Escape from the Maze
I’
“Which way?” Zoe asked.
“What’s your favorite number? One, Two, Three, or Four,” Josh questioned, since that’s how many paths there were which lead to different locations.
“Two, my favorite number is two,’ she announced with confidents.
“Why two?”
“Because there is you and there is me! Two,” she responded.
“Then two it is!”
Off they went down the second path which lead to a field of tall wheat. Pulling them aside and stomping on them to make a path, they walked for a long time only to find themselves back onto the path they made earlier.
“We must have just gone in a circle,” Josh said sadly.
“No, look,” Zoe said pointing to the long curved path to their left. “We didn’t end up where we started! We just have to follow it back and take a different one, but it’s your turn to choose.”
“Okay!” Josh nodded and they began to walk.
They hadn’t gone very far when the wind started picking up causing their path to disappear rapidly.
“Run!” they both shouted.
By the time they got back to the beginning, the path was gone.
“Four,” Josh said and was on his why to what looked like an archway made of trees. Once inside, it smelled sweet from the flowers that covered them.
They followed it for quite a while until it came out to a pond with... you guest it... more Pel-Mingos.
“They look really hungry, don’t they?” Zoe commented.
“And not at all friendly either!”
They looked at each other and began to run back through the archway... back to the beginning.
When the got there, Zoe pleaded for him to decide.
“It’s your turn to choose,” he insisted.
“Three,” Zoe quickly answered not wanting to admit she wasn’t very fond of climbing.
“Three, it is!” he smiled and off they went.
This time there was no path, just sand, a lot of sand and in the far distance what looked like another pond and past that was an awesome, really incredible waterfall.
The closer they got, the more beautiful it became.
So fixated on it, they soon found themselves knee deep in water standing near a flock of...you guessed it again... Pel-Mingos.
“Where’s our fish?” one of them asked startling Zoe and Josh causing them to fall into the pond.
"One," Josh called out as they scrambled out of the water.
“Fine! One it is!” Zoe yelled and started back to take their last hope to get out of this place.
With each step, she became more scared. She should have told Josh that she was afraid of anything high... walking up stairs, crossing a bridge or flying on a plane, but she didn’t.
Taking a deep breath, she walked up the first hill past some small rocks. Josh followed close behind her after seeing her hand shaking.
Soon the rocks were replaced with boulders they had to walk around.
“Don’t look down,” he heard Zoe mutter. “Don’t look down.”
Realizing she was a victim of acrophobia, Josh stayed close to her to catch her if she fell.
“Had she fallen before or had she seen someone she cared about fall,” he wondered as they continued up the mountain.
The boulders were much bigger now and the only way up was over them.
Josh had never wished so much before that he had a rope or other climbing gear.
Finally, he had to get in front of Zoe in order for them to move up the rest of the way.
He took her hands and held them tight as he pulled her over each obstacle until they reached the top.
“Don’t look down,” she muttered again and again.
“It’s alright,” Josh promised her. “You can look back now.”
The look on her face was one of intense fear, but she had learned to trust Josh, so she held his hand and turned around.
Instead of being close to the edge of a cliff, they were standing in a field of Ro-aisy. Their white petals wrapped around and around each other. Below the beautiful centers were long yellow petals. When she leaned down to get a closer look, she found out they were soft to the touch, not scary at all.
Josh took her hand again and they walked forward to a stream of water loaded with hundreds of fish... maybe even thousands.
After further investigation they noticed a beaver repairing his dam. It looked at them intently, though it didn’t seem to be frightened at all.
Instead, it talked.
“What are you doing here. This is my home. Go away.”
“Well, you don’t have to be rude,” Zoe snapped back. “We are here because the Pel-Mingo's don’t have any fish to eat.”
“I am protecting them... the fish. They can’t have any.”
“We'll see about that,” Josh threaten. “If we don’t feed them, we will be stuck here forever.”
In a kinder voice, it asked, “Where are you from?”
“A place you have probably never heard of,” Josh assured it.
“Could that place be called Earth?”
Zoe and Josh looked at each other and back at the beaver.
“Yes,” they said in unison.
“Me, too! My name is Garston.”
They introduced themselves and questioned whether he was alone.
He nodded, then said he wished he had a mate.
“How could those who kidnapped us bring him here all alone?” Zoe wondered, then got mad and started to scream. “Why would you bring him here away from his home and family... all alone! Why?”
There was a loud sound coming from the other side of the stream that made them all look in that direction.
When Garston heard it, he started to make a noise which sounded like a cat purring, only way louder just before racing across to the beaver on the other side.
It seemed like they were introducing themselves before they quickly ran off without looking back.
After they left, Josh surveyed the beaver’s dam.
“Garston had blocked the openings that allow the fish to go through to the Pel-Mingos,” he concluded.
Zoe agreed, but would not follow Josh to the edge of the stream which dropped off for an unknown distance.
“Come on! We need to remove the dam to open the exits for the fish. I need your help!” Josh pleaded.
She walked a little way and froze.
“Come on!” Josh repeated.
She just stood there unable to move.
He ran back and grabbed here hand and pulled her to the edge.
That’s when he found out how strong she was.
“The water is no more than a few feet deep. It will be okay... I promise!”
Reluctantly, she allowed him to lead her to the edge. After jumping in, he assured her that the water was nice and cool, then held up his arms.
Zoe closed her eyes and jumped.
After catching her, he gently lowered her until her feet reached the bottom. The water wasn't even waist deep.
After feeling safe, they went to work unblocking each of the openings. One by one each door raised up and fish began to be pulled through by the current. A short time later, each door slowly started to close. By the time they cleared the last one, the first was completely closed.
Josh helped Zoe out of the water onto the other side and scanned the area.
“Look, a door!” they called out.
While racing towards it, that annoying voice repeated, “Time is running out!”
Pulling the handle, Josh flung it open and they rushed inside.
Again they found themselves in an empty room except for the screen on the far wall with a picture and a note that read:
The Pel-Mingo’s are now well fed and Garston says, “Thank You!”
The Chee-Ger’s are having trouble sleeping.
They have been awake for such a long time.
Calm them down and get them to take a nap.
Then you will find where the next door is at.
A door opened behind them causing them to be a little confused, but never the less they raced for it.
Once they heard the door close behind them, they were in a hallway that went off in two directions.
“Left or right?” Josh asked.
“If I only had a coin, I could choose heads or tails... but since I don’t...
This story will continue next week!