Chapter Seven
The Eye
Squinting against the sun's glare, Zelly could make out a familiar silhouette, one that made her heart leap in her chest.
“It is you, isn’t it, Zac?” She yelled over the lapping waves. She sprang out of the boat before it had even fully reached the shore, stumbling on the sand and pebbles but not caring. She sprinted towards the figure, relief flooding her. "Zac, OMG!"
She threw her arms around him, expecting to feel the warmth of his body, but instead, she passed right through him, falling forward onto the sand. He vanished like a wisp of smoke, a faint echo of his smile lingering in her mind. It was just a hologram, a mere mirage of her brother.
A strangled cry escaped her lips as she fell to her knees, her tears mixing with the sand beneath her. "Oh, Zac! I really thought it was you!" Her voice was barely a whisper against the crash of the waves, her body wracked with sobs.
She couldn't help but wonder, was it a game hologram? A ghostly reminder of Zac, who could very well be dead by now? Or was it her own mind playing cruel tricks on her, the lack of food making her hallucinate? The possibilities swirled in her mind, each more painful than the last.
Her sobs gradually faded as she pushed herself up from the sand, gazing at the spot where the hologram had stood. She felt a renewed sense of determination, the image of Zac serving as a stark reminder of why she couldn't give up. She had to find him. She had to figure out what was happening. But first, she needed food and rest. With a heavy heart, she trudged back to her makeshift shelter, Zac's fading hologram still etched in her mind.
With newfound resolve, Zelly was on the verge of scaling her treehouse once more when something in the distance caught her eye, a new detail in this world that seemed to shift and change with every passing moment. A hill, she realized, of considerable height, was looming mysteriously in the far distance. Hastily, she fumbled for her binoculars, bringing them to her eyes for a closer look.
"Curiouser and curiouser," she mused aloud, her curiosity piqued as she began a brisk march toward the intriguing landform. The hill, which had seemed so distant a moment ago, was reached in a matter of minutes.
Unthreading the key from her string, she replaced it with the binoculars, the better to hang them conveniently around her neck. With an adrenaline-fueled surge of energy, she found herself atop the hill in mere seconds.
"Could it be? Food?" The word felt strange on her tongue, a stark reminder of how long it had been since her last proper meal. Her eyes fell upon a cluster of mushrooms, sprouting from the earth like miniature umbrellas. But these weren’t ordinary mushrooms. They were the most minuscule she had ever seen. Her heart sank a bit at the sight; she had never been fond of mushrooms. She was instantly reminded of her family, a pang of longing hitting her like a wave. They loved mushrooms; her parents and Zac, always ordering their pizzas smothered with the fungi.
A memory flickered, unbidden, in her mind. Her mother, always the health enthusiast, would occasionally hide mushrooms beneath the thick blanket of cheese on Zelly's pizza, knowing well her penchant for extra, extra, extra cheese. Zelly would, without fail, bite into the hidden mushroom and dramatically spit it out, much to her family's amusement. A sudden chuckle escaped her lips at the memory, a warm smile spreading across her face amidst her solitude.
"Of all the things Mum and Dad could have programmed into this game, they choose mushrooms? The very food that I abhor?" She exclaimed, her voice echoing in the stillness. The severity of the word she used next startled even her. "FUCK!" she blurted out, the rawness of the expletive striking her hard. She hastily clamped a hand over her mouth, her eyes darting around as if expecting to be reprimanded by an invisible parent or a lurking monstrosity.
Cursing was an unfamiliar territory for her, a boundary she seldom crossed. Even 'damn' was a rarity on her tongue. She could feel a strange, unaccustomed taste in her mouth, as if she'd swallowed something unpleasant. If her parents had heard her, she imagined their shocked faces and the inevitable disappointment in their eyes. But Zac, she knew, would have deemed her the 'coolest sister on the planet.’
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Despite her distaste, Zelly knew that the mushrooms were her ticket to survival in this unfathomable world. "I ought to hurry before some demon beast materializes from thin air and lays claim to this hill," she muttered, a sense of urgency filling her. She began plucking the tiny mushrooms, stuffing as many as she could into her pockets.
Once she had harvested enough, she launched herself down the hill in a mad dash, her heart pounding in sync with her footfalls. Her pace was so frantic that she didn't notice a few of the mushrooms tumbling out of her pockets, left behind in her wake like a trail of breadcrumbs. Her focus was singular - to reach the safety of her treehouse.
