Whispers On The Wind

Chapter 1

You know that thing where you're walking through downtown New York City and suddenly, you find yourself lost in the woods? Yeah, me neither. Yet there I was, surrounded by trees moments after being in the middle of the biggest metropolitan area in the United States with no clue how I got there. Annabelle Frasier, a woman who'd managed to get a full ride scholarship to Columbus University, got lost walking a path she'd walked a million times before. Now there wasn't a path at all. Just trees stretching high into the sky, nearly obstructing the sun.

I sighed, pausing to sit on a large root jutting up from the ground. I had to come up with a game plan if I was going to, you know, survive. Everything I knew was academic. I'd never learned anything about surviving in the wilderness. I majored in biomedical science, not environmental science. I knew about poisonous plants and treatments, but not how to identify them. What if I ran into a wolf or something?

A sound, almost like a whisper, interrupted my thoughts. "Help me...Save the forest...It needs you...Help me..."

It began repeating the same few phrases over and over again. I began walking against the wind, hoping to find the source of the voice in it. I continued for what felt like forever, the whispers getting ever so slightly louder. The trees began getting bigger, wider as I continued until they appeared to be wide enough to fit a house inside. It was a bit quieter than where I had been before and brighter, despite the setting sun and increased foliage.

I slowed my pace, admiring the beauty of the forest. I couldn't help but wonder what made it different. I was so absorbed in all the minute details of my surroundings that I barely noticed that the voice had disappeared. It was completely silent, until...

"Freeze! You are under arrest under the charge of trespassing on our village!" A loud, booming voice resounded from behind me. I turned to see a large man with dark skin and darker hair standing not far behind me. "You are to be taken to our king for trial."

"I'm sorry...I don't understand what's happening. Are you telling me there's a village in the middle of the woods? Why is it so far from the rest of civilization? And did you say king?" I asked him as he approached me.

"I'll be asking the questions here. Who are you?" He finally reached me, making me realize just how massive he was. He had to be almost seven feet tall and looked like he went to the gym probably two or three times a day.

"My name is Annabelle Frasier. I'm just a college student that somehow managed to get myself lost in the woods." My gaze shifted downward to avoid making eye contact as I spoke to the intimidating man. As it did, I noticed something a bit odd about the man, causing my eyes to shoot back up to his face. "You have horse legs!"

The man sighed. "It's very rude to comment on a centaur's body like that. How would you feel if I acted surprised to see that you have human legs? Now come with me."

He grabbed my arm and began dragging me further into the apparent village. We stopped in front of the largest tree I had ever seen. He put his hand on a knot on the trunk and pushed. When he did, a large portion of the trunk swung inward, revealing the tree's hollow innards. The centaur pushed me inside and followed behind me, pushing the door closed. On the inside, stairs spiraled upwards along the side. I assumed the stairs continued all the way to the top of the tree, but I could only see a few feet upward as it appeared to have another floor.

The horse-man began leading, or rather dragging me, up the stairs to the next level. The second floor looked almost identical to the first, but with two large chairs underneath the stairs on one side. A man with white hair was sitting in the largest of the two. He stood up when we entered.