GF Fanfic - Uprooted
Tangled Roots (15,361 words) by darkspine10
Chapters: 3/7
Fandom: Gravity Falls
Rating: Mature
“Are you sure you want to do this?”
Mason Pines was terrible at multitasking. More accurately he could focus his attention on a number of related tasks at once, but only at the expense of completely ignoring anything he considered a lower priority. He’d even managed to miss Pacifica’s disappearance from the funeral earlier that day, absorbed by everything else going on. He only realised she’d been absent for over an hour when she turned back up at the cemetery with Leah in arm. Or there was the wider issue he was plagued with; he was failing to juggle his passion to explore the mysteries of Gravity Falls while holding down a steady job at the same time.
Thus his current activity was finding a way to supplement what small money Pacifica brought in via her writing career. Now that night had fallen across the valley he was busily rushing around the back garden behind their house, adjusting the settings on a large telescope pointed at the stars. A bulky camera sat on a nearby table. As he popped in a roll of film with a satisfying click, he repeated the question to his wife. “You’re absolutely sure you want to do this on your own?”
“Oh yes, definitely.” Pacifica peered down the telescope’s lens and marvelled at the clarity of the patch of sky Mason had focused on. It was a cliché to her at this point that he always calibrated his measurements against the same constellation each time, Ursa Major. “What about you, Ursus, you won’t be too bored staying up all night out here in the cold? Wouldn’t you prefer to, I don’t know, spend time with your parents while they’re in town?”
He snorted. “My folks are getting up at the crack of dawn tomorrow so they can drive home.”
Witnessing the Pines family’s recent reunion hadn’t helped Pacifica’s self-esteem. Marc and Mary had embraced their children and grandchildren - even when one of those grandchildren was born on another planet. It only reminded Pacifica of the gaping void in her own life. She thought she’d overcome the need for parental gratification years ago. It seemed there was something missing that she needed to fill in after all.
Mason, not noticing her introspection, attached a long and unwieldy lens to the front of his camera and checked down the sights a few times. “Besides, I haven’t had enough excuses for this kind of fieldwork in months. A meteor shower like this one doesn’t come around every night. The university back in Jersey will pay decently for the photos; it’s always nice to help the fellows out again.” There was a slight hint of regret in his voice. Abruptly quitting and then moving across the country was never an easy transition. “I might even get lucky and be able to sell some to National Geographic, or one of the smaller nature periodicals in Oregon.”
“A little extra this month would be nice.” She bumped into him with her side. “Nice to see you pulling your weight for once.”
He gave a lopsided grin. “I always aim to please.”
“When you don’t have your nose in that journal.”
He put his hand on his chest, mildly offended. “You and the girls always come first.”
“That’s why you need a real job. So we can keep living in luxury.” She playfully kissed him on the cheek, leaving a small red mark from her lingering lipstick, then turned around to look at the house. “Mortgages don’t pay for themselves.” A few stray bits of scaffolding around the roof were a sign of the house’s newness - and a reminder of a recent monster encounter that had taken the roof clean off. They were situated on the southeast edge of town, away from the main square in a row of similar suburban homes. The garden abutted the forest, though that was true of a majority of properties in Gravity Falls.
Pacifica saw a chink of light behind Merrise’s curtains. She shook her head with a grin - though it was technically past her daughter’s bedtime, she couldn’t be annoyed. Merrise was probably listening to another podcast on her phone. Apparently radio was the dominant form of media on the planet she’d come from. It probably helped that Merrise was still learning the basics of reading. This was the easiest way to learn about the planet she now called home. She’d digested all sorts of sorts of science and history podcasts, though Pacifica had doubts that she was listening to anything other than the DD&D roleplaying series her father had foolishly let her in on.
At least Merrise would be safe and warm. Her parents’ choice of evening plans weren’t the most sensible at this time of year. Since the memorial earlier Pacifica had changed out of the formalwear into a winter jacket and jeans, with fur-lined hiking boots and a pair of thick gloves. She’d need all the protection if she went through with traipsing around the wilderness all night.
She turned back to Mason. He was likewise defending against the cold, having borrowed back Wendy’s ushanka from Merrise. It was as if Corduroy was somehow haunting her. Pacifica put a hand on her husband’s forehead as an excuse to run a finger along the fur brim of the hat. “And you’re ok after today? Not… dwelling on Wendy or anything?”
“You’re not still jealous, are you?” he asked slyly, wrapping his arms around her.
“That’s not exactly what I meant,” she said, stiffening in his grip, though she couldn’t deny it had been a factor in the past. “You’re not still all sad about it, I mean. You and her were pretty close.”
“Ah Paz, you don’t have to worry about me.” It was true, he didn’t seem outwardly concerned, busy as he was with the telescope and camera. He spoke without turning to look at her. “I’ll always miss her, that’s true. Today was a chance to reflect. But Wendy wouldn’t want anyone wasting away, distraught that she was gone. She’d want us to move on and be happy.”
