The Cryptic Portal

C.K.Cooper

Chapter One

1

The Adventure Begins

he azure blue alarm clock gave out a loud, annoying buzz and I sat bolt upright in

my bed. I carefully crept out of my cot and eased my freezing feet into my brown

wool slippers. I glanced out of the window directly by my tiny bedroom in my small

apartment, and was pleased to find that the far off horizon had an ever so slight bit of light

peeking out from behind it. I hurriedly went to my closet, skimmed through the clothes in front

of me, and grabbed a set of them to put on.

T I slipped on my faded red t-shirt, my brown wool jacket that I had bought with what money

I had, and a pair of dark blue jeans. I raced downstairs, taking the steps two at a time, grabbed a

bagel to eat on the way, and leaped into my old reliable black car. I took off at a fast pace, and

just my luck, I hit every red traffic light that there was. After what seemed like forever, I finally

reached my work building, and in vast neon blue letters it read The Bureau. I grabbed the

keys for the door, unlocked it, and scrambled inside to my station. My boss, Mike, grinned at me.

“Well, look who’s in a hurry today!” he said teasingly, chuckling to himself. When I didn’t laugh

back, the grin on his plump face faded and he sighed.

“Look, Katelyn, I’m sorry about you and your family, but can you at least have a little

humor?” he asked, a pleading look in his eyes. I shook my head defiantly and crossed my arms.

2

He sighed, but we both knew I didn’t like talking about my family. They had kicked me out

about four years ago because they thought that I never had time for them, and that I was gone to

work too much. After that, I had never seen them again, but a few times, my little sister, Katrina,

the only one that seemed to love me, sometimes came to my apartment and I read a few stories to

her.

Then, my dad and stepmother found out about it and forbid Katrina to see me, so that was

the end of it. Many people say that I look like my father, so I have icy blue eyes, black hair, and

a slight tan to my skin. Then, one of my co-workers, her name was Melony, came running to the

boss, panting and jolting me back to the real world. He raised an eyebrow at her and she looked

up at him, blowing a lock of blond hair out of her face.

When she caught her breath, she said quietly, “Someone called about some forest or

something making weird noises, and then they hung up, but they sounded scared.” Mike whirled

to face me and a grin spread across his face from ear to ear. I put my shoulders back and thrust

my chin in the air with a self-assured smug look on my face, telling myself, “I’ve got this”.

He turned back to Melony, and said “Go back to your station, I think I’ll let Katelyn here handle

it” he said, turning back to me and smiling. She obeyed and retreated back to her desk, cluttered

with unorganized papers from missing files. He kept smiling at me, and I lowered my chin to

face him. “Well Katelyn, it looks like you have something else on your hands to investigate” he

said, scratching his whiskered chin thoughtfully. I nodded and didn’t say anything, but he knew

that I was far past just being thrilled to go and figure this one out.

3

He jerked a thumb over his shoulder and turned and began to walk that way, right to

where the planning table was. He looked over his shoulder and said “Well, are you coming or

aren’t you?” and then continued walking. I stuffed the rest of my bagel in my mouth and jogged

after him, pausing only for a brief moment to grab a cup of black coffee on my way.

I reached him and saw my boss, a few other workers, and a guy that was probably around

my age. I didn’t recognize him, but he had dark slicked-back brown hair, humorous sapphire

eyes, and had skin the same tanned color as mine. He looked me over and flashed a smile my

way. I rolled my eyes and strode to the planning table next to my boss. He turned toward me and

smiled again. Then he motioned for the workers to come nearer. He turned to me again and said

“Ok, Katelyn, here’s the deal. I’m sending you to figure this one out, but I’m sending someone

with you.”

I glared at him and growled in my most intimidating voice that I could manage “I will not go

with someone; I choose to go on my own, thank you.” One of the workers, he was known as Bill

and he was a gray-haired old guy with an expensive old cane, came forward and got right in my

face. Well, at least he tried to, because he only got as far as my chin, but he still scowled back up

at me.

He turned to my boss and argued “Don’t let her go on her own to that place, I’ve been there, and

I regretted that I went on my own. There are strange things in those woods, and some of them…”

he trailed off and turned back to me. He opened his mouth to finish, but Molly, the old woman at

the front desk, beat him to it.

4

“See here girl, there are things in that place that are abnormal and some of them, well, they’ll kill

ya!” she said, looking me straight in the eye. If I had been a little girl, like six or seven, I might

have been scared and took them up on their offer, but I knew the only way to prove myself was

to go on my own.

I shook my head defiantly. “No,” I said more forcefully, “I will not have someone accompany

me!” I must have sounded defiant enough, because the two backed off and shook their heads. I

turned to my boss and forced a pleading look on to my face, and he gave out a loud, annoyed

sigh.

“Fine” he muttered, “but don’t come running back here if you get too scared.” For a moment I

felt my expression brighten, and then I saw the mischievous glint in his eyes, and that wiped the

expression from my face as if someone had dragged a cloth across it. I spun on my heel and

stalked out of the room, but I could still hear the angry and pitiful voices of my coworkers

whispering behind me, and I couldn’t hear all of it, but I managed to catch a few things like “Is

she out of her mind?” or “Idiot girl.”

I didn’t care though, because while they were talking, I went to the snack room, grabbed

a few bags, and opened the mini-fridge. I stuffed five bottles of water in the sacks, two small

packages of oranges, a container of crackers, and two lighters, in case one got lost. After that I

said my goodbyes, shook a few hands, and my boss leaned down to my ear and whispered so that

only I could hear “Good luck, and don’t let fear get into your system, especially in the woods.”

Then he patted me on the back and I marched out the door, slipped into my car, and drove off to

what I somehow knew would be the adventure of a lifetime.

5

Chapter Two

Into The Lion’s Den

6

inally, I saw a dark hairline way off in the distance, but nevertheless, I was pleased

that I saw it. After about 6 straight hours of driving, my back began to ache and I

wondered if I would ever reach it. What shook me out of my thoughts were signs that

said things like Turn back now or don’t put your life at risk. That wasn’t

necessarily what bothered me though, since I had seen those types of signs several times before,

but it was the fact that the words seemed to be written in blood and there were gashes so deep

you could have fitted a full pack of matches in one. I swallowed but then I recalled the words

that my boss had whispered in my ear: Don’t let fear get into your system.

F

I sucked in a breath, and, ignoring the signs, drove on. When I reached the woods, I

jumped out of my car, grabbed the bags of supplies, locked my car, and calmly but ever so

slowly walked into the woods. As soon as I stepped into the woods, I heard a rustling of leaves

behind me, and I whirled around just in time to see trees move closer together to block any sort

of passage to my car. A voice screamed in my head, go back, but I knew it was too late to

chicken out.

I sucked in another breath and kept walking. Once or twice I heard a howl or the eerie

call of an owl, but I didn’t pay it any heed. After I had walked for a few hours, the thought that

the woods weren’t daunting, or that there was nothing wrong with them entered my mind, but

then I heard a sound that would have made the bravest man on earth’s spine tingle. I paused and

listened carefully, and then I heard it again, and for a split second true fear entered my mind, but

I pushed it out as quickly as it came in.

7

Once more it came, and this time, I didn’t pause to listen for it again, this time I ran as fast

as my feet could carry me. Now, even as my feet were crunching through the dead leaves, I still

heard it. Someone kept speaking my name, and it wasn’t a friendly, or even a hateful voice. It

sounded like something between a hiss and a whisper, but most of all, and I knew this for a fact,

that voice, wherever it was coming from, was not at all human.

Now I ran even faster, but even though I was one of the bravest workers in the agency, I

didn’t care if fear moved into me, I just wanted to get away from that voice. Eventually, it died

off, and I sat down on the ground, trembling and thinking to myself No, stop, this isn’t real, it’s

just your imagination. There’s nothing to be afraid of here. Even though I welcomed those

thoughts into my mind, the sound of the voice still lingered inside of it. After another minute of

sitting on the leaf-covered ground, I stood and continued walking. I had high hopes that things

would get better from that point, I hoped that there would be no more strange things happening.

The exact opposite of those hopes happened, and it dissolved the hopeful thoughts that

came into my mind. In other words, things just got worse the farther I went into the eerie woods.

I had been traveling the entire day, and through a tiny sliver in a break in the trees, I saw a misty

white color in the sky. Based on that, I figured it must have been the moon, so I sagged down

onto the ground, and suddenly I froze with a cracker halfway to my mouth and strained my ears.

I pinched myself to make sure I wasn’t dreaming, that all this wasn’t just a nightmare, and then I

heard the sound once more.

8

It was a deep, throaty growl, and a round pair of emerald green eyes popped open right in

front of me, in another break in the trees. I scrambled backwards, thrust my hand in my bag, and

fished for my knife. I felt the blood rush from my face as I realized that I had left it back at my

apartment.

The creature took another step towards me and when my eyes fully adjusted to the dark, I

saw the outline of something so horrific I cannot explain it. To my surprise and extreme

trepidation, the thing soared into the air and alighted on my chest, and I closed my eyes and

drove all anxiety from myself. After a minute or so of waiting and laying there spread-eagled, I

felt the creature get off my chest; I sat up, and looked around. The beast was nowhere to be seen,

so I decided to lie down on the ground; eventually my eyelids grew heavy and I drifted off to

sleep.

Ӂ

When I woke, it was still slightly dark in the woods, but I could see objects without

difficulty. I rose, put away my things, devoured a cracker, and then set out into the woodland for

9

a second time. I froze in mid-step and listened. I heard it again, but this time it wasn’t a snarl or

anything fearsome, I realized all that it had been was a rustle of leaves. Abruptly someone or

something leaped out of the trees above me and grabbed my neck. I threw my head back and

then I heard a low grunt of pain. I spun around and kicked whoever or whatever it was in the

stomach, and then I found with astonishment that it was the youth from work.

He held out a hand as if to protect himself, and then when he realized that I wasn’t going

to hurt him any longer, he slowly sat up and looked at me. I scowled at him with irritation and he

stood and looked me in the eye. We stood that way for a while, just staring at each other, and

then we both started talking at the same time. He gestured for me to talk first, and so I did. I

trudged right up to him, but he didn’t even blink when I shouted “What are you doing here?”

He just gazed at me, his face expressionless, and then he muttered quietly “Nice to meet you

too.” I screamed in frustration and stormed off, not bothering to pick up my supplies that I had

dropped on the ground. I traveled for what seemed like a thousand hours, and then I began to

grow hungry. I thought about turning back to get my things back and apologize, but that idea

quickly evaporated and I continued walking through the woods.

By nightfall, I was starving and my stomach growled loudly. I sighed and stared longingly

back to where I had left my supplies, and then a few minutes later, I fell asleep, without any bags

to use as a pillow.

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The next day, when I woke up, to my extreme surprise I saw that all of my supplies were

neatly arranged in a pile next to me. I greedily snatched an orange out of the bag and began to

eat. The guy that I had bellowed at yesterday appeared out of the trees and when he saw that I

was shoving the orange into my mouth as fast as possible, he tried to keep a straight face, but a

smile crept up onto his face anyway. Keeping the orange clutched in my hand, I straightened and

glared straight at him.

He crossed his arms and glared just as hard back at me, even though I don’t think he was

serious. I was so taken by surprise for a moment my scowl slipped and my eyes grew wide, and

he knew that he won, because his ever-so-annoying smile returned. I turned to pack my things

and when I had finished, I turned to face him again, but he was nowhere in sight. I looked up into

the trees, and when I saw that he wasn’t there, I figured he must have taken off, so I took off

after him, pushing through the branches of trees.

I finally reached him and I found him calmly sitting on a log, and when he saw me he

beamed and gestured for me to sit. I sat down on the opposite log reluctantly and stared at him as

he ate some cheese. His smile grew even wider when he saw that I was staring at the cheese, and

he tossed me a chunk. I willingly accepted it, even though I didn’t show any pleasure. I devoured

it in just a few pieces, and then I began to feel woozy and the world began to spin around me. I

fell onto the ground hard, and it knocked the breath out of me.

11

Suddenly I saw someone bounding out of the trees with a gag in his mouth and the end

was tied around the back of his head, and then with a lot of confusion and surprise, I realized that

the guy with the gag in his mouth was the same one as the person he was fighting. I struggled to

stay awake, and then I saw the guy with the gag in his mouth hit the other man over the head

with something gray. Then when he collapsed the guy with the gag rushed to me, cut the muzzle

in his mouth in half and gasped for air. The last thing I saw was him stepping over to me and

then everything went black.

Ӂ

When I woke up, my fellow worker was nowhere to be found. Even though he wasn’t

there though, I saw that my supplies were lying cluttered on a log. I let a small smile of pleasure

creep on to my face and I stepped over to it. Just as I was going to pick up the leather bag with

my food and water in it, I heard an interesting but frightening noise.

Somewhere far off in the distance, somewhere I didn’t want to travel, I heard someone or

something screaming. At first I thought it was just my imagination, but then it happened again.

For a moment I didn’t care and continued to pack my things, but when it happened a third time,

the hairs on the back of my neck stood up and a chill rocketed through my body, making me

shiver.

12

Thinking that it was the guy from work, I grabbed the rest of my things and ran in that

direction. It continued to increase in noise, but then it started to fade, and I stopped for a

moment, listening intently. I heard it again, this time in the direction that I thought was east. I

then ran in that direction, and then I paused, for the screaming had suddenly stopped.

Unexpectedly, and I never quite figured it out, but a terrible, horrifying thought entered my head.

It was possible that that someone or that something was making that noise on purpose to draw

me towards them.

I shuddered, and then quickly thrust the thought out of my head, and continued walking.

The next thing that happened I may never forget, because I nearly died of fright at that moment,

and I know that sounds silly coming from someone like me. In the next step that I took, a

terrifying, alarming creature flew in my face and then settled on a tree branch above me, staring

at me with human, gray eyes. Even though the beast had a human face, that didn’t necessarily

mean that the rest was human.

It had the smooth face of a child, and teeth that looked like they belonged on a Siberian

tiger. What was worse was the body of the creature, and I was so frightened by it I was paralyzed

for the moment. It had wings that belonged to a raven, and instead of having normal feet, the

thing had razor sharp talons. Its body had a few black feathers on it, but some spots were

completely bald.

13

For a few minutes we just stood there (for the monster I considered it perching) and my

heartbeat was pumping so loudly I thought that the thing would hear it, and it felt as if it was

going to burst with fright. Then the creature let out a blood-curdling sound that made me tremble

from head to toe, but I instantly recognized the noise as the sound that I had thought was

someone or something screaming. After it continued to stare at me, unblinking, for several

minutes, the guy from work emerged from the trees, then looked to where I was staring, then

looked back at me and raised an eyebrow.

I frantically pointed at the branch where it was sitting, then he blinked, and then he

seemed to see it as his eyes grew wide with terror. He fired, and the frightening creature left its

perch, flapping its wings frantically, but a few feet away, I saw it fall down to the ground.

I swayed for a moment, and then he ran over to catch me under my arms, and I smiled

weakly up at him. “Hey” I muttered, and then I wilted onto a log, putting my head in my hands

and shaking. I looked back up at him, and he was staring at me pitifully. “W-what was that, that

– thing?” I whispered, still trembling.

He shook his head and sighed, passing a dirt-covered hand over his face. When he

looked back up at me, his expression seemed almost tired, and then he said “If you want the truth

from me, that was simply a hallucination.” I couldn’t help it, but my jaw dropped open, and I

14

stared at him in confusion and shock. He nodded gravely, and his lips were in a tight, straight

line.

“You see, I’m the only other one in the work building that’s traveled in this place before

and made it through to the other side” he said, beginning to pace back and forth in front of me,

“and that thing that you just saw, that I just saw, was a hallucination, it was these woods playing

tricks on your mind, so that you actually believed that it was there.” He ceased walking and

continued to stare directly into my eyes, all the while not even blinking, so that he looked similar

to an owl, and that kind of freaked me out. I stood, and then stepped over to where I had dropped

my things, and scooped them up off of the ground.

I paused for a moment, looking from him to my bags and then back again. When I saw that

he was gazing hungrily at my bags, I gave out another exasperated sigh and held it out to him,

and then I said “Do you want some or not?” Now it was his turn to look at me, then at my bags,

then back to me, most likely wondering if I meant it or if I was playing some mean trick on him.

When I dropped my arms and began walking away with the food in my hands, he ran after me

and touched my shoulder. I slightly jumped, and then half-turned, a half-smile inching on to my

face. I fully turned and held out the bags to him once more.

This time he didn’t hesitate, he reached in and his hand came out with an orange in his

hand. He sank on to a tree stump and began to slowly eat his orange. I looked him over and saw

15

that parts of his pants were ripped, especially by his knees, and I saw that they were bleeding a

bit, and then I saw that one of his shirtsleeves was ripped off, exposing a stick-thin arm.

Then I looked at his head, and saw that it had a small portion of blood on it, and when I saw

that, a small sound that was somewhere between a squeak and a gasp escaped my mouth. He

instantly jumped up from his seat and turned his head left and right, searching for the cause of

my gasp.

I clamped my mouth shut, slightly embarrassed, and stepped over to him cautiously. He

stared at me again with those ocean-blue eyes, and I reached up with my hand and touched his

head right where the blood was. When I touched it gently, he winced but didn’t say anything. I

grabbed his chin with my thumb and index-finger and pulled it downward.

To my surprise, he didn’t resist or slap my hand away, instead, he allowed me to inspect

the bloody spot on his head. After I had examined his head for a while, I let his chin go and

stepped back, shaking my head while he rubbed his chin with his hand. After I had finished

shaking my head I looked at him, curious. “What happened to your head?” I asked, allowing

curiosity to enter my tone. “Why is it bleeding?”

For a moment I thought he wouldn’t answer, but then he muttered “Nothing happened, and it

doesn’t really matter.”

16

I crossed my arms and put on the best angry face that I could. He glared just as hard back at me,

and though I was surprised, I kept my expression glued to my face. Finally he surrendered, let

out a long, exasperated sigh and stared at me. “If you really want to know” he grumbled “I hit

my head on a rock and my head started to bleed.”

I gaped at him, surprised, and for some reason angry that he hadn’t told me, but yet I pitied him

at the same time. “You hit your head on a rock?” I said, aware that my mouth was hanging open.

I knew that when people hit their heads hard enough on rocks, they could get killed because it

was likely that their skull would be shattered.

He came over to me, cupped my chin in one hand, and lifted it up so that my lips were connected

and touching. “Hey, like I said” he muttered, walking away into the thick woods, “it doesn’t

matter. So you don’t need to know what happened to me, okay?” he said, jabbing a finger at me

and then one into his chest to emphasize the point.

He spread his hands and then backed away, still staring at me with those wide eyes of his,

into the woods, all the way until I could no longer see him. For a few minutes I stood there,

partly hoping that he would come back, but when he didn’t, I huffed and flopped down on to the

tree stump that he had been sitting on, resting my head on my fist. He’s just being ridiculous,

isn’t he? I thought angrily. Well, let’s see just what happens when I cross paths with him again. I

stood, snatched up my things, hoisted them over my shoulder, and went in the same direction as

he had gone.

17

Several hours later, I still had not found him, and, judging by the time on my stretchable

watch, I figured that it was probably pitch black out outside of the woods. Nevertheless though, I

kept on going, until my feet ached so greatly and painfully that I could no longer walk, at least

until my feet got at least a small rest from non-stop walking. I sank onto the floor of the woods

and rested my head on my make-shift pillow. Just when I was about to drift off to sleep, I heard a

spine-tingling hooting sound and when I looked straight above me, an ancient – looking gray owl

stared down at me with vast yellow eyes.

Now, owls don’t normally scare me, since I once had a pet owl that I simply adored, but

this one was different. It seemed to be staring right into my eyes, and its expression seemed to be

saying Oh, yummy, you look like nice tasty midnight snack for me and my friends. I scrambled

away from its eerie gaze, and then when I looked back in front of me, I had to clamp my mouth

shut to keep from screaming. The wolf, at least that’s what I thought it to be, let out a deep,

throaty growl, and the animal… it, with its petrifying eyes, was looking right at me.

