Chapter 9: Come from the Darkness. Tilt at the Fields.

OBSEQUIOUS MAN...SUBMISSIVE TO NATURE...KNEEL FOR THE BUTTERCUPS

Waking from a deep sleep, the brightness blinds you. You stand. Before you, is a field. There is something unnatural and almost ethereal about this field... and what the fuck is with all these buttercups?
You announce yourself:
"I, a traveller on the gradient, will pass this field. I mean no harm. I am simply a lowly vagabond, traversing the contour and escaping infinite desolation. Allow me to pass."
Your first step is met with an arrogant and dissatisfied shriek with the resonant frequency that causes your ear drums to vibrate in increasing amplitude.
"This man does not belong on the gradient. He does not serve the buttercups. Destroy him."
"Look at how large and affectionate he is. He will kneel before the buttercups and serve us. We could use his strength on our side."
...and more absolute nonsense...
You recall your physics lessons. You have the faintest hope of this working, but you might as well try, because otherwise your eardrums will explode.
You scream with a similar frequency, trying to oppose the amplitude of the incoming assaults. You trample the buttercups in your wake as you race across the field, screaming with all of your effort.
It seems to work in some way, and the wave magnitudes decrease somewhat. You notice that the grass begins to vibrate in response to your screams, furthering the drowning of the buttercups.
You reach the other side and collapse back into the honest embrace of the darkness.

Chapter 10: The Smacking of the Muskrat