Out of the Wild Lands

Chapter Two

Now free from the city, Hagniwar pulled out the map from his pants pocket. Though the writing labeling the map was foreign, he supposed that the region behind the wall of mountains and a large canyon was where he had just come from. Indeed, he could see that same row of mountains on either side of him, rising up very tall and rugged. He almost felt like they were leaning down towards him. Hagniwar felt lost, but knew he couldn't go back across the Great Chasm, so he decided to head towards what looked like a forest nearby on the map.

The foothills of the mountains were at first very rocky, and covered with heather that made it hard to see where to step. He hadn't imagined such a place even in his dreams. The hills seemed rich and ancient. Gradually, the hills became less rocky and steep, gently rolling out into the distance. There were so many things he had never seen in person before: different grasses on the hills, and lichen and moss on a boulder he passed by, a clear blue sky, and far away on the horizon was a faint dark line he suspected would be a forest.

Hagniwar began to notice he was a little tired. There was no time or place for rest in the city, but it was a different sort of tiredness he had felt there, as if he was being held down underwater. Looking at the map again, he saw what looked like a village nestled deep in the forest. He considered stopping there to rest, but he was unsure of what sort of people were there. Glancing at the medallion, Hagniwar decided to try going more towards the cliffs he saw on the map at the edge of the forest. But, as he continued on, he became disoriented by the landscape. It seemed almost as if it was alive! Not by moving about, but in the way you could tell if a statue was a person or not. Closing his eyes for a moment, Hagniwar began to run again, hoping to find peace in the forest.

The ground was more even and the run was smooth, but the time it took to reach the trees seemed to pass like the growth of a tree. At last, his legs and lungs sore from running and breathing hard, Hagniwar came to the edge of the forest. He sat down against a tree to catch his breath. "How did they get so tall?" Hagniwar wondered, looking up into the canopy. He had seen a few trees in the city from far away, but they looked out of place where they were put in the middle of the street. In any case, it had only been briefly, as they were near the center of the city, where Hagniwar had learned not to go unless absolutely necessary. The ones around Hagniwar towered over the bushes and the memory of the city trees.

With his breath back, Hagniwar stood. The trees of the forest still seemed more awake, and he could hear birds flying and singing out of sight in the canopy, but it felt closed and safe in a way. Walking further in, the light became dimmer and took on a faint green hue. Without noticing it, Hagniwar had become so calmed by the forest he almost forgot to check the map! Looking at it, he could tell he was a good ways into the trees, but there was nothing else to give him direction. So, he decided to turn and walk off in the direction he thought the caves were.

Scurrying around in the undergrowth were creatures Hagniwar had not seen before. All the creatures in the city seemed dirty and desperate, for food or peace. These ran and climbed about happy and free. There was one that caught his eye, that at first seemed to have long hind legs and ears like a rabbit. It wove around trees and under bushes, and when Hagniwar could catch sight of it again, he saw it had an athletic body like a squirrel's, with long whiskers and a furry tail. It even ran ahead and paused to look at him for a moment, cautious and curious. But then, it scampered away quickly, and disappeared out of sight. "There was nothing like that in the city," Hagniwar said to himself, thinking of the small creature. "Nothing like any of this..." He wondered, gazing back up at the pillar-like trees and their leaves and branches.

The time floating around him like the songs of the birds chirping above in the trees, Hagniwar eventually came to a large clearing in the woods. He turned and looked around the clearing, taking in the trees and the sky above them. Out of the corner of his eye, he thought he saw the medallion sparkle. "The sun?" Hagniwar said to himself. But when he turned this way and that again, the medallion sparkled in the same place. Remembering how the medallion lit up the pitch black tunnel out of the city, he decided to take a chance, and walked in the direction where it had sparkled.