Thank you all so much for your support. I am very excited to have won second place in this contest. It has been a long time since I've written any narratives, and I really enjoyed working on this one. Congratulations to all other entries!

This story gives readers a chance to explore an amazing new world, and decide their own adventure for the hero at the end. I am working on formatting to make text easier to read. At the bottom of this blog is a playlist that I used for inspiration for the story. The songs are designed to line up well with scenes from the story. The music is a great source of inspiration. Feel free to give it a listen!

Special thanks to Rosiesunny for her wonderful illustrations!

Word Count: 2884

The wind in his hair… The salty sea licking at the sides of his ship… Adventure coursed through his veins, and these were the only things left tethering him to this world. The journey had been rough, given the fact that Steve had run out of rations many moons ago. The glimmer of the fish schooling beside his sailboat was tempting, but Steve decided to decline their invitation. The cerulean sea ahead of him gradually changed to green, and he wanted to investigate. The verdant vista called to him, and so he returned to his seat at the helm and eased the mainsail to see what lay ahead.

The maze of mysteries that was this world never ceased to amaze. This was how he differed from his father. That man was content to live each day just like the last. Steve preferred to live each day like it was his last.

As he approached the green gradient, Steve felt his boat oddly lurch forward and sink into the surface slightly. This part of the ocean was met with more resistance from his ship, but continued to move forward. He reached his hands down into the green water to investigate, and pooled a handful of liquid into his palms. He tugged his hands free, and pulled foliage from beneath his boat. As his boat continued to press forward, Steve could tell that he was no longer navigating through water.

He was sailing through leaves.

On the horizon before him, he discerned a continent coming into view. Land, at long last, he thought to himself. Steve brought his ship through the brush and stepped foot onto solid land, desperate for anything to fill his empty stomach. On some nearby bushes, he spotted bright berries, and began shoveling them into his mouth without thinking. The fruit was sweet, but ridden with seeds that he struggled to spit out. He did not care for their rough touch on his tongue, but his appetite demanded more. After he had had his fill, Steve began to wander aimlessly around the landmass, looking for water or other signs of life.

“Hey!” a voice called out after him. A figure fell to the surface near the bushes Steve had feasted on. “I don’t know who you are, but seeds are considered sacred here.” They motioned to the ground that was speckled with seeds that Steve had spat out. Steve turned around to face the confrontation and explain that he had not eaten for days.

The person turned back, one of the seeds in their hands. Steve was not prepared to see their face in the slightest. They were completely comprised of plant material. Their skin and limbs were made from leaves. Arum lily flowers cuffed their shoulders and scalp. Pale yellow stamen fell from their follicles, pollen particles filling the surrounding air. Clothing made from woven fibers and petals in shades of purple and blue draped around their body.

“These seeds are the source of all life in our country,” they solemnly stated. “You must treat them with respect”.

Steve began to approach them. “I am sorry,” he said, hanging his head low, “I have been travelling for many months at sea, and the fruit was the first food I have seen since I ran out. Can you forgive me?”

The humanoid ran their digits through the silt and scooped up a small mound. Compressing their hands together, they created a small ball of energy in their hands, and released. A small bird, comprised of sod, gravel, and leaves stretched from out of their palm and fluffed out its foliage feathers.

“That was amazing! I’ve never seen anything like it!” Steve exclaimed.

“I see these every day. Where did you come from?” they asked, setting the creature free to fly away.

“I’m from Minecraftia,” Steve replied. “I was tired of feeling like wasting my life, so I took up adventuring to see what the rest of the world was like.” He glanced around and added “and this world of yours looks like it has a lot to offer.”

The plant person gave an inquisitive glance and cocked their head. Leaves hanging from their limbs rustled in a gentle breeze. “Your being is made of flesh,” they said. “I’ve only ever seen plant matter beings before.”

“I’ve actually never seen a plant matter being before,” Steve laughed. “What should I call you?”

“My name is Ven,” they replied, “and maybe you can help me. If you are looking to see more of this land, you should come with me.”

“I’d do anything for some fresh water!” Steve said.

Ven reached from under their jacket and handed Steve a water skin. The two of them began to walk across the island. There was grass beneath their feet, and Steve couldn’t see through the surrounding sea of brush to whatever lay beneath the surface. Ahead of him, Steve noticed a sturdy oak tree. As they continued to approach, it dawned on him exactly how large it was. He was only looking at the top of the tree canopy.

“We’ll be going on a quest,” Ven explained, “to the roots of that tree. There is a very important seed down there that I could use your help protecting.”

