A Journey through the Wild Ch. 01

My parents would never use the word "proud" to describe their feelings about me anymore. "Loved", sure, maybe even "like" on a good day, but not "proud" and it hasn't been used by them to describe me for a while. I'm not upset about it, though. I'll admit it - I'm a burnout. The disappointment was palpable - I was no longer "Eli the smartest child with a bright future." To them, I became "Elias the renter who can't afford rent."

Right out of college, I threw myself into work to set my future up for success, while accomplishing the opposite. I was tired all the time, and constantly made mistakes while trying to "hustle." I pretended I was better than my coworkers and dominated meetings with nothing-talk and misused jargon to sound smarter, while inserting myself into so many projects that I never actually finished any. Looking back, I was a real asshole. I never gave myself time for relationships, and frankly I don't think I could've been in one. My lifestyle completely revolved around working, and while I had a date here and there, I usually didn't listen to the poor woman, and tried power plays to prove myself as "dominate" but usually ended up looking like a fool.

Eventually, the company found a reason to get rid of me with "redundancies." My job search was a complete failure. I burnt bridges with coworkers and classmates, failed to accomplish any meaningful tasks, and was notorious for a few of my more major mistakes. After the severance ran out, I had to move back into my parents' house, and fell into a depression. I desperately searched out escapism, fall into the oh-so-common traps of the modern mid-20's male dropout - porn, video games and weed.

It wasn't a completely negative experience - I learned a good bit about myself. I needed a goal to motivate myself, something attainable and reasonable. I enjoyed a spartan lifestyle - I sold most of my belongings when I moved back home, and got by with a bed, a computer and a few other essentials. I found the peace of mind helpful. I even took up a bit of exercise, taking walks and hikes around the forests near my parents' remote property.

It was on one of these hikes when my life got turned around in the most unexpected way.

I kept a normally nocturnal schedule, and enjoyed night and sunrise hikes through the woods. It helped me avoid my parents, and there is no place more peaceful and full of solitude than the woods before birds start singing. That night, I decided to take a well-trodden path to the top of a bald hill. It was an easy hike, only about 2 hours there and back again. I'd walked it plenty of times, and knew it well, and the trip started normally enough. I had a strong flashlight mounted to my head to light the trail, no predators frequented the area, and the sound of other creatures of the night comforted me on the warm, muggy summer night.

My thoughts wandered as I walked, and they eventually strayed back to the unsolvable riddle of how to get my life back on track. I contemplated traveling and raising funds with a part job. I thought about going back to school. I considered moving to the other side of the country, where my sloppy reputation wouldn't follow me. Occasionally, an insect would bring back to the present, attracted by my headlight as I swatted it away. About halfway through, I removed my sweat-drench shirt, made worse by the heavy humidity - I was not in bodybuilder shape, but I didn't have much fat left, burnt off by my hikes and lack of appetite.

As I finished stowing my shirt in my bag, my headlight danced over something that caught my eye. On an oak tree slightly off the path, I saw a magnificent moth. It was much larger than any I had ever seen outside of nature documentaries, with a wingspan probably close to a foot. Its wings were decorated with eye-shaped patterns that were very human-like - it almost even looked like the eyes had liner on, and the "irises" were a deep, vibrant shade of emerald, enhanced by the pale green decorating the rest of the creature. As my headlight moved on and off the creature, it seemed to hold the light and glow in the dark for a few seconds before fading again.

It was one of the most beautiful creatures I had ever seen, while also being slightly intimidating due to its unusual size. The creature entranced me, and I needed a better look. I stepped off the trail.

As I got closer, the creature allowed me a better look, and surprisingly I found some of the colors on the wings shifting. The greens became blues, which became deep purples and intense reds. The only thing that didn't change were the emerald irises. After a few moments, the creature took flight, and I felt compelled to follow. I figured I knew the woods well enough and could find the trail easy enough in the morning even if I got lost in the dark.

