Janus was entirely confounded by the enigmatic words of the older man. He failed to ask the old man about the issue of worlds, which had been at the tip of his tongue when he had hastened to catch the mysterious stranger. For no explicable reason, and perhaps only because he did not know what else to do, he heeded the man’s words and pressed no further questions. He made no move to follow as the old man turned his back to Janus and resumed his walk.
A thousand questions were racing through his mind, but it was clear that the old man was not going to discuss anything further. With great reluctance, Janus turned and walked slowly back towards his two friends.
He knew that it was not a total loss. At the very least, they had encountered another person within this strange place, which was becoming more bizarre by the moment.
“I have no idea,” were the first words that he heard from Derek as he drew near to the other two.
Derek was shaking his head and looking down at the ground. When he looked back up, he had an expression of sheer bewilderment.
“I don’t even know where to begin,” Derek spat out. “Or even which way is up, or which way is down right now.”
His friend’s tremendous mystification matched his own. “I don’t either, Derek,” Janus replied. “The world is upside down.” He looked back in the direction that the old man had gone, only to find that the stranger was no longer in view. His brow furrowed for a moment, as he did not think that the old man had been walking quickly enough to travel entirely out of sight. The path that he had taken out in the open should have kept him in their sight for quite awhile.
“Who do you think that was?” Kent said, staring into the distance. Neither of the others answered him immediately.
“An old, bearded man in blue robes and a wide hat. That’s what we know. Here and gone already,” Janus finally replied, with an edge of tension to his words.
“So what did you find out? What did you ask him? Did you ask him where are we?” Kent asked.
“No closer to that answer,” Janus said with frustration. “You heard him, and know as much as I do. He warned us not to trust anyone, that things are violent here, and that there are others from our world in the forest.”
“And that we need to find them,” Derek added.
“That explains a helluva lot,” Kent quipped in irritation. “And what’s the bit about ‘our world’? So, we are in another world, aren’t we? That’s for sure, I suppose, just looking up at that sky and seeing that lizard thing earlier. Well, then, maybe we shouldn’t stay out in the open for too much longer. Where do you all propose going?”
“What about the forest?” Janus inquired.
“What about it? How can we just trust that guy?” Derek asked. “Who knows what’s in there?”
“He’s the first sign of sentient life that we’ve seen in this place, and we’ve gotta move on sometime,” Janus rationalized. “The forest probably has our best hopes of finding something to eat. And if there was a threat involved with the old man, then don’t you think that it would have come upon us when we were idly sitting here, and were completely unaware of his approach to within a few feet of us? If an old man snuck up on us so easily, then anyone could have … or might yet, if we sit around here forever. That’s the way I see it.”
Derek immediately harmonized with Janus’ logic. “I’ve never been that oblivious before, having someone sneak up on me like that. You’re right, Janus, regarding your comments about the threat. But still, what reason do we have to trust him? Even he warned us not to trust anyone.”
“Maybe because we don’t know anything. And what if what he said turns out to be true? About this really being a different world? And about some others from our own world also being here, in the forest? If this unintended arrival in this world could happen to us, then it could have happened to others, right? Maybe there is a real reason why we are here,” Janus responded, though he found the sentiments incredible to fathom even as he spoke of them.
“Maybe there are others, and maybe there aren’t,” Kent interjected. “I, for one, sure as hell do not want to place my life into the hands of an old stranger … especially if this is another world.
“I don’t care if he’s the best older sneak in the universe, and could have crept up on us, and cut our throats in broad daylight, right in the middle of a barren desert plain, with us wide awake and sitting back to back looking out in every direction. You’re giving him way too much credit for trustworthiness, too soon … way too much.”
“Then I wouldn’t expect you to follow the suggestion,” Janus retorted in a more resolved tone, drawing upon a sudden dose of inspiration and willpower that rose within him. “I’ll test it out myself, and Derek can stay with you here. Right now we don’t have many, if any, options, and at some point we need to begin to understand this place.”
“And what if it is some kind of trap?” Kent asked with a trace of fear splayed upon his face.
“If it is, then those enemies would move on us sooner or later anyway. The old man got up to us without us catching a glimpse of him, like I said. We all know that. And like I said, it wouldn’t be too hard for others to do the same, I’m afraid, unless we get our heads on straight and figure some things out,” Janus stated.
“So what are you going to test out? You don’t seriously mean in there, do you?” Kent asked incredulously, gesturing towards the darkening boundary of the forest.
“I’m going to go on a little trek, just a very short one, and I will be back before nightfall,” Janus said. “I just want to get a better idea of what’s going on, and maybe even see if I can find something we can consider eating. Is that okay with you both?”
Derek nodded, and Janus was appreciative that he had heeded Janus’ unspoken wish. Janus knew that Derek understood that it would be foolhardy to even suggest leaving Kent alone, especially after the horrific trauma that he had been through in the moments when he had been trapped alone in this foreign place.
