Castor wasn’t afraid of being alone. He’d been on his own since his parents had disappeared when he was fourteen. Always a loner, he had managed to avoid child services. He made rules. Never let anyone come to the house. Never give school a reason to call home. Keep up normal appearances. Always.
It had helped that he had access to his parents’ accounts online. They had left a Blue Book, with all their passwords. They had known they were leaving. Why hadn’t they told him?
Castor had been shocked to discover that his parents were wealthy. They had posed as middle class, working at regular jobs. After they disappeared, Castor thought they must have been Russian spies. He had spent ten years and a large chunk of their fortune hunting for them.
Never would he have thought it would lead him here. To this forest. Standing in front of this portal to another world. Castor’s parents had, indeed, been spies but not of the earthly variety.
The gods had long ago retired from the lives of humans, marginalized, then largely forgotten by a world they had created. Castor’s parents had come to Earth to investigate whether or not its current population might welcome the gods’ return.
Castor didn’t know why they’d been recalled. He expected that once he stepped through the portal he’d find out. He might not be able to return to Earth. No loss. With a grim smile, he stepped through the portal.
This week’s Wake Up and Write prompt required using the words alone, forest, and portal in a story of fewer than 250 words. I felt it called for a fantasy. I’m wondering how much my making it about gods has to do with currently listening to Stephen Fry’s Mythos on my daily walks. I suspect it worked subconsciously to help shape the story.
Here’s a link to check out Justin Deming’s publication. In addition to the Wake Up and Write prompts, he publishes his own wonderful microfiction.
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A novel in the making.
Oooh! Loved where you took this one, Dascha. I agree with Mark. This feels like a novel in the making!