TK Special #7 - Return to the M'Verse: An Ooorah Anthology

The Veil - by @jinnis

The Veil

by jinnis

The first time Janice slipped through the veil, she believed she was dreaming. She had been drinking that night and couldn't remember how she got home. Did Svey drive her? No, probably not, not after the row they had. It was all so unnecessary and stupid—now she came to think of it. She should have apologised. Instead, she had flirted with the cute kid with the blue curls. What was her name? Just to make Svey jealous, but—

A screech interrupted her thoughts. She slapped her palms over her ears. "Stop it, May."

With a frown, she glanced around for something to throw against the wall of her neighbour's apartment when she realised she wasn't in her room at all. What surrounded her looked like tan canvas, and the smells... another screech catapulted her out of dreamland and into the hot, moist reality of a jungle camp.

When she pushed the tent flap aside, the taste of bile rose in Janice's throat. The scene before her conveyed both beauty and horror. Dense forest surrounded the camp, and the canopy of mighty trees swallowed most of the sunlight. Moisture gleamed on the foliage of the underbrush in a variety of organic greens from light lime to velvet black. The clearing occupied by the tent was smaller than her apartment, the trees and leafy bushes crowding in from all sides. A giant brown and green snake lay coiled a rotting log in front of the old-fashioned tent and watched her from slitted eyes, tongue flitting.

Janice bit down a scream and dashed back into the tent to check for a potential weapon. The cramped space held a narrow cot with a blanket, a tiny table, and a folding chair. Nothing that would help to fight off a monster snake. Not a single piece of furniture she recognised, either. What the heck was she doing here, still in the outfit she'd chosen last night to impress Svey?

Much good had it done to her. But thinking of her own stupidity and unused opportunities wouldn't help her in the current situation. She had to find out where she was, why she ended in this weird place, and how to get home. And what to do about the snake?

But where to begin? This place had to belong to someone, right? She searched the tent, but couldn't find any personal stuff. There wasn't any food either, just a plastic bottle that held some clear liquid. Was it water? She tried to open it but struggled until she found out the screw cap turned the wrong way. Odd.

Janice sniffed at the content and coughed when strong alcoholic fumes tickled her nose. Not her favourite brand of booze, but it might help to strengthen her nerves. She took a swig and liquid fire scorched her throat. With new resolve, she stepped out of the tent, bottle in hand, to have a word with the snake. It was gone.

Not reassuring in the least. "Oh no. You can't do this. I won't play hide and seek with a bugger like you."

She scanned the clearing and checked among the fallen and rotting leaves, where she found different creepy-crawlies, but no snake. Or serpent, whatever. That the light seemed to fade didn't brighten her mind or chase the shivers. Reminding herself that this must be someone's camp, she tried calling.

"Hello?"

For a moment, the cacophony of insect noises cut off, only to begin again, louder, after a few moments of breathless silence. Janice tried again, her voice breaking, but the result was the same. Her third call was ignored not only by the potential owner of the tent but also by the jungle's inhabitants, who probably had enough of being disturbed by this strange intruder.

Janice spent the better part of the night wide awake, shivering on the cot in her party dress, protected only by a thin blanket, listening to the voices of the jungle. In the early hours, exhaustion and the alcohol claimed their right, and she fell into a fitful sleep.