I know how decomposition works in nature. When an animal dies, the initial decay begins. The natural bacteria in the intestines would begin to eat the body and then spread to other internal organs. The body begins to break down, allowing flies to lay eggs that hatch into maggots, which then begin eating the flesh. I’ve learned of bacteria, as while I can’t naturally see them, Forest Trolls learn to sense them as they interact with mana and matter on a very small, but fundamental scale. There were a few tools used to see them, and those who studied them in the village had the ability to do so

We do a lot of farming, and we have a special connection to nature, so it’s important to learn. Grandpa also brought a lot of knowledge to the Sanctum and helped expand the education system within, and tools capable of seeing bacteria were one of the best things he brought. There were a few thousand trolls in my village, and a good number of children within that population, so there had to be a pretty big school. There were some teachers before, and with Grandpa’s help, he taught them more, which led to a “well-equipped school with competent teachers" in his own words. Within that, he brought measurement systems, mathematics, science, and more to us, all of which I try to use. I’m not sure I would’ve learned so much and been put on the path I’m on without proper education.

The second stage of decay is Putrefaction, where the bacteria break down the body, releasing fluid and creating horrible smells that attract more insects to feast. Any internal spaces in the decaying creatures filled with fluid and maggots sped up the process. The insects that arrive also lay eggs, and predatory ones feast on the spawn. I remember seeing it for the first time in class, sitting outside as the teacher showed us an old rat that had been dead for around a week. Any openings into the body, the mouth, ears, nose, and others had maggots growing out of them. The most disturbing part to me was the stomach, where my classmates and I could see squirming clumps of larvae crawling throughout. It was gross, but it got worse.

Then there is Black Putrefaction, in which the bloating from the corpse's fluid is released into the soil, where more insects consume it. Fewer insects are attracted to it as much of the smell dissipates, changing from a putrid scent to a cheesy one. In addition to flies and other prey insects, predators like beetles lay eggs that hatch into larvae, which then consume the flesh. Wasps are common in this process, too.

This was, in mine and most other opinions, the worst stage to see. The body was breaking down more clearly, and the insects had completely invaded it. Worst of all, the corpse of the rat we had been examining was still visibly a rat, and seeing what it looked like before was a disgusting comparison. I didn’t enjoy looking, but understanding what had happened and why it was occurring definitely helped. From that point on, I saw it much more, especially after leaving the village, and the lesson taught me what I was actually seeing, which helped me better handle the gross sights.

After that is the Butyric Fermentation stage, when the flesh is removed, and the corpse dries, and the mold and fungi begin to consume everything. Insects like beetles consume the ligaments and skin, leaving very little behind. This stage wasn’t as bad, maybe it was because there was less to see at this point, or my classmates and I were already properly traumatized. The mold was interesting, seeing another kingdom of creatures take the next step in the decomposition from the animals.

The idea of kingdoms of life was also a unique topic brought to us by Grandpa, who said it came from humans he had met before who had fallen on harder times. They still had a lot of knowledge left that they valued, and the idea of classifying life in a more complex way came from it. Having life divided into domains, kingdoms, phyla, classes, orders, families, genera, and species made things harder at first, but, overall, easier in the long run to understand. I used to think both plants and fungi were the same, but when
I found out they were both in different kingdoms.

It changed how I saw mana, too. Before, I had just assumed my nature mana was just plant mana, but it wasn’t. Instead, nature mana revolves around what the user sees as being natural or not, which can be pretty philosophical when you get down to the definitions. I think of nature as plants and fungi, with animals in there too. Even though I know it's more than that, it includes everything in the world. Overall, though, I’ve found that this perspective suits me more, though I know it’ll change as I understand more. This was one of the main reasons I wanted to build a library of knowledge, and why I’m happy with my Soul Library.

After that, there is Dry Decay, when only bones, scales, keratin, and hair are left, depending on the creature. Those will be eaten too, leaving the bones exposed to the elements, where they will break down in their porous structure and eventually crumble. This was by far the easiest to look at and the most relatable, as seeing bones of all sizes, colors, and shapes was a common sight in the jungle and the village.

It was cool to see how bones broke down: some, smaller and thinner, like the rats, went fast, while giant ones, like skulls from larger creatures hunted by those in the village, didn’t decay. I did learn that one could preserve bones better by using certain chemicals on them, like halting the passage of time. After learning that, I went to a bunch of the hunter families and asked to see their collections. They proudly showed off their kills and their ancestors’ trophies, detailing their history to me.

My favorite was a gigantic Mud Gator skull that was over 20 ft long and over 200 years old, from the Refax River, a few miles away. The one who showed me had talked about her grandfather hunting it after the beast was pushed out of its territory and began eating local animals. It was arguable whether or not it had to be hunted, as it would’ve been able to go back at some point, but there were probably a few hundred Mud Gators just like it in the long stretch of river. As long as it didn’t majorly disrupt the balance of life, it was fine. Any action disrupted part of it at a minimum.

Overall, I know a lot about decomposition from beginning to end, so I knew what Doba meant when he said what I did wasn’t correct. Growing the fungi to take over the corpse when it was barely a day dead was skipping over lots of steps. Instead of informing him, I knew and was just seeing how they grew, I took the opportunity to have him explain. It was a good choice, as though he was slow and a bit quiet at times, he knew a lot I didn’t.

