I had noticed when we landed that there was a small forest about a half mile away from the hut in the opposite direction. I walked in pretty much a straight line listening to the waves crash against the rocks and the birds flying overhead. Overall it was very beautiful here, but the thought of the great stone table was very present in my mind. Was it just some kind of sick endurance test to see how strong my stomach was? Still, even though the thought sickened me I didn't want to wimp out on this. There were so many expectations of me, expectations that I didn't fully understand, but I had to try to meet them. Much like Atlas the world now rested on my shoulders.
The forest looked dense for not having appeared to be overly large. Stepping under the green canopy I started looking for fire wood. I found pieces here and there for kindling, but I was having a hard time to find any decent sized logs. There was something moving to my right. Standing quickly I looked, but didn't see anything. I went back to what I was doing, but I saw it again and heard murmuring. Still holding on to the wood I had gathered thus far I walked towards the sound. This was so weird, but my curiosity was getting the better of me. I walked through a space in a particularly dense group of trees only to be standing in front of a sapphire and silver waterfall hanging in mid air. The elegance and beauty of it was breath taking. Suddenly it giggled and in the middle the water parted to reveal a very beautiful blue face with deep blue eyes. It was a water nymph! I had read about them in stories before, but to see one up close made my knees quiver. I was unaware how lost I was in the sight of the nymph until I heard the wood bang and clatter to the forest floor next to me.
