The Adventure of the Magic Chia Plant

Chapter 11: The Forgotten Forest

How long had he been following the faerie? It seemed like hours.  But that was impossible because the morning had yet to arrive, and they hadn't even reached the woods yet.  Bench thought it was relatively near, but it seemed to stay the same distance in front of him no matter how long they walked.  

He looked behind him.  He could no longer see the campfire.  He had a vague sense that something was wrong about that, as they couldn't possibly have traveled far enough that it wouldn't stand out in the absolute darkness.  

One thing was sure.  The absence of the guiding firelight meant he was committed to his decision now.  The faerie was his only path to the bucket and his only way back to his siblings. The darkness seemed to swallow him whole, amplifying his sense of isolation.  

Not for the first time, fear crept into his mind. Had he made a mistake in following her?  A certain haziness in his normally sensible and logical mind clouded his decision-making. Normally, he wouldn't have followed a complete stranger at all, but he found something compelling about her, even as his intuition whispered that she was potentially dangerous.  The two contradictory voices warred in his head, even as he continued to put one foot in front of the other.  

He watched as she glided ahead noiselessly, her wings fluttering too fast for him to see so that she seemed to float of her own volition above the ground.   Suddenly, she stopped and looked back at him, her golden eyes gleaming eerily.

"Take out your flashlight and your knife," she hissed.

"What?" 

"We are about to enter the Forgotten Forest. Many dangers lurk here.  You'll have to defend yourself."

Bench looked up and realized that they had finally reached the woods. He nervously took out his flashlight with his left hand and held the pocketknife with his right.  It seemed laughable that the tiny blade could defend him from anything, but it was all he had.  

He trained the flashlight on the nearest trees.  They grew close together, their trunks and roots braided around each other so that little space was left between them.  The leaves had coarse, stiff spines that looked wickedly sharp.  Bench had a sneaking suspicion that they were venomous.

"We can't pass through that!" he exclaimed in dismay. 

"Wait."

The faerie placed a tiny hand on the nearest trunk.  Bench gasped as, with a high-pitched groan, the trees in front of them began to untwist and unravel, revealing a narrow pathway through the woods that led into the darkness.  Yet, they quivered menacingly as if threatening to crush him the moment he tried to pass. between them.  

The faerie gave him a warning look.  "Come. Don't touch anything. The forest doesn't know you.  It will not be forgiving of your trespass."

The faerie drifted forward and disappeared into the gloom.  

Taking a deep breath, Bench plunged after her, lest he be left behind.  

Surprisingly, despite its small size, the pocketknife turned out to be helpful.  At times, stray branches or vines dropped in his path as if tempting him to touch them.  He swept them aside gingerly with the blade in each case, mindful of the faerie's admonition.  Somehow, he could feel the forest's profound disapproval of his presence, as if the faerie was barely holding it back from swallowing him.  He didn't want to give it any excuse.  

After a while, he noticed something.  

"I don't hear anything," he panted.  "Where are the animals and the insects?"