My Life for the Haunted Woods

      And so, I, like all other adventurous youth, went against the wishes of those far older and wiser than myself in order to gain what I wanted. After making my way up from the Lost Desert, I found myself before a dark wood where no light of day may enter. A stone slab stood before a worn and hard to follow path, and this is what it said:

     "Beware all ye who enter The Haunted Woods,
     For if ye enter danger shall surely follow
     Beyond me is the land of the hearts hollow
     Beyond me is the world of ghosts
     Beyond me is the witches lair
     If ye do enter, beware"

      As I stood at the signpost, a feeling of dread came over me. For a second, I doubted myself, and lost hope that I should be able to complete my quest. I did not succumb to that feeling, nor that warning, but in retrospect I should have. The worn path ahead gave off no glimmer of hope, and the reason that I continued on it is beyond my recollection, for no sane Lutari should ever go forth into such horrid places, adventurous or not.

      Coming from Sakhmet forced me to make adjustments for this journey. As all Neopians know, the Lost Desert is warm and bright; in contrast, the Haunted Woods are cold and dark. It took a few moments for my eyes to adjust to the darkness, but my focus was moreso on keeping myself warm. These woods were not welcoming, but being the skeptic that I was, I feared nothing; of course, I believed there to be no such thing as a ghost! Those were simply stories written in children's books. I went forward.

      Perhaps more off-putting than the woods themselves was the lack of people in the woods. I had heard stories of inhabitants of the woods, and even that a small city was somewhere in the darkness, but I encountered no one.

      Then I saw it: the Brain Tree. Somehow, I had expected the path to be more dangerous, but this was elating. I did not see its eyes then, only the dark brown bark and its massive, bulging orange-red brain. I reached for my woodcutting knife and approached the Brain Tree, hoping that it was asleep. As I touched my hand to it, I jolted back; it was cold, so very cold, even colder than the dark woods normally are. As I pulled back, it spoke in a booming voice that seemed to echo throughout the dark Woods.

      "Who is it that touches me?" It spoke with a menacing tone. I will not say it was evil, as I see no merit in putting stock into the petty categorizations of men, and having been a student at the Altadorian Academy of Magic, had learned to see beyond these notions. "Who is it that touches me?" it repeated. "Come to face me so that I may see you."

      "I will tell you my name, Brain Tree," I responded, walking slowly to the front of the tree, "Though I do not believe knowing that will merit either of us, for what is in a name?" Coming to face the tree, I saw its true image; the dark mouth open, leading into infinite black abyss, and the unblinking deep red eyes staring down forever – this is why, I decided, the professors spoke against coming into the lost woods, for most Neopians would not be able to handle such a sight.

      "What you speak is the truth, Nintyplayer." The Brain Tree looked upon me with its expressionless face. "But I thirst for knowledge, and all words spoken are knowledge learned." With a menacing tone, he added: "Now why have you come to me? It is surely not to do a task for me."

      "I will not lie to you, Brain Tree; I seek to take a branch from you, that I may create a staff of great magical power." The Brain Tree began rumbling, and the ground shook with it.

      "What nerve! Why do you think that I will simply hand over a branch of mine? I am the Brain Tree! Such disrespect will not be tolerated!" As he spoke, roots came up out of the ground and wrapped around me, entangling my arms and legs so that I could not move. In my panic, I could barely form a sentence.

      "B-Brain Tree, I do not do this for my own amusement, but for the s-sake of furthering my own knowledge and practice!" This was all I could say which I thought would convince it to let me go. This was the truth, as well; I wished only to become wiser and more powerful. The Brain Tree, seeing my sincerity, set me down on the ground.

      "I will grant you what you seek, Lutari, but you must do something for me in return." Its dark red eyes met mine. I felt a tingle of fear go through me. "I seek a spell of protection for the future – protection from people such as yourself. Go to the witch Edna, who lives through these woods to the East; bring her to me, and you will have your staff."

      I proposed that I may cast the spell myself, as I did well in the Academy, but the Tree insisted that I see Edna. I nodded, not saying anything further, and went Eastward into the woods in search of the old witch. We had learned of Edna in our history classes; she had betrayed the teachings of the academy she attended and performed dark magic, so she was banished to the Haunted Woods. It was not long before I reached a broken-down tower, which I knew to be hers. It stood very tall and had a large wooden door; the top, being a lookout type area, gave off a green glow, the color of the witch's choice. I knocked on the door three times.

      "Who is it?" a voice from inside spat out. Various bubbling noises came from inside. I took a moment to respond. "Well, who is it!?"

      "M-my name is Nintyplayer," I stuttered, "but that's hardly important, for what's in a-"

      "Nintyplayer?" she interrupted, "What do you want? Did the Academy send you?"

      "No, the Academy didn't send me, although I did graduate from it a few weeks-" The door swung open. Edna stood before me; she was shorter than I imagined, and she looked fairly stereotypical for a witch.

      "Cut to the chase, boy, what do you want?" she hissed.

      "I was sent by the Brain Tree to get you to cast a spell of protection on him."

      She looked over me with an angry look, but after a few seconds the anger disappeared in her gaze and she let out a sigh. She went back inside and grabbed a few things, then exited the tower and closed the door.

      We went back to the Brain Tree, he and Edna exchanging words and Edna performed her magic. The Brain Tree, satisfied with this, allowed me to take a branch from him, and so I did.

      As I had my prize, I went out, looking for an exit to the forest. I searched for days, sleeping very little if at all. I did attempt to use the magical spells I had learned at the Academy, but found myself unable to find anything at all. I can't leave these woods; even after death, I am trapped.

      I realize what happened; the Brain Tree fooled me. He had the spell cast before I took the branch, which cursed me; and now I must roam these woods forever, like all those who do as the Brain Tree asks. After all, everything comes with a price; my mind for the Brain Tree, my life for the Haunted Woods.

The End