《In Another Forest》 Chapter 1 - A Lily in the Forest Calla¡¯s mother knocked gently on the door frame before calling into the darkened room. The only light came from the hallway behind her and a small lamp that shone on the small desk. Calla was bent over a piece of paper while sitting on her chair. It was pink. She wasn¡¯t the biggest fan of pink, but all the other girls seemed to be drowning in it. ¡°I just wanted you to know that I signed you up for this young artists club. They meet tonight. I¡¯ll bring you over after supper.¡± Calla turned to face her mother with wide eyes. ¡°What if I don¡¯t want to go?¡± ¡°Just try one or two meetings and if you don¡¯t like it stop going to them. You have the time, especially now that schools are out until September, and I think you¡¯ll like it. What are you working on?¡± Before she could reply her mother entered her room completely and took a peek at the open sketchbook in front of Calla before she could cover it with her arms. Her mother looked confused. ¡°Is that that one guy from that movie? The one about Olympic sprinting? What¡¯s it called? The Wind at my Back?¡± Calla nodded quietly. Her face was growing hot. ¡°That¡¯s different.¡± She said. ¡°Do you like him?¡± She nodded again. All the girls liked that character. They all said he was hot. She couldn¡¯t see it, but she went along with it. She was only drawing him because the week before some girls from her class had grabbed her sketchbook away and flipped through it, laughing. They saw all of the fairies, wolves, and strange creatures she drew. ¡°Omg, she¡¯s so immature.¡± ¡°Look at the little fairy child.¡± Their words all burned through her eardrums directly into her memory. ¡°Imagine that. My girl is interested in a boy. Soon enough you will be all grown up and going to college.¡± She thought for a moment. ¡°I hope you don¡¯t stop drawing those other characters and creatures and things. I liked seeing them.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t.¡± She said quietly. This was a lie. She wanted nothing more than to go back to drawing her wolf, mannequin, air spirit, and others. She just also wanted to draw some more mature subjects like the man she was drawing then. She refused to be childish anymore. She sighed and pulled herself away from the book, taking her pen and working on a bit of shading near his nose. It wasn¡¯t quite working. She didn¡¯t usually try drawing such realistic faces. She wouldn¡¯t get it without a break. ¡°I think I¡¯m going to go for a walk before supper.¡± Her mother looked back as she left the room. ¡°Okay. Just don¡¯t be too long.¡± ¡°I won¡¯t.¡± When she was alone she quickly changed from the grey shirt she had gotten covered in dark graphite and charcoal, into a deep red shirt, then she walked through the house. She waved to her mother who was in the kitchen. Then she walked through the house. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. All she was going to do was walk down a short trail near her house and back. It started by walking down her street for about ten minutes until she saw the gap in the forest where she knew the trail to be. No one was around aside from her and her mother. Her father had been on a long trip to work. Many of the other families had gone out to camp or were having exciting day trips to the city. It felt like she was the only one left in the world. It was better that way. She didn¡¯t have a desire to bump into anyone. All she wanted was some quiet time to herself. As she turned to start walking down the trail it was almost as though she had passed through into another world. Instead of dark asphalt and near little houses, she found herself surrounded by green. Green leaves appeared to spare and rays of sunlight pushed back. Short green ferns and bushes lined the trail. A smile passed across her lips. The only sounds around her were the rustle of leaves as a cold breeze blew through the trees and the chattering of birds and one noisy squirrel. This was her quiet place. As she kept walking she began to think about how to do better with the shading of her picture. Maybe she had to go at it from a different direction, but she didn¡¯t know what other direction there was. This was so much different from her normal style of stylized characters. She had never been good at this other style. That was why she had never drawn much in it. She stopped about halfway down the path, frowning to herself. The other kids in this young artists group were probably all good at realistic drawing. Maybe she would take the portrait she was working on to the meeting and ask for advice. She smiled softly as she imagined how it would go. There was a small clearing where she stopped where wildflowers grew. Some people who lived nearby maintained it so that the grass didn''t grow too long and one could appreciate the flowers. There was even a bench. All the flowers that grew locally could be found there pretty much. Irises, forget-me-nots, wild roses, trillium. It could be found there. As Calla was imagining how the meeting would go, she looked down for long enough that she saw it. She wasn¡¯t into botany, however, one flower she knew didn¡¯t grow around her town was lilies. In the middle of the wildflowers, a single flower stood up straight and tall. It was a lily-shaped kind of like a cup with a wide rim meant for easy pouring. It was bright orange, or was it red? She couldn¡¯t quite tell. Her imaginings were lost as she walked up to the strange flower. It looks almost like it was made of fire. It was beautiful. She reached for the stem to snap it so she could take the flower with her and maybe draw it later. She could also look up what kind of flower this was. She was curious. Only it didn¡¯t happen how she thought it would. As soon as she felt the stem crack under her fingers she felt hot. This feeling grew worse until she was in pain. She shut her eyes tight as the summer sun had become too much. Then she felt as though she were falling into nothingness. She didn¡¯t know how much time had passed before she had felt a soft, unfamiliar coolness beneath her, and above her a warm breeze. It was as though she had been caught in a magic storm and whisked away to another world just like one of the stories that had inspired the characters she used to draw as a child. Those stories were impossible though. There were no other worlds aside from her own unless she wanted to believe in Heaven and Hell like her grandmother. She could tell that something bad had happened, and if it wasn¡¯t magic then the only thing she could think about was something related to her mind. The aunt from her class a few years ago had a stroke. Was that how a stroke felt? Like burning? ¡°Um, excuse me.