The Ultimate Fairy Tale

Into the Woods- Prologue

By: Mandi ‘Pixiangel’ Embree

            Her heart beat wildly behind ribs, thudding out its protest against being exercised in such suddenness.  Cramps built inside her legs, crying in pain and discomfort as she forced them to continue over the ground and through the thick bramble of the woods.  Her breath came out in panting gasps, each one struggling to gulp in more precious oxygen than the last. Claws tore at her clothing, twisted skeleton like fingers grasped frantically at the figure moving with clumsy swiftness.

            ‘Keep moving…I can’t stop running…he’ll catch me if I stop.’

            The thought of being caught fueled the fire beneath her feet, soles pounding and cracking twigs beneath the heavy foot falls. She cursed herself for being so loud. Undoubtedly he’d easily be able to follow the sound of breaking wood and heavy breathing, as well as the surprised cries she let out from time to time when just realizing there was reason to duck.

            ‘You’re being stupid! Just breathe, don’t cry out, and try to lose him by zig zagging through the trees…’

            Whatever her mind was telling her, she obeyed, yet felt he was still close enough behind.  How long had this chase endured? It felt as though an eternity passed, at least that is what her legs and lungs insisted.  The sky and her mind pleaded differently- the sun was only now just setting.  An hour at least had passed and she’d never run for this long before for any reason…she could hardly run the seven-minute mile in physical education.

            Lungs screaming for more air than was being taken in, they clenched, a harsh cough rising through her throat and past her lips. She had to stop, even if she didn’t think it could be afforded right now.  The moment the running ceased, her feet felt glued to the ground, legs became twenty pound weights attached at the hips. Doubling over, harsh wheezes let air pass through and carbon pass out between her lips.

            Struggling to keep from breathing too loudly again, she perked her ears and listened as best she could.  There was nothing but silence.  Wind was nonexistent here, evening birds did not sing, and the clouds did not move in the sky above. Feeling more than just a little freaked out, her amber eyes darted nervously about.

            ‘Where am I?’

            Words refused to be spoken aloud; her throat ached too much to allow actual speech.  It made no matter; the quieter she was the less of a chance he had of finding her.

            A shiver danced along her spine, reminding her of the chilled spring night brought forth by a kiss of the wind. The winds had shifted, now coming from the west rather than the north. She looked up, staring past the strands of dark hair whipping around her face and at the trees. They looked…different.

            Footfalls sounding in the near distance sent her heart leaping.

            “No,” she whispered, tired of running.

            There was nowhere here to hide…running again was the only option, aside from getting caught.

            “Melanie! Melanie, come back!”

            His voice was rough against the wind as he called, hoarse from continuously calling after her.

            Melanie groaned, forcing her sore legs to disembark from the forest floor, promising her lungs a chance to fully recover breath as soon as possible. Lurching forward, her form weaved through the trees, feet stumbling over upraised roots, dodging branches and shrubbery once more. The wind went from being chilly and soft to roaring and unbearably cold.  It was too cold for even a spring night in Maine but she couldn’t afford such frivolous thoughts right now. The main objective was to keep going, to find the road and maybe then some help from the crazy young man chasing her through the woods.

            ‘Someone help me, please, someone find me and take me away from this!’

            It was with that thought that a root Melanie did not see managed to send her flying a good five feet forward.  Her eyes shut, instinctively bracing for the hard impact on the forest floor, and thus did not see the silver swirling circle set into a strange twist of grey branches that her form flew clear through.

            The landing was surprisingly soft. Before her honey colored eyes opened, Melanie could smell fresh pine needles all around and underneath. When the wind came through, it was soft and warm, having lost the biting chill.

            Slowly she rolled over onto her back and gazed skyward, blinking into the startling sunlight that filtered through droves of lush green leaves.  Was it morning? Had she been knocked out in the woods after her fall and was just now waking up? Did the trees have this many leaves this early into spring when she first came to the forest?

            The questions ping-ponged in her mind as the slender young woman pushed up to a standing position. If she had just woken up, her legs certainly didn’t know it because they still ached from running. With aching body and lungs, Melanie dusted off the torn blue jeans and pale yellow sweater and began walking. Obviously her pursuer had not found her or he had and thought her to be dead which caused him to simply leave the woods and forget her. She didn’t mind either way because now she could walk at her own pace.

            However, not more than five steps were taken across the cushiony ground when a strange voice piped up from behind.

            “Hey-lo there lass, be ye lost?”

            Melanie arched a brow, tucking wild strands of thick ebony hair behind her pierced ears and turned slowly.  Shockingly there was nobody there. Had she only been imagining the chipper voice?

            “No, no, no ye look in the wrong direction. If ye turn ye eyes to down below, ye shall undoubtedly see.”

