Chapter 2: scary dreams

The forest seemed to follow Sora, he kept walking in one direction, but he still wasn't out of the forest yet.

He was lost in thought, staring at the flowers around him. They glowed a bluish green in the night. It was gorgeous. He remembered learning about things like this in school, called bioluminescent. Other than the name he didn't know how it worked in the slightest.

Admiring the flower's beauty, he walked right into a spider web. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a spider scurry away.

"Yuck! Yuck! Yuck!" He flailed his arms trying to get the sticky webs off him.

He continued walked but paying more attention for spider webs.

He finally made it out of the deep forest into a more open woody area, after what seemed like a forever. His feet really hurt, but he didn't want to sit down in case one of the trees was sentient or something. He was also getting a bit hungry.

Eventually, he made it out of the forest and onto a dirt path. There was a house way in the distance, he hoped maybe they had directions to the nearest town where he could get some rest and eat at an inn.

When the house was not a speck on the horizon anymore. He could clearly see now that it was actually a barn with a smaller house behind it.

He followed the path all the way up to the barn.

A female voice called from the barn, "Little boy, little boy do you need any help?"

All times his mom told him about stranger danger flew out the window, Sora turned from the road and walked towards the barn. He was hungry, tired and lost, maybe she could give him food, shelter, and directions. He replied, "I'm not in any danger, but I am hungry."

"Oh dear! I'll be right out with some milk and treats," The voice yelled back "Just wait there!"

Sora waited by the barn. It was an average barn in need of a new coat of paint. Next door was the farmer's house, it was a classic country house with frilly window curtains.

After a minute, a brown cow with pink bows around its horns clopped out. She was wearing a pack on her back with a jug of milk and a loaf of thick bread.

"Thank you!" Sora yelled into the barn.

"I'm right here," the cow said pointing at herself.

"Oh, well… thank you" He said, just going with the flow.

"Here let's go to the kitchen and sit down. I'm Bessie by the way," She introduced herself extending hoof.

"I'm Sora, nice to meet you." He said shaking her hoof. This was getting really weird.

They walking to the next-door house. The inside looked exactly how you would expect it too. There was grandmotherly furniture and all themed for the classic country cabin. The kitchen was normal and there was a table with a plasticky floral print tablecloth on it.

Bessie sat on the floor and Sora pulled up a chair.

"Here," She said putting the milk jug and bread on the table with her mouth like a normal cow. Luckily the bread was wrapped, and the slimy slobber was on the outside.

"Let me get you some butter." She said was walked to the fridge getting some and putting it on the table for Sora to use.

"Thanks," He said carefully unwrapping the bread and butter, trying his hardest not to touch the slobber.

"No worries," She said getting him a glass for the milk. "This is the freshest milk you'll ever have, I bet."

"Thanks," Sora said again not sure of what else to say. "It's warm..."

"Yup, it came straight from me minutes before you arrived." She said proudly.

"You?" Sora said putting buttered bread down. He had already taken a bite and was regretting it now.

"Oh yes, I eat super healthy so this milk here is the healthiest you'll find around, go ahead have a glass," she said urging him to drink what she just poured.

Sora not wanting to be rude took the glass. He looked into it to see the milk was brown. "Why is it…" He began to ask.

"Just try it," Bessie said in a tone his mom used when she was not asking anymore.

Sora took a small sip. "It's chocolate?" He said confused, "Wasn't this just milked?"

"I'm a brown cow, and brown cows make chocolate milk, don't you know," Bessie informed him.

"I thought all cows made white milk and the chocolate was added in?" Sora asked wondering if his whole life was a lie.

"Oh, that's just communist propaganda." She said proudly. "Believe me, I'm a farm animal, we know communist propaganda."

After eating Sora asked about where the next town was and whether she point him in the right direction.

Bessie thought for a moment, "Sure, I can even walk you to the next town over,"

"I just need directions," Sora assured.

"No, it's no problem I need to pick up some flour and sugar anyway. It's only about an hour away."