Chapter Three

A (Sort Of) Family Reunion

18

cautiously stood, hardly daring to take my eyes off of the creature. For a few minutes we

stood like that, man (or in this case for me it was girl) facing beast, and then exactly when

I thought I could run and still get away with it, the creature took a flying leap out of the

trees and landed right on my chest, knocking the breath out of my lungs.

I I turned my head away, not wanting to see any more monsters or creatures, but then I felt

a gritty tongue on my face. I squinted and sat up, and to my delight, it was my brown and black

German shepherd dog Sandy. I threw my arms around her neck and buried my face in her soft

fur while she continued to lick my face and arms.

Finally the embrace ended and I drew back, grinning widely. “Sandy, girl, what are you

doing in a place like this?” I asked, so relieved to see my dog that tears sprang to my eyes, and I

gave her a rub behind her ears, which she seemed to appreciate. Suddenly I heard someone clear

their throat loudly behind me and I whirled around, my hand still on Sandy. With a mixture of

anger and relief I saw that it was the guy from work, and he stood in an opening in the trees with

his arms crossed. I stood and ran over to him, and I ended up standing directly in front of him,

gently touching his arm. I leaned close to him and whispered “Thank you so much” and then I

drew back.

He nodded and said “I don’t think I’ve told you my name yet, have I?” When I shook my

head, he smiled a truly friendly smile and extended his hand. “Name’s Andrew, and based on the

19

way people treat you back at work, I’m guessing that you’re one of the more, ah, popular people

around.”

I could hardly believe it, but for once in four years, I actually smiled back at someone. “I’m

Katelyn; but no one calls me Kate though, okay?” After he nodded in understanding, Sandy

jumped between us and our clasped hands, and stuck her wet nose right up to us. I slipped my

hand out of his and reached down to pet Sandy, since she looked like she needed petting, and I

looked back up at Andrew and smiled again.

He smiled back at me and said “I’m happy that you found your dog, Katelyn.” When I looked

into his eyes, I saw that he actually meant it, and I actually felt safe and comfortable for the first

time since I had entered the woods.

Ӂ

Andrew and Sandy both slept soundly, but I just lay awake, staring at the canopy of trees

above me, blocking out any sort of sunlight or moonlight that could stream in. No matter how

long I shut my eyes, or what way I turned, I didn’t get a single blink of sleep. A voice said

behind me “Hey, can’t get any sleep in, huh?” I practically jumped out of my skin and leaped to

my feet, and then when I saw Andrew grinning at me, with a playful glint in his eyes, I scowled

and sat back down on the ground, crossing my arms.

20

The glint in his eyes disappeared and he stared at me with a gaze that was full of sadness

and disappointment. For a moment I let my scowl slip from my face, and unfortunately, he

noticed it. “Katelyn,” he said softly but carefully, with the same look on his face, “why do you

always act like this? Why don’t you ever let any happiness or laughter get out of you?”

I stared at him like he was speaking Japanese, and then I glared at him as hard as I could. “What,

so you don’t call what I did earlier not being happy?” I snapped.

“You’re not getting the point though! Just smiling doesn’t count as being happy! You actually

have to be that way for at least a day, or smile more than just once.” he argued.

“I have a reason that I don’t smile or laugh!” I snarled. “My own family kicked me out of my

only home!” I shouted, making Sandy sit up and look around, I didn’t care though. I was too

angry to care if she noticed our argument or not. “They just thought I didn’t have time for them

and then my dad and stepmom didn’t even think of me as their daughter! They hated me!”

I shrieked even louder, tears springing to my eyes. “They – they hated their own daughter,

a-and they just didn’t want me anymore.” I heard my voice crack, and I sank on to a log, putting

my head in my hands and fighting off more tears that came to my eyes. I felt him come over and

touch my shoulder affectionately, but I shrugged off his hand violently. When I had just been

three years old, my real mom, who had been loving, caring and beautiful, had tragically died of

the terrible disease known as smallpox.

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When I raised my head out of my hands and looked to my right, I saw that he was staring at

me, pity and regret written all over his face. He suddenly developed an interest in his shoes, and

then he looked back up at me, the same expression sitting on his face. “I-I’m sorry Katelyn, I

didn’t know about y-your family” he whispered, cautiously reaching out a hand to touch my arm,

and this time I didn’t shake him away or resist the tears, this time I let him touch my arm and I

cried like a little girl.

I felt him rub my back affectionately and finally my tears quit flowing down my cheeks. I

sniffled and he repeated “I’m sorry” several times, all the while rubbing my back, and my dog

whined and licked my face. I managed a half-smile, and bent down and hugged my dog, but she

didn’t resist, instead, she rested her chin in the crook of my elbow.

For a few more minutes I sat there, rocking back and forth and hugging my knees, and then

I stood and fished through my bags to find a bottle of water. After a minute or two of searching, I

pulled out a water bottle, and even though it wasn’t at all cold, I gulped it thankfully but

greedily. I paused from drinking water and looked over at my companion, and he was rubbing

my dog’s ears and allowing her to bite him, but she knew better than to bite someone hard,

unless they were attacking one of us.

The sight of him scratching and rubbing my dog fondly and tenderly on her shoulders and

back warmed my heart some, so I offered him some of my water, and he accepted it gratefully

22

but only drank a small portion of it. I pulled out another bottle and allowed my dog to drink some

by putting the spout in her mouth like a baby with milk.

After we had finished drinking water and snacking on crackers we set off again, even

though this time I was ever so slightly afraid of what we would run into next. Much to my relief,

we didn’t run into any more interesting or horrifying creatures along the way, at least until we

settled down for some sleep that night. After we had been traveling for what seemed like several

hours, and just when my poor dog looked ready to collapse, Andrew stopped and turned to us,

spreading his hands.

“Well,” he said, sliding his own small supplies off of his back and stretching, “we might as

well set up camp here for the night.” As if to make it final, he sat down on the ground, yawned,

and then gestured for me to lie down. Of course, I took him up on his offer, curled up on the

ground and attempted sleep, but it didn’t come to me until at least an hour later.

Later that night, when I was sleeping like a rock, a noise that sounded strangely like music

woke me up, and I sat up and looked around for the source of the sound. I didn’t see any place

where the music could possibly be coming from, but after I listened to it for a minute, maybe

more, unexpectedly and suddenly my vision became a blur and all of my bones turned to jelly,

then with an alarming feeling growing inside of me I realized that the music was making me be

23

this way, and if I didn’t want to be just another puddle of ooze, or in other words just another

part of the woods, I should probably quit listening to the sound.

Fortunately for me I had brought some wax along, even though at the moment I really

couldn’t remember what I had brought it for, but I didn’t care. I grabbed the wax and stuffed it in

my ears, and then my vision and bones went back to normal, and apparently, the sound didn’t

work on dogs, because Sandy was as lively as ever.

Then I remembered Andrew, and my bones turned to gel once more, but it wasn’t because of

the music, it was because of pure horror. My head turned in all directions, and when I looked

behind me, I saw him standing stock still, arms at his sides, but based on the way he was

standing it looked like he was in some sort of trance.

Then, to my dread, he began to walk towards the trees, and I wasn’t sure if I imagined it or

not, but I was almost positive I heard giggling. I frantically ran back to our things, snatched them

up, and turned to my dog. “Sandy!” I yelled, and she sat bolt upright and stared at me with big

brown eyes, awaiting her orders. I smiled at her, and then said “Sandy, find Andrew, okay? You

have to find Andrew.” She barked in response, took off running, and I bolted after her, shoving

all of the branches out of my way.

24

When I reached where he was, my heart skipped a beat and I had to clap a hand over my

mouth to keep from crying out. He was standing in the middle of a clearing, but it was different

than all of the other clearings that we had passed or stopped at. This one had rosebuds as red and

as bright as blood, and bright pink and yellow tulips lining the edge of the small clearing.

In the trees there were small creatures with fragile-looking wings, so I figured they were

most likely fairies, and they were giggling and pointing at Andrew, who was still standing in the

middle of the open space, unmoving. It wasn’t the fairies or anything else that frightened me, it

was because his eyes were glazed over and he was literally beginning to melt. When I looked at

his feet, I saw that they were slowly turning to sludge, but he just stood there as if nothing were

happening, and the fact that he was turning to ooze was completely normal.

Sandy had the back of my shirt in her teeth as if to say “No, there’s no way you’re going to

turn into a puddle too. I’m not going to allow it, and you can’t change my mind.” For a few

minutes I obeyed, and I know that sounds silly having someone like me following a dog’s orders,

but frankly, I really didn’t want to turn into a puddle and become another part of the ground. All

the while I stood in the shadows, hidden from the fairies, he just kept melting down. After I

broke my gaze away from his dissolving feet, I looked at his shoulders and they too were

disintegrating.

25

Finally I could take it no longer, so I picked up a few medium-sized rocks, and I hurled one

straight at a giggling fairy. It hit her right smack on her tiny forehead and she toppled backwards

off of a branch; all of the other fairies quit giggling and stared at the place where I was hiding. I

sprang out of the trees, Sandy next to me, and when they saw my dog, they screamed and ran

into each other trying to get away. Normally if one of my companions wasn’t turning into a

puddle it would have been funny, but I kept hurtling rocks at the fairies, and I hit every single

one off of his or her branch.

I gave myself a silent pat on the back and then ran to Andrew, who was still melting away. I

grabbed his arm and then snatched my hand back, because wherever I touched he disintegrated

even faster. I quit for a moment, grabbed his arm again, and pulled him along while I ran as fast

as I could while towing a person behind me. Finally we reached the clearing that had our

supplies in it and I collapsed on the ground, struggling to catch my breath. Then I crawled over

to my dog who was sticking her wet nose right in his face and she whined. I cautiously touched

his hand and he flinched but didn’t continue to turn into sludge.

As relieved as I was, I put on a hard glare and smacked him hard across the face, and his

eyelids flew open and he stared up at me, rubbing his cheek. “What’d you do that for?” he

complained, sitting up and looking at his surroundings. Then when he looked at his shoulder his

face turned pale and he groaned. “Ugh, what happened to me?” he mumbled, trying to stand but

failing because both of his feet were still re-forming. I caught him under his arms and helped him

sit down, and he let out a loud, long sigh.

26

He looked so miserable I almost felt bad for him, so I started to explain what happened. “When I

got there you were…’’ I halted, unsure how to tell him that he was turning into a puddle when I

saw him. “You were turning into sludge, and every part of your body was, uh, disintegrating.”

He stared at me, a horrified look on his face, and then his expression went from terrified to

understanding.

He shook his head and groaned again, and then he said “Pixies. That’s what they were that you

saw. That’s their job, you see, to keep people from going any farther than where they are. If you

attempt to cross where they live, then they would normally kill you, but in this case,” he paused,

and smiled up at me feebly, “they didn’t succeed, thanks to you and Sandy here.” He rubbed

Sandy between her ears again and her tongue hung out of her mouth, and then he put his hand

over mine, but I didn’t pull away from him.

For a few minutes we stayed that way, his hand over mine and Sandy lying down in front

of me, panting happily. Then he stood, began to pack up his things and looked over at me.

“Well,” he said, “are you going to pack up or not?” I didn’t want to, but I smiled at him and he

grinned at me. I stood and gathered up my things, and, for once, we actually went an entire day

and night without anything strange or frightening coming our way.

27

Chapter Four

The Griffin

t was great while it lasted. I had never felt more confident and brave then I did when I had

Andrew and Sandy with me and by my side. We had gone a whole night and day without

any interruptions along the way, but then they just started happening all over again. We

had been traveling just fine, until what I seem to remember was around noon. What happened

that makes me say that, you ask?

I

28

Well, I can tell you that it was more terrifying but at the same time more interesting than

any of the other things that we had run into along the way. Our feet (for Sandy it was paws)

crunched noisily through the dead leaves and twigs littering the ground, and my spirits were high

until I heard a sound that sounded similar to the noise a hawk makes when it’s diving for its prey.

I put out a hand and both of my companions stopped dead in their tracks and I strained

my ears, half-hoping to hear it again, but the other half was hoping that it was only my

imagination. A creature that at first I didn’t recognize burst swiftly out of the trees and picked up

my dog by the collar and threw her. I was horrified but Sandy landed safely on a bulging pile of

soft moss, so at least she wasn’t hurt.

I sighed with relief but then the terrible thing came back again for another round of

throwing things. I just had enough time to catch a glimpse of the soaring creature. It had the tail,

feet, and body of a lion, and it had the head and the wings of an eagle. With shock and awe

flowing rapidly through my body, I realized that the magnificent yet terrifying creature was a

griffin.

I didn’t have time to figure out where it came from, or why it was going after us, maybe

because it was hungry for a quick traveling snack, but it picked up Andrew, flew around for a

few minutes as if trying to decide where to throw him, then the griffin threw him towards a tree.

He missed the tree and went into the branches, and the giant beast picked him up again, and this

29

time, to my extreme alarm it threw him as hard as it could right smack against a solid, fat tree

trunk, he slid down it and then he crumpled into a heap at the bottom of it, motionless.

It must have not liked him at all, or maybe it thought he looked like a tasty afternoon

snack, because it picked him up once more, and for a terrible moment I feared it was going to

throw him again, but instead it lifted him up and dropped him into its mouth. It snapped its beak

shut and swallowed, and then for the next few minutes all it did was stare at me. I couldn’t

believe it had swallowed my only human companion, and at first all I felt was a mixture of

shock, horror, and, yes, depression, and then it all came together in a sudden burst of pure anger.

My adrenaline surged and I ordered Sandy to attack the griffin by its legs. Of course, she

obeyed, and fortunately for me and Andrew, I knew how to use a shotgun, and I was an expert at

it. Slightly panicked, while Sandy was attacking the griffin I ran to his bag and dug out the

shotgun. I hefted it up, pointed it directly at the creature’s chest, prayed hard that he wasn’t stuck

there, and fired.

The creature let out a blood-curdling scream and I shot it twice more in the chest, and on

the third time around, it collapsed on to the ground, sending leaves and dirt flying everywhere. I

coughed and impatiently waited for the dust to clear, and then I ran to the griffin and first slashed

30

open its chest with a wood–hilted knife that I had found. Even though I was disgusted at

searching inside the creature’s chest, I felt the overpowering need to find my companion.

After I searched more than once inside of the creature’s chest I began to search the

stomach area. After I had searched for several minutes, and just when I was about to give up

hope and assume that he was dead, I found him deep inside of the griffin’s stomach, but he was

motionless. I stood and ran over to him, and knelt by his side.

I raised a tuft of hair from his clammy head, and there was an ugly, large gash in the

upper left corner of his forehead. I had brought my water along with me, just in case, and I

uncapped it and poured some into my palm. I slowly trickled water on to his face, he sputtered

and his eyelids flew open. “Hey,” I said, washing out the gash in his head, “are you okay?”

“Yeah,” he groaned, and when he tried to sit up he winced and lay back down, “why does my

head hurt so much? The last thing I remember is getting thrown like some sort of Frisbee

towards a tree trunk.”

“You got tossed and then eaten by a griffin, and right now I’m fixing up the gash in your head.” I

said, tossing aside the extra water in my palm.

At the word ‘griffin’ he sat bolt upright and stared at me with wide eyes. “That’s what swallowed

me? A griffin swallowed me?!” Towards the end his voice got shrill and I had to fight the urge to

laugh.

31

I nodded and he groaned and lay back down. Then he sat back up and looked around him.

“You’re in the griffin’s stomach, and in a minute I’m going to get you and me out of here.” I said

as I finished wrapping a bandage around his head. I stood and held out my hand for him to take.

“C’mon,” I said, tossing my head towards the opening that I had made, “we’re going to get out

of here, and I still have to find the exit to this place.” He smiled up at me, grasped my hand, and

hoisted himself up.

“You’re not alone in this, you know” he said, still holding my hand. I looked at him curiously,

unsure what he meant, and then he said “I don’t suppose you would mind if we came along with

you on this.” I smiled back at him and led him out of the griffin’s stomach, unaware that I was

still holding his hand. When I looked at our joined hands, I flushed, snatched my hand back and

looked everywhere but at him. I knew he was smiling at me, but I still didn’t want to look at him.

I jogged over to Sandy and knelt next to her. I rubbed her on her head and she panted

happily. “I guess you’re pretty attached to that dog, huh?” he asked behind my back. I nodded

without turning to face him, and then he asked “where’d you get her?”

I turned around and said quietly “my parents got her for me when I was just five. I’ve had her

with me and by my side ever since.” I could tell by the look on his face that he was touched by

the story that I had given him, and then I stood up to my full height. We stared at each other for a

while, and then I bent over to pack my things. When I finished, I set down my bags and wound

my arms around a tree trunk.

I began climbing and I heard Andrew ask behind me “What are you doing that for? Shouldn’t we

be traveling on by now?” I looked back at him, shook my head, and continued climbing.

32

After I finished climbing up and down that tree a few times, I turned to him and demanded

“Aren’t you going to get over here and exercise a little bit?” When he didn’t respond, I continued

“Besides, based on your form, I’d think that you’d need to exercise a little now and then.” He

shook his head defiantly and crossed his arms. I began to make clucking noises like a chicken,

and he glared at me as hard as I had glared at him in the past.

I stared him down and finally he surrendered to my heavy stare. “Fine, I’ll climb a tree if it

makes you happy” he grumbled, stalking over to a tree and winding his arms around it. I crossed

my arms, set my feet apart, and put on the best I’ll bet you can’t do it, but I can stare that I could.

He attempted at least ten times to drag himself up the trunk but each time failed at it.

I fought the urge to chant “Na-na-na-na! I did it and you-u didn’t!” and snicker, but instead I

sighed and stepped over to him. “Ok, so if you can’t just climb a tree like this, let’s try seeing if

you can lift a heavy sack of rocks and carry it around for about five minutes” I said, walking

back over to my bags. I grabbed one off of the ground, went over to a small pile of mini-

boulders, stuffed them in my bag, and passed them to him.

He accepted the bag with a determined expression on his face, but when he took the bag,

he grunted and he dropped it. I passed a hand over my face and gave out another exasperated

sigh. He glared at the bag as if it were his opponent in a competition; he grabbed the straps of it

and attempted to lift it again, but failed once more.

33

He threw up his hands in exasperation and I picked up the bag with ease. I lifted it up

and down in front of him, and then I emptied some rocks out of the bag. I handed it to him again,

and this time he barely managed to hold it up for a split-second before he dropped it again. “Ok,”

I said, emptying out every single rock except for one, “let’s try this one step at a time.” I handed

it to him once more, and he lifted it up above his head easily. I nodded my approval and put in

two more rocks. Again, he lifted it up and down in front of my face with ease, and then I stuffed

yet two more rocks in it. He accepted the bag, but this time, he held it up with strain.

I took back the bag, entered two more in, and this time, when he took it, he dropped it on

to the ground. For the next few hours we practiced that continuously, and at the end, I could see

that he was getting stronger the more we did the exercise. “Alright,” I said, exhaling loudly and

picking up my things, “we’ll do it over again tomorrow, but for tonight, let’s keep walking,

because I need to get to wherever the person is that called.” He nodded and we set off into the

night, heedless of what we would run into next.

34

Chapter Five

The Skeleton Scare

fter several hours of wandering, I sank on to a log and stretched. I turned to

Andrew and murmured “I’m just gonna get a little sleep for a few minutes okay?

Maybe you should too, because after this we’re not going to be stopping

anywhere along the way for a while.” He nodded his agreement and dropped on to the ground,

and just a few minutes after he rested his head on the bags, he fell asleep almost instantly.

A I lay down on the ground, and it only seemed like a few seconds after I fell asleep that I

was awakened again by my dog licking my face. I wiped the slobber from my face and smiled up

at her. I scratched her between her eyes and she smiled at me, well, almost smiled at me, her

35

tongue dangled out and her lips were curved upward. “Sandy!” I heard Andrew yell, “Get away

from her! Let her sleep for a while longer, will ya?”

I sat up and faced him, appreciative for his attempt to get my dog away from me, but I knew we

had to keep going if I wanted to reach wherever it was that the person or people were existing.

When he saw me sit up, he frowned, but I said “Thanks for trying to let me sleep longer, but we

need to keep moving.”

He hesitated, but then he held out a hand to help me up, I grasped it and pulled myself up

to a standing position. He dropped his hand back to his side and then spun around to finish filling

his possessions into his own bags. “Alright,” I said, brushing off my hands and straightening,

“let’s get moving, shall we?”

