Beauty, Rebellion, and Magic

Chapter 3: Actrix

Actrix awoke on the ground in the middle of a burnt clearing, completely unaware of what had happened or how he had gotten there.

The sky above was perfectly blue without a single cloud marring its surface. He sat up- every joint in his body screaming in protest. A light breeze stirred the thick layer of ash blanketing the ground. There was a ten foot radius of charred earth around him, the blackened plants smashed flat and pointing away from him in the center. At the edge of the clearing, the skeletons of trees still stood their ground. Behind them, a thick wall of green plants rustled in the breeze.

The sun glared down angrily. Actrix wiped the sweat from his brow and stood up, the world spinning for a few moments before lying still. His skin stung when he touched it and he saw that his arms were tinged red. Upon further inspection, he found that the rest of his body, too, was burnt.

How long had he been lying there?

Actrix spun in a circle, trying to recognize his surroundings or notice something that let him know where he was at. But after a few moments, he realized he had no recollection of how he had gotten there or what had happened to cause such bizarre scarring to the earth. After a few moments, he picked a direction and set off, stepping around the sharp ends of broken branches and pushing aside the wall of greenery.

At first, the jungle was completely silent. There were no birds flying around or chirping in the trees and no animals rustling through the undergrowth or the sound of any insects. The only thing Actrix could hear was the sound of himself trudging through the plants. It stayed silent for a while until he finally saw a parrot sitting in the lower branches of a tree overgrown with vines. The bird's beady black eyes seemed to bore straight into the deepest part of him.

Feeling slightly unsettled but reassured by the discovery of animal life, he set off again into the trees, passing a plant with bright pink flowers upon long, skinny stalks. He watched as a shiny black beetle crawled up into the flower, rubbing against the stamen. Almost immediately, the flower squeezed shut and retracted upon its stalk, disappearing into the heart of the plant. Startled by yet another strange sight, he headed deeper into the jungle.

The air was thick and humid, the sweat running down his face. It was a while before he heard the sound of rushing water. Actrix rushed forward, the sound making him realize how thirsty he was. Emerging from the trees, he found himself standing on the banks of a wide river. The jungle growth grew right to the edge of the water and then some. He knelt down in the plants and scooped water into his mouth, relishing how it quenched his thirst. It was warm and tasted of mud, but in that moment he would have drank anything.

Satisfied, he stood up and looked across stream. The foliage was just as thick on the other side and revealed nothing of what was beyond: no doubt more swaths of jungle. He faced upstream and, far off, saw mountains

Splashing drew Actrix's attention back to the river. To his horror, a large alligator was streaming toward him. Startled, he slipped in the mud and crashed down into the fleshy plants. Scrambling back to his feet, he risked a glance over his shoulder before racing off. The parrot from before, the one that had seemingly been staring at him, was swooping down from above.

He dove into the undergrowth and hoped the thick foliage and trees would keep the alligator from being able to follow him, but he was sadly proven wrong when he heard it crashing after him. He knew his body was being torn and scratched but he couldn't feel it. All he cared about was avoiding certain death and getting out of this horrid jungle.

A bright red wing batted against the side of his head, driving him to the side and away from his original path. He darted around tree trunks and under branches trying to lose the bird and alligator, but they were still hard on his heels. The bird continued to flap its wings in his face and drive him different directions.