His warm smile made Pacifica’s cheeks redden against the cold. She snuggled up against his back. “That’s what I’m going to do then. Find a way to honour her memory.”
“By hunting down a rumour that Manly Dan told you about?” Mason wore an expression of bemused doubt. “It’s not like you to go running around after a tenuous lead. That’s usually my MO.”
She folded her arms and defensively leant away. “What, you don’t trust Corduroy’s word?”
“Well, he’s a fine enough guy I suppose. Dependable at his job.” Pacifica stared at him with a raised eyebrow until he slumped his shoulders. “He’s not exactly the sharpest branch on the tree, if you catch my drift,” he said out of the side of his mouth. “Plus he once made fun of me for my lack of manliness.”
Pacifica burst out laughing at the admission. “Wow, still bearing a grudge, much?”
“I was 12! And emotionally vulnerable,” he muttered.
“Aw, poor wimpy Mason couldn’t handle a bit of teasing.” Pacifica couldn’t help but drape her arms around his neck. “I bet you were all sweaty and embarrassed.”
He wriggled in her soft grip. “A little. It took a lot to become the highly masculine male icon you see before you.” He flexed one of his biceps and flashed her an overly impressed dumb grin. Then he poked her in the stomach. “Not like you, you never had to work a day in your life for your body.”
Pacifica tensed up. Mason had inadvertently trodden on forbidden ground. “You don’t know the whole story,” she said flatly. Her glance turned up to see Mason’s star pattern birthmark. He’d once suffered debilitating anxiety over that unique feature and now he was proud to show it off. She hoped she’d prove able to withstand the disdain she felt towards her own body. Pecking him on the cheek as a distraction, she turned away and went back to standing tentatively at the edge of the treeline.
Mason stood beside her and shrugged. “Well if you’re determined to go through with this then good luck finding anything.”
“I don’t need luck. I’ve got this.” She reached in the pocket of her jacket and showed off the bone amulet. Mason examined it briefly with an air of dismissal. “You’ve not got much in the way of evidence. One little bird skull-”
“Osprey skull,” she corrected automatically before blushing.
Mason handed the amulet back to her and wandered over to his equipment. “Even if Corduroy thinks he’s got a lead I bet it’ll turn out to be a wild Percepshroom chase.”
“Oh, and why are you so sure of that?” Urged on by the desire to not be belittled she slipped the amulet over her neck, fanning her blonde hair so the feathers rested on top.
Mason waggled a finger. “The valley might be a hotspot of genuine paranormal denizens but there are all sorts of rumours and scuttlebutt when it comes to the wider Pacific Northwest. You’ve gotta be sceptical about these things. Like the Batsquatch, can you believe that? A big great-ape with wings for arms, what a joke. Or Colossal Claude, the 40ft long seahorse monstrosity seen roaming up and down the Columbia river. Fake fake fake.”
Pacifica found his condescending tone both off putting and kind-of appealing at the same time. It was nice to hear such confidence from her anxiety-riddled lover, even if he was putting her own pursuits down inadvertently. “I’m surprised that you of all people have a credibility limit.”
“There’s being open to new ideas and then there’s being so gullible and open-minded that your brain literally falls out. If every last crazy news story or rambling forum post was true the world would be drowning in magic and Gravity Falls wouldn’t be a unique outlier.”
“But arboreal one-eyed octopi, hormonal bull-men, and literal fairies, they’re all totally real.”
Mason chuckled and lifted up his palms in defeat. “Ok, you may have a point. It is incredible how some of our experiences can sound. What was Corduroy’s cryptid about again? Some kind of indigenous aquatic lifeform?” Before she had a chance to respond he rambled on. “Oregon is no stranger to alleged sea monsters. There are plesiosaurs in Yachats, or giant serpents all up the coast. Devil’s Lake is right next to the ocean. The most likely explanation for any sightings is that some giant squid or a mutated whale ended up washed in at high tide and getting stuck. Furthermore it’s about 250 miles out from the Gravity Falls border.” He made a nasally laugh. “Is the cryptid supposed to have hauled itself overland all the way here? I don’t think so.”
“You’re such a nerd,” she shot back. When he responded with an unimpressed glare she continued. “Corduroy didn’t describe it as a sea monster. ‘Evil spirit’ was the phrase he used.”
“I’m still doubtful.”
“That’s obvious,” she muttered.
“Anyway, do you know how many Devil’s Lakes there are in the US? Wisconsin and North Dakota have their own, and in both of those cases cryptid mythology sprouted up around them. People can be very superstitious, it’s the best explanation, Paz.”
“Native legends have turned out to be true before. Why is this one more suspect? Because you, Mason Pines, like to think you’re the smartest person in the multiverse. I’m going to put some trust in somebody else for once.” She took a few confident steps towards the dark of the forest. “I have to do this. I need to do this.”
“Whatever you think is best,” he said, absent-mindedly writing a note about his stellar observations.
