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Chapter Text

Anne Of … The Beast?

Chapter 1 – Shadow of…Green Gables?

            It is amazing how, sometimes, on very rare occasions, one’s entire life can be completely changed, in mere moments. Like if a book had completely different authors who didn’t know each other. For no apparent reason, as was typical for her, these thoughts entered, unbidden, into the mind of Anne Shirley. A red-headed girl who lived near Avonlea, Prince Edward Island, Canada, in the nineteenth century, and was on her way to school.

            Sometimes she would take a slightly longer route, because it was scenic, if she wasn’t running late. She was singled out by Mr. Phillips, the old teacher, for being late many times. He also neglected to spell her name with an “e.” The replacement teacher, Miss Muriel Stacy, was so much better, in her mind. But still, she didn’t want to antagonize her.

            She walked across a bridge. A bridge that she once lied about dropping her adoptive mother’s amethyst brooch from, the bridge across the Lake of Shining Waters. And they were shining especially sparkly. They also seemed to be moving, as if the waters were alive. Even for someone with such an active and expansive imagination, living waters was a stretch. I wonder what Diana will think? And that snapped her back to reality. She wanted to meet Diana Barry so that they could walk the rest of the way together. As she walked, she kept looking at the water, as it unnaturally undulated.

            She walked up against the railing. And then, in a split second of a mere moment, a piece of railing gave way, and she tumbled into the water with a colossal splash. She struggled, but was able to stand up with her head above the water. It was COLD. She looked down, she was on rocks or something. She walked forward, the water slowing everything down. She dreaded the trouble she would face for getting her sensible dress soaked through-and-through. Never mind her hat, and her shoes.

            She walked forward, and then; she couldn’t move. Her feet were caught in mud. She struggled, but couldn’t get them out. She gave a hard pull on one foot, and it came out of the shoe. She did likewise to the other, and made sure to step where there wasn’t any mud. Then she felt water pushing her to one side and another, and it became very bubbly.

            She screamed very loudly, as she was pulled off her feet onto her back. “LET GO!” she yelled, to no avail. She tried to turn her head. There seemed to be some kind of whirlpool in the lake. At least, she thought it was one. And she was headed for it!

            She took a deep breath before the whirlpool claimed her.

AOTB---------------------------------------

            Far, far, FAR away, someone was walking through a bizarre landscape. Around, deformed trees grew. In the sky, the clouds and Zeppelins passed. And then, the sky darkened, with unusual clouds. Except that this was normal.

            My master is preparing the Great Ritual!

            This meant one thing to him, the Beast Messenger. He was to go to the Plateau of Despair, where the glorious and mighty Beast Lord Maletoth would become more powerful. He lived but to serve him.

            The same powers and spells that started the Great Ritual sometimes had side effects, usually manifested as unusual weather, lights in the sky, the like. While it scared the local humans, to those who were chosen to be the Servants of Maletoth, it was of no concern.

            A water-spout formed in front, splashing water on him. It’s but rain. There was a thud, and the water spout dissipated. Where it had been, there was someone lying on the ground.

            A human child. She looked rather different from other human girls. For one, her clothing was very different. Seldom did he see someone so nicely dressed this far inside the realm of Maletoth. She wasn’t wearing the simple dresses – sometimes even improvised from sacks or sails or curtains – that was typical among the various slave, peasant, and “tributary” populations who lived in the realm. She was obviously an outsider. And very different. Her hair was a brighter red than any human he’d ever seen before. She was bruised, and coughing. Her hat landed a short distance from her. He picked it up, and scrutinized it. With a grunt he tossed it aside. The girl got up, and looked around. Her breathing became rapid.

            “Where am I?” she asked. She turned around, and saw him.

            “Mon-mon-mon-mon…” she began. “Mon-mon-MONSTER,” she yelled. She ran.

            “STOP!” screamed the Beast-Messenger. She didn’t obey him, choosing to run more quickly. He bolted in hot pursuit. She leapt over a low stone wall, but so did the Messenger.

            She scrambled up a road of gravel, her shoe-less feet complaining, but her adrenaline keeping her ahead.

            Loud barking punctuated the air. “STOP HER!” The Messenger pointed at her.

            She heard the barking too. She ran, and came to a T-junction, only to see a couple of dogs coming towards her. Except that they had glowing eyes, and longer snouts, and they didn’t have much fur.

            She ran to the right, and came to a path past more trees. Loud thwacks reverberated, as barbs landed near her. She kept running. There was a gap ahead. She jumped over, but landed a bit short. She grabbed vines on the side of the clip, just below the edge. The dogs kept barking. A hand reached down. She grabbed it; she was picked up.

            “Thank you so much, thank you, thank you…” started Anne. She was pulled up. She looked at the one who saved her. She went silent, as she saw it was the monster. “Please, please, PLEASE don’t eat me,” she pled.

            “I shall not eat you,” said the Messenger. “You shall come with me.”

            “Can you tell me where we are? Everything is different here. Are there any faeries, pixies, or dryads? Are there any mayflowers here? Mayflowers are such beautiful flowers. Oh, so sorry, I forgot to introduce myself. I am Anne Shirley. Anne with an E. I live on Prince Edward Island. Have you ever been there? You couldn’t have, because Mrs. Rachel would let everyone know if we saw a monster who’s…” she looked at him, noticed he was only wearing a dark blue loincloth. “Not properly dressed. What’s your name, Mr. Monster? Oh sorry, may I call you that? You may call me Anne with an E, or Cordelia, if you want or…”

            “You will come with me.”

            “Unless you’re taking me back to Avonlea, I’m afraid I cannot.” She began explaining everything she remembered. “Is there a telegraph office? Maybe we could send a telegram to Marilla and Matthew Cuthbert. They would be ever so worried. I’m supposed to be at school right now, and…” She felt a short, sharp, shock, before losing consciousness.

AOTB----------------------------------

            She was awoken by shaking. She looked around, and noticed that she was in a wagon. Much like when Matthew Cuthbert brought her from the station to her new home. Her legs were restrained, though. She looked around, and saw there was a man in a beige tunic, also with his legs tied together, with her. In front, were a couple of shadowy figures in dark robes. When the cart went uphill, she noticed it wasn’t a horse pulling them. It was red, and she could make out that it had a crest around its head, and a pair of horns.

            “Where are we going?” she asked, to the figures. There was no reply. “Do you have your own White Way of Delight? I went by one on my way to my new home, it was ever so cheerful, even if they do call it the Avenue. With beautiful trees like that, why use such a dull name?” Still no reply. “Why are my legs tied together?”