We started hiking through the woods and, much to our surprise, towards the end of the

day, we ran into an old shack. It had broken-in windows, and the wood that it was built of was

rotted and splintered in a few places, but other than that it looked fine. I stepped inside first and

drew in a breath sharply. Cobwebs lined all of the walls; dead flies cluttered the windowsill, dead

bugs littered the floor, and the air reeked of rat droppings and mothballs. A rat scurried across

my foot and I screamed, which made my colleague come running in with his shotgun drawn. I

pressed my hand over my pounding heart and breathed in and out slowly. “What’s wrong?” he

asked, looking around wildly. “Why did you scream? Did someone try to attack you?”

36

After my heart had ceased thumping a million miles an hour and I had calmed down, I muttered

“nothing, nothing’s wrong, it-it was only a rat.”

He sighed, probably in relief and exasperation, and then he patted me on the shoulder and I heard

his boots thumping down the stairs to what I assumed was the cellar. Suddenly I heard a scream,

and I ran downstairs, wondering what was wrong. When I reached the bottom of the stairs, I saw

him with his hands pressed against the wall, white as a ghost and eyes as wide as platters.

“Andrew, what’s wrong? What scared you?” I asked, stepping over to where he was. I touched

his hand and he turned towards me, his skin still ghostly white, and then he raised a shaking

finger. I turned to where he pointed and whimpered in terror.

On the opposite wall of the cellar, a skeleton was grinning at me, but it wasn’t exactly a

skeleton, since it had a few pieces of flesh dangling from him, or her. It took a step towards us, I

whimpered again and gripped Andrew’s arm so hard that my fingernails dug into it. I looked up

at him and he didn’t look any less terrified than I was. My lips and mouth were as dry as

sandpaper, but somehow I managed to whistle for Sandy. For a few minutes she didn’t come,

and I feared that something was wrong. The creature took another step towards us, and what

happened next just frightened me more.

With each step it took towards us, its body flashed between people, most likely the

people it had possibly slain, for the pile next to the thing was entirely bones. It took yet another

step towards us, and I buried my face in Andrew’s shoulder because I couldn’t bear to look at its

petrifying, grinning face any longer, but then I heard a loud CRASH! I looked back up, and to

37

my extreme delight, I saw Sandy chewing on one of the skeleton’s bones, and she probably

though that the creature looked like an enjoyable delicious snack for herself.

The skeleton’s bones were cluttered along the floor, and to my alarm and disgust, it

began to rebuild itself. Before it could rebuild any longer though, I grabbed Andrew’s hand,

whistled for Sandy to follow us, and I shot as fast as my feet would carry me up the stairs, out

the door, and into the woods away from that shack where the monster remained.

Ӂ

I didn’t rest until I was at least an hour’s distance from the shack, and then my knees

buckled and I collapsed on to the ground. I clasped my knees and rocked back and forth, the

features of the creature still in my mind. Sandy trotted over to me, licked my face, and I held her

tightly, my face pressed against her fur. When I let go of her and stood up, I saw Andrew sitting

a few feet away from me, his eyes still wide in shock from seeing the skeleton.

I walked over to him and tapped him lightly on the shoulder. He jumped but when he

saw that it was only me, he relaxed a bit and sighed. He looked back up at me and then said

softly “What was that creature? Its face, the piles of bones, the fact that it was actually

38

walking…” he trailed off and shook his head, and then he squeezed his eyes shut as if to block

out the memory of seeing it.

“Hey,” I said, patting him on the back awkwardly, “we’re out of that shack and away from that

thing. There’s nothing to worry or to be afraid about now.” He nodded in agreement and stood

also, brushing the dust off his pants.

“C’mon,” he said, “we should get moving if we want to reach the place you need to be.” I

walked over to where my bags were, snatched them up off the ground, and walked off into the

trees. My companions followed me, and we meandered for several more hours before we had to

stop again.

Later, when we had finished eating crackers and oranges, I shot to my feet, clapped my hands

together, startling Sandy so that she sat up and her ears perked, but I was staring directly at him.

“Ok,” I said, rubbing my hands together eagerly, “time for the daily exercise.” He groaned, but I

wagged my finger and filled the bag halfway with rocks. I handed it to him, and to my surprise,

he lifted it above his head effortlessly. For a moment I stared at him, but when he shrugged and

handed the bag back to me, I accepted it and filled more rocks in it.

Again, he lifted it above his head, handed it back to me, and we repeated this routine several

more times, and when I had filled the bag clear to the top of it, he was still lifting it up and down

in front of me. “Uhhhh…” I stuttered, staring at him, “well, I – I guess you can probably climb a

– a tree now.” He beamed at me, and when he attempted to climb it, he succeeded. After trying

for a few times, he managed to grasp a branch almost at the top of the tree, and disappeared in its

leaves. I waited for a minute or two, and then his hand came down out of the leaves.

39

He snapped his fingers impatiently, motioned for me to come closer, and I slid my hand

into his. With a loud grunt and when he tried for a few times, he succeeded in pulling me up with

him. I stared at him in awe, and he just smiled back at me. “How did you, what did you-?” but he

put a finger to my lips.

When he pulled his finger away, I was still staring at him in surprise and then he said with the

smile still plastered on his face, “I practice all the time while you sleep, so that’s how I did that,

in case you’re wondering.”

I gaped at him and said in shock, “you mean when I’m asleep at night you’re doing this instead

of sleeping?”, and for some reason I felt guilty, even though I had no idea why.

He nodded, his lips in a straight line, and he said coolly “Yep, that’s what I’ve been doing.” He

was still holding my hand, but I just stared at him and shook my head.

“I’m happy for you, but I can’t believe you haven’t told me about this.” He opened his mouth to

reply, but now it was my turn to place a finger over his lips. “No,” I said, shaking my head and

staring him down, “don’t say anything right now.” He looked like he wanted to respond to my

comment, but then he seemed to change his mind, and we sat up there next to each other,

listening to the haunting call of owls and the wind carrying itself through the leaves on the trees.

Ӂ

40

After we had sat up there for hour after hour, and I felt mortified when Andrew told me

that I had fallen asleep next to him. Since the branch that we were sitting on was high enough up

that if I jumped I could sprain my ankle, I fell from the branch and he caught me, even though he

staggered for a minute. I slid out of his arms and he dropped them back to his side. Just like all of

the other times, we packed and began wandering through the woods once more.

After traveling for at least twelve hours through the woods, not knowing where we were

going, I recommended that we stop for a few minutes to rest our feet. “So,” I said, turning to

him, “do you live by yourself or do you have a family to live with?” When I saw the pained look

on his face, I rushed on “you don’t have to tell me if you don’t want to. I understand.”

“No, no, that’s fine, I’ll tell you.” He swallowed a lump in his throat, and then after he remained

silent for a moment, regaining his composure, he began his story. “I think I was just a little kid,

but my mom, she – she died giving birth to me, so I never knew her…” He hadn’t even finished

his story, and already I had pity for him, but I stayed seated and listened.

“Then, after Mom died, I was stuck with my father, and I think it was ten years before he

began to get ill. The doctor came to see what was wrong, and he thought it was just a bad case of

retching. Then though, my father got increasingly better for the next few months, so I started not

to worry about him as much…” he trailed off, and he was rocking back and forth on the ground

while I waited and touched his arm gently. “A few weeks after he finished getting better, h-he

got influenza again, a-and he never recovered from it…”

41

I felt a wave of pity wash over me, and after I said “I’m so sorry” a few times, Sandy came over

and licked his face. He smiled at her and rubbed her between her ears like he always did.

“Well,” he said, rising and smiling, “shouldn’t we be going on our way by now?” When he saw

the smile creep on to my face, his own smile widened. He jerked a thumb over his shoulder and

said “c’mon, let’s get out of here.” After he took a few steps, he half-turned and said “by the

way, just FYI, I think that there’s a cave just about a week away from here.” Hearing that news,

my spirits lifted, I smiled, and then we set off again.

Unfortunately, after that, we didn’t reach a clearing for five more days, so if we wanted to

take a break for a moment, we either had to lean against a tree, or sit on the ground and risk

being bit by a snake. Since I’m absolutely terrified of snakes, you can guess which one I chose to

rest on. On the fourth day of traveling with no clearings to stop at, I leaned against a tree, since

my feet were raw from walking for two days straight, eating while we walked. I propped myself

against one of the trees in our path, and at first I heard a barely audible groaning, splintering

sound. For a moment I hesitated, then, ignoring it, I leaned against the tree even more.

That was a bad error on my part, since the tree’s trunk was as thin as I was. Once I finished

putting all of my weight on the frail tree, it groaned even louder, splintered, and then it collapsed

under me. I gave a small shriek of surprise, and as I fell backwards, I struggled to catch myself,

but failed. I continued falling backwards, but Andrew grabbed my hand the second before I hit

the ground. After he pulled me up, I sighed, rolled my shoulders, and murmured my thanks to

him. He nodded so slightly I barely caught it, and then he continued walking. Thinking

42

something was wrong with him, I ran to catch up with him. When I did, I said in a normal tone

“Andrew.” When he didn’t respond, I continued speaking his name, until I was practically

yelling it at him.

Finally he whirled on me and snapped “What?”

I drew back as if I had been struck across the face, and then I snapped back “What do you mean

what? Why are you in a bad mood all of a sudden, did I do something to make you this way? If

you’re mad about something else, or if you’re mad at someone else, don’t take it out on me! All I

wanted to know was why you weren’t talking.”

His face truly started to become red, but I couldn’t tell if it was from embarrassment or from

irritation. Then, after scowling at me for a moment, he retorted sharply “nothing’s wrong with

me, just keep walking, okay?”

I stood defiantly in my spot and growled out one word: “No.”

He whirled again to face me and snarled “excuse me? Did you just say the word no to me?”

I nodded my head jerkily and shouted “I will not travel with someone that’s acting like, like a

bratty imp!”

He roared in fury, took a step towards me, and raised a hand as if to strike me. I didn’t even

flinch, so then he seemed to change his mind, because he lowered his hand and stormed up to

me. “If you don’t want to come, that’s just fine with me!” he growled somewhat crisply,

storming off into the woods.

Fighting tears of rage and frustration, I shouted after him, “FINE! Be that way if you want to! I

don’t care if you run into something that wants to eat you!” and sat forcefully on the ground,

43

huffing and seething. Sandy came up to me and tried to stick her nose in my face, but I pushed

her away.

When I looked into her face and she looked offended, I suddenly felt guilty and scratched

her head. She cherished that, and I hugged her tightly, allowing her to lick my arm. I held on to

her for a few more moments and then let go of her. “Hey girl” I muttered, standing and sighing.

She whined, put her ears back, looked back at the woods, and then back at me as if to say, Well,

are you going to follow him or not? I strained not to allow the smile to come on to my face, but it

did anyway. “Alright, Sandy girl,” I mumbled, slinging the backpacks on to each of my

shoulders, “let’s go find that old grouse.”

Ӂ

It took longer than I expected. We had begun traveling just at noon, and already it was noon

the next day. We hadn’t rested, Sandy and I, and I knew what I said to him, especially the part

where I said I don’t care if you come across something that wants to eat you, was a cruel thing to

say, but hey, what can you say to someone that makes you want to strangle him and then stomp

on his head? I mean, you can’t just say oh no, that’s fine, I’m sure you’re just in one of those

moods, so carry on please.

44

What jolted me out of my thoughts was that Sandy abruptly crouched on the ground, the

hair on her back stood on end (as did the hair on my neck), and she let out a low, throaty growl

that gurgled out of her throat. “Sandy girl,” I whispered, bending down next to her, “what’s

wrong? What do you hear?”

In answer, she let out another guttural, menacing growl, waited a moment, and then leaped

into the clump of trees that lay in front of us. For a few moments I didn’t hear anything so I

feared the worst, but then I heard a shriek, and then a rustle. Then there was silence, but then

there was another rustle. Finally I could take it no longer, so I took a cautious step towards the

trees, and said in my most commanding voice “Sandy, come.” I heard another shriek, and

another rustle, but this time, the thing that followed the noise was— I gasped as Andrew stepped

out of the trees, shotgun drawn, and it was pointed straight at me.

45

Chapter Six

A (Not) Ordinary Owl

gave another gasp and stepped backwards. His eyes were blue, and they were blue

before, but I mean they were solid blue, as in no whites at all. He took another step

towards me, and then I snarled “Andrew, think about it, it’s just me. Remember? It’s me,

Katelyn.”

II lost a fraction of my bravery when he laughed, which came out as what sounded like something

in the middle of a hiss and someone rubbing their hand over a piece of sandpaper. His voice was

worse though, because when he talked and said, “Your companion is not here, little girl, I am

simply taking hold over his body to get rid of you”, his voice didn’t sound at all human. Truth be

told, I was absolutely terrified, but when he said little girl, that made me a tad bit annoyed.

“Well, that’s just fine for you isn’t it?” I growled, shaking my fist at the thing. For a moment all

it did was stare at me, and when I thought I saw a bit of confusion in its eyes, I leaped for the

46

chance. “Yeah, I’ll bet you’re just ecstatic about taking over someone, huh? Well, by all means,

stay in that body, but I have to tell you, you look absolutely atrocious in that one.”

The creature smirked at me, and then it sneered “do not try to trick me, girl. I am not a fool.”

For a moment, only a moment, I lost my confidence and feared that I would not be able to

convince it. I held up my hand and said in my best convincing and persuasive tone that I could

accomplish “besides, I know someone back at work that you would just look astounding in.”

The thing lifted its arms, studied them, and then it said “Really? You think that I would look

better in someone else’s body?” it paused for a moment, and while it was debating whether it

should listen to me or not, I nodded my head enthusiastically. “Oh, fine then, I’ll leave this body

to you. I’m warning you girl, if you’re tricking me, you shall perish severely.”

With that, a blinding flash exploded in front of my eyes, so I had to cover them up with my

hand, but when I looked back, Andrew (thank goodness he was back to normal so that I could

strangle him) was laying on the ground, wide-eyed. When he saw that the shotgun was pointed at

me, his eyes grew even wider and he sat slowly up.

“Ugh,” he groaned, rubbing his temples, “I feel like an elephant sat on my head.” I know what I

said earlier about wanting to strangle him, but instead I went over to him and helped him up.

“Katelyn,” he muttered, squeezing my fingers, “I – I’m sorry about what I – what I did earlier. I

didn’t mean to act like I did because the thing that took over me, it-it made me that way. When

you get angry enough at someone or something, those things take over you, and don’t worry,” he

47

said, and when he saw the horrified expression on my face, he added with a chuckle “it only

happens here, in the woods.”

I sent him a relieved smile, then Sandy came bounding over to lick his hand. He flashed a smile

in my direction, then at Sandy, and then he scratched her between her ears. After he had finished

stroking Sandy, he slung his backpack over his shoulder and gestured for me to go ahead.

“Ladies first, as I always say.” I grinned, gave him a playful shove, and strode out into the trees.

While we were walking, I was pondering whether we would run into anything else that

was very, ah, abnormal. Maybe we would run into another griffin or another shack where

something lay waiting for its next victim, or maybe things that wanted to turn us into a puddle,

or, or… What interrupted my thoughts was a bone-chilling hoot of an owl, and I stuck out my

arm, causing my companions to halt. I listened again, and when it didn’t happen again, I figured

it was just another barn owl or something, so I continued walking. I had only taken a few more

steps through the bizarre woods, and then something flew directly in front of my face, making

me stumble backwards. Andrew caught me under the arms and then the object flew in front of us

again, but this time I saw what it was. It was the owl that I had heard only a few seconds ago, but

it was much larger than an ordinary owl.

It swooped one last time in front of us, and then it settled on a branch a few feet above me. It

stared at me with enormous brown eyes, ruffled its feathers, and then pecked at a bug in them.

Based on the color of its wings and the way it had settled on the branch with ease, I guessed it

48

was only a baby, um, monster owl. For a few minutes all we did was stare at each other, but

eventually my eyes began to burn until I could no longer stare, so the owl won the stare down.

It opened its beak and I feared it was going to snap us all up like some sort of snack, but

instead it began to speak. Now when I say the term ‘speak’, I don’t mean all it did was give a

hoot, it literally began to talk to us. “Ah, young lady, I see so far you are surviving all of the

horrors of these woods so far. I am very proud of you and your companions for accomplishing

that, for other people who have tried to venture through these woods have failed miserably in

many ways.”

I scrambled backwards, eyes as wide as the owl’s, and then the owl shook its head and stared at

me kindly. “You–you’re talking, b-but you’re an owl…”

“Yes, I am, dear girl. Your name is Katelyn I presume?” it asked, cocking its head to the side. I

nodded slightly and then it said “my name is Cecil, and the only reason I came was to warn you

and your friends that things will get much, much more horrifying and terrible from here. No

other men or women have heeded my words, but I like you, girl, so I hope you will listen to me.”

It stretched its wings and looked back at me with a glint of pity in its giant eyes. “If you succeed

in this quest, you will earn my eternal respect, and you will only have to clap three times to

summon me, that is, if you succeed.

Remember my words, humans, and to you, dear Katelyn, good luck. I hope for your sake

that you will survive the horrors of this place. Also, one more thing,” the owl said before taking

49

off, “I will not visit you again, if and until you summon me because you finish this quest. So if

you need help, you will find Horace, the old wise owl that has lived here for many years crossing

paths with you five days from now, and five days after that. Or maybe you will not, I do not

know for certain. After those days though, you will no longer see him.” With that, Cecil departed

from his branch and left us staring at the branch where it had been seconds before.

“Wh-wh-what was th-that?” I stuttered, still staring at the branch where Cecil had been perching

previously.

My ally shook his head and muttered, “That, Katelyn was not a hallucination. I’ve read about

those kinds of creatures, and they only come to you to give you the wish of good luck if…” he

trailed off, continuing to shake his head.

“What?” I demanded, crossing my arms and staring at him. “What was the word ‘if’ for?”

He stared back at me, a glint of fear and dread in his eyes, and then he said “they only come to

you if in the next day or so something is going to try harder than all of the other creatures put

together to put a stop to our journey. Something is going to end our journey; it’s going to be the

end of us, or one of us staying on earth, permanently.”

I swallowed the lump of fear in my throat, and then once more I recalled the words of my boss

back at work: don’t let fear get into your system, especially in the woods. I took a deep breath

and shook my head. “No, we are not going to be stopped dead in our tracks because of some

creature” I said in the most confident voice I could manage even though the beginning came out

in a squeak. Andrew smiled at me and nodded, and then slung his bag over his shoulder.

50

“You’re right, Katelyn, we won’t let anything stand in our way. We’ll just get rid of it like all of

the other things.” I beamed at him, and even Sandy sort of smiled in confidence. She barked,

wagged her tail, and I threw the bag on my shoulder. I turned to lead them out into the woods,

but then I decided on something that I had been pondering over for days now. I half turned

towards him, still smiling, and then I said “don’t call me Katelyn anymore.” When he gave me a

puzzled look, I turned back towards the trees, and just before I stepped into them, I said “just call

me Kate.”

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Chapter Seven

A Bird Hits My Soft Spot

efore I knew it, it was a new day, and I waited patiently for the supposed creature

to come carry us off or something along those lines. Even though I was a bit afraid

of what the thing would be, I continued walking confidently through the woods,

ignoring the panting sounds of my companions behind me. Finally, I could take the noise no

longer, so I halted, dropped my bag on the ground with a thud, and plopped down on a rock.

Sandy and Andrew collapsed on the ground, struggling to catch their breath.

B While they were panting on the ground spread-eagled, I got up and took a short walk

through the woods, careful not to get lost. I had only been out for a few minutes, and suddenly I

heard a snuffle, a rustle, and something pawing the ground. I ceased walking and strained my

ears to see if it was my imagination or if something was out there. I heard the noise again, in the

same sequence: Snuffle, rustle, scrape, snuffle, rustle, scrape, snuffle, rustle, scrape. I took off

back in the direction of our small camp as fast as my feet could carry me, and I think I knew

what was back there waiting for someone to come back.

The creature the owl had warned us about.

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I continued running, my feet pounding on the ground and my heart pumping a million miles an

hour in my chest. I ran right into Andrew; he took me by my shoulders, and looked me square in

the eyes. “Kate, what’s wrong? Is something following you?”

