Norbert looked around, slowly moving his body not to disturb the bird resting atop his head. Cutting the rope as high as he could reach and tying it off so as not to fray before placing it in his backpack. With his items in their appropriate spot, Norbert further investigated the flora. The plant's dimensions where too big and out of proportion, small thin stalks having giant leaves like lilies spreading from the base and searching for any pinpricks of light they could reach.
The ground covered in grasses, patchy weeds or shrubs dotting the place. All shades of green could be seen, thankfully for Norbert with no strange colours or purple lines glowing off them. The tree tops almost hidden underneath a mini canopy of branches and leaves just above Norbert’s head, transforming the area and Norbert into a child playing in the garden.
Norbert ventured off once more, not knowing the direction of the river that he previously glimpsed when plummeting through the air. Randomly picking a direction he marked the tree closest to him leaving an X to ensure he didn't turn double track on himself, as there was no sun to go by being unable to direct him using it.
Cutting his way through the underbrush, over and over again, brushing past until finally, he make his way through, where before him was another tree; repeating it once more, he made an X on the tree and continued, whistling a tune as he walked through the forest.
Climbing over hills and logs, the smells of decomposition and plant life around him waxing and waning as he walked. Trudging through the leaves on the ground crackling with each step, sweat appeared on his brow, Norbert's once dry sleeve now wet with his sweat from constantly whipping the liquid trying to blur his vision. Pausing, he reached for his bottle, pulling it out while swirling it around, hearing the water swish inside. He heard the water echoing from within, knowing he had little left. Bringing the bottle up to his lips, Norbert downed the rest gulping it, making sure not to waste even a single drop.
With a sigh of relief, his thirst quenched momentarily, worry overtook him for not knowing how much longer he would be here, now with no water known clean water. It felt he had been here much longer than any of the previous times; not knowing what would cause him to jump back to the safety of Earth. He ventured off with a shrug of his shoulders, careful not to disturb the little bird too much.
With more Xs marked on the trees and the parting of the plants becoming more accessible and effortless, Norbert continued passing through the forest. Whistling and chirping together, the pair journeyed through the forest. As they passed over tree roots, standing up a bit higher than usual, Norbert saw a herd of deer-like creatures, the same kind he found when climbing down the tree.
As most things are from high up, they usually look as small as ants, creating a sense of safety that onlooker cannot get hurt from them, and that you are unreachable. For ordinary people, this is shattered when they once more come back to earth from flying in planes; standing on the ground, and face to face with people and cars.
Norbert once thought that they were normal-sized creatures without considering the vast distance he travelled to the bottom, something that Norbert completely disregarded on his adventure to explore the new place and find some water to replenish his empty bottle. With a fluttering of the obsidian bird's wings, it flew away from Norbert, leaving him once more alone.
Looking down at him could be classically called a deer, if a deer was the size of a house and had similar purple veins going across its antlers and flecks of fur highlighted with a darker purple.
Norbert slowly opened his mouth in shock and horror, hearing the air roar behind him, slowly turning around. One of the beasts was only a mere meter away, but due to its size, it was way too close for Norbert’s comfort. If it ever just nudged its head forward it would smash into him and he would go flying until he crashed inside a tree.
Norbert stared into the eyes of the beast, knowing that this could be his last action if it attempted to do anything to him. Within the beasts eyes showed understanding, an intelligence lacking in a common animal. With another puff of its breath, Norbert looked down at the ground. Not knowing what to do, his body moved on instinct and bowed towards the deer.
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Holding his breath in anticipation of what the future may hold; Norbert felt a puff breath on him again before hearing the beast turn away. Slowly raising his head, Norbert looked up towards where they went.
All around him, the deer slowly moved through the forest of plants, able to see where they had just crushed through the undergrowth. As the last one escaped his view, Norbert breathed out a breath of air, as silently as they had arrived the deer had left. Happy that he would live to see another day.
Hearing a chirp from above him, Norbert looked up, watching his little buddy, the obsidian bird holding onto the trunk of the closest tree, above his head. A little glide falls onto Norbert’s head as it ruffles his hair before getting comfortable.
With a small sigh, Norbert goes and opens up his backpack and retrieves another bar to share between the two of them.
With a brush with death sorted, Norbert looks at where to go, to follow the path he was making or the herd he had just seen, hoping to find something meaningful.
Undecided, he asks the bird, still resting on his head with crumbs, "Which way do you think to go?"
And in a classic reply of birds, he receives a chirp. Sadly Norbert's bird speech was not of the appropriate level to understand this, so he took out a coin.
"Heads to follow the path and tails to follow the herd." blowing on the coin for good luck, he flicks it into the air. Spinning and spinning, it goes around where it stops nobody knows.
And with that, the coin lands on Norbert's hand, quickly showing his fate being heads.
"Well, guess Lady Luck has decided my fate, and away we go, little birdy."
And so the pair continues through the forest, one moving much more than the other. As time went on and on, the forest became an endless maze of no change, for each tree he passed Norbert marked it, the bush going on and on. Uphill and downhill, he went slowly plodding along, trying to find a path that animals might take to find a place to get some water as quickly as possible.
Exhausted, Norbert lay down on the forest floor, resting against a tree's root, breathing and waiting. Waiting for something to happen at least, he would have a reason to move a single finger.
Why continue this? He had not prepared enough for all this travelling. Assuming he would have been whipped back to Earth by now. If only there were some way to know when it would happen, to plan for it; slowly through the forest, he heard a calm wind, disturbing the leaves on the plants and making them rustle, the grass bending slightly.
As he saw it come to him and wash over Norbert, an incredible feeling of calmness consumed him. At least the wind was excellent on his face.
Closing his eyes, Norbert smiled half; at least it would be an excellent time to sleep under the nice … coooool….. wind.
Wind
WIND!
The thought tore through Norbert's mind.
Ever since coming here, the only time he felt wind was when he went down the trees; there had never been a single bit of wind throughout all his time here.
With worry, panic consumed him. Bolting upright, causing the little bird to fall off his head, Norbert looked around.
Seeing that there was nothing different in his vicinity, the wind still picking up, he looked into the air. In the distance flickering between the trees of the forest, was a creature flying through the air. Wings of bright yellow and a pattern on its body, hard to make out exactly due to the speed at which it was flapping. No feathers could be seen on the body; only the angular head of a predator could be seen.
With a flap of its wings, Norbert was being buffeted; as the bird quickly drew closer, it pulled up into the sky, and higher and higher it went until the canopy consumed it.
With a roar that shook Norbert to the core, he lightly pierced through the canopy once more, falling leaves and branches falling to the canopy.
The wind settled, and all was quiet again in the forest.
With the new development of which way would be safest, a light surrounded Norbert, followed by darkness. Annoyed that he had left his bag behind, having taken it off during his break.
The day's events caught up with him out of the complete darkness, now only in the partial darkness of his room. Pulling his phone from his pocket, he saw that it could be used again, not even a minute had passed from when he left.
With relief washing over him, Norbert fell back onto his bed, sleep taking over him as a weight nestled near his head. Norbert not caring whatever made it with him would be tomorrow Norbert’s problem.