            “The prisoner shall not annoy the driver!” barked one of the figures.

            “Prisoner?” said Anne. “Prisoner? There must be some mistake. I have done some wicked things, and sinned, most of it without meaning to, I am still ever so young, you must understand, and –”

            Her speech was cut short by one of the figures turning around, and whipping near her with a nine-tailed whip. “Let that be a warning, you are not to talk to us, nor escape.”

            “I-I-I-I will stop…” He whipped again, and she backed off. He laughed.

            “There’s no hope,” said the man. “We are going to the Great Ritual.”

            “Great Ritual? Is that like holidays, or weddings, or funerals, or…”

            “IT MEANS WE ARE DOOMED, LITTLE GIRL!” he said, in exasperation.

            “I’m so sorry, please don’t yell,” apologized Anne. “I don’t know anything, I’m not from here,” she continued, before telling him about herself.

            “My name is Nathreen,” said the man, “you said you were an orphan? I am the opposite; my son was kidnapped when he was barely able to crawl! His name was Aarbron.”

            “Who could kidnap a baby?”

            “Lord Maletoth. That is who we will see. At a Great Ritual, captives are either killed, or worse.”

            “You mean I will die?”

            “No, I will die, you’re a child. Children receive the ‘Or Worse’!”

            “But who is Maletoth?”

            “You never heard of him, Anne?”

            “You never heard of Avonlea, or Prince Edward Island, or Canada. I don’t think you ever heard of mayflowers, or raspberry cordials, or how fun Sunday School can be, or ice cream, ice cream is so tasty…”

            “I have no idea what you’re talking about. For a long time, this land has been under the rule of Maletoth, and he’s becoming more powerful. I was seen as a threat, so now, here I am, waiting to be sacrificed.”

            “Like Jesus on the Cross?”

            “I have no idea who you’re talking about.”

AOTB---------------------------------

            The cart eventually reached the place. Arcane symbols were carved into the ground itself. People, though not human, sat around in a semi-circle, some of these people in sarongs and loincloths playing drums. A pair of other Messengers mushed an oversized ring into position. The vertical ring started to glow. All that was seen through the ring became distorted, and a purple tinge filled it. Someone approached a dais in front of the ring. He wore ornate dark robes, and had a face kind of resembling a praying mantis. Anne also noticed that his sleeves were nice and puffy. A few others in similar, but simpler, robes came up to him, and they began chanting. The symbols on the ground glowed, and the ring glowed even more brightly.

            A face, kind of looking like a bald human male, but somehow, different, appeared in the ring. “THE RITUAL SHALL COMMENCE!”

            Drums were beaten, and strange music sounded. The robed followers all cheered loudly, as did all of the other people who weren’t human. Anne looked around. There were other carts, also pulled by these animals. She saw that they had three horns on their face. One of the flying things landed by the ring, and a door opened. Out came the Messenger. The very one that caught her.

            Several strange creatures, like people but with snake-tails instead of legs, and reptilian skin, came to the cart, and opened the back door. They were even creepier than the Messenger. One of them took out a knife, and cut the restraints, and took them both to the dais.

            “My Messenger,” said the head. That Messenger who had captured her came to the face. “You have pleased me, once again. Both a threat, which shall become but more power to me, and another potential great servant, like yourself.”           

            “I am pleased to have pleased you, my master!” said the Messenger. Nathreen was dragged towards the dais.

            “Once he is prepared, you shall have the honors!”

            “It shall be done.”

            A couple of the assistants held Nathreen, while the Mantis prodded him with a stick, and felt him with his hands. He even lifted the side of the tunic with his stick. Anne closed her eyes, as it was very undignified. But she couldn’t just leave. The snake men were holding her.

            The Mantis then took what almost resembled a make-up tube, and drew symbols in red on parts of the victim’s body. He poked him a couple more times, then made more markings. “It is all rrrready, my lorrrrd.” Anne wondered why he rolled his r’s like that.

            “The time is now,” said the head, and the Messenger approached the man. The man fell onto his knees.

            “Lord Maletoth, please spare me.”

            “You are but a sacrifice, that is your fate, for you dared to defy me, there shall be no mercy. Messenger, slay him.”

            “I OBEY,” said the Messenger. Just then, Anne seemed to notice something. A rather faint chain of smoke, running from the Messenger to the head in the ring. The Messenger slowly approached the man.

            “Please, I ask that you spare me.” He looked at the Messenger in the eyes. A pair of claws appeared on the right-hand wrist of the Messenger. The Messenger just punched the man, with his claws going into his heart. When the Messenger pulled his hand back, blood sprayed, and the writing on him glowed, and a stream of essence flowed towards the Head. Anne let out a loud scream.

            And then, so did the Messenger, and his eyes seemed to change color. “WHAT HAVE I DONE?”

            The Head had a momentary look of shock.

            The assistants to the Mantis-headed one came for her. She tried to back-off, but the snake men pushed her forward. The assistants caught her, and dragged her over, kicking and screaming.

            “You arrrrre an interrrrrresting one,” said Mantis.

            “Let me go!”

            “I think not, yooman girrrrrl!”

            “My name is Anne with an E, but you can call me Cordelia, or…”

            “Stop yourrrr lies, Anne Shirrrrrley of Grrrrreeen Gables, on Prrrrrrince Edward Island.”

            “How did you…”

            “I am Statilia Danurrrrria, the Beast Hierrrrrrophant, and Masterrrrr of Sacrrrrrifice. I have powerrrr you cannot comprrrrehend. You will not rrrrrreturn to Avonlea. Everrrr.”

            “LET ME GO!” Yelled Anne.

            “NO!” screamed Statilia, as he grabbed her. She tried to break free, but tripped. He lifted her by her legs, and held her upside-down, not unlike a fisherman showing off a big catch, while poking her with his stick. Her dress fell down, covering her face, and exposing her white drawers.

            “This is inappropriate, you do not hold a lady like that,” said Anne. “Put me down, NOW!”

            “You show much potential.” With his other hands, as it turned out he had four total, they felt her all over. “yes, grrrrrrreat potential. Lorrrrrrd Maletoth, she should be taken to Eastern Karrrrrra-Moon, for Zelek to prrrrrrrocess her and trrrrrrrransform her.”

            “I fully agree, Statilia!” said the head. Anne kicked Statilia in the face, making him drop her.

            Without warning, the Beast-Messenger ran towards Statilia. “After herrrrrr, you fool!” The Messenger shoved Statilia. Statilia held a small rod towards him, and purple energy held the Beast Messenger still.