Upon entering the kitchen, Zelly embarked on a frantic search for cooking utensils. She flung open every cabinet in sight, her hands reaching into their dark recesses in the hopes of finding a skillet, pan, or pot. But her search proved fruitless.
Just as she was about to give up, her eyes caught sight of a cabinet she had missed, one located high above her. With a hopeful heart, she reached up and swung the door open, only for a cascade of skillets, pots, and pans to come tumbling down on her. A small pot struck her squarely on the head.
"Ouch! That hurts!" she exclaimed, nursing her throbbing head. But then, her face brightened. "But at least I found something to cook these mushrooms in. Yippee!"
She proceeded to clean the mushrooms one by one, before tossing them into a skillet. "Dammit! Why couldn't this be an electric stove!" she grumbled upon realizing that the pilot light was out. Now she faced a new challenge - finding matches.
Despite her thorough search, however, she found no matches. It was then that she remembered her days as a Girl Scout, where she had been taught how to create fire by rubbing two sticks together. With renewed determination, she exited the treehouse, climbed down the tree, and gathered a small bundle of sticks.
Back in the kitchen, she began to rub the sticks together fervently. "Come on, light, light, light!" she chanted, her voice growing hoarse with effort. But no sparks emerged. "This is tiring," she sighed, her arms aching from the continuous motion.
Just when she was about to give up, a stroke of luck hit her - a tiny spark sprung to life between the sticks. "Yes, yes, yes!" she cheered, her face lighting up with an exultant glow.
The tantalizing aroma of the mushrooms wafted through the air, filling the entire treehouse with a mouthwatering scent. It reminded her of home, of times when her mother would whip up a delicious dinner. Despite her aversion to mushrooms, the fragrance was undeniably enticing. Excited to finally eat, Zelly served them onto a plate and began to devour her meal.
"Mmmm... this tastes sooo good... yummy yum yum!" she exclaimed, her eyes squeezed shut as she relished each bite. Before she knew it, the sky outside had darkened and night had settled in. A yawn escaped her lips.
"Boy, am I tired and full. I need sleep!" she murmured, rubbing her full belly. She trudged up to the third level, leaped onto the bed, and slid comfortably under the covers. Within moments, she was swept into a peaceful slumber as she entered the realms of the dream world.
Zelly's dreams took her back, back to a time of innocent laughter and the warmth of family life. She found herself reliving a particularly unforgettable prank she had played on Zac. With a devilish glint in her eyes, she had smeared his treasured football helmet with sticky, pink chewing gum. Zac, renowned in the corridors of their school for his impeccable hair, had discovered the gum only at the end of a victorious game. The result was comical: tendrils of bubblegum woven through his once-flawless hair, prompting a drastic, balding haircut. He had given her the silent treatment for an entire week, a record in their sibling rivalry. Yet, she had proudly documented the event, adding the comical pictures to the family album with a triumphant smirk.
A lump formed in Zelly's throat, tears pooling in the corners of her eyes even as she slept. The unique bond of twins - an unspoken understanding, an invisible thread of connection - was not something that could be easily severed. Yet, they had been torn apart, separated by the cruel fate of being sucked into a portal into a surreal game world. The bitter pang of separation dulled as she slipped deeper into her dreams.
Just as she had settled into the comforting embrace of her dreams, a sudden jolt yanked her back to reality. The treehouse shook violently, throwing her out of her peaceful slumber.
"Earthquake!" she cried, her voice echoing through the wooden structure. She sprang up, her legs wobbling like jelly as the treehouse continued to shudder. Her heart pounded in her chest, matching the terrifying rhythm of the quake. "Oh, my God!"
The ground trembled beneath her, the vibrations lasting an eternity before ceasing just as abruptly as they had started.
Zelly collapsed onto the floor, her breath coming in ragged gasps.
"Oh, that was scary. So scary!" she murmured to herself, her hand clutching at her racing heart. But a flicker of doubt crossed her mind. She had experienced earthquakes before during visits to her grandparents in California, where the ground frequently danced to its own tune. But this... this felt different.
Then, her eyes drifted toward the window. The moonlight filtering in through the gaps in the curtains cast long, eerie shadows across the room. And then she saw it. A large, monstrous eye filled the window, its chilling gaze fixed on her. A scream ripped through the silent night, piercing the tranquillity of her treehouse haven.