¡± a soft voice asked. ¡°Are you okay?¡± She tried to open her eyes. She was still sore from what had just happened. She was scared. It felt like she was floating. She didn¡¯t know how bad things were for her. She was scared that she wouldn¡¯t be able to do anything. But then her eyes fluttered open and she let out a scream. Standing over her was the largest wolf she had ever seen. He had inky black fur that appeared to release dark embers of shadow into the speckled light beneath the canopy of the trees. The embers faded away into nothing. The wolf had large red eyes and he opened his mouth revealing large sharp teeth. At the sound of her scream, the wolf tilted his head. ¡°Are you hurt?¡± Chapter 2 - A Wolf in the Forest At the sound of her scream, the wolf tilted his head. ¡°Are you hurt?¡± Calla found herself alone in a forest on the ground after whatever that episode was with the lily. The large wolf stood over her. Little specks of shadow floated away from his fur where the speckles of light allowed through the canopy above. His eyes glowed red as he looked at her. His head tilted the other way. ¡°Are you? I¡¯m sorry if I scared you, I can¡¯t help it.¡± His voice was quiet and kind, far from the hungry growl she had been expecting from this creature. Words didn¡¯t usually come from wolves. Her horror turned to confusion as she noticed what was around the two of them. Trees rose out of the ground in all the colours of the rainbow and the leaves that hung from their branches matched. The ground was littered with all sorts of multicoloured fallen leaves, flowers she had never seen before, and moss. She lifted a hand and found purple moss beneath it. Her eyes widened. ¡°Wait¡­ where are we?¡± ¡°Did you hit your head?¡± the wolf asked as though she had asked something silly. ¡°This doesn¡¯t look like the forest I was in. Everything is¡­ different.¡± She stood up and found herself only slightly taller than the wolf. She had always been tall, and she was taller than any of the other fourteen-year-old girls in her class. She wasn¡¯t used to feeling so small. This wolf made her feel small. She took a step and almost fell over. She grabbed at the wolf, holding onto his fur to steady herself. He gently turned his head far enough that he could look at her, then looked back beyond the tree she had been leaning against unconsciously. ¡°What did this other forest look like? Maybe I can help you find it. Also maybe you should rest for a while longer. I can carry you if you need to. It will be bad if we stay here.¡± It was then that she heard the noise that didn¡¯t belong. Maybe she had heard it as she was waking up and it was soft enough that it had been blending into the rustle of the leaves in the invisible breeze. Now it was louder. It sounded like a waterfall, or maybe a steady stream of falling sand. ¡°PssssssSSSSSSSSHHHHHH.¡± It was getting closer. ¡°What is that?¡± ¡°Death.¡± The wolf growled. ¡°Now come on.¡± She knew she had no time to waste as she climbed onto the back of the wolf with his help and he began to run away from the sound. As the two moved away from the sound she looked back and her eyes widened in terror. Behind them, there was a sudden end to the forest, and that end kept moving towards them. As it met obstacle after obstacle, everything turned to dust and blew away in the wind. A dust storm waged beyond the edge of the forest and she could barely see the landscape. She saw the barren wasteland beyond for a moment as the dust broke. Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! ¡°It¡¯s¡­ killing the trees.¡± She said quietly. ¡°It will kill everything it touches. It leaves nothing alive. If you had stayed there for a little while longer you would have become dust too. How did you survive this long without knowing that?¡± ¡°I told you, this isn¡¯t the forest I was in. That forest doesn¡¯t have a moving death wall of dust.¡± The wolf easily outran the dust even when not sprinting and soon she could no longer see it. He slowed to a brisk walk. Though she couldn¡¯t see it anymore, on the wind she could still hear the sound of dust blowing away from that which had just been living. ¡°But that¡¯s impossible. There are no other forests aside from this one. There¡¯s no way there¡¯s a forest out there without the barrier of dust.¡± He walked up to a rock and laid down, letting her get off. She climbed onto the rock and sat down. There was a frown on her face. ¡°But it¡¯s the truth.¡± The wolf tilted his head and then moved his face so his nose was close to her head. He drew in a long sniff before backing away and looking confused. ¡°You smell strange, different from anything else I¡¯ve smelled in the forest, and you also look kind of different. Your shape is right, but you¡¯re made out of something different. And those clothes¡­ is that a new style in the Roving City?¡± ¡°Roving City? No, these are just normal clothes where I come from.¡± She said looking down at her red shirt and jean shorts. Then she looked back up and squinted at the wolf. ¡°You don¡¯t look like the wolves I know either. They don¡¯t have glowing red eyes for one, and¡­ their fur doesn¡¯t do that thing yours does when the light hits it.¡± ¡°You know other wolves that aren¡¯t made of shadow?¡± The wolf appeared to smirk. ¡°Well no, because the wolves I know of can¡¯t talk like a human and do their own thing in the wild. Dogs are kind of related to them, but dogs are different enough that they¡¯re not wolves.¡± ¡°Interesting. I assume a human is what you are?¡± he bowed his head. ¡°I am Augustus. I think I¡¯m curious about these other wolves. Will you tell me all about them?¡± ¡°Sure.