            “YOU KILLED MY FATHER!” screamed the Messenger.

            “YOU SHALL OBEY ME, OBEY, OBEY, OBEY!” ordered the head.

            Anne had a chance to run away. Possibly. She noticed there was flat rock on the ground. Including something that reminded her of a school slate. The Mantis wasn’t looking at her.

            Compared to these people, the Pye sisters, and even Gilbert, were angels. Gilbert. That was it. She grabbed the slate-shaped piece of rock, and jumped up to smash Statilia on the head. “DON’T CALL ME CARROTS!” she yelled.

            Statilia lurched, and the spell broke. The Messenger punched Statilia very hard in the chest, knocking him backwards, and making him bleed.

            “Carrrrrrots are my…” He went into a fit of coughing, coughing up blood. Thunder boomed. Anne ran up to the ring and pushed it over. The followers were dumbfounded.

            “STOP THEM!” came the voice from the ring.

            Anne stood paralyzed in fear. The Beast-Messenger picked her up, and ran off. “Come with me if you want to live!”

            To be continued…

So, for the first time in eons, I'm doing some fanfiction. Hope you like it. I'm mostly on Fictionpress, also under Ra'akone, and also have been slow there.

This is probably a very unique story. Not sure what way it will go, other than having the "Badass and Child" trope (in this case Aarbron and Anne)

Chapter Text

Anne Of … The Beast?

Chapter 2 – And This is Where the Nightmare Begins

            Aarbron held Anne as he made his escape. She held onto him tightly. It only took about an hour, but to Anne, it felt like eternity.

            She was overwhelmed, by a very powerful mix of emotions. And she ensured that Aarbron would know about that, and about the circumstances that led to her even being in this world in the first place.

            “The powers of Maletoth and Zelek have sometimes caused accidental bridges to other worlds, when used,” said Aarbron. There was something very unusual about his voice, decided Anne, but then again, he didn’t exactly have a normal mouth.

            “Do you know how to get me home?”

            “I’m not a mage,” sighed Aarbron, “I wouldn’t know where to look. You may be stuck here FOREVER!”

            She went momentarily silent. Tears poured down her face. “So, I’ll never see Marilla or Matthew or Diana again! And I’ll never finish school. NO! WHY?”

            “Anne,” began Aarbron.

            “I was an orphan, an ORPHAN, and I had one tragedy after another. I was going to finally have a true family. But then this happens. Marilla didn’t want me, at first, because I wasn’t a boy. And now the world itself doesn’t want me. The Lake itself swallowed me and dropped me here! Where am I to go? I’d sleep in an apple tree, but I can’t find any here. None of them look good for sleeping in! Where will I live, where will I go to school? I’m not a wild animal, this is hopeless, HOPELESS!” She cried profusely.

            “Anne. I will watch you.”

            “But why? You worked for that head, but then you saved me. I don’t understand it. But I don’t understand most things about where I am.”

            “I will protect you. We are now both marked by Maletoth.”

            “Why did you save me?”

            “Killing that last man broke a curse. I was unthinking, I lived only to serve Maletoth. But when I killed him, I…found out who I am. I found out that I was once human, like him. But sadly, I found out he was my father. I must live with this, and with all the innocent people I killed in the name of the Beast Lord, for the rest of my life. I do not wish this on anybody.”

            “Your name is Aarbron?” asked Anne. “It’s such a pretty name, if it is.”

            “Yes, that is who I am. Had I not saved you, you would have been carried off by the Beast Mage Zelek, to be turned into a Beast Messenger yourself. And it would have been worse.”

            “Worse?”

            “I became who I was through the old method. Since then, Zelek has acquired a strange artifact from a distant world, the Looking Glass. I witnessed it used.”

            “Looking glass? What a sweet name for something that shouldn’t exist.”

            “It shouldn’t, but it does. You seem to be very good at knowing what should be, but you must know what is. And what is, is I must help you. If it’s the only good that I can do after countless evil, I will be happy.” He looked at her freckled skin, and her red hair. “If it is the only beautiful thing this ugly monster can do, I will be happy.”

            “I’m also ugly. I have red hair and freckles on my skin. I don’t have beautiful black hair or smooth skin like Diana.”

            “NO, you are beautiful. I AM THE UGLIEST ONE HERE!”

            “But how can someone so ugly…save me?”

            “I did.” She stood up, and looked around. “Yes, I know where to find food, and a safe place for tonight. Take my hand.”

            She reached her hand out, and it was grasped by Aarbron’s. “We will have to go to where Maletoth’s influence is not as great, to at least have a fighting chance in this world. I don’t know what to do. I never had a daughter before.”

            “Neither did Matthew nor Marilla, but they knew what to do.”

            “They were your people. Nobody even dresses like you over here, Anne.”

            “Do they have dresses with puffy sleeves though?”

            “I know so little about you, or where you come from, even though you’ve already told me so much! Sadly, I don’t think I have seen a puffy sleeve, if it is what I think it is. But we have to find our food and our room for tonight.”

            “Where?”

            “I know of a place, a short distance from here.” They were now walking. She momentarily contemplated running away, but she, even with her great imagination, could not imagine where to go. This definitely wasn’t Prince Edward Island. It wasn’t anywhere close. They came closer to a forest. These trees had flowers on them, almost like they were wearing crowns, but they also had thorns on their branches, making them look a bit intimidating.

            “These trees look…angry,” said Anne. “Like they do not want us coming in.”

            “They’re lucky they can’t do anything about it. Otherwise, I would attack them.”

            “Are we almost where we are going?”

            “Yes, Anne. There it is.” He pointed. Anne could make out a stone wall, and a thatched roof, with a cracked chimney. “I don’t know who lived here, but it’s been abandoned as long as I’ve known. At least two years.”

            “So, nobody will come?”

            “No, but when we go in, you’ll have to help me move the shelves and wood, the lock on this door doesn’t work.”

            “It must be dreadfully embarrassing to not have a proper lock.”

            “Once we are ready to eat, we will secure the door.” Aarbron let Anne enter the place first. It was rather dark, other than light coming in through windows. “There’s fruit on the nearby trees, and I can find us some small meat to eat.”

            “But I probably eat different food than you do.”

            “I was once a human like you. I know what you eat. And I know your meat must be cooked. I will protect you, even from uncooked meat.”

            “I still cannot believe this, when we barely know each other.”

            “Had you not been here, I would have only thought of killing Maletoth. Never before had I known anything other than killing and total obedience. It is nice to have someone to protect.”

