Enderborn
Chapter 1
"Steve!" shrieked Steve's mother. Steve heard the creeping of floorboards as she descended down the stairs towards his room. He buried his face in his pillow and pretended to be asleep. His bedroom door shot open, slamming against the wall behind it. "Steve!" Steve imagined the house rocking and shaking from his mother's words and smiled under his pillow. She walked over to the side of his bed and ripped the covers straight off him. It was freezing cold. His mum knew he couldn't last much longer… "Fine I give up!" he mumbled. "Good! Now get your clothes on, we need some wood for the fire mind-" She got cut off. "Yes, Yes, I will go get some wood from the forest." He lifted his head up from the pillow and opened his eyes. The light shining in from the window was blinding. By the time his eyes had adjusted to the light, his mother had left the room. Paint peeled from the walls and dust made him sneeze. He got dressed, and then pulled out his old iron axe. Steve opened his door to smell of rotten eggs and skunks armpits. His eyes watered unmercifully. He held his nose tightly but it wasn't enough. Looks like the kid from next door has set off yet another stink bomb, he thought grimly. It was raining hard outside. Perfect. Just Perfect. Steve grabbed a tight raincoat and yanked it over his head, then stepped outside, into the wind. The rain lashed unmercifully at his face, blinding him. His mother was really his stepmother. He had no idea who his actual parents were. He stumbled across the gravel path towards the forest. He sighed in relief at his stepped under the sheltering canopy. Trees and rocks jutted out of the ground, and a few ferns swayed in the breeze here and there. He watched the rain slide off the leaves and onto the muddy forest floor. He brought out his axe and swung it into the tree. One block broken, he thought, looking up at the rest of the tree. He swung his axe again, and again, until the meter wide blocks were safe in his pockets. It's funny, he thought with amusement, that when I hold wood it seems to shrink, but he shook it off. Suddenly the rain stopped and a breeze flew past him. It was almost as if it was whispering to him. He wanted to turn around and go home but his legs had abandoned him, instead moving deeper into the forest. The whispering grew louder and Steve tried to cover his ears. He willed his legs to go back but it was if they were possessed. Taken over by some magical force. He came to a cave with a gaping wide entrance. His legs were his again, it seemed. Whoever it was they were giving him a choice. What choice though? What happened if he walked into that cave? Would he die? But then curiosity got the better of him.