They Do Exist

They Do Exist (12)

Chapter Twelve:  Be My Escape—Relient K.

“Layla! Layla, damnit. Wake up!”

I groaned, as my head pounded with an infuriating headache.  I slowly opened my eyes. 

Gabe was staring down at me with a look of annoyance.

“Took you forever to wake up.”

Huh? I looked around.  Gabe and I were sitting in a cage of some sort.  It was at least twenty feet high with bamboo bars and a hard dirt floor.  The floor shook with vibration.  Much to my horror, more of those frighteningly giant ogres lethargically walked in front of the cage, not minding us at all.  I thought it was all a dream. That I would wake back up in my room, safe under my covers until I had to face my dad again.  But sadly, no, I’m about to be eaten by giant, ugly, wrinkly ogres.

At the very far end of the territory we were in, behind all the tall huts made out of clay and twigs that I assumed were their homes, was a chair made out of bamboo.  A REALLY big ogre sat there. A grimace on his face, however it was easy to tell he was the leader of these…well, I’m not really sure what to call them.

“W-where exactly are we?” Gabe was looking around, some dirt smudged on his left cheek.

“We’re in the ogre’s kingdom.  That right there,” he pointed to the ogre sitting in the bamboo chair, “is the kind of the ogres, Okle.”

Wow. Ok.  “Ha, alright. Pretend that I believe you…exactly what are we going to do to get out of here?”

Gabe didn’t answer me. He just kept looking around, deep in thought.

Not that that settled my fear.  “We are getting out of here… aren’t we?” I gulped.

“Yes, now shush. I’m thinking.”

I about had it with his rudeness.  “Look, you’re the one who dragged me into this freaky world.  The reason I’m about to be eaten by a creature that only existed when I was four, and thought would come get me from under my bed.  The LEAST you could do was be a little more considerate!”

“There it is!” He smiled. 

Did he even hear me?!  Unbelievable!

“The key to get out of here;  it’s right over there.” He pointed to the King.  Sure enough, around his waist was a sort of belt, and on it was a key made out of what looked like bones.  How comforting.

“Okay… so how to you plan on us retrieving that?

Gabe smirked.  “Easy.”  He said, and then all of a sudden disappeared out of thin air.

“Boo.” I jumped as I turned around.  Gabe was out of the cage and behind it, staring in at me.

“H-h-how? W-what?” I was so confused.

“I can teleport.” He shrugged like it was nothing.

Gabe can teleport?  TELEPORT?? WHAT!

“And you thought now would be an appropriate time to tell me??”

“Sure.”  He wasn’t even paying attention to me.  He was busy watching the ogres pass by, I guess planning on how he was going to retrieve the key without getting caught.

“So why didn’t you, you know, teleport when that ogre had his grimy clutches around you ?”

He didn’t reply.

“Hello?  Earth to Gabriel!” I whisper-yelled.

He rolled his eyes.  “I heard you. I just didn’t feel like answering.”