The Water & The Woods

Luna’s eyes scoured the edges of the blue forest, wishing her quest would solve itself. The forest seemed to breathe like it was its own being. It’s blue edges swelled and ebbed like the tides of the ocean. The ocean, as the leaders of her village told them, was a huge creature of water. They said it was a beast that lived life on its own accord and took orders from no one. They said that it was a monstrous evil that, when in the mood, could level worlds and destroy anything. Luna only knew what she had been taught about the merciless waves of an ocean and the depths of a lake unseen to the untrained eye. 

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“If you ever find yourself near the woods,” her mother always said, “you must run straight home, my love. The water finds its strength there and lives in the darkest corners of the little ponds and puddles. You must never wander in. Do you understand?”

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Like a good child, Luna would always reply, “yes mother. I understand.”

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Her mother would nod and press her warm hand to Luna’s cheek. Then, Luna would rush back out of the house to play on the dry streets. 

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No one in the village was quite old enough to know where the fear of this massive creature came from. They just knew what they knew and stayed away from the forest. 

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The most basic principle of their village was that it was waterless. There were no little ponds with winding garden paths around them. There were no little puddles along the side of the roads that turned brown as the days passed. And when there was rain in the air, no one left their homes. The rain would pound on their windows and fathers would hold their children as mothers lit little candles and moved into the deepest parts of their homes where no water could reach them. When the storms passed, the families would emerge from their homes and sweep the water away from their doorsteps into the grass or down the little drains on the street.

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Now, people could drink water. But, only the water that ran through the pipes and came out of kitchen sinks and little pumps in yards. If you needed to wash something, you used the little pump in your yard or the kitchen sink. The water that flowed from those faucets was from the reservoir far beyond their village. No one except for the town elders knew where it was. But no one objected. So long as they had fresh, safe, water to drink. For any water that did not come from the reservoir was seen as possessing the spirit of the great evil. The creature, as the elders liked to call it, the lived in the water. 

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In all honesty, Luna thought it was ridiculous. Of course, she could never say that, but she thought it nonetheless. How could there be a great evil in the water? The gentle sprinklings of rain she remembered from her childhood did nothing but wet the grasses and dampen the soil. And, even when there were thunderstorms, the howling winds were the scariest part. And yet, she turned and faced her village. The village that was so convinced that water was the greatest evil and could be controlled by none. 

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“Honestly, what a silly notion,” Luna muttered to herself. 

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She stood at the edge of the wood as it rippled in the dark. She swallowed her fear and took one step closer to the unknown. As far as she knew, no one had ever gone into the forest. But she was going to. She was going to walk straight through it right to the other side. Perhaps when she stepped out of the forest, there would be a sunny city that lived without fear of water. Perhaps she could run back through the forest and proclaim to her village what fools they all were. Yes, she decided, that’s exactly what she would do. With confidence tingling in her fingers, she pushed aside the initial bramble and stepped into the trees. 

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The forests were darker than anything Luna’s young eyes had touched before. It seemed to swell out to her feet and pull her into its dangerous embrace. Suddenly, she wanted so much to turn back and forget it all, but she couldn’t. She couldn’t give up on the better, not to mention more practical, life beyond the trees. She couldn't give up on the thought that she could swim in a lake without fear. 

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The strange noises in the forests tickled her ears and pricked her spine. She felt like a cat, poised and ready to pounce at whatever unsuspecting threat came out of the woods of silver and blue. She could see tiny pinpricks of shimmer deep within the heart of the forests, yet she didn't quite know how to reach them. Cautiously, she stepped forward, again and again. She was not sure what the tinge of soft light was. It was too pale and moonlit to be the light of lanterns. And yet, as she looked up to the sky, she saw that the tops of the trees were so intertwined and molded together that no moonlight could get through.

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Her throat constricted just a bit as she continued to walk. Perhaps this wasn’t such a good idea. She should’ve waited until morning. She shook the thought from her head as instantly as it came in. If she had waited until morning, her mother would’ve stopped her. 

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“Promise me, my love.”

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“I promise mother.”

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“Promise me you’ll run from the woods.”

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“I promise.” Luna would say, with teary eyes. 

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He mother would nod and sink back into her soft sheets until Luna left. Luna felt her eyes tearing. She stopped short and pushed her fists into them. Now was no time to get sentimental. But she couldn’t stop the heat that fled to her cheeks and the sadness that made her heart freeze.

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“Luna? I could see you from the window today.”

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“I’m sorry, mother. I really am.”

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“Why were you so close to the edge?”

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Luna would avoid her mother’s gaze. “I was just playing mother.”

