Greenwood

Chapter one

What if one day after you've done your weekly groceries a man walks up to you around the corner of the store and tells you a story about how the country soon will be ruled over by terrorists. He then proceeds to tell you about a safe village called Greenwood. A village founded by Nicholas Delannoy a man who after a near death experience claimed that he had seen a place deep into the forest where people would be safe from the terrorists. A man that would be able to save your life. Would you believe him?

I for sure did not and decided to move on. The man I met at the corner of the grocery story did not look happy when I looked back at him from my car. A few days later when I decided to go home early after a night of clubbing with some friends. I got my keys and unlocked my car. I heard someone scream and everything went black. That is the last thing I remember.

When I woke up I was in a car and it was moving. What is happening where am I? I looked beside me to the driver's seat. And there he was, the man from the grocery store looking stressfully outside the window. Why is he driving me around? How did he find me? That he was walking around when he saw me being attacked I quickly looked around and realized that he was driving my car. I asked him what was happening. He told me that he was trying to flee from the area and he saw me standing by my car when I got attacked by someone. I was baffled 'so that gave you the right to save me put me in my car and drive around in some forest?' He explained that half an hour before that the parliament was being bombed. On the news it was said that the nation was overruled by a still unknown group of terrorists.

He didn't say much more and just drove around. After a while we entered a forest and he slowed down. After a few unexpected turns which did not make my head feel any happier we approached a fence in the middle of the woods. It was a big metal fence that could easily hold out anybody that would try to get in. He stopped the car and slowly the gate opened. The car came back in movement and we rode through some more forest for a while. Suddenly a big flash of light came through making my head hurt even more. That's when we approached this big open place. He turned his head towards me and smiled 'welcome in Greenwood'. I wasn't taken against my will I could have found it beautiful. And it was in a certain way it seemed serene and peaceful if you wouldn't count the big metal fence we just got through. Back home I was used to big grey buildings with roads, cars and busy people everywhere I looked, so going here was like a paradise.

The village was located in the middle of the open spot. It existed of a few houses, maybe 10 or 12 that where build in two straight lines across each other. On both sides of the road that lead to the village where fields with corn wheat and a big variation of vegetables and fruits. The people here weren't used to visitors so when I got out of the car everybody was staring. The man that drove me, whom later introduced himself as Percival told me to get out after he stopped the car. My foot slipped away underneath me as I felt like I had no control over my body when I got out. I fell down and scraped my knees on the ground, it stinged and felt like it was bleeding a little bit. Percival walked around the car and stood right next to me not even trying to help me. He just stared at the car while locking and started to talk about miss Audrey DiPalma who apparently would give me a tour and explain how thing work around the town. He probably wouldn't even notice if I wasn't listening. Not much later she appeared. Audrey DiPalma was an older woman although she wore her age with grace. She was dressed in a tight dress with long sleeves and a skirt that stopped just above the ankles. She bowed in front of Percival and he grabbed her shoulder shortly, they both didn't say a single word. I slowly got up still not sure about moving my body. Well at least I am safe. Just calm down and try to stand. Just stand still. After a moment I tried to move my fingers, my toes and my head. Weird I thought later as I later saw Percival walking into one of the small houses. At that point Audrey DiPalma turned to me and said 'blessed being'. For a while it was silent. I had no idea what to say, I was baffled. Audrey Dipalma looked at me as if she was waiting for me to say something, but once she realized I had no idea what to say she started to talk. In a clear voice she quickly took the lead 'all right, you clearly have to learn how it works here'. I could hear the contempt in her voice. In a slow and graceful movement, she turned around bowed her head and walked towards a building at the end of the street. Unsure about what to do I decided to follow her.

A few children were screaming and running around chasing each other wearing hideous clothes that made them look smaller than they were. They stopped for a moment to take a good look at me. They stared at me like I was a monster, like I was the strangest thing that they've ever seen. A few woman where sitting together one was sewing clothes, I assume, and the other two were peeling corn. They too stopped for a moment to stare at me. When I looked back at them the probably realized that they were staring and quickly shifted their head back to their tasks. It came to my attention that there were no males at all I wondered where they were and if there were any besides Percival. Audrey DiPalma walked up to the door of the lasthouse on the right side, which was slightly bigger than the rest, and knockedthree times before she opened the door herself to let us in.