by Amy Cross
"Alice!" Tom shouts.
"I'm still here!" I call back to him, as I climb over some more rocks. "Hang on! I'll be back in a minute!" It's weird, but these rocks seem a little strange, as if someone deliberately put them here. It's as if someone, for some reason that I certainly can't fathom, decided to gather together a load of boulders - some as big as a fist, some bigger than a car - and then piled them up at the bottom of the valley. They're kinda slippery, thanks to all the snow that's fallen, but as I get over the next crest, I spot another spattering of blood. My parents definitely came this way, and the amount of blood I'm seeing every few meters is starting to seem a little more ominous.
"Can you see them yet?" Tom shouts.
"Not yet!" I shout back, just as I spot what appears to be an opening between a group of rocks. "They have to be here somewhere!" Clambering over to the opening, I peer inside and see nothing but a deep, dark void. "Mum!" I shout, hoping against hope that they're alive down there. "Dad! It's me, Alice! Can you hear me?"
I wait, ignoring the sound of the howling wind and hoping that maybe - just maybe - I might hear my Mum or Dad calling back to me. After a few seconds, however, I start to realize that this is a forlorn hope. Looking down at the stone surface next to my feet, I spot another patch of blood, which makes me more certain than ever that they definitely came this way. Is it possible that they fell into the hole and then lost consciousness... or worse?
"Hang on!" I shout back to Tom, hoping to reassure him as I lean further into the dark gaping nothingness between the rocks. "Mum!" I shout down into the depths. "Dad!" I wait again, but there's no reply. The strangest thing is that every time I call down to them, I hear a distant echo, even though the space down here can't be more than a few square meters. Figuring that I have to find out what's happening, I hold out my phone and try to use the flashlight to get a better view. "Hello?" I shout.
No reply.
I shine the light around the space between the boulders, but although I can make out the edges, it's as if there's no bottom to the pit. I lean closer still, determined to see all the way down. If my parents are at the bottom, injured or worse, I have to know. Sure, I might not tell Tom if I find anything bad, at least not yet, but I have to know the truth. I lean further still, convinced that at any moment I'm going to see the bottom. Seeing nothing, however, I grab hold of a rock and lean even further, stretching and straining myself as I try to see all the way to the bottom of the opening. This whole thing doesn't make much sense so far. The light from my phone is strong, and I should be able to see way down into the pit, even if -
And that's when my hand slips, and I tumble forward. I try to reach out and grab some support, but it's too late and I brace myself for an impact at the bottom of the darkness. Instead, I just keep falling...
And falling...
And falling...
Thomas Never
"Alice!" I scream at the top of my voice, my throat starting to get sore. "Alice! Where are you?"
Silence. There's not a sound in this entire valley. It's been at least five minutes since the last time Alice called back to me, and I'm starting to worry. What if she's been caught by whatever, or whoever, took our parents away? They'll be coming for me next, whoever they are, and I'm in no fit state to fight. I'll be slaughtered, and then probably eaten, and then vultures will come and pick at my bones, and then -
"Alice!" I scream again.
As I wait for her to reply, I reach down and pull my trouser leg up. The wound just above my ankle is still bleeding, but I guess Alice was right when she said it wasn't too deep. The pain's pretty strong, though, and as I slide my trouser leg back down, I realize that I'm going to struggle to walk. Still, I've got no choice. The last time I saw my dumb-ass sister, she was climbing over the rocks, looking for our parents. She promised to keep in contact, but now she's fallen silent and I'm scared.
No, I'm more than scared. I'm terrified.
"Alice!" I shout, as I get to my feet. The cut on my leg is painful, but it doesn't stop me from walking. I make my way through the snow, eventually getting all the way around the car and starting to climb up onto the rocks. I'm freezing cold and the snow has soaked through my clothes, but I can't stop now. I have to find out what's happened to them all, and -
Suddenly I hear a noise over my shoulder. Turning, I look back at the upturned car, but the noise - a kind of scratching, gurgling sound - immediately stops, and there's nothing unusual to see. I stare for a moment, totally unable to imagine what could have made such a bizarre sound, but there doesn't seem to be anything at all. After a few seconds, I tell myself that it must have been in my imagination, and I turn and start climbing over the -
There it is again!
