Hello.

I would give a very long and picturesque introduction of my life like in those movies where the main character describes his very mundane morning routine before shit hits the fan. However, I couldn't, because I was the very shit in the fan.

I ached all over. There was a stabbing sensation on my back as if I was placed on top of a cactus or a bed of roses yet at the same time I was hanging at a high place by my neck. Something rough and itchy was tied around me. I couldn't feel anything under my feet for the entire weight of my body focused on my neck.

My eyes were too heavy to lift. My thoughts had been going on for a while behind the shutters of incapability. Lights kept flashing behind my eyelids and my ears constantly rang like a customer service's telephone.

A loud 'crack!' resounded above me and I collapsed with a loud thud on the ground. My eyes flew open, and I gasped in a breath of fresh air. As if someone did abracadabra I was on my hands and knees swiveling on the prickly glass shards just like a caveman seeing fire for the first time. My hands went to my neck that was emitting excruciating pain. My tongue was cold and dry as if I placed it inside the fridge.

"What?! What? What's happening?" I screamed and coughed at the burning feeling in my throat. My voice was hoarse from being unused for so long.

A daddy must have choked me.

My hands felt my neck. There was a rope tied securely with what felt like a ribbon in the middle. I couldn't move it and each time I tried wriggling my finger behind the rope the skin underneath seemed as though it would peel off.

A heavy and vexed breath came out of my lips, and I threw my hands up.

The branch I was hanging on was behind me. The rest of the rope was bound on the branch. The winds howled and blew past my injured body. I crossed my arms as a pathetic way to protect myself from the shivering temperature of the forest. I was wet and cold. I looked around. My trunk twisted to almost a complete spin of the globe.

I fished my pockets and found a drenched folded paper. The print was barely visible except for the few letters of the first name and the big red 'F' mark on the right corner of the paper.

I guess I'm Ori and oh look, I was horrible at math.

My other pocket had keys with a blue tag that was scribbled with 'h e l l ' on it. There was also a dead fish inside my pocket and from the looks of its eyes it wasn't dead for that long.

I slowly threw my head back to trace the length of the trees that towered over me.

Were trees supposed to be this tall?

I was darn small; the world was not this gigantic from what I could remember feeling. I had no memories of what was before, but I knew there was an extramundane oddity going around here. The trees were broad in width and large-scale within. Each took extensive space in the forest as their length stretched to the skies with their bounds immeasurable.

The bushes were dark orange while the leaves of trees and plants were reddish to pinkish. I was only wearing one black rubber shoe. I had to jump on one foot to save my other foot from walking on shards. Ivory and floury grains of sand squashed beneath my feet. White fireflies floated like sparkles of glitter, and the forest was quiet, the air was dead. Little sunlight managed to arrive. It filled the negative space with pellucid white light amongst the surrounding shadows.

"Hello?"

I took out big shards that stabbed the back of my arms and removed my wet black tunic. Blood dripped out from my wounds but having those out of me gave me such an aching relief.

I was wearing a frayed shirt that said: 'Get lost' and black slacks that matched my tunic. I was the only thing wet here. Everything else was dry that made me believe that I was dragged by someone.

Squeezing the water out of my jacket as I continued to walk, I eventually felt that I was being watched.

"Is someone willing to help me live? Or die? I'd take any help even if it's out of bad conscience." I sounded sarcastic and at the same time desperate. I could also be crazy.

My head was throbbing. My neck was somewhat leaning to the right side, like I just broke it. My stomach grumbled and whined. I was willing to drink poison by now just to end it all.

"Is someone watching me? I just need to talk to someone."

You know, just to vent out frustrations. I would go to a therapist but that didn't seem to be an option at the moment.

It didn't matter if he was a psychopath or a blood-thirsty serial killer with an axe or a machete. The silence was making me insane.

I laughed when no one answered. It was more of a cough actually. My icy cold cheeks warmed up from the burning tears that trailed down.

I tripped here and there. I was moving recklessly and clumsily. It was tormenting trying to remove the little bits of shards on my body and letting them fall on the ground, but I had to do something.

My throat was itchy and dry. Tasting my salty tears only made my thirst worsen.

I crouched and allowed my trembling and sore legs to collapse. I was sleepy and tired. When the clutches of drowsiness nearly fished me into its abyss, a cat meowed amid melancholia, and a spark of hope smacked me right across the face.

It was like fate saying: "Here bitch, have a cat."

