Ignorance Births Turmoil [part 1 of 3]

I can remember a time when I lived somewhere different from here. Somewhere not so heavily overgrown with trees and shrubbery. I remember buildings and people; streets and markets. Here, there is nothing. All I ever see is forest; well, that and sometimes a river or some rock formation of sorts. Sure, there is an amazing array of wildlife I tend to come across from time to time; but I am yet to find even one other person. That's not really true. Technically, I see people all the time, but when I do it isn't quite the interaction I had in mind. You see, occasionally I find these places where the forest ends. Actually it's more like the forest gets interrupted. I can always tell when I'm close to these places because the forest floor stops and the rocks and sand begin. But rocks and sand aren't what is so special about these places where I see people. Where the rocks end, there is a solid wall of glass. The glass must be many feet thick, but I can see through it perfectly. Every time I come across these places, they are full of people. I can see beyond the tunnels lie more forest, but these glass tunnels tend to stretch very far, so I can never reach the rest of the forest easily. I've followed the tunnels before and they usually end by either disappearing into a rock formation or going underground. Most of the time there are large groups of people in these tunnels. They wear odd clothing and act very strangely. They always stop and stare when I come to look at them. I'm not very sure, but I think they belong to some nomadic tribe that may use these mysterious tubes for long-distance travel. If I could ever get inside of one I could ask them, but the earth here is thick and hard to dig into so I won't be able to get in from underneath. Usually when I come across these places I'll spend the afternoon watching people. Their numbers tend to diminish greatly around dark, so when the night sets in, I head back to the house I've built myself above the main river that runs through the forest. I don't remember much about the place I lived before, and I don't remember leaving that place, or even coming to this place for that matter. I just know that I've been here for a very long time. Life is easy here. I have everything I need to survive and I've never met any kind of threat. One thing I remember about the place I lived before is the violence. There was always violence. Fires, murder, rape, theft; every day it plagued our town. But this place is free of that, so it's easy for me to stay. Sure, I could go out and look for another town if I felt like it, but I really haven't ever felt the need. One of these days I'm sure I will get the notion to follow these tunnels for long enough to find an entrance. When I do, I will follow those nomads to the next town and start my new life. I honestly don't know if that day will ever come. But some nights I dream about it. Tonight feels like one of those nights. I can't see the moon tonight. Sometimes I wonder if it gets lonely staring at the world, never getting close enough to touch it. Maybe it wants to go somewhere else sometimes too. Maybe it wants to leave the world in the darkest of nights. It looks like it might rain.
Cold rain drops tore me from a world of quiet dreams. It was a little dark. I could tell the sun was out, but the clouds made it impossible to find. I wasn't really sure why I felt the way I did. I felt like I was waiting for something to happen, or maybe like I needed to go do something. I saw that food was running low, so I gathered up my bow and decided to search for something to kill. I found a tall tree and climbed it so I could get a better vantage point. A bright object caught my eye through the treetops. After staring for a long time I realized it was one of the tunnels with sunlight glinting off of it. I decided to climb down and watch the nomads as they traveled. As I got closer I noticed something strange. The tunnel was completely empty. I was grabbed by some strange apprehension. The tunnels are usually full of people, what would cause them to be empty? A sudden movement caught my eye. It was a woman. She was running in my direction. She was crying. I don't understand what was happening. I probably never will. What I do understand is that she stopped and started beating on the glass, sobbing. I panicked and started running, searching for an entrance so that I may help her. I ran for about an hour. The tunnels were empty the whole time. I still hadn't found any kind of entrance. I had noticed, however, that there were bags and trash and bits of debris scattered around the floor of the tunnel. I felt like I missed something massive. What could've happened? Where could everybody be? I was overcome by a feeling of rage and despair as I watched the tunnel slowly sink into the ground. This couldn't be the end of it. There's no way. I sat down and held my head in my hands. I wanted to cry. Why could I never find a way into these tunnels, especially when I need one the most? Then it hit me. There are many tunnels, and I know they don't end where they disappear. I had always thought they had either reached a different kind of transportation, or a destination when the tunnels ended. Could it be possible that they are all directly connected? Are they all the same tunnel with the same entrance and exit? Why, then, do they disappear underground? I