¡± She said quietly, hoping that Augustus wouldn¡¯t want her to introduce him to a normal wolf. If he didn¡¯t freak out anyone going about their day as they walked together to the zoo, he would have freaked out the wolves they went to see. As she imagined all of this she began to feel sad. Her mother would be missing her if no one else. She couldn¡¯t miss school. She needed to get to this young artists'' club meeting. ¡°I¡¯m Calla.¡± ¡°Like the flower? That seems fitting considering I found you in the moss like a flower.¡± She blushed. ¡°I don¡¯t know how I got there.¡± ¡°A patch of moss is a great place to sleep. Would you like some help getting back to this other forest?¡± She nodded quietly. ¡°Then I will help you. I know someone really smart who is for sure going to be able to help you get home. He just needs some help first.¡± ¡°What kind of help?¡± ¡°He has¡­ is currently being imprisoned by a witch. I need you to convince the witch to let him go.¡± Her eyes widened. ¡°There are witches here?¡± ¡°Yes. Is that strange?¡± he sighed. ¡°I would try to talk to the witch, but she doesn¡¯t like me. No matter what I say I think she will only say ¡®no¡¯, but if you go we at least have a chance. Just make sure she doesn¡¯t find out that I sent you. Will you do this?¡± ¡°I can do this.¡± She said quietly. This was starting to feel more like an adventure. ¡°Then follow me. I will lead you to her hut.¡± Chapter 3 - A Witch in the Forest They walked for what felt like half an hour. Calla couldn¡¯t tell because she discovered quickly that her phone wasn¡¯t working. She wasn¡¯t even able to turn it on. Whenever she pressed the power button the screen would stay a dull black. It wouldn¡¯t even flicker yet she kept taking it out of her bag. She hadn¡¯t taken it out before because she didn¡¯t want to see her lack of notifications. Now that it could be useful it was failing her. Augustus the wolf looked back at her and tilted his large head. ¡°What do you have there?¡± ¡°It''s my cell phone.¡± ¡°A cell¡­ phone?¡± he tilted his head in the other direction. ¡°You know, a device that allows me to keep in touch with other people and to access the Internet almost wherever. Not here though.¡± She said quickly. ¡°Do you not have something like that here?¡± The wolf shook his head. ¡°No. Some people use magic to send messages to people, but most can¡¯t. Wolves can just howl to get the attention of others, but I won¡¯t demonstrate that to you no matter how much you ask.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± She quietly wondered if he got asked often to howl. Maybe she could ask his friend. ¡°What¡¯s your friend like?¡± ¡°Oh, he¡¯s great, really nice. His name is Manny.¡± His tail began to wag as he spoke, and then after he said his friend''s name it started to droop. ¡°There¡¯s one thing you should know before we get to his house. He is currently being imprisoned by a powerful witch. You will need to convince her to let him go. I would do it myself, but she doesn¡¯t like me much.¡± She stopped. ¡°If she¡¯s a powerful witch then why do you think I will be able to convince her to let him go?¡± He turned around. ¡°Because she can be convinced just like any being. I wouldn¡¯t call her impossible to persuade. Just tell her that you need Manny¡¯s help and she should just let him go to help you. There is nothing to worry about. Now let¡¯s hurry. I¡¯m sure that you want to be able to return to wherever you came from as soon as possible.¡± ¡°Of course.¡± She nodded quickly. They continued to walk until they came to a small clearing in the forest filled with many types of wildflowers. She could recognize some of them from around her town. There were bright pink trillium flowers and deep purple irises. There were even some orchids mixed in. In the middle of the clearing sat a tree. Its large roots rested deep in the ground like a spider¡¯s legs and its trunk reached towards the forest''s canopy. The trunk looked a lot like a baobab tree, like a tall lump sticking out of the ground. There was even a door and a few windows carved into it. The door was currently closed. Augustus stopped at the edge of the clearing. ¡°I can¡¯t get any closer or else she will detect me. Just walk up to the door and knock on it. Good luck.¡± She felt a wave of nervousness flow through her. Just what had she gotten herself into? ¡°Okay. I¡¯ll be back here as soon as I¡¯m done.¡± She stepped carefully into the clearing, sparing only a glance at the large shadowy wolf who was hiding among the trees. There was a path through the flowers that allowed her to move through them without trampling on them even if a few of them looked to have already been trampled by someone else, but the path was narrow. She had to move carefully. Finally, she had reached the door. She took a moment to prepare herself for whatever she was about to face before lifting her hand to the door. ¡°No buts. You will stay here until you replace me.¡± A woman¡¯s voice drifted through the door. Before Calla¡¯s hand touched the door she pulled it away and just listened to make sure she wasn¡¯t going to be interrupting anything. ¡°But mother, I¡¯ve been working on something in the forest. I need to go finish it. Besides how can you expect me to take your place if I have no experience.¡± This voice sounded like a young boy. This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. ¡°You¡¯re plenty experienced already. I can¡¯t have you defacing yourself like that again. You need to be here so you can be safe. What did I say about buts?¡± The boy sighed. ¡°No buts.¡± ¡°Yes, no buts. Now be quiet. We have a guest and I¡¯m sure they¡¯re already nervous enough.¡± ¡°Augustus?¡± The boy asked quickly. ¡°Wastes no. Not that wolf.¡± Calla could hear the anger in her voice. She could hear footsteps getting closer. Then suddenly the door opened. Startles, Calla took a step back. ¡°Why hello there. I am Greunnheks, a witch of the forest and dust. I keep watch over the barrier of dust and make sure that it always produces nothing but dust. What can I do for you little one?¡± the witch was tall and looked as though she was made from a tree. Her skin was smooth bark. Her hair was like hanging leaves growing from her head. They were deep green like the leaves she would have expected to see around her house in the summer. Not like most of the other leaves in this forest. ¡°Um, hi.