A black feline fluidly climbed down and made a curvet to land in front of me. It had a loose white yarn around its neck that secured a silver crescent moon pendant. A black orb at the centre edge nested amongst the webbed and complex interior of the moon. There was a metal bar stabbed through the cat's chest, but it was moving, breathing, and meowing fine. A black bow was tied around the metal bar. I concluded that the cat and I were linked somehow.

It slipped between my legs and rubbed its small head against me.

"Meow."

A smile broke my face. I scratched the back of its ear and saw its furry jingle bells behind it when it turned around, giving me the fact of its gender.

"Hey, I am glad you're here..." I croaked. I was feeling emotional all of a sudden; it was a mix of relief and joy. "Bu—But why are we here?"

He sat and tilted his head, trying to comprehend what I was saying. The colour of his eyes was a fierce crimson yet held gentleness in them as I was stared at.

My stomach rumbled. I rubbed it in response.

"Are you hungry too?"

"Meow."

"Here," I said and pulled out the fish I kept in my slacks. I was keeping it in case I found a way to start a fire.

The cat wasted no time devouring the fish. I would eat that raw too if I didn't find food at the end of the day.

I'll name him Aki.

I petted his head and tried to keep myself together. Aki followed me around as I searched for food for myself. There were berries in the bushes, but they were pale as paper and had red polka dots that advised peril if consumed.

"Maybe there are safe berries, yeah?"

Hopefully.

It was progressively becoming darker, and the forest was slowly becoming alive.

Crepuscular creatures made sounds of anguish. The screeches were dry, rough, and breathy. Murk had spread and Aki was more hostile and vigilant.

My teeth were clattering from the immense drop of temperature in the forest. A shadow of an eldritch figure was distinguished from the thick mist. It was colossal and as it moved the sound of wood breaking and creaking came along. Its legs were numerous and spider-like while its torso was more anthropoid in structure. I doubted it acted humane despite half of it looking like a person.

Aki's back arched. He produced a hiss that invited malevolence from the unknown adversary. Its head snapped to our direction. The abrupt movement made a sound of a twig breaking from being stepped on.

"Useless! I will eat anything useless!" It wailed.

I scooped Aki into my arms and ran as fast as I could. My chest was nearly exploding. The monster was pursuing us in a spasmodic run. My companion's meow was more desperate than ever as if he was telling me to run faster.

A woman dressed in a very thin and transparent white gown stood at the direction where we were heading. She wasn't wearing anything underneath which only further raised the hairs on my cold and clammy skin as she displayed her feminine features. As we drew closer, the red stain on her mouth became clear that it was fresh blood. The absence of her pupils left a blank sheet of whiteness in her eyes. She raised her black claw-like hands that seemed to be dipped in goo. Her damp black hair stiffly coursed down her back and front like vines trailing down the walls of ancient ruins where people were torn from limb to limb.

My feet stopped and I slid on the floor, creating swirls of dust.

The woman bared her bloodied and shark-like teeth at us. She held her breath and so did I. Blood-curdling screams exit our mouths with hers being siren-like that tampered my own.

I went left instead of going forward. There was a hole underneath the tree roots. I plummeted inside and attempted to calm my laboured breathing.

If Aki made a sound that banshee and twig monster would either fight each other or join forces against us.

The growls of the twig monster grew distant, signalling that it had gone the opposite direction. Aki wormed in my embrace.

"Shhh, be quiet!"

Or else we'd never make a sound tomorrow.

He made a truculent and high-pitched snarl and I let him go with a scream when he bit my arm. The monster's raucous growls returned. I covered my mouth and shut my eyes. I had no idea where Aki was— if he leaped out of the hole or if his animal instincts made him aware that it was dangerous outside. When the monster seemed to be just in front of us, my left eye opened, and I screamed when its ligneous spider-like limbs stretched inside to reach me.

"You worthless and wretched child! Come here and feed me with your flesh!"

A more feral growl surmounted, and a humongous paw yanked the monster away from the hole. It was gargantuan, much like the trees of this forest that sprouted abnormally. The tree-being was broken in half like a toothpick and was dropped convulsing on the ground. Its executioner laid heavy footsteps and caused the forest floor to tremble. It didn't notice we were here.

It was a bear (?) based on its hinds. I wasn't really sure what anything was in this forest.

"Holy sh-shit..." I shakily murmured.

Aki purred and rubbed against my leg like he just bit me for the fun of it but didn't mean to.

"You almost got us killed, you know?"

"Meow."

This wasn't really the cat's fault. This whole forest should be burned down. I would fight with environmentalists if I had to, but I didn't think there were even authorities here for us to report this.

I wasn't supposed to be here but where was I supposed to be anyway? All I had now was me, myself, and a moody cat.