“Hello?” Cole called out to the cabin, “Hello? My name is Cole. Is there anybody in there?”
There was no answer. Slowly, Cole took one careful step at a time towards the door. There was no telling what would be on the other side. He thought it might be best for him to just hide behind a fern and wait, but the cabin intrigued him. Cole rapped his knuckles against the door, testing it. The door gave a little, almost giggling. Pushing harder, Cole could find no opening. The door just bent in around his fingers. With a loud pop the material snapped around his hand, encircling his wrist with cold, flexible stone. Cole tried to pull his hand back but the door held fast. Struggling, he put a bare foot against the door for leverage, but it too went into the door with a loud pop. He yanked harder and harder, careful not to touch the door with anything else.
“Help! I need help! Can anybody hear me?” he cried into the empty air. Once again the only answer was the birds above.
After exhausting himself, Cole resigned to simply lean back and catch his breath. The panic begrudgingly faded as he realized he was in no immediate danger. He was very much stuck, but the door was not about to kill him. This was as good a spot as any to wait it out.
Cole’s standing foot began to ache, and his leg cramped from its awkward position. He tried shifting his weight, but stopped quickly when more of his wrist and foot were pulled into the door. It felt like a Chinese finger trap. He could only get himself more stuck the more he struggled.
“This is so stupid!” His voice broke as he screamed at the top of his lungs, hoping someone would hear him.
Nearby, something responded with a high-pitched coo cha? Cole stilled himself, craning his neck around to see what it was. There was nothing behind him, but he could hear something land on the roof of the cabin. Cole looked around, hoping for a stick or a non-squishy rock nearby, anything that could be used as a weapon. Small, crunchy footsteps moved across the top of the cabin. As Cole jerked his head up, a face appeared.
“Coo cha?”
There, a few feet above was what appeared to be a monkey, or perhaps a cat. Its fierce ruby eyes considered Cole for a moment, sniffing the air with its stubby snout. The creature hopped down, landing behind him. Not sure what to expect, Cole prepared to defend himself with his free hand. The creature was only the size of a small dog, but it might prove to be a formidable opponent with him in his current position. Cole twisted his neck in an attempt to size up the critter. It had red eyes, striped brindle fur, a short tale, and long canines that descended below its jaw. A crest of white fur on its head gave it the appearance of sporting a little mohawk. It was unlike anything Cole had ever seen. The creature watched for a moment with expectant eyes, as though it was waiting for something. When it became apparent that Cole was not about to make the first move, the monkey-cat nodded and strode confidently forward. Without hesitation it reached for the hem of Cole’s hospital gown. Clawed black fingers pulled the cloth to its snout as it sniffed aggressively. With a snort of satisfaction, it sat back on its haunches and looked at the door, then to Cole, then back to the door.
“Coo Cha?”
“Yes I’m stuck in a door. Are you going to help me or -hey! What are you doing? You better not freakin bite me!” Cole hopped on one foot as the monkey trotted under his stuck leg, pressing its nose into the door.
“Stop that, you’ll get stuck too,” Cole said. There was another pop as the creature’s head was swallowed by the door. “I told you. Can you even breathe?”
The thing didn’t struggle as Cole expected. Instead, it pushed itself farther into the door until its stubby tail disappeared with a tiny pop.
A muffled shriek came from the other side of the door: “Coo Cha!”
Considering his options, Cole pushed his hand deeper into the door. His fingers eventually wiggled into open air. He hoped this wasn’t a one-way trip, but what choice did he have at this point? Cole held his breath and pushed his face into the door, which gave a powerful snap, ringing his ears. Once he committed to moving, getting through the door was easier than expected. With a final pop he pulled his aching foot through the door and massaged it. Inside, the room was illuminated by sunlight trickling through moss-covered holes in the ceiling. The sparse glow showed a few bookshelves against the back wall, a round table and chair in the center, and a humongous sleeping mat off to one side. Everything seemed to be made for someone much larger than he. The walls were covered in what looked like fist-sized bells. Squinting in the dim light, Cole flicked one of the bells experimentally, making a rubbery thud. Steadily, the bell glowed with a gentle turquoise light. After a moment, Cole realized it was no bell, but a speckled mushroom growing right out of the wall. Cole flicked a few more, bathing the room in a soft glow. His new friend appeared at his feet, looking up at him expectantly.