¡± She took a deep breath. Her brain tried to force her to run, but she stayed. She had to stay. It was the only way she could see forward. ¡°I¡¯m Calla. I need Manny¡¯s help.¡± The witch crouched down and looked into her eyes. ¡°And why not my help? I am the green witch. I hold far more power than my sun.¡± The wooden eyes widened. ¡°Ah. You are a person made of flesh. We don¡¯t see many people made of flesh around here. You¡¯re the first one I¡¯ve seen.¡± Calla looked down. ¡°You¡¯re the first tree person I¡¯ve seen.¡± The witch laughed. ¡°Am I? Well, I¡¯m sure that you will see more people like me in the forest.¡± ¡°I need Manny because I¡¯m not where I¡¯m supposed to be. This is the wrong forest for me. I need someone who knows the area.¡± ¡°I know the area.¡± The witch grinned. Her teeth were sharp. ¡°But don¡¯t you have a job to do?¡± The witch stopped smiling. ¡°Well¡­ yes I do, but¡­¡± ¡°Then you can¡¯t exactly help me out, can you? You need to watch the barrier. Your son doesn¡¯t have to watch it though.¡± She blinked. ¡°He can help me and then he can return here. Everything will be okay.¡± Calla felt pride in how well she was doing despite speaking to such a scary creature. ¡°Why do you want to take my son away from me?¡± Greunnheks placed a clawlike finger on Calla¡¯s cheek. ¡°Is it that wolf? Did he put you up to this? He did, didn¡¯t he? I can sense him all over you.¡± Her eyes narrowed as she dug the claw into her cheek. Calla trembled. This was how it was going to end. She was going to die because went to ask for help based on what someone else had told her to do. She wished she had just gone on her own, that she had found her way through this forest. Yet if she had gone her own way, she wouldn¡¯t have known to run from the barrier. She wouldn¡¯t have lasted this long. She shut her eyes. ¡°Mother.¡± A child¡¯s voice cried. She felt the claw pull away from her skin. Her cheek felt cold. When Calla opened her eyes again there was a small person, about three feet tall. He looked like one of those simple mannequins used for sketching. He had a flat face formed of two planes. His hands were shaped like chisels. One hand was resting on the witch¡¯s wrist. ¡°Mother.¡± He repeated. ¡°Stop this. Can¡¯t you see that she is not from the forest? She is someplace else, someplace strange. She just wants help.¡± The witch gave her another close look. ¡°So you¡¯re correct. I¡¯m sorry. It¡¯s just that I don¡¯t want my son to leave again. Last time he was gone for months and then he returned with his face painted. It looked ridiculous. I had to sand it all off. You must understand.¡± Calla simply nodded. She didn¡¯t want to say anything else. ¡°Mother, you have to let me go. I think I¡¯m the only one who can help her.¡± The witch looked between the two of them and then sighed. ¡°Fine, but under one condition. I will curse her so that if you don¡¯t return she will turn into a tree and never leave this forest again. Then you had better hope she doesn¡¯t become a tree on the ground or else she will eventually turn to dust. Do you accept, oh son of mine?¡± He nodded. ¡°Of course, but shouldn¡¯t she be¡ª¡± Before he could finish the witch grabbed Calla¡¯s hand and squeezed tightly. Calla pulled it away and it was freed easily. Her wrist felt numb and when she looked down at it, she could see a bark-like texture to the skin there. Her eyes widened in terror. ¡°Now off you go. I don¡¯t want him out longer than he needs to be.¡± ¡°B-But¡­¡± she stammered. The wooden child grabbed her hand and pulled her out of the doorway and away from the house. ¡°Come along now. I¡¯m sorry about my mother, she can get pretty inconsiderate. That¡¯s why I like to be outside of the hut.¡± ¡°She was something.¡± Calla looked back and watched as the hut rose from the ground. It was held up by its roots and it began to move like a spider as it moved further away from the barrier of dust. She had never seen anything like it. ¡°She is. The hut is also quite something, but at the moment it¡¯s hers. When it is mine I¡¯m sure that I will like it more.¡± Chapter 4 - A Puppet in the Forest Manny led Calla away from the clearing where the house had previously been. Augustus joined them as soon as the house was out of sight. It was then that she realized that she had lost track of him at some point during that conversation. It made sense because that conversation was terrifying, but that didn¡¯t explain how he appeared to appear from a shadow beneath a nearby tree. ¡°We¡¯ll be walking to the Roving City. We should reach it tomorrow.¡± Manny said, pointing with a chisel-like hand in a direction past the clearing. ¡°Do you think someone will be able to help me there?¡± she asked. He shrugged. ¡°Possibly. That is where the witches of heart make their home, among many others. They know of all the hearts in the Illuminated Forest. If anyone will know about how you got here, it will be them.¡± She tried to imagine this city, but could only imagine a giant city that travelled the countryside on wheels. She had seen towns like that in a movie she had watched a few years ago, but that vision felt far too much like steampunk to fit in with this setting. Maybe it was located on the back of a massive beast that soared through the air. That way it wouldn¡¯t trample all of the trees. The one thing she knew for certain was that this city had to move. The barrier of dust would consume it if it didn¡¯t. ¡°It¡¯s a large city that walks on massive legs. It¡¯s at the heart of the forest and the barriers move with it.¡± The wolf had noticed that she was trying to imagine the city. ¡°Oh, thanks.¡± She thought for a moment and her eyes widened. ¡°Does that mean that if the city were to stop moving, the barriers would stop also?¡± ¡°Yes, but that¡¯s not a good idea,¡± Augustus said. ¡°The witches tried that a few decades ago, the city didn¡¯t move for an entire year. They discovered that by keeping the barriers stationary the forest grew out of control and soon there was no room for anything else. No one could live in the forest. The barriers are the only way to renew the forest and to keep it liveable.