The Winding Woods: Tales of a Boggle

by Dani Swanson

  The color drained from Zyon’s face as he growled at Xander. "I didn't lie to her! She was my family! I'm not the one that brought her back here! I did not put her right in the path of Phantasma. That was not me! I LOVED HER TOO!" His voice was no longer deep and grizzly but was frantic, that of a mad man. “I kept her from the shadows and The Mother and Phantasma. That was me! I fought them off, and I hid her from this world to PROTECT her!" He tilted his head back and took a long pull from his bottle. "Me. Zyon. I protected her. I protected the kingdom!"

  "Only because it wasn't time to bring her back yet. What was the magic birthday you needed? Twenty-one? In mere weeks, you would have brought her back here for the harvest and given her to that thing. I can't believe you, man. I should have never let you out of that box."

  "How can you sit there and judge me for something I didn't do. Just because Phantasma told me to bring her back at twenty-one doesn't mean I was going to, and no one allowed me to choose it. The shadows stole her away and brought her back here. Don't you remember that? I was locked in a box. I had no intentions on doing it." Zyon paused for a long moment and looked deep into Xander's eyes. He lowered his voice to a deep growl. "I planned on coming back here and telling Phantasma that the girl died. I would have ended up dead in the process, but Izzie would have been safe. Just as I promised her. I know you don't believe me, but I loved her as she was my own. How could I not love her? I raised her from a pup!" The Boggle King looked for agreement from his captor but found nothing but anger in his eyes. "I know you're angry with me – but I have no idea what to do. I’m sure she’s alive still. She just has to be."

  "How are you going to fix this?" That is all Xander had to offer back to him.

  "Did you see how many creatures – how many humans were asleep out there? When you're the leader, you must do what's best for the greater good. I'm not sure there is anything I can do to fix this."

  "She trusted you…." Xander growled. His knuckles were white as he squeezed the bars. "What is going to happen to her? What am I to do now? I followed you here to SAVE her! You not only lied to her, but you lied to me too!"

  "Now, wait just a minute! I didn't lie to you! We did have to save her from the shadows! They didn’t know the whole story and brought her back here." Zyon was fighting the tears in his eyes from showing any sign of remorse. He had to be vital for his people as his father taught him that kings could not show weakness. "Phantasma made me believe that she was powerful enough to do that. I didn't know any better until we got back here, and I saw what she was doing, and my brother told me how she killed our parents. I was blind to it too."

  Zyon was now sobbing again, unable to keep his composure as he tried to drink his wine but was choking on it. Xander's grief overwhelmed him, and he knew that killing Zyon wasn't going to help him find answers on how to save Izzie, if that was even a possibility.

  "Let me out of this cage, Zyon; I won't bother you again; I just need to go and find a way to help Izzie." His words were shaky, and all he wanted to do was get away from the boggles.

  Zyon waved his hand, and the door to the cage was no longer locked; the door slowly opened with a whine of the hinges. "You're free to try to find her, but what The Mother did with your beloved, may not be a fate you want to find."

  "What would The Mother have done to her? Isn't she the one that protects everyone from the Winding Woods? Wouldn't she protect her?"

  "The Mother, like myself, is a leader and does what she must to protect the greater good. We have responsibilities that we don't get to have emotional choices in Xander. “That's what I'm trying to get you to see. I didn't have a choice. Izzie didn't have a choice. None of us did."

  Xander cautiously made his way down the hallway and out of Zyon’s palace's front door without saying a word to him. A boggle handed him his bow and quiver before disappearing out of sight. Entering the Woods, he looked at the shadowy figures moving in the trees. "Now, where do I go?" Xander took a deep breath and swallowed hard before picking the path to the left and aimlessly walking through the woods without knowing where he was going. "She always told me to pick the path on the left….." He whispered to the shadows. The trees swayed while he listened to the whistling of the wind through the trees – he wanted nothing more for one of the shadows to save him from the Winding Woods, but his heart knew he couldn't go home without his Izzie.

