Jester Book 1: Abduction

Chp 18.7: He's Alive!

Within the wooded backend of Starr Park's massive conglomerate sat a host of colorful and stunning foliage and fauna. Bringing forth this verdure of vines and Pitcher Plants was the trio known as the biology bunch. A large ebony boxer by the name of Rosa, her sweet auburn assistant Bea, and their tiny creation Sprout. A plant given life through botany and technology.

It was their job to not only ensure the growth of extravagant greenery but maintain its splendor through day or night. So if it was their duty to monitor the plants, whose role was it to take care of the animals.

That responsibility lay in the hands of the tribal trio. It was the job of The Almighty Nita, Trickster Leon, and Chieftain Bo to watch over the wildlife. If a visitor was to interact with an animal they first had to be accompanied by one of these three Brawlers.

Without the tribal trio, the forests had gone wild. Barricades and roadblocks ran along the forest's edge locking off access from the general public. The greenhouse that the scientists called home was now a dreary copy of its formerly lively glory. Every day Rosa had to rescue one of her weaker companions from the jaws of massive beasts or a voracious swarm of bloodthirsty critters.

Chester was barely able to navigate the now unhinged expanse of non-native wildebeests and tigers. Snakes lapped at his ankles and he swore a spider the size of a pomeranian landed on his back once. He'd finally made it to the cleared-out bit of grass that housed Bo's abode. All the lights were off inside the shack. Even the lantern that once burned through the midnight was snuffed.

Chester made his way to the back windows. He slipped in over the kitchen sink and silently touched down behind the dining table. His eyes had grown accustomed to darkness. Irises now capable of discerning the dim differences in this dilapidated domain.

There was a pot with weeks-old soup now souring the air with its stink. A table set that had never been used. The living room's couch had a depression in the far left cushion. Signs of continued use over the years. He quickly slinked down a hallway to his objective.

The wild child must be lost. She never pursued the academics like her younger brother. She spent all her time in the woods. She was likely too scared and confused to even leave her room now that both Leon and Bo had disappeared.

He found a door with a shabby wooden sign. It stated, "OUR ROOM" and was carved with a shoddy razor. Chester placed a hand against the divider and it gave way with minimal force. Its eerie creak only added to this unnerving scene.

The two beds were colored after the teens that slept in them. Nita's toys included bones and blunt clubs that were strewed across the floor. Leon's were marked by comics he'd bought from town and action figures. The cold air from an open window pushed around the leaves resting within a dead flower pot and an open cage signified the release of a family pet.

Chester noticed the bulge in Nita's sheets and moved towards her. Her breaths were heavy as she pushed the woven fabric around her up and down. Chester could feel her body heat radiating off the cloth. When he finally pulled it away he expected to see her maroon bear pelt. Instead, he caught a gray and black mask.

The trash panda hissed at him and swung at the air in defense. Its face was smeared with the same nasty moldy goop that was permeating from the previous pot. Chester quickly ducked back, allowing the intruder to rush out the window it snuck in through.

With the unwanted squatter gone, Chester took a second to wander the empty home. All the rooms were empty. Signs of former occupation are now replaced by a barren ghost house.

Chester wondered what he had misunderstood. Nita's animalistic instincts must have sent her out of her home when Bo went missing. The only question was, "Where is Nita?"