Pacifica rolled her eyes. Even though he was wonderful at perceiving her emotions and calming her down, sometimes he could be delightfully ignorant of the finer details. “Multitasking indeed,” Pacifica muttered with a smile. “Guess I’d better get going then, if I want to get to bed at a reasonable time. You’ll be ok looking after the kids?”
“Sure, no problem. I’ll make sure Merrise doesn’t stay up all night listening to her phone, and Wendy’s already asleep.”
Pacifica’s eyebrow twitched when he used their daughter’s first name. It was irrational, she knew - they’d both agreed on the name. Still, she would need to have a word with her husband about favouring the middle name from now on, if only to avoid confusion with the ‘original Wendy’.
Impulsively she snatched Mason’s hat and put it on her own head, as if claiming Wendy’s legacy for herself. “Hey,” he cried out, “it’s cold out here.”
“Exactly, I need this more than you.” A quick flash of puppy dogs eyes made him sigh and relent.
“Don’t be surprised if I’m frozen stiff on the porch when you get back.”
“You can always go inside if you get cold, drama queen.”
“Touché,” he stole a kiss on her lips. Pacifica lingered a moment, savouring the warm touch, before Mason said, “be safe,” in a serious tone.
“I will,” she replied, equally determined that she would keep the promise. If she didn’t go now she’d never muster up the drive, so switched on a flashlight and left Mason to his work. It didn’t take even a minute for her to lose sight of the light from the town. If she peered up she could just about see a glow over the top of the branches, but at ground level it was as dark as if she was underground.
She got her phone out, but was annoyed when she remembered that her gloves made it impossible to use the touchscreen. Holding one finger between her teeth she removed a glove and swiped the phone open. Checking a simple compass app she started heading towards the rough area Corduroy told her to search in. After picking the direction she put her phone back in her jacket. It was unlikely to be of much use again. Not because of the remoteness of the forest - the satellite grid could penetrate the whole of the valley these days and she’d probably have seen a few flying about if she deigned to crane her neck up - but due to the pockets of weird energy and radiation lingering around. Remnants from all the tears in reality from Ford and McGucket’s portal experiments played havoc with communication signals of all kinds. It was impossible to predict where a pocket of distortion might strike, wandering around the valley in chaotic bands.
Though she was quite familiar with the woods immediately surrounding her home she relied on the flashlight to lead her onwards. She didn’t quite have the innate familiarity for the trails like her husband even after all the years inhabiting the region. As she headed further out from the house the canopy above became thicker, blotting out the sky completely. She’d have no chance of seeing either satellites or Mason’s meteor shower under these leaves.
She exhaled, watching the cloud of breath and stuck her free hand in her pocket to preserve what little body warmth she still possessed. Though the conditions weren’t ideal, in pure darkness, nearing freezing temperature, she moved forwards with a steady pace, not stopping for breaks. She wasn’t averse to hiking, even learning to take some pleasure from the experience over the years. But her husband, now there was a man who had a constant urge for the outdoors. She supposed it was some zeal of the converted. Mason had grown up in an unending urban sprawl, so a virgin forest filled with wonders had awakened some sense of wonder. Combine that with a tendency towards overriding curiosity and you had a born hiker.
Take their trip along the Appalachian Trail a few years prior. They’d started in high spirits, but Pacifica quickly grew tired of sleeping in cold, cramped tents and getting blisters along endless wooded ridges, so dropped out after three weeks. When Mason finally stumbled through the front door a month later, dishevelled but no less enthused to regale her with stories from the endeavour, she could only find it charming. Along with dragging him to their bedroom almost immediately to make up for lost time and indulge in one of her chosen passions instead.
Gravity Falls wasn’t the Appalachian trail. For one thing the valley was too populated to be left as such a pristine wilderness. Then there was the size; one small valley encompassing the entire sweep of weirdness. There were woods surrounding the valley as well, but they paled in comparison, a monotonous unappealing corridor with none of the personality of the valley’s supernatural charms. They lived in the eye of a very strange storm.
Despite the oppressive darkness Pacifica felt no fear of what she might run into. There were endless potential dangers, as she’d been made aware from a young age, but by now it was routine. She knew the places not to tread without the right mystical defences, where the more unfriendly beasts resided. Even the local mundane predators like bears and wolves were skittish and present in low numbers due to competition with the valley’s native creatures. Besides, they were all hibernating. There was always the possibility of a new threat, like this Unshriven she was resolutely charging towards, but she was alert enough not to be caught off guard. Whether that was brave or simply a pathological foolhardiness bred into her from Mason’s countless expeditions remained to be seen. It was almost exciting in a way, to get to be the first in the family to chronicle a new discovery for once.
