was lightly edited by the player at 16:54, Fri 21 July 2017.