by Madoc Fox
"Yes it is certainly possible, but you’d be surprised how long it can take to truly change who we are and what we think. The mind can be a stubborn thing."
They continued on in silence as Oscar reflected this point. He was desperate to see his own reflection and what he fully perceived of himself. For the first time his attention was drawn to his clothes – a scruffy pair of plimsolls, some old army surplus trousers and a washed out grey t-shirt. No surprise there then, as he wore this pretty much every day. Other than this shabby attire he had no other indication to his appearance, though from what he could see of his arms and legs everything was exactly as usual. Determined to test Vergil’s theory, Oscar focused on trying to change something. Staring intently at his thumb Oscar willed it to turn blue. Surely with a bit of effort that couldn’t be so difficult? Yet half an hour later he had to admit there was no discernible difference. Well, perhaps a slight tinge to the nail but he couldn’t be sure he wasn’t just imagining it. Or rather - that he was imagining it - he corrected himself. Shaking his head in confusion he turned back to the trail.
The trek was long and arduous, and Oscar wondered whether the thick green line on the horizon was drawing any closer at all. But after a while he began to notice that the somewhat barren field held more than first believed. As his attention wandered to the cat he noticed that every now and then as she flew gracefully through the air, she would paw at something. With further observation he came to realise that suspended just around knee height were small orbs of faded light. These varied in size from as large as a hand span to as small as a grape and they bobbed gently in the breeze.
Initially he thought the orbs to be nothing more than a bizarre feature of his environment, like some kind of obscure dandelion seed. Yet under further inspection he was surprised to find they displayed a form of life. Every now and again the orbs would encounter each other, and in doing so a small reaction would occur. Sometimes one would almost dance around the other or they would move in unison; on one occasion he actually thought he saw a larger orb entirely engulf another.
The floating spheres had diverted his attention to such an extent that he had barely noticed the sun begin to set. As darkness fell, Oscar was treated to the most spectacular scene across the field. The orbs seemed to become more clearly defined and in the fading light they illuminated the vast fields on which they bobbed. Like many suspended candles, the orbs provided a gentle sea of light that washed over the previously dreary landscape, giving it a new lease of life.
Oscar gently tried to cup an orb in his hand but failed - it simply floated up and out of his reach. Trying several times to hold the luminous phenomenon, he became frustrated and eventually attempted to forcibly pin the orb in his grasp.
"Careful now, Oscar." Vergil commented. "Don't go upsetting the locals." To Oscar’s amazement he looked up to see that the surrounding orbs had bunched together, encircling him. Though they did not act, it was clear that these little beings were distressed by his actions and sought to protect their own.
“Sorry." Oscar nervously said, releasing the small orb he had successfully caught. "No offense intended". The little ball of light zoomed over to the gathered group and was soon lost in the crowd. The threat now removed, the orbs dispersed again on the breeze.
"That was a creature of some sort, I felt its life in my hands" Oscar said to nobody in particular. Vergil did not respond in any case, simply leading them further along a path that only he seemed to know.
It was not until the sun was on the very brink of disappearing from the horizon that the three finally reached the forest. Oscar stood at the boundary, staring into the thick woodland that spread before him. The forest contained a collection of trees that he did not recognise; they all seemed too surreal, as if painted onto the landscape. Blotches of colour covered the trunks in shaded patches, and the branches stretched and contorted in every way imaginable.
Vergil turned to Oscar.
“Through here, it should direct us to the main town”. Oscar strode hurriedly after him as the rat darted forward into the woodland.
The sun had set fully, extinguishing the light but the forest seemed to react to the night and all around them the plantation pulsed with energy. High in the canopy overhead, small lights like those seen on the fields began to glow, and on the forest floor and along the trees small exotic fungi emitted fluorescent blues and purples. The whole sight filled Oscar with a sense of magic as everywhere he looked was hauntingly beautiful. The forest was teeming with life and even the trees seemed to weave and dance in the night air. So much of the forest screamed to be touched or examined, and everywhere his hand wandered Oscar felt the warmth of life. Sometimes it felt as if the trees were whispering to him, though their voices fell just out of earshot.