As the moth danced between the trees, I bumbled after it, tripping over branches and rocks in the dark. Eventually, the detritus on the ground seemed to clear up, and my pursuit was eased. This time, my mind was laser focused on the creature. It was so unusual and alien for insects this large in this part of the country, and I had never heard of a moth changing colors before. It consumed my thoughts, and I quickly lost track of where I was. A brief sense of panic began to rise as the more rational parts of my mind took over. I was lost in the woods, and I didn't recognize this area at all. The forest was unfamiliar, but I noticed a sound barely audible against the background din of the forest - running water?

The moth seemed to be moving towards the direction of the sound, so I figured if I was in for a penny, might as well be in for a pound. Our adventure continued for nearly half an hour, and I knew I was thoroughly lost. Some of the trees here seemed much older than the forests I recognized, and they dwarfed anything else I had seen outside of giant redwoods. Even the ground cover was becoming magnificent - glowing mushrooms were sprouting in unusual sizes, ferns were blanketing the ground, and a soft and comfortable moss seemed to cover the entire forest floor, all contributing to the absolute otherworldly qualities of this place.

Eventually, I found our destination - a pond in the middle of the forest, fed by a spring from above, water falling down a rocky outcrop and throwing a fresh, cool spray into the air. I noticed now that the air was much cooler and less muggy here, and a sweet-smelling breeze carried fresh air, but it was still warm and comfortable. The moth alighted on a rock, and finally came to a rest. I sat on a nearby rock, and took in the sights, and tried to reconcile what I was seeing with what I knew.

There was no waterfall here. There shouldn't have even been trees here. The direction we traveled in, no matter what, shouldn't have gone anywhere. It was sandwiched between the highway on one side, and trails on the other. I don't know how far we walked, but there's nowhere on or near my parents' property that matches this place. I thought back to childhood memories, tramping all around with my friends, and I had no recollection of this place. Over a dozen summers of rambunctious boys playing would've turned up a place like this.

I glanced back to my mysterious companion, and considered her. Her colors were shifting even more rapidly and brightly since arriving here, and her wings seemed even larger, more like cloak than anything as simple as wings. I sighed at the strangeness of my situation and removed my shoes to soak my feet in the pond. The water was cool and refreshing, clear enough to see the bottom by the light of a bright moon. I dismounted my rock, and bent over the pond, observing small fish swimming around. Suddenly, I realized I was very thirsty - I had only packed so much water, anticipating a short trip. Cupping my hands, I took a sip, and was shocked. While it tasted more refreshing than any water I had before, it warmed my insides more like liquor.

Almost like she had been waiting for me to do exactly that, the moth took off, and floated across the air above the pond, towards the waterfall. With no hesitation, she fluttered through the waterfall, and I could just make out a small alcove behind it. A secret space seemed to exist behind the waterfall! My moth-friend's glow seemed to grow in the space, and her glow made her silhouette seem more human-shaped. After a few seconds, the glow began to fade, and eventually disappear.

I considered my options. I was definitely lost and had no idea what time it was. It took me a second to realize it, but at some point, my headlamp had died, and I had been navigating by moonlight for an unknown amount of time, meaning I couldn't just wander my way home. I was stuck here until morning at the earliest, when I could use the sun to navigate - I was never good at identifying stars and star locations. I made a quick decision, and grabbed my gear, throwing my shoes into my bag and rolling up my pants legs. I waded my way across the shallow pond, and after feeling the spray on my face, made up my mind. I took a deep breath, and pushed my way past the waterfall, changing my life for seemingly ever.

Instead of the stony alcove, I found myself floating dreamily. It felt like that moment between being awake and falling asleep, but seemed to last for eternities. From the blackness of this dream space, my friend approached; the moth landed on my naked chest. Her body was covered in small soft fur, and her wings tickled my chest. Her long antennae brushed across my nipples, seeming to enjoy my hairlessness. In my head, I heard a voice.

Find me. Where the rivers meet in the deepest and oldest woods, my sisters and I dance in the glades. The Queen has ruined our dance. Find me there, and help me please.

With that, the moth took off, and vanished into the darkness. A moment later, the world rushed back to me.