So, they were off, following a dirt path. Bessie talked a lot about the town they here headed towards called Glacier. Apparently, it used to have an ice valley nearby, but recently it has been melting.

They walked for about a half hour when there was rumbling and an angry yelling voice behind them. "I see her! Let's get her!"

Sora turned around to see one man and two black spade cards running towards them. The man was carrying a gun and the cards had two gigantic wood chopping axes.

"Run!" Bessie yelled and Sora not needing to be told twice ran with her.

The one man shot the gun and hit Bessie in the ankle. She collapsed on the ground, but Sora was already too far ahead. He turned back when he heard her mooing, but she kept yelling at Sora to keep running. But he couldn't he had to save his friend. He tried to turn around but tripped.

One of the cards with the axe caught up to Bessie before Sora did and without hesitation, he swung the axe and chopped off Bessie's head.

Sora stopped mid-stride and fell face first into the ground in shock and horror at what just happened. He stood up fast and continued running toward Bessie's body ignoring the pain in his skinned knee.

The cards laughed and dragged Bessie's body onto the cart they had parked in the bushes. After they loaded her body in they rode away saying, "We got ourselves some good dinner tonight!"

By the time Sora got to Bessie, only her head and some of her spine were left. Sora began to cry, he had only known that cow like two hours, but this was a horrible death for this creature that gave him food when he was hungry.

"Don't cry."

Sora looked up but saw no one.

"I'm down here."

Sora looked down at the severed head.

"Don't you know nothing? Cows like me can grow new bodies we just need a couple of weeks." Bessie said slithering her head over to Sora like a short snake with a spinal cord for a tail.

"This world is going from weird to weirder with every moment," Sora said bending down to pick up Bessie's head. It was too heavy so he just sat down next to the cow head.

"This isn't weird," Bessie said, "What would be weird is if cows couldn't grow back their bodies. I mean how would you humans eat if you had to kill a cow every time? The world would run out of cows in no time."

"yea," Sora said at a loss for words. "Are you still a cow, even without your body?"

"You don't need your body to be whole."

The continued their walk to the town.

"The real problem is now I'll be behind on rent for a while." Bessie lamented.

"Why?"

"Because I can make milk until my body grows back," she said.

"Oh, I sorry for drinking some," he apologized.

"There is no need to apologize," She said sternly. "I gave that milk to you when you were in need, and I wouldn't take it back."

"Thank you."

They eventually made it to the town. Bessie decided just to head back and rest because she wouldn't be able to carry back the flour without a body. She refused Sora's offer to carry it for her, "saying she didn't have the body to bake right now anyway.

The town was quaint and quiet. The buildings were made of stone and wood. There was only one inn, a general store and a horse stable with a small blacksmith.

The sun was high in the sky, but he was tired so got a room at the inn anyway.

Even though the bed felt like it was made of straw he fell asleep in less than a minute.

His dream started almost immediately. He was alone on the edge of a pool in a dark room. In the middle of the pool was a bio-luminescent mushroom, glowing bluish green.

Suddenly the water rippled and a giant skeleton spider with 8 legs but only 3 empty eye sockets crawled out.

Sora ran but the spider chased him around the pool. When it became clear there was no exit he attacked the spider and cut off one of its legs.

When it's leg was cut off one of the empty eye sockets lit up with a blue flame and the spider yelled, "There goes my leg!" it a voice that could be mistaken for a circus clown.

He screamed spiders were scary enough without this freaky clown voice.

Sora screamed so loud that the innkeeper shook him awake.

"Calm down son! Whatever it was, it doesn't exist!" He told Sora, who was panting and didn't answer.

The innkeeper spoke again. "It's ok, you're ok, just come on down to the bar and I'll get you a drink to take your mind off the worries."

Sora nodded his head and followed him down to the common area downstairs and sat at the bar.

"What'll you have?" The bartender asked.

"Do you have any chocolate milk?" He asked.

"Here you go," the bartender looked disappointed he didn't get to use his skill at mixing alcohol, but the boy did look like he was only 15. "So what ail's you lad?"