“Life leaves…slowly. Time in life…needs to leave…at death. Death needs time…and life needs time.” He said, crouching down beside me, looking at the snake and the rest of the pit. He was much more flexible than I expected, and because he dealt with the pit so much, I expected a much worse smell. Instead, he smelled like…fresh soil.

“So, based on the age of the creature that died, more time is needed for decay to happen? What about small creatures that are old, don’t they decay faster?” I responded with.

“Flesh decays…faster. The mind decays…faster. The soul decays…slower.”

“Ah, the soul. That makes much more sense, though, as one grows older and their body is weaker, their soul is often much more powerful. Well, what happens to a soul when a creature dies? I know some believe it goes somewhere else, like an afterlife, though my people don’t. We believe it is also a part of life that goes back into the world, to be used anew.”

“Afterlife is…death. When one dies… they return to the soil. A soul…breaks down and…returns to life. I don’t understand…afterlife.”

“Well, an afterlife is where some believe souls go, like a place of rest where those who die go to spend the rest of their existence.”

“Why travel elsewhere…when dead? No more body…to live. No more mind…to feel. Only soul left to…exist. Bad life…no energy to…sustain that forever.”

“You aren’t wrong…”

Root looked at his brother and Doba, crouched together, looking into the pit, discussing souls and decay. They were clearly getting along well, which brought a smile to his face. He floated a little bit away from their conversation as he contemplated everything.

“One follower successfully introduced! Now just three others,” Root thought to himself. “It will be easy to introduce Sifter as he’s nice, just need to get him away from gardening, or maybe I can use that to connect them. I don’t know where Divy is and haven’t talked to him in a bit since I’ve been busy, but he should be fine. The main issue would be Spore; she’s not really friendly to new people and might try to challenge Harvoth just because he’s strong. He doesn’t have much fighting experience, and even though he’s stronger, she’s definitely lethal. Better warn him before anything…”

As he thought that, looking back over to Harvoth and Doba, Root could see a thick line of condensed spores coming down from the ceiling, about to touch his brother.

“Harvoth, watch out!” Root said as he darted forward, his wispy self fluttering with his speed. “Spore, he’s friendly, leave him alone!”

As I heard Root shout from behind me, I rolled out of the way as I sensed something above me, opening up my senses and thoughts beyond the pleasant conversation with Doba. Looking back, I could see a line of yellow and white material that looked like spores caught in webbing, all clumped up, descending from the ceiling. Then Doba reached over to it, grasping on with his thick, four-fingered soil hand and pulled.

There was a screech from the ceiling, then a voice that followed.

“DOBA LET GO! You always ruin my hunts!” A higher-pitched, feminine, shrieking voice echoed from what I could now see as a hold with a ledge on the cavern ceiling.

“Spore, you can’t…just try to attack…people like that,” Doba said as he began pulling harder, easily getting more of the webbing down. “Come down and…say hi properly.”

“NO! I have to challenge the so-called “leader” and take his position for myself! I can’t touch Mantleroot at all, so I need to hunt the other fleshy one!” The voice said, clearly straining against Doba’s pulling. “Also, it’s QUEEN SPORE! For your disrespect! TASTE! MY! FURY!”

As she spoke, the webbing from the ceiling, all the way to Doba’s hand, burst open as the mana in it fueled the explosive growth of a massive swarm of spiderlings. The tiny yellowish-white creatures dropped down and crawled all over Doba, but didn’t do anything, as they had nothing to really attack. All there was to harm was lichen, mushrooms, and moss, all of which the swarm clearly couldn’t do much substantial damage to. I could also see that the spiderlings were a mix of biological material and mana.

Before I could sense more, Doba’s body trembled as his own mana appeared. A muddy-colored energy coalesced on his form, but felt pure and clean, unlike its appearance. It covered the white spiders on his body and then vanished back into him. After a moment, the white spiders curled up and fell onto the ground as they all died, decaying into bits of dust and mana that dispersed into the air.

“Not nice…Spore.”

“AHHHH YOU JERK!”

“Please, Spore, calm down! Just come down here and properly introduce yourself before challenging Harvoth!” Root said, a hint of desperation, and with a clear tiredness in his voice as he turned to me. “Sorry, brother, she’s a handful, but actually very sweet once you get to know her…and avoid being killed a few times so she stops trying.”

“Very…comforting to hear,” I said back to him.

“HMPH, fine. I’ll come down.” The voice said from above.

As I looked up, I could see the beginnings of one of eight white legs peaking over the side of the hidden ledge as it weaved a web to go down. Coming from the shadows, descending to the bottom of the cavern floor a few feet in front of me, was a large spider. With a milky white dog-sized body and a large colony of dark yellow fungi on its back, it was a sight to behold. Eight black, beady eyes blinked all at once as it sized me up, a few spores floating through the air as they seemed to respond to her malicious intentions.

“I am Queen Spore, the final gatekeeper and protector of this grove. What is your name, future servant?”

I had to do research on how decomposition works for this chapter and found a really interesting (and gross) article on it by the Australian Museum. I won't link it as it uses a dead pig being decomposed to show how the stages work and if you want to see it just look it up for yourself. I got more used to it the more I looked at it, but the disgust never fully went away. I could never be a biologist who did things like that, but I really do respect them.

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