“How will we get down?” Steve inquired. The leaves were thick enough to hold up his boat, and he wasn’t sure that travelling deeper through them would be that easy. As they got closer to the tree, Steve noticed a slight gap surrounding the trunk with thick branches descending to darkness below.

“We can climb down on the branches,” Ven replied as they walked up next to the base of the tree that emerged from the green sea. “It’s a long way down, so make sure that you don’t lose your footing.”

The duo began their descent, taking careful step after step across the boughs, darkness encroaching with each passing moment. The atmosphere felt light, as though they were slowly sinking with each step and bouncing across the branches that circled around to the bottom. As Steve looked down, he could see shimmering spots of light flashing from deep beneath him. Patches of the bark were coated with bioluminescence and glowing a brilliant blue hue. Fungi shot off from branches in every direction. Strange fish could be seen swimming through the air and through the leaves. They were similar to the bird Steve had seen on the surface, being made of stone, sand, and greenery. They scattered at the first sign of movement into the shadows and disappeared.

With each passing step, the sight of the sun slipped away behind the leaves. The fish grew more grotesque, with massive maws and bugged eyes that had never seen natural sunlight in their lives. They were horrifying and haunting, and yet almost seemed friendly. Steve was appalled, but he was not afraid. The depths of this strange forest were not something he ever expected to see, with a variety of verdant life moving about. He could see trees and branches as far as his eyes could reach, and a black void beneath his feet.

"We’re starting to get close to the forest floor,” Ven said calmly, completely unfazed by the monstrous creatures floating through the foliage beside them.

“What is this place?” Steve asked. His sense of adventure meant he never said no to a quest like this, but he was starting to wonder what he had gotten himself into.

“This forest is home to an abundance of life. The large tree here is home to our monarch, who governs all of the levans that live here,” Ven explained. “You are human and made of flesh. I am levan and made of leaves. You have a heart. I have a seed.”

Steve let out a small laugh. “You weren’t kidding when you said seeds were the source of life here.”

“There are those in this world who seek out these seeds for their own gain,” Ven said solemnly. “Our neighboring country have beings made from earth and metal. Some of their kind would like to steal from us to strengthen themselves.”

“And how do I come into the picture?”

“You might be able to ensure that our kingdom is safe, once and for all. We received a warning that there might be attacks today, and a strong hero like you might be able to protect us.”

Steve hesitated. He was a skilled fighter, but was not sure what sort of tricks these metallic beings might have up their sleeves. He wasn’t even sure if they would have sleeves. And he had to leave his best weapons behind for this journey to make more room for rations.

“If you can equip me with some armor and weapons, I’d be happy to protect you and your land,” Steve said.

Ven’s eyes lit up with excitement. “Excellent!” they cried out. “I will be more than thrilled to fight alongside you.”

Steve reached to take another step down the spiral staircase of tree branches, but came to the sudden realization that there wasn’t one. He was at the forest floor. Paths of glowing tile lit the way to many houses and shops. Luminescent mushrooms adorned the sides of trees and added to the surreal atmosphere. Steve saw many levans walking around, talking and going about their daily lives. They sprouted many different flowers and leaves from their heads. No two looked the same. This truly was a world unlike any he had seen before.

“Come with me,” Ven said, “and we’ll head over to the monarch’s chambers to prepare.”

Steve complied, and blindly followed Ven through this land of fantasy and foliage. He was not sure what this fight would be like, but knew it would be unlike anything he had ever experienced before.

“How does this look?” Steve asked sheepishly as he stretched around. It was surreal to him to have armor made from the bark of these trees. He was so used to being iron-clad during combat, but he had to admit, the lighter armor provided much more mobility.

Ven looked up. They had kept themselves preoccupied, combining seeds and soil into an army of golem warriors that grew from the ground before their very eyes. “The bark armor suits you,” they replied. “It’s much tougher than it seems.”

Steve nodded in agreement. They didn’t have much time to prepare, but defenses were strong. He glanced around the room to try to determine the most practical way to protect it. The monarch’s tree was quite large, and at the heart of the roots where they were hunkered down lay a heart, hanging from veiny vines and branches. The tree’s heart served as a seed, giving life to the entire forest floor, and growing enchanted seeds from which new levans would sprout. Steve could not imagine what potent power such as this could do in the wrong hands. He knew he had made the right choice to help protect these people.

“Do we have all of our defenses in place?” Steve wondered aloud, hoping that they didn’t have any points of weakness. Ven nodded solemnly and moved their militia of mulch monsters to the back of the chamber, behind the heart.

“It shouldn’t be long before those metalheads arrive,” they sighed. “Our secret weapon is ready.”

Steve and Ven retreated to their positions, ready for an attack. They did not have long to wait.

