Incredibly Ayden and Sebastian survived the fall 20 feet in the air.

 Ayden made another lilypad grow in midair if Sebastian wasn’t worried about cracking his skull he might have been impressed at her skills. They landed on the lilypad and miraculously survived an almost gruesome death.

Sebastian dusted himself off and exclaimed loudly “ I am never doing that again.” 

Ayden picked up her fallen bag off the ground, “ So you say.” Sebastian shook his head 

“ You're insane.” 

Ayden crossed her arms, “ Are you going to be a big baby and complain the whole time? We have a mushroom to find. Unless you want to go back home to your normal boring life.”

Sebastian sighed she was right there wasn't any use complaining when they had bigger things to do. 

“You're right, so where do we go first?” he asked 

Ayden walked towards the forest and pointed northeast. “ Over there are some ruins, there could be a mushroom hiding in dark places over there.” 

Sebastian looked in the forest, but he couldn't see any ruins, he couldn't see anything, it was as dark as night in there.  Perhaps the ruins will give him an idea of the war, perhaps it was a military base and it was full of helmets and guns, things like that but anything could be in there, waiting to eat a couple of teenagers. Sebastian took a deep breath, he couldn’t be a big baby, not here. If a small girl could go in and out of the forest all the time he can go into that place just once. 

Sebastian shut his eyes and slowly walked into the forest, he could hear sticks snapping at his feet, or were they some kind of stick creature that he just killed, and now they were going to start a war with him. 

The little creature moved around in his bag wanting to get out, he let out his breath he was sure he was going to be safe, nothing went to eat him them he felt a gust of wind touch him, and he almost ran out of the forest he was sure this was some big beast smelling him to see if he was good to eat. 

He stayed still, maybe whatever was out there wouldn't hurt him, maybe it will think he is a tree or something. 

Ayden poked Sebastian, “ Hey what are you doing you big weirdo.” 

Sebastian opened his eyes and was surprised by how much light there was in the forest. “ I was uh.” He noticed how much life was in the forest, it wasn't as scary as he thought it was.

“ You were what?” Ayden asked

For the first time in his life, Sebastian finally went into the forest. It wasn't dark and there weren't any monsters going to eat him.

 In the air were cotton ball-like creatures playing a game like a volleyball with an acorn seed. Everywhere there were plants of different sizes and colors, some of them were talking to each other while others looked like they were dancing. Everywhere there was some kind of life. Even the air felt alive. 

“Well?” Ayden asked. 

Sebastian turned to her and grinned, “ Let’s find that mushroom.”

“I knew you weren't a big baby!” 

Sebastian opened his bag and let the creature out, perhaps it will find a herd of its kind, or perhaps it will follow them. Only time will tell. 

The little creature spun in circles and looked rather excited to be let out of the bag. It flew to the creatures playing and picked up the acorn to only be squicked at. The little creature flew off to Sebastian and waved its little legs at them.

Sebastian put his hand out and let the creature walk on his hand to his shoulder, “ Well captain take us to those ruins.”

Ayden grinned “ Captain Ayden, I like the sound of that. Alright, first mate Miller off we go.”

The two teenagers walked into the woods, turning over any rocks, dead wood, and leaves they found to see if there were any bright blue mushrooms nearby. Instead, they found little insects that tried to shoot out a sticky green substance at them.

Ayden was enjoying pointing out her favorite creatures to Sebastian she would say some random fact about them like how one cuddly pink creature craved anything made out of sugar and a panda-looking creature with bee wings adores its sleep and how you shouldn't mess with it if they are sleeping, of course, both of those creatures adored Ayden and came to her if they saw her.

She grabbed Sebastian's hand and let him pet them. Sebastian found that he liked the panda-looking creatures the best.

Everything was fine for a while no creature tried to attack them, except when they turned over a piece of wood and awoke a sleeping Trumpeter fowl, a vicious type of bird that was very defense of their nest, they shot spikes at Sebastian's hand. It took forever for Ayden to pluck out the spicks, lucky he didn't get poisoned or anything. 

As Ayden went to turn a rock with brown specks, a spear landed next to her. Sebastian soon figured out those brown specks were dried blood. “Ayden!” Sebastian shouted.

Ayden stood up and ran to Sebastian “Where did that come from? “ She said nervously. Sebastian looked up at the treetops there he saw a shadowy figure that did not look human. “ Up there!” he shouted.

Ayden sent a vine in that direction and the shadowy figure moved out of the way, throwing another spear at them.

“I don’t think this creature likes us.” Ayden shouted as she and Sebastian ran off dodging the spears, “ No shit.” Sebastian replied.

Ayden tried to block the spear's attacks with plants she found, shaping them in different ways and growing them but the spears kept coming at an inhuman rate. 

The little creature flew back into Sebastian's bag and was saying plenty of bell noises that could have been curse words. Ayden and Sebatasian ran to a big tree with eye-like markings. 

“ Where is the closest way to the ruins?” Sebastian asked quickly, he looked through his bag for something, anything that would stop whatever it was that was attacking them. 