“Coo Cha?”
“Yeah, yeah I’m ok now. Thanks for asking,” Cole said, shuffling away. He still didn’t trust the critter.
The animal nodded and scooted across the room, jumping up on the table. Cole inspected the cabin, turning on a few more mushroom-lamps. The shelves held dozens of books and a few empty containers. The sleeping mat felt stiff, yet comfortable. The monkey-cat pulled something from a bowl on the table and started munching. Hunger clawed at Cole’s stomach.
Cole stood on his tiptoes, barely able to see the top of the table. “Whatcha got there?”
The creature paused, snatched another nugget out of the bowl and rolled the lump to the edge of the table. Cole eyed the long canines as they went to work on whatever it was chewing on. Slowly, Cole reached for the nugget, relieved when the creature gave no reaction. He took an experimental nibble on the thing, and to his delight it tasted edible enough. It had the consistency of a banana but tasted like nuts. Cole decided to wait a few minutes before eating another, just in case the first made him sick.
“Can I have another?” Cole asked, wondering why he was talking to an animal.
The monkey pulled a nugget from the bowl and held it in its sharp teeth, then grabbed two more and pushed them towards Cole. He was even hungrier after three, and before long the two of them finished the entire bowl. Each time he asked permission and each time the creature obliged. Slightly less hungry, Cole looked about the room for more food. Nothing looked edible and he decided against risking one of the glowing mushrooms.
“I guess this is as good a place as any. Do you mind if I hang out here for a bit?” Cole asked his new friend.
The critter snorted, but otherwise didn’t object. To pass the time Cole inspected the books on the shelves. He didn’t recognize any of the letters or symbols, though each book appeared to be printed in a different language. He flipped through a few more volumes until he found a book with nearly the same alphabet as English, however he couldn’t make out the language.
“I think I found a name for you. How do you like ‘Goran’?”
The creature perked its ears, gazing at Cole with an intensity that made him look away first.
“Or how about, Ishme-something. Never mind, I can’t even pronounce that one. Alrighty, Goran it is,” Cole said, snapping the book shut.
The monkey-cat took a long breath, swelling to nearly twice its size. After a moment it lost interest and curled up on the table, closing its eyes.
“I’m pretty tired too. I think I’ll use the bed though. Well Goran it was nice meeting you, but I might not be here when you wake up,” Cole said with a yawn. He was tired, though not with the unusual weariness that had plagued him over the last week. This was a normal sort of tired.
Cole stretched out on the sleeping mat, barely taking up half the padded surface. To his surprise, and slight annoyance, he couldn’t fall asleep right away. His mind was simply too active to shut down. It seemed determined to busy itself with darker thoughts. He tried thinking of other things, but as soon as he relaxed and let his guard down, the dark thoughts bubbled up to the surface. Cole hugged himself and cried quietly, waiting for sleep to take him back to cruel rea
lity.
Cole woke refreshed, yet disappointed to find himself still half naked in the cabin. Goran was nowhere to be found, and all the mushrooms had gone out. Guided by the shafts of sunlight, Cole flicked a few mushrooms on. To his surprise, the bowl had been refilled with the same type of nuggets as before. It was a good thing too as his stomach was growling angrily at him. He wolfed down most of the bowl’s contents, leaving a few in case Goran came back.
Cole hopped up into the chair and waited. For what, he didn’t know. There was no plan other than to simply wait for himself to reappear back in the hospital bed. Maybe He would show up and take him back. Cole looked around, trying to sense His presence lurking in a dark corner. Nothing. He was alone.
Growing restless, Cole took to the books again. He looked through every page but nothing was recognizable, except for the one with Goran’s namesake. Where did his friend go anyway? And who refilled the bowl?
Time passed in quiet ambiguity. He placed books on the ground to mark the movement of the shafts of light, but after what seemed like hours they hadn’t moved a hair. Cole tried sleeping again, but to no avail. Irritation urged him to make an attempt at the strange door. Holding tightly to the fact that Goran had managed to leave, he begged the door to allow him passage as well.