Footsteps could be heard from a distance, and peaks of platform heels were heard piercing the path that lay under them. A fair woman, with silvery skin and a serious stature could be seen striding down the stairs into the room. It took everything Steve had to be completely silent and hold his breath as he bolstered himself onto a branch. The woman stood still at the base of the stairs, and a shrewd smile crept across her face. Her eyes were fixated on the wooden heart.

“Now!” shouted Ven. The floor in the chamber fell out, and the woman was caught completely unaware as she tumbled to the monarch’s throne room beneath them. Steve and Ven began to carefully climb down to the battlefield below. The army of levan leviathans leapt into action, taking turns attacking the metallic mystery woman. She quickly got back on her feet and lashed out, arms becoming sharp tendrils that could tear through anything. She swung her swordlike limbs recklessly, reducing a portion of the golem army to rubble before Steve’s eyes.

“You can’t stop me!” the lady shouted. “I WILL have this heart!”

“This heart belongs to the levans!” Ven shouted, launching magical attacks at their fierce foe. They continued to clash, her flexible sharpened arms flailing against Ven’s spectral energy spheres. It was metal versus organic matter; refined versus raw. Strike after strike was reflected and rebounded until eventually a sharpened sword lashed out and struck off Ven’s arm, which dropped to the ground as dust. Ven recoiled, and regenerated their arm before Steve’s eyes.

The woman frowned, and fixated her eyes again on the heart hanging in the tree above them. “Without more power, how am I supposed to keep foreigners out of my kingdom?” She swung her tendrils into the side of the tree, and began her ascent to the seed to attempt to secure it once more. Ven charged ahead to confront her, commanding branches to creep out from the wall to form an alcove that they could climb.

They leapt through the air, tackling the woman to protect the tree’s heart. The two of them collided and fell to the ground, fighting all the while. As they hit the floor hard, Ven grunted, and Steve looked in horror as he realized that a metal arm had impaled his companion. Ven gave Steve a mortified look, and their body turned to a cloud of silt, dropping a seed to the mound of earth beneath.

The villain looked to Steve, and before he had a chance to move away, she grappled him to the ground to give a finishing blow. Right as her limbs began to breach his bark chestplate, a burst of bramble erupted from where Ven’s seed fell, and ensnared the woman in its thorned clutches. Steve saw his chance to strike, and knew he had to seize the opportunity to stop her. Steve grabbed some of the seeds from the fallen golem soldiers and shoved them into the woman’s amorphous metal form. The room gave off a green aura, and in an instant the woman was consumed, drowning in a deep field of foliage.

Steve heaved a sigh of relief, pleased that the present conflict was over. The vines quietly retreated from the floor of the room, and regrouped to form a pod in the center. The pod bloomed open, and a figure fell to the soft ground beneath it.

“Ven!” Steve cried out. He could hardly believe it, but Ven was okay! They looked weary, but well enough to stand on their own two feet. In their hands was a silvery seed, which appeared to be coated in a thin layer of metal. They looked at Steve with their exhausted eyes.

“I can never thank you enough for what you have done for our people,” Ven said. “The heart of our tree is safe from harm, and will be able to keep giving live to all of the levans here.”

Steve ran over to hug them, but Ven stepped back, the metal seed in the palm of their hands. “I need you to take this, human,” Ven said. “This seed contains a great evil. I would like to see it as far as possible from this place. I am hoping you can dispose of it for me, as one last favor.”

Steve nodded and clasped their hands. “I will take it back home with me. It will be a great way to remember our adventure together.”

“Let me see you back to your boat,” Ven replied.

“Wait,” Steve interrupted, “shouldn’t I at least get to meet with the monarch so they can thank me properly for saving your entire kingdom?”

Ven smiled. “Sure,” they replied. “You’re looking at them!”

It felt like the entire levan population had gathered near the coast to see Steve off. They were a boisterous crowd, cheering and calling out his name. Echoes of “Steve! Steve! Steve!” could be heard bouncing off the branches of the green sea. Ven raised a hand to silence the shouts.

“It is thanks to you, brave human hero Steve, that our source of life here is safe.”

“I’m happy to help,” Steve responded. “Thank you for sharing your wonderful ways of life with me. This is a journey I won’t be able to forget!”

Steve pushed off his boat from the forested coast, his ship filled to the brim with exotic foods and drink. The extra cargo would be sure to carry him to his next destination with ease. He looked to the sea in front of him, wondering what sort of world he would discover next. He passed the green gradient and his ship splashed back into the familiar waters. After all, he was never interested in reaching a final destination. The journey itself was always the most memorable part of his travels.