Notes on creatures 2

The oakman.

The following creature is something that i could have not dreamed even in my wildest nightmares, but a few accounts tell of these insidious and horrific creatures. Things that would make brave men still with fear. We should be thankful that they are not very abundant.

Yet what are the oakmen? What are these creatures? I had the luck to never encounter one but the few books that record encounters with them (“Stranger after 9 days”, “Eagles across the sun” and “Druids of the south”) speak of old yet robust looking trees that appear long dead, usually oaks but some have spoken that some ilex might be like this. A staple of all of them is usually a lack of leaves along with dense patches of moss growing on them. The oakmen will remain like an ordinary tree, dormant and awaiting an unsuspecting woodsman or traveler to get close enough. It is then that the tree springs to life, pulling its roots from the soil in order to attack. The most detailed account was in “Stranger after 9 days” that i will retell now: “When i finally saw its silouhette in the dim light i grew horrified before it’s towering figure. The darkened bark was covered in a thick patch of moss and wrapped in numerous dried vines. Its branches, like a bundle of sharp arms, moved in an effort to grab our men. Patches of moss hanged from it like scraps of torn cloth and the air was filled with the smell of old wood and rotting flesh. In the few holes bored into the wood i could see masses of tiny glowing eyes, lambent in a faint menacing red that made my blood run cold.”

In the few recorded instances where people have witnessed an oakman and live to tell the tale they retell they only strike against humans and i would suspect, to a great extent, humanoid targets. In “Eagles across the sun” they explain that in a strange glade they found the slaughtered remains of multiple trolls, several of them impaled on the branches of a “Large blackened oak”. At the same time, the oakman appears to not attack animals of any sort. Or at least, those of small size. In addition, birds appear to be unnerved or at least, wary of the condition of these creatures while they are in their resting state. The previous recount states that while numerous birds populated the trees, none were roosting on the branches of the oak. Not even crows which could feast on the carrion present in them. This is a very concerning revelation since the oakmen only attack elevated creatures. But why? What sort of malefic will drives these beings to consume flesh in such a grusome way?

We may never know althought there is an old legend i’m willing to lend some credibility that might enlighten us as to why the oakmen desire to attack people. And even more, about their dark origins. An old Graadian legend speaks of an ancient oak that rose close to the Tierra Baja, a large plain where many battles have been fought. One day a soldier escaping a losing battle and mortally wounded rested by the oak and eventually died, his blood seeping into the soil and taken by the elder roots of the tree. When the venerable oak tasted the blood it felt an invigoration like never before and a terrible change begun to happen to the spirit of the ancient tree. Yearning for that warmth again, the now ghoulish plant rose from the ground, thirsting for the blood of the living. It hungers for flesh and craves the warmth of that first moment once more. And thus, it wanders nameless forests and stalks lonely roads in order to devour anyone that it happens upon. Certainly fantastical but i believe that there is some smidge of truth in this tale.

This tale answers many questions regarding the oakmen. Like their horrific actions of impaling their prey on their branches, possibly as a way to absorb their blood. Or their single minded drive to attack anything but animals. There are many other questions that are still left unanswered, like how they never appear to act during the day or how the moss that grows on them appears to be poisonous. I would be driven to investigate but unfortunately, my curiosity drives me as far as this since i’m not willing to dive into the jaws of danger for this.

Regarding their way of acting there are a few scholars that speak as to how they operate. It is already known that they disguise themselves as ordinary trees in order to fool potential victims until they get close enough. In some cases it was recorded how these trees will place themselves in particularly strategic places like crossroads, next to bridges or, as it was recorded once, in a battlefield. This proves that they are more than mere mindless creatures as they posess a certain amount of vile intelligence that drives them to perform such actions. This may lead to very concerning implications such as these creatures being able to hunt in groups or maybe even being careful enough to slowly attack a group in a way that raises no alarms.

But despite all of this there is a glimmer of hope regarding their population since they are an extremely rare sight. Encounters are not usual even in the most faraway and ancient of forests. On the other hand, the travelers that have ventured in Bergante had... Concerning words. Many of the bergantians have warned outsiders about their woods, how the spirits dislike outsiders and how they devour anyone foolish enough to enter without care. While many would think that this could mean any manner of deadly beasts inhabiting their land it could also mean that their forests could be infested with these abominations.

If one is to find one of these creatures it’s obvious that one is to use fire. Stories already state that oakmen show a horrific amount of fear when set alight, driving them into a horrific and murderous frenzy. There are also other supersititons and beliefs around what might repel or weaken these creatures, such as salt, mashed juniper berries or carnelian dust.