had to see for myself, so I began walking. I was overcome with excitement as I saw another tunnel rise from the ground a short distance ahead. I ran towards it, laughing. It was full of debris and such as well. I followed it for about two miles until it ended; disappearing into the face of some massive rock. I examined the rock closely. It seemed possible that there would be some kind of doorway, but I found nothing. I continued walking in the same direction. I became rather disheartened when it became rather dark. I decided to keep walking. After a short time of walking I saw a flicker of light through the trees. I ran towards it, stumbling over stumps and rocks along the way. I saw a tunnel up ahead. A shadow was running through it, holding some kind of light in its hand. I ran as fast as I could and caught up with the figure. It was a person in a strange kind of suit. I beat on the glass to get his attention. The person stopped, shining his light at me. I tried asking him what was going on, but I don't think he could hear me. He pointed the opposite way down the tunnel and made some strange gesture. The light suddenly went away and I could no longer see him. I had gone too far to turn back, so I continued in the direction I was headed. Eventually the tunnel came to an end, sinking into the ground right underneath some large rocks. I started trying to overturn some of the rocks. I managed to get two fairly large ones turned over and away from the tunnel, but the others seemed to be wedged too tightly to budge. I grabbed a long, thick branch and pried the rocks loose. Instantly the pile collapsed and rocks went rolling away from the tunnel. I grabbed one of the bigger rocks and began smashing it into the glass. Over and over again I would bring the stone over my head and bring it swiftly and firmly down, striking the glass with great force. After many blows, I paused to take a breath and look at my progress. Along with many scratches, there was no more than a few small chips out of the glass. Infuriated, I began smashing the stone against the tunnel wall like a mad-man. I let out a furious yell as I threw the rock at the glass. It struck and bounced back, rolling across the ground and finally settling and the foot of a tree. I looked closely at the glass. I could see the chipped parts by the light of the moon. There were many more small chunks of glass either missing or loose, and I could see that the small dents I had made had grown slightly. I grabbed a branch and started prying loose pieces out. There weren't very many, but the few I removed made the progress seem even greater. There was now a pit in the glass about three inches across and a little more than an inch deep. I picked up the rock and began pounding away at the glass. I beat the glass furiously until I absolutely could not move my arms any more. Exhausted and trying desperately to catch my breath, I looked at my progress only to be disappointed. Not only had I not made very much progress, but my impatience had caused me to almost completely miss the original hole I had started with. The first hole had not increased in depth, merely in width. There were now two holes, each about the same size and touching at the edges. I was exhausted, and I figured I could get a fresh start in the morning; so I lay down on a patch of moss and fell asleep.
I awoke to the first few rays of sunlight. My arms were sore, and I was laying on something very uncomfortable. As I sat up my stomach turned. I couldn't believe my eyes. I panicked. I was laying at the base of the tree on which my home is built. There was no tunnel in front of me. Had I walked there in my sleep? There was no way. I would remember having to find my way back in all that dark and through all those trees. I began hyperventilating. What had happened? How had I arrived back at this place? I decided I must have been too exhausted to remember the walk back. I gathered some water and dried fruit and started off in the direction I gathered the tunnel to be. It was a long walk, and I stopped only once to drink and eat something. I had walked for a few hours. I could tell by the landscape that I was close. I was met with relief when I saw the sun reflecting off of the tunnel. I ran to it. I thought about how strange it would be to finally get inside the tunnels. I broke the tree-line and approached the tunnel. My heart sunk. The floors were clean; and there was the usual bustle of people, granted not quite as busy, but nonetheless they were there. What met my eyes then made my head swim. I nearly fainted. The glass was perfectly fine, and the rocks were back in place. Everything was almost as if I had never interfered. I felt sick. My vision blurred. I sat down and held my stomach. What was going on? Could the tunnels possibly be magic? Is it possible that these nomads are actually wandering magicians? Sorcerers maybe? I gathered my head about me and looked up. A small group of people had stopped and were staring at me. Some people passed quickly behind them, but most of them would stop to stare at me. This always perplexed me. If I was so interesting to them then why didn't they exit the tunnel and come speak to me? Why didn't they welcome me in? At that time I noticed three men in the strange suits walking very quickly in my direction. They immediately stopped to stare at me. They looked like strange monsters. Their