Tree Arms

“As you and your families are already aware, the Competence Exams are beginning this week!” the principal bellowed at the assembled students. Cheers rolled like thunder through the auditorium.
“Placement for the testing begins tomorrow. Your second-hour classes will give you the necessary forms and, as protocol dictates, every student must display their form and ability in front of an exam coordinator.”


Chapter 1

Tanei slammed her hand on the paper and closed her fingers. The girl next to her jumped, and murmurs dispersed with quiet laughter.

Exam Coordinator number 134 stared down at Tanei. He flashed her an exaggerated smile that redefined the word ‘demented’.
“You are not allowed to touch the paper.” He pulled out another flat sheet of paper. “Use your distance control to alter the sheet.”

Tanei could hear the murmurs of the other students watching with eager eyes. They were hoping she’d show her bubbling pride for her “competent” genetics.
Dirge and Neanderthal boy, his hot-headed body guard, were sitting in the corner, mocking and mimicking her. Lehn, their less-feared backup, was still his silent self.

“I’m not taking the Competence Exam,” Tanei said flatly. The moment extended into half-open-mouth stares. Exam Coordinator number 134 approached the next student’s file without a second of hesitation. Few tears would be shed on his part.

“Can she do that?” a meek student asked.
“If she doesn’t want a job for the rest of her life.” Another disgraceful attempt at whispering. Tanei was disappointed in their abilities.

And then there was Dirge’s reply, the one thought that refused to settle as the other voices in her mind had.
“Tanei, future Untouchable.”

Untouchables. The people without any natural abilities. Nature’s one mistake.


After the brainwashed children at school and a trip to the library, Tanei returned to her aunt and uncle’s house, the haven for the mentally deranged.

To her entire society, the sole purpose of Untouchables was as high-risk hunting game. Appearances did not distinguish them: they were the same as everyone else on the outside. On the inside, they had failed to develop the unique bond with organic materials that gives everyone else control over living and dead matter.

Contrary to being part of the ‘civil’ society, Tanei was more disturbed by the appearance of the ungifted than their genetics. This fear was probably due to the Untouchable faces staring back at her from the walls in her relative’s house. They were Uncle’s “hunting trophies.” Grotesque, misshapen faces of young children and teenagers, as it was rare for an Untouchable to reach adulthood.

“A Hunter must know the face of his enemy,” Uncle would say with his gun aimed at a phantom Untouchable. “Otherwise, he cannot carry the title of Hunter.”

Amongst a few thousand children born, one would be born without the ability to move objects. Anywhere between the ages of eight and twelve, children normally show the signs of their talents. If a child cannot conjure any supernatural acts by age thirteen, one of three occurrences will result:

1. The child could be subjected to torture in an attempt to jump-start development. The result was always a cover-up for the “long-term absence” of one more child at school.

2. Parents concerned for the dignity of their family name would kill their child. Accidental deaths around this age group were never investigated with great scrutiny.

3. Presumably non-existent children would run away from their homes and take their chances in the world.

Tanei set down the book A Hunter’s Manual on her bed in the attic. It now joined Rerro Nobe’s novel History of Naane, 1600 to Present and Loan Fore’s Taming Nightmares: A Guide on Illogical Fears.

The attic floor was mahogany; the walls were cedar. Elegant wooden carvings in the cedar walls were covered up with posters of teenage idols and celebrities, thanks to Tanei’s roommate and cousin, Mare.

Mare’s last sentient thought occurred two weeks prior. She had knocked one of Tanei’s books off the shelf and accidentally read the description on the back, mistaking it for a hardcover magazine. The idea of reading a book had never occurred to Mare before. But at that moment, to the dismay of her severely neglected intellect, she spotted her long-lost, baby blue nail polish.

After many attempts to rouse Mare’s curiosity in reading, Tanei gave up. Now she stared at the baby blue nail polish, loathing it for reasons unknown. Despite not having been present for Mare’s last sentient thought, she felt exceptionally distant from and mistrusting of the beauty product.

