Blue Boy

1 - Escape

   I always heard there are terrible beasts in the middle of these woods. I didn't get a second of sleep with their incessant howling. Its freezing cold, my fires gone out only leaving its smoldering remains. I know I'm being watched by the beasts, I feel their hot breaths on my cheeks.

   Surrounded by woods, my heart can't stop pounding. I have a few options now. Think quickly. Run deeper into the dark woods or be violently torn apart. I can't fight them, I think. I shift my body upward and off my mattress roll. It's pitch black except for my fire's dull glow and the moonlight casting outlines onto the woods. I slip on my bag and leave without a scratch. Perhaps there were no beasts, after all, I exit the clearing safe for now, but the feeling of being watched doesn't escape me.

   It's twilight again, the young blue boy spends another day away from home. His skin is quite literally a soft turquoise, a rare skin color, at least that was what he was told. He doesn't keep track of time, he doesn't know how long it been. When he ran away, he just kept going, he hasn't stopped nor does he regret it. The sunrise offers him hope as well as warmth. He pushes forward.

   I left my bedroll, I think. I also remember the feeling of death looming over me and decide it was for the best. The woods are filled with thick ancient trees with black bark and grey-green leaves. These trees have been towering over me for days it seems, and now they're clearing as I walk towards the sunrise. A sea of saplings with snow-white bark. So tall you can't see the tops. Sometimes I feel like I've truly lost it, the trees tower miles above me. I embrace my delusions those times.

   The morning was crisp, I could see my breath. After not a long walk towards the morning sun, I spot a threat. I'm immediately filled with a dread so vile. I take cover behind a small mound near a snow-white sapling. Its a tower of smoke, I didn't get a look at its source. The feeling of being watched feels heavy and ever looming.