I turn and look back, and the sound stops again, but this time I swear I spotted something ducking out of sight inside the car. With my heart pounding in my chest, I stare at the wreck, waiting for the creature - whatever it is - to come out. It definitely didn't sound human, and I'm starting to worry that there might be wolves or some other kind of strange animal in this part of the world. In fact, that kind of makes sense: what if my parents were dragged from the car by wolves, and when Alice went to look for them, she was attacked as well? I suddenly feel very exposed, and there's clearly no way I can fight back if I'm attacked by a pack of wolves, or bears, or badgers, or whatever else might be roaming the countryside around here.
"Shoo!" I shout, hoping that somehow I might scare the creature away. I remember seeing a wildlife show where the narrator said the best option is to act as if you're not scared. He was talking about bears, but I guess the same approach might work with wolves. Or not. To be honest, I've got no idea, and -
Suddenly the noise starts up again, just for a moment, and I spot something small and dark darting out of the car, scuttling into a nearby bush. My eyes widen as I realize that there's no way this creature is a wolf. In fact, although I didn't get a proper look at it, I'm pretty sure it didn't look like anything I've ever seen before. It was small and round, not much bigger than a soccer ball, and there seemed to be a pair of legs sticking out from its underside. The weirdest thing is that I'm fairly certain it was carrying the comic book I was reading just before the crash. I'm not sure I saw a face on the creature, as such, or even a head, and my initial instinct is to think that such a thing can't possibly exist. Then again, out here in the wilderness, more than five miles from Leeds, I guess there could be all sorts of things.
"Alice!" I hiss, figuring that maybe I should keep my voice down in order to avoid drawing attention to myself. "Alice, where are you?"
Silence.
Figuring that I need to focus on finding Alice and my parents, I turn and continue to climb over the rocks and boulders. After a moment, I spot what appears to be a splash of blood in the snow, which immediately fills me with fear. I keep going, however, determined to work out what happened to them, and finally I come to a halt next to what appears to be a large gap between several boulders. I peer inside, but all I can see is darkness. Pausing, I start to consider the possibility that I've stumbled upon some kind of lair; is it possible that wolves have dragged the rest of my family down into the darkness? I don't hear the sound of anything happening down there, but as I peer closer, I spot another patch of blood on the side of the rock.
Hearing the scratching, gurgling noise again, I turn and look back the way I came. I swear, there's something nearby. Starting to panic, I try to work out what to do: I can't go down into the hole, but at the same time I'm scared that something out here is stalking me and getting ready to attack. I look around for something I might be able to use to defend myself, and eventually I spot a large broken branch, which I quickly grab before turning to face the direction the noises came from. My heart is pounding, and I can't help but imagine some kind of wolf or lion leaping out at me at any moment.
"Alice!" I call out, unable to keep up the pretense any longer. I'm starting to shiver, and it's looking more and more as if I'm suddenly all
alone out here. "Mum? Dad? Please..."
As I climb up onto one of the nearby boulders, I keep looking all around, waiting for the creature to make its move. Whatever it is, it's probably got huge, flesh-piercing teeth, and razor-sharp claws, and it can probably hold me down with ease. After all, it seems to have not only dragged my parents from the car, but also pulled Alice down without even giving her a chance to cry out for help. Is it possible that the Yeti could be living here in West Yorkshire, hunting for human prey in the snowy valleys? Maybe that's what's happening here... We're being picked off, one by one, by a hungry Yeti.