            “It’s nice to be…protected.” Then she started crying. “I don’t mean any disrespect, Mr. Mon…I mean, Aarbron, but now I am reminded of my family. They must be worried beyond anything anyone can imagine. And I have no way of getting home.”

            “Neither do I,” said Aarbron, “where I’m from no longer exists. I have no family. Right now, Anne, we are all that we have. You may be able to imagine me as something other than a monster, but few others could. Now we have to ensure that we can eat and rest. We’re going far tomorrow.”

            “Where?”

            “Out of the realm of Maletoth. We want to be safer. When we get up tomorrow, we leave.”

            The two explored the house. Thankfully, there was already wood available, kept on a couple of shelves in a corner. Anne Aarbron carried them, and Anne looked for a match. “Is there a match here? A torch? Anything to start a fire?”

            “A striker,” said Aarbron.

            “A what?”

            He pointed to a strange device. It looked like a metal handle, with a crank near one end, and what looked like a couple of wheels at the other. She took it and looked at it. “Crank the burner wheels.” He pointed to the handle. She turned it; it went around. “Faster.”

            She did, although it resisted. She heard popping noises, and dropped it as she saw bright sparks. “Oh, I’m frightfully sorry. I feel like I am some kind of princess who wandered upon the secrets of faeries.” She picked it up again. “As though this were my wand, blessed with the power of fire.”

            “You put the wheels near the wood in the fireplace to light them.”

            “Oh, I was just imagining what wonders this striker can do, it would be ever so fun, and much better than using matches, or a torch.”

            “Please imagine us being warmer, and having more light.”

            Anne complied, and lit the fire in the fireplace. “I can light more fire, and make this place cheerier…”

            “Do not,” said Aarbron.

            “But why?”

            “If there’s too much light, it will give us away. We can’t be seen while we’re asleep.”

            “But shouldn’t we leave this house cheerier than when we came here?”

            “We want to be able to leave. I used to follow Maletoth. I know what his minions can do, Anne.” He wandered around, found some cupboards, and opened them. He put a couple of plates on a table. “Now, please wait while I get our dinner.” He went out.

            Anne went to the windows. Through one, she saw a bat fly by. She went to the other side. The other side of the house was very dark. She bumped on something. A wind blew outside. She heard an unearthly shriek. She resisted her urge to run away, or scream herself.

            Maybe some animals talk by screaming here. That would make sense, she told herself. If anything can make sense here. She went from being a typical rural schoolgirl to being on this adventure, involuntarily. And then she thought she did tend to use big words, like rural and involuntarily. She debated whether or not she should try to properly set the table and somehow help out. Then she realized she had no idea what was edible here, or where the kitchen was, if they had a proper “kitchen,” or if they just prepared food in one corner of, say, the parlor. While the house did seem a bit familiar, it was still not quite right. She noticed it had a staircase. But unlike the ones at Green Gables, this one was more crudely made, with the steps more resembling simple planks of wood, and there wasn’t even a banister. Much of the wall seemed to be rough stone or wood, and no apparent paint or wallpaper. Once again, her mind wandered, to how she’d redecorate the place if she owned this house. She thought about going upstairs, and seeing if this house also had an East Gable, to claim as her bedroom. But it was very dark upstairs. She started wondering about sleeping arrangements. Due to the manner in which she came here, she didn’t have what she’d normally bring for spending the night elsewhere. She had neither a nightgown nor a change of clothing.

            She found that worrying about such otherwise inane details helped her cope. She didn’t like to entertain the possibility, which was becoming more and more probability, that she might never see Marilla and Matthew, nor Diana, nor anyone else she knew ever again. She even missed Gilbert Blythe, as annoying as he was.

            She would have given anything to even send letters home, but she was wondering how she’d explain everything she saw. Including Aarbron, who was a man, yet…not a man. And he dressed very unusually, it looked like he just had a rag wrapped around him, a cloth around his loins. Not even a shirt!

            And then there was witnessing a killing, and all the monsters who wanted her.

            She had to control herself, she was starting to sweat. She shook uncomfortably, and collapsed onto the floor. She cried profusely. There was no hope, no hope at all. There were ways around to reach Diana back when she was told by her mother to stay away, due to the Currant Wine incident. But now there were no ways around.

            “Anne?” she heard a voice ask. Or thought she did. She staired up the staircase, hoping that somehow, the darkness might suddenly end in light, and if she went up it, she’d emerge through a cellar door back in Avonlea, and immediately run home. “Anne!” said the voice again, as she just sat there. “ANNE!” She turned around. Aarbron was there, with several small creatures, impaled on skewers. “We have to eat. Are you alright?”

            “No, I am not, I am in the deepest depths of despair. I am in a nightmare, and I cannot wake up, none of us can. NONE OF US CAN!” She cried.

            “I don’t even know how you ended up here. It was from my former lord’s magic, it’s done it before, but I’m not one who knows of magic. I’m just a beast messenger. Like you, my home is lost. But I don’t even remember any of it. The Beast Lord made me forget who I was. So that I would be more loyal to him.”

            “Does that mean we are both lost?”

            “Yes, we are lost together. So, we best stay together, Anne.”

            He put the meat, and a few vegetables, onto a plate that was placed over the fire. When he was satisfied it was cooked, he put it on the table.

            Anne was surprised that there were knives, but not proper forks. “How are we supposed to eat without cutlery?” asked Anne. “I see knives but know forks or spoons.”

            “These are foods that are eaten with hands here.”

            “Eat meat with hands? Marilla would call me wicked and ill mannered, and she would be right, not to mention that there isn’t anything to wipe my hands with and I would get it all over my dress, back in Avonlea even pigs aren’t as ill-mannered as that.”

            Abaron grabbed a couple of pieces of cloth, and passed one to Anne. “Forgive me, it’s been so long since I’ve properly eaten with someone like this. And usually, I just wipe my hands on rocks or trees. I don’t even have much clothing to wipe my hands on. What you see on me is all that I wear.”

            “Doesn’t it get cold in that?” she asked.

            “Does it ever get too hot in what you wear?”

\           “Occasionally, but I must be properly dressed. But I do wish my dress had puffy sleeves.”

            “I do not worry how you’re dressed, but finding those sleeves will be difficult.” He thought for a moment. “But there may be such a dress at another place I know.”

            “Another place?” Anne asked. “What do you mean?”

            “Part of the route we will go will take us to an abandoned palace. There were several princesses there who were around your age now. Like this house, nobody lives there. The family had to flee; their clothing is likely still there.”

