You lean in a little to examine the ground. You start noticing subtle movement in the pattern of vines that are imprinted on the ground. Very slowly, you start seeing multiple shades of color creeping up the forms of the vines. In some places, the vines are twisting into spirals. In other places, vines are twisiting out of spirals.
You’re so interested in the sidewalk, that you don’t notice until you’re already on the ground, that some giant man is tumbling towards you. He tackles you straight to the ground. This man looks very ferocious and vicious.
“Oh me oh my!” The giant says in a squeaky falsetto voice. “I may have injured a traveller.”
You sit up and take a look at the man before you. He’s wearing a puple beanie, and is wearing a jacket that looks like it’s made out of tin foil.
“Don’t, worry,” you say. “I’m not hurt.”
“Oh, I see, I see...” squeaks the man.
“Who are you?” you inquire.
The man’s voice cracks as he continues to speak. “They call me Jones. You know... as in like ‘Jones ya know yer doin a good job!’, or like the breakfast cereal...”
“Breakfast cereal?” you inquire.
“You know, Jonsey Crunchem Bites”
“I’ve never had those,” you say.
“It’s a shame. You really haven’t lived life until you’ve had a bowl of Jonsey Crunch.” The man laments in an over the top dramatic fashion.
“Tell me Jones,” you say. “Where exactly is it that we are?”
“Well we’re in the wood of course.”
“I can see that we’re in the woods,” you say. “But do these woods have a name?”
“Can you give a name to the spring breeze?!” Jones says exasperated.
“Umm... no.” you say.
“So why in the world would we want to name our wood? You follow? Your in the wood, and that settles that.”
You’re starting to feel like maybe you don’t like Jone’s attitude, so you start to wrap up the conversation. You tell Jones that you like him, but you’re going to go explore the wood now.
You step off the bridge and head towards an opening you see in the trees. Beyond the opening is a well worn trail that leads off into the distance. You begin to follow it. The trail leads down the side of the hill and twists and turns frequently.
At the bottom of what you perceived to be a hill, the trail levels out, and then seems to go straight forward. You follow it straight for a long time when at final last, you reach a staircase. The stairs are nothing more than wooden blocks carefully inserted into the ground.
You follow this staircase up, and it takes you straight to the mouth of a cave. You’re hesitant at first, but then you decide to enter. You take a deep breath, then you enter the cave.