"Keep away from me!" I shout, strengthening my grip on the branch. "If you come anywhere near me, I'll -"
Before I can finish, I spot movement between two nearby rocks. Seconds later, a small, perfectly round creature climbs into view, balanced delicately on two thin, booted legs. The first thing I notice is that the creature's entire face is made up of a single large eye, with a small mouth below; the second thing I notice is that the creature is wearing some kind of metal helmet, with a spike on top and some kind of small red feather; and the third thing I notice is that the creature is clutching my comic book in its hands.
"Wh..." I start to say, convinced that I must be hallucinating.
"Uh..." the creature replies, staring at me.
"Where..." I add, my voice trembling.
"Where?"
Silence.
"Where what?" the creature asks. "What where?"
"Where's my sister?" I ask.
"Your what?"
"Where's my sister?" I shout, swinging the branch at him and barely missing his head as he ducks out of the way. "Where is she?" I shout again, unable to hide my fear any longer. "Where are my parents? What have you done with them?"
"Calm down!" the creature says, its one big eye blinking a couple of times. "Let's start from the beginning. What's a sister, and why do you think I might have it? Is it -" Before he can finish, there's a whispering sound from nearby. "Right," the creature continues after a moment, "okay, so you've lost your sister."
"Is there someone else here?" I ask, poised to strike again with the branch at any moment.
"No," the creature says quickly.
"I heard someone."
"That's difficult to believe."
"I heard someone."
"Well, then you've obviously lost your mind, haven't you?" There's another whisper, and this time the creature leans behind a nearby rock for a moment, before turning back to face me. "I might know where your sister is," he continues, "or I might not. The question is, if I were to give you this information, what would you give me in return?"
"What do you want?" I ask.
"Got any books?"
I stare at him.
"I found this in your machine," he says, holding up the comic book I was reading on the journey, "but I doubt you were traveling with just one. Got any in the trunk? I couldn't get it open, but I think I could smell some more books in there. The binding gives off a very peculiar smell, you see. I can track a book from miles away."
"You don't have a nose," I point out.
"Not that you're aware of," he replies confidently, "but just because your nose is a weird floppy thing on the front of your face, please don't assume that's the case for all species." Hearing another whisper, he glances behind another of the boulders, and after a moment a small hand reaches out and passes him a note. Eying me suspiciously, the creature unfolds the note, reads whatever's written on it, and then carefully folds it back before passing it back to the hand. "Right," he mutters thoughtfully, "so..." His voice trails off, and he's clearly more than a little distracted.
"I'm going mad," I say, taking a deep breath. "None of this is possible. I must have lost too much blood."
"Undoubtedly," the creature replies. "This is all a hallucination. Just tell me how to get the trunk open so I can take the rest of the books, and perhaps I'll vanish, huh? This is all in your mind. I wouldn't tell anyone about me, not unless you want to end up in a padded cell."
"Maybe," I reply cautiously. "Tell me where my sister is first."
"No."
"Why not?"
"Because I don't... want to."
"Where are my parents?" I shout, raising the branch, ready to strike. Before I can make another move, however, I spot another of the creatures, peering at me from behind a nearby rock. "How many of you are there?" I ask.
"In the entire universe?" the first creature asks. "Lots."
"Here. Now. How many of you are there here, right now?"
"Oh." He pauses, and suddenly several more of the creatures step into view. "Still lots," the creature adds as more and more of them appear all around me, until there are literally hundreds perched on all the rocks and boulders, surrounding me. I can hear them whispering to one another, and although they're no larger than soccer balls, there are far too many for me to fight off.
"Okay, boys," the creature adds with a sigh. "We've burned through plan A, plan B and plan C pretty fast, so I guess we're onto plan D, and you know what that means."
"What's -" I start to say, but suddenly the branch is wrenched from my hands by three of the creatures, while the rest grab my legs and pull me down. I try to get free, but it's too late and I'm quickly dragged across the rocks and down into the dark void between three large boulders. I call out for help, but it's hopeless and soon everything goes completely black as I'm dragged down and down and down...
