Hall of Games [The Celestial Chronicles #1]

Chapter Ten: Welcome to Esvanira

"The world is always open,

Waiting to be discovered."

- Dejan Stojanovic ,"Circling: 1978-1987" 

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Chapter Ten: Welcome to Esvanira

It was beautiful chaos. Cady tumbled through a tunnel of distorting colors. She saw flashes of her life, some from her childhood and some which she guessed to be her future, but most of them were just a jumble of lights which faded upon contact.

For a few seconds, she funneled through a tube of vibrant colors before falling face first into damp dirt.

The moment she hit the wet ground, the colors disappeared.

Her back hurt from the impact, and she was certain she had a hideous gash on her face where she scraped a rock upon landing. Brushing the grass off her clothes, she stood up and surveyed the land.

A cerulean blue sky greeted her. Puffy white clouds in the form of animals darted around the brilliant orb that hung lazily overhead. Dark green trees threw up their branches in salute to the birds chirping above. Water sloshed from the waterfall nearby, their splashes melding in with the merry rhythm of the magical forest.

A pleasant pine smell hit Cady as she ventured forward. She picked a silvery flower and the petals brushed off like dust onto her fingers. Sparkling fairy lights bounced about. Some of braver ones settled themselves on Cady's head. She giggled as some of the lights snuggled themselves into her open palms.

It was an inexplicable sight, nothing like the human world. Cady couldn't help marveling at the wonders of the forest.

Squatting by the river, she splashed the cool water upon her face to wash away the grime and dirt. The sensation was most heavenly as she watched the river peel away the dried blood from her hands. Recalling the incident...her guilt resurfaced.

A deep gush of air cut through the woods, sending dried leaves skittering into the air and the birds squawking in alarm. Cady raised her head and stared at the opposite bank of the river. From her distance, she couldn't see much except for a dense patch of trees. But then she spotted something round and purple gazing steadily back at her.

Two orbs, actually. She stumbled back in horror and almost lost her balance when she realized that the two purple balls weren't obese fairy lights, but a pair of hungry eyes.

She started creeping backwards as the creature emerged from the thicket of trees.

Her heart almost caved in as she took in the creature. It was about the size of an elephant, armed with a twenty-foot-long tail with nasty-looking spikes jutting out at the end. Its elongated jaws were studded with fat boils, obscuring the four rows of jagged teeth glinting with saliva. Huge plate-like paws slammed themselves onto the earth, sending aftershocks with every step it took.

Those bulbous purple eyes were filled with malice and insatiable hunger as they latched themselves onto Cady. She scrabbled backwards. The monster released a demented growl and lumbered toward her.

Deciding that the last thing on her to-do list was to become mutant chow, Cady ran for dear life.

Don't look back, don't look back!

She chanted the mantra in her head until she was shouting the words out loud. Behind her, the woods were demolished as the monster razed through, breaking all trees like candy bars in the hands of a child.