heads were masked by some odd contraption and there were strange tubes all over their bodies. They did nothing but stand there, staring. One of them stepped forward and motioned to the other people to continue walking. Slowly, they all walked away. Shortly after, two of the suited men followed; one stayed behind, never moving an inch, simply staring. I felt as if I was in danger; as if these men would harm me. I stood up and looked for the patch of moss I had fallen asleep on. There was nothing there but leaves and broken branches. I could not find any broken glass or loose stones, and I could not find the branch I had used to pry the stones loose with. Could it be possible that I had dreamed it all? I must have. I felt strange; confused. I felt empty and bewildered. I began to walk in the direction I had walked in my dream. I decided I would continue to look for a way into those tunnels regardless of the previous nights' level of reality. I noticed that the suited man began to follow me, but he soon disappeared under the ground. I began to walk rather swiftly in my chosen direction. I decided I would not stop until I had either escaped the forest or found an entrance to these mysterious tunnels. I had walked for hours and seen nothing but trees. I was beginning to feel desperate and hopeless. I wondered if I would find another tunnel any time soon. Everything looked familiar and I felt as if I were walking in circles. Something caught my eye. I approached a strange rock formation surrounded by thick vegetation. There was something very unique about the rock structure and I was filled with excitement as I ran towards it. I stopped suddenly, overlooking a small cliff. I could see the tops of trees and a river winding through the forest. My heart leaped up into my throat at the sight of a tunnel right below me. I followed it with my eyes as it wound through the forest. It seemed to never end. I climbed the tallest tree on the edge of the cliff to get a better view. I could see where the tunnel eventually disappeared into a large boulder, but I could also see where it reappeared a short distance away. I then noticed something I had never witnessed before. The tunnel went into a large cliff, and two separate tunnels split out of either side of the rock-face. I then noticed something that made me shudder. The man in the strange suit was standing in the tunnel directly below me, staring up at me. At that moment I was overcome by some kind of primal instinct. I snapped a branch from the tree and jumped down onto the rock formation. I stepped off of the cliff and dropped onto a small tree growing out of the side of the cliff. My eyes then met with the man in the suit and I lunged at him, soaring towards him. I landed hard onto the top of the tunnel, which I had never been able to reach before, seeing as they are easily fifty feet or so above ground usually and when they descend into the ground they tend to drop rather steeply. I relished the personal treasure of standing atop this massive glass tube. I beat my chest and struck the glass with the stick, screaming at the man in the suit. He pulled a strange device from his belt and pointed it at me. There was a blinding flash of light and suddenly, the man was gone. I felt dizzy. I nearly fell from the top of the glass but I sat down to avoid doing so. When I felt sobered I stood and began to run in the direction I had seen the split. I ran until I reached the point where the tunnel went into the large boulder. I climbed up onto the massive rock and slowly and carefully slid down the opposite side. I stopped to take a drink and eat some dried meat. I noticed the sun was about to go down. I had never been this far into the forest before. I was not familiar with the terrain. I was not sure if it would be safe to continue any further after nightfall, but I decided to do so regardless. I proceeded to run the rest of the way. Before long, I came upon the next section of tunnel. The tunnels were different here. There were benches to sit on, and the floor had light coming from it. There was a strange cart with four wheels, and there were no people. As I continued walking, I saw one of the men in suits sitting in a chair. He seemed startled to see me walking by and immediately grabbed something off his belt and began yelling into it frantically. Almost immediately the lights in the floor disappeared. The man walked swiftly towards the point where the tunnel disappeared into the large cliff. I could see a part of the inside of the tunnel beyond where it ended. I could see another bench and a door. The man quickly went into the door and the inside of that area went very dark. I was very confused. I didn't understand what was going on. It was as if I wasn't supposed to be near the tunnels. Had I stumbled onto some secret? Were these tunnels something that was supposed to stay hidden? I arrived at the point where the tunnel split from the mountain. I attempted to climb the cliff, but it was far too steep. I found the tallest tree I could and climbed in order to get my bearings. It was growing dark quickly and was difficult to see much of anything. I could, however, see a long string of lights continuing as far as I could see. But as I watched, I saw the lights disappearing quickly, leaving only darkness. I climbed down and followed the tunnel in darkness. After a few hours of walking, I stopped to rest.
