A World Apart

2. A New Face

For years afterward Elena would wrack her brain trying to figure out exactly how long she stood there next to the ruins of some dilapidated castle, ruminating on everything that who called himself Bej had said to her before she ran for the door and somehow stumbled her way here.

I know what you're capable of. It will all make sense in time.

What did that even mean? Was he responsible for her ending up here? Wherever here even was?

The one question that haunted her above all others was why? Why her? Why would she be the one somehow chosen to find her way into this place? She had always wanted to travel and see the world, but she had meant places like Rome and Cape Town. Not unknown destinations that might not even be the same planet she came from.

Eventually, the panic subsided as she understood that Bej was probably not hiding inside the stone tower still waiting for her (though she refused to even entertain the idea of going back in there.) The moment she even considered it she turned to see the door was shut again though she couldn't remember ever closing it. Tentatively, just to see, she tried to open it but the door was wedged so tightly in the stone she couldn't imagine how it had ever opened for her in the first place.

A chill ran through her. Wherever she was, she knew that this place, in particular, was not somewhere she wanted to be right now. Trees surrounded her in every direction and she had quit Girl Scouts before learning how to tell directions from the location of the sun so she figured one way was as good as another and set off in the direction which looked easiest.

There was no path to follow, only an endless canopy of leaves and low-hanging branches to go under or around. The forest floor was awash with fallen leaves and patches of wildflowers she had never seen in her life. Sticks and leaves crunched beneath her feet as she wandered further, wondering how deep the woods went and whether she had chosen the wrong way in her casual attitude towards finding a fast path away from the tower.

Elena's clothes stuck to her skin as she began to break a sweat from clambering around the untamed forest in khaki pants and a polo. Loose strands of hair fell from her bun and stuck to the back of her neck as more fell into her face. She tucked them behind her ear and strode forth, eyes scanning the trees and listening for the sight or sound of another living being. All she heard was a chorus of birds singing and the rapping of a woodpecker.

Gradually the sun peeked through the treetops more and more as the foliage appeared to be thinning and she felt hope. Maybe civilization would be closer than she thought.

The woods ended alright, and when she scrambled her way out of them she was greeted by the sight of a lone house, but it was not at all what she expected to see.

A thatched roof sat atop a quaint-looking cottage, encased by a makeshift wooden fence constructed with branches and twine. Smoke rose from a lone chimney and flowers grew from every available orifice. They sprang out from window boxes, the edges of the house, and even the walls themselves. The entire yard inside of the fence was a maze of flowers clustered together so thickly she could barely see the stone path that led to the door from a gate. Birdbaths were perched throughout, each filled with various breeds chirping and splashing themselves to cool off from the sun's warmth. An orange cat lounged on the stone steps leading to the front door, unbothered by the commotion being made by its next potential meal.

It looked like something from storybooks she had read to her as a child. Elena half expected to see 7 dwarfs go marching by carrying pickaxes. It was so surreal she reached out to touch the fence, wrapping her fingers around one of the branches that served as posts when she was startled by a voice behind her.

"Lost, are you?"

Elena turned on her heel, almost falling over the fence in her haste to see who had snuck up on her.