The west woods also known as the "Asian black hole" was supposed to be the most mysterious and uninhabited region of the planet. It"s ma.s.sive area was rumoured to be more than 2000 kilometers, covering various oceans and lakes. n.o.body dared to enter the boundary of these woods and any person who dared to even break a small leaf, would not return alive.
Not just the west woods, the area surrounding it was also uninhabited. Vehicles pa.s.sing through the roads at the side of the boundary of the vast thick woods, did not even dare to stop their vehicles for a few seconds. Asian people, specially from Bangkok, Singapore, Malaysia had grown up hearing the mysterious stories of the west woods and various people getting lost in the Andaman sea or the big gulf, who tried approaching the woods through water.
Till date, the woods were the darkest mystery which n.o.body dared to figure out.
Elizabeth raced the accelerator and sped off at the speed of light. After about another one hour, the road turned completely secluded and dark. Apart from the moon and head-lights of the car, not a single source of light was available.
Elizabeth drove slowly along the pitch dark road, looking towards the trees on her right. The woods looked silent and scary! More than the fear of animals, what haunted her most was that David had ruthlessly left her dead baby in these woods.
She did not know what to do and exactly why she was even here! She stopped the engine of the car and stepped out. What do I do next? How do I find any trace of my son"s past? She glanced at the pitch dark area, ahead of her.
She slowly went closer to the deep woods, her legs trembling in fear. She took few deep breaths and finally gathered the courage to step ahead. Soon, she had crossed the paved road and stepped on the rough dense gra.s.s. She walked further ahead, looking around. She could hear nothing but the crickets chirping and occa.s.sional slight shuffling of the leaves.
She walked further ahead and suddenly felt somebody running behind her. She turned her head instantly and saw n.o.body! Thats weird! I actually heard some foot steps! She walked further ahead, getting hopeless with each step. May be I was too overwhelmed! What can I possibly find in such a place?
She walked further deep into the deeper woods and suddenly her foot stepped deep inside something very slimy and muddy. She could not see the pitch black ground but it looked something like mud.
"Ewwwwww." She tried to pull up her foot only to find her other foot stuck in the mud too. "Oh my G.o.d! I can"t pull my feet up. It"s sinking!" Elizabeth shreiked in fear.
She got hold of the branch of a nearby tree and tried to steady herself. Her legs were slowly sinking downwards, inspite of holding the branch tightly.
"Aarggghhhhhh!!!!" Elizabeth"s voice echoed in the jungle as she used her entire force to pull herself up. She finally succeeded in pulling her one leg up, which resulted in putting the pressure on the other leg. As a result she lost her balance, making her entire lower body sink in the slimy fluid. Oh No! Its a dead end! I dont think I can survive this. She continued to hold the branch but soon her body was loosing its strength.
Suddenly, she heard a loud growl, just close to her. Elizabeth screamed hearing the growl, which sounded like a loud thunder. From the pitch black forest she saw a giant Lion approaching her cautiously and slowly. Elizabeth was so shocked at the sight that she lost the grip of the branch and sank much deeper.
The lion moved slowly closer to Elizabeth, till it was looking straight in her face.
Elizabeth wondered what would be less painful death? To sink in an abyss or to be ripped apart by a ferocious lion. Since death was now inevitable, she took a deep breath and chanted all the mantras she knew!
The lion stopped just next to her face and looked in her eyes. As she chanted the mantras, the lion growled lowdly. The loud growl startled Elizabeth, making her close her eyes and chant the mantras more loudly. She was by now almost deep down the abyss till her shoulders. She opened her eyes for a split of second but closed them again and took a deep breath, ready to die from the lack of oxygen.
Suddenly, she felt a giant force on her shoulder and she screamed in fear. She opened her eyes and saw the lion, holding her one shoulder with its mouth. Surprisingly it was not painful!
Elizabeth shuddered in fear. Why would the giant beast let go off his meal? He will now rip me apart.