            “Were any of them named Cordelia?”

            “No.” Aarbron thought for a minute. “Or not as far as I know. I didn’t normally get names, my job was the one I wish I could have left earlier, executioner for Maletoth.”

            The two ate. Anne quite liked the food. She just hoped it was edible, but was pleasantly surprised. But there was no way she could pronounce the name that Aarbron told her for the meat, so she just thought of it as “that meat,” and even told him so.

            “You will get used to it. You will have to. Be thankful that the worst change you ever had was the green hair dye. I could not wash off this beastly form even if I used the strongest soap. What I have done, I cannot wash out either.” Silence descended over Anne. Thinking about it, that it couldn’t just be washed off. His beastness was most likely permanent. Still, there was something intriguing about it, romantic even. Sounded like something from the stories that she and Diana used to come up with. Except here it was in the flesh, not some story.

            Cleaning up afterward was much more difficult. A pair of pots were filled with water, and heated. This hot water was used for washing their dishes outside. The sky was an eerie faint red, as if the sun was struggling to remain, despite already having lost to the shroud of darkness. It also seemed to get rather hot early in the night.

            “Anne, we need to sleep soon. We don’t want to be outside this late at night if we don’t have to. In Kara-Moon, even if Maletoth wasn’t here, the wildlife is dangerous.”

            “Lions? Tigers? Bears?”

            “No, animals that are much more dangerous. There are even dangerous plants that bloom at night. There’s this house here, we have to spend the night.” They went back in. Then they went about barricading the door, as the lock was still lacking in its ability to actually lock the door. “The best place to sleep is upstairs.” She looked up.

            “Up…stairs?” She stood there for a moment. The same stairs that made her worry while Aarbron was out finding dinner.

            “Anne Shirley, did those stairs frighten you?” he asked. “When you fell onto the floor and cried.”

            “No,” said Anne. “It was not the stairs. It’s where I am. Why can’t I go home?”

            “For the same reason that I cannot become the young man I am supposed to be.” She turned silent, and numb. Aarbron had a lit candle. “Come up with me, please.” She silently followed him. The house didn’t look so bleak with the light, and even the staircase was pleasant. “This house also has an East Gable.” He led her through a short passageway, and up a few more steps, into a rather large room, but one with a noticeable slope in the ceiling. She also noticed a distinct lack of beds.

            “Aarbron?” asked Anne.

            “Yes.”

            “Where are we supposed to sleep? I don’t see any beds here.”

            “There are rough beds in the closets.”

            “Rough beds?”

            Aarbron opened a closet, and pulled out something that looked like an oversized leather pouch, and lay it at one corner of the room. There was also a couple of sheets and a layer of feathers. These were used for covering it. Anne pulled out a similar pouch, and covered it as best she could the way she saw Aarbron do.

            They looked around. The layout of the room itself did remind her of the East Gable she remembered. He was right.

            “We must not sleep directly in front of the window,” he warned, “because Maletoth’s forces could see. Some of them are flying. And there are dangerous animals here as well.”

            They decided they would lie in corners opposite sides of the window.

            “Is there any clothing here?” asked Anne. “I didn’t have a chance to pack a change of clothing for tomorrow, or even a nightgown.”

            “Right now, there is no choice. You may want to shed your clothing under the cover, and put it back on when you arise. I will put out our candle once you are safely in bed. You lie between the two sheets, with the feathers on top of you.” Anne did as she was advised. Under the covers, she shed her dress and stockings, but kept on her underdress and bloomers. Once Aarbron was also in his bed, he blew out the candle.

            Anne lay awake, weeping, as faint light, now purple, filtered into the room. Worse than the time Diana was withheld from her because she inadvertently given her currant wine. About as bad as the time that she was told she wasn’t wanted, when she first arrived at Green Gables. And all the outside sounds were just so weird. She tried to imagine what was making the noises. Were the animals mostly familiar, just bigger, smaller, or a different color? Or was it something beyond all imagination?

Still not sure how this will continue, but will probably alternate between more actiony chapters, such as the first, and more emotion/dialogue driven ones, such as this. What way will things go? Still no idea. But things are very dangerous where they are.

Chapter Text

Anne Of … The Beast?

Chapter 3 – To the Forest of Despair!

            While it seemed to take forever and a day, eventually Anne slipped through all of the fears and doubts that refused her mercy, and finally drift off asleep, as the songs of strange animals whose voices echoed far and wide.

AOTB~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            Anne stared around. She was back in her old school. She was relieved, until she saw herself in a mirror. She seemed to be only wearing an underdress, and bloomers. “She doesn’t know how to dress,” came the voice of Josie Pye, on the verge of pure hysteria. “Anne’s so stupid that she can’t dress right.” Anne looked at her and sighed. She then saw a mirror, and noticed her lack of clothing. She blushed.

            “That is the least of her worries,” said the person who she accepted was her old teacher, Mr. Phillips. But why was he back? “You don’t know where you are, or who you are.” She looked out a window, and noticed that the familiar maples, oaks, pines, and apple trees of Prince Edward Island were nowhere to be seen. But there were the twisted new trees of where she was dumped. “You don’t know who you can trust, do you?” The trees in Prince Edward Island were so lively, so social. If trees were people, the maples near Green Gables were Diana, whereas most of the trees in this strange land were Mrs. Blewett but encased in wood. In fact, her face formed in one of the trees. And it looked directly at Anne.

            “Stop staring, polite ladies must not. You should have politely come along with me when you had the chance, you ungrateful…”

AOTB~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

            Anne awoke with a start. It was still dark. For a moment, she thought she might be back in the East Gable. Except that she wasn’t hearing crickets. And it wasn’t familiar sheets that wrapped her. And she heard the snoring. It was Aarbron. One time servant of Maletoth, now just some kind of. Beast. Like that fairy tale she heard, Beauty and the Beast. Except here she wasn’t a prisoner of the Beast. She was a prisoner of this world. A world that made her even miss the likes of Mrs. Blewett and Gilbert Blythe.

            Then she decided to do what she forgot to do in the excitement and confusion of the previous night. Pray. She momentarily wondered, but what if it’s a different God in this different world? Or maybe this world has fifteen of them. She could almost hear, in her mind, Marilla telling her to not be this ridiculous. God would obviously be able to hear prayers from ANYWHERE, because he was God. She even had a faint smile, for the first time in a while. With a humble breath and closed eyes, she knelt beside the bed. Hands clasped together, she bowed in prayer, "Dear Lord God in Heaven, whose graceful palm holds all the universe, I pray." She then recited the Lord’s Prayer, as Marilla made her learn, shortly after her new life started at Green Gables. She briefly worried she would wake Aarbron, but he did not stir at all. Once she finished the prayer with an “Amen”, she climbed back into bed.

