M4 WG: The Tree
Your host leads you towards the shady area and you see that it is, indeed, a tremendous tree. Not nearly as tall as the mighty bastions of Kashyyyk, but still impressive in that a tree of this size is growing, apparently, inside a mountain. The tree's leaves are vibrant green. The tree's trunk and boughs are a dark, healthy brown.
The ground is a soft, loamy earth that is neither wet nor dry. This makes a pleasant change from the wetlands and badlands you have been walking through for days.
You pass under the boughs and the leafy canopy provides shade. Your eyes ease a bit from the bright light they have been straining under. Once they have adjusted, you see another person. It is an older man of the same species as the Aki-Varshi. He slowly stands up from his seat by the mighty trunk. He walks towards you, his robes swishing as he moves. He is wearing a bandage around his eyes too, but it appears to be holding in place a much thicker cloth over his eyes. You are fairly sure that you wouldn't be able to see through the blindfold he is wearing. Nevertheless, he approaches you steadily.
The man reaches Forim and stops. He reaches up with his right hand and gently places it on the side of Forim's head. For a few moments, Forim's large eyes seem to dilate.
Suddenly you are far away, in a place you can barely remember. Your hands and feet move randomly, without your guidance, as an enormous Duro leans down towards you. She babbles some strange noises that you are unable to parse. She smiles and touches you kindly, and keeps babbling. You try to imitate the babble, and she coos in delight.
The scene changes, and you find yourself in a much more familiar place. It is the creche of a starship, where you played and learned with other children. You all sing songs together, ancient nursery rhymes of your people.
You are seated in a classroom. On your desk are books, paper, and a stylus. All around you, youths carefully scratch their letters. They copy out words they do not know from their reading, then look the words up to increase their vocabulary.
You are seated at the dinner table on your first starship. Your crewmates laugh and talk, telling stories and jokes. They switch between Durese and Basic freely as they casually chat.
The man withdraws his hand. "Thank you for sharing your memories with me," he says in Basic.