From the stoic look on Derek’s face, Janus knew that he had made solid, nearly irrefutable points to his friend.
Janus’ own appetite was just starting to nag at him, but he knew that food would not be the only need of theirs in the coming days. They would have to begin making some headway in several areas, and take some chances, if they were going to survive for very long in this strange new environment. To remain ensconced in indecision was accepting almost certain ruin.
Unless they suddenly woke up and found out that this was all some sort of unbelievable, shared dream, or were suddenly whisked back to their familiar grounds, they would have to begin facing the stark reality of their situation.
“I’ll return before nightfall, remember that,” Janus said, mustering as much confidence as he could into his voice as he started off.
Janus then turned his full attention on the scene ahead, increasing his stride until he was almost jogging. The riverside and his friends fell farther behind him, as the distant line of trees steadily rose up to greet him.
If this was indeed another world, he hoped that the progress of time, and the passage of day into night, went at a similar rate to that which he was used to.
He felt a mounting trepidation as he drew closer to the line of trees. His imagination started to unfurl as he wondered what manner of life might be within the shadows of the forest. The first animal that they had encountered seemed to indicate that there would indeed be some surprises, though the trees themselves looked to be normal enough.
His imagination starting to run amok, he silently admonished himself to regain his grip upon his fraying nerves. His steps crunched beneath him as his shoes met a higher concentration of twigs and fallen leaves. Before he knew it, the forest suddenly loomed right before him. With a deep breath as he girded his resolve, he stepped forward into the trees and was enveloped within just a few strides.
The trees of the forest were fairly well spaced apart, proud, older sentinels that had long since carved out their space and spread their b
ranches wide above to secure it. The ground itself was carpeted by low growths of grasses, moss, and wildflowers, and pockets of more significant brush grew wherever adequate light was available through the foliage canopy.
Walking out of the clear, unobstructed daylight and abruptly entering into the dimmer forest environs jogged Janus’ senses. He decided to pause for a moment to let his eyes adjust to the shadowy depths around him.
He could perceive the thumping beat of his own heart, feeling much smaller as he tried to gaze through the assemblage of towering trees ahead of him. His mind started to play tricks with him again, cruelly reminding him that he was too far from his friends to get help if something truly unexpected and threatening did occur.
There was a discernible stillness to the air, an unsettling disquiet that made his pulse race a bit faster. Glancing around, Janus searched for something that could be used as a weapon. He conceded that anything he found might not be very effective against whatever might ultimately lurk within the depths of such a forest, but he knew that it would suffice to provide him some confidence.
Studying the trees, he saw that some of them had sturdy-looking lower branches that were not too big to be snapped off and utilized as a rough staff, or club-like weapon.
Without further delay, he walked over to the nearest tree and fixed his attention upon a suitable branch. As he set his hands upon the tree branch, readying to put his muscle and weight into bending it to break it off, his ears heard a strong male voice call out. “Excuse me!”
Janus whirled about, nearly falling over in his haste and panic. He faced the four strange people now a few short paces before him, three males and a female. Unlike the old man, they all wore familiar styles of clothes, and to all appearances looked like people of his own community.
Janus’ jaws clenched. His mind immediately set itself to analyzing possible options for defense, and for considering potential escape routes. He cautiously backed up a few steps in the direction of the forest’s edge. His muscles bunched in readiness to run at the slightest provocation.
“Let me guess … you were doing your own thing, in a world that made a lot more sense than this one. Then a fog came … and next you found yourself in this world, wondering what the hell happened … just like us,” a tall man with dark hair addressed him, the one that had first spoken.
Though he had a very stern countenance, and his words were firm, Janus did not sense any imminent threat from the speaker.
Janus must have looked quite puzzled, as one of the other males, a stockier Hispanic fellow, ventured, “I’m sure you have no idea of what this world is, and probably neither does anyone that might be with you. Am I right? You know what I am talking about? I bet you do know.”
It then crossed Janus’ mind that perhaps these were the individuals that the old man had so recently spoken of.
“Have you seen an old man near here, in blue, robe-like clothing, and with a long, white beard?” Janus queried cautiously.
To his disappointment, all of the others answered in the negative, a couple of them looking perplexed at his question.
“Then tell me something of your story,” Janus told them, darting his gaze behind him as he took another couple of slow steps backward.
The serious-looking male who had first addressed him proceeded to explain the details of their situation. He described taking a car ride with his friend, who was evidently the second speaker, and encountering a similar, impenetrable fog, then undergoing an inexplicable arrival into the new environment. He spoke of later meeting the woman and the other man while wandering within the woods.
The woman in the group then interjected at that point to relate the origins of their own escapade, which had evidently begun at the University of Lexington’s campus. The dark-haired man finished the story with a brief description of the things that they had since discovered about the forest, with a few comments added in by the woman.
In many ways, the stories carried great similarities to Janus and his friends’ recent experiences. He was incredibly relieved to see that they all appeared to come from the same town that he and his friends did.