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A soft hand would lift Luna’s face to meet a hard stare. “There are plenty of other places to play.”

Luna would nod and play in the same place the next day.

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Suddenly, the breeze felt too cold and the lack of starlight made Luna’s head spin. She ought to turn back. She ought to wait until morning. She ought to find a way out and run back into the village. Perhaps she could cling to the robes of the elders until they forgave her.

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“Luna, love.”

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“Yes, mother.”

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“Promise me you’ll never let your little brother go up there.”

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“Mother”-

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“I cannot trust you with promises, love. But you must not let Ken near the trees.”

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“I will keep him away mother. I promise.”

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Luna would sigh as she left her mother’s room with another already broken promise lingering on her lips.

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“Luna. When I’m gone, don’t give in. Stay away.”

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Luna’s eyes were filled with tears as she cradled her little brother.

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“Your father will not be well enough to protect you the way I wanted to.”

Luna nodded.

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“You must not.”

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Luna’s mother faded into the bed as she walked from the room rubbing away the tears and promises.

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She had promised her mother. She had forgotten so many promises but she still had promised. Wheeling around, she forced herself in a different direction when something crossed her path.  

Then, and quite suddenly too, a pale blue heart appeared in front of her. It pulsed with the brilliant transformation of a supernova yet terrified her more than anything she had ever seen before. Tentatively, she reached to run her fingers across it, but it floated away. Unaware of her surroundings, Luna followed the little creature willingly. The blue forests whipped past her as the pulsing heart led her deeper into unknown lands. In those moments, she knew nothing but the pulsing orb in front of her and how beautiful it glimmered in the darkness. She thought not of home, water, promises, or her mother. She only thought of the effervescence of the pale orb. 

It was only when the orb stopped that she realized it had taken her. She was in the heart of the forests and she felt like crying. Something in her throat started closing up and a pit started forming in her stomach. What had she done? Where was she? 

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“Luna. There are many things in the woods that may hurt you.”

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“But water”-

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“Is not the only one.”

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“Mother.”

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“No, let me speak.”

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“Yes, mother.”

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“You have a talent for disregarding promises as one disregards the most minute detailing of the underside of a kitchen counter. I know there is nothing I can do to keep you to a promise.”

Luna had left the room before her mother could finish.

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Then, another little blue heart appeared. Then another and then another. Soon, they surrounded her in a circle of wonder and she once again was transfixed by their pulsing little bodies. Then, they all dove together at a spot right in front of Luna’s feet. Their bodies became a pool of molten blue liquid that spread, causing Luna to stumble away from the hypnotic sight of the creatures dying. She was rather unclear as to what had happened to the little hearts. They had pulsed with such vigor and glowed with a transfixing light that Luna knew not what to make of them. 

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 The pool grew until it took up almost all of the clearing, and then, it stopped. In front of her, there was a great expanse of the glittering silver substance. If she leaned over it, Luna could see her face staring back at her. Shocked by the strange substance, she bent down to place her fingers in it. It felt like nothing at all. Well, it felt like a cold wind that encased her hand like a glove. 

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 Luna started to draw nearer when a shadow arose from the pool. At first, Luna cast her eyes down and began to crawl away. But then, she opened her eyes. The shadow had formed a figure that was tall and sweeping like a willow tree. It had long feathery arms of black that reached out in Luna’s direction. The longer she gaped at the strange shifting shadow, she more it began to resemble a human. Its swirling face seemed to melt into its hair which was a long train of silky black and Luna found herself transfixed enough to fall into its arms. Its torso seemed to mold into the pool itself and when it drifted towards Luna, the glowing substance shivered ever so slightly. Luna had never felt an urge so powerful as the one that pulled her up to her feet and closer to the pool. With the longing in her chest, she few steps felt like miles. 

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 Finally, her feet her at the edge of the pool and she felt dread. It broke through the awe so suddenly that she hardly had any time to recognize the pain she felt. Not just in her toes, which her tingling as they neared the pool, but in her whole body. A scream sounded through her head and shattered something inside of her. She willed her feet to move from the silvery shore but she had no willpower left. Feathery arms touched her face with a gentle touch. Fingers touched her arms and dusted her with the same cold sensation her finger had felt.  

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The willowy arms of the shadow crept around her and she tried in vain to think inside her own mind. She could see nothing and feel nothing except for the smothering oblivion in her own head. 

She had nothing left to do before the figure took her to its chest and melted into the water it had created. The new lake glistened in the moonlight as the trees parted above it. It had a glossy sheen of silver that served as a canvas for the reflection of the still night sky.  The water was undisturbed but beneath its placid surface, it writhed and twisted. Pulsing with one thousand supernova hearts.