Alice Never
"You know," says a deep, booming voice, "I'm not sure it is a plant. I mean, for one thing, it hasn't got any leaves."
Opening my eyes slowly, I blink a couple of times. For a few seconds, I genuinely have no idea who I am or where I am, but finally I realize that I'm on some kind of cold stone floor. As I try to remember anything else, however, I start to develop a strong headache. It's as if my mind is still somewhere in my head, but all the pieces are in the wrong order and I can't navigate my way from one fact to another. In fact, I'm starting to think that maybe my brain is upside down. All I really remember is that my name is Alice, and that I'm pretty sure I'm not a plant.
"What about those things?" asks another, equally deep voice. "They could be leaves, or petals, or something."
"They look more like fingers to me," says the first voice. "Suppose you might be right, but then what's this?"
Suddenly I feel something brushing against my hair. I still feel kind of weak, so I'm not strong enough to get up. All I can do is let out a faint groan.
"You hear that?" the second voice says. "It's making a noise. Plants don't make noises, do they?"
"Sometimes," the first voice says. "When they rustle in a field."
"I don't think this one's rustling," the second voice replies. "It just seems to be making a noise of its own accord."
"No," the first voice continues, "that was a classic rustle. Absolutely classic."
I let out another groan as I try, and fail, to get to my feet. Damn it, where the hell am I?
"That's just the wind," the first voice replies. "It's blowing through the plant, right, and it's making a kind of whistling sound. It's a basic principle of aerodynamics that wind makes a noise when it passes through things." I feel my hair being touched again. "This is what stumps me, though. I've never seen a plant that has hair before. Then again, I suppose I haven't traveled extensively through the outer aisles. You never know what kind of weird things exist out there between the far-off shelves."
"Hang on," says the second voice. "Let's get it into the light."
Suddenly I feel something wrapping itself around my waist, and I'm lifted up from the stone surface and turned around in the air. Unable to work out what the hell's going on, and still kind of dazed, I blink a couple of times before finally finding myself staring straight into what appears to be a large eye, several feet across; in the center, there's a small black pupil that slightly dilates as it stares straight at me. To be honest, on top of being dazed, I'm also feeling kind of dizzy, a
nd it's hard to focus properly since the whole world seems to be swimming around me. Damn it, I'm pretty sure I must have hit my head hard when I landed. But where did I land?
"Thomas..." I mutter, suddenly realizing that I need to get back to my brother.
"Is that a rustle too?" the second voice asks.
"Oh yeah," the first voice says. "Don't be fooled. It's just rustling in the wind."
"Help!" I shout, starting to hyperventilate. "Someone help me!"
"There's not any wind, though. Is there?"
"Thomas!" I shout. "Where are you? Where -" Before I can finish, I'm suddenly turned upside down.
"What did you do that for?" the second voice asks.
"Just thought I'd see what happens," the first voice replies.
"Thomas!" I shout, as I stare down and see that I'm several meters above the dusty, rocky ground. "Thomas! Help!"
"You might be right," the first voice says finally. "It might be a plant after all." I feel something brush against my feet. "There must be the roots."
"Help!" I scream. "Someone help me!"
"Looks too flat to be roots," the second voice mutters, sounding confused.
"Hang on," the first voice says, and I feel my shoes being removed, followed by my socks. "There," he continues, running a huge finger along my toes. "There's the roots."
"Help!" I scream.
"But what's that?" the second voice asks, as a huge stumpy finger suddenly arrives next to my face. "Is that the bud or something?"
"HELP ME!" I shout, desperately hoping that someone might hear and come to my rescue.
"I suppose so," says the first voice. "Maybe that's where the seeds come from. Insects land on it, and they get the seeds, or maybe pollen or whatever, on their feet, and then off they go. I guess it must have got dug up something, but it doesn't look too badly damaged." He pauses. "You think we should chuck it? No-one's gonna want to buy it, are they?"