I shook my head and frantically pointed back towards the bushes while I struggled to find my

voice. I finally did, and I swallowed and said in a whimper “the creature Cecil told us about, it’s

back there, in the bushes.” I lead him back into the trees and bushes, but I went first. To my

surprise, I didn’t find any evidence that showed the creature had been there earlier. I came back

out, rubbing my temples and shaking my head, confused on why I had not seen it again.

Andrew sighed and said “Look, Kate, I’ll go into there and see if it’s down there.” I shook my

head, and then he said gently and reassuringly, “don’t worry; I don’t think it’ll be down there

anyway.” I hesitated, but then I reluctantly nodded, and he smiled at me confidently. He lifted

the shotgun for me to see, and I stared after him as he disappeared into the woods. For a few

minutes I didn’t hear anything, so I began to feel confident that it hadn’t been real after all. Then

I heard the sound I had been dreading that I thought I would hear for the past five minutes.

Someone let out a blood-curdling scream deep in the woods.

I started to whistle for Sandy, but then I saw she wasn’t there, so I ran into the woods alone

towards the source of the scream. It happened again, and I ran even faster until my feet hurt from

hitting the forest floor so many times. When I reached the place where the scream had come

from, I clapped a hand over my mouth in order not to scream. The first thing I noticed was

something rolling on the ground with Andrew, and I thought it was a boar, but I wasn’t sure.

53

When they paused for a moment, I saw that it was a lot bigger than an ordinary boar. After I

recovered from my shock of seeing that it was a boar, I saw to my extreme dismay that it was

tearing into Andrew’s shooting arm with its razor sharp tusks. I got a brief glimpse of its eyes –

they were the color of blood and its teeth were as a sharp as a blade. Andrew shrieked in pain

and I saw him thrust his hand into his pocket desperately with his good arm. He must have seen

me before because he pulled out the shotgun, threw it towards me, and then he locked eyes with

me for just a moment before he was back rolling around on the ground with the monster boar.

I understood what he wanted me to do, and I snatched up the shotgun. I fumbled to get the

gun in the right position, but when I did and pointed it to where they were rolling, I had a slight

worrying feeling I would shoot my colleague. I hesitated for a minute, just a minute, and when I

saw the boar begin tearing into his shoulder, and then into his other arm, all I could do was stare

in horror. He screamed louder than anyone I knew could ever scream, locked eyes with me

again, and screamed out the words “SHOOT IT!”

With trembling hands, I pointed it straight at the boar’s heart, and fired. It buried itself deep

in the boar’s chest, and then when it finished shrieking in pain and stumbled towards me, tusks at

the ready, I pointed it again at the pig’s head and shot it dead. It collapsed on the ground with a

resounding THUD, and I ran over to Andrew who lay motionless on the ground, pale. When my

gaze traveled from his face down to his arms and shoulders, I cringed. His left forearm was torn

open wide so that I could see the bone, and due to the giant gashes in his shoulders, blood poured

out of them.

54

My pity for him was mixed with a bit of frustration for some reason. Based on all of the

other creatures we’ve run into, especially the griffin, why couldn’t a phoenix come along for

once? As if on cue, I heard the cry of an abnormal bird, and then a magnificent phoenix actually

came swooping down from the trees. I stared at it in awe, as its wings were tinged with gold,

while the rest of it was the color of the flames of a fire.

It bent down to Andrew’s right arm first, his shooting arm, and a single tear dropped from

its eye and landed on the gash in his forearm. As I watched in amazement, the gashes in his arm

and shoulder sealed, leaving nothing more than a small scar where they had been only seconds

before. It moved over to his other arm and it did the same thing, leaving only a miniature red scar

where the gashes had been. I wanted to hug the phoenix tightly and thank it, but I knew it

couldn’t speak.

“There you are, my dear, he will be just fine now, and he’ll wake in a few moments” the phoenix

said, and to my shock, it was my mother’s voice, but not my stepmother, my real mother that had

died and before that had cared and cherished me as her daughter.

“M-mom?” I whispered, reaching out a trembling hand, and the phoenix nodded. “Mom!” I

repeated, much more loudly, and I embraced the phoenix tightly. It wrapped its wings around me

and nuzzled my head affectionately. I was aware that I was crying, but I didn’t care, I kept

holding on to my mom/phoenix tightly as if to never let her go.

“Honey,” it whispered, drawing me away gently, “I’m so, so sorry about what happened. I’m

sorry that I died, but you know I couldn’t help it.” It brushed my tears away with a wing and I

pressed it to my face, inhaling her scent of pine trees. For a moment I was back at two years old,

55

sleeping soundly in my mother’s arms curled up while she slept in the rocker holding me. “I

must go now; there is another person out in the real world that needs healing.”

I didn’t want to let her go, I wanted her all to myself, but I knew she had to heal other

people, so I dropped my arms reluctantly. She smiled at me and said before flying away,

“Remember, if you need healing or if your friend here needs it again,” she said, gesturing at him

with her wing, “only whistle and I will be there immediately.” She brushed her comforting,

gentle wing across my face one last time, and then I watched her go until she was no more than a

speck in the bright blue sky.

Ӂ

I continued to stare after her, and even when I heard Andrew sit up and groan behind

me, I didn’t avert my gaze. I heard a dull thump behind me, and then I felt a gentle hand on my

shoulder. Still, I did not turn; I just sat there in shock, staring at the place where my mother had

been. “Kate, are you okay?” Andrew whispered gently behind me, rubbing my shoulder with his

fingertips. When I didn’t respond, I heard him stand and suddenly there he was in front of me,

staring at me. Using his thumb and index finger, he put his fingers under my chin and lifted my

face up to meet his. “I know it was probably a shock to you to have to use the gun, but…” he

didn’t finish, because I wasn’t even listening.

56

Finally, after several minutes of sitting there staring, I said while a single tear rolled down my

cheek “It – it was my m – mom. S-she was the phoenix that came, a – and she – she…” I didn’t

finish because I broke down in tears again, and he brushed them away with his finger.

“I’m sorry, Kate, really I am” he said while I rocked back and forth on my heels crying like a

little girl.

When my tears ceased from flowing, I said quietly, “it’s fine, there’s nothing to be sorry about. It

was just a-just an amazement to see her.”

“I know, Kate,” he whispered, stroking my hand with his thumb, “I know…”

Chapter Eight

The Nightmare Before Chaos

57

t was nearing noon the next day, and I was still in shock from seeing my mother. Sandy

kept trotting up next to me, licking my hand; I didn’t pay her any attention. In the

beginning, at work, I had thought I could accomplish this mystery easily, but now I

wasn’t so sure. I was sick and tired of running into things that either: 1. Make me break down in

tears, 2. Things that want to eat us for a snack, turn us into a puddle, or kill us just for the sake of

killing us, and 3. Come to give us a warning that something wants to kill us. Take your pick, and

if you choose number two as your answer to the question ‘which one happens next?’ you are

correct! What was it that we ran into you ask? Well, you’ll know in only a few seconds from

right now while I’m telling you this.

I

So there we were, just walking through the woods while I hoped more than anything we

wouldn’t run into anything else. Suddenly something big and apparently bad-tempered dove past

us, and that jolted me out of my shock. For a moment I thought it was another phoenix, but it

came again and with dismay I realized what the creature was.

It was actually a real live dragon.

I ran back in the direction we had come in, Andrew and Sandy on my heels. I heard trees falling

over and heat scorched my skin. Well, that was just great; I had just found out that we had a fire-

breathing dragon following us, so, huzzah.

58

“You know this would be a good time to bring out your shotgun!” I yelled back as I ran even

faster.

I heard fumbling and then “I dropped it somewhere back there!”

Well, that was just great. I picked up a large stone and hurled it at the dragon, aiming for its

mouth. Unfortunately, I only succeeded in making it angrier. I heard more trees crashing and this

time flames licked my jeans but I kept running. To my relief I spotted a strong-looking cave

about ten yards away from us, so I pointed to the cave and ran even faster.

When I was close enough to the cave, I leaped into it and crumpled on to the floor. I saw my

companions were still pretty far away, and to my horror, I saw that the hem of Andrew’s pants

leg was entangled on a branch and Sandy was trying in vain to get the branch off. The dragon

was nearing them and it shot out another burst of white-hot flame. I ran out to their aid and

struggled to untangle his pants leg from the branch.

I spotted a jagged rock shaped like a knife and snatched it off the ground. I beat at the

branch frantically until it splintered and fell off. I grabbed his hand and together this time we ran

for the cave. I leaped into it once more pulling him with me, and Sandy followed, landing safely

on the ground on her feet. Seemingly the dragon couldn’t see that well because it halted, looked

around, snorted, and then stomped off in the opposite direction.

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I took a small step back without looking and suddenly there was no longer ground under

me. I tumbled screaming down the hole, but Andrew leaped up and grasped my hand. He

clenched his teeth together in an effort to make sure he didn’t fall down the hole as well. Sandy

came over, took the back of his shirt in her teeth, and began to pull. With effort from them and

me, we managed to pull me up on to stable ground.

“Um, I, uh, well thanks” I muttered, brushing off my pants legs. I felt him staring after me

as I sat down a few feet away from him and began to attempt to start a fire. Finally when I was

just about to give up, he came over and gently pried the stones from my hands. I huffed and

expected to see him embarrass himself, but on the very first try he started a fire.

He handed the stones back to me, smiled at my confused face, and patted the ground next to

him for Sandy to come over. She obeyed, sat down, and put her ears back as he petted her head.

After a few hours of petting her, first Andrew fell asleep with his hand still on Sandy, and then

she fell asleep with her head on his lap. The sight softened my heart a bit and I stretched out next

to them. It had never taken so long for me to fall asleep though, and when I did, I didn’t sleep

soundly at all.

Ӂ

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As for the nightmare that I had that night, it was the worst I had ever had. I was walking

through an old broken down mansion with Andrew and Sandy behind me. I told Sandy to go

back and keep guard at the door, and she obeyed, so then it was only him and me. We were

walking, just walking and exploring, but then I heard a yelp from behind me. The floor was

breaking apart, revealing two enormous green eyes with slits for pupils.

Everything else that was surrounding it was as black as obsidian, so I couldn’t see anything.

To my fright, it reached up two tentacles, and first it wrapped one around Andrew. Before it

pulled him down, I heard its voice hiss in my head – First I shall take the one you will grow to

love. It pulled him downward towards its supposed mouth; I heard screaming, a wet crushing

sound, and then silence. Then it reached up one for me, but I danced out of its reach. I yelled for

Sandy, but after a while I began to tire from jumping back and forth dodging the tentacles.

Finally, Sandy appeared, but I tripped and fell downwards towards the expectant eyes.

I screamed as I fell, I felt it wrapping its tentacles around me, and then everything was

dark.

Ӂ

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I sat bolt upright, sweat pouring off of my forehead. I placed a clammy hand to my heart,

breathing in and out slowly to try to calm myself. After I had calmed down, I silently stood and

walked over to the hole about a yard away from me. I peered down it, trying to make out

something, but when I couldn’t, I walked back over to the bags, fished around for a flashlight,

and found one. I switched it on, grabbed a rope, and walked back over to the hole. I threw the

rope down the hole and shone the flashlight down it.

My breath caught in my throat as I saw that there were ancient-looking stairs and a platform

a few yards below me. I started to slide down the rope but then I saw my not-dead partner above

me, hair tousled and lips curved upward in a smile. “You think you’re going down there by

yourself?” he asked, still grinning. I sighed, pondered over whether I should take him or not, and

then nodded. I clicked my tongue for Sandy, and she came bounding over.

He shoved the gun in his pocket, nodded at me, and I proceeded in climbing down the

rope. When I reached the bottom, my feet gingerly touched the platform, and then I gently

dropped on to it. It wobbled and creaked for a moment, and I froze in my tracks. It finished

creaking and I let out the breath I had been holding. I shone the flashlight up, illuminating

Andrew’s face. He nodded again and slipped down the rope with ease. I placed a hand on his arm

and said “careful of the boards, they’re very old, and I don’t want it falling out under me or you.”

“All right” he said, placing each foot carefully. So then we began walking through the building,

and at first I didn’t know where we were, but then I recognized the walls, the floor boards, the

spider webs lining the walls. It was the mansion from my nightmare, and that meant that the

62

same monster might be here. This time, I didn’t send Sandy away; I kept her with me, just in

case.

Just like in my dream, I heard a yelp behind me, and I turned to find the floorboards

collapsing between me and him. I threw out my hand, he grasped it, and with every bit of

strength I had in my body, I yanked him over as he jumped. When he was on the right side, we

ran faster than we had ever run. The very same tentacles as in my dream punched through the

floorboards as we ran, and once one wrapped around my leg. Andrew whirled around, grabbed

my hand, and shot the tentacle with his pistol.

I heard a shriek and then the tentacle dropped away from my leg, allowing me to run. We

finally reached what I thought was the second floor, it may have been a different one, and we

stopped for a moment to catch our breath. He leaned against a wall, but it collapsed under his

weight. He scrambled away from it, right into me. I grunted and pushed him back up to a

standing position. He sighed and leaned against another wall, and this one didn’t collapse under

him. No, it didn’t collapse; it did something much, much worse.

Chapter Nine

The Vicious Vines

63

hat happened next terrified me. All he did was lean against the wall, and

more tentacles, no; vines slithered out of the wall. My eyes grew wide and I

pointed frantically at the walls, and he raised an inquiring eyebrow at me.

The vines snaked around his feet, tied them together, and then wound around his legs. The vines

also pinned them to the wall, and continued to slither up his body. He screamed, reached out a

hand to me, eyes wide, and I seized it. I pulled, but to no avail. I shouted for Sandy, but when she

didn’t come, I whistled for Mom. As I was waiting, I recalled the words I had heard in my dream

– First I shall take the one you will grow to love. I shook my head violently, closing out the

thought. No, I would not let a few vines take away my friend. In a few moments, she came

swooping in and settled on a board. “What is it dear?” she asked, cocking her head. She noticed

me holding Andrew’s hand, trying to pull him away, and the vines encasing him. “Oh my” she

murmured, flying over.

W

“Mom!” I yelled. “Help us, please!” She nodded, flew over and began to tear at the vines with

her talons, but that did absolutely nothing. My other hand grabbed his elbow and I tugged as hard

as I could. The vines wound around one of his arms, and I knew the one I was holding would be

next. I was right. They snapped like a whip onto his arm, and enveloped that one also. The vines

neared my hand, and not wanting to be like him, I let go of his hand.

He shouted for Sandy, and then as if not wanting him to speak, the vines wrapped around

his mouth in a make-shift gag. He locked eyes with me, and I saw that they had a pleading glint

in them. I saw a blinding flash, and suddenly, to my extreme amazement, my mom was standing

64

next to me in human form. She had glistening white wings on her back, and forgetting about my

plant-covered partner, I flew into her arms.

“Katy, honey, I can only occupy this form for a couple of months, maybe more, but I saw how

hard you were trying, and I just had to be in this form.”

I nodded, tears streaming down my cheeks, and then I whirled to help him more, but I was too

late. The vines had completely covered him, eyes and all, and for a moment his eyes didn’t open.

Then they did, but I didn’t like what I saw. When his eyes opened they were the same as the eyes

in my dream, emerald green eyes and black slits for pupils. When it stuck out its tongue, it hissed

and I saw it was a snake’s tongue instead of a human tongue.

I ran backwards into Mom, and she caught me in her arms. Sandy came bounding down the

stairs finally, panting and tail wagging. She saw the monster that had been Andrew a few

minutes ago, and leaped on to him/it. The thing shoved her away so that she yelped and

crumpled into a pile below a wall. I had had enough of this so I stomped over to it and punched it

as hard as I could in that green nose of its. “Hey, vines!” I shouted, punching it again.

For a moment its face flickered back to my colleagues’ and I saw that he was in pain, but I

couldn’t tell if it was from me punching him or from the vines on his body squeezing him. “What

do you think you’re doing?! Huh? Picking on a dog, is that it?!” I screamed. For a second I saw

its confusion, and I took the chance that was in my reach. “Well I’ve got news for you buddy! If

you want to pick on someone, pick on someone your own size!”

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It hissed and stepped over to me, raising a vine-covered fist. I punched it in its gut and it

doubled over, clutching where I had punched it. While it was doubled over and in pain, I grabbed

the gun and smashed it as hard as I could on its ugly head, praying that I didn’t kill Andrew

when I did that. “You’re pathetic, you know that? You – should – really – learn – how – to –

punch – people!” I shouted, and with every word I beat on it more until it collapsed on the

ground and the vines slithered away.

When the vines slithered away, I knelt next to the normal form of him and touched the blood

caking his hair. I shook him and yelled into his ear, but his eyes didn’t open. I grabbed a water

bottle and dumped it on his face, but he didn’t move an inch. I groaned in frustration, slapped his

face, and that time he sat bolt upright.

“Ow!” he complained, rubbing first his cheek where I had slapped him, and then he gingerly

touched the goose egg on his head. “Did you do this?” he asked, a glint of amusement sparking

in his eyes.

“Um, well I, uh, I – I had to do it!” I snapped, stomping my foot, completely forgetting about the

rickety wooden floorboards. It caved out from under me, Mom leaped out to grab me, but

Andrew got there first despite his aching muscles where I had punched him. Unfortunately, my

hand was sweaty at the moment, so my fingers slipped out of his, and I fell screaming down the

dark hole where something probably was waiting for its daily snack.

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I continued screaming as I fell downwards faster, faster, and faster still until I hit something

solid. The fall had knocked the breath out of me, so I just stayed like that, spread-eagled, on what

I hoped and assumed was the floor and not the back of some monster. I heard my partner and

Mom screaming my name, but I couldn’t answer them since I still didn’t have my breath back. I

groped around for my flashlight, and when I found it, I switched it on and shone it in the

direction of my fall.

When I got my breath back, I screamed in my loudest voice “Here! Come down here! I’m

right here, on the floor!” I saw a tiny black speck against the glow of my flashlight, and then a

rope came down, ending at least a yard above me. “I can’t reach it!” I screamed, even louder.

Then I heard the hissing of someone coming down the rope, and after a few minutes of waiting, I

saw Andrew at the end of the rope.

He paused, studied the distance between him and the ground, and then he jumped. He landed

on all fours, and then he winced in pain. “What’s wrong, did you break your wrist or

something?” I demanded, rising to a sitting position.

“Yeah,” he groaned, rubbing his wrist tenderly, “I think I may have broken my wrist when I

jumped.”

Dread filled my body and I crawled over to him. I focused the beam of my flashlight on his

wrist, and gasped when I saw it was beginning to turn purple. “Oh, Andrew, I think you did

break your wrist.” I whispered, shaking my head.

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“Great,” he grumbled, “just what we need in a situation like this one.” He paused for a moment, I

assumed he was pondering over something, and then he asked in a quiet voice “are any of your

bones broken?”

I stood easily, and then I rubbed my wrist to check. “Nope, there are no bones broken over here.”

“Okay,” he said, taking my hand with his own good one, “here’s the plan. First, you climb up the

rope to the top, and I’ll try to give you a boost up to it. Then, I’ll go another way if I can find

one, and maybe I’ll meet up with you some place.”

I was fine with the first part of the plan where he expected me to climb up the rope, but I wasn’t

about to allow him to go on his own through this place. I shook my head defiantly just like I did

when I was at work and snapped “No, you’re not going through this place on your own, I won’t

allow it!”

“Kate, listen to me,” he argued, holding up his bad wrist, “how am I supposed to climb that rope

with this wrist of mine?”

I thought about it for a moment, and then the light bulb blinked on in my brain. “I’ll tie it around

your waist, and after I finish climbing to the top, we can pull you up that way!”

To my dismay, he shook his head defiantly as I had done and said softly “No, Kate, it’d be better

if I went on my own, that way I might discover something and not have you get hurt, okay?” I

shook my head, crossing my arms, and his gaze softened. “Look, just please let me go on my

own” he pleaded. I glared at him, irritated, but when I could no longer paste the glare on my

face, I sighed and let it slip.

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“Fine,” I snapped, turning away, “go then, I don’t care.” My voice broke, and he placed a hand

on my elbow.