The process was still unsettling, but the door swallowed him through. Cole walked the perimeter of the cabin, careful to not step on any rocks. During his second loop, a very loud COO CHAAA! Rang from far away.
“Goran?” Cole turned his head, trying to find the source of the cry.
It sounded again, but with more urgency. Cole trotted off towards the cry, eyes raking the ground for some kind of weapon, but found nothing. After he ran for what felt like several hard laps around the basketball court, the dense fernery gave way to a sandy grove completely devoid of plant life. Cole stopped at the edge of the clearing. Something about it seemed off. The crusty surface was completely flat and decorated with several large circular patterns, each with a neat little hole in the center.
“COO CHAA!”
Cole jumped back, clutching his racing heart. Across the clearing, clinging on to the branch of a fern was Goran. A taut, flesh-colored rope wriggling from one of the holes was fastened to one of his feet. Cole took a step forward, but as he did, a similar tendril wandered out of the hole nearest to him. Cole jumped back and watched in disgust as the pink, veiny thing quivered its way towards him. Avoiding the sand entirely, he ran around the edge of the clearing, getting as close to Goran as he could without triggering the creature in the hole.
As gently as he could, Cole put a bare foot on the sand. As if it were expecting him, another tentacle shot out of the nearest hole. Cole removed his foot and took a few steps back. Goran was struggling now, readjusting his grip on the branch. Cole could tell he wouldn’t be able to cling on much longer. His tiny ribs puffed in and out at a rapid pace.
Cole scanned the area for anything that might be of use, but the forest floor looked as if someone had just cleaned it. A small boulder caught his eye. It would have to do. Cole heaved the boulder off the ground and, as he suspected, it was of the same hissing, jelly-filled variety he had stepped on before. He hauled it back to the edge of the sand and, with his best shot-put throw, tossed the thing at the open hole. It was too heavy, however, and the squishy rock fell short. The quivering tentacle shot out of the hole again, wrapping itself around the rock, which flexed and hissed as it attempted to scurry away. The tendril pulled more of itself out of the hole and threw a few coils around the rock, dragging it slowly towards its home.
Hoping the rock would keep the tentacle busy, Cole approached Goran, who was now holding on by only one clawed hand. Cole wrapped his fingers around the pink rope and felt it flexing and pulsing under his grip. He yanked, trying to give Goran some relief. The tendril didn’t budge and it was too slippery for him to get a good grip. Goran screeched, his grip failing entirely as he flew through the air, arms waving. Cole caught him like a football as they both fell to the ground. Feeling the weight of an even larger meal, the tendril pulled harder, dragging the two of them steadily towards the hole. The crusty sand was none too forgiving on Cole’s more sensitive parts not covered by the gown.
He had to think fast. They were mere feet from the hole now, which was beginning to stir. Afraid to see what else the hole had to offer, Cole took a hand off Goran and brought the tendril to his teeth. The thing tasted foreign and metallic, like a mouthful of soft pennies. Hot, coppery blood spurted onto Cole’s tongue as he gnawed it. With a final yank, the tentacle broke. Goran clung to Cole’s chest as he ran back towards safety. In his panic, he ran not the way he’d come, but rather took a different, quicker path. Before his feet left the sand he felt a halting tug on his hospital gown. Another tendril had its grip on the cloth and threatened to pull him off balance. Cole threw Goran as far as he could, landing him safely outside the sand. Grabbing his own handful of the gown, Cole pulled with all his might. The tentacle threw more coils around the cloth and inch by inch dragged Cole towards its hole, which he was now almost on top of.
The sand erupted, spraying Cole’s face and eyes. When he opened them a fat, hairy grub the size of a couch emerged from the hole. Long spiky hairs covered its skin, which quivered with perverse excitement. It flexed and wrestled the tendril back into its car tire-sized mouth, wiggling a tunnel of barbed yellow teeth. It had no eyes, but Cole felt the thing looking at him like a piece of juicy, vulnerable meat.