AOTB**********************

            Twenty small blue flames provided the only illumination to an otherwise dark chamber.

            “You know why you are here, I trust?” began a low voice.

            “Yes, my lord,” replied a slightly scratchy voice. “It has to do with the human girl from another world who escaped, and the Messenger who deviated?”

            “That is correct.”

            “I do not understand, never before have any of those turned into the Beasts ever turned against us. In fact, it was the only thing I was certain of, for complex is the magic…”

            “I am fully aware, Zelek. The question is, what is to be done?”

            “If we knew more about this unusual girl, we could find our answer. All that we know is that she escaped with the deviated Messenger. Before she becomes a new Messenger, she may very well serve as our means to taking our existing Messenger back to the fold, back under your rightful control.”

            “Back to my rightful control. I am most intrigued by the possibilities. They must be found.”

            “It shall be done, Lord Maletoth.” The flames briefly gave a form to Zelek’s flowing gowns.

AOTB***********************

            A warm beam of morning light slipped into the room where Anne slowly awoke. Once again, she had a fleeting thought about being back in the East Gable. The sunlight seemed right, however the bed covers were not hers. And there was that other bed, although Aarbron wasn’t lying there. She got out of bed, and went about making it, even if there was no logical reason for doing so. There was no logical reason for not doing so.

            “Good morning, Anne,” came a voice from behind you. “We shall eat, and then we shall be off.” She turned around to see Aarbron. And then she blushed.

            “Do not stare at a lady who’s undressed like this,” chastised Anne.

            “Undressed?” he asked. “You’re very dressed.”

            “I’m in an underdress and bloomers, without a proper dress or stockings! You musn’t look at a lady who’s underdressed.”

            “How would I know? I don’t even know what bloomers are.”

            “They’re these,” she said, pointed at the pair that were peeking out under her underdress. “Please turn away until I am dressed!” she said, grabbing one of the covers and holding it in front of her. Aarbron complied. She put her dress back on, as well as her stockings, which were visibly scratched and damaged. “I am dressed.” Aarbron turned around. “Where where you?”

            “Preparing breakfast, and also tending to personal impolite needs.” Anne didn’t ask for clarification, because she was certain she understood. “We should take some supplies from here. The bedding, and any small tools. And food.”

            “Where are we going?”

            “Out of Maletoth’s lands. We are in Southern Kara-Moon. We best go East.”

            “Does the sun rise in the East here as well?” asked Anne. “It does back where I live, but I always wondered if there were places where the Sun rises in the South. Probably somewhere sad that doesn’t have mayflowers or wild raspberries.”

            Aarbron didn’t say anything at first. “Yes. That is how we know which way to go.”

            Breakfast was fruit and eggs. Anne was thankful that there was food around here. Good food. She hoped wherever they were going wouldn’t be worse off. But she still didn’t know where she was going. But at least she wasn’t lost. She had fantasized about sleeping up in the trees, like some kind of wild animal, but none of these trees looked good. And she had the idea, hardly far from accurate, that there were many dangerous creatures just waiting to sink their fangs and claws into her just about everywhere.

            “Now we can gather what we need, and leave. Thankfully there are some good bags here.” They found a couple of relatively nice bags.

            “I’m glad we’re leaving here,” said Anne, “it’s too sad. It’s like this house was built with sorrow and woe.”

            “Probably because it’s abandoned,” said Aarbron. “So many people were either kidnapped or killed or enslaved by Maletoth. Entire villages were destroyed. I…know him too well. That’s why we have to get out.”

            Once they had their supplies ready, they left. Anne gave one final look at the house, staring at it with contempt as though it were Gilbert Blythe. Ahead of them lay more trees, although these ones didn’t have as many thorns or sharp branches as all of the ones before.

            A shriek pierced the air from deep in the woods. Anne momentarily shuddered.

            “What is that?” asked Anne.

            “It’s nothing to be frightened of,” said Aarbron.

            “Everything is frightening here!”

            “Try to imagine it not being so!”

            She was momentarily numb, but then resumed walking with the beast-man. It wasn’t that long before they were deep within another forest. Then a loud buzz echoed. A pair of shiny eyes were visible amidst the trees. Then it emerged. An oversized wasp.

            “Do not move,” warned Aarbron. “stay still.”

            The wasp slowly approached. And then the buzzing intensified. Wasps approached from the sides. Anne stood there, silently. The wasps hovered in place. They slowly circled the duo. And one of them turned its head towards Anne. She gasped. The wasp zoomed towards Anne. It turned its stinger towards her, but never lived to sting her.

            Aarbron punched the wasp in the head, and it fell to the ground. The other two turned towards him. Anne dove to the ground as one of the wasps zipped overhead. Aarbron jumped and kicked the two oversized insects simultaneously. Anne stood back up. More wasps appeared, forming half a circle around them. “RUN!” said Aarbron, “WITH ME!”

            Aarbron took off in a sprint, with Anne a short distance behind him, and the wasps filing into the natural tunnel of trees. They came to a fork, and Aarbron instinctively reached for Anne’s right hand, and gave a gentle tug. They turned right. They stumbled and tumbled down a hill, dust being kicked up, and Anne screaming the whole way. Once she stopped, she had no time to get up, as Aarbron picked her up, and he jumped into a pond with her. The wasps zoomed by, seemingly uninterested that their prey had gone into the water.

            They surfaced a couple of seconds later. “What are you doing?” asked Anne. “I could have drowned.”

            “Or you could have been stung.” He pointed at the wasps, flying off into the distance. “They are dangerous, but stupid.”

            “Now I’m wet.”

            “So we will walk, and you will dry.”

            “But what about our supplies?” He pointed to the bags on the shore. “They don’t care about that, only us. We are wet, not the supplies.”

            “Where are we going now?”

            “We are in the Forest of Despair. We will be safe from Maletoth for now.”

            “That’s great, maybe we can – ” Aarbron gave her an odd look.

            “That’s not possible. This is still part of Maletoth’s lands, so it would not be safe forever. And there’s a reason for the name. We are in the Glades,” he explained, pointing to the grassland around the pond and them, “within the Outer Woods. Over there,” he pointed to mist filtering through trees, “is the true Forest of Despair. We must make our way through there. And we must find you something to defend yourself with. You are still just a human girl.”