“Kate, I…” he started, but I shrugged his hand off.

“No,” I hissed, climbing the rope, “just, please, don’t say anything.”

I saw that his expression was a mixture of hurt and disappointment, but I didn’t care at the

moment. I continued climbing until I reached the top where Sandy and Mom waited patiently.

When Mom saw that I was okay, she embraced me in a tight hug, kissed my cheek, and then

drew back. I forced a smile on to my face and said flatly “Hi Mom.”

“Oh, sweetie, I’m so happy you’re okay” she said, beaming. Then she frowned though, and

asked “where’s your friend? Oh, he didn’t break any of his bones did he?”

I nodded, and said “Yeah, he broke his wrist but I think that’s it. I offered to tie a rope around

him and pull him up but he wanted to go on his own, so…”

Mom gasped and placed her fingers over her mouth when I said that he broke his wrist, but I

shook my head, pasting a reassuring smile on my face. “He’s fine, he, um, he just wanted to

explore this place a little” I muttered, walking away down the unstable stairs. Sandy dashed after

me, wagging her tail and barking enthusiastically. I stalked past her, so she put her ears back and

whined like she always did when she thought something was wrong. She was a pretty smart dog,

and it turned out that there was something wrong: with me. I was angry but a little saddened at

the thought that Andrew was going through this house or whatever it was on his own. Besides,

think about what had happened just a few minutes ago with the plants!

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While I was lost in thought, I nearly fell through an opening in the stairs, and you can guess

what the result of that would be. I gasped, flailed my arms to try to catch myself, and Sandy took

the back of my shirt in her teeth. She pulled backwards, and I was once again on sort of stable

ground. “Thanks girl,” I murmured, rubbing her head. She rewarded me with a lick on my arm

and a wag of her tail. I just had to smile at that and Mom beamed when she saw me smiling.

“Why, Kate, I haven’t seen you smile since before I, er, went away” she said, still smiling wide

from ear to ear.

I opened my mouth to say that I wished she would have been there before when I was

smiling, but I changed my mind, so I clamped it shut. “Oh look dear, there’s a door” she said,

pointing to a metal door. Now, I know what you’re going to say: What in the world is a metal

door doing in a wooden house? But it was a pure metal door alright, rusty hinges and all. I took

an eager step towards it, but then I paused with my fingers hovering over the 19th century looking

door handle.

What if there was something that wanted to eat us for an entrée inside that room? I pushed

the ridiculous thought out of my head and threw open the door, holding my breath. Nothing was

inside, only more mouse droppings, dead flies, and dead moths cluttering the windowsill. I

coughed at the reek of the mouse droppings and stepped inside the room. After we strode into the

room and looked at our surroundings, I heard a loud slam behind me. I swiveled around just in

time to see the door slam shut with a small creak added to it.

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Mom and Sandy were right next to me though, so I didn’t feel the least bit afraid or uneasy.

I placed each foot carefully, making sure that I didn’t cause a hole in the floor. After we had

inspected every nook and cranny that there was in the room, and then when we didn’t find

anything shocking or frightening, we settled down on the filthy ground, covered in dirt and

grime. We had been lying there for a while, probably at least a few hours, and then I whispered

“Mom, are you awake?”

I heard a shuffle, and then “Yes, Katy, I’m awake. Why, do you need something?”

“No,” I whispered back, blinking several times, “I just wanted to say I, um, I missed you a lot

Mom. I’m glad you’re back, but I know you can’t stay forever.”

“Oh, sweetie, I missed you a lot too, but like I said, you know there wasn’t anything I could do”

she said softly, and I felt her fingers close over mine.

I nodded, but then remembering it was dark, I said quietly “Yeah Mom, I know you couldn’t

help it. I’m happy I’m seeing you again though, even if this is the last time I’ll see you.”

“Good night sweetie. Sweet dreams” she murmured, keeping her hand on mine.

I turned over on to my back, closed my eyes, and whispered “Good night Mom. I – I’ll see you

tomorrow.”

Chapter Ten

We Meet The Worst Man In the World

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had gotten used to things like it, but this was ridiculous. My eyelids snapped open at a

sudden creak in the dead of night. I listened carefully, and then I heard it again. The hairs

on the back of my neck stood on end, and then the door creaked slowly open, so I curled

up in a ball, wanting to close my eyes, but I couldn’t. A shadow appeared on the floor, and I

whimpered in fright. “Is – is that you A-Andrew?” I whispered, and it came out in a squeak.

Next, a dark silhouette appeared in the doorway, and I screamed, because towards the top of its

supposed hood, there were two small glowing yellow orbs, but no other facial features. I heard

Mom sit upright, she screamed, and then that woke up Sandy.

I

She growled, barked, and the silhouette backed up, but not fast enough. She tackled it,

whatever it was, and it collapsed to the ground in a heap. I slipped over, hesitated, and then threw

back the cloth. I expected to see some sort of monster, like a skeleton or something, but there

was absolutely nothing inside, only emptiness. I quivered from the fright and shock of seeing

something that alarming, and Mom enveloped me in her comforting arms.

I felt like a little girl again, sleeping in her arms comfortably, being able to feel wanted,

cherished, and safe. “It’s okay, Katy, it’s all right” she murmured, kissing the top of my head and

running her fingers through my hair. I stayed like that for at least five minutes, maybe more,

because I didn’t want to leave the comfort of Mom’s arms. Eventually, I pulled away from her

embrace and after much staring at the ceiling, I finally fell asleep, but it seemed like only

seconds before I was woken up again by Sandy rubbing my face with her wet nose.

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I chuckled quietly, and sat up with a groan. I was sore from the day before, even though I

had no clue why I was. “Good morning, Kat. I know you’re probably hungry, but we need to get

going okay?” mom asked, smiling at me. At the word ‘Kat’, I nearly broke down in tears because

of the wonderful but sad memories of her tucking me in to bed, or her reading a story t o me, and

she would always call me ‘Kat’.

I forced the tears threatening to show themselves back and said as calmly as I could “morning

mom, how’d you sleep last night?”

“I slept fine dear” she said, yawning widely and stretching. While her mouth was open in a

yawn, and I don’t think she meant to, but she let out a sudden quick belch. “Oh my!” she cried,

covering her mouth while her cheeks grew pink from embarrassment. I had to clap a hand over

my mouth to keep from laughing out loud, but a snort and a giggle escaped. Shortly after they

escaped, I found myself laughing hysterically right along with Mom.

I wiped the tears from my eyes after I was no longer being seized by giggles, and declared “We

should get going if we want to find a way out of here.”

“Alright honey, let me get my things real quick” she said, kissing me on the cheek with those

ever – so – soft lips of hers. I nodded quickly and turned towards the door, whistling for Sandy.

She came bounding out of another door, with a large, no, a very la rge bone in her mouth.

“Hey girl, where’d you get that from, huh?” I asked, raising my eyebrows at the size of the bone.

She barked, turned, and trotted off in the direction that she came from as if to say C’mon then,

follow me if you want to see. I followed her, quiet as a mouse, and the door that she had come out

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of creaked open noisily. I glared at the door, and when I stepped into the room, my breath caught

in my throat. On the wall were chains, and very rusty chains at that, but they had human

skeletons dangling from them.

I turned to step back out of the door, but when I reached for the knob, it slammed shut right

in front of me, and there wasn’t even a breeze blowing yet. Sandy wound her tail around her

legs, but then she stood upright almost robotically and the hair on the back of her neck stood up

straight. I turned for a split second, but then I heard a sudden yelp and I whirled back around just

in time to see a cage form around my dog.

Then, when I looked at my feet, I saw chains, the same ones as on the wall, curving around

my ankles. I leaped away, but then I saw chains coming out of the wall straight for me, and I

dove to the side, the manacles narrowly missing my wrist. “Who are you, or what are you?” I

screamed into the room. I was surprised to find that the laughter that echoed through the house

and the room was human, but I knew for a fact that it wasn’t Andrew’s or Mom’s laughter. For

an example, have you ever heard someone laugh, and then have it sound like they wanted to kill

you for the fun of it? If you have, you know what I mean when I say it sounded like that.

“I do not think that is necessary at the moment, do you girl?” it said in a dangerously calm

voice.

“Yes, actually I do think it’s necessary, so tell me your name,” I paused, and then forced out the

word “please” as politely as I could.

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“No” the voice said simply, as if that was an answer he gave people regularly.

“I mean it,” I growled, “tell me your name, now!”

“Or what?” the voice sneered. “What will someone as helpless as you do to me when you don’t

even know where I am?” When I didn’t answer, it continued, “you don’t even know who I am,

and besides, I have your little friend here locked up right behind me.”

Now, I’m not one for begging at all, but this was an emergency, so I had to since it was the only

choice. “Please,” I beseeched, clasping my hands, “just give me a chance, I’ll do whatever you

want.”

For a moment there was silence, and I hoped more than anything they were considering what I

had said. Then, “alright, girl, only one chance, but if you fail me, or if you betray me even once,

I’ll…”

I held up a hand, forced a reassuring smile on to my face, and said calmly “let me guess, you’ll

kill me, or chop me into bits, or lop my head off, or throw me down a pit, or feed me to

something ugly and horrible, am I right?”

“Just come see me on the floor that’s one above where you are, and it’s the door on the far left,

the last door” it said with a bit of annoyance.

The cage disappeared, the bodies went away, and the door swung open in front of me. I bolted

out of the room as fast as I could, and ran right into Mom. “Katelyn, young lady, you had me

worried sick!” she shrieked, hugging me tightly.

“It’s okay Mom, but we have to go to the floor above us, like, right now” I said, rushing out the

door and up the stairs leading to what I hoped would be the door. After a lot of climbing, I put

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my hands on my knees and panted, completely out of breath. I saw the door that I thought the

man on the microphone had been talking about, and it was a navy blue color with two obsidian

black knobs, right next to each other. I turned each one, held my breath with Mom’s comforting

hand on my shoulder, and opened the door.

Ӂ

Well, that was something I didn’t expect in a house like this. Adorning the walls were old-

looking black-and-white photos of people (the guy’s friends maybe?), and in one corner of the

room was an old gray comfy chair. I glanced at a corner of the ceiling and saw a coo-coo clock

hanging there, and finally, I dared a look at the man who had a knife at Andrew’s throat. He was

about as old as Mom, so he looked to be about in his forties, but he had a few flecks of gray hair

on his head.

Just like Andrew had had when I first met him at work, the man’s hair was slicked back,

and I wasn’t surprised to find him in a totally black suit, as in no white or other color

whatsoever. “Ahhh, girl, I see that you followed the orders that I gave you in the room. Yes, very

good indeed. It is especially good for your friend here” he drawled, pressing the knife farther

into Andrew’s neck, drawing blood, all the while with a smirk on his face.

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“Now, tell me your name” I snarled, taking a step towards him.

The man groaned in irritation and snapped “Fine, my name is Stanley, and if you remember

before you came on this journey, a person gave a polite girl a call about, ah, strange noises.” I

nodded, and he continued “that was me who sounded frightened on the phone. I was the one who

gave that phone call; I was the one who made you come out here so I could see just how brave

you really were.”

I opened my mouth to scream “that’s the only reason you made us come out?” but he held

up his hand and said calmly “you see, girl, I made all of those things happen, the pixies, the

griffin, and the creature that terrified you at the start” he said. “As for the voice in the beginning

of your journey when you first entered the woods, that was me, and I have a great talent of

throwing my voice if I have to.”

“Oh yeah,” I screamed, so angry my hands were in fists and I was shaking violently, “what about

the owl, huh? What about Cecil, the owl that tried to help us? There was no way that was you;

you wouldn’t even help one of your own family members, because you’re a monster, that’s what

you are!” His face grew red, and he pressed the blade hard into Andrew’s neck, creating a small

cut where blood trickled from, but I wasn’t finished yet. “You just proved to me that all monsters

are animals, because you are one! You are the absolute most horrible thing that ever existed,

because you only kill people for the fun of it, don’t you? Don’t you? ANSWER ME!” I

screeched, shaking my fist at him, so enraged that tears were coming out of my eyes.

“You little demon, I never should have trusted you” he growled, taking my partner’s hand and

forcing it on to the table. I knew what was going to happen, and this time when I screamed, it

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was out of alarm. He yelled, a triumphant yell, and drove the knife straight through Andrew’s

hand.

Ӂ

I could only stare in revulsion as Andrew howled in agony and Stanley kept driving the knife

blade into his hand until cherry red blood was drenching the knife blade and staining the table.

“No, stop!” I screamed, but the other man just ignored me, and maybe he got tired of his hand,

because he grabbed Andrew’s hair, forced his head back, and brought down the knife, and it was

headed straight for his neck. Before Mom or Sandy could stop me, I flew forward and somehow

managed to wrench the knife from Stanley’s hand. “Mom,” I shouted, fighting tooth and nail

with the man, “now might be a good time to change into a phoenix don’t you think?!”

I heard a series of grunts, and then “I can’t! Not with him here so close!”

“All right, fine then!” I yelled. “Make Sandy attack him then!” I heard whispering, and then

Sandy dove past me right into Stanley. He screamed in pain as Sandy raked his face with her

claws, and she finally let off, leaving him rolling around on the floor clutching his face. “Run!” I

shrieked, grabbing Andrew by his good hand, and then when he gasped, I remembered his

broken wrist. “Sorry” I said, taking his arm and half-dragging him down the stairs. We burst out

of the door at the bottom of the house and ran faster than we had even run. We finally reached a

clearing, and we practically collapsed on the ground. He rolled around on the ground, moaning in

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pain, and I stumbled over to him. “Are you okay?” I whispered, carefully stroking his hand

around the hole where blood still flowed.

He began to nod, but then his eyes rolled back in his head and he fell to the ground with a

dull thump. “Oh no,” I murmured, feeling for the pulse of blood in his neck, but it was

decreasing quickly, “he’s losing too much blood, and if we don’t stop the bleeding, he’s going to

die.”

Mom ripped off a part of her dress and stuffed it in the gaping hole in his hand. “There, I don’t

think that’ll be enough, but it should be good enough until he gets a decent doctor.” I knew we

wouldn’t get back to the city at least for a week maybe, so there was only one thing to do.

“Mom, people used agave cactus thorns to sew things together right?” When she nodded, I

pointed to the agave cactus near us and said, trembling, “I’m going to sew his skin together, and

it’s the only chance that we have where he might survive.” She gasped, covered her mouth, and

then nodded after thinking for a moment. With my hands shaking uncontrollably, I began to sew

it together.

The pain must have awakened him, because his eyes shot open and he screamed “What do you

think you’re doing?”

“I have to do this!” I snapped. “If I don’t you’re going to die because you’re losing too much

blood!” He glared at me for a moment, but then he grabbed a stick, bit down on it, and nodded. I

smiled at him through the tears flowing down my cheeks, and the tears were from fright of the

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thought I could mess up, or not do it right. After what seemed like an eternity, I finally finished,

and Mom hugged me tightly.

“You did great honey, and I’m sure he’ll be just fine” she murmured against my hair, and I

hugged her back. I heard a crunch of feet on dead leaves, and I spun around to face whatever it

was and Stanley stumbled out of the trees, clutching his face still.

“You, girl, are going to die right here, right now, and do not try to plead for your life” he

growled, drawing out a shining silver derringer and pointing it straight at me.

“Don’t kill her! Please!” I heard Mom scream, and I scrambled backwards as he fired. He swore

under his breath and fired again, but this time the bullet was so close I heard the whistle of it as it

sailed past my ear.

“AARGH!” he screamed in frustration. “Hold still you little brat!” Of course, I didn’t obey, I

kept darting back and forth as a rabbit would do if he was being hunted. Once though, a bullet

grazed my arm, while beads of perspiration ran down my face and into my eyes.

He drew razor-sharp knives out of his coat and threw them straight at me. I froze in terror

and the knives didn’t harm me, but they pinned me against a tree so that I couldn’t move. “There,

that should keep you nice and still while I kill you” he sneered, reloading his gun. When he

finished, I whimpered in fright as he pointed the derringer at my heart, and he fired.

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Chapter Eleven

A Wacky Wedding In the Woods

ucky for me, the first two times he aimed and shot at me he missed, and maybe it

was because he was arrogant, I didn’t know. The third time he fired (third times a

charm the saying goes) he didn’t hit me, he hit something else, and he was very

pleased about it. He fired at me again, and to my dismay Andrew leaped up from the ground,

throwing himself in front of me. “No!” he screamed as he ran in front of me. The bullet went

straight into his heart and stayed there while Stanley strutted over, spit on the ground, and hissed

in my ear “I shall no longer hunt you; I did what I wanted to do.” He plucked the knives from the

tree, beamed at me, and walked away as if nothing had happened.

L

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I went to follow him, but Mom placed a gentle hand on my shoulder and whispered “No, Katy,

leave him, there’s nothing you can do.”

“Mom,” I snarled, tearing away from her hand, “he killed my friend, so I’m going to make his

death slow and miserable.” She hesitated, nodded, and I hugged her tightly once more before

running after Stanley. I finally reached him, and he was opening the door to where I had first

seen him. “I’m going to kill you right now, right here, and don’t try to plead for your life” I

growled, bringing out Andrew’s old rusty gun.

“Girl, there is no way that that pathetic thing is going to kill-” he gasped as I fired, and the bullet

went right into his forehead. Disgusted and shaking with a mixture of feelings, I watched him

topple sideways, and he went straight through the floorboards, falling without a sound. When I

was positive he wasn’t going to come back, I raced back down the stairs, through the rooms, out

the door, and to where my companions were. I knelt beside him and stroked his hand with my

thumb.

“Hey,” I whispered when he opened his eyes slightly, “you didn’t have to do that you know. You

didn’t have to take the bullet for me.”

He coughed, smiled up at me weakly and muttered “sure I did, I didn’t want you to die because I

like you a lot.” I was shocked when he said that he liked me, and I liked him too, but I didn’t

want to say it.

“Er, thanks.” I said awkwardly, pressing my hands to his chest to try to stop the bleeding.

“Now that,” he murmured, “you don’t have to do. Just let me pass on, okay?”

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Horrified by his request, I pressed even harder on his chest and shook my head wildly. “No way”

I hissed, gritting my teeth.

He looked at me so sadly and pleadingly tears formed at the corners of my eyes. “Honey,” Mom

whispered, rubbing my back lovingly, “let him go.”

My hands still on his chest, I turned my head towards her and snapped “No, I’m not going to let

him die just because he wants to. He’s my friend, Mom; do you know how hard it is to let your

friend die?” She bit her lip, and then backed away slowly. I turned back to him and his eyes were

closed, but he was still breathing, even though it was slow. I felt his heart pumping faintly under

my hands, until after a few minutes, his heart stopped. I put my head in my hands and rocked

back and forth on my heels, a single tear falling on to the ground.

“I’m so sorry sweetie, really I am” Mom said quietly.

“It-its fine, there was nothing I could do to help him.” Then I had an idea, and it was the only one

I had. “Mom,” I said, turning to her, “can you tell me if you can turn into a phoenix and heal

him?”

“Katelyn, I don’t know if I can–” then she saw the pleading look in my eyes, and she smiled.

“Sure, I’ll try sweetie, I’ll try.” For a few minutes nothing happened, but then she began growing

feathers out of her skin, and her nose grew into a beak. Her toes turned into talons, and her

emerald green eyes turned beady and black. I smiled, Mom smiled back at me, and then she flew

over to where Andrew’s body lay. I held my breath as several tears leaked out of Mom’s eyes

and landed on the hole in his chest. To my delight, it sealed, but for what seemed like an eternity

nothing happened. Mom’s wing stroked my cheek, but then he gasped and his eyes flew open. I

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hugged Mom quickly, kissed her on her feathery cheek, and then I tackled him to the ground

when he sat up.

I embraced him tightly and he sat slowly up again with me still clinging to him. “I like you too” I

whispered in his ear as he wrapped his arms around me in a loose hug.

“Well I’m happier than any man if you like me” he said, chuckling and rubbing my back.

I smiled up at him and we stayed that way for a while, embracing each other. When I turned

around to hug mom again, she had disappeared with a note in her place. Don’t ask me how a bird

can write a note, I don’t know. Here was what the note said though:

My dearest daughter,

I know you will have a happy life with your friend, and I’m sure you know what I mean when I

say that. I left because I know now there is no need for me, so I have gone to the other side of the

world, in Russia, because there are many people there that need me to heal their loved ones.