They continued on their path venturing further into the heart of the forest, all three taking in the scenery as they strode, each happy to be silent. Oscar observed how the more gentle they became in their manner, the more the forest opened out to them as though they were placating the mood of their environment with a lullaby to sooth the woodland spirits. Roots would creep out of their way to forming pathways and branches would sway open with the breeze. Oscar watched how the cat weaved and danced with the floating orbs. Entwining with each other they seemed as though they might be conversing in a discrete language.
“Vergil, why is everything alive? You saw my world; I know the plants and trees are living things but they hardly move at all. Here it’s different – they are properly alive”.
“But they are Oscar, you just cannot see it. You acknowledge they are living things but you miss the essence of it completely. Everything has a core, a spirit if you will. Unfortunately on your side sometimes it’s easily missed. Especially, when you are too lazy to look.” Turning to Vergil, Oscar shot him an inquisitive look, inviting him to explain further but Vergil merely scuttled past him into one of the wooded alleys. Venturing further in through the forest, Oscar felt as though the trees were actively huddling together. So much so that it became more and more tiresome to trek through the natural paths that were forged. Branches and roots had begun to mesh together to block off avenues with sizeable obstacles. It almost felt as if they were being guided through the wooded maze, for there was no choice of direction. They were forced to go along the path of least resistance, that which the trees presented to them. The sky and stars above were no longer visible and the canopy of lights overhead was their only guide.
Stepping over a fallen branch riddled with exotic fungi Oscar turned to Vergil who stood further ahead alongside the cat, who had been half prancing, half gliding her way through the forest.
“Vergil, are you sure this is the safest route?”
“Not really” Vergil mused. “But it is the only one which has presented itself to us, so just stay close by.” Though not entirely reassured by this answer, Oscar fell into line.
Stepping through a patch of fungi, Oscar watched with interest as some of the mushrooms sprayed his ankles with small clouds of spores. Though the act was seemingly natural and innocuous enough, to him it seemed aggressive and he did not feel entirely safe. What with this and the enclosing trees, he felt as though the forest was showing a reaction to his foreign presence. It had lost its initial hospitality and what had at first been a comfortable jaunt had now become a hardened slog, as the forest encroached ever more into their space the further that they pressed on. The only reassurance to Oscar was that the lights in the canopy above remained constant, stemming the darkness from flooding in.
As they rounded a further corner of the path, the trio were presented with a dead end. A twisted wall of branches blocked their every turn but back. Vergil, who in no way seemed concerned, sat on a rather large toadstool scratching at his furry chin.
“Well?” Oscar queried expectantly, but the moment had extended for several minutes and Vergil did not respond. Instead he continued to sit, focusing on the wall. After much consideration he jumped up with a sparking realisat
ion and scrambled into the rustling web of branches between the colourful leaves.
“Ah yes.” he finally answered. “I knew it was here. Of course if you were smaller this would not be a problem.”
Oscar turned his attention to the living wall. Here the branches intertwined so thickly that no gap was visible. The twigs and wines had woven together as they grew, never to be prised apart. Looking harder, Oscar strained to see what in the uniform mass of organic material had finally caught Vergil’s attention. He could just about make out a portion of tree trunk, knarled and knobbled almost beyond recognition. And there, sitting below a knot, he saw an opening. It was circular at the top with a square shaped indentation at the bottom. Almost like…
“A keyhole!” Announced Vergil triumphantly. And with that, he darted into the thicket of leaves and through the gap, his thin, pink tail soon the only indicator of his location. Moments passed as nothing happened, before the two trees either side of the wall began to shake. In a second, the whole area came alive with the creaky sound of moving timber, slow and reluctant. And before Oscar’s eyes the branched wall retracted to reveal a tunnel leading on behind. Like the natural walls that had sprung up through the forest, the tunnel was a corridor formed from contorted tree trunks and branches. However, since the canopy overhead was no longer visible, luminous fungi sat uniformly along the roof. Oscar could not help but wonder whether this feature had occurred naturally of through the design of yet unknown inhabitants.