“ I don't know where we are, and even if I did I don't think we can outrun whatever it is."                   

A crash sound came from the trees and something heavy fell on the ground.

 Sebastian found the dagger Lorenzo gave him and grabbed it. He turned around and saw that the shadowy creature fell off a branch, and hundreds of spears fell out of a bag spread out on the ground.

 The shadowy creature wasn’t shadowy, it had bunny ears with a wooden mask over its face, and the clothes it wore were rugged and disgusting looking matted to its pink skin.

Sebastian pointed the dagger at the creature Ayden stood up and looked at the creature,” I think it's hurt.” she said timidly

“Good.” Sebastian spat, the creature stood up and stared at the two teenagers. It took off its mask halfway and hissed at them with its purple tongue. it picked up the staff and aimed it at Sebastian. 

The two of them ran off and the creature caught them while hissing at them and it spoke, “ Food.” 

Sebastian and Ayden glanced at each other now knowing that if this creature gets close to them again they wouldn't live. 

Ayden made a plant wall made of 5 different plants she passed. The creature sliced through the plants with its long nails. Ayden tripped on a rock, Sebastian walked to Ayden and grabbed her hand. He looked behind them and saw that the creature was closing in on them. “ We have to find somewhere to hide.” He yelled. 

“ I think my leg is sprained.” Ayden limped. Sebastian grabbed her hand and was getting worried when they saw a house in the distance. 

It was awfully hard to see with the forest getting darker, Sebastian could swear they just got in the forest, perhaps all that running around made him lose track of time. “ Over there a house!” he yelled out

They both ran to the weirdly shaped house that looked like the base of the house was bigger than there were webs around the house. 

They ran to the door and began knocking on the door. “ Hey, let us in,” Sebastian yelled. Then he said a couple of insults he wouldn't like his mother to hear.

“They won’t let us in if you use that kind of language,” Ayden said. 

They continued to bang on the door and the beast was right behind them, spear in hand, when the door opened and a tall woman with multiple eyes and hands looked at them, she had porcelain skin with black hair. “ Well, you two better come in for that vicious little beastly gets you.” 

They walked into the house and the tall woman closed the door. The house was a porcelain white with webby patterns. On a table was a large-looking fly in a cup of wine. 

“The little beast won't bother you if you're here,” she said 

Sebastian picked up the cup, “ Um thanks there's a fly in your cup..” the woman smiled “ Oh thank you, dear”

She led them to a living room that was full of bugs pinned to the wall and needles, she picked up the needles and placed them on a chair, 

“ Oh sorry for the mess, I was doing some knitting when I saw that mean little beastly chasing you.”

Ayden looked curiously at the room while Sebastian looked like he was going to puke. 

“So you like..bugs?” Sebastian asked. 

The woman smiled, “ Oh yes, love my collection? “

Sebastian grimaced and Ayden nudged him on the shoulder, “ Oh yes we love it, it's very unique.” She said

The woman grabbed a bug with one of her hands and hugged both of them with her rest, “ Oh yes, very unique, I adore my cute collection very much. You two can call me Arachne, you two can run upstairs and go to the room on the left to rest a little, I will make you a lovely meal too.” 

Ayden smiled, “ Oh thank you.'' 

She ran up the steps and Sebastian followed her.  The hallway was full of pinned-up butterflies and bees, on a table next to a closed door was a spider lily above the table was a big head that looked like a pig with huge ears and bug-like eyes. 

Arachne spoke from behind them “ You can stay here for the night, strange that a couple of children came here. May I ask why?” 

Sebastian jumped in surprise seeing that she was in fact on the roof. 

She walked down on the floor and grinned again as if she knew she was unsettling him.

Ayden grabbed a map out of her bag and pointed at a bunch of doodles. “ We are trying to get here, the ruins to find a mushroom, do you know where it is?” 

“ I used to explore the forest with my half-sister, but not anymore. That would be in the east.” Ayden smiled brightly “ Thank you again miss.” 

 They walked to a room that was pink and frilly all over. Ayden walked over to the bed and sat down. “ This looks like a cute little dollhouse, Miss Arachne has really good interior decorating skills.”

Sebastian shrugged and let the little creature out of the bag,

 “I guess she freaks me out. I mean a collection of dead bugs? Who does that?” 

Ayden shrugged it off 

“ Oh don’t be rude, she isn't human, maybe it is normal for her race.”

Sebastian guessed she was right, he looked around the room and noticed there were no windows in the room and how innocent and girly it was. It made him feel even more closed in than he should.

“ Hey Ayden, you can stay here. I'm going to walk around the house a little and get some air. "

Ayden started to play with a doll that was laying on the bed, the doll looked rather old for such a clean-looking room. 

Sebastian opened the door to be met with Arachne, she smiled showing her two big fangs “ Getting out so soon?” she asked, “ Just when I was finishing the appetizers.” She took a drink of the wine and pinched the fly with her fangs and started to drink its blood“ You two stay here okay.” 

She pushed Sebastian back into the room and closed the door, a click could be heard.