Remember if you need me, or if you just want to see me, only whistle, and I will be there, no

matter where I am. I love you, and know that I always will, so this is goodbye for a while.

Your loving Mother,

Caryn

I finished reading the note, and smiled through the tears running down my cheeks. “She left,

Andrew, she left to go to help people in Russia” I whispered, and he continued to hold me while

my tears left a spot on his shirt.

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“Don’t worry, Kate, she’ll be back, I know she will” he assured me, but I wasn’t sure that she

would come back. As if on cue, Mom sailed through the trees and landed on a tree stump.

“You were saying dear?” she asked, making a noise that I assumed was laughter. A blinding

flash appeared, and when I looked back, Mom was standing there in human form again, wearing

a dress that looked fit for a wedding.

A wedding?

“Mom!” I shrieked, gently pulling away from Andrew’s hold. “What are you wearing?”

She grinned and said with a glint of humor in her eyes, “The reason I came back was because-’’

she paused, pointed at Andrew, and then said “well, I think I’ll let him ask the question.” He

glared at Mom and she snapped “well, are you going to ask her or not? This is the only time I

will allow you to ask it, so do it.”

“Fine” he snapped back, kneeling in front of me and digging in his pocket. He frowned, but then

after a moment of searching, the frown turned into a small smile of pleasure, and he brought out

a small red velvet box that looked suspiciously like a ring box. I wasn’t prepared for it, but he

asked it anyway: “Katelyn, I, um, love you, so will you, uh, you know, will you become my

wife? Please?”

I wanted to laugh, or cry, I didn’t know, but at that moment, the only thing I could do was nod.

He grinned, launched to his feet, took my left hand, and slipped the ring on to my finger. My

breath increased its pace, for the jewel on the ring was a sapphire, my birthstone. I hugged him

again and Mom squealed with delight. He kissed my forehead and embraced me tightly. “I love

you too Andrew” I whispered, kissing him on his cheek. Sandy barked and I scratched her head

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lovingly. Since there wasn’t a single church around, we chose to make Mom the substitute

preacher.

We joined hands, stared at each other, and she began “Do you Katelyn take this man as your

husband?” she asked, raising an eyebrow. I nodded, and then she turned to him and asked “do

you, Andrew, take this beautiful woman as your wife?” He grinned, nodded, and Mom beamed

happily. She skipped everything else since she didn’t have the holy book and said “I now

pronounce you husband and wife.” He stared at mom expectantly, and then she murmured with a

nervous chuckle “oh, I forgot something didn’t I? All right, you can kiss my daughter.”

He looked steadily into my eyes, smiled tenderly, and kissed me right on my lips, but I

didn’t pull away. Mom clapped her hands and squealed quietly again with delight as I slowly

pulled away from him. “Ok you two, I’m sorry it wasn’t a good wedding but when we get back

to the city you can have one. I promise, and now we should get going if we want to get out of

here” mom said, clapping her hands, whistling, and clicking her tongue multiple times. I stared at

her, wondering what she was doing, and then I heard a loud CRASH as a Pegasus tumbled

through the trees. Yes, I said Pegasus, and don’t ask me what a flying horse was doing in a forest

like this.

“Oh, there you are Susan, I was getting worried” Mom cooed, hugging the Pegasus. “Where’s

your friend though?” The horse neighed, pawed the ground, and then a second Pegasus appeared

through the trees. This one was as black as night, while the other one was a pure white. I slowly

reached out with my hand towards the white Pegasus, and he nuzzled my hand affectionately.

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“Good choice honey, you and Andrew will take that one, and I’ll take the black one” Mom

announced cheerfully, helping me on to the horse.

“Mom, wait, I don’t know how to—” I didn’t get to finish my sentence though because as soon

as my husband climbed on behind me, the Pegasus took off. I screamed in shock, but then my

scream turned from fright to delight. “This is awesome!” I shrieked over the wind, and Andrew

nodded, smiling like a little boy. Mom appeared next to us, beaming at us, and the horses soared

together next to each other with ease. Suddenly an arrow shot up and whizzed just past my ride’s

head and I gasped. I yanked my Pegasus to the left, and once again, we narrowly missed an

arrow.

“Are you okay?” Andrew (well, I guess I should call him my husband now, shouldn’t I?)

screamed into my ear. I nodded, but when I looked to my left, Mom and the black Pegasus were

plummeting towards the ground at a fast pace.

“No!” I screamed, and I leaped off of the Pegasus, leaving my husband on the horse by himself. I

heard him screaming my name, and somehow I landed directly on the Pegasus’s back behind

Mom. “What happened?” I shouted in Mom’s ear, and she shook her head.

“I don’t know, but I think we’re hit!” she shouted back, and as the Pegasus hit the ground we

were launched off of its back, tumbling head over heels.

“Are you okay Mom?” I whispered, struggling to get my stolen breath back.

“Yes, dear, I’m fine, but who shot at us?” she asked, scratching her head.

I was about to say I didn’t know, but then Stanley stepped out of the trees, pointing the very

same derringer at us with the very same smirk on his face. It couldn’t be him though, I watched

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him fall, and I shot him dead, so who was this? As if he read my thoughts, he said “in case you

are wondering who I am, I am Stanley’s twin brother. You must be the little brat who killed him,

am I right?”

I nodded, slowly, and he sneered “good, good, I am overjoyed that I have found you so that I can

kill you.” He pointed the gun at me, and he fired. I dove sideways, but since my hand was out,

the bullet went through my palm, causing a blinding pain. I gasped in pain and curled up in a

ball, clutching my hand when I hit the ground. He strode over and smirked down at me. I glared

up at him, opened my mouth to say something, but then snapped it shut. He jeered “you are not

able to hurt me now girl” and kicked me in the gut, hard. I gasped as the air left my lungs and

continued to stay curled, trying to protect my body.

“Stop it! Please!” I heard Mom scream, and I managed to sit up, but he kicked me again, sending

me back to the ground.

“Silence, woman, you have no say in this” I heard him growl, and he put his filthy boot on my

cheek. He pressed down so my face left an imprint in the moist ground, and with every bit of

strength that I had, I pushed upward. He wasn’t ready for that, so he lost his balance and hit the

ground hard.

I spotted Mom’s high-heeled shoes, and questioned “Mom, can I borrow one of your shoes

please?” She nodded, slipped off her shoe, and handed it to me. I hurriedly kicked my boot off

and slipped on the spike-heeled shoes. The man was beginning to sit up, but I placed my foot on

his cheek, as he had done with me. “It doesn’t feel good, does it?” I snarled, driving the heel into

his face harder so that he whimpered in pain. I let off for a moment and stomped on his foot, so

he howled in pain.

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“Please!” he begged, a terrified expression on his face, “please stop! I-I will do anything!

Anything at all, just please, do not hurt me!”

I refused to fall for his pity act, but when I saw tears brimming in his eyes, I considered what I

should say to him.

“All right, I’ll let you go” I said in a dangerously calm voice, and he smiled brightly. He began to

try to sit up, but I drove the heel of my shoe into his face again. “I’ll only let you go on one

condition.”

“What is that my dear girl?”

“Do you promise not to bother us anymore?”

“Yes ma’am.”

“Do you also promise to never hurt or attempt to hurt anyone ever again?”

“Well I do not know about—“

“Anyone?”

He groaned in irritation, but then he nodded reluctantly, and I slowly let the heel of my shoe off

of his face. “Go,” I snarled, kicking him harshly in the leg, “now, before I change my mind.”

“Yes ma’am, anything you say ma’am” he murmured, bowing as he began to back away. I saw

him reach into his pocket, and then before I could tackle him, he drew his pistol in a heartbeat.

“Oh, you are a foolish, foolish girl. I knew you were stupid, but this is absolutely absurd” he

sneered, taking a step towards me. He fired, missed, and prepared to fire again, but Cecil

swooped out of the trees swiftly, screaming out his haunting cry. I turned away and covered my

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ears, but I still heard the man’s scream as Cecil destroyed him. I heard a gulp after I uncovered

my ears and looked back to the owl who was smiling gently at me.

“Are you all right, my girl?” he asked kindly, brushing his wing across my face.

“Yeah, I’m all right. Thank you for saving us.” I said, smiling at him brightly.

“You have succeeded in your quest, so I am at your aid at any time and any place.” He stretched

his wings, and said “I have a wife and children to look after, so I must go, but remember I will be

at your aid forever.” With that, he let out a cry and soared away gracefully.

I stared after him, the smile still fixed on to my face. “Well,” I breathed, dusting off my hands,

“that was a little strange.” Mom grinned, leaped on to her Pegasus, and I climbed on behind her.

After hours of searching we found Andrew riding the skies with our Pegasus with a worried

expression on his face. When he saw us, he smiled, and gestured behind him to the horse’s rear. I

smiled back, and when we were close enough, I dropped on to the Pegasus, hugging my husband.

I realized how strange that sounded, calling what had once been my friend my husband.

“Are you okay?” he shouted, patting my hand.

“Yeah, for now though, I’ve had enough adventure,” and when he looked at me questioningly, I

added “let’s go home.”

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Chapter Twelve

I Break a Leg (Sort of)

s it turned out, what was happening was the beginning of the end. There we were,

sitting perched on the back of our Pegasus while he floated on the wind currents.

“It’ll still be a few days until we can reach New York City, but if we didn’t have

our Pegasus we’d be traveling on foot” Andrew shouted over the wind. I nodded as I watched the

shimmering golden rays from the sun stretch out from behind a mountain in the distance.

A I stared at the sun whose tip was peeking just above the horizon until it sank below the

mountains, obscured from view. After a few more hours of riding the wind, we descended to the

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ground since the sky was now solid black. Stars dotted the night sky, and a wolf, or maybe a

different creature, howled at the full moon in the midst of the stars.

“It’s so beautiful,” I breathed, laying back, lacing my fingers behind my head and staring at them

through a break in the trees, “I never knew how wonderful, how magnificent they were until

now…”

“Oh trust me,” Andrew whispered, chuckling quietly to himself, “you’ll be seeing a lot of stars

for the next few days.”

“Andrew?”

“Yes, Kate?”

“You know what, never mind, it-it’s nothing.”

“What?”

“I said never mind.”

“I’m curious.”

“No.”

“C’mon, please?”

I groaned in frustration and rolled to face him. He was grinning humorously at me, and I had to

smile back. I forced my expression somber and asked “Did you ever get mistreated or kicked out

by your own family?”

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His expression also turned somber and he said in a soft voice “Yes, Kate, if you really want to

know, I did.”

I gasped, placed my fingers over my mouth, and squeezed his hand. “I’m so sorry.” I whispered,

stroking his hand with my thumb.

“It’s all right, it’s not your fault” he murmured, turning over so his hand was no longer in mine.

“Andrew?”

There was a sigh, and then – “Yes, Kate?”

“Why did they kick you out?”

“They didn’t kick me out, I ran away” he said, grunting as he turned over on his side. “I know

you’re going to ask why, so I’ll tell you right now. I ran away for a few reasons actually. For

one, my parents were drunks. As for the other reason, when they got drunk, which was like,

every single day, they lost their temper easy, so they beat me if I did something wrong.” I felt so

bad for him tears were welling in my eyes, but I wiped them away as quickly as they came.

I opened my mouth to say I can’t imagine what that was like, but I heard his breathing go soft, so

I turned over one last time, and closed my eyes tightly. I didn’t get a blink of sleep that night, so

in the morning Andrew stared at me, probably because of the circles under my eyes.

He chuckled but when he saw me glaring at him, he asked in a normal voice “I take it you didn’t

get any sleep, right?” I nodded mechanically and stomped over to my bags. I snatched three

oranges out of the bag; I tossed one to Mom, one to Andrew, and devoured the last one quickly.

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I wiped my hands on my pants and began to get on the Pegasus, but my husband shook his

head. “Give him a day to rest his wings; we wouldn’t want him falling in the middle of the sky.”

I nodded again and scanned the ground for a rope. I spotted one dangling from a tree, an old

looking one, and I strode over to it. I tugged, and then I screamed in fright and disgust because a

seemingly rotted body was attached to that rope. What was horrible about it though was that it

was Molly, the old woman from work that had tried to warn me.

Andrew flew forward and cut the body down from the rope. I shook with shock and he wrapped

me in his arms tightly. I buried my face in his shoulder, trying to block out the memory of seeing

the body, but I couldn’t. “It’s all right, Kate, it’s okay, all it was was a body” he murmured into

my hair, and I wrapped my arms around his waist, pulling him closer. He kissed me on my lips,

and I froze when he did. He had only done that once before, and it left a strange tingle on my

mouth. I opened and closed it like a fish out of water, and then I hugged him again. He stiffened,

unsure what to do, and then he hugged me back. I gently pulled away, and he looked like he

wanted to continue the embrace, but we had to continue if we wanted to reach New York City.

I was sick and tired of running into terrifying or horrifying things. I longed for my

apartment, for my warm, safe bed where nothing could harm me. I knew I couldn’t have it

though, at least not now, but at least I had my dog, my husband and my mother with me. Trapped

inside of my thoughts, I lost my footing and fell forward, arms flailing while I tried to catch

myself. I fell downward and surprisingly went straight through the leaves.

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I landed on the ground at what I thought was a fine position, but when I looked at my ankle,

I choked out a sob. My ankle was bent at an odd angle and it was beginning to turn purple and

black around the base. “Andrew, Mom, somebody, help me!” I screamed, squeezing my eyes

shut against the stabbing pain shooting through my ankle and up my leg.

“Kate, where are you?” Andrew yelled back, and I was so relieved to hear his voice my back

jolted with another sob.

“I’m down here, and I think my ankle’s broken!” I heard feet pounding on the ground above me,

and then he appeared in front of me.

“Katy, are you okay?” he asked anxiously, kneeling by my side and examining my ankle

carefully. He looked at me for permission to touch it, and I nodded, but when he gently picked it

up, I regretted allowing him to handle my ankle. “Oh, Katy, I’m sorry, but your ankle…” he

trailed off, passing a hand over his face.

“Is it broken?” I questioned, breathing slowly through my teeth.

“Yeah, I think it is, but I’m sorry, there’s nothing I can do” he apologized, kissing my forehead. I

sobbed again, this time tears flowed, and I moaned in agony as he wrapped tape around my ankle

and helped me up. When I stood, I wailed in pain and he clutched me tightly, murmuring into my

hair and running his fingers through it. Before, I hadn’t even noticed that he had called me Katy,

and I knew that only my mother called me that. Nevertheless, I cried out as fiery pain shot up my

leg when Andrew wrapped an arm around my middle and I hobbled towards the rope. He kept

crooning “it’s okay, we’ll be up on the ground in a few minutes” but I kept sobbing in agony as

we slowly climbed up the rope.

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“Oh, Kat, are you okay sweetie?” Mom gasped, running over to me and holding me as I cried

into her shoulder. After my tears had brought to an end, I sank on to a log while mom examined

my ankle delicately. “Oh, honey, I think your ankle is broken, but I don’t know how to fix it.”

“Great” I grumbled, resting my head back on to the log.

“Darling, we’ll have to stay here for about a day, or we can ride on the Pegasus, but I don’t know

if he can handle it” she whispered, striding over to the Pegasus and rubbing him between his

ears. He tossed his head, flared his nostrils, and whinnied as if to say Hey, it’s no problem

ma’am, I can hold her easy. Mom looked at me, at the Pegasus, and then back. She sighed and

strode back over to where I lay.

“All right dear, it looks like we’ll have to chance it” she mumbled, helping me up and with

my husband’s help, hoisting me on to my Pegasus. He shook his head, pawed the ground, and

then soared upward towards the sky. We cleared the trees, glided towards the blinding sun, and I

hoped that when we landed again, we would only be a day away from home.

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Chapter Thirteen

A Terrible Tragedy in the Sky

othing went right for me that day. There I was, riding my Pegasus across the

cloudless sky, and thinking all the while about home. Suddenly my Pegasus

began to neigh, and I stroked his mane, thinking that he wanted attention. It just

got worse after that though. For a moment he stopped, but then he started to kick his legs

violently. I dug my heels into his sides harder, hoping to calm him down.

N He dove straight down towards the ground at a frightening speed, and I screamed while we

descended. I glanced behind us, and when I saw what was following, I was unexpectedly glad

that my winged horse was diving down. A bat bared its razor teeth and soared down even faster.

When I say that a bat was following us, I don’t mean your typical small normal bat. This was the

biggest bat I had ever seen, and it might have been the biggest bat in the world. Its wing span

looked to be at least one yard across, and its talons were the size of a chainsaw blade.

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“Go, go, go!” I shrieked, and as if understanding me, my Pegasus soared down even faster, but

so did the bat. I glanced back one more time, and I saw something I hadn’t seen before,

something that turned my stomach with horror.

The bat had human eyes.

I regretted looking back, but as soon as I turned away, I heard the popping sound of a bullet

leaving a shotgun. The bat screamed this time, and as soon as we were close enough to the

ground, I leaped off of my Pegasus, landing on my feet. I ran as fast as my feet would carry me,

but it wasn’t fast enough. I heard the thunder of trees crashing behind me, and broken-off branch

slapped my arm. I had no idea where the shot came from, but I had a small hunch that it had been

Andrew.

I spotted a deep looking hole near a tree, and I leaped into it. I saw a shadow pass over, and

when I was positive it was gone, I slumped back on a rock. I heard a rattling noise that made the

hairs stand up on the back of my neck and immediately I knew what it was. Above all creatures,

I hated snakes the most. I scrambled out of the hole, but when I heard a crashing noise, I knew

the bat was coming back for a second attempt at eating me. The urge to shout for help seized me,

but I fought against it, because then that would only let the bat know where I was.

I frantically searched for another place to hide, but when I didn’t find one, I bolted into the

trees. Finally, I could take it no longer. “Someone help me!” I screamed at the top of my lungs

while I ran for my life. For a few minutes no one came, and my legs felt like jelly after a while. I

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surged on though, desperately wanting to escape the bat. The sound of a pistol firing resounded

through the forest, and I had a suspicion that it had been fired from my husband.

Thank you, Andrew I thought gratefully while my feet flew noiselessly across the ground.

Suddenly, there was no longer the sound of wings beating or trees snapping in two. I placed my

hands on my knees and panted, hard. Just when I thought the bat was gone though, it swooped

out of the trees without warning and its talons clutched my shoulders. When I screamed it was

purely out of fear, because the bat’s claws were digging into my shoulders. Eventually my throat

was raw from screaming, and what was worse, we were headed straight for a tree.

I squeezed my eyes closed, preparing for my body to be crushed against the massive trunk. I

heard a gun fire, and then I felt myself descending, quickly. I kept my eyes squeezed shut, but I

felt my shirt being pulled up. I opened one of my eyes slightly, looked up, and to my relief it

wasn’t the bat holding on to me. The collar of my shirt was pinned between the Pegasus’s teeth

and my husband was straining to reach my arm. I threw it upwards towards his reaching hand but

even when I did that, he couldn’t quite reach my fingers.

I cried out in frustration and with one last boost of energy, threw myself upwards, and

during the split second that I was up there, Andrew somehow managed to grasp my fingers in

his. He grunted when he lifted me up and on to the Pegasus, and I was so relieved that I flung my

arms around him hugged him tightly.

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He was smiling at me when he gently peeled my fingers from his back. I glanced away for

a second, only a second, but when I looked back, his mouth was hanging open slightly, and his

eyes were wide with astonishment. I didn’t know what happened until the next minute, but dread

filled my entire body.

I warily glanced at his back, tears sprang to my eyes, and I had to fight the urge to break

out in a sob. A razor-sharp object, most likely a talon from the bat, protruded from his back. I

leaned back to my original position, and he placed a shaking hand on my shoulder. He weakly

smiled at me, and I cupped his face in my hands, not being able to form words, so instead just

shook my head, horrified. The blood that trickled from the corners of his mouth went down his

chin, and he whispered wetly “I love you, Kate.”

I opened and closed my mouth, and my lips formed the word “no” several times, and tears

pushed at the backs of my eyes, begging to be let loose. He tucked a strand of hair behind my

ear, and opened his mouth to say something, but before any noise came out, he calmly as ever

fell off of the Pegasus’s hide.

