From Night On: Pathways

Chapters 3-4

Chapter 3:

Life is a Stage

(Les)

I was lost. Although the destination turned out to be enlightening as to our past relationship with the Dark Man, Rav, I was still standing on a mountain, in the middle of who-knows-where, and without any idea where to go. I knew I couldn't just stay there. Whatever cosmic cabby dropped me off was long gone and had made no indication of offering me a returning trip during the couple hours I waited and pondered over my dilemma. I paced around the grounds of the temple until my impatience directed my feet to follow one of the two paths away.

The clouds hid the sky from me. The sun, if there was one in this world, offered no direction as all the clouds seemed to be lit equally, which meant that I couldn't tell east from west. My attention was so set on the sky that I didn't notice just how different this world was until I was in the thick forest and the sheer unfamiliarity left me in a state of panic. I couldn't see more than a couple yards off the path due to its lush and bizarre foliage. Bulbs that dangled from long stems appeared to have teeth and I often thought, "Please, don't call me 'Seymour.'" From tree to tree, vines hung like Christmas decorations with small, purple fruit that resembled large golf balls. After finding a stick that didn't look like it was going to bite me, I allowed my curiosity to start testing my new environment. Yes, I started poking things with a stick just like any other curious monkey. My fears about the bulbs were confirmed when one quickly latched on to my poking device and took a chunk out of it like one might take out of a burger. The hanging fruit offered a more curious, yet cunning, evolutionary advancement: the divots, that I associated with a golf ball, hid spring loaded spikes, which impaled my stick with ease. "I guess I'm not eating that," I said aloud as I shook it off into the brush and found a sticky and smelly residue left in the holes on the stick.

My senses began to demand my attention as the area came more into focus. Maybe, it was the stinky spike holes that invoked this, but I suddenly became aware of many of the smells wafting through the air. Then, I became aware of the humidity. The air was just about as thick as the forest as it felt like I was walking through chowder, which clung to my skin and caused me to sweat fiercely. A particular smell crept up and nearly knocked me off my feet. "Dear God!" I gasped as I lifted my arm. "Now, I feel like I owe these freaky plants an apology." I looked at my forearm and could see the perspiration appear. I was going to need water and hadn't heard or seen the faintest trickle.

I quickened my step and kept my poking and prodding of the wildlife to a minimum until I came across some beautiful blue and green, vase shaped flowers that were so large they could conceal my entire arm. Everything else was obviously unfriendly with sharp teeth, barbs, hooks, or some various form of goo, so, when I saw these flowers, I had to stop and appreciate something non-threatening. There was a large stamen that protruded from the center of the petals and glowed in iridescent red. As I got closer, the stamen shifted color to a bright orange and began to retreat to within the blossom. I didn't attempt any further approach, thinking that I was the threatening element in the engagement, and even began to walk away when the stamen shot out like a frog's tongue, whipping the back of my left hand. Also, just like a frog's tongue, it stuck firmly to my hand and I could feel the plant pulling me toward it. I easily resisted the tug, but the situation turned frightening when I found that the flowers traveled in packs, and I do mean "travel." The carnivorous plant and a half dozen of its kin uprooted and began to circle me. In a panic, I let the fire loose from my hand, freeing myself from the one, as six other tongues hit me. Smart or stupid, I turned as I struggled, reeling them into me and wrapping myself up in their attack as I fought back with the fire and scorched half of them. The remaining retracted their stamen and scurried away in fear, leaving behind their fallen and a few unpleasant sticky spots on my person. After making sure that they weren't returning in greater numbers, I took the time to try and scrape the goo off and nearlyglued a rock to my ass, so I resorted to simply covering the sticky areas with dirt to prevent accidentally fastening myself someplace "embarrassing."