            “But I’m not a fighter.”

            “IMAGINE yourself as one, then. Because out here, if you can’t defend yourself, you DIE!” Anne was a bit cross at having that aspect of her, the imagination, used as a way for winning arguments by Aarbron. But now wasn’t the time to argue.

            “How will I know what to fight with?”

            “We’ll find it soon enough.” They entered a path, into the mist, and immediately everything around her felt colder. A distant moan reverberated. Followed by agitated squawking. Without warning, a large bat flew from the trees and beelined towards Anne, only to be kicked by Aarbron. “Run!” The two started to run, only for Anne to trip on roots. Aarbron scooped her up while running, and leapt over a small pit. Then she felt the whiplash of stopping suddenly, when Aarbron suddenly stopped, with a loud clank and crunch sound. He placed Anne down, and she saw that his leg was caught in some kind of hunter’s trap. “I’m trapped.”

            “Is there anything I can do?” asked Anne.

            “Follow the chain, see if there is anything at the other end.” Anne did it, and noticed that the other end was buried. She pulled, and it moved slightly. She shook it, and then more of the chain came loose from beneath the ground. And then she reached it. A metal block wedged in between rocks. She tried to move the rocks, but they were ridiculously heavy. Aarbron saw her struggle, so reached down himself, to pull the rocks. There wasn’t anything anchoring the chain. Then she went back to Aarbron. There were a couple of handles on the trap, but Aarbron couldn’t quite reach it, and the holes for the fingers were too small. “Your hands could work,” he suggested. Anne reached down with her hands, and put the fingers into the holes, and pulled. At first, nothing happened, but then it abruptly sprung open, and the teeth of the mechanism fell apart.

            “You’re hurt,” she said. “but we don’t have any bandages…”

            “I will be fine,” said Aarbron. “And you should take that chain with you.” She did so, but it didn’t make sense to her at the time. She wrapped it around herself.

            “When we find somewhere safe, you will learn how to defend yourself, because I can’t always protect you, even though I wish to.” He looked ahead. “And I think I will have to carry you, at least through. There might be more traps like this, I could stand it, had it bitten into YOUR legs, it would have been a tragedy.”

            How quaint, she thought, she was going to be riding on him as though she were a younger child. Then again, her childhood, before moving to Green Gables, wasn’t what anyone in their right mind would have called the best. But if it saved her from those contraptions, she would do it.

            Aarbron made his way with her, and she had to duck under low-hanging spiked branches. They continued along the path. Wooden thorns appeared on the lower reaches of the trees. And a couple of branches did graze her arms, making her glad she was wearing sleeves, and making her think that, had she had puffy sleeves, perhaps they would have been more damaged.

            Something that vaguely resembled a short gorilla fell from a tree in front of them, and ran at them while howling. Aarbron easily kicked it out of the way in front of him. Bats came from the trees to the side, also to be punched out of the way. Aarbron ran very quickly. Anne looked back, and noticed more creatures were following them. Then she looked forward. She shuddered, noticing there was a hole. “Hold on tightly, Anne!” She did as told, and he leapt, and she shook as they landed, without stopping the run. Another trap snapped close, just behind them.

            But then they came to a clearing, bigger than the other. There was a large sign held up by two posts. There were also individual trees, apart from the forest, and various skeletons lying around. He helped her off, and pointed at the sign. It was a map, of the Forest of Despair. It simplified things slightly, showing passages mostly as straight lines, and clearings as circles. There were many odd symbols. Anne wondered what they meant. There was also a large eight-pointed star in one of the circles towards the bottom of the map.

            “We are here,” said Aarbron. He moved his finger up to the top of the map. “We have to take the quickest way up here, East.”

            “Isn’t East to the right?” asked Anne, tracing out a different way.

            “That’s to the South. We need to move through here as quickly as possible. East is always on the top of maps.”

            “That’s rather odd. I was always taught that North is Up.”

            “Up is where the sun comes up, Down is where the sun goes down!”

            “That sounds positively ridiculous. North is up, the North Star is what we see at night!”

            “You are from a different world; your stars cannot be the same. And that sounds ridiculous!”

            “Why are we suddenly arguing like…brother and sister?” asked Anne. “Not like I’ve ever had a real brother or sister, just the children I was often left to take care of, before I was adopted by Marilla and Matthew and just ended up as an only child. But some brothers and sisters I know are constantly bickering.”

            “It must be nice,” he said, “to not have Maletoth hunting you so you can afford to argue like that.” Anne looked at him for a moment, and felt guilty. “Speaking of which, I should train you.”

            “Train me?”

            “To defend yourself. That chain you have would be an excellent weapon. It has a weight at either end.”

            He taught her how to stand, and how to swing the weapon. She practiced with small trees, and a couple of animal skulls, as targets. She was becoming much better at this. She was also taught many way to jump, roll, tumble, and fall correctly, and how to be quick.

            “Now you must try a target that will resist.” He pointed towards some odd trees at the end of the clearing. They appeared to have large plums.

            “You wish me to knock the fruit off the trees?” asked Anne.

            “Yes, but it will be dangerous. Those are Stinging Plums. They only look like plums. They spit acid that stings the moment you’re close enough to them. Those trees can hear. Try approaching the tree quietly, but as soon as you hurt the first one, you will have to be fast on your feet.”

            She carefully walked towards the trees, her heart racing. She imagined all kind of outlandish notions in the past, she admitted to herself. But even in the most ludicrous of her flights of fancy, fruit was never anything that would try to attack. Now, in this unknown world, delicious looking plums were actually monsters that could shoot at everyone? Diana would have found this too farfetched, she decided, despite everything they explored with their imaginations before.

            She took a deep breath, readied the chain weapon, not unlike a manriki-gusari, and whipped the closest fruit. It splattered. The others briefly shuddered, and seemed to turn. Her heart raced. As warned, these things had mouths, and sprayed acid at her. She jumped around to dodge it. She awaited a pause in their spraying. She struck another one, and dove to the ground as the others sprayed at her. The others turned towards her.

            “They’re alerted. You must be careful, MOVE!” She sprinted, as the things spat at her. “Wait for them to pause.” Surely enough, they couldn’t keep spitting. When one stopped, she struck another one, killing it. She had to back off, because of their spitting. She saw another opening, and sprung forward to strike it, but a plum she hadn’t noticed spat at her. It stung, and she ran from them.

            “It stings, it STINGS!”

            “There’s a small pond here,” he pointed to a small pond. “Splash water.”