“Stay close Oscar” Vergil said in a hushed voice, then turned to set the pace. “It’s easy to get lost.” Oscar cast his eyes around, anxious to ensure the cat was still with them. He needn’t have worried though, as she hovered just behind his shoulder.
Up until now Oscar had managed to maintain a good sense of his direction relative to the Institute. But the tunnels were hard to follow. They wound in all directions forming twists and spirals of misdirection, so that it was not long until he felt completely disorientated. At one point the tunnel dived far into the ground, facilitated by sculpted wooden stairs which again gave Oscar reason to ponder upon their origin. As they descended, Oscar felt the temperature drop significantly and the air gained a slightly stale quality.
Every now and then they would pass different exits, but Vergil – who Oscar had been growing ever more confident in – simply stood on his haunches turning to sniff the air along every path before deciding upon the way. As they passed by the various off-shoots Oscar was startled to realise they were not alone. Peering down the other avenues he could sometimes catch a glimpse of a figure just out of view, or of reflective eyes that stared from beyond the darkness. With his curiosity piqued, Oscar stealthily crept to the corner of every junction they approached, before darting out in an attempt to see their followers. But he was too slow and it was no use -he only ever caught a glimpse of blurred figures moving out of sight.
“I don’t think we are alone Vergil.” Oscar called out, following his most recent failure to catch one the figures.
“I agree. But then we were bound to encounter others” Vergil said in a rather blasé manner. “Do not bother with them Oscar, they have enough right to be here.”
But Oscar could not help but be curious of this creature who so clearly didn’t wish to be seen, and Vergil’s blunt replies only fuelled his curiosity. As they came to a large junction with many exits, Vergil once again set about sniffing the air at each one to determine the best route ahead. Oscar seized his chance, and dashed down a short corridor after one of the elusive figures, just managing to catch sight of a waist-high creature before it ran down a new path. Pacing with all his might Oscar gave chase. As he closed the distance between them he could see it more clearly. It looked like a small green child with brown curly hair and pointed ears. Stopping abruptly the sprite appeared to be cornered: he had reached a dead end. Oscar approached cautiously. Finally confronted with the source of his curiosity he found himself unsure of what to say.
“I’m sorry if I scared you.” Oscar eventually murmured, as though trying to placate the feral creature that was watching him warily. “I just wanted to see you.”
The sprite turned to Oscar and he could see that his first impression had been correct. It looked just like a little green child. But although it now smiled at Oscar, the expression was not pleasant. There was a hint of devilishness to the child’s look, with pure white teeth and deep walnut eyes. The creature merely raised its hand, made a sarcastic wave and vanished into the branches.
“Huh, why did..?” Perplexed, Oscar thought aloud. But he was cut violently short as the floor gave way beneath his feet. “Verrrggill!” Oscar bellowed as he plummeted through the organic shaft.
Vines lashed at him, whipping painfully at his sides as he fell, yet at the same time they impeded his descent. The slower he fell, the more the vines snagged, catching at his limbs until his fall was completely broken. He drew a breath of relief as he came to rest and the sharp pain receded. Yet before he could think as to how he had come to be in a stationary state the vines began to move again, winding round and tangling him up so that he was held in a tight green crib. The vines crept around his body, ensnaring his arms and legs until he was bound firmly in place.
Failing in his initial attempts to fight the vines, Oscar quickly grasped at the only tactic left to him.
“Vergil…err…Cat. Someone, help!” He shouted back up the shaft. To his relief it was not long until two tiny faces peered over the cleft, though their concern was not quite as he had anticipated.