Pressed against her waist in the inside of her jacket was her personal journal. Its pink cover and golden llama sigil marked it out as unique. Between all those endless journals and Mabel’s scrapbooks the whole family seemed obsessed with keeping records of the past. She herself was much more modest. The Llama journal she’d kept since age 17 was still serving her well, around 80% full. She didn’t write in it all the time, only when she felt particularly passionate about something. There were a few creature or artefact pages, times she’d felt the need to research or document their adventures, but she lacked the same motivation as her husband for research. In the same time she’d used the one journal, he’d filled six of the things and was nearly ready to start on the seventh.
Still moving forward in the inky blackness, her thoughts turned to her job prospects, as it was related to the journal in some ways. Her writing career, which had seemed ideal only a few months before, had run into a brick wall. In the past she had written about the travails of high finance and other shady business techniques she’d picked up over the years. It felt nice to shed some light on those practices and she had a self-assured confidence that meant she’d been able to crank out a number of books in the last year and a half. It was probably something close to ego, a sense that her viewpoint mattered enough that people would read it.
Now she was constantly nitpicking before even penning a single sentence. It was as if her reaction to her upbringing had flipped. First there was the entitlement, but then came the perfectionist need to avoid messing up which crippled her. She put it down to her general malaise, finding herself so often unable to muster the creativity to write or illustrate as she’d planned. She’d wanted to use her journal as a springboard to translate their adventures into a more childish form, aimed towards Merrise and Leah as a way to teach them the family legacy. Who knew if that plan would ever come to fruition.
Before that she’d had her architecture job. That had been perfect at first, allowing her to stretch her creative muscles designing bombastic skyscrapers, as well as paying well without thrusting her into the limelight. The last thing she wanted was to gain notoriety or fame. Unfortunately that job had run aground too, landing her behind a desk, constantly revising designs to the minutest of specifications and juggling appointments and finances far beyond her liking. No, she wouldn’t go back to that. Her dream of writing a book of stories for her children was still something she craved to return to. As soon as her mind unfogged, and the pressures of looking after Leah eased off, then she could continue.
Walking ever onwards the ground began to steepen beneath her feet. Impossibly she sensed the temperature dropping even further. She began to shiver. The skin on her cheeks felt terribly exposed. She pulled her hat down as far as it would go. It was like she’d passed an invisible boundary that told her she was getting close. It must have been the amulet she wore, as she was certain her path had crossed this part of the forest at some point or another. Instinctively she knew the lake lay to the north, that if she continued walking forwards she would eventually rise until hitting the rocky cliffs surrounding the valley. Heading south would take her up the more gradual ridge towards the water tower and the hill above Crash Site Omega, as well as drawing her within sight of the cemetery… and the other place she wasn’t going to think about.
She checked the bone hanging from her neck, but it appeared as dormant as ever. There was not glint to the gemstones, no life in the eyes. It was a dead totem, nothing more. Yet she could detect a difference in the air. Corduroy had said that only by wearing the amulet could she find the monster. It burned at her now that she didn’t know the answer to why. It was doubtful that Corduroy could have told her how it worked but she wished she’d stayed to ask at least a few more follow-up questions.
A tree rustled to her left and she froze in place. It was then she became aware that the forest was completely silent. No sounds of traffic drifting over from the town, no owls hooting in the night sky. Even the chill wind was deathly quiet. Slowly she aimed her flashlight around in a circle, picking out thorny growths clumped together and a few gnarled fallen tree trunks. It wasn’t an appealing locale, but hardly the stuff of nightmares. Perhaps Corduroy had simply overreacted. It would be easy to jump at shadows in this remote corner of wilderness.
Then she saw it and instantly clicked the button to plunge herself into darkness. She took as quiet a breath as she dared then tried to pierce the darkness. There it was, the lurker of Devil’s Lake.
Sitting up on a high branch was a dark mass, perching as if listening out for something. For her. Stepping sideways without ever taking her eyes off the beast, she edged behind a tree trunk. Believing herself to be obscured, she gently tilted her head around the trunk so she could look closer. After all of the grim portents she’d been expecting a let down. But this creature lived up to every word of Manly Dan’s tall tales.
The thing hunched over and squatting on the branch was a hideous, ape-like animal. Though its body was covered in jet-black fur she could make out the shape of ribs beneath its emaciated chest. The ape’s arms were slender, so much so that Pacifica was convinced they must lack bones entirely for them to be so wiry and oddly jointed. The worst part of all was the head. Taken altogether the rest of the creature seemed mundane enough, some joke of a primate out of its natural habitat. But the head…
What she’d taken for lighter coloured fur was in fact an entire skull, with the flesh peeled away leaving nothing behind but strands of ligaments. The edges at the base of the neck were hideously red as the fur tapered away. Unlike the clean, single-toned white skull that hung around her neck the Unshriven’s was a pallid grey, offset by darker patches in an ordered pattern like ritual face paint. With a high forehead ridge and jutting jaw it was unmistakably simian, like an orangutan carcass had rotted in the sun. Two lethal looking tusks stretched down from the top of the jaw. She’d seen ape skulls before in museums but this was beyond anything she’d witnessed before. A sabre-toothed ape?