¡± This book''s true home is on another platform. Check it out there for the real experience. ¡°Oh¡­¡± she said quietly. ¡°It¡¯s a good idea though.¡± Manny continued. ¡°Many people in the forest have wished that they didn¡¯t always need to be moving ahead. Everyone has wished they could see a specific tree again that has long since turned to dust. It¡¯s just not meant to be.¡± ¡°Where I come no one has to move if they don¡¯t want to.¡± She says quietly. ¡°You can keep walking forever, or at least until you run into a mountain or an ocean.¡± ¡°Your world sounds very strange.¡± Said Augustus. ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever seen an ocean. What is it? Asked Manny. ¡°It¡¯s¡­ a really big body of water. It can take weeks to get across it in a boat.¡± ¡°Oh, so like a massive pond.¡± Manny nodded. ¡°You should tell me more about your world sometime.¡± ¡°Sure.¡± She wondered what type of things she would have to explain to him. She also wondered about all of the things he would have to explain to her. Their two worlds were very different.¡± Augustus sniffed the air near her wrist. Then he sent a glare at Manny. When Calla saw it a shiver went up her spine. ¡°Why is there a curse on her?¡± Manny sighed. ¡°It was the only way my mother would let me leave. She¡¯s become even more protective than usual. She says it¡¯s because of my face after I came home the last time, but I think there¡¯s something else going on. I don¡¯t think anyone could have convinced her to let me go without the curse but don¡¯t worry. It will be broken automatically as soon as I get back home. It¡¯s slow acting too so we have a few weeks.¡± She felt a moment of dread as she looked down at her currently wooden wrist. ¡°If you take more than a few weeks to help me get home, does that mean that I will just become a tree?¡± ¡°Of course not.¡± He shook his head. His voice grew cheerful. ¡°It just means that I will help you for a week and then I will pass you on to the witches of heart. I¡¯m sure that there¡¯s something they can do.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± She said quietly as she tried to push the possibility of becoming a tree and turning to dust out of her mind. ¡°I don¡¯t like it,¡± Augustus sighed, ¡°but if you know what you¡¯re doing, I trust you.¡± They continued to walk through the forest. Manny pointed out a few trees and told her what kind of trees they were. Weirdly enough he also mentioned personality when explaining the trees, but to Calla, everything in this forest seemed weird. She worried about how things were going at home. Her mother was likely very worried. If she hadn¡¯t already, she would call the police to declare her missing. People would look for her, but they wouldn¡¯t find her because she wasn¡¯t in that forest anymore. She was in the Illuminated Forest now. Hopefully, she would be back sooner rather than later. It hadn¡¯t even been a day and she hadn¡¯t liked that town much before, but in the moment she was missing it. She would go home. If Augustus trusted Manny, then she would too. Chapter 5 - A Night in the Forest The sun hung low in the sky as they walked. An hour before Calla would have thought that this was a land of perpetual day, but now she knew it was anything but that. It took only thirty minutes for the forest to darken enough that the painterly look of everything was masked. If she didn''t know better and if she wasn''t walking with literally a walking and talking puppet and a talking wolf, she would have thought that it was her forest. She tripped over a root she couldn¡¯t see in the shadows and Manny looked over at her. "I think we should rest for the night," he said. Augustus sighed. "But we''re so close to the city. I can smell its path clearly." "I''m tired." He said. "But you''re a tree child... you don''t get tired?" "If there''s no light I have no energy." There was some silence between the two of them before the large wolf shook his head. "Fine, but we''re going as soon as the sun rises again. I''m going hunting." "Thank you. Don''t come back too late." The puppet said as the wolf ran off into the night. He sat down against a tree and spoke quietly to Calla. "If you need to stop you can just ask. Neither of us is going to judge you." He said. "I''m okay." She said quietly. "I could have kept going." "Sure you could have, that''s why you kept stumbling over every root and getting smacked in the face by branches. I can tell that you can''t see in the shadows of the forest. If we don''t stop you will get hurt and I don''t know much of how your body is put together. I have no idea if I would be able to heal you." "Can you see in the dark?" She asked. "Of course. Most people can. The forest covered in shadows is just another state of the forest. Augustus can also see to an extent, though he also uses his other stronger senses more at night." She nodded. "I''ll... ask to stop next time. Thank you." "No problem." She sat against a tree and sighed. "So... how did you and Augustus meet?" "It''s a long story." She watched him. His face didn''t change as he started talking. It was still just the two planes of wood. "Several years ago I was finally able to leave my house to practice magic without supervision. I had always wanted to see the parts of the forest my mother would never take me to so I wandered a bit too far into unfamiliar territory. I got lost and I wasn''t very good at finding my way back then. Luckily I stumbled upon someone else who was lost. That was Augustus if you can¡¯t tell. He helped me find my way back home that day and ever since, whenever I went out into the forest I would find him or he would find me and we would find me. I know he looks scary, but he¡¯s kinder than anyone I know and I know quite a few people. This is far from my first time visiting the city¡± He tilted his head up towards her. ¡°The city is nice. I¡¯m sure you¡¯ll like it. You can find all sorts of people there, though¡­ I suppose that not all kinds of people can be found there. You will be the first¡­¡± The tale has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Human?