I found myself standing in another pool of water, drenched from the waterfall. I immediately noticed the difference in my situation - the noise of the waterfall was coming from in front of me, and not behind me, while I stood in a tiny cave, with light coming from around a bend. It was nearly identical to what I pictured the stony alcove where the moth disappeared looked like, but mirror. I stepped out the pool, and took a tentative look around the bend, but all I could see and hear was the roar of the water.

Where was I? My eyes and mind seemed to be deceiving me, and I couldn't make sense of what was going on. My brain felt a little foggy, almost like I had smoked some of my pot, but I had saved that for the sunrise at the end of my hike; I was definitely sober. Looking back, my decisions made no sense - I would never have left the trail, no matter how cool a bug looked, let along wander into the woods following it. There were fish in that pond, and I could get sick from drinking that unfiltered water. I didn't know how strong the waterfall was and could've gotten hurt from the water pressure.

I sighed at my own stupidity. I must've been stoned - there was no other explanation for my actions. I got stoned and passed out behind the waterfall. This is what happens when I go months without responsibility - I get sloppy. I make mistakes, as I always do. I lost the forest for the trees again, nearly literally, and could've gotten hurt or worse. At least the sun was out now - I could make my way home safely.

I stepped back through the waterfall, expecting to see the same environment I had seen last night, and while it was similar, there were some unexpected changes. For one, the pond was much larger - more like a lake at this point. Where the water was once around my ankles, I fell in nearly thigh deep, soaking my pants, and probably destroying my cell phone. Shit. Thankfully, the waterfall stayed constant, and I was able to wade past it just fine. After emerging, I could finally take in the reality of my situation.

The woods were much thicker than I remembered, with fantastical large trees that three full-grown people could scarcely get their arms around. The flora was even more vibrant as well - greens were greener, the water was even clearer than I thought possible, and small plants and fungi of all shades were growing along the forest floor. Blues and reds clashed side by side, while purple flowers grew along vines hugging the trees, and yellow flowers doted the ground, all against the healthiest, greenest forest I had ever seen. The sky was full of clouds fluffier than I had ever imagined, and the clearness and blueness of the sky was the most beautiful I had ever seen it. It was only the first of several jaw-dropping sights I would see in the coming days, however. Or even the next coming minutes.

Almost secondary to this must-be-fictional landscape, lounging on the grass soaking up the sun, was a girl. All this information overload made me absorb the details of this girl slower than I should, but as she seemed to nap, it finally clicked. This girl wasn't human.

She was definitely human-like. She looked bipedal, with her arms folded behind her head and her legs crossed at the ankles. Her face had plenty of human-like details - she had a nose, two eyes, two ears, and a shaggy looking short haircut. It even looked like she had a smattering of freckles, but it was hard to be sure at the distance I stood. That was about where the similarities ended though. Her skin was various shades of green, in a sort of spotted pattern, and was slick and shiny with some sort of fluid. Her hair was a similar dark green shade, and her hands were webbed between the fingers and her feet were flipper-like, with webs in between her long toes. Finally, she was stark naked.

When all these details finally fell into place in my head, my stare lingered. Her breasts were small, practically non-existent, but whatever fluid covered her skin made them look very attractive, with each one tipped in a dark green nipple. She didn't appear to have any hair anywhere on her body other than the shaggy mop on her head. Her build was athletic, particularly her toned and muscular thighs. As she was sleeping on her back, I could only imagine what her ass looked like, but the image would stick with me once I saw it for real. All in all, while she was certainly very unusual looking, I had to admit that I found her quite attractive.

I took a moment to collect myself. I was standing in lake, in a fantasy forest, ogling what looked to be a naked girl mixed with a frog. Once my mind finally stopped racing, I did the only logical thing. I turned around and walked back through the waterfall. But instead of blacking out and going back home, I was only back in the stone alcove. I tried a few different things - I stood back in the puddle in the cave, I tried to enter the waterfall backwards, hell, I even prayed. Panic began to rise in the pit of my stomach again. I wasn't equipped for this - I thought I was just lost in the woods, but now there are naked frog-women, giant trees and megaflora? Nothing prepared me for this!