She slipped back behind the tree. Her mind boggled at the possibilities, simultaneously amazed by the prospect of stumbling onto an entirely novel form of life and terrified to make a move, lest she awaken the creature’s ire. She struggled to conceive whether she could fit it on any kind of evolutionary tree while convinced a magical explanation was more sensible. This wasn’t a naturally occurring organism after all. Mason’s instinct in times like this was always to document everything. This monster could prove her undoing, so any stray detail might mean the difference between life and death.
Peeking around, she realised quite how much detail she was able to make out even without the flashlight. The beast was lit by the pale ghostly light from the stars, visible through a small gap in the canopy. Following the ape’s gaze upwards she saw it was watching the streaks of shooting stars high above. Her husband wasn’t the only captivated amateur astronomer tonight it seemed.
Taking an analytical eye, she saw that the ape’s fur was twisted, with all kinds of detritus clinging to its body. Alongside the blood crowning the neck patches of glistening brown were visible in clumps. Pacifica prayed it was simply mud. The stench that hit her a moment later told her otherwise. She threw her hands up over her mouth and nose. Her eyes began to well up at the awful stink emanating from the ape and she tasted bile at the back of her throat. She nearly cried out.
She had to stay strong, had to discover some facet or weakness she could exploit. A small voice inside her spoke up saying it might be harmless, minding its own business. The sheer wave of abhorrence radiating from the creature persuaded her that was a comforting lie she was trying to tell herself. Pacifica risked a third look. The creature was still unmoved on its perch. Giving a small sigh of relief she could at least be satisfied in knowing that it didn’t know she was here.
The Unshriven’s head snapped towards her with a crack like bones breaking. The hollow sockets bored into her. The creature was intensely angry, murderously twisting into an expression of rage. Pacifica was paralysed by fear, unsure whether to let her fight or flight reflexes take over. The ape pulled its head back to make high-pitched whopping laugh, more like a hyena than an ape. Pacifica had to cover her ears as the war cry increased in volume. The sound abruptly ceased and the ape turned back to ogle her.
She bolted back the way she’d come, down the hill away from the monster. Her legs carried her as fast as they could and she dared not look back for even a second. She could hear the ape pursuing her, leaping from branch to branch and screeching all the while, like nails on a chalkboard. Forgetting the flashlight, she stumbled over the uneven ground and fell on her face.
Rolling onto her back she saw the creature leering at her from high above. It tore off a neighbouring branch and hurled it like a javelin. At the last second she darted to the side. The branch impacted in the ground beside her with the force of a cannonball, exploding the underbrush in a cascade of foliage that covered her in mud and leaves.
She scrambled upright and started sprinting again, knowing that if she hesitated the ape would tear her to pieces. Suddenly all her doubts about Corduroy’s integrity or bravery seemed needlessly petty. She’d be grateful if she survived long enough to apologise for her attitude. She came up short as the ape swung past her, landing on the trail and blocking her path. Its slender arms shot out, bearing stubby yet razor-sharp claws that slashed through the air inches from her nose.
Remembering the flashlight, she switched it on and succeeded in briefly blinding the ape with the glare. Wasting no time to celebrate, she picked a random direction and put as much distance as possible between herself and the Unshriven. It didn’t matter where she ended up, anywhere was better than at the mercy of the elements and this undead abomination. She just needed to get back to town, to civilisation and artificial light, where she could be safe and cocooned.
However her escape would be short-lived. She had to halt in her tracks, turning the flashlight one way and another. In every direction ahead she was confronted by a wall of thick trunks, the pines and firs closed in like ranks of soldiers. She was all turned around. She had no idea where she was relative to anything else in the valley. She could even be running deeper into the woods, away from salvation. “No no no.” She started hyperventilating, swinging the light around frantically and trying to find a way forward. “Crap!”
The ground disappeared from under her feet. For a second she was in free-fall before hitting the slope and sliding down, out of control. She knocked hard against exposed roots, taking a number of hits that made her entire body shudder from the impact before rolling through a thicket. She gave a pained yell as her body finally came to rest at the base of the hill.
The flashlight fell and illuminated a small clearing. All around her a flock of birds were spooked by her sudden arrival and started flapping around. She couldn’t get up, too winded by the fall, so lay there powerlessly watching the birds run circles around her. The mindless creatures each possessed a curved crest, more of an unnatural growth, bursting out of their foreheads. Question Quail, she thought bitterly. Of all the unique and varied inhabitants of the valley she’d gone and run into a group of perhaps the least dignified of the entire bunch. At least they were harmless. She unsteadily rose and shooed the dumb creatures away.
She was questioning how natural selection could have possibly created such a stupid beast, when pain shot up her right arm. She clutched it and saw her jacket had been all torn up where she’d caught herself falling through the last bush. Scratches ran in parallel lines up the skin. Stinging at the touch, she wiped away the blood with her other hand. The injury was still fresh. She collapsed to her knees and stared at the bloody streaks. She blinked a few times uncomprehendingly. Feeling dizzy she turned her other palm over. It was coated in glistening red blood, sticky and hot.