“NO!” I screamed, the tears now flowing uncontrollably down my cheeks, only being able to

watch as he fell down, faster, faster now. Then through the clouds, I saw that there was

absolutely no solid ground beneath us. That could only mean one thing. He was falling through a

crevice in the earth. Mostly blinded by tears, I forced my Pegasus down, but he wouldn’t go. I

tried several times desperately, but it would not go.

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I broke out in loud, hard sobs, burying my face in the winged horse’s mane. He had been

my best friend and my husband, but now he was gone. Images flashed through my mind, most of

them just of his face. The first of them was of the very first day I met him, then of the several

times that I saved him or he saved me. And lastly, the very last words he said to me before he

fell: “I love you Kate”.

Allowing those memories to enter my mind only made me sob harder, and soon I felt

my mother’s warm, gentle touch on my shoulder, but even that did not fill the gaping hole in my

heart.

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Chapter Fourteen

A Mended Then Broken Heart

hen we landed, I was still sobbing. After hours of crying, the tears finally quit

flowing, and I felt that I had no tears left in my body. “Honey, I’m so, so

sorry” I heard Mom whisper while she hugged me tightly. I had spent hours

there in her arms, but when I quit sobbing, I pushed her away slowly.

W“Mom,” I whispered while she wiped the tears from my cheeks, “it’s my entire fault that he’s

dead. If I hadn’t called for help, he wouldn’t have come, and then he wouldn’t be gone now.”

She grabbed me by the elbows and looked me straight in the eye. “Katelyn, you listen to me

young lady, it is not your fault that he’s gone, it was just his time to go, okay?” She paused.

“Well, I have to go check on my other patient, but I’ll be back in a few hours. In the time that

I’m gone though, don’t come over to where I am okay?” she said, kissing me on the forehead and

smiling brightly.

I stared after her in wonder, because what did she mean by her other patient? Shrugging, I

flopped down on a log and put my head in my hands, where I waited for hours. After all of those

hours of waiting, I heard a rustle, and Mom saying “you really want to see her?” After that, there

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came several more rustles, and then Mom’s head popped through a hole in the trees, causing me

to jump.

“Come on over here sweetie, there’s someone I’m pretty sure you want to see” she said,

grinning like a madman. I raised a questioning eyebrow, but she held out her hand, and I took it.

I hoisted myself up on to my feet and walked for what seemed like an hour. “Ok, Katy, just a

second, I have to go do something first” she whispered, planting a kiss on my cheek. I nodded

mutely, and she strode through the trees. After what I think was about five minutes, I saw her

hand poke through the trees.

“Now dear,” came her slightly muffled voice through the trees, “no hugging or anything like

that okay?” I smiled slightly and stepped through the trees to where she was. The moment I saw

what was lying on the ground, my heart stopped in my chest. “This is why you didn’t see me

before you did in the sky. I was making my Pegasus go after him, and I reached him just in time”

I heard Mom’s voice say, but I hardly paid any attention to her.

My husband struggled to sit up, but fell back down with an oomph sound. “Andrew, what’s

wrong? Are you okay?” I asked, alarmed that something happened.

He forced a smile on to his face and said “No, no, I’m fine, don’t worry.” He paused, then said

“Hey, and don’t forget, that if I ever leave you, that I will always be right with you, no matter

what.” Soon after that, when I set my head on his chest, I felt the steady rise and fall of it under

my cheek and heard the pumping of his heart under my ear. I quietly rolled over on to my other

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side, trying to get comfortable. My eyelids grew heavy, and I tried to stay awake, but to no avail,

for a few minutes later, I was sound asleep.

Ӂ

When I awoke, I looked over at Andrew, but he wasn’t breathing. Panicked, I scrambled

over to him, placed my ear to his chest, but there was no heartbeat. “No, no, please no…” I

whispered, horrified. I recalled what he said before he fell asleep: if I ever leave you I will

always be right with you, no matter what. It dawned on me suddenly that maybe he knew he was

going to die, and that he told me that because he didn’t want me to be sad. I placed my hand on

the ground next to him, but for some reason it felt wet. Slowly, I looked down, and I realized I

had placed my hand in a pool of his blood. No tears came; actually, I could only stare at the dead

body of my best friend and husband.

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Chapter Fifteen

The Door in the Tree

hen Mom arrived, I was cradling his head in my lap, staring ahead in shock.

When she realized he wasn’t breathing, she came over and kissed the top of

my head. “Sweetie, its best that he died, otherwise he would have just

suffered more throughout his life.” I could only nod, and finally, after hours, the tears came. My

whole body shook with sobs, and I buried my face in his hair. He had loved me, I had loved him,

and I had hoped to possibly start a family with him, but now he was dead and gone. “Maybe we

should bury him sweetie,” mom suggested, and so we did. I called for Sandy to come dig us a

hole and she obeyed. After about an hour of waiting, she finally dug a pit big enough for his

body to fit in.

W

Mom set him down gently in the hole, and then we shoved the dirt back in it. She told me

that she was going to pack up our things, and after she left, I screamed for Cecil. He immediately

came, and when he saw the grave, his enormous eyes softened. “Oh, my dear, I am terribly sorry

for your loss” he murmured, patting my back affectionately with his wing.

“Cecil,” I said, straightening, “is there any way you can bring him back, even if it’s only for a

day?”

He shook his great head and said softly “No, young Katelyn, there is no possible way. When the

time comes for individuals to pass on, they cannot fight death, and neither can their friend. You

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must let it go and cease to think about it.” I opened my mouth to argue, but decided better of it,

and instead pressed his wing to my wet cheek. I had never realized how soft his wings were until

now, and I buried my face in it. “Oh, there, there, little one, it is not as bad as it seems.”

I looked up at him sharply, and snapped “Not as bad as it seems? Are you crazy? Cecil, he was

my best friend. He wasn’t only that, but he was my husband.”

“I know Katelyn, but as I said before…” his voice trailed off, and, without warning, shot out of

the trees and out of sight.

“Cecil, wait a second, where are you going?” I screamed after him, but he paid no attention to

me. I huffed in frustration, and then kneeled down by my dead husband. I stroked the dirt

directly above where his head lay, and broke down in tears once more. I couldn’t handle his

death, no matter how hard I tried. He had been a dear, dear friend to me, but now he was gone.

After crying for a while, I straightened and stepped over into the trees. I ran as fast as my feet

could carry me back to the clearing where my mother sat awake. “Oh,” I mumbled, “hi Mom.”

“Honey, I’m sorry, I really am, but there’s nothing you can do, and you know it.” I nodded sadly,

and hoisted my bag on to my shoulder.

“Well, are we going to get going or not?” I said, striding away. For a few moments all she did

was stare after me, but then she just shook her head and followed me into the trees.

Ӂ

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My eyes burned for the rest of the day, and they burned most likely because I had been

crying earlier. Mom tried to cheer me up or take my mind off of my loss by cracking jokes or

hugging me. Nothing worked though. Eventually, she just gave up trying and we walked in

silence for the rest of the day and night. If I wanted to eat, or if she wanted to eat, we ate on the

way, not stopping for anything. The only thing that I wanted was to arrive home, crawl in bed,

pull the covers over my head, and try to ignore the gap in my heart.

Sometimes, if we absolutely could not walk anymore, we swung on to our Pegasus’s

backs and flew over the full dark green tree tops. Once or twice, I imagined Andrew walking

behind me, or putting a hand on my shoulder. I turned around every time I imagined those things,

hoping to see him there smiling, but each time it was only Mom or my mind playing tricks on

me. Every time, my heart sank and I sighed heavily. I trudged on; occasionally swinging on to

the Pegasus’s back when my feet got too tired and I couldn’t bear to walk anymore. I specifically

remember that what I saw next I would never forget.

We had been walking for days now, maybe even a couple of weeks, I don’t know, by then

I had lost track of how long we had been traveling. Sandy, my forever-loyal dog, had been

trotting along cheerfully beside me, completely full of energy, but the longer we traveled, the

less cheerful and energetic she seemed to be. Lost in tragic thought of my dead friend and

husband, I didn’t see the tree root sticking up out of the ground. I tripped and balled my hands

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into fists, struggling to catch myself. One of my fists, the left one, smacked a tree and I managed

to keep from falling. One thing I had noticed though while I was falling: the tree was hollow.

Chapter Sixteen

A Glorious Ghost

lowly, carefully, I gently pushed on the part of the tree trunk that had sounded

hollow. It opened with an eerie creeeak and I poked my head inside, but what I found

took my breath away. Before me was an ocean, an ocean that stretched as far as the

eye could see, and it glittered with the sun beating down on it. I paused and slowly looked up,

unable to believe that the sun was shining down with nothing in the way. The trees were covered

with leaves, and they rustled with the slight breeze that was blowing. Apple blossoms were

sprinkled on them, and the beautiful sound of blue birds singing filled the air. Suddenly, a

horrifying thought occurred to me. Was I dead?

S

I pinched and smacked myself several times, just to make sure I wasn’t dead. I looked

around for Mom and Sandy, but I didn’t see them anywhere. Starting to panic, I whirled around

and pounded on the wall that I had supposedly come through. While I was pounding and

screaming out their names, I heard a soft, gentle, beautiful voice behind me. I listened for a

moment, and then I heard it again: Katelyn. I slowly turned around, fearing what I was about to

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see, but instead of causing fear, it caused great joy. Sitting perched on a rock, ever so calmly

with a smile, was my husband, the dead man Andrew Dotson.

He opened his mouth and whispered it again, this time gesturing with his hand “Katelyn, come

here and see your husband.” At first I hesitated, suspecting something was up, but then my vision

began to cloud and everything was focused on him. Mouth hanging open in a trance, I strode

towards him with my arms opened wide for an embrace. His smile, so beautiful, opened wide

into a grin, and he stood, walking towards me also.

When I was only a few feet away, I heard my mother’s voice in my head, screaming “No,

Katelyn! Don’t listen! It’s a syren, it’s not real!” While the intelligent part of me wanted to

follow her orders, the rest of me did not. Picking up speed, I half-ran towards him, but when I

embraced him and drew back, something so petrifying, so hideous appeared in front of me I can

almost not explain it.

At first, I was smiling into his tanned face, but then his skin began to grow pale and

clammy. I didn’t care though; I just wanted to be with him forever and not leave him ever again.

He cupped my face with both of his hands and began to sink backwards into the black lake. He

pulled me down farther, farther now, until both of our bodies were in the water. His eyes began

to grow neon yellow, and his pupils thinned and stretched until they were vertical black slits in

his eyes. His hair grew into blue, filthy long hair with pieces of seaweed dangling from it and

when he grinned again, the teeth were those of a shark.

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My lungs filling with liquid, I struggled with the horrifying creature, trying to detach it

from my face. Knowing that this was completely the wrong choice unless I wanted to drown

myself, I opened my mouth and bit down as hard as I could on the thing’s hand. It screamed a

terrifying scream and let go with both hands, one cradling the other. I took the chance, swam as

fast as I could towards the surface, but I felt something latch on to my ankle, and looked down

just in time to see a strand of seaweed caught on it. At the other end hovered the siren that I had

thought was my dead husband, and it was grinning like this was the most wonderful thing in the

world. It pulled me down towards the bottom of the lake, but I didn’t bother to fight; instead I

only closed my eyes and felt myself lose consciousness.

Ӂ

When I woke up, someone was pushing down on my back and I was spewing out

seawater. I looked backwards and, with a gasp, scrambled back and up, fists at the ready. My

husband, once again, was behind me smiling as if nothing had happened. “What do you want you

freak?” I snarled, backing up slightly.

“Whoa, hey, is that any way to greet your husband, hmmm?” he chuckled, reaching out with his

fingers.

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“Don’t touch me! Or, or I’ll knock you out!” I didn’t want to believe it was actually him, but his

eyes looked so gentle and kind it was hard to resist. “Y-you can’t be here. You’re…dead…” I

whispered.

His eyes darkened a bit and his smile faded. “Yes, Kate, I am extremely dead, and I’m sorry for

that. You and I both know that I could not control that though. Here though, since this is the land

of the dead, I can visit anybody that I want.” He paused, and turned to go.

“Andrew, wait!” I called, a little louder than I had intended. He paused and half-turned back to

me.

“Yes, Kate?”

“W – Will I have any children? Will you visit me?”

He sighed, a mournful sigh, turned back to me and cupped my chin in his hand. I gasped, for his

hand was soft and warm, so lifelike it was hard to believe that it was real. “For the first question,

yes, you will have two children, twins. When they ask about me…” His voice trailed off, and

tears glistened in his eyes. “Just tell them that their father will always love them.” His voice

broke, and a single crystal tear rolled down his cheek onto the sand, the drop shattering on the

ground like glass. My heart softened a great deal, and I hugged him close against me.

His body shook with sobs, and he managed one sentence: “Tell them I’m sorry I couldn’t

be there for them.” After he had quit weeping quietly, he straightened, kissed me once on my

mouth, and began to walk off into the distance; into the sun where I could not see him.

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“Wait!” I screamed after him, and he paused only for a moment. “You didn’t answer my other

question.”

He only smiled and spoke two words that I still ponder to this day when I am old “You’ll see.”

Then he turned and disappeared into the sun rays, never to be seen again.

Ӂ

For the next few minutes I only stared after him, wanting to run after him, call his name,

have him only to myself. I, despite all the things that had happened, smiled. I knew that he was

going to a better place, and just knowing that much washed away most of my grief. I stood,

brushed off my ripped, mud-spattered, reeking (of skunk) jeans, and turned in the direction that I

knew in my heart was home. I paused, considering if I should do it or not.

Finally, making a decision, I knelt on the sandy shore and clasped my hands together. I

had not prayed in quite a while; I had quit believing in Him when he did not answer my prayers

when I begged Him to heal my mother. “Lord, I-I just wanted to thank you for accepting my

husband into your heaven. Please watch over him, and thank you for looking out for us. Amen.”

I straightened and stared out into the distance a while longer, continuing to think about him and

what he had said.

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Before I say anything else, I just want to warn you that I had no idea whatsoever that this

catastrophe was coming up. After only staring out at nothing, I prepared to turn around and make

an attempt to find a door; any door, right then I really didn’t care what door I found. At that very

same moment though someone’s strong iron hands closed around my slender throat, taking me

by surprise.

I struggled to get free, but unfortunately, the harder I tried to break free the tighter the

grip became. A voice that I instantly recognized but took no pleasure in hearing hissed in my ear

“You can run, but you cannot hide little girl. You do, of course, know where you are, do you

not?” Afraid and unable to speak, I shook my head violently from side to side. He laughed; the

kind of laugh that you normally hear when someone wants or is about to kill you, and then he

said in a dangerously soft tone “Why, my dear, you are in the land of the dead, you have entered

our world through the hidden door, the cryptic portal.”

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Chapter Seventeen

Caryn’s Side Of the Story

paced back and forth anxiously, wondering what could possibly be taking Kate so long.

Had she died when she had entered the land of the dead? Had she been knocked out? Had

she drowned? Hundreds of thousands of questions and possibilities soared through my

head, all of them worrying me.

I “Oh, Sandy,” I moaned, rubbing my temples with the tips of my fingers, “why isn’t she

back here yet? She should have returned by now.” In a reply, the noble animal whined and sat

down, her ears flat. Suddenly, just as I was about to turn away, I saw the dog’s ears go straight

up in the air. The hair on her back stood up and she bared her teeth, emitting a deep, threatening

growl.

“Hey there, what’s wrong girl? Do you hear something?” I murmured, scratching the dog’s

head but nevertheless glancing around uneasily. Stepping forward cautiously, I pressed the side

of my face to the tree trunk that Katelyn had supposedly fallen through, and screamed at the very

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top of my lungs “Katy, honey! Can you hear me?!”I waited patiently, praying to God for Katy to

be all right. I heard a scream; a muffled scream coming from behind the tree. “Katelyn don’t

worry! I’m coming in!” I called, and I backed up several feet. I ran as fast as my feet could carry

me towards the seemingly-solid tree trunk and with all my might rammed myself against it,

knocking the wind out of myself.

Sandy, as loyal as ever (bless her little dog heart), trotted over and sniffed me as if to

make sure that I was all right, and I reached up to scratch her on the head. “Which root did she

trip over?” I muttered to myself, checking all of the tree trunks for any sign. When I found

nothing, I groaned and began to think I would never find my daughter again.

Deciding to try running at the tree one last time, I ran, faster than even I knew I could run,

but this time before I reached it, my toe caught on a tree root but I let myself fall forward, fists

first. She leaped and hit the cryptic portal so hard that she went sailing through clear to the other

side, landing with a grunt of pain on the gravel.

I looked up through squinted eyes and saw Stanley; oh how I was going to make him pay

when I got my hands on him, carrying a bound Katelyn into a cave on the other side of the lake. I

desperately glanced around for a path, any path, and saw a thin ledge that seemed to reach into

the sky.

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I gulped, summoned up my courage, stood, and began running towards the ledge, praying I

didn’t fall. Sandy ran ahead of me, easily trotting across the ledge to the top. She turned and

stared at me with big brown eyes, waiting patiently. Nervously, I crept forward, spreading my

arms wide to either side to balance myself out.

Now, I had never been one to be afraid of heights, but this I had to say was absolutely

ridiculous. I forced myself not to look down and thought only about saving my dearest daughter

while I treaded across the ridge.

Not noticing the small but firm rock sticking up out of the ground (for at that time I was not

looking downwards towards the ground that seemed miles down) I tripped, stumbled, lost my

balance, and fell screaming down the side. Arms flailing, I desperately looked around for a

handhold. My left arm flew out and grasped a fragile-looking branch sticking out of the stone

wall, and I hung on for dear life.

About three feet above my head, there was a ledge large enough for a person to fit on

protruding. I bit my lip and debated whether I should take the chance of saving myself or not.

Suddenly I heard a barely audible snapping sound and to my horror, I saw that the branch was

beginning to break under my weight.

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“Well,” I sighed, my voice shaking, “it seems that I have to take that chance.” With a

sudden burst of determination and strength, I hurled myself upwards as hard as I could. I

squeezed my eyes closed, and I felt myself falling through empty space, knowing for certain that

I had missed, that my body was about to slam on to the ground below… Katy, I thought as I fell

towards the gravel so far below but mounting closer with every passing second, I’m sorry.

Chapter Eighteen

I Take My Revenge

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kicked, screamed, bit, punched, tried everything, but it was no use; he was too strong,

even for a dead man. Finally, I just gave up and went limp in his arms. Taken by surprise,

his grip loosened a bit, and I felt myself being lowered down. A devious plan began to

form inside of my head, and I secretly smiled to myself, knowing now exactly what I was going

to do. After I felt myself being set on the hard ground, I felt his hand on my neck, feeling for a

pulse. As soon as I heard him mutter “what in the world…” I reached up, grabbed his wrist in an

iron grip, and twisted until I heard a satisfying snap.

I

He howled in pain, stumbling back, glaring at her with every ounce of hatred that his

body contained. Smirking, I lunged at him, grabbing his hair with both of my hands, and pressing

the heels of my shoes into his stomach. He screamed, running and jumping around like a bull in a

rodeo, trying in vain to fling me off, but to no avail.

I was bound and fully determined not to let go; to make him perish as much as I could

for the near-death of my friend and beloved dead husband. I flung my fist out in the air as he

bucked and ran around like a maniac; I couldn’t help myself. “Get off of me you little demon!”

he shrieked as my fist connected with his ear.

I bent down to his good ear and hissed in hatred “This might be the land of the dead, but that

doesn’t mean I can’t make you pay now does it?” I drew my fist back, and summoning every bit

of strength in myself, flung it forward straight into his neck. He quit running, and gulped in the

last breath of air he would ever have. I couldn’t believe it for every blood cell inside of me was

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filled with hatred and anger, but somewhere deep down, I felt a pang of guilt for killing

someone.

I shook that feeling away, and checked him for a pulse or a heartbeat. There was none. I

straightened, flipping my hair from my face and wiping off my sweaty brow with the hem of my

shirt, knowing for sure this time that I had taken my revenge.

