In the Mist

I felt like I was floating in a shroud of fog. Numb and untouched by everything around me. I welcomed the bleak obscurity wrapping itself over my flesh. It was far better than any emotion that I should be feeling; pain, betrayal, hurt.
Still, there was something I could feel; cold. An icy breeze whipped it's way through my hair but how it managed to reach me through all of the topiary was a mystery.

I continued to walk and shivered as I noticed the eerie trees that loomed over me like dangerous strangers waiting to whisk me away. I couldn't help but ask myself why I was here in this stupid, balmy forest. I could have been reasonable and gone somewhere far less spooky. Some place like a park or a lake. Yet, I let my overly emotional mind get the best of me. Yes, go to the forest, Josephine. You always feel safe there, Josephine. What a great idea, Josephine. I didn't make the best of the situation, I made it ten times worse. The event replayed gloomily in my head.
Mom and Dad standing at the door as I come home. I grin at them, so excited that they're about to give me some attention causing my imagination to go crazy as I pictured what they would have in store. Would they welcome me home? Watch TV with me? I was so happy, but my family's expressions did not match my own. They were grim; angry, almost. Eyebrows furrowed, lips pressed, arms crossed. Still, they did not speak. In the place of words, they both pointed to the door. I remember asking them what they meant. Did they want me to get something for them? Unsurprisingly, they did not reply. Instead, the pair pushed me hastily towards the front steps, until I was standing on the outside doormat looking back at them. They only said two words before they closed the door.

"Never return."

My hands clammed up as my flashback finished. The scene had repeated in my mind numerous times since it had happened, I was trying to find something. Anything that might have told me that I was wrong the whole time, and this whole situation was just a huge misunderstanding. The most recent version of my experience was sobering and I came to a grim conclusion. There was no misunderstanding, my parents really said those things. I suppose I shouldn't have been surprised about that. I mean, it wasn't as if they ever spoke to me unless they had to, or really showed interest in anything I did. The two just always seemed to lack what parents were supposed to have. I wanted them to be like the parents on TV. Happy, excited, encouraging, proud. Regardless of my hopes and wishes, Mom and Dad stayed the same. It was kind of comforting in a way. Nothing surprising ever came from them, making them very consistent. At least, until today. But that was something I couldn't change; not now, perhaps not ever.

What I could change, however, was being lost in these woods. Giving up on finding my way out had just begun to look very good when an eerie mist settled around me. It generated in what felt like mere seconds, sending a violent quake up my spine. Somewhere far away, a wolf howled longingly.

Animal instincts pulsed powerfully through my veins. Fight or flight; and I wanted to flight so badly. Danger! Danger! My insides shrieked. I needed to get out of the woods, quick. But how? I had no idea which direction I came from. My wandering around these trees had been in numerous corkscrews and circles. If I ran, would I stumble upon a pack of hungry wolves? There was no hope in getting out of here by myself.

I assessed the ground around me, noticing a bold arrangement of mushrooms and flowers scattered circling the area near my feet. The grass was lush and green; the roots of trees digging freely into the ground, burrowing in and out of the mossy floor like sea serpents. My hand found it's way to the necklace my grandmother had given me on my thirteenth birthday. It was a glass bottle containing bluebells and clovers. She told me that it was good luck. Right now I prayed that it really was good luck, because I needed it.
A harsh and sudden breeze hit me straight in the face, leaving as quickly as it came. What was happening? My eyes closed and to my surprise a loud sob escaped my throat as I swallowed back tears, the resistance causing my shoulders to shake violently. My day has been so horrible so far, containing myself was becoming more and more difficult, my calm mask was quickly dissolving. I swallowed harshly and silenced myself as I heard an echoing noise slowly get closer and closer.

Stomp. Stomp. Stomp.

A loud booming came from deep within the forest. Thunder? It was perfectly sunny out, but I hadn't any other idea as to what it could be. The image of three trees falling over after being hit by lightening entered my mind before it was shattered by something appearing before me. A large bulky figure stood awkwardly several feet away from me. It looked somewhat similar to what I'd imagine an orc to be, with blue flesh, large muscles and a big, flat nose. The thing came out from behind a bush, waddling towards me.

'That's it.' I told myself. 'I've finally started hallucinating'. I'd heard that stress could induce these kinds of things. But I thought that it was usually something less... Lord of the Rings-esque. Perhaps a dead family member or a dangerous killer. The closer the thing got, the more real he looked, and the less convinced I was that I was seeing things. But that was the point of a hallucination, wasn't it? To look lifelike; real. That's what I hoped.
A foul odor wafted from him into my nose, and I cringed. It smelled like a fetid mixture of vomit and garbage.
I had no idea why I wasn't screaming or running. I just wasn't. My feet stayed glued to the ground, waiting for the thing to approach me. Perhaps instead of fight or flight, my brain had decided to freeze.

"Josephine," he rumbled. "You." I was confused. "Me?" I whispered hoarsely. In response, the thing nodded his head and said, "Come." Now, I don't know about you, but I wasn't about to go with some tall, ugly, blue thing. I may be lost, but I'm not stupid. This thing could easily crush me with a single finger alone!

As I made no move to come with him, the thing flopped his head to the side, as if exasperated. He caught my gaze and held it, entrapping me within his impenetrable stare. "Now... YOU... Come... PLEASE." Each word was said with a large silence in between, as if he wasn't exactly sure which words to use, or how to apply them. It was then that I had decided that perhaps staying in the woods had potential to be a larger threat than going with this idiotic blue thing. I didn't know where he was taking me. It very well could be salvation! As for in these woods... Well, I had been weaving around trees and corners for hours. This was a huge forest, and there was no way I'd find my way out. Especially with my crappy sense of direction. The choice was made. I would take the chance of putting my life in the hands of this.. This... I'll just call him an orc for now. This orc.

"Sweet Lord, this is a game of World of Warcraft gone bad..." I muttered to myself. "Fine," I said to him. "I will come with you." The orc did something that was almost like a smile. However, largely unsettling. His lips spread in an awkward way, making almost an oval shape. Teeth off yellow and breath... Well, I'd prefer to never speak of that again. Let's just say I could taste it, and it wasn't charming.

A 'follow me' motion was made with his hands as he turned around and trudged into the forest. I, of course, followed; vision blocked by his naked blue back. We walked for several moments before I realized that our landscape had completely changed. The fog had cleared and the forest seemed to be a lot greener and fuller. The amount of trees, bushes, and plants had nearly tripled, and there was now a curvy brown path winding it's way through the thicket.

The air was dense, almost overwhelming. In fact, the whole situation was overwhelming. The trees were so tall... Taller than they were two minutes ago. I turned around, and saw nothing familiar. Where was I? A grunt sounded besides me, and my body flinched, preparing for attack. I peered through the corner of my eye to see the blue thing looking at me with a confused expression on his face. I relaxed my body, but did not let my guard down. This thing could turn on me at any time.

"Where am I?" I asked. The orc thing gave me that same awkward smile he had given me earlier before saying in a very clear voice, "Welcome to Feywild."