Chapter 2 - Chapter 2- Where are we?

When I open my eyes I see a blurry, clear blue sky above me. My head is ringing and I hear that same sound of rushing wind. Once I regain my senses some more I move to stand but every slight movement is shaky. Once I'm up I look around to see I'm in an open field of tall grass, surrounded by lush willow trees. The blowing wind reveals whatever is hiding under the grass and with the next gust I spot Emily seemingly unconscious the same way that I was. I walk over to her, still wobbling with every step and kneel down next to her. As I look around I strangely don't feel scared or even nervous but instead calm and excited. With my ears seemingly picking up every sound around us I gently shake Emily's shoulder as I say her name "Emily" "Emily". She slowly opens her eyes and after a few seconds she lets out a gasp and moves back. "A-Arthur?" "Where are we?" "What is happening?" I reply "I'm not sure about where we are, or why we're here but I think it has to do with that figure that we saw in the supply closet." She sits up and looks around scared and confused at this strange situation. As the wind continues to blow against the fabric of my clothes I try to calm Emily down by noting how peaceful everything is. "But this doesn't make any sense. I mean we were just in a supply closet, then that weird shadow figure popped up, a-and now we're in the middle of nowhere?'' Emily said, calming her voice. "I think there's something different about me, Emily. I mean you saw how much I've changed in only a short time and now I feel eerily calm and what that figure was talking about. I don't think whatever is going on can be explained by the rules of our world." Once I brought this up to Emily there was a sort of light that emanated from her before she seemed to calm down and said "now that you mention it I should be feeling terrified but instead im sort of calm" After we confirmed our situation Emily got up and we looked around but it seemed that past the tall grass forest was nothing but a line of trees in any direction. "So, which way should we go?" Emily asked. "Let's head south for now, I feel like the strong winds from the north might be because of a storm."But… how do you know which direction North and South are?" When Emily asked this I stopped in my tracks. How did I know? It feels like I'm one hundred percent certain in my judgment but I really don't have any reason to be. "I guess- it's like a gut feeling but… stronger" Emily seemed to not fight it as it really made no difference which direction we went right now and heading away from the wind couldn't be a bad idea. Me and Emily walk with the wind blowing against our back for a while which sends Emily's hair onto her face and she fights it as we wade through the tall grass. When we get to the tree line I put my hand out signaling Emily to stop "there's no noise" I say. "What?' replies Emily. "Forest's are never silent. There are always animal's, and there were until a few moments ago. I was listening, and just now the sounds of small creatures moving about stopped." I state. "But what does that mean?" asked Emily. "When a forest suddenly goes quiet it means danger is near, usually the apex predator of that environment." "Then what should we do?" "Since the forest circles us we have to push forward and get through as fast as possible." "Okay" Emily replies sheepishly. We push through the forest now hyper aware of our surroundings and making sure not to make any noise. Emily is standing closer to me while being extra observant and constantly scanning back and forth. We continue on without any problems for a while but then it happens. I hear a distorted mixture of a gargle and a growl as Emily screams and I quickly turn to see a massive beast. This creature had to have been the size of a small elephant with the snout and teeth of a grizzly bear, tusks of a wild boar but three times the size, and the build of a rhinoceros mixed with a war horse. Before Emily can regain her composure, the beast charges and im barely able to tackle Emily out of the way before the beast crashes past us taking down four trees in its path. I grab Emily's hand and yell "RUN!" as I see the creature shake its head and turn from its last charge. I push Emily further ahead and turn back to see the beast charging at me with both of its massive tusks perfectly sharpened like blades. I can't move out of the way, it's too late. Only having one choice I bring up my arm to attack the beast and suddenly I feel a burning sensation and a vision of what I knew was inside of my arm. I visualized a fire spreading throughout my muscles and tissue and suddenly I hit the monster so hard that it fell over. I didn't even understand what I had done and when I looked to my arm I saw a faint glow but not like the light that calmed Emily. This glow was on the inside, and my arm felt like it was being put on an open flame. I clench my arm in pain and yell as Emily runs over to me. The pain is so bad I can hardly make sense of what Emily is saying but I can see she's trying to tell me something and looking extremely concerned. Once I regain some thought I see Emily's trying to pull me away while crying and I turn to see the giant creature looking down at me with rage in it's eyes and a now chipped tusk and bleeding mouth. It tosses me without even charging. Im sent flying and land face down in the dirt with my shirt and sweater ripped apart and my abdomen and chest being cut. "AAUGGH" I scream with a mixture of agony caused by my arm and the cut on my chest. I turn myself over and see the blue sky and large trees that resemble oaks but not quite, this doesn't last long as soon I see Emily run and try to drag me but she stumbles back as the creature appears in my vision. Almost as a way to torture me as revenge for it's chipped tusk it places one paw on my chest and the weight stops me from breathing