¡± she said quietly as he trailed off. ¡°Yes, the first human to set foot in the city. Also, I think you should know, that Augustus will probably try to leave us when we reach the city. He doesn¡¯t like going there all that much.¡± ¡°Why not?¡± ¡°He has his reasons.¡± Manny turned away. ¡°I can understand that. I¡¯m sure he has a good reason.¡± She said quietly, remembering how that morning she didn¡¯t want to go out where other people would see her. ¡°I can too.¡± He said with a nod. ¡°Though the reasons are his to share.¡± She nodded and then the two drifted off into silence. The forest around them continued to grow darker until she couldn¡¯t see anything but the odd bit of moonlight reflecting off leaves. The darkness was complete. She couldn¡¯t see Manny at all anymore. Calla felt as though she was suddenly completely alone despite the fact she knew the puppet was beside her. She tried to relax, but she felt something at that moment. What she felt was the fear of the dark. She heard a voice beside her. ¡°Calla, are you okay?¡± ¡°Y-Yes.¡± She said quickly. At that moment she suddenly saw glowing red eyes hovering a short distance away and screamed. The red eyes widened in shock. ¡°It¡¯s just me.¡± She heard Augustus say. ¡°Please don¡¯t be scared.¡± She took a deep breath. ¡°Sorry. I just¡­ wasn¡¯t expecting to see your eyes.¡± The red eyes vanished for a moment. ¡°Can you not see in the dark?¡± She shook her head. ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯ve ever met anyone who couldn¡¯t see in the shadows. Yet again I wouldn¡¯t say I¡¯ve met very many people.¡± The eyes appeared to tilt. ¡°Do people like you need sleep? I would hope so if you can¡¯t see at all.¡± ¡°Yes. Do¡­ Do people not sleep in the forest?¡± ¡°Was it a good hunt?¡± she heard Manny ask. ¡°Yes, I found a rabbit.¡± The eyes got closer to Calla and then she felt a warm body wrap itself around her. ¡°I will stay here until you wake up. Don¡¯t worry, I will protect you.¡± After that she drifted off to sleep quickly, her face nuzzled into his fur. The last thing she heard that night was Augustus. ¡°Honestly Manny, did you not smell her fear?¡± Chapter 6 - A Song in the Forest First, she could hear the footsteps of a massive creature echoing through the trees. Boom. Boom. Boom. Then she could feel the ground beneath her rumble with its weight. She had imagined the city would be big, but she couldn¡¯t imagine it would be so big that you could tell it was there a day''s walk away. She gave Manny a look. His plain wooden face turned to look at her. ¡°We¡¯ll rest in the trees when the time comes.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not going into a tree.¡± The shadowy wolf growled. ¡°Of course you won¡¯t. You don¡¯t need to rest as much as we do.¡± Then he looked back at Calla as they continued to walk. ¡°There are a couple of things that you should know.¡± ¡°Okay.¡± She said quietly. ¡°We¡¯re going to come across the path of rot first. There¡¯s not much we can do about that unless we want to go the long way. Now once we get there you will see rot sprites. You mustn¡¯t touch them. They eat the waste that comes from the city and if you touch them they will explode.¡± ¡°Why are you telling her this? Ever¡ª¡± Augustus started before Manny stopped him with a raised hand. ¡°She¡¯s not from here. She doesn¡¯t know.¡± ¡°Right.¡± Augustus nodded and looked at Calla. ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯ve never met someone not from the forest before.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay.¡± She said. She wondered for a moment if there were other forests in this world. Were there other forests in the world other than this one? She looked between Manny and Augustus. From the way they spoke, it sounded like there weren¡¯t any other forests. ¡°Are there other forests out there?¡± she asked. ¡°I hope so, but I¡¯ve never seen one,¡± Augustus said quickly. Manny shrugged. ¡°Honestly I don¡¯t know, but the fact that you¡¯re here really lends itself as evidence to the theory that we aren¡¯t alone in this world. You are clearly from another forest.¡± She nods. ¡°I see.¡± The more she spoke to the two of them the more she realized just how unlike this world was to her own. And so they continued to walk with the echoing footsteps in the distance which grew louder the closer they got. They stopped for a few hours to rest in a tree. Though she could still hear the footsteps, she couldn¡¯t feel it as much in the ground. She managed to fall asleep just as it grew too dark to see. Manny did something with some hanging moss and branches to hold her in place. She had never felt more secure as she slept. Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. When she woke up It was light out again. She could hear a breeze singing through the leaves. She was amazed at how the leaves sounded almost like wind chimes as the wind blew through them. It wasn¡¯t just wind chimes. It was as though there was an orchestra of wind instruments carried on the wind. There was the sound of a flute that was like birdsong, a clarinet, and even a violin could be heard in the music the wind made. It was as though the wind were putting on a concert. It was beautiful. She found herself smiling. ¡°Did you sleep well?¡± Manny asked when he noticed she was awake. ¡°I did.¡± She nodded. ¡°Is that sound normal?¡± Augustus was on the ground and he began to howl along with the sound. His voice was light and mournful and mingled with the sound of the wind. She looked down and could see that his tail was wagging happily. ¡°You could say it¡¯s normal, but it¡¯s not common,¡± Manny explained. Calla raised an eyebrow at that. ¡°It¡¯s a friend. She¡¯s a wind sprite and she loved making music. Most of her people travel the forest looking for stories, they make sounds as they move through the trees only because there¡¯s no not making sound at the speed they travel. Seirye though, she has always been different.¡± As he finished a face appeared in the air near the branch where the two of them were sitting. It looked like it was made of clouds. A woman¡¯s face made of clouds. The music in the leaves stopped. ¡°Hey, Manny. How was that? Was it good? Do you think other people would like to listen to it?