They slept till dawn. Their sense of urgency seemed to have vanished with a good nights sleep. Against the rising sun to the east, the strange forest shimmered golden. Betulee realized that he had never appreciated the beauty of the forests back home.
“Come, let’s go,” Toolong said. He placed his hands on Betulee’s shoulders as they watched the glimmering forest. “Feeling better now?”
“Feeling great,” said Betulee with a wide grin.
They set off, with Mangkey once again perched on Toolong’s right shoulder. This time, they headed deeper into the forest.
For two more days, nothing around them changed. Even spaced trees, no undergrowth, no wildlife. On the third day, they encountered mist. Thick wet mist, like the mist they encountered earlier on. They continued through the mist at a steady pace. They walked in a straight line between the orderly trees, cutting through the mist like it wasn’t there. In the morning of the next day, they reached the edge of the forest. The mist was gone completely.
Before them, there were no trees. Just flat grassland that stretched for many miles. At the edge of the grassland, what appeared to be large high buildings could barely be seen. It had to be a city.
Weary to leave the forest, the trio studied the new landscape. Mangkey chattered nervously when Toolong pointed to the cityscape.
“That’s where we are going,” Toolong declared.
“To find blue tea,” Betulee added.
For days they walked upon the bare grassland, the sun scorching them. Was it the same sun, Betulee wondered. Probably not. Their sun back home was not so hot! They wanted to construct sun shades, but didn’t have anything in their backpacks that they could utilise. They resorted to tying clothes to their heads. Another shirt was spread out between their heads, providing some protection to Mangkey who sat below.
The grassland was truly bare, nothing grew except grass. A single species of grass. All uniform. They trampled along, feeling miserable as their “adventure” had turned into something so boring. They were also running out of food and water, but the city now appeared barely a days walk away.
The next day, indeed the grasslands ended. But instead of the city, they came upon what appeared to be a farm. The cityscape was further back still!
There were vegetables planted in neat rows. Familiar vegetables; cabbages, carrots and others. They spotted what appeared to be a small wood house about half a mile away. There was no one in sight.
Betulee’s heart started pounding furiously. How were they going to interact with the inhabitants of this new land? Were they hostile to strangers? Did they speak the same language? How would they explain themselves?
“Hold on,” Betulee said and he grasped Toolong’s arm. “We need a plan.”
Toolong stopped. “What do you propose?” he asked.
“I don’t know,” Betulee said frantically. “What are we going to do?”
“I don’t know either,” Toolong said. “But let’s go nearer and see.”
“What if they are not people like us?” Betulee asked.
“Bee, you worry too much!” Toolong said.
“I’m just cautious,” Betulee said. “We have no idea what’s going to happen.”
“True.” Toolong said. “But there’s no point worrying over nothing! Come lets go and get a closer look.”
They peered through the glass window. Inside, they could see a young girl, perhaps about twelve or thirteen, sitting alone, reading a book. Suddenly she looked up and her eyes widened in surprise. She got up and hurried to the window.
“Let’s go!” whispered Betulee. He tried to retread, but Toolong held him firmly, preventing him from leaving.
“Don’t be afraid,” he said.
They stared at the girl and she stared back at them. Then she reached out with her palm and touched the glass separating them. Then she turned and ran away.
“What now?” Betulee asked.
“I don’t know,” Toolong said.
Just a moment later, feeling his shirt being pulled from behind. He turned and saw it was the girl, her right hand pulling his shirt, as she stared at him, a wide smile on her face.
“Hello,” the girl said.
“Hello,” the boys replied.