and pushes blood out of the slice across my torso. The pain is disgusting but I cannot scream or even breathe. I'm about to lose consciousness as a bright light appears and hits the beast, knocking it back. My head naturally falls sideways as I see Emily sitting with her hands out and a faint light coming out of them before fading. I'm able to maintain consciousness and slowly crawl and prop myself up against the nearest tree. I look at the knocked over beast and then back at Emily who is now vomiting and gasping for air while tears run down her face. Like with the directions before I somehow know this is her drawback of doing whatever she did just like the burning in my arm. I can't get up as I see the monster regain its footing and slowly walk towards Emily. I hold out my working arm and try to yell at Emily but I only end up coughing blood. As it approaches her and I begin to lose hope I suddenly hear a deep and echoing "AH HA HA" from nearby. Suddenly a large dark figure flies out from the trees and lands with enough force to rock the ground and cause a plume of dust to erupt. In that deep voice again I hear "wow she really did a number on you kids, huh?' The dust cleared and a massive man with tan skin, a massive beard, and long unkept hair on his head with a purely muscular build and wearing leather clothing with a necklace made of multiple creatures teeth around his neck is standing there. "You know children shouldn't go off on their own, especially those who aren't used to these parts." He says to us knowing full well the states we're in. "Anyway, it's unlucky you ran into a Bowlux, these beasts usually only come out once a year to hunt in this area" as he continues speaking the creature charges him and he grabs it with one hand fully stopping it while continuing "after this i've got a few questions for you two, but I suppose I can go easy on you for now, HA HA HA." With that he crushed the Bowlux's skull with one hand and with such force that the contents of the beast's skull burst out at least 10 feet in every direction. After this Emily seems to fall unconscious from the drawback of the light she created and seemingly not being able to handle the strain on her body any longer. "Huh, that's not good." The massive man says as he walks over to Emily and I begin to lose consciousness from losing so much blood as my wound is still open. "That's worse" the man says, looking towards me as I fall unconscious. I awaken to a ray of golden light bathing my face. Or, not physically, more like a sense of it. I am being met with all of my thoughts and feelings overflowing in a metaphysical sense. Like speaking to my own consciousness yet as if it has abandoned my body for greater purpose. Every question I ask comes from me yet it is also I who know the answer but at the same time not myself. I ask "what is this place" my mind replies "the inbetween" "am I dead?" "That's up to you." "Who are you?" "I simply am" "Can I leave?" "You will only be leaving yourself." With that the flood of my own thoughts and thoughts that weren't quite mine flooded my consciousness with a feeling like I was being pushed out of my own mind. It was not a pain exactly more like the feeling of a tragic heartbreak but in a fully personal and mental sense. It was as best I can describe the sense of who I was and who I am as well as me but in a sense I cannot interpret all fighting for control over my mental landscape. In this epic battle what would remain is a twisted version of myself that lacked any complete beginning or end for a functional bit of self. As I felt my own mind being torn apart I was bombarded with my old life and my upbringing and I held on to them being the origin of what I am and the anchor to my being. As I accept being absorbed into what I am, visions of my upbringing and life play in my head. Suddenly I'm back in my old frail body when I was young but I am not in control merely watching as an outsider in my own memory. I knew this memory all too well for it has haunted me ever since. A memory of the worst day of my life. There I was waking up in that same familiar bed. There was no poster across from where I awoke and the smell of fresh paint filled the air. It was a few days after me, my mom, and my dad moved into the new house. It was also the day my life changed for the worse. I got out of bed and didn't change as I walked down to the dining room in my old dinosaur pajamas I loved so much. I walked down the freshly placed wooden flooring and went about my morning routine in the bathroom. I continued down the stairs which did not make a sound as the smell of a new home flooded my senses. I continued walking until I reached my kitchen where my mother, looking more happy and lively than she has been since, was cooking pancakes on our new oven as I went and sat beside my dad. He was a tall man, roughly 6'2. He had a pale complexion but no more than myself. Although pale the rest of him resembled a sick man by no means. He had a strong build of the working man that he was. Above all else that I remember is that he was very kind. Of course, being my father, he was kind to me and my mom but he was also kind to everyone else, always helping whenever he was needed and knowing how to strike up needed conversation. I can't remember his voice anymore but I'm sure it was deep yet soft. As I walk through the memory the frames start to collapse and the memory stops making tangible sense. Suddenly, I'm on the way to school. My dad is in the front seat driving me. My new school was in the distance just out of view. The brown leather of our old car still smells sweet as another car comes slamming into us. The memory fully falls apart and that same radiant golden light pours onto me as I have somehow held on to my own being. For now I remain myself and I escape that memory. Like the closing scene of a play the light surrounding me fades to black.