Something in the Woods

Chapter 7

"So you guys just decided to leave our world?" Katie asked. 
Barrett nodded. He had been teaching Katie about the ancient war between their people. But there was only so much he could remember, if only he had a history book to show her. 
"Why? You guys are huge, you could have easily overpowered us." 
"It's not like there were many of us around, even now we're a relatively small population." He explained. "Besides, we prefer to avoid violence when necessary." 
"So do you guys even have wars?"
"Well yeah, but the last one was a hundred years ago." 
"Wow," Katie breathed out. "You guys are the only place to achieve world peace!" 
"I wouldn't say that." Barrett chuckled. "But enough about my history, what about your history. What have humans been doing since we left?" 
"I'm not not sure I'm the best historian to talk to." She admitted. "I can't really pay attention in class." 
"That's okay. You can tell me about something else if you want?" Barrett thought about a different topic. "How about your family?" 
Katie's expression grew dark. "I don't have one." 
"What do you mean?"
"Means I'm an orphan." She retorted. 
Barrett gasped. "Oh, I'm so sorry!" 
"It's fine, it's not like you knew." Katie sighed. "It's been that way for as long as I remember. I live with a foster family but it's not like I'm close to anyone there." 
"Did your real parents… die?" 
"I wish I knew, from what I was told, I was just dropped off at a police station one night." 
Barrett awkwardly ran his fingers through his knotty brown locks. He just wanted to make conversation with his new friend, he didn't mean to open up wounds. "I didn't mean to pry, I was just wondering if you went through the same thing I did." 
"What happened to your parents?" 
"My dad passed away seven months ago." Barrett replied glumly. 
"I'm sorry to hear that." Katie said. "I can't imagine what you're going through." 
"Yeah, it sucked, watching as he was drained away by the illness." Barrett gazed up at the sky as he continued to remember all the times he had with his father. "But even then, he never broke our annual hiking tradition."
"An annual hiking tradition?" 
"Yeah, every summer, we would climb the mountains of Jotunheim to see the portals open in the lakes! This was the first year I went hiking without him…" He awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck. "Which is probably why I accidentally ended up here." 
"Seems like you and your dad were pretty close." Katie said. 
"Oh yeah, he taught me everything about survivalism!" He exclaimed.
She chuckled. "Yeah, you seem to be doing well for someone trapped in a place ten times smaller than you." 
"That's true." Suddenly an idea popped in his head. "Hey, you wanna go on a walk?"
Katie shrugged. "We can try, but I don't think I can keep up with you." 
"What if I carried you?" 
The small girl raised an eyebrow. "Are you sure that's a good idea?" 
Barrett smiled warmly and laid his hand on the ground near Katie. "I won't drop you this time." 
Katie was hesitant at first, but inched her way towards his hand. Barrett made sure to stay incredibly still as she climbed up into his palm; once she was safely in the middle, he slowly ascended to his feet and kept his occupied hand close to his chest. He could feel every muscle her body move as she tried to get comfortable, it was so surreal to hold a tiny being that looked so much like him in his hand! 
"Ready?" He asked. 
She looked up to him. "Ready as I'll ever be." 
~~~~~
The sun had begun to set as they continued to walk deeper in the woods. Barrett found it relaxing to get up and stroll through nature. Katie seemed to like it too, she went on about her favorite comic series called Galactic Territories. A story about an adventure in the stars, now there was something Barrett didn't have at home. 
The two teens were so engrossed in their conversation that they almost stumbled out of the woods. 
"Barrett, stop!" Katie ordered. 
"Why?"
Katie said nothing but she pointed in the distance. Beyond them was a barbed wire gate wrapped around a stretch of land, inside the gate were what seemed like hundreds of barrick tents lined up in a row. Even further, there was a large white building that had the American flag flying in the wind. 
"Get back in the woods before they see you!" 
Barrett didn't argue, he scurried back into the woods. "What is that place?" 
"It's Fort Clemmons, it's the army base stationed nearby!" She explained. 
Barrett's throat went dry. "I never realized how close we were to a military base." 
"You never noticed?" 
The giant shook his head. "I never ventured too far from the lake before." 
"We need to get out of this area." Katie said. 
Barrett nodded and quickly made his way back towards the lake. His heart was pounding against his chest, he always knew the risk of being caught but he didn't realize just how easily it could have ended for him. All it would take is one soldier to wander in the woods at the wrong time and he would never get back home. "I can't wait for that portal to open up, then I can finally leave this place for good."