Without thinking, she grabbed a nearby twig, ending in numerous jagged points. Feeling sweat pour down her forehead, she pressed the twig into her skin. Pain erupted from her incisions but she kept going, dragging the crude implement along so it extended the scratches all along her forearm.
Even through all the hurt and suffering came euphoria. She would make new scars, crafting a new tapestry with her skin as the medium. She tore into herself even harder, delirious and fascinated by the blood pouring out of her. She had to mark this body as her own. After so long it would finally be hers again.
The pain finally became too much. Pacifica screamed, a rattling echo. Her hand cramped and she dropped the twig. Whatever had overcome her passed and tears flowed from her eyes. Her arm was burning, with every stray gust of wind exciting the skin and sending new sensations of agony to her brain.
Trembling, she cradled her wounded arm and got to her feet. A few of the Quails were still gathered nearby, curious about her strange behaviour. She wanted to blame the Unshriven for driving her to this state. Instead she dropped her head into her hands and gave a muffled wail. “What am I doing to myself?”
She picked up the flashlight from where she’d dropped it, mindless mechanical action being all she was capable of. She couldn’t even tell what she wanted anymore. Did she want an ideal body with a perfectly shaped hourglass figure and not a single wrinkle? Or was her true desire to have a body that reflected her own journey through life, pockmarked and blemished and uniquely hers? All she knew is that she hated herself more than ever before. Her body was a failure at both her contradictory wishes.
She headbutted the end of the flashlight. “Get a grip Pacifica, now’s not the time.” She could reflect on her little breakdown later. Right now she was alone in a hostile environment, stalked by creatures from the pits of hell. That was the whole point though, wasn’t it. She picked up the Osprey skull with one hand, holding it tight against her palm. She wasn’t a victim, running helpless. The whole reason she was out here was to find and catch this abomination. Running around like a headless quail would only get her killed. She couldn’t let her mind run away with itself again.
Aiming the flashlight back at reality she peered down at the Question Quails with disdain, though this quickly faded to mere frustration. Though she loved the exhilaration and sense of discovery of her adventures, and had indeed been on hundreds, there were times when she wished for a more mundane existence. Sometimes it would be nice to have a life without worrying that her loved ones could be possessed by demons or replaced by clones made of paper. A life without constant danger, where she didn’t have to struggle to relate to her alien daughter. A life where her body wasn’t at risk of being sanded down and smoothed into a plastic imitation of her former self.
Then again, that kind of life could get boring, she thought as she heard a rustle in the leaves up ahead and felt her adrenaline begin to flow. The Unshriven had found her. This time she wasn’t going to let it overwhelm her with primal instincts. Searching around, she picked up a sturdy-looking branch and weighed it in her grip. Happy with it, she lifted it behind her head like a club and waited, listening to the pounding of her heart and the incessant footsteps of the ape padding towards her.
This time she had the advantage. As it approached, Pacifica heard a cacophony of howling and rustling. The Unshriven had fallen right into the same drop as she had. Counting in her head, she anticipated the exact moment the ape would enter the clearing. With all her strength she swung the branch and hit the Unshriven right in the side, sending it flying with a satisfying thud. “Ha, how do you like that!”
The ape fell onto one side and tried to stand up. It was evident that it was more efficient at moving through the trees than on the ground. Its legs were stumpy and underdeveloped. The hosepipe-like arms flailed around for purchase while it screamed at her. Pacifica wasn’t going to give it a chance to get airborne again. She charged towards the creature and took an underhanded swing.
The branch passed straight through the Unshriven. Its furry body flickered and seemed to dissipate like mist. Taken aback, Pacifica didn’t know how to react. That was all the ape needed. While she was dazed it hooked one arm through a branch and flew into the air. After taking one swing the ape disappeared from sight for a second before reappearing on another branch further away.
Pacifica broke into motion, dumping her improvised club. “Oh no you don’t!”
The creature might be dangerous, but it was capable of being hurt. Now was her one chance to take it before she lost the advantage of surprise. In hot pursuit, she left the clearing, sending the Question Quail running for cover one last time. Ahead of her the Unshriven was desperately diving between the trees, occasionally flitting through the air like an insubstantial wisp.
Though they were nowhere near the town, Pacifica saw a wooden fence with light coming from behind it. The ape grabbed onto the top of the fence and catapulted into the air with a single bound. Pacifica threw one leg over the wooden obstacle and hauled herself over. She dropped down on the other side, expecting a solid landing. Instead she kept going, continuing to fall into a watery pit. She instantly reacted with shock, her limbs grasping out wildly for some support. Water pricked against her skin. She blew bubbles out of her nose and mouth, and kicked out for the surface. The pool was in constant turmoil, thrumming and hot.
She burst out into the cold air and floundered, finding a firm edge. Blinking through the water covering her eyes, she hauled herself up and over the lip, falling onto her back on a grassy lawn. Stars shone high above. The creature was gone. She breathed in and out, eyes closed, heart racing, and soaked through to the bone.