I waded over to the side and sat down on a rock. Something was wrong, and I just couldn't figure out what - I didn't have enough information. Rushing headlong without thinking is what causes most of my problems, and I had to avoid doing that now that situation was life or death. I took a quick stock of what I had on me.

I packed light expecting a short summer night hike, so I despaired at how unprepared I was - I had on my pants (soaked through entirely) and boxers. My cell phone I had left in my pocket, and it had gotten toasted at some point, and wouldn't turn out. My backpack, however, was waterproofed and kept my other things mostly dry. I had a wallet, but there was pretty much only a driver's license and a bank card in there. My headlight was there, but the battery was definitely dead. I had brought a multi-tool just in case, but "just in case" usually means "a twisted ankle" and not "lost in fantasy world with frog people." I had a bottle of water, and a few granola bars, along with a banana, and I also had my lighter, a pipe and a baggie of weed. The water and food were nice, but even I knew that smoking now would be a terrible idea.

I sighed, and packed everything back away, cursing my lack of foresight to pack better. I sat staring at the lake for a few moments when I felt like I was being observed. I swiveled around and discovered that the frog-girl had awaken and taken notice of me.

She was sat upright, her legs crossed over each other with no modesty, revealing a surprisingly human-looking vagina. As my eyes wandered further north back to her face, I noticed she had a knowing and playful grin on her wide mouth. I blushed as I was caught, but I didn't seem to be in trouble. Her eyes were bigger than a human's, and her pupils were sideways in an amphibian fashion, but her irises were a beautiful shade of blue, and her nose was small with slits for nostrils. Altogether, she was attractive in an alien sort of way - familiar enough to be comfortable, but different enough to be exotic.

"Well, if you're done staring, I think we could use some introductions! I don't often get visitors at this humble lake of mine - would you like something to eat? I can catch us some fish shortly, and I've raised these beauties to be the flakiest, most delicious fish you'll get outside of Telon!"

The woman's voice was much higher-pitched than I had expected, about that of a typical college-aged girl, but with, for lack of a better word, a froggy quality about it, and occasionally punctuated her statements with low croaks. She stood - hopped really - from sitting to standing and walked over to me with a sort of lopping gait to account for her webbed feet. She stuck out her hand out for me to shake.

"I'm Gia, and welcome to my home! I hope you haven't been waiting around here too long while I was napping! I wasn't expecting guests and I was a bit tired from swimming all morning and I couldn't help myself on such a warm day!"

I shook the excitable frog-girl's hand. She had a genuine-looking smile on her face, and she gave a friendly attitude with a positive energy as she giggled at her own apparent laziness. So much energy, in fact, that she scarcely seemed able to stand still, and was currently bouncing from foot-to-foot. Her hands were soft and smooth and left my hand feeling slightly damp, but in a surprisingly pleasant way as it tingled for a few seconds after contact. With no trace of embarrassment on her face, I assumed she was comfortable with her nudity in front of others, and this was probably her most common state of dress.

"Uh, hi Gia, " I stammered out, attempting to find my voice. Despite the energy put off the bubbly frog-girl, I still couldn't help the feeling of panic I was experiencing. "My name is Eli, and I think I'm a bit lost. I must've fallen asleep here last night - I live nearby and must've gotten turned around on a hike."

I felt bad about withholding information from somebody that seemed so friendly, but my story was still unbelievable to me, and I had experienced it. As I gave her my story, I noticed her giving me a once-over, with her eyes lingering on my bare chest. Her tongue seemed to stick out of her mouth almost hungrily, and a feeling of nervousness settled in for a second before she returned her eyes to mine and gave me a warm smile that set my nerves right.

"Aww, I'm sorry to hear that, Eli," she croaked out. "How about you take a seat here while I catch us some fish and prepare them? We can figure it out while we eat, and then we can try to get you back on the right track!"

The friendly frog-girl didn't wait for a response before turning her back to me and making an impossibly long leap towards the center of the lake, ending in a nearly splashless dive. It also gave me an impressive view of her pert and muscular ass - in fact, it almost seemed liked she was showing it off. When her head emerged from the water, she glanced back, and gave me another knowing look with a hungry smile.