Lumberling Grove

Next to the great forest of getting lost lies the **Lumberling Grove**. Lumberlings are a living but mute tree species that feed on spring water from the Fountain of Youth in the center of their clearing. If a lumberling stops feeding on this special crystal clear spring water and instead drinks ordinary water, it will gradually turn into an ordinary tree. If a person drinks from the spring, he is either given eternal youth or he ages by several decades in a few minutes. What this depends on is not yet known. Lumberlings grow extremely slowly, but can live for thousands of years. After the first millennium, a Lumberling is considered to be an adult and has reached a size of about ten meters. After the second millennium the first leaves begin to sprout and after the third millennium the woodling grows fruit which, if eaten, can significantly prolong human life. Each of these fruits takes a hundred years to mature and falls to the ground when finished, where a new woodling awakens from its seed. If such a fruit is eaten, it extends a human life by one hundred years. However, it is extremely difficult to get hold of one of them. Although the Lumberlings are extremely peaceful and helpful, they will protect their sacred spring and its fruits by any means possible. It is said that the wood of a piece of wood could be used to make instruments that produce superhumanly beautiful melodies.

## The Forest of the Lumberlings

Northeast of the Forest of Getting Lost, there is a patch of woods, known to harbor many rumors and mysteries. Seemingly unaffected by the distortive powers of the Forest of Getting Lost, it covers a considerable extension of land with many species of very tall maple trees, many of which keep a coloration from brown to red all year long, with very few having green leaves. It also holds a great deal of fruit trees, attracting a great deal of wildlife that comes to feed on the fruits of the forest. However, there is no known human settlements in the area, despite the seemingly great conditions for life in there. Not even when the Khenomeric Empire began expanding through the continent was this bit of land settled. Those who know about the region know it as the Lumberling Grove.

**Lumberlings** are poorly understood creatures. Their origins are unknown, and many tales revolve around their true roots and nature. They have existed in the Lumberling Grove for what it seems an eternity, and have expanded to the nearby woods as well. They are beings related to trees, so similar in fact that many would not see any difference until they start to move. They are massively tall creatures that can reach 10 meters of height. They have developed an incredibly slow metabolism, which forces them to move incredibly slowly, and they spend most of the time standing still. Experts have not really understood their diet either, since they do not seem to eat any matter, limiting themselves to drinking water and absorbing sunlight to survive. Some theorize that this is the reason why they will spend most of the time still, able to remain in place for months at a time, setting roots in the area until they decide to move, at which point they will retract them and begin to move somewhere else in search of food. However, one thing it is absolutely sure: at least once a year they will need to travel to the spring of clear waters in the middle of the Lumberling Grove to drink from it. If they cannot for whatever reason, they will slowly regress to the level of mere trees. They can also live for many millennia, something that has affected their reproductive cycle, making it painstakingly slow. A lumberling only reaches adulthood after many centuries, but only those that are more than two millennium old can actually reproduce. They seem to be hermaphrodites, following a very plant-like form of reproduction, sprouting fruits that will eventually grow into young lumberlings, known as woodlings or saplings.

We do not know if the lumberlings are sentient or not. They do not possess eyes, mouth or ears, they do not speak or communicate in any detectable way. They are able to notice their environment through unknown senses, but their reaction to their surroundings seems more instinctive than rational. They are able to detect the intentions of the visitors who come to the grove. They will remain peaceful and still if the new arrivals are only passing by or searching for food, but they will attack on sight if they threaten their woodlings, the woods or the Fountain of Youth. When aggressive, they will seemingly expend a great deal of energy in a moment, being able to react with a speed unexpected for such lumbering creatures. Many scholars assume that their existence is of magical origin, since they seem immune to the effects of the Forest of Getting Lost, and their need to consume frequently the water of the Fountain of Youth seems like a way to fuel themselves with magic instead of mere hydration. Many have also theorized that, whoever or whatever created the Fountain of Youth let the lumberlings as its protector.

## The Fountain of Youth

Deep within the Lumberling Forest, there lies a spring of fresh, clean water, always surrounded by dozens of lumberlings at every time. This spring is known as the **Fountain of Youth**, and as its name implies, it has incredible magical properties. Its waters have great restorative capabilities, able to restore the body from the gravest of wounds and diseases. If a healthy person drinks from it, however, it can restore many years of their youth. If they drink enough water, however, the results can vary. Some cases show that they grant whoever drinks from it eternal youth, in other cases they age by several decades, to the point of aging to dust. And in other instances, their youth restoration is so severe they are left as infants or even disappear altogether. The causes for these differences are not known yet, and further studies are made difficult for the challenges to reach the pond.

We know that the lumberlings will defend the Fountain of Youth with ferocity and zeal uncharacteristic of their mild behavior, but they are not the only obstacle between the outsiders and the priced water. Packs of wolves, bears and giant squirrels will attack any party of travelers that crosses into the lumberling groves. Swarms of hornets will also pursue the intruders, and their stings are particularly harmful, since they will purposefully aim for the eyes, ears and mouth. Areas filled with vegetation that emits invisible clouds of disorienting vapors will make people dizzy or sick, suffering from hallucinations. And those are just the more mundane defenses. Many tales tell that other, more unnatural beings lurk through the seemingly peaceful grove, ready to take down whoever threatens the fountain.