“Pacifica?”
Her eyes snapped open and travelled upwards. Past toes sticking out of flip-flops, snaking up skinny legs to a cherry red bikini and a mop of brown hair. Carrying a towel over her shoulder was Mabel Pines. “Yo,” she said with a puzzled expression. “I guess this can be an early housewarming get-together. You kinda dropped in unannounced.”
Pacifica turned her head to one side and saw Mabel’s wife, Zera, standing impatiently, similarly dressed for the water in a black one-piece. She lolled her head to the other side. The pool she’d fallen into was a freestanding wooden hot-tub, surrounded by lamps and casually chugging away. “I didn’t know you’d moved into a new place,” she said breathlessly.
“Last week actually. Are you ok?” Mabel asked with a not unreasonable level of concern.
“Yeah,” Pacifica said through short breaths. “I’m fine.”
“Is that blood?” Her sister-in-law’s eyes widened at the sight of her arm. She had splotches of deep red splattered around the cuts.
“It’s a long story,” Pacifica stated flatly, sitting upright. “You got any bandages or disinfectant?”
Mabel jabbed a finger towards the house. “Inside. We were actually about to go for a little soak in the hot-tub. You wanna join us?”
Pacifica stuck out her bottom lip. She looked back over the fence at the gloom of the surrounding woods, then to the invitingly well-lit water. “Sure. Why not? After what I’ve been through I’ll accept any invitation to take a load off.”
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Bee Pollen Market Size, Market Industry, Market Share, Market Growth, Market Segmentation Market Revenue Market Forecast 2030
Bee Pollen Market 2022-2030
A New Market Study, Titled “Bee Pollen Market Upcoming Trends, Growth Drivers and Challenges” has been featured on fusionmarketresearch.
Description
This global study of the Bee Pollen Market offers an overview of the existing market trends, drivers, restrictions, and metrics and also offers a viewpoint for important segments. The report also tracks product and services demand growth forecasts for the market. There is also to the study approach a detailed segmental review. A regional study of the global Bee Pollen industry is also carried out in North America, Latin America, Asia-Pacific, Europe, and the Near East & Africa. The report mentions growth parameters in the regional markets along with major players dominating the regional growth.
Request Free Sample Report @ https://www.fusionmarketresearch.com/sample_request/(COVID-19-Version)-Global-Bee-Pollen-Market/5115
The report offers detailed coverage of Bee Pollen industry and main market trends with impact of coronavirus. The market research includes historical and forecast market data, demand, application details, price trends, and company shares of the leading Bee Pollen by geography. The report splits the market size, by volume and value, on the basis of application type and geography.
First, this report covers the present status and the future prospects of the global Bee Pollen market for 2016-2025.
And in this report, we analyze global market from 5 geographies: Asia-Pacific[China, Southeast Asia, India, Japan, Korea, Western Asia], Europe[Germany, UK, France, Italy, Russia, Spain, Netherlands, Turkey, Switzerland], North America[United States, Canada, Mexico], Middle East & Africa[GCC, North Africa, South Africa], South America[Brazil, Argentina, Columbia, Chile, Peru].
At the same time, we classify Bee Pollen according to the type, application by geography. More importantly, the report includes major countries market based on the type and application.
Finally, the report provides detailed profile and data information analysis of leading Bee Pollen company.
Leading players of Bee Pollen including:
Honey Pacifica
Beenefits
YS Bee Farms
Sattvic Foods
Beekeeper’s Naturals
Livemoor
Comvita
Bee King’s
Tassot Apiaries
Shiloh Farms
Kline Honey Bee Farm
Crockett Honey
SEVENHILLS
Hilltop Honey
Annsley Naturals Southwest
Stakich
CIFENG TANG
RIGAO Bee Product
PYUA
Yi Shou Yuan
Yi He Feng
ZhuoYu Bees Industry
Honey World
Nature Nate’s
Temecula Valley Honey Company
Hong Gee Bees Farm
Bee Pollen Market split by Type, can be divided into:
Wild Flower Bee Pollen
Camellia Bee Pollen
Rape Bee Pollen
Other Pollen
Bee Pollen Market split by Application, can be divided into:
Food
Healthcare Products
Cosmetic
Others
Bee Pollen Market Report Scope
Report AttributeDetails
Base year of estimation2021
Historical data2017 – 2020
Forecast period2022 – 2030
Quantitative unitsRevenue in USD million/billion and CAGR from 2022 to 2030
Segmentation
By Type
By Application
By Region/Country
By Type Wild Flower Bee Pollen, Camellia Bee Pollen, Rape Bee Pollen, Other Pollen
By Application Food, Healthcare Products, Cosmetic, Others
Report coverageRevenue forecast, company market share, competitive landscape, growth factors, and trends
Key companies profiledHoney Pacifica, Beenefits, YS Bee Farms, Sattvic Foods, Beekeeper’s Naturals, Livemoor, Comvita, Bee King’s, Tassot Apiaries, Shiloh Farms, Kline Honey Bee Farm, Crockett Honey, SEVENHILLS, Hilltop Honey, Annsley Naturals Southwest, Stakich, CIFENG TANG, RIGAO Bee Product, PYUA, Yi Shou Yuan, Yi He Feng, ZhuoYu Bees Industry, Honey World, Nature Nate’s, Temecula Valley Honey Company, Hong Gee Bees Farm
Regional scope
North America (United States, Canada and Mexico)
Europe (Germany, UK, France, Italy, Russia and Spain etc.)