  30: Unheard Screams

  The cool drops of rain started as a drizzle, then hit the ground hard, leaving dimpled imprints in the dirt before turning everything into a muddy mess. The creatures and humans sleeping outside woke from their slumber, confused about why they were out of their homes and sleeping on the ground, unbeknownst to them, what was happening at The Mother. Their bodies all ached as they stretched, listening to their bones moan from being held in the same position for too long. There was life back in the Woods - fairies were buzzing around the trees, flying with the birds who were singing their songs - gnomes opened their windows to let fresh air into their trees - the grimalkin retreated into its den until sunset.

  Silver Lake had two separate shadow teams figuring out what to do with the goo left behind in Phantasma's house. Reyna, Zallen, and Robin had crawled back home; their bodies were beaten. They reported to the other teams what had happened and sent out the reinforcements.

  When the dwarfs emerged from their mines, they were commissioned to help with the project. Incasing the house with gold, that was then was covered with dirt. The birds and fairies covered the house with seeds of wildflowers they had collected to camouflage the remains so no one would try to steal them. The shadows seemed satisfied with their efforts as the silver sirens swimming in the lake were already guarding the waters surrounding the small island, deterring others from venturing out to it.

  The vines that had kept everyone safe from the elements retreated into the trees and bushes as if it were their turn to get some much-needed rest.

  Izzie's parents woke up too. Fig was the first to wake, nuzzling his human's hands for ear scratches.

  "Good morning, Fig!" Thea used the back of her hand to wipe her eyes as the other was busy scratching the cat's head.

  "It's well past morning, dear. The sun is high in the sky." Dean had pulled back the curtain to look outside.

  "Why didn't Izzie wake us? Wait, I remember doing laundry and feeling faint." She saw the basket of clothes on the floor in disarray. "Isabella! Where are you?" She was to her feet when she saw a piece of paper drift down to the ground.

  Dear Mom and Dad,

  This is a weird letter to write, but hopefully, I can help The Mother, and you wake up soon. A sleeping curse has been placed on the Winding Woods, and I've been gone for the past fifteen years while you have been asleep. I was taken to a whole different world by a boggle. My brother from the other world and my boyfriend plan to stop Phantasma and help The Mother and save all of you from the curse. So, when you finally wake up, I won't be a five-year-old child playing in the yard. I have aged while all of you have slept. Hopefully, I'll be returning to meet you soon.

  If things don't go to plan, know that though I never felt like I fit in anywhere, I was well cared for and had a good life. My brother, Nathan, has been my protector and best friend (besides the boggle). My boyfriend, Xander, is also amazing, and I hope you get to meet them both. They followed me here to help.

  They both agree that I'm the perfect mixture of the two of you. I must admit it's nice to see where I got my looks from. I wish I would have been here growing up, though; magic is a strange yet wonderful thing I must figure out on my own.

  I hope to see you again,

  All my love,

  Izzie

  Thea's eyes were filled with tears as she read the letter. Dean was reading over her shoulder, hugging her as she silently cried.

  "Well, it looks like she did something; we are awake. She'll be back." Dean was trying to sound sure of his statement though he didn't believe it.

  "I thought I could protect her with the fo
rcefield. I knew she was going to be stronger than it. I'm going to The Mother to see if I can find her, or at least find answers to what has happened."

  They left their home, with Fig in tow, heading to The Mother. There were many creatures there, trying to find answers, but The Mother wasn't talking to any of them. The usually animated face was just like the other carvings in her bark, though it had a look of content on it. Thea took her hand and held it on the carving that looked like Izzie when she was a little girl. "Remember when the Mother added her to the tree? She told us that one day her powers were going to do something great for the Winding Woods." Her hand grew warm as she held it there for a moment. She could feel Izzie's powers coming from within. She pulled her hand back and held it close to her heart. "She's in there. She's in the tree."

  "How would she get inside of the tree?" Dean walked around its base, looking for an opening.

  "I can feel her magic...I can feel my magic inside of there!"

  Izzie could hear everything that was happening on the outside of The Mother. She cried out for her parents. She was alone in the hollowed insides of the tree, screaming to them that she was in there. Her voice was lost to the darkness of The Mother, leaving her helpless as she wept.

  "HELP ME! Why won't you help me?"