¡± She looked at him expectantly. ¡°It was excellent. I¡¯m sure anyone in the forest would be glad to hear it.¡± She grinned widely. ¡°Awesome! I¡¯m also happy that Auggie loved it too. I rarely see him this happy.¡± Down on the ground Augustus stopped howling and sighed. He walked away. ¡°Indeed.¡± Manny laughed. The cloud woman turned to Calla. ¡°And who is this? Is this a new friend?¡± ¡°Yes. I¡¯m helping her.¡± ¡°I¡¯m Calla.¡± She said quietly. ¡°Nice to meet you.¡± The woman laughed. ¡°The pleasure is all mine. I¡¯m Seirye the wind sprite and it¡¯s my job to bring song and joy throughout the forest. Everyone cries for joy when they hear my songs. Everyone looks forward to the next note of my music. Did you enjoy my song?¡± Calla nodded. Seirye somehow managed to smile wider than she had before. ¡°Good! Manny, I think I like this new friend.¡± ¡°I¡¯m not going to stay forever,¡± Calla said quietly. ¡°I need to get home.¡± ¡°Yes, that is what I¡¯m helping her with,¡± Manny added. ¡°That doesn¡¯t matter.¡± A cloudy hand appears and waves. ¡°Even if I was only with them for a day or two, my friends are still my friends. The wind is always changing. Tomorrow I may not even be here.¡± ¡°I hope you¡¯re here tomorrow,¡± Calla said. ¡°I hope so too! There are so many people in the forest who need to hear my songs.¡± ¡°If you want everyone to hear your songs, you¡¯ll be in the forest forever.¡± The cloudy face smirked. ¡°Of course, that¡¯s my plan for immortality. By the way, I don¡¯t know where you¡¯re going, but can I come with you? It¡¯s been forever since I travelled with someone. I think the last time was when we first met. The others made fun of me last time, saying that the wind doesn¡¯t go with anyone. It can carry, but otherwise goes alone.¡± Her face changed as she said the last part. She looked older somehow before returning to her normal face. ¡°Sure, you can come. We¡¯re going to the Roving City.¡± ¡°Perfect. I haven¡¯t been to the city in what feels like forever. I will provide the best music for the journey.¡± Chapter 7 - A Bubble in the Forest It didn¡¯t take them that long after they set out that morning before they first saw the rot sprites. Manny pointed at a small bubble floating stationary in the air. It was green in colour and its surface was fuzzy. She raises an eyebrow. ¡°Are they made of moss?¡± He tilted his head. ¡°Moss? Maybe? They are made of some form of plant, but don¡¯t be fooled. Despite being plants, they are still very dangerous. Do not touch.¡± ¡°I understand.¡± She smiled softly. ¡°You know, my world has dangerous plants to. Some of them are very poisonous. You don¡¯t want to eat them?¡± Manny made a horrified noise. Augustus looked back from where he was walking ahead. ¡°What happens if you eat them?¡± ¡°You could die.¡± He shook his head. ¡°Are there other dangerous things in your world that can kill you?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°Your world sounds like a terrifying place. It¡¯s hard enough here as it is without having killing plants around.¡± ¡°Wait¡­¡± she thought. ¡°Does that mean that these rot sprites aren¡¯t deadly?¡± ¡°Of course they¡¯re not deadly. They just clean up after the Roving City.¡± Manny explained. ¡°If you accidently pop one you won¡¯t die, though you may wish it did worse. It will make you smell forever. You cannot wash the rot off and all creatures in the forest will be nauseated at the scent.¡± ¡°Oh¡­¡± that was a lot worse than she thought. She wondered for a moment if tomato juice would be able to get rid of the scent like it¡¯s supposedly able to help with the spray of the skunk. Maybe it would work, but she didn¡¯t want to chance it. She swallowed. ¡°Well that one is pretty small and it¡¯s not moving they must be pretty easy to avoid.¡± ¡°Oh, there are more ahead.¡± Augustus said back to her. ¡°That one likely strayed a little too far because of the wind. They move towards the nearest source of rot, but this one is so small that it looks like it has never picked up anything. They get a lot larger than this.¡± If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. ¡°I see.¡± She said as she passed the bubble of moss. She gave it a glance and was shocked to see it move slightly. ¡°Yeah, wind sprites do love messing around with rot sprites. We move them all over the forest. It messes with everything.¡± Seirye said proudly. ¡°So it was you¡­¡± Manny muttered under his breath before looking at Calla. ¡°What is it?¡± ¡°I thought I saw the sprite move.¡± She said quickly. ¡°It must have been my imagination.¡± Manny looked at the tiny rot sprite. ¡°That¡¯s okay, just let us know if you see anything else.¡± ¡°Will do.¡± The four continued further and just like Augustus had said there were more rot sprites hovering in the air. They were of all different sizes, but in the normal forest the largest she had seen were about the size of a large basketball. They floated ominously and Calla continued to grow nervous as it looked like most of the sprites moved slightly and then stopped. She said nothing though. It had to have been all in her head. None of the others had mentioned that rot sprites would move when there was nothing rotten around.¡± Finally they reached a large stripe of trampled forest. The thumping of the city moving was felt here stronger than ever. Her eyes widened as she looked over the many rot sprites that were scattered all over the clearing. These ones were a lot bigger than the ones she had seen thus far. Some of them were much bigger than she was. They looked like they could contain a car or a large horse, or maybe even something bigger. They were huge and because of this they terrified her. Her eyes widened. ¡°I¡­ didn¡¯t realize they got so big.¡± ¡°The more rot they eat the bigger they grow. I think they can grow even bigger than the roving city, but that never happens because there are so many of them. All of the rot sprites help clean this area up.¡± Manny explained. ¡°We will be walking along the trampled strip because it¡¯s easier for all of us.¡± ¡°But I¡¯m perfectly fine walking through the forest and you¡¯re a tree child.¡± Augustus grumbled. ¡°And I don¡¯t walk!