He knew exactly where the grassy, tree-dotted haven that the woman had spoken of was, situated along one side of the student center at the University of Lexington. He knew the road by the mall that the dark-haired man and his friend had taken, when they had become immersed in the strange mist.
There was little doubt that they all shared some common origins. If they were to be believed, then the others were in the very same predicament as Janus, Derek, and Kent. The two pairs had come together randomly in the middle of the forest, just as Janus was meeting them now.
It did not take Janus long at all to recognize that a group of seven would have a much better chance of success within this foreign territory than one group of three, and another of four. The temptation of increased numbers put a tremendous pressure on Janus to accept their story at its face value.
He carefully regarded them as various thoughts and emotions pulled inside of him.
At last, he stated, “Here’s my own situation.”
The other four listened attentively as he spoke of his own ordeal. He detailed the boat trip, coming to the shore in the fog, and the recent visit of the old man.
When he had finished, the woman among the quartet, a tall beauty with flowing black hair and expressive dark eyes, said, “Maybe that old man you talked about did know something. Maybe he was speaking about us specifically.
“But I know one thing for certain, I think that we had all better stick together, for our own sakes at the least. I think that it is pretty clear by now that this isn’t a place that any of us are familiar with. Maybe not even our world, the more I see of it. None of us can argue that by now. And if we are to go much further, then we’d better get introductions taken care of.”
Janus paused for an extended moment, held back by some last vestiges of extreme caution. He looked into each of their eyes, one by one.
“Agreed,” Janus finally answered, trusting to his impulses. He offered them a smile. “My name is Janus Roland.”
Janus shook each of their hands, as each of them gave him their names in turn.
The attractive woman’s name was Erika Laesig, and the dark-haired man with the austere countenance was called Logan Danner. The stoutly built male was Antonio Guerrero. The shorter, lean male with a darker complexion, who looked to be of Middle Eastern descent, was named Mershad Shahab.
“I need to go back to my friends, as they need to know of this right away. They won’t exactly be expecting this, so you might as well come along with me,” Janus indicated, as they finished their introductions with each other.
The quartet of new acquaintances followed behind, keeping a little distance between themselves and Janus. Seeing their own caution was a reassurance to Janus as he settled into a brisk stride, leading them back out of the forest and into the open.
Janus called out, waving to get Derek and Kent’s attention as soon as they emerged from the cover of the woods.
Derek and Kent saw them right away, standing quietly and awaiting their approach. Both looked very attentive, sizing up the four individuals coming in Janus’ wake. After watching them approach for a few moments, Derek started forward, breaking into a jog as he moved away from Kent to intercept the others.
“Janus!” he called, his eyes fixed upon the other four. “What’s up?”
Janus replied, as he slowed down to meet Derek’s approach. “The old man appears to have been right. These people with me are all from Lexington, and have been through the same kind of thing as us, with the fog and everything else. They’re in the same mess as we are.”
Derek’s eyes looked over the foursome that was now drawing close, resting his evaluating gaze upon each one of them. The careful, appraising look in his eye gave away the fact that he was even less inclined towards trust than Janus had been.
Janus could tell that his friend was fully on his guard, watching
very alertly for any sudden moves or other troubling indications.
Janus turned to look at the others, as they drew to within a few paces of him and came to a stop themselves.
“This is my friend Derek Decker, and over there is Kent McNeeley,” Janus told them.
He then proceeded to introduce the four to Derek, who still kept his own distance from them. Kent had strolled over in the interim, and was now standing by Derek’s side.
Janus found that he was even more convinced about the other four at that moment. In his mind, he knew that if they bore any ill will towards Janus and his friends, it was definitely not to their advantage to allow the three men to come together in a group.
“Probably best if you tell your story in your own words to them,” Janus said to the quartet.
“I understand,” Erika replied with a nod, glancing towards Derek and Kent.
The stories were then shared again, which helped to break the tension a little with Derek. He asked them a few pointed questions regarding some elements of what they had seen in the forest, clearly looking to gather useful insights about their new environment.
Following the retelling of the stories, they all came to agreement that they would remain together from that point onward. With the light around them continuing to ebb towards their first night in this region, it was abundantly clear that some kind of plans had to be made.
The group of seven slowly made their way back to the edge of the forest. Dividing tasks up, they set about to building a shelter for the night, as well as looking around for any source of food that they could find.
The shelter that they erected was crude, but would likely suffice even if some rain fell during the night. It was arranged as a rough, semicircular lean-to around the massive diameter of an ancient oak tree. Gathered brush and foliage were arranged to form layers atop a lattice of thin branches harvested from the nearby trees.
Only a few sour tasting berries were turned up in the search for food, unripe versions of a wild berry that Derek was familiar with. To help offset the worsening hunger pangs, all of the group members had to settle for drinking copious amounts of cool water from a stream that was located near to the site of the shelter.
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