Asia-Pacific (China, Japan, Korea, India, Australia and Southeast Asia etc.)
South America (Brazil, Argentina and Colombia etc.)
Middle East & Africa (South Africa, UAE and Saudi Arabia etc.)
Table of Contents
Part 1 Market Overview
1.1 Market Definition
1.2 Market Development
1.2.1 Current Situation
1.2.2 Aspects of COVID-19 Impact
1.3 By Type
Table Type of Bee Pollen
Figure Global Bee Pollen Market Share by Type in 2021
1.4 By Application
Table Application of Bee Pollen
Figure Global Bee Pollen Market Share by Application in 2021
1.5 By Region
Figure Global Bee Pollen Market Share by Region in 2021
Figure Asia Bee Pollen Market Share by Region in 2021
Part 2 Key Companies
2.1 Honey Pacifica
2.1.1 Company Profile
Table Honey Pacifica Overview List
2.1.2 Products & Services Overview
2.1.3 Sales Data List
Table Bee Pollen Business Operation of Honey Pacifica (Sales Revenue, Sales Volume, Price, Cost, Gross Margin)
2.2 Beenefits
2.3 YS Bee Farms
2.4 Sattvic Foods
2.5 Beekeeper’s Naturals
2.6 Livemoor
2.7 Comvita
2.8 Bee King’s
2.9 Tassot Apiaries
2.10 Shiloh Farms
2.11 Kline Honey Bee Farm
2.12 Crockett Honey
2.13 SEVENHILLS
2.14 Hilltop Honey
2.15 Annsley Naturals Southwest
2.16 Stakich
2.17 CIFENG TANG
2.18 RIGAO Bee Product
2.19 PYUA
2.20 Yi Shou Yuan
2.21 Yi He Feng
2.22 ZhuoYu Bees Industry
2.23 Honey World
2.24 Nature Nate’s
2.25 Temecula Valley Honey Company
2.26 Hong Gee Bees Farm
Part 3 Global Market Status and Future Forecast
3.1 Global Market by Region
Table Global Bee Pollen Market by Region, 2017 – 2020 (Million USD)
Figure Global Bee Pollen Market Share by Region in 2021 (Million USD)
Table Global Bee Pollen Market by Region, 2017 – 2020 (Volume)
Figure Global Bee Pollen Market Share by Region in 2021 (Volume)
Table Price List by Region, 2017 – 2020
3.2 Global Market by Company
Table Global Bee Pollen Market by Company, 2017 – 2020 (Million USD)
Figure Global Bee Pollen Market Share by Company in 2021 (Million USD)
Table Global Bee Pollen Market by Company, 2017 – 2020 (Volume)
Figure Global Bee Pollen Market Share by Company in 2021 (Volume)
Table Price List by Company, 2017 – 2020
3.3 Global Market by Type
Table Global Bee Pollen Market by Type, 2017 – 2020 (Million USD)
Figure Global Bee Pollen Market Share by Type in 2021 (Million USD)
Table Global Bee Pollen Market by Type, 2017 – 2020 (Volume)
Figure Global Bee Pollen Market Share by Type in 2021 (Volume)
Table Price List by Type, 2017 – 2020
3.4 Global Market by Application
Table Global Bee Pollen Market by Application, 2017 – 2020 (Million USD)
Figure Global Bee Pollen Market Share by Application in 2021 (Million USD)
Table Global Bee Pollen Market by Application, 2017 – 2020 (Volume)
Figure Global Bee Pollen Market Share by Application in 2021 (Volume)
Table Price List by Application, 2017 – 2020
3.5 Global Market by Forecast
Figure Global Bee Pollen Market Forecast, 2022-2030 (Million USD)
Figure Global Bee Pollen Market Forecast, 2022-2030 (Volume)
Part 9 Market Features
9.1 Product Features
9.2 Price Features
9.3 Channel Features
9.4 Purchasing Features
Part 10 Investment Opportunity
10.1 Regional Investment Opportunity
10.2 Industry Investment Opportunity
PART 11 Coronavirus Impact
11.1 Impact on Industry Upstream
11.2 Impact on Industry Downstream
11.3 Impact on Industry Channels
11.4 Impact on Industry Competition
11.5 Impact on Industry Obtain Employment
Part 12 Conclusion
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