Ӂ

Even though I had thought it completely unnecessary for someone that had tried to kill

both me and my friends, I dug a shallow ditch with my hands and when I was done I shoved him

in so that he lay face-down in the dirt. Grumbling to myself, I reached down and flipped him

over so his pale lifeless face was turned toward me. I crossed his arms over his chest, and then

kicked the dirt in on top of him, smoothing it out with the bottom of my shoe. “Well, Mom, it’s

not perfect but I hope it’s up to your standards” I muttered, massaging my temples with my

fingers and taking a few steps forward.

Halfway through the third step, I froze, remembering glimpsing two figures on the ledge

so far above me just before I got carried through a door, one small and one tall with a glow

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emitting from her. What if she fell and can’t get up? What if she’s hurt, or even worse, dead? I

thought, horrified. The worry for my mother engulfed me, and I ran faster than I knew I could

run, adrenaline surging through my veins. “Mom!” I screamed, frantically glancing around for a

dog or woman but finding none. “Sandy! Mom! Where are you?” I screamed so many times my

throat became raw. I didn’t care though; I had to find them, otherwise I would not have any real

family left in my life.

Finally, after miles of running, I spotted the ledge that I had gotten carried down, and

hope sparked inside of me. That is, until my gaze fell on the lake where the syrens lay waiting

silently for their prey. What I saw made my blood turn to ice and my head pound. Syrens, their

hideous alarming faces sneering, had their clawed hands latched on to my mother.

Their talons were on her wrists, entangled in her hair, on her ankles, everywhere

imaginable. I wanted to sit down and cry or hide under a rock, but I knew that wouldn’t help. I

stared at the syrens dragging my mother to their lair, and that was when the light bulb finally

came on. Smiling slyly like a cat hunting a mouse, I crept towards them, knowing exactly what

to do.

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Chapter Nineteen

I Meet My Death

eleasing a cry of anger, I charged towards them, screaming and waving my arms

trying to attract their attention. One with its glowing yellow eyes hissed as its ugly

head turned towards me. For a moment, only a moment, I began to reconsider my R121

plan, fear gripping me suddenly. Maybe this wasn’t such a good plan, maybe there was some

other way to get them off of my mother. I shook that feeling as soon as it came, building up a

barrier against that non-courageous voice screaming in my head.

“Hey squid-face! Come here and get me! Why don’t you pick on someone your own

size for once?” I screamed, jumping up and running around in circles like some kind of maniac.

It hissed again and charged toward me at full speed, other ones assisting it. I glanced back

towards the rock wall a mile away, praying to God that this would work out. As soon as they

were as close as I wanted them, I ran.

I ran as if was the last time I would run, as if I were running a marathon and a Siberian

tiger was chasing me. The fact that if I didn’t kill these creatures they would rip my mother to

pieces or drown her in a matter of seconds kept me going, and just when I was about a yard away

from the wall.

I heard a bone-chilling shriek from behind me, and I glanced back for a second to see a

syren grip the hem of my pants leg. Horrified, I kicked out, connecting with the thing’s nose. It

screamed, sending a shudder up my spine, but I didn’t have time to worry about that. I ran once

more, and when I finally reached the wall, I pressed myself against it and turned to face them.

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They were only a few feet away from me at that time, and when I looked past the leader,

I froze. Every single syren that existed within that black pool was charging at me, fury filling

each one’s eyes. When they were only a foot away from me, I darted to the side, causing them to

run into the rock wall, knocking each one out cold. Panting hard, I collapsed on the ground,

closing my eyes for a moment, resting. Opening them once more, I ran to my mother, who lay

unconscious on the ground, unmoving.

Panicked, I pressed my fingers to her neck, feeling for a pulse. There was none. “No, this

can’t be happening, I must be dreaming…” I whispered, pressing my lips to hers, blowing air

into her lungs. When that did nothing to assist, I curled my hand into a fist and pounded on her

chest.

I tried several times, once even stomping on her chest with my foot. Nothing worked. I

had to face it. My mother, my only human friend and relative, was gone forever. Sobbing, I

collapsed on my once again dead mother, knowing that there was nothing I could do to bring her

back. After hours of sobbing, I closed my eyes, allowing the grief to take control of me, knowing

I would never see her again.

When I woke, I felt my mother stroking my hair the way she used to when I was little and

she was combing my hair with her slender gentle fingers. I let the hallucination take control of

me, not caring anymore what happened to me. “Oh Kate, that was so brave what you did, but

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now you have to pay the price for what you did,” she whispered, her tears falling on to my

cheeks.

I stood after a few more minutes and stepped forward to hug her, to tell her that it was all

right, but I was instantly confused by the tears sliding silently down her red cheeks. “I’ll always

love you, honey, no matter what, okay?” she whispered, her voice breaking and a sob escaping

her throat.

“Mom what’s the matter with y…” I began, but then I felt a squeeze inside of my chest where

my heart was, and I collapsed on the ground, unsure of what was happening. “What is happening

to me?” I gasped out, squeezing my eyes shut and clenching my fists.

“Katelyn, when you grieved, you gave your life source to me so I could live,” she sobbed, and to

my horror, I looked at my hands and saw them wrinkling. I touched my face and felt wrinkles

there too, and my vision began to grow blurry. I yanked out one of my hairs and found it white. I

looked at my hands once more and found them with no skin, only bone.

I suddenly knew what was happening, and I knew that there was nothing I could do. I was

turning into a skeleton; I was going through the parts of my life that I would have normally not

experienced for quite a while. I looked at Mom one last time before my eyes disappeared and

then there were only empty sockets. The process was finished. I, Katelyn Broun, was dead.

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Chapter Twenty

(Another) Family Reunion

opened my eyes, surprised that I even could. I sat up painlessly and looked at my

surroundings. Actually, there were no surroundings. I looked up, down, left and right, but

everything in sight was white. I stood and scratched my head, wondering where I could

be.

I125

Then it struck me. I was literally in heaven. I felt my face, looked at my hands, and felt

my face again for any signs of wrinkles. There were none. I jumped in glee and ran around like a

nut, not caring if anyone saw me.

“Kat, you can quit running now.” Skidding to a halt, I froze, and then ever so slowly turned

around to face the man that had spoken. My grandparents stood side by side holding hands,

smiling both with their mouths and their eyes.

Instead of running to embrace them, I stood there, hands at my sides and mouth hanging

open. As it turned out, I didn’t have to. My grandmother, bless her heart, ran at me, arms open

wide for a hug. Recovering from my shock, I leaped forward, nearly knocking her over.

“Hi honey, how have you been?” she laughed, ruffling my hair like she used to when I was a

little girl before she and my grandfather died in a car crash. I couldn’t say anything; I only buried

my face in her shoulder while my body was seized with sobs.

“Oh, there now, Kate, don’t cry,” she cooed, hugging me even tighter and kissing the top of

my head, “everyone is together now.” After my sobs ceased, I cleared my throat and

straightened, smoothing down my blouse. Looking over her shoulder, past my grandfather, I saw

a silhouette in the distance.

“Grandma,” I murmured, “who’s that?”

She chuckled warmly and only said “Oh, I think you’ll know soon enough.” I stared at her,

confused, but when I turned back to the figure, I leaped backwards five feet, for now he was

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standing right in front of me. Recovering myself, I stepped forward, one eyebrow raised. I

looked him over, trying to figure out who in the world he was, but when I looked at his soft and

kind brown eyes, I knew.

“Cecil?” I gasped, reaching forward to touch him. He took my hand, and I nearly yanked it away

because his hands were unbelievably warm and soft. “Is that really you?”

He smiled, revealing perfectly even white teeth, and kissed my forehead gently. “Hello, Katelyn

Broun.” I could only stare at his startlingly handsome face, hardly able to believe it was him.

“But – but you’re an owl…” I stuttered, squeezing his fingers so hard he winced.

He shook his head, smiling once again. “No, dear Katelyn, this is what I looked like before I died

of the terrible disease known as small pox. My parents grieved and wore black for the rest of

their lives. Alas,” he sighed, turning away, “my mother died of a broken heart, my father of

influenza.”

He paused, turning to take my hand once more, his thumb stroking the top of my hand. “I

came here after I died, praying to the Lord that I could live eternally and never die. He granted

my wish by sending me down to the forest, where I first met you.

This might be the last time you ever see me, sadly. I do not know for certain though,” he

added, grinning at my sad face and cupping my chin in his hand the way my husband used to

when he was still alive.

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I was speechless. I opened and closed my mouth like a fish out of water, no words coming out.

He laughed warmly, sending a shiver of joy up my spine. He embraced me in a hug, wrapping

his arms around my back and kissing the top of my head again. Finally I recovered my senses

and asked while gently pushing away “Is there any way, any way at all that I can go back to the

real world?”

He sighed and the smiling expression vanished from his face, replaced by a somber, almost

tired appearance. Instead of saying anything, he turned and began to walk off into the distance.

“Wait!” I screamed, so many times he eventually halted and turned to me, the same look on his

striking face. I spoke, calmer now, “you didn’t answer my question.”

Heaving an exhausted sigh, he strode back towards me until he was close enough to settle his

hands on my slender shoulders. “Yes, I’m afraid there is a way.” I brightened, and he seemed to

force the smile that appeared on his face.

“You have to do something that no one… do you hear me Katelyn? Something that no one

has ever accomplished,” he hissed, emphasizing the words “no one” with wild gestures of his

hands.

I nodded, understanding, and he continues gravely “You must defeat and drink the blood

of the atrocious creature without fainting. Do you know what that animal is Katelyn?” he asked,

cocking his head to the side slightly.

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“No, actually I don’t know. Enlighten me.” I said sarcastically, folding my arms across my chest

and staring him down until he looked away.

He said, with a massage to his temples as if he had a headache “You, Katelyn Broun, must kill

the bat that killed your husband.”

Chapter Twenty-one

My Bad-Bat Boss

stared at him as if he had gone mad. Me, someone small and weak, kill a thing like that?

It was so ridiculous I laughed out loud, and he raised an inquiring eyebrow at me. “Oh

yeah, so I just waltz into the bat’s cave and say “Hey, nice weather today huh? How

would you like to become bat sushi, hmmm?”” I snapped, storming away.

I“Kate,” he began, reaching out a hand to me, but I ignored his pleas, stomping with every step.

Finally apparently he had had enough, because after multiple tries, he screamed “Katelyn G.

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Broun, return here now!” Smiling to myself, I calmly spun around on my heel and stalked over to

him, wearing an annoyed expression on my face.

“Yes, Cecil?”

Groaning and passing a hand over his face, he growled under his breath “Kate, listen to me. I am

not what you call ‘kidding’; I am very serious about what I am telling you.” He paused, reaching

into his pocket and withdrawing two small objects; one a clear glass vial, the other a small

wooden ball with several cracks.

“Use the vial to drink the blood of the bat, and use the ball to kill it. Am I understood?”

Wide-eyed, I nodded slowly, and he smiled at me, squeezing me in a tight hug and kissing me on

my forehead tenderly. “Good luck Katelyn G. Broun. I will be praying that you survive this

encounter.” With that, he patted me on the back one last time; there was a blinding flash, and

then nothing.

Ӂ

My eyelids fluttered open, and I instantly found myself staring up at a web-covered

stone ceiling. Gee, I thought sarcastically, what a way to decorate. Sitting up with some

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difficulty, I looked around at my surroundings. Basically all there was in the cave was a giant

bed made of ferns, an old rickety table, one chair, and a few bones and skulls…

Wait a minute, bones and skulls?! I whipped my head back around to where the bones were and

stood there, frozen with my mouth hanging open like that of a fly-catcher. “Well, well, what do

we have here?” sneered a voice that made every bone in my back shiver. Ever so slowly, I turned

around to face the source of the voice.

“Hello…” but then I stopped. When I spoke, my voice went high and squeaky. I cleared my

throat and forced the fear clouding my mind away. “Hello Mike,” I managed.

This time, it was his turn for his mouth to drop open. “Katelyn?” he shrieked, bolting to his feet.

Terrified as I was, it was actually somewhat amusing to witness the shocked expression on his

face. “Why, what are you doing in a dark place like this dear girl?” he asked, this time much

more pleasantly.

I held up my hand and wagged a filthy finger at him. “No, the question is, what are you doing

here? You never leave work.”

He seemed to ponder over the question for a moment, and then sputtered, “Well, I–I just wanted

to make sure that you were doing all right.” When I saw that he forced the smile that appeared on

his plump, usually jovial face, I knew.

My mind flashed pictures in front of my eyes; the bat that had had the very same brown

eyes that my boss had, the fact that it had had human eyes in the first place… As soon as I

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figured it out, white-hot rage burned wild inside of me. I had never gotten that angry at someone

before, but he murdered my husband, my very best friend, and flew off like a coward.

“Why?” I hissed in a dangerously calm tone through clenched teeth. “Why did you kill him?”

He passed a bloody hand over his face, and when he removed it he almost looked tired. “Katelyn,

whatever are you talking about?”

Being suddenly unable to hold it back any longer, I exploded with fury. “He never did anything

to hurt you! You didn’t have to kill him! What, did you just feel like murdering someone that I

loved? Michael Bomu, do you hate me? Is that it?” I spat, so angry tears were forming in my

wild eyes.

After I said that, he no longer looked like let’s be friends, he looked more like I want to rip you

to pieces and never see you again. “No, actually, Katelyn, he was stealing you away from me, I

watched you every minute of every day that you traveled together. Don’t think that I didn’t see

you two kissing or getting married, because I did.”

“You coward,” I growled, balling my hands into fists, wanting to punch him in his annoying fat

face.

“Excuse me?”

“You are a coward, Michael Bomu! When you killed him, you flew off like a coward! You

couldn’t even face what you had done!” I roared, pounding my fist so hard into the table that I

broke it in two.

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“He was going to die anyway! He was already dying! I warned you that he was going to die; I

said that I would first kill one that you loved! There was nothing you or your freak mother could

do!” he screamed, stomping his foot like a child throwing a tantrum.

“How…dare…you call my mother freak.” I snarled, taking pleasure in the fact that his face was

purple with outrage. “Do you want to know a few things? Do you? You, Michael H. Bomu, are

the freak! I hate you!” I thundered, running at him full speed, my adrenaline pumping.

As I ran at him, his face began to grow coarse black hairs in unimaginable places, as well

as the rest of his body. He began to grow, and he screamed as wings sprouted from his back,

reaching to their full size. His clothes ripped to shreds as he expanded in size, hair growing

everywhere; on his feet, chest, and arms.

When the process finished, he stood several feet tall before me, glaring down at me with

hatred and rage. He stooped down and snapped at me with his razor teeth. Smiling and roaring

with laughter like that of a madman, I reached into my back pocket and drew out a pistol.

For a second, just a second, fear entered his ugly hate-filled eyes. I pointed it straight at his

chest, but instead of firing there, at the very last second I aimed it downward and shot his foot.

The bat/boss screamed in pain as I fired again, this time at its head.

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“If you hear me, I am going to make you perish as much as possible for that death!” I

shouted, shooting everywhere at it. “He was my best friend and husband, and you killed him!

You killed him you cold-blooded heartless madman!” I aimed my last shot at its chest and fired,

the bullet finding its target. The bat froze, and then toppled over, motionless with black blood

seeping out of the bullet holes in its hairy body.

I looked down at my pistol, and I looked at it just in time to see it morphing back into the

ball that Cecil had given me. I looked towards the heavens and whispered while I sobbed

hysterically “Thank you, Cecil. Thank you.” I knelt next to the terrible creature and allowed the

blood to trickle into the crystal vial.

I raised the container to the sky as if making a toast, and murmured before drinking it down,

“This is for you Mom.” Then I tipped it down my throat and gasped while it slid down my gullet.

I felt the sudden urge to vomit, but I knew I couldn’t. I fought against the urge and clenched my

fists as my vision became outlined in black. I squeezed my eyes shut and prayed to God that I

would survive this.

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Chapter Twenty-Two

My Adventure Ends…Or Does It?

W

hen I opened my eyes, the sick feeling had vanished, and Cecil smiled kindly at me from above.

“Yes, it can be a tad bit, ah, grotesque,” he laughed as I groaned and turned on my side, clutching

my stomach in case the feeling returned. I stared up at him, hoping that he could read the

message in my eyes since I couldn’t speak at that moment. “Ah, you want to return to your dog

and mother, yes?”

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I nodded weakly, and he sighed, sadness creeping into his gentle brown eyes. With some

difficulty, I stood and threw myself at him, squeezing him in an embrace. I felt him go rigid for a

moment in surprise, and then he wrapped his arms around me, kissing my cheek. I felt safe and

warm, finding myself not wanting to leave this posture, wrapped in his arms.

He pulled back finally and I had to quell the urge to embrace him again. He snapped his

fingers, and I heard a whispering sound that signaled the gates had opened. I walked towards

them, my head held high and my shoulders squared.

I paused at the edge, and turned back to him, and apparently he had followed, for he was

right behind me. “One more thing,” I said, cocking my head to the side and throwing my arms

around him once more. “Will I ever see you or my husband again?”

He smiled, causing his straight, perfect white teeth to flash in the sunlight. “For me, yes, you will

see me often in your dreams as a person and in the forest as an owl, but just remember, I will

always be there for you, no matter what.” He paused, his face going solemn.

“As for your husband…” his voice trailed off, and he bowed his head, taking my small hand

in his. He stood like that for a few minutes, not saying anything. At last, he looked up at me,

sadness once again written on his face. “As for your husband, I am sorry to say that you will

never see him again in person, only in your dreams. He has gone through the entire process; he is

now in a perfect place, in Heaven.”

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I had been expecting that answer, but still, I was slightly disappointed. “Do not allow that to

get you down though; live your life, have children, make friends,” he added, smiling brightly. I

smiled back at him, kissed him, my grandmother, and my grandfather on the cheek once more

before stepping through the gates to my new life.

Ӂ

I opened my eyes to see my mother on a rock, sobbing so hard that I thought she was going

to fall off of it. Smiling to myself, I ran towards her, arms outstretched. “Mom!” I screamed,

lunging towards her as she leaped six feet off of the rock towards me.

“Katy! Oh, Kate, honey, I’m sorry, I’m so sorry…” she sniffled, squeezing me so hard I thought

my bones would break. Laughing, I pulled back, and without saying anything, I led her to a

golden door trimmed with diamonds and silk. I laid my hand on the handle and twisted, opening

it to reveal my apartment. Grinning, I ran towards it, dragging my mother along, but she didn’t

follow.

I turned to her, confused. Why wasn’t she coming? “No, Kate, you live your life alone,

enjoy your long life.” She smiled, kissing me on my forehead and then on my cheek.

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“Mom, no, please don’t go! I want you to stay here with me! My children when I have them,

they need a grandmother! I don’t want them to feel the same as I did, not spending most of their

life with their grandma!”

She shook her head, tears glistening in her eyes. “No, Katelyn, I have duties to fulfill up there.

I’ll talk to the master of the Land of the Dead, and see if He will let me come back. Okay?” I

nodded, and she hugged me one last time before melting into the darkness. I sighed, and knew

for certain that I would see her again.

When, I don’t know. I turned back towards my apartment and stepped inside, grinning as I

saw all of the things that I felt that I had not seen in a hundred years. I trudged upstairs to my

bed, and as soon as my head hit the pillow, I fell fast asleep.

Ӂ

There I was, twenty-five years later, sitting in my rocking chair with my twin children on my

lap while I read a book to them. My doorbell rang, and I hopped up to answer it. My mother

stood on the other side, smiling. “MOM!” I shrieked, throwing my arms around her and crying

tears of joy.

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My children, Abraham and Amanda, came running in, and my Mom knelt down to receive

them in her arms. “Oh,” she cooed, kissing each one in turn, “you two are so adorable!”

I glanced out of my door at the moon, and saw everyone I had encountered in my adventure

that I loved smiling down at me gently; Cecil, my husband, and my grandparents. Thank you,

Lord, I thought. Smiling back up at them, I closed the door with a click, listening to the sweet

sound of family.

Ӂ

The next day, I arrived at work, and instantly found Melony rushing at me with the phone in

her tiny hand. “Boss, we have another call, something about someone that keeps having creatures

in her house,” she panted, thrusting the phone at me. I waved my hand dismissively, taking the

phone, and she scurried back to her cubicle. I chuckled to myself, staring at the phone, and all the

while thinking well, here we go again.

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