            Down? Indeed when the young woman turned her eyes down as the voice instructed she saw there the owner of it. Standing no taller than her knee there was a little man wearing an emerald green button up collared shirt which skirted out from a black belt, a pair of the same green slacks and tiny black boots with shimmering gold buckles. His cheeks were round, eyes large and golden, and he had a plentiful amount of auburn hair.

            Laughingly, the little man jumped, clapping his hands. “Well lass now we see ye pretty face! Where are ye from? Surely not the new world, though ye apparel is none I’ve seen before.”

            Melanie blinked several times then rubbed her eyes with the heels of her palms. She had changed her mind- she hadn’t woken up, she was still on the ground sleeping and dreaming this all. It was the only logical answer to the very out of place and impossibly short man before her.

            “I need to wake up…” she sighed softly.

            “What a strange accent to boot- though to others ‘tis I with the accent, being from Farelin and all- but tell me lass, what do ye need to wake from?”

            “This dream,” Melanie replied flatly, beginning to pinch at her cheeks and arms.

            The little man laughed heartily and jumped and clapped again. “A dream?! Oh ye are a laugh, lass! This is no dream, ye are in Seabrim and are very much awake, sure as I’m a leprechaun!”

            Now she knew this had to be a dream. Seabrim? She’d never heard of such a place, nor had she ever heard the name.  Not to mention the chances of this tiny man being a leprechaun was pretty slim. When she delivered a more forceful pinch to her arm, Melanie yelped in pain.

            Chuckling, the said leprechaun sat on a small stone and lit his pipe which manifested from seemingly nowhere. “I told ye once, there’s no need to say it again, but I shall anyway. Ye do not dream.”

            The pinch felt real enough to Melanie, though it hardly sufficed as enough proof. However, she still was wary. She should be in Maine, not this Seabrim place, unless Seabrim was just the name of this part of the forest. That was very unlikely. Biting on her lip, Melanie turned from the tiny man and took a deliberate step toward the west.

            “Where do ye think you’re goin’ ?” he called to her from around his smoking pipe. “West is not a good idea lass, there are strange and dangerous creatures that way. East is not fair either. Ye came from the South, I think, which is not a good route unless ye are a refugee, so North is perhaps the best way.”

            South was the way she came, so going that direction would probably eventually lead her down the twisted path she ran through.  Going West didn’t seem like a safe option according to the leprechaun…Melanie blinked. Why on earth was she listening to that little man?! She was dreaming, it didn’t matter which way she went because eventually she would awaken and find herself unmoved on the ground.

            However, the girl stopped and turned to glance at the little man. “North? Well, what’s North of here?” It couldn’t hurt to play along.

            The leprechaun smiled broadly. “The castle of course, named Seabrim Palace! Why, don’t ye remember the name of the palace owned by the ruler of Soluna?!”

            Soluna? Melanie stared hard at the leprechaun for a moment and murmured to him slowly.

            “Am I dreaming?”

            “I told ye no.”

            “How can I believe you? None of this can be real…leprechauns don’t exist, Soluna doesn’t exist either.”

            The leprechaun tilted his head, “Did ye strike your head on a rock, lass? Oh…oh, I hope ye did not wander in from Reality, that would be a very misfortunate deed! The gates are open, I have forgotten, that forsaken Sugar-wing is not doing her job!”

            Puzzled, Melanie crouched down before the leprechaun. “What gates are you talking about? The gates to get into the forest?”

            “Aye, lass, in a matter of speaking…” he paused, puffed his pipe twice, then snapped his fingers to make it vanish. Ignoring the curious expression on Melanie’s face, he continued. “The gate to Seabrim and the other eleven are not sealed anymore because there is an unfinished tale…ye must have wandered in from the outside world and cannot find the way back. Tell me lass, did ye see a silver circle of light?”

            Melanie shook her head, not remembering a thing, still believing this was nothing more than her imagination’s story. Yet…she began to feel uneasy. The name Soluna and the mention of gates had been mentioned by him…by the young man who pursued her.  Would she have been able to retain that nonsense after only hearing of it once? And if she truly did dream, then why were the colors so vivid? Why could she smell the crispness of the wind in the verge? Why could she feel pain?

            The leprechaun gazed long at the young woman and let out a small gasp when her eyes met his once more.

            “Saints preserve us! Ye eyes are like honey! And ye hair…I did not notice lass, but it is as dark as raven’s down!”

            Feeling a faint blush come on, she nodded. “Yes…but what’s the big deal?”

            Staggering back, the leprechaun made for an unknown destination. “Forgive me lass, I did not know ye to be her! If ye are searching for a way out, turn North and stay that way, the palace shall be reached shortly.”

            With a snap of his fingers, the leprechaun vanished to whatever tear his pipe had gone, leaving Melanie alone and even more confused than before.