¡± Seirye said joyfully. ¡°Yes, but I have been growing tired in the forest. I need an easier surface to walk on.¡± Manny said quietly. ¡°Fine.¡± Augustus said. ¡°We¡¯ll walk here.¡± She looked at Manny, happy that he didn¡¯t tell the truth. She knew that he was actually going this way because of her. She had been having trouble walking through the forest. One thing she really missed in her own forest was how people built hiking trails all over the place to make it easier to walk there. They continued to walk along the strip of trampled trees for a while, until it happened. She looked over at the rot sprites and it looked like a few of the bigger ones were moving, but these ones weren¡¯t moving and stopping like the other ones. These ones were moving at a steady pace towards them. It was not her imagination. ¡°I thought you said that they would only move towards rot.¡± She said. Manny looked over at the rot sprites and hesitated. ¡°They¡¯re not. I have one suggestion though. We should run.¡± Augustus nodded. ¡°I agree.¡± That is how the four of them began to run past the moving rot sprites. Chapter 8 - Danger in the Forest They didn¡¯t have to run far before the rot sprites lost interest in them. The mossy bubbles were stationary once more. Manny and Augustus looked at each other as Calla tried to regain her breath. Though the rot sprites didn¡¯t move that fast, she found the way they steadily moved in her direction terrifying. Seirye had begun to hum a song that Calla had never heard before. ¡°Let me test a theory quickly. Come in Augustus.¡± Manny started to walk towards the rot sprites. Augustus looked at her and Seirye. ¡°We¡¯ll be right back.¡± Calla was worried that as the two walked towards the sprites, they would be chased again, but they came within a foot of one of the bubbles before stopping. It was one of the larger bubbles, one of the ones that had only stopped chasing them. It was stationary, and it didn¡¯t move at all when the puppet and the wolf got close to it. They came back quickly. Manny gave a nod. ¡°Just as I thought.¡± ¡°What?¡± Calla asked quietly. ¡°The rot sprites go after two things. They go after rot and waste, and they go after things, not from the forest.¡± ¡°I thought they only went after rot and stuff,¡± Augustus asked. ¡°I thought that too, but the fact they chased us proves there is more that they will go after. When we went back over none of them reacted like anyone would expect. I think Seirye would be the same, but it¡¯s harder to test with her because of how she is.¡± ¡°What do you mean? I could have done it.¡± Seirye mumbled. Her cloudy face frowned a great frown. Manny looked at her. ¡°You¡¯re intangible and the air that makes you up is spread over a good distance. If they were coming after you, they would be doing so already.¡± ¡°Oh¡­¡± Calla raised an eyebrow. ¡°How big is Seirye?¡± ¡°How rude!¡± the cloudy face turned a dark grey and some lighting could be seen within. Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. Manny ignored the wind sprite. ¡°The air that makes her up can be found as far as the other side of the trampled strip. That¡¯s the radius.¡± ¡°That¡¯s why it¡¯s rare to see more than one wind sprite in the same area,¡± Augustus added. Seirye¡¯s cloudy face quickly went back to its normal state and she grinned. ¡°There aren¡¯t that many of us, that makes me even more rare.¡± Manny made a sound as though he was clearing his throat. ¡°Yes, anyways the point I¡¯m trying to make is that I¡¯m pretty sure the rot sprites are going after Calla. She¡¯s not from the forest and I think they can sense that. That would mean they also go after things, not from the forest.¡± Calla suddenly felt even more frightened by the forest. Augustus tilted his head then pushed his massive head near Calla¡¯s arm and took a long sniff causing Calla to pull her arm away and take a step back. He shook his head and then sighed. ¡°Now that I¡¯ve checked, you do have a strange scent about you. I would also avoid shadow wolves if I were you. If they see you as a threat to the forest they will start hunting.¡± Her eyes widened in shock. ¡°I¡­ I thought the only danger was the dust barrier.¡± Manny shook his head. ¡°Lots of things are dangerous, it¡¯s just that most people in the forest never have to worry about most of them.¡± He looked at Augustus. ¡°You didn¡¯t have to tell her that. Hopefully, she will be gone before she has to worry about any of that.¡± ¡°Sorry.¡± He said quietly. ¡°If it makes it any better, the shadow wolves are all on the other side of the Roving City and they¡¯re pretty scattered in packs. The chances that you will come across any of them is very low.¡± ¡°It¡¯s okay. Thanks.¡± Calla said quietly. ¡°Well, I guess we have to stay off the trampled strip,¡± Seirye said quickly. ¡°It may be easier walking for you Manny, but you¡¯ll just have to deal with it.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll be fine,¡± Manny said as he looked at Calla. ¡°Though couldn¡¯t you technically blow the rot sprites far enough away that they won¡¯t bother us?¡± Everything was silent for a moment aside from the rumbling from the rhythmic sound of the Roving City in the distance. Then Seirye¡¯s cloudy face appeared to expand. ¡°Of course! I¡¯ll do it!¡± As soon as she said that a wind blew across the trampled strip and all of the rot sprites were pushed to the far side of the cleared area. ¡°There! I¡¯ll keep it up until we reach the city, but it may be harder when we get close enough for them to be eating the rot. I¡¯ll have to do it differently then, but that¡¯s okay~~! It¡¯s not hard.¡± ¡°Thank you,¡± Manny said. ¡°Shall we continue then?¡± Everyone nodded and the group continued the journey. They didn¡¯t run into any more problems with the rot sprites that day. Calla felt even less safe in the forest than she did before. She couldn¡¯t protect herself. She was lucky to have found people who could keep her safe, but she didn¡¯t know much about the forest yet. She was sure there had to be dangers that no one could protect her from and that scared her. For a moment she wished that she had been into martial arts or sports instead of art. At least then she could help the others keep her safe.