We sit in silence for a few moments before checking our bags for any water damage. Pouring out the excess water that leaked in, we were able to salvage some food and water bottles. The first aid kit Jason had didn’t get water inside, and the flashlights still work well with only half of the batteries ruined by water. Considering all that had happened, we were in pretty good shape.

We both stood up, brushed sand off, and surveyed our surroundings. Opposite from the ocean is a short meadow leading into a forest. Jason and I looked at each other, shrugged our shoulders, put our bags on, and started walking towards the forest. Maybe we will find something that will give us a clue telling us where we are. All we know is that mermaids apparently exist.

As we trek through the forest for a couple of hours, taking only brief moments of rest and food, we stop at a small clearing, around noon, to figure out the next plan of action. So far, there only seem to be trees. “There doesn’t seem to be a way out of this forest.” I say, looking around the clearing.

“There’s nowhere else we can go.” Jason responds.

“Maybe I can be of help?” A small voice says.

Jason and I look around, but we saw no one. We weren’t hearing things, were we? The small voice spoke up again, “I am down here!”

We look to the ground, and we see this little… fairy?

It had wings, and it’s clothing was a leaf sewn in a way to cover most of the body. The wings were blue, and they were more like butterfly wings. The little creature had blue eyes to match the wings, and the hair on it’s head was orange, only long enough to reach its shoulders. The total height of the little fairy couldn’t be taller than six inches.

“Are you a fairy?” I ask it.

“What else would I be?” It asks back.

“What is your name?” Jason asks.

“It’s Ezra”

“Ok, Ezra, how do we get out of this forest?” I ask.

Ezra giggled, “It depends on where you want to go.”

“How about to a place where we can find other people?”

“Are you looking for other humans?”

“Preferably.” Jason responds.

Ezra looks and points to a direction, “The human kingdom is in that direction,” she looks back at us, “How do not know where it would be if you are human yourselves?”

Jason and I looked at each other, then back at her. “Well,” Jason says, “we are not familiar with this place.”

“Oh! I see! You guys are lost after venturing out of the kingdom for the first time, aren’t you?”

“Uh… Yes. We are lost.”

“Well, like I said, it is in that direction. Happy travels!”

The little fairy Ezra then turns around and walks away. Before she fully left, I decide to shout out to her. “If you are a fairy, why are you not flying?”

She turns arounds and shouts back, “My wings are damaged! A fairy can’t fly with damaged wings!” Ezra then walks out of view.

Jason and I start walking in the direction that Ezra that has pointed out to us. I keep thinking about what she had said before, about us looking for other humans. Does that mean there are more creatures than fairies and mermaids that we have seen so far? If so, what else is there?

About half an hour later, we start seeing changes to the forest. A more direct path can be seen, and trees are becoming more sparse. We walk a quarter of a mile more until we come upon a small village like place. There are a few people outside walking around, doing whatever it is that they do. The people outside noticed us as we walked in, and they seemed to look at us with disdain. They shift away as we walk near them, not wanting anything to do with us. We try talking to some of the people, but they would quickly walk away before we could say a full sentence to them. This goes on for a few minutes before a man, in some armor with a sword on his hip, approaches us. “Who are you?” He asks us.

“My name is Jason Winters, and this is my sister Juliet.”

“What are you?”

“... Humans?”

“Where did you come from?”

“That’s actually a long story. To keep it short, we’ve been kidnapped by a merman and then rescued by some angel like creatures.”

The man looked at Jason suspiciously, unsure if he is actually telling the truth or not. He turns to me next. “You’ve been quiet. What do you say?”

“My brother is telling the truth.”

The man still looks at us doubtfully before sighing. “Come with me,” he orders us.

“Why?” Jason asks.

He rests his hand on his sword. “Come with me, or else,” says menacingly.

Jason and I looked at each other, and then shrugged our shoulders. What else could go wrong? It’s not like there is anything else to do. We follow the man, and the people that were outside looked relieved when they saw us being escorted to wherever. There were a couple of other men that looked like the man that approached us, for they all have the same armor with a sword at their side. It looked as if they are guards to the village.

We pass by a gate that leads into a trail that looks like it has been traveled upon very often. We seem to be walking somewhere, but I do not know where. I do not see any buildings up ahead, only more trees. Jason and I noticed that after we passed the gate, two more men in armor accompanies us from behind. I can only guess that they believe we might be dangerous, and they are taking us somewhere to figure out what to do with us. Hopefully we can convince them that all we want to do is figure out how to get back home.

It takes maybe ten minutes till we see some buildings again. Another village can be seen, and it’s much larger than the village that Jason and I first stumbled upon. The entrance to this place is guarded by several men in armor, with a wall surrounding the perimeter, and a large gate that is currently closed. The men have the same armor as the men that were escorting us, with the same colors of yellow and purple. We approached the gate and stopped for a moment, and one of the guards at the top of the gate shouts down to us. “What do you need?”

The guard that first met us was the one that spoke up. “I have found some suspicious looking individuals that we need to deal with.”

The guard in charge of the gate looks between Jason and I, probably seeing if we really do look suspicious. We still have our school uniform on, which seems completely different than what everyone else is wearing. Everything had a medieval-like style to it. The guard of the gate only nodded his head, and the gates began to open. It was loud and it was slow. As it was still opening, Jason leans towards me and had his voice in a whisper. “I think they might try putting us in some kind of jail or something. We are the only odd looking people around.”

I respond to him in a whisper as well, “I think we should try to convince them that we did nothing wrong.”

“I don’t think they will listen to us.”

“It’s worth of a try.”

The gates were fully open, and we were led inside. Everything looked more like a city rather than a large village. There were more people, and the buildings looked nicer. It seems more in good condition than the previous village, and that one looked good enough. The dirt streets were filled with people going about their daily business. There was much noise and chatter, which seems to come to a close whisper whenever Jason and I walk near as we pass through. The other village looked at us with disdain, and these people only look at us with curiosity and perhaps with worry, as if we might do something wrong to them. Even children that were running around and playing stopped to stare at us like they are trying to figure out who we might be. It all felt unsettling to me, and looking at Jason’s facial expressions tells me that he feels the same. Jason and I exchange glances at each other, as if to say “I don’t like this at all.”

As we walk through the city, we see that we are headed in the direction of a very large building structure. It looked like a castle. Jason whispers to me again, “Does that look like a castle to you?”

“Yeah, it does.”

“We might be going there.”

“Do you think we’ll meet whoever is in charge?”

“You mean like a king or a queen?”

“Yeah, something like that.”

“Perhaps.”