Without conscious thought, Cole twisted about, surrendering the hospital gown. Gasping, shaking, and bleeding, Cole joined Goran at the edge of the clearing. Luckily, the grub seemed to be anchored in the hole and did not pursue. By unspoken consent, Goran and the now entirely naked Cole bolted for the cabin.
Even though there were no people around, Cole felt embarrassingly exposed. Not that the gown did much, but at least it concealed his front side. He tried to cover himself the best he could, but abandoned his modesty when his hands could be better used to navigate the dense foliage. He hoped none of the plants had any poison ivy-like qualities. Along the way, Goran stopped to scale a particularly large fern. Cole waited on the bottom, searching the canopy. Something struck him in the face.
“Ow! What the hell?” he blurted.
Something else fell next to him. Rubbing his cheek, Cole bent down and picked up one of the soft seed things he and Goran had been munching on earlier. A dozen more landed around him before Goran descended from the fern.
“So you’re the one who filled the bowl. Thanks,” he said, picking up the rest of the lumps.
Rain twinkled up in the canopy as the cabin came into view. Urged by the thought of being naked, cold, and wet, Cole broke into a run. Once inside he deposited the seeds into the bowl and slumped down onto the mat. He couldn’t tell if he was shaking from the cold or from the shock of almost being eaten. Goran pulled another bowl off the shelf and placed it under one of the holes in the ceiling.
“You know, you’re pretty smart for a cat, or even a monkey,” Cole quipped, and grabbed another bowl and followed suit. Goran gave him a look that clearly said, ‘You know, you’re pretty dumb for a human’.
“So are you a boy or a girl anyway?” Seeing the quizzical look on Goran’s face, Cole stood up. “Do you have one of these?”
Goran stood on his legs and looked down.
“Yep, you’re a boy like me. I was hoping you were. Wouldn’t want to be naked in front of a girl. Though I guess you’re just as naked as I am…” Cole paused, wondering once more why he was talking to an animal.
With nothing better to do, Cole told Goran all about life back home. He explained about the dreams and disappearances, growing up poor, his feelings for Ashley, his mom, Nana Beth, and even his some of the stories he’d learned in the planetarium. He avoided one subject in particular, however; he was not ready to talk about that, even to someone who couldn’t talk back. Goran sat on the table the whole time and listened intently. Seeing the rain tri
ckling through the holes in the ceiling, Cole readjusted the bowls. Goran watched every move, analyzing and learning. When enough water had collected, they each drank their fill.
The sky darkened, though Cole couldn’t tell if it was from the sun setting or the clouds from the storm. He flicked every mushroom on the wall, illuminating the cabin with their turquoise ambiance.
“No wonder the floor is still dry, look at the roots!” He shuffled his feet as if the floor were covered in spiders.
The mushrooms had sprouted thin roots that crept down the walls and covered the floor. The sight was eerily familiar to what they had just barely escaped earlier in the day. When it became apparent that the roots were only interested in the water, Cole perused the library on the wall again, this time looking through every word. While he didn’t find any answers, he did find one large volume with a cloth cover and threads in the binding.
“This isn’t your favorite book is it?” Cole held up the large book for Goran, who didn’t bother looking up from the water bowl he was currently lapping at. “Ok then…”
Cole pulled at the thread bindings, careful not to snap them. Once the binding was undone, the cloth came apart easily. The material was old and not certainly not ideal, but it would work. Cole was no tailor or master of bookbinding, but after an hour or so he had a passable loincloth wrapped around his more delicate parts.
“So how’d I do? Not bad, I think.” He spun around, proudly displaying his work for Goran. Goran sniffed, but was otherwise disinterested. “Gee, thanks Goran. I for one am pretty damn proud of my handiwork. I think it makes my butt look good too.”
Cole plucked a small rock from the ground and flicked it at Goran. The pebble smacked Goran’s flank, and the creature twitched in surprise. Goran inspected the rock and looked up at the ceiling. Unable to discern where the rock had come from, he laid his head back down on the table and closed his eyes. Another pebble struck his flank, a direct hit this time. Goran jumped up on all fours and scanned the ceiling, sniffing the air with bared teeth.
Saving The Dark Side: Book 1: The Devotion Page 10