Behind the Door - Episode 1

“Sophelia!” Ollister cried into the portal, and she turned to him. “Come with me,” she said. Ollister dipped his toes into the water that was not water, all manner of creatures not far behind. “With all my heart!”

A chorus of otherworldly visions.

A flash of light as if they were gazing into the Maker Himself.

And a closing door.

The mysteries revealed that day were so profound; their minds couldn’t fathom them.

So is the power of the word of the Maker of worlds.

Sophelia stepped out onto the grass, enveloped in rosy hues of brilliant light. She felt as if, somehow, the violet sunset rejuvenated her with both exhilaration and a great contentment. It was the most beautiful thing her eyes had ever seen: the green of the prominence was rich, the red of the light was vivid, even the brown of the forest couldn’t come in more living, breathing shades. It was a strange feeling, something she’d hoped for her entire life and she didn’t even know it until now. She suddenly realized it was a greater appreciation for her creator.

It didn’t take long for Sophelia to realize that she had come to an island. But what an island! Towering mangrove trees as tall as the newly built spires of Castle Torr cast shadows over the hills, while colossal scaly creatures with shelled backs basked in what sunlight was left before descending into the crags and crevices of the mountain base. Sophelia averted her eyes from the burrows to the mountain peak, where the lone ruins of what appeared to be a castle silently sat. A castle, which meant sentient beings. Whether they were human she did not know, but the hope for a companion coaxed her towards the mountain.

As she passed the massive mangrove wetland, Sophelia saw smaller (yet still very large) willow trees amongst the undergrowth. And then she stopped. There was movement in the trees. Her eyes widened. To her great surprise, the trees were moving- no, walking. The movement was subtle, but indeed almost every willow tree was slowly crawling away from the setting sun. Perhaps they’re preparing to receive the sunlight at daybreak, Sophelia wondered. One by one, the creeping willows turned towards her; it sent a billion shivers down her spine. And then they started towards her.

Anyone, no matter how foolish they might be, would know at that moment to run. So Sophelia Stupe dashed, as fast as one can dash whilst wearing a pale chartreuse gown.

By the time Sophelia had returned to the spot in which she had entered this world, the final rays of sunshine were long gone. She had the eerie feeling that the trees had not given up their chase, but it was too dark to see anymore. Squinting downhill at the forest, Sophelia spotted a warm glow, as from a fire. She stumbled with half-closed eyelids toward the light, dimly aware of a figure approaching her…

Sophelia awoke to music. But it was not like any music she had heard in Aerwiar. The only recognizable sound was that of humming. “Hello?” she yawned. She appeared to be in some sort of small cottage.

The only answer was that the hum stopped.

Now fully awake, she scanned her surroundings hastily. “Who’s there?” Suddenly, a small boy no taller than Sophelia’s waist appeared from behind the corner.

“My name is William. And you are not of my kind, so I’ll ask you to please leave, thank you. The door is on your right.”

The boy was scrawny, with dark, shaggy locks of hair, but he stared her down with a fierce will that she only believed an adult could muster. He hadn’t even asked her name. When she didn’t leave, he turned to a loose nail in the doorboards and started knocking it in with a stone.

“If you really wanted me to leave, why take me into your house? That seems like an awfully neighborly thing to do, and you don’t even know me!”

The boy stopped hammering and looked up at her.

“I know much more than you. And one of the things I know is that I want you out of my house. Now leave.” He resumed his hammering.

Sophelia craned her neck to look through the window. “So where are your parents?”

William did not answer, but stopped again. “Woman, I know you’re from another world. Aerwiar, I presume? Of course, I’d recognize that workmanship anywhere. That’s a Hollish dress, Third Epoch. Welcome to Adamant, and leave my house.”

Sophelia was shocked; she wasn’t the only one who’d come to this place. How could he expect her to leave now? Maybe she could at least get some answers.

“William, how long have you been here?”

“Longer than you,” he answered gruffly.

“Are there any others?”

“Not anymore.”

“How did I get here?”

“Ah! Now there’s a question that’s right up my alley. It is, however, not up yours. And if I thought telling you again would make you leave, I would,” he added. “What did you want, to hear my story?”

“Why not?” Sophelia asked. Anything related to this strange boy was exciting. He sighed and cleared his throat. “Okay, woman, how did you get here?”

“But that’s what I—”

William glared at her.

“Fine,” she conceded. “It all started when I met Ollister in Glipwood. I was on a walk with my students when he somehow fell in love with me. Sometime before all of this his friend Edd Hemer created this potion which made creatures friendly to you, but Ollister poured the entire bottle on my head, so they started chasing us, and we tried to run, but then I realized there was this tree from my childhood that I thought was a portal, and it turned out I was right, and I came here.”

William looked confused. “Helmer. I know that name. Not Edd, mind you, I met his thieving strander of a son, Podo. Know him?”

“No, you must be mistaken. Edd—Edd Helmer doesn’t have a son.”

He smiled. “Edd doesn’t have a son... yet.” TO BE CONTINUED...!? Short story long, I had no fixed plans to continue the story, as I'm rather busy with other things, but I hope you enjoyed this little bit that I finished! This was made for the Pembrick's Creaturepedia short story contest a while back (which was limited to 1000 words which is so little, and kinda held back my creativity), but apparently I didn't get the memo that it was supposed to be about a fuzzy creature. Silly me =D