Chapter 4:47 Melophobia

"We need to get Here." Oliver says, looking at the map.

"Where?" Theo asks.

"No, this is Where. We need to go Here. Here is over There but under Where."

"Well there is Here." Theo points. "So where is There?"

"Over Where and under Here."

"Oh. But what if we go There?"

"Never go There. You can go in There but you'll never get Here."

Oliver stuffs the map away.

They trek through the dark forest. Theo carries a torch to light their way. In the trees, the dizzy pigs fly from branch to branch. They're coming up to a fork in the path where it splits and arrow shaped signs declare "Yonder" and "That way."

Rustling noises startle Maise and Mr. Bear and they fall behind.

"Keep up!" Theo barks at them. "You're slowing us down!"

Maise shutters. "Do you think it's dangerous out here?"

"Don't worry," Oliver says. "That's probably just lemmings or the dizzy pigs that eat the poisonous mushrooms. This way." he points and they go the Yonder way.

A light wind sways the trees. Over a hill at the end of the path the forest opens up to the River of Tears. The river flows with shiny, metallic mercury. Poisonous since the sky fell.

"Help this bridge is falling down! Falling down!" a lady's voice cries.

A blue octopus writhes in the water. Its tentacles grab onto the flimsy wooden bridge, yanking planks down. The lady's trapped.

"No fair!" she shouts.

"We went the wrong way. We shouldn't be here." Oliver says.

"We have to help her!" shouts Theo.

"Don't let the water get on you— it's poison!" Oliver says!

Theo pushes over an old dying tree toward the the broken bridge so the lady can crawl over it back to land.

The octopus grabs one of the dizzy pigs flying overhead and drags it into the water, disappearing.

"Ugh. What a terrible affair." she says, brushing herself off. "Watch out for the Silly Goose!" she shouts, pointing.

"Nah, that's just a loon." Oliver assures her. "I know a loon when I see a loon."

"Fair enough." she says.

"What's a loon?" Theo asks.

"It's like a duck." Oliver says, pointing to a row of them. "See? Duck. Duck. Goooose!!"

Behind the loons is the purple Silly Goose. It sees them and charges— waddling at them at full speed!

The fair lady screams and runs into the woods.

"We have to get out of here!" Oliver shouts in a panic.

"Where's Maise?!" Theo looks around.

Her and Mr. Bear are gone.

Maise was distracted by the soft melody of a lute. She stepped into the forest brush and found a man in a suit with slicked back black hair, an easy smile and long, sharp fingernails.

"Hi there," he smiles.

"Hello."

"I like your bow," he says.

She adjusts it.

"Where are you headed?"

She shrugs— I dunno.

"Do you like my song?"

She nods— yea.

"Would you like me to keep playing?"

"Ok," she says.

He plays his lute and Mr. Bear spies from behind the brush. He turns and runs into Theo and Oliver just as they're being chased by the Silly Goose.

"Where's Maise?!" Theo shouts.

Mr. Bear points frantically.

The man stops playing and puts his lute down.

"Hey, can I tell you a secret?" he asks her.

Theo and Oliver burst into the clearing.

"TYPHO!!" Oliver shouts.

Theo grabs Maise's hand and yanks her away.

They run back to the bridge, past the Silly Goose— full speed over the old log. It collapses after they cross and they disappear into the forest on the other side.

The Typho picks up the map that Oliver dropped when they were running away.