CHAPTER SIX- INTROSPECTION

Jacobs followed in Sarah’s general direction, hurrying past the tree’s and fumbling over every dump, rise and fall.

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Ahead of him was Sarah, who had dashed up into the trees. The world below zoomed past, she went south, having found a trail that was undeniably Roberts.

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While Robert was still desperately crawling out of unconsciousness.

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Jacobs pushed off of a tree and trampled through a bush, walking into a path. Then he saw them. The goblins. There were a group of them holding corpses. Two goblins per corpse, in a way that insured that none of the dead touched the ground. The heads where placed onto the corpses torso. The goblins carried the green tiny corpses with surprised and sometimes grim faces.

“What would you do?” A crusty voice prompted, it was Cosmo pushing Jacobs onwards. He smiled at the group, tight-lipped, looking downwards. Then Jacobs pushed on. The goblins watched him go, then continued.

“You know you’re very clever, for a man-child that hadn’t seen the light of day until recently.” Cosmo said.

Jacobs didn’t reply. He still hadn’t decided. “Why didn’t you help me before, when I was locked up?” Jacobs asked.

Cosmo replied, “You never tried to leave. Then the time came to leave, we didn't want to miss anything too exciting.”

“Why didn’t you talk to me,” Jacobs looked away from the imagined source of the voice, “when I was alone?”

“You weren’t trying to listen.” Cosmo said, in a monotone. But, realising that this wasn’t enough, he made an effort to say more, “You’ll notice, should you choose to analysis the sequence of events; that when you did try to leave, the bear helped you. A magic beast, whose power straightened your decrepit form. When you faced a user of magic, you needed me, so I spoke up.”

“And the dreams?” Jacobs asked.

“You’ve been through a lot,” Cosmo said, “you needed the example of a stoic hero. One who faced prejudice, like you and pushed through, as you did.”

At this point, Jacobs stopped. “And who made that choice?” he asked.

“We did.” Cosmo said, his voice echoed with something greater, louder. This was the phoenix. And it was so warm. “Are you satisfied?” It was growing impatient.

“I guess.” Jacobs pushed on. This was a part of him, no- he was apart of it. And so Jacobs continued south.

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Robert agonised over the pain, this, unknowingly, brought him to seek comfort. Desperation had him flick through his own mind until finally finding something. In his mothers arms, his tiny body wrapped in a soft blanket. This was his real mother, from long before the day with the troll, a youthful and graceful woman. There where bags under her eyes and beads of sweat running down her face.

Robert noticed his fingers, his small, chubby fingers. How old a memory was this? He asked himself.

His vision seemed to follow the bead of sweat. Down to her neck. It flowed further. Yet he stopped there. At her plump neck.

Robert pushed himself up from her arms, stretching his head upwards before finally, his lips met her neck.

Her skin was felt soft and smooth against his pink lips. Robert opened his mouth wide, pushed his head just a little higher, and he started to bite in. Blood flowed down into his mouth, and his tongue rushed to meet the warm flood of red. He closed his eyes, as the ecstasy of the action shock his entire body.

When Robert opened his eyes, he was back. Back in the green thick of the forest. On top of him, was a stranger, a woman he had never met, wearing black.

She seemed to fall into him, limp and pale. In seconds, Robert had finished his meal and risen to his feet. He stood over seemingly ancient dead body. “Congratulations," He smiled down at the corpse, "You will be eternally remembered,” Robert promised.

He took note of his new body, it felt light and its muscles seemed stronger, more defined. Everything seemed smaller, or perhaps he was taller. His skin, cold to the touch, but paler, smoother, cleaner. In a way, he felt both older and younger, as if he had been alive for eons, but also as if he had literally been born that very day. It was strange, but the feeling persisted. Robert tried to rationalise the sensation, in the end, he came to a single conclusion, "This is agelessness. This is eternity".

And then he stepped over the forgotten corpse, and rumaged through his pockets for his compass.

He had two choices. Commit to the mysterious south and all it holds. Or head north, and dominate the known world, perhaps there was an adventure to be had, in the comfort of home? In either case he had to decide then and there.

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With that, I am forced to break the narrative to submit a question to you, dear reader. Which way does Robert ultimately go? Does Robert attempt to conquer the known world? Or does he head south and discover the unknown? Pick north for the conquest or south for adventure.