The tree outside flailed its bare limbs at the attic’s only window, unable to touch the glass but futilely attempting to. Aunt had made sure of that, having bewitched the tree after Mare and her complaints moved upstairs.

Autumn was taking its last stand, knowing that in a few weeks its hold over the land would be gone. Strong winds carried leaves through the air like pollen. Tanei felt inspired, threw her traveling bag over her shoulder, and headed out to her favorite secluded space.


Chapter 2

“He-hello everyone,” stammered Maruk to his audience of teens and preteens. Maruk made a goofy expression, beginning a wave of laughter in the crowded field that reached to the tree line. He blushed and looked away as if deeply embarrassed, playing on the high-strung emotions everyone was feeling.

“Everyone here has been through a lot. You’re all very resourceful and smart, and it’s amazing to see so many people here…” his voice drifted off. More than he’d ever seen; several hundred easily.
Despite having a thin frame and bony face, Maruk was still a muscular Untouchable.

“We all have stories of abandonment. I’ve been on my own for three years now, after my parents tried to poison me. These have been the hardest three years of my life. I’m tired of being scared. Scared of freezing to death, of starving to death, of being caught trying to steal my next meal, of being alone because I lost everyone I loved.

“Now is the time for the Untouchables to unite, to make a community where we can feel safe and aspire to more than just survival!”

With the clapping and cheering of the crowd, Maruk stepped off the small platform feeling he’d already played a significant role in the lives of his fellow humans.
The next speaker was already at the podium, trying to take control over the crowd. Suddenly, a high pitch squeal did the speaker’s job for him.

“They’re in the field!” A girl screamed. Maruk turned towards the blinding pair of headlights coming from the far end of the flat plain. Screaming and dashing people were turning him around in circles. He was being pulled towards the forest by an unknowing hand.

A wave of pressure threw him backwards, into a pile of kicking bodies. A warm, metallic-tasting liquid covered his face. Reaching up, he felt it coming from his nose.

Creatures dressed in camouflage came out of the depths of the forest. Only five of them. Looking around, there were about fifty downed people from the first strike.
“It’s not possible,” he whispered and stumbled back to the open field.

Another wall of screams and people were falling from an attack behind him. Maruk squatted among the dead. One of the gifted in the forest curled their fingers. A cluster of kids fell, crying and whimpering as their spines arched backwards.

He saw what their enemy was doing. All of the Untouchables were huddled in a mass, being picked off wave by wave. He couldn’t guess the number of dead. People were being flung, being torn apart, screaming like savages before their lives were blown out.

“Stick together!” Maruk yelled. “Stick together! Run into the forest,” he waved his arms at the now attentive mass. He knew he had marked himself for dead. “Follow me!”

Dragging the closest people by the arms, he stumbled and ran toward the weakest point in their attacker’s line.
The two closest figures watched him near, poised with their open hands facing him. At a few feet away, they thrust their palms forward.

Maruk felt his limbs run into an invisible cinderblock wall, knocking speckles of light and fuzzy blackness into his vision. His body began to crumple, but the stampede absorbed and carried him forward.


Chapter 3

Tanei was lying on her back, staring at a leaf suspended twenty feet above her. There was an entire canopy of leaves up there.

Her arms resembled creamy brown trees reaching up. Making creaking noises like a falling tree, she slowly dropped her arms. The leaves fluttered down as well, hiding her among their dry, crinkling bodies.

So she was really a tree all along. Interesting.


Maruk came to on his feet, stumbling deep in the woods. Pausing, he heard the sound of people behind him. They were close, and he was losing ground. Dizzy and lost in the dark forest, he trudged into a clearing.

The leaves are beautiful, he thought as he tripped on someone hiding underneath them.