"I had a terrible dream," Sora told him about this dream. "What could it mean?"

The bartender sighed, "Don't go looking for meaning in things like this, it'll only lead you to dead ends and fear. This is wonderland where nothing means anything, and anything could mean nothing."

Sora looked at him with confusion, "What does that mean,"

The bartender sighed again, "weren't you listening. I said don't look for meaning where there is none."

"Ok," Sora said but he wasn't satisfied with that answer. His dream must have been a clue from the Cheshire cat, there must be some unknown meaning that's the key to everything.

He left the Inn and asked around town for a dream interpreter. No one seemed to understand what he wanted except one old lady carrying a basket of laundry.

She pointed her wrinkly hand towards the forest opposite the glacier. "There is one in the forest who can tell you what it means."

"Ok, that's great!" Sora said. "So, what's his name?"

"I don't know but he sits on his mushroom home all day, smoking his hookah." She told him. "Not a very friendly fellow."

"What does he look like?"

She thought for a moment, "I'm not really sure I can't remember, my memory has gotten so fuzzy these last couple of years. I know he is not human though."

"Thank you so much," Sora said. "Do need help carrying that laundry?"

"Oh, that would be great sonny, my back's been hurting something fierce today." She said and dropped the laundry basket.

Sora helped her carry the basket back to her home and then turned his back to the village and toward the forest.

The farther he walked into the forest the darker it got. It had to be around noon, but you wouldn't be able to tell by how dark it was.

About an hour in Sora started to get cold feet. Maybe he should turn around, go back to the town and just leave this dream interpreter unfound. After what felt like another hour but was really 10 minutes, Sora turned around. He traced his steps.

It was another hour before he realized he was hopelessly lost.

Just when he was starting to fear the trees shadows he smelled something weird. It was sweet but gross, a sickly-sweet smell like vape clouds. Along with the smell, there was a light in the distance.

He followed it because what did he have to lose?

As he followed the light the smell got stronger. It was so strong he could now even see the clouds of white smoke.

He pushed through the bush and found the source of the vapor.

It was a giant blue caterpillar with 6 arms smoking a hookah. The caterpillar looked up at him with a distrustful face.

"Hello?" Sora asked tentatively wondering if this was the dream interpreter. He smoked a hookah on a mushroom and he certainly was not human.

"What do you want?" The blue caterpillar asked in a harsh tone.

"Do you interpret dreams?"

"It depends on who's asking." The caterpillar said bluntly. "and what are you doing with one of my kind on your arm?"

"Wha… oh, this" Sora lifted his arm showing the cacoon. He recounted to him how that small caterpillar that made a cocoon on his arm when he was a flower.

The caterpillar sneered and took a drag on his hookah, "A likely story."

"But it's true!" Sora said. "One day he'll turn into a butterfly."

"Whatever, caterpillar eater." The caterpillar said to him condescendingly. "Not my problem anyway."

Sora stood there for a second unsure of whether he should leave.

"Sigh, you are interrupting my hookah time, what do you want."

"I was hoping you could interpret my dream," Sora said.

"Fine, but only so you can leave." The caterpillar muttered "caterpillar eater" under his breath.

Sora told him his dream.

The caterpillar thought for a moment and smoked his hookah in thought. "Well, this dream must mean bugs are invading your head."

"What!" Sora yelped in fear, he clutched the sides of his head and hair.

The caterpillar looked at him with clearly fake sympathy, "Yup, and if you want to get them out you must go to the badlands, there are three birds who will help you there."

"Thank you so much!" Sora breathed a sigh of relief, he would be safe.

"Tell them the blue caterpillar sent you." The caterpillar waved goodbye to Sora.

Sora turned his back to the caterpillar and walked in the direction of the badlands that the caterpillar had pointed towards. He could never be sure, but he thought he heard the caterpillar sinisterly snicker "caterpillar eater" as he walked away.

Thank you all for reading this story! Please comment, I love and read all of them.

It means so much to me that you would read a weird crazy story I wrote, where most of the ideas come some from shower thoughts.