“Seems like you have yourself in a bit of a tangle, young Oscar.” Vergil chuckled. “Now you know why I told you to stay close. The forest senses you are not native and seems to be reacting accordingly.”
Oscar rolled his eyes. Typical – now the rat decides to start volunteering explanations, just when he has more important things to think about. Biting back a desire to voice this observation, he instead called out.
“Okay, okay, just help me out would you?”
“Yes, yes. I suppose I should. After all, you do look a bit of a fool. I’d better come down there.” Vergil answered, vanishing in a puff of mist.
But almost instantly, as if in defence, a whole series of vines streaked out barely a metre above him. They twined tightly together forming a tangled wall over Oscar’s head. Through the slim gaps in between, Oscar watched as Vergil reappeared in the same spot from which he had vanished. Only then did the wall of vines overhead retract. Looking rather offended, the rat twitched his nose before speaking again. “Well I never. No use Oscar, we’ll have to find another way to get you out I’m afraid. It seems that the forest is blocking me for some reason.”
The cat mewed a cry of sympathy, circling around the rim of the pit where Oscar lay helplessly trapped, but there was nothing she could do. Turning his head with difficulty, Oscar was surprised to see that the vine tapestry below wasn’t actually a dead end. There was a tunnel beneath him, leading off from the base of the pit. Calling up, he relayed this fact to Vergil who looked down again with a renewed determination.
“Aha, well, that gives us another option. If only we can find the path. Come Cat, let us search!” And with that, the two heads retreated from the rim of the pit. The only thing Oscar heard as their voices receded into the distance was Vergil’s voice, quipping with amusement.
“Hang in there, Oscar!”
Left alone again Oscar turned his attention back to the vines. He lay still for a moment readying himself, then twisted suddenly to try and apply pressure to the vines in all places at once. But it was no good; every time he struggled, the creeping green tendrils just pulled tighter. He tried and tried, seeing if his strength could best the restraints but his successes were few. When occasionally he succeeded in snapping a few of the thinner vine fingers, he was dismayed to see more come forth from the shaft to replace those that had failed.
Through what seemed like hours of lying in suspension, Oscar came to notice that as his body relaxed, the vines loosened
their grip ever so slightly. Yet when he reacted or moved again they would immediately tighten. Carefully and very slowly he contorted his thin frame in an attempt to disentangle his limbs from the vines. It was agonising work; his muscles ached and his joints cracked as he stretched his body, contorting it in every feasible way. But alas it was no use. His limbs could not bend far enough, at least not without becoming dislocated from their sockets.
Stuck in limbo Oscar’s mind raced. If he was just flexible enough he could surely ease himself out. It was then that the thought struck –Vergil had mentioned he was ‘but a mind’s perception’ here and that this was not his body, for his body remained in the other world. It might be difficult to change who he really was, but surely it would be easier to just bend the rules slightly? His first attempt hadn't come to much, but then he hadn't tried particularly hard. Besides what else was he going to do? It might well take hours for Vergil to find him.
Straining his mind, with his eyelids shut tight, Oscar tried to convince himself that his right arm was made of rubber. Thinking over and over to reinforce the idea, he flooded his mind with nothing but the thought and perception of his wish. He imagined what it might feel like and how he would be physically changed. As he lay there concentrating, a peculiar sensation crept over him. It started from a tiny seed deep down inside, but grew steadily, sending waves of sensation through his limbs. He could still feel his right arm, though not nearly so well as before. In fact, it felt much more fluid, as though the joints and bones of his body were no longer an obstacle.
Opening his eyes, Oscar stared in amazement. The vines were weaving rapidly around his arm in an attempt to gain purchase, to the extent that Oscar could hardly see it. Twisting slightly he could just make out a movement below, something draped along the floor of the pit. With a shock, Oscar recognised the shape – it was his hand! After a moment of pure panic for the lost body part, he was relieved to see it was actually still attached. Upon closer inspection the arm to which it belonged appeared stretched beyond all recognition, drooping down from the mess of vines which held him.