Tanei had fallen asleep, exhausted by the energy she’d expelled. When some klutz tripped over her, she sat up in a daze. Pressure increased on her throat. Knowing this basic distance control, she countered by raising her hands.

“Hello? Who are you!” startled voices in the forest called. There were three of them, probably Hunters. Even Tanei found it a struggle to keep them all airborne, but she continued to while trembling from the strain.

“Get lost!” Tanei yelled. She flicked her fingers and sent them flying several feet back into the forest.

After a few seconds, she heard them retreat. Turning back to the culprit, she raised her hand. The bloody wreck that had collapsed on the ground wasn’t moving, so it must have been sleeping.
She pushed him several feet away before drifting off as well.


Just after dawn, Tanei dug herself out of her massive leaf cocoon. Unconscious of everything non-edible, she pulled her backpack from its clever hiding place in a tree. It was loaded to the brim with chips, sandwiches, and energy drinks.

Turning around with two turkey sandwiches hanging out of her mouth, she watched the stranger struggle to his feet. He watched her eating and cautiously approached. Must think I’m an Untouchable, she thought. Otherwise he’d make himself scarce.

“What’s your name?” the boy asked. His face was smeared with dried blood.

She took another bite of her double-decker sandwich. He grew angry and threw some twigs at her. After sitting at a distance for a few minutes, he came back and introduced himself.

“I’m Maruk. I gave the last speech last night, remember?” Tanei stared at his feet, at her food, in the distance. His face twisted.

“Are you deaf or antisocial?” Maruk waited for a reply.

Tanei smiled and looked up at him. She pulled out an energy drink and two more sandwiches.

“You’re really hungry. What all do you have in that bag?” Maruk reached for the traveling bag, but it moved an inch out of his reach. Tanei watched him inspect the bag. He was questioning if it had moved on its own.

“It’s full of food! Can I have some?”

She didn’t reply, and he helped himself to a small sub. It was the Swiss and bacon, the perfect sub…

No, don’t eat it, she wanted to scream at the Untouchable, but her voice was silent. He was already going for the bite. Tanei’s hands flashed out, and Maruk bit into air. She cradled the sub as he took a few steps back.

Severely disoriented, Maruk stared at her. She wouldn’t meet his gaze.

“Who are you! Are you here to kill me!” He stepped forward, then took a step back. “I’m not afraid of you!”


Chapter 4

Tanei was holding one of her turkey sandwiches out for him to grab. She was smiling.

“You may not think highly of me, but don’t think I’d fall for poisoning. What do you take me for!”

Tanei took a bite of the sandwich and held it out again. Seeing her hand come towards him, Maruk winced.

After a few minutes of intense silence, the sandwich was flailing around with impatience.

There was no way to outrun a gifted, so he gave in and took a massive bite. Startled, she watched him inhale the sandwich. He ate with such silent contempt and vigor that she had to turn away.

The loud boy had become quiet. Had the sandwich been poisoned? Tanei turned around to see him watching her with curious eyes once more. She quickly looked away and stood.

“Why won’t you look at me? I’m not good enough to associate with, am I right?” Tanei gathered her belongings. An uncomfortable shutter went through her, as if a two-story spider were standing behind her.

“Ah, or are you afraid of me for some reason? That’s got to be it, you’re too scared to talk or look me in the face.”
Her wrist snapped and moved him a few feet away.
He saw a name printed on the bag.

“Tanei! Turn around, you bashful freak of nature!”

Maruk grabbed her shoulder. She would not stand for this.


Tanei, who had fallen in the tussle, now brushed off her clothes and looked back. The Untouchable was restrained by the tree branches she had set on him. Perfect.

Instead of arguing, Maruk sulked in silence.

Tanei did not look on him. Instead, she took her belongings and left. Several minutes later the trees would return to normal and he would be freed.

She had been unprepared.
Someday she would find this boy again. This Maruk.

She would kill him.


But for now, Tanei let her breakfast settle.