Andy’s Woodsy Adventure – Chapter 14

Q: Why did the lifeguard rescue the hippie?
A: Because he was too far out man!!!

Andy’s Woodsy Adventure (Chapters 1 to 13)

Andy’s Woodsy Adventure – Chapter 14

“CHRISTOPHER MICHAEL RILEY, WHERE HAVE THE TWO OF YOU BEEN!!!” said Chris’s mother sounding quite angry.

I thought for a second it might be the perfect moment to pause time and discuss this with Chris, but I didn’t get the chance.

“Andy and I were transported to some other realm where time and space exists quite different from here. In all honesty, we really were only gone for like 15 minutes but somehow that translated into over four hours once we returned.” Chris said without batting an eye.

I couldn’t believe it. He had told them the truth. I at least would have come up with some elaborate lie.

“Young man, do not lie to your mother! We know you somehow snuck outside and went exploring in the woods. Just think what Andy’s parents would have thought if we had called them when we couldn’t find either of you anywhere! You’re grounded starting tomorrow. Andy, I’m sorry but you won’t be able to see Christopher for the next two weeks, as he will be quite busy with a long list of chores I’m going to be preparing for him as his punishment. So you two better enjoy tonight for it’s going to be a little while before you two will be hanging out again. Now I suggest you both come get a few slices of cold pizza, as I’m sure you’re probably starving…”

Mr. and Mrs. Riley then promptly walked out of Chris’s room and headed downstairs.

“What just happened exactly?” I said feeling completely dumbfounded that his telling the truth had actually worked somehow.

“I told the truth. I’m the Guardian remember and I have lot more faith and integrity to uphold and hopefully teach you. Because I know you most likely would have told some ridiculous lie like we were playing the world’s longest game of hide and go seek or something else pretty silly.”

“Come on, give me a little more credit than that!” I said laughing, as the two of us headed out of Chris’s room and downstairs to have dinner, which for us was really at the normal time we would have been having it, if we hadn’t headed into some other dimension that is…

Chris spent the rest of the evening, after we had returned upstairs, talking about my future training plans. Thankfully his parents hadn’t pressed us any further about the missing four hours while we had eaten our cold, but still delicious pizza from Mama Mary’s. Frankly, I was feeling a little overwhelmed by the whole Guardian and Keeper idea. A few months ago, I was just an average kid that had no friends, was constantly picked on, and was about to enter the 7^th grade. But now I was supposed to be some hero divinely picked by 12 celestial beings to help protect my planet. Me, a rather tall scrawny 12-year old boy, I mean, what good could I do?

“Are you even paying attention to what I’m saying???” Chris said snapping me abruptly out of my wandering thoughts.

“How I am supposed to be a hero at 12 years old? I think they picked the wrong guy.” I said to Chris somewhat dejectedly.

“I know this all must seem crazy Andy. But look, they picked the two of us for a reason. And I think you are exactly who is meant to be the Keeper, just like I am beginning to fully accept myself as the Guardian. I promise you the training will help you feel a lot more confident. But the first thing we need to do is…”

WHAM!

Chris suddenly hit me in the face with his pillow, which then led to an all out pillow war causing me to completely forget for the moment about the worries I was having. Soon after that we got the “lights out” shout from his father. It didn’t take long for me to fall asleep, as everything that had happened between my visit to the other realm and listening to Chris’s long training lecture, had totally exhausted me.

Unfortunately, the next two weeks dragged by ever so slowly as Chris’s parents had remained true to their word with his punishment. The only time I got to see him was during school. There, I had been tempted on several occasions to pause time again and mess with the biggest school bully, the same one who had tried to trip me in the cafeteria on the first day. His name’s Trevor by the way, but Chris had to continue reminding me of the tagline I had always heard in the Spiderman comics, which was “With great power comes great responsibility.” I knew he was right every time he said that to me, yet it was so frustrating having the ability to do just about anything, but not being able to use it on people like Trevor who really needed to be taught a good lesson.

About the only time I really got to talk with Chris during those two weeks was during lunch. During each he only seemed to ever speak of more training ideas, none of which was actually sounding like very much fun to be perfectly honest. And since we weren’t even able to talk to each other on the phone at night, I had spent every one of them pondering his ideas and even toyed with the notion of trying a new Zodiac symbol completely on my own, but ultimately decided against it. After all I knew now that was supposed to be one of his duties as the Guardian.

When Chris’s punishment finally ended, it was a welcomed relief because I had grown bored of my own company and thoughts, and truly wanted to get this training started. And that was precisely what Chris had planned for that Saturday afternoon. This time he had asked for permission to go into the woods, even though we hadn’t even gone into them the last time his parents thought we had. They said it was ok and had given us a curfew of 5pm, as there was going to be a cookout my family was coming over for at that time. It was just around 1pm as we headed deep into the thick forest behind his house on a trail that appeared as if it had been walked on countless times. It vaguely reminded me of my original woodsy adventure that had led to me finding the crystal and on the path I was now on.

“Come on, hurry up, we don’t have much time!” said Chris who was way ahead of me on the trail.

I picked up my pace and soon emerged into a large field in the middle of the forest that had knee high grass and a relatively clear pond next to it that Chris told me came from some underwater stream.

“You’re first training begins in there by the way…” said Chris pointing towards the water.

“WHAT! No way, it’s like not even 50 degrees outside and I don’t think this water is much warmer than that.” I said as I dipped my hand into it and felt how cold it was to the touch.

“Remember that Zodiac symbol Cancer that you epically failed at using?”

“Yeah…so?”

“Well if my hunch is correct, you’re not going to feel the cold of the water at all.”

“But I don’t even have a bathing suit!”

“I do!” said Chris smiling as he pulled one of his out from the backpack he was carrying.

“Ugh! Of course you do. Just so you know, I think I’m already beginning to hate your training.” I said with a frown as I grabbed the bathing suit and quickly put it on.

“Ok, now what I want you to do is say Cancer and immediately jump into the pond.”

“Really, do we have to practice this one today?” I said shivering.

I was still feeling rather fearful about my choking incident at the end of the summer the first time I had tried to use this symbol.

“You’ll be fine Andy. Ready?”

“No, not really, but whatever! CANCER!”

I quickly took a running jump into the lake half expecting it to feel like icicles were touching every part of my body, yet it was oddly warm and reassuring, like it might feel during a very hot August. As I looked at Chris giving me the thumbs up sign, I tried to take a breath in through my nose and started gasping again.

“Go under the water dummy!” said Chris noticing what was happening all over again.

I immediately dove straight down into the pond and tried to breath again, but this time felt oxygen rush into my body through the sides of my neck. I tried to touch the area with my hands where that was seemingly coming in but couldn’t because my fingers were now all connected together with a strange webbing. I looked down at my feet and noticed the same was true there as well. Overall, my body felt strangely different as well, yet I was unsure of what actually had changed within it. It was then I remembered seeing the Keeper on the black screen behind the Council of the Zodiac racing through the water.

Hmmm, I wonder…

I placed my hands close together, in a streamline position, and began to kick my feet as hard as I could. Immediately I shot forward faster than I had ever swum before, so fast that the bottom of the pond almost became a blur as I raced over it. And within a matter of seconds I found myself already on the other side of the pond.

As I looked back across it underwater with eyesight that seemed enhanced as well, I started to think that maybe this training thing wasn’t going to be so bad after all…

Peace, love, light, and joy,

Andrew Arthur Dawson