Sweet Escape
nine
The thought of putting someone through this hell, this perfectly twisted and evil world seemed beyond me. Of course at first this world felt like heaven, felt amazing and powerful but in the end it always just turns into something, something that churns your stomach and makes you sick just being there. I needed to end this; I needed to make this end now. No one else would suffer because I wanted out faster, no it would end here and now with me finishing this story.
I was flipping through the blank pages of the book trying to see an end. There were no more than a hundred pages left in the book. I didn’t think this would be easy, since I arrived here I had probably filled no more than forty-eight pages and I had so much more to go. Sighing I stood facing Bayard he wasn’t there but he didn’t have to be there, he just needed to be smaller. I squint, concentrating as I morph the mirror before me; it folds in on its self, smaller and smaller, the sound of glass scratching over glass rings through the air. The mirror lies there twitching as a handle squeezes out from the metal around the mirror. A delicate hand mirror now lays where the once grand antique was, intricate designs of snacks, vines, and flowers move over the surface, twisting within each other, the silver perpetually moving. I smile simply and bend down picking up the heavy silver hand mirror.
“Bayard?” I whisper, almost scared that he wouldn’t be there now that the mirror was so much smaller, but soon enough the mirror is fogging over and his pale doughy face is surfacing.
“What have you decided?” His voice didn’t echo as much as it once had in his old setting but it was still the same old Bayard and for that I was thankful.
“I’ll finish it, Bayard. You and me to the end.” I smile at him and then look around my world. This one would not work for my story; no this wouldn’t work at all. A brown leather satchel slowly slides down my shoulder, it is already heavy with stuff and I gently slide Bayard into it before looking around the hilly magical world that was now before me. Slowly the world levels off, the menacing trees that were there moments before changed into forest of giant oak trees, there was barely a path between the trees but that didn’t matter I would find my way. This wasn’t just any forest, it was perpetually moving as far as I could see there was movement. It was animals either, it was the trees themselves they would sway and twist, their branches always groaning and moaning. The leaves on the trees would go from green to yellow to red to falling and then up again. In a perpetual, always moving and changing cycle, none of the trees were one the same time of changing, so some trees had green leaves while others were falling, it was dizzying to witness and beautiful all at once.
I take the first step into the woods, trying to avoid the roots and other various obstacles that block the path. The bag over my shoulder weighs me down but I feel like everything that must be in it is necessary for my existence on this voyage. Of course I could just make everything I needed for a four course meal appear before me in the flick of a horse’s tail but that was beside the point. I felt like I needed to do this as if I couldn’t control every aspect of what was around me. I needed to this like I was really a character in a book and on a seemingly endless voyage.
Leaves falling, flying back up and onto the branches and fall again, that was all I saw for what felt like hours. It was beginning to get dark outside and the stars where shining brightly through the forever moving leaves. My legs ache and my shoulder hurts from the pack, sighing I cave to my wants. Looking toward the trees a few yards beyond me I think and concentrate on what I want for just a few moments before a beautiful, majestic horse appears. Black as night with wide brown eyes that can seemingly see into your very soul, she waits for me. I let a brief smile cross my face when I see she also has packs of supplies strapped to her, I bound over sliding my hand over her smooth coat before mounting her. She is calm and gentle to my touch. I make a clicking noise with my tongue and we are on our way.
The forest is never ending, the movement just continues as far as the eye can see. I have been riding for hours now and feel no nearer the end then I was when I first step foot into this story. I stick my hand into my bag and yank out Bayard, I let my horse, who has remained nameless as of yet, lead the way. As I tap at the glass of the mirror trying to lure Bayard out of wherever it is he disappears too. A few moments later his twister doughy white face is there in the mirror staring back at me rather than my reflection.
“Bayard, will these woods ever end. Am I supposed to be feeling this hopeless when I have barely started?” Cocking my head to the side I look at him waiting for his answer. He seems to ponder what I have asked him. “Look at it Bayard, just look.” I hold the mirror out in front of me so he can see the forever moving path that never ends. “You see it goes on for miles, possibly thousands of miles. What am I to do?” I turn him back to me and wait.
“It is your story, you know this right? You have control over everything even the length of the woods you wander. But some part of you must think that to get to the end of this particular book you need a long harrowing journey and this is the beginning of yours, this is how your mind set it.” Of course his voice is condescending like he just gave me the answer to life or something. He doesn’t even wait for me to reply before sliding away from the surface and sinking down under the fog and disappearing. Huffing I roughly slide the mirror into the bag and click my tongue urging Nameless faster.
As N.H as I have come to call my horse trots through the woods I let my mind rest. Not wanting to think of how long this will take or how endless this all seemed. Maybe I would never make it out of here, the end of this all would have to be a million years away. But I tried to let my mind slip away from those thoughts as N.H trotted through the leaves and trees. Minutes pass, or maybe hours, I’m not exactly sure because the lulling side to side swing of N.H’s hips had put me to sleep. All I knew was that I awoke to the sound of rushing water and neighing.
I clear my eyes and look around; a wide river is set in the middle of the woods. It splits the forest right in two. The water doesn’t just rush in one direction though, it swirls and jumps and moves like a living creature. My eyes widen when I see a fish get caught be the water and disappear in the white wash. I slide from the saddle and stretch my legs as I look around. There doesn’t seem to be a way to get across it. It is perpetual in every direction. I stop for a moment and think, what could I do here? Cut down a tree and create a bridge, dream up a bridge which of course would be easiest but that was also cheating. With a heavy sigh I decide to take a break for the night. I grab my things, unfurl a blanket and rest my head on my bag before falling into a deep, heavy slumber.
