The world twisted and shook, throwing him out. One second the monster lunged, then a sharp burning pain tore through him; the next, the world dissolved, and he was falling into what felt like no space at all a spinning feeling that made up and down meaningless. He felt a hard pull on his shoulders a quick tear as the straps broke and then his backpack was gone ripped away by the twist .Then, he stopped suddenly against something soft, the air knocked out of him, leaving him confused and much lighter.
He lay there for a moment, spread out on this soft ground, a strange empty feeling where his backpack used to be, a constant annoying reminder that he was cut off from his old life. A thick fog of confusion filled his thoughts, mixed with the steady pain in his side. Slowly, testing each move, he sat up. His muscles felt like they'd been hit hard, each one complaining. The air smelled strange, heavy and still, a mix of something too sweet, like old fruit, and a faint metal smell, like rust.
Blinking in the weak light that came through the weird leaves, his eyes tried to understand this strange place. It was a forest, but not like any he knew. Tall, twisted trees reached up like bones to a deep purple sky. The leaves glowed softly, a strange green mixed with deep, moving blue, making long, odd shadows on the soft ground. Here and there groups of what looked like big glowing mushrooms gave off their own light making the place feel like a scary dream.
A shiver went down his back and it wasn't from being cold. This whole place felt wrong, filled with a silent unseen power that made his skin prickle. And under the quiet, a low hum vibrated, not just in the air but deep in his bones, a steady reminder that he didn't belong here, and now he was completely alone with just his clothes.
As he tried to figure out where he was, a strange feeling started on his skin, a soft tingle that began at the back of his neck and went down his arms. It wasn't the sharp sting of static; it was something else, a low buzz on his nerves. With it, he felt small pushes in the air, a steady beat that seemed to go with the soft light from the strange plants, as if the whole forest was breathing in a weird way. These pushes felt stronger near the glowing plants and the odd, shiny rocks on the soft ground, their surfaces reflecting the light in strange ways.
Then, the quiet broke. Sharp snaps and soft rustling sounds came from nearby, the sounds strange and worrying in the stillness. Through the glowing leaves, he saw movement: thin, bent shapes that moved through the plants with a scary smoothness, their arms ending in what looked like sharp black claws that scraped against the strange plants. They were bigger than any dog he knew, maybe even a small deer, and their quick, twisting moves made his stomach tighten with fear.
He could almost see them clearly now, these creatures of this strange forest. Their bodies looked too long, stretched out in a weird way, their backs bent as if ready to jump. Their skin looked like dark, rough scales with shiny black spots that seemed to move a little as they shifted. And their heads, even in the weak, glowing light, showed many eyes. Not like normal animal eyes, but small, sharp lights, like cold green stones, that looked very smart and dangerous. One of them had a long, winding neck that bent forward, its head low to the ground as if smelling for something, maybe him.
One of the creatures, bigger than the others with sharp points along its back, stopped at the edge of a small open space. Its long, lizard-like head turned slowly, its many green eyes, at least six he could count, looking at the strange plants very carefully. When those cold, alien eyes, like frozen fire, passed over the bottom of the tree where Evan hid, the tingle on his skin shot up, a strong feeling of cold fear hitting him hard. It knew. Or at least, it felt something strange nearby.
Panic, like being trapped underwater, almost took him over. But a stronger feeling, the simple need to stay alive, made stronger by the thought of Sophie and Luca's faces, fought its way up. He couldn't just be caught, waiting to be found. He had to do something. The loss of his backpack, he realized with a fresh wave of worry, meant he had nothing to help him. No water, no bandages, no comfort. He had to use his mind in this scary place.
His eyes landed on the group of glowing mushrooms again. A crazy, probably deadly idea popped into his head. If he could just smash them all at once, maybe the sudden bright light would blind these things, give him a tiny chance to run. It was a bad plan, probably, but it was the only thing he could think of to do.
Taking a shaky breath, he tried to be brave, the fear still a cold knot in his stomach, but now with a thin layer of hope on top. He bent down lower, getting ready to run fast to the mushrooms.
Just as he was about to jump, the tingle on his skin changed. It wasn't just a warning about the creatures now. It felt like a soft shaking from the ground under him, a faint beat in his chest, like the earth's quiet heartbeat. And with it, he heard it again, that soft whisper, like quiet wings moving near his ear, just barely loud enough to hear, a soft, strange sound that seemed to mean something.
He froze, every muscle tight. What in the world was that? Did the ground feel alive? Were the whispers trying to tell him something important?
He closed his eyes, putting all his attention on the weird feelings all around him. The tingle still warned him about the monsters nearby, their quiet presence a real danger. But the shaking ground felt different, almost like a path. The whispers seemed to come from that way, a soft pull in the heavy silence.
Could it be showing him the way?
He opened his eyes fast, looking at the spot where the shaking ground felt strongest. It went away from the small open space, deeper into the dark of the glowing woods. It was a big risk, like walking with his eyes closed, but staying here felt like dying for sure. Not only that, but he would trust this strange new feeling, these whispers in the dark, and hope they led him not to death, but to some safe place. The missing backpack felt even more important now; he had nothing to help him but this strange whisper.
He looked one last time at the dark shapes at the edge of the open space, their forms still and menacing in the dim, pulsing light. This wasn't just about survival anymore; it was about finding a way back to Sophie and Luca. He had to trust something, and right now, these strange whispers and the feeling in the ground were all he had. I'm coming back for you, he vowed silently. Then, understanding that the vibration beneath his feet felt like a path, a subtle invitation away from immediate danger, he turned and moved as quietly and quickly as he could, following its pull deeper into the strange darkness. The whispers, faint as they were, now felt less like a random occurrence and more like a guide, a fragile thread of hope in the overwhelming fear. His lost backpack was a stark reminder of his helplessness, but this new sense, this connection to the alien world, offered a sliver of possibility.