6
No one spared more than a casual glance at Aniolo-jat and Yeruna-hua as they made their way toward the nakobo tree. It stood off by itself, surrounded by water and connected to the rest of Hasawa Village by a single narrow footbridge. The walkway wasn’t even made of strilk but was woven in the old way, from braided vines. Pale red fungi and lavender-hued mold covered large sections of it, showing that it was little used. Using his tongue, Aniolo-jat snapped off a piece of huim and chewed it as he and his companion made their way across the swinging viaduct. Below, a surface-feeding takuwolu kept spitting acid in their direction. But the walkway was too high. After several tries, the finned, snakelike predator gave up and swam off in search of more accessible prey.
Reaching the isolated tree, Yeruna-hua scanned their immediate surroundings. Only a light drizzle was falling, making it possible for them to be seen from the village. No one was looking in their direction. Hasawa was a small community, out-of-the-way and unimportant. It was also, significantly, a “pure” village. Not even the usual Deyzara food shop marred its Sakuntala nature.
As Yeruna-hua kept watch and used his own body to shield his companion from the sight of others, Aniolo-jat reached out and pushed on several light brown shelf fungi. Unusually, they did not break off under the weight of his fingers. Even more unusually, they stayed down instead of springing back up when he pushed on them. In response, a rust-stained section of the tree slid aside, admitting the pair not to a woody interior but to one lined with pale composite paneling. Entering, they shut the barrier behind them.