I was flipping through the blank pages of the book trying to see an end. There were no more than a hundred pages left in the book. I didn’t think this would be easy, since I arrived here I had probably filled no more than forty-eight pages and I had so much more to go. Sighing I stood facing Bayard he wasn’t there but he didn’t have to be there, he just needed to be smaller. I squint, concentrating as I morph the mirror before me; it folds in on its self, smaller and smaller, the sound of glass scratching over glass rings through the air. The mirror lies there twitching as a handle squeezes out from the metal around the mirror. A delicate hand mirror now lays where the once grand antique was, intricate designs of snacks, vines, and flowers move over the surface, twisting within each other, the silver perpetually moving. I smile simply and bend down picking up the heavy silver hand mirror.
“Bayard?” I whisper, almost scared that he wouldn’t be there now that the mirror was so much smaller, but soon enough the mirror is fogging over and his pale doughy face is surfacing.
“What have you decided?” His voice didn’t echo as much as it once had in his old setting but it was still the same old Bayard and for that I was thankful.
“I’ll finish it, Bayard. You and me to the end.” I smile at him and then look around my world. This one would not work for my story; no this wouldn’t work at all. A brown leather satchel slowly slides down my shoulder, it is already heavy with stuff and I gently slide Bayard into it before looking around the hilly magical world that was now before me. Slowly the world levels off, the menacing trees that were there moments before changed into forest of giant oak trees, there was barely a path between the trees but that didn’t matter I would find my way. This wasn’t just any forest, it was perpetually moving as far as I could see there was movement. It was animals either, it was the trees themselves they would sway and twist, their branches always groaning and moaning. The leaves on the trees would go from green to yellow to red to falling and then up again. In a perpetual, always moving and changing cycle, none of the trees were one the same time of changing, so some trees had green leaves while others were falling, it was dizzying to witness and beautiful all at once.
I take the first step into the woods, trying to avoid the roots and other various obstacles that block the path. The bag over my shoulder weighs me down but I feel like everything that must be in it is necessary for my existence on this voyage. Of course I could just make everything I needed for a four course meal appear before me in the flick of a horse’s tail but that was beside the point. I felt like I needed to do this as if I couldn’t control every aspect of what was around me. I needed to this like I was really a character in a book and on a seemingly endless voyage.
Leaves falling, flying back up and onto the branches and fall again, that was all I saw for what felt like hours. It was beginning to get dark outside and the stars where shining brightly through the forever moving leaves. My legs ache and my shoulder hurts from the pack, sighing I cave to my wants. Looking toward the trees a few yards beyond me I think and concentrate on what I want for just a few moments before a beautiful, majestic horse appears. Black as night with wide brown eyes that can seemingly see into your very soul, she waits for me. I let a brief smile cross my face when I see she also has packs of supplies strapped to her, I bound over sliding my hand over her smooth coat before mounting her. She is calm and gentle to my touch. I make a clicking noise with my tongue and we are on our way.
The forest is never ending, the movement just continues as far as the eye can see. I have been riding for hours now and feel no nearer the end then I was when I first step foot into this story. I stick my hand into my bag and yank out Bayard, I let my horse, who has remained nameless as of yet, lead the way. As I tap at the glass of the mirror trying to lure Bayard out of wherever it is he disappears too. A few moments later his twister doughy white face is there in the mirror staring back at me rather than my reflection.
“Bayard, will these woods ever end. Am I supposed to be feeling this hopeless when I have barely started?” Cocking my head to the side I look at him waiting for his answer. He seems to ponder what I have asked him. “Look at it Bayard, just look.” I hold the mirror out in front of me so he can see the forever moving path that never ends. “You see it goes on for miles, possibly thousands of miles. What am I to do?” I turn him back to me and wait.
“It is your story, you know this right? You have control over everything even the length of the woods you wander. But some part of you must think that to get to the end of this particular book you need a long harrowing journey and this is the beginning of yours, this is how your mind set it.” Of course his voice is condescending like he just gave me the answer to life or something. He doesn’t even wait for me to reply before sliding away from the surface and sinking down under the fog and disappearing. Huffing I roughly slide the mirror into the bag and click my tongue urging Nameless faster.
As N.H as I have come to call my horse trots through the woods I let my mind rest. Not wanting to think of how long this will take or how endless this all seemed. Maybe I would never make it out of here, the end of this all would have to be a million years away. But I tried to let my mind slip away from those thoughts as N.H trotted through the leaves and trees. Minutes pass, or maybe hours, I’m not exactly sure because the lulling side to side swing of N.H’s hips had put me to sleep. All I knew was that I awoke to the sound of rushing water and neighing.
I clear my eyes and look around; a wide river is set in the middle of the woods. It splits the forest right in two. The water doesn’t just rush in one direction though, it swirls and jumps and moves like a living creature. My eyes widen when I see a fish get caught be the water and disappear in the white wash. I slide from the saddle and stretch my legs as I look around. There doesn’t seem to be a way to get across it. It is perpetual in every direction. I stop for a moment and think, what could I do here? Cut down a tree and create a bridge, dream up a bridge which of course would be easiest but that was also cheating. With a heavy sigh I decide to take a break for the night. I grab my things, unfurl a blanket and rest my head on my bag before falling into a deep, heavy slumber.