            She did so, and the burning sensation subsided. She looked at a reflection. There were blisters on her skin. “They hurt you, and you can defeat them. You must continue your training. You can’t wait to feel better. Stinging Plums cannot move, most other dangers do not give you pause to rest, when they hurt you, they will go in for the kill. I wish to protect you, but there is always a chance we may become separated. You should imagine that possibility.” She didn’t like how he was using that term. But he was right. She knew nothing about this strange world. She ran back towards the foul fruit. “When it is certain where to shoot, avoid its acid!”

            Anne did as he said, struck one of the remaining fruit, and then, at the last moment, dodged as they spat acid. Before they could spit again, she quickly took down two of them.

            “How did I do this? I felt stronger and faster than usual.”

            “Because you had the right sense, that true warrior spirit.”

            “Me, a warrior? I’m just a twelve your old schoolgirl who somehow ended up in the wrong world, is learning to fight with a chain, and has to run from a powerful Beast Lord.”

            “Neither of us chose to be here. But we must make our way out. I may be able to find other suitable weapons for you.”

            “Am I to charge into battle with a sword?”

            “Of course not, it would be too heavy for you, and against Maletoth it would be certain death.”

            “Then what?”

            “Either a crossbow, or gun, or throwables, or if somehow you had the gift.”

            “Gift?”

            “There are artifacts out there with special powers, and those who are gifted in how to use them. Arcane magics.”

            “This is suddenly so much. So unusual.”

            “And your outfit here,” he touched the hem of her dress, and felt her bloomers, but she swatted his hand. “Is usual? Over here?” Unbeknownst to Aarbron, a large bat came from behind, and flew towards the back of Aarbron’s head.

“DUCK!” she yelled, and he did so, and she swung and struck the bat. The creature was knocked away.

            Aarbron took her to the map, to point out the way they would take once more. He also pointed out that the route clearly went through many hazards. “This is the most dangerous path, other than the village, everything beyond this initial passage will be fraught with danger.”

            “Isn’t there a safer route?”

            “There are, but this is the quickest. Maletoth’s forces are surely hunting us.”

            She wrapped up the weapon, so she’d be ready for fighting. The two went through another passage in the trees. They came to a place where huge balls were swinging on sturdy ropes. “We have to be careful,” she said. “They’re not swinging at the same speed.”

            “Exactly. If we just try running, one of those traps will strike us, hard.” They looked, and realized that there were thorny brambles on the ground, set up so that attempting to crawl under would be only slightly less agonizing than being struck by the swinging obstacle.

            She jumped past the first swinging ball, and then ducked as another such trap activated, seemingly only tripped by her. The ball didn’t return. She stepped more carefully. She had to jump over a row of rather tall spikes, and tumbled out of the way of a faster moving swinging ball. It swooped over her, and she landed on brambles, that snagged on her dress as she got back up.

            Ahead was another clearing. But this one had branches reaching out to almost form a canopy over it.

            “This looks positively dreadful,” quipped Anne.

            “Nowhere near as dreadful as staying near Maletoth,” replied Aarbron. Anne just looked around.

            “I don’t see any way forward!”

            “You have to learn about aggressive plants.” Aarbron walked forward, and his claws appeared on his wrists. He quickly slashed through the foliage, revealing a rough path ahead. “When you can, you should acquire a dagger or hunting knife.”

            The path was very rough. There were stones, but they were irregular, and at odd angles.

            It was uncomfortable to walk on, but she didn’t mind. Then they came to a signpost, covered in skulls. She jumped.

            “You may practice on this if you wish, but it’s a warning. There are several Tree Pygmy tribes in Kara-Moon. The Southern Forest Tribe lives in the part of the Forest of Despair. They do not welcome strangers. And they have an agreement with Maletoth, to serve as an extra army of his if so summoned. They fight with spears, warclubs, and rocks.”

            “And why are you talking about them now?”

            “This signpost covered in skulls is their way of marking their property. It surrounds the village of Forest Clearing all ways save for South. Thus, we must be ready. I recommend that you practice on this sign. See how many skulls you can damage.”

            Anne did as was suggested, and destroyed the first skull, and knocked off the second. When she struck the third, it shook, fell off, and spider-like limbs came out. She screamed, before striking it again. It scampered off. “What’s that?”

            “There are creatures that use skulls as shells. Some of them are very dangerous.”

            “Is there anything here that ISN’T dangerous?”

            “In the Forest of Despair, in Kara-Moon, under Maletoth? Anne, if they could turn the moons against us, they would!” They continued, along the path. “STOP!” Aarbron took a branch, stood in front of Anne, and whipped the ground with it. Another trap slammed closed. “The Pygmies steal traps from others, and use them for catching food.”

            “Are they everywhere?”

            “Not everywhere. In the village, I will have to get you boots. I won’t always be able to spot the leg traps for you.”

            “And I’ll need to get this dress mended, it’s being positively destroyed by the forest.”

            “We’ll be able to find appropriate clothing for you. Clothing that won’t be destroyed by the trees.”

            “New clothing? For me? I don’t know what to say, thank you so…”

            “ANNE SHIRLEY! We have to reach the village first, but first we must pass through the Pygmy lands. Remember you told me about wishing to sleep up in an “apple” tree?”

            “Yes, that would be so wonderful, to have a view, and to feel nature, and to…”

            “Many of the Pygmies are up in the trees, they have very few buildings. Be aware here that, past this point, there are many trees that have guards. Some awake during the day, some awake during the night. Past here, we should talk more quietly. And if you see a flying patrol, be ready to duck into the trees.”

            “Flying?”

            “They ride on brown wasp-like gueppies. They will know.” They came to a clearing, and then, a buzzing noise echoed through the clearing. Aarbron pushed her into the trees and dove himself. A couple of brown wasp-like creatures flew overhead, and Anne could clearly see that there were riders on them. They had long, puffy hair, and wore simple loincloths. The two remained still and silent. The two creatures and their riders went around in circles, before moving off.

            The two continued on their way. They passed into another passageway, thankfully, the last one before the village. The trees also looked much nicer. “This, this I will call the Forest of Miracles,” proclaimed Anne.

            Without warning, spears landed in front of them. Anne opened her mouth to say something, but a couple of Tree Pygmy warriors landed in front of them. One of them had a necklace made of bones that were shiny.

            “Why did you two trespass our sacred lands?” he demanded. Several others pointed their spears. “You two shall PAY!”

            “We will need a miracle now,” piped Anne.

            “No, we will need. TO FIGHT!”