Kid Quest

Pickle: The Rainbow Rocks

Pickle bravely marched through the dark, through the mud, through the roots and leaves and tree limbs. For hours and hours she walked. The passage of time seemed to skew, to warp around her. When she finally reached a large hole in the ground, it was as though her shell shook in relief, or perhaps fear.

She continued, marching up to the hole, seeing nothing but darkness inside. She heard the sound of screaming and chittering, and a part of her knew the girl she'd followed here was in trouble.

Pickle soon found herself in a large open part of the tunnels. She wasn't used to moving this quickly, but she'd noticed a slight increase in speed since she'd arrived through the glowing hole, and it somehow allowed her to travel these dark tunnels at an alarming pace, at least for her. In fact, she was moving so fast in comparison to her normal speed that she nearly missed the brightly colored rocks scattered on the ground, almost running straight out of the tunnels through a large hole that looked recently made.

The rocks were pouring out of a bag, which itself was coming out of a larger bag. She approached slowly, partially because she was being cautious and partially to keep herself from crashing into or passing anything important. They were small, colorful rocks, and they smelled strange. She nudged one with her foot, but nothing happened. She wondered if the colors meant they were edible, or perhaps poisonous, and how they'd gotten there. Hesitantly, she reached her head down to one of the rocks, a green one, and ate it. It tasted sweet, maybe a little tart, and it crumbled like powder, but Pickle enjoyed it. She ate three more before she remembered why she came into this cave in the first place.

She pulled herself from her feast and turned towards the freshly made hole in the wall.

"Whatever made that," she thought to herself, "is dangerous."

She quickly gathered up her courage once more. This was the only way the girl could've gone, and Pickle couldn't afford any distractions, no matter how delicious they were. She traveled through the entranceway, leaving behind the strange tunnels and delicious rocks, and ventured forth. She could see the girl in the distance, far in front, and Pickle followed as best she could, but soon lost sight of her.

In her haste, she grew fatigued. She spotted a large tree up ahead. Next to the tree was a boulder, surrounded by tall grass and flowers, and covered by shade. She approached.

She nestled up against the large boulder, covered herself in some grass, and closed her eyes. As sleep takes her, her mind wanders, and her dreams are filled with cabbage leaves and large carrots.

She awoke to a strange feeling. Under her head was a hard, round stone, which sat underneath her jaw. Her legs were sprawled out, and felt heavier and longer. She lifted her head and turned to face her shell only to stop and stare in shock for a brief moment. She found that she'd somehow grown several times her normal size, and now looked more like a tortoise than a turtle.

She stood shakily, but her legs adjusted too slowly to properly maintain her new weight, and she collapsed. Trying again she lifted one of her front legs, then the other, then the back legs, and slowly began pushing herself up into a standing position. Finally she stood, she was quite tall. So tall, in fact, that the large boulder she'd rested next to was now the size of her head, and looked to be no bigger than a mango.

She looked around, her legs stable now, and observed her surroundings in a new light. She had never seen the world like this. So small, so insignificant, and yet still so massive and overwhelming. She took a deep breath, the air was somehow crisper and rich with scents she'd never smelled before.

She took a step, and the dirt beneath her gave slightly, leaving a large indentation when she removed her foot to observe what she'd sunken into. Each step she took left one, and any time her back foot stepped in a hole one of her front feet made, it only sank deeper into the dirt. She felt heavy and sluggish, but at the same time, she felt somehow powerful and durable.

When she thought of what could have caused this, she remembered the rainbow rocks, and turned her neck to look back at the cave, which was smaller now.

"I'm glad I ate a bunch of those." She thought as she turned and started walking.

Her determination to find the girl fueled her steps, and she felt her speed increase. This was what she needed, and she would use it to find that girl, no matter what, if nothing more than to make sure she is alright.

And so she stamped off into the distance.