I awoke by the sound of a twig snapping. I had fallen asleep when I sat down to rest. I sat up quietly and looked around. I could see three very dim lights bobbing around through the trees, slowly coming my way. I stood up swiftly, grabbed the biggest stones I could find and began hurling them in the direction of the lights. I roared as I threw rock after rock. The lights disappeared. All was quiet. I stepped to the closest tree and snapped a large limb free. I heard a footstep close to my left. Immediately I ducked low and swung the limb with all my might. I felt it make contact as it sent my assailant flying backwards. There was a loud crashing as the body landed. There was a shuffling sound and strange voices. I began running. There was an intense flash of light along with a loud cracking sound. I felt something heavy and warm land on my back and I fell to the ground. Whatever had landed on me wasn't moving. I turned over to get a look at what it was. It was a large doe elk. She must have been startled by the flash, stumbled, and broken her neck when she fell. I pushed her body to the side and began to run the length of the tunnel. I ran as fast as I could until I couldn't run any further. I collapsed, gasping for air. I had run for miles. I was exhausted, but I couldn't stop. I wasn't sure if those things were still after me, but I didn't want to find out the hard way. I caught my breath and began walking again. The sky was beginning to grow lighter. It was then that I noticed I was being followed. Not by something in the forest, but by men in suits in the tunnel. There were six of them, all walking at a very fast pace, following me. I decided to take a break. I sat down, facing the men. I opened my gourd and took a drink, staring at the men the whole time. They stood, motionless, staring at me. I sat there, silent, for quite some time. The sun was coming up. As the sky grew brighter, the men seemed more unsettled. One by one, they walked away. Only one remained. He remained motionless. People started walking past, as they do every day. As their numbers grew, more and more stopped to stare at me. I decided it was time to move on, so I gathered up my things and began walking quickly. People would stop to watch me as I walked by, but the only one who would follow is the man in the suit. I walked all day, only breaking once to drink and eat. It amazed me that this tunnel never disappeared. I had walked at least twelve miles and it hadn't gone underground or into a rock even once. I did notice more and more benches, along with a few more of those odd carts. The one thing that truly bothered me was the man in the suit. He never lost pace with me, not even once. When I had stopped to drink and eat, he stood there the entire time; motionless. I didn't understand what he wanted or why he was so relentlessly following me. I just wanted a way in.
I followed that tunnel for two entire days and nights. It never stopped. It never disappeared. I stopped only to eat, drink, and relieve myself. More and more suited men followed me at night, and one was always with me during the day. I slept very lightly for about an hour, but the sounds of the forest were relentless and I did not want to be overtaken. More and more people seemed to be interested in me during the day. They would even follow me for short distances. I followed the tunnel for most of the third day without stopping, until I saw something that filled me with confusion. I approached a massive cliff; the tunnel lead directly into the side of it. I approached the cliff in bewilderment. This looked utterly familiar. Out of the face-side of the cliff jutted another tunnel. I felt cornered. I decided to follow that tunnel until it ended, then to follow the other side back to the cliff. It took about three hours to do so, but eventually I did just that. When I arrived back at the cliff there was a group of thirteen men in the suits standing there, waiting for me. As I approached, one reached to his thigh and pulled an instrument from his belt. He pointed it at me, but immediately another man pushed him violently and was excitedly gesturing with his hands. The man instantly replaced his tool and walked away. I began walking along the tunnel as I had been for the past three days. I followed until the sun went down. When it grew dark I stopped to grab a limb and a few sharp stones. I had a feeling it would be a dangerous night. My feeling was right. A few hours after it the darkness had settled, I heard a strange noise. When I paused to see what I could see, I was rushed from all sides by large shadows. I swung wildly with my branch, knocking some back and sending others flying. One of them landed on top of me and tried to pin me down. I pulled one of the sharp stones from my pocket and shoved it as hard as I could into the stomach of my attacker. He let out a wild shriek and began writhing around. I grabbed the first tool I saw from his belt. I saw the men approaching me as I hit the button on the back of the black, spoon-shaped object. There was a loud crack and a bright light.
I regained consciousness about fifty yards from where the attack happened. There were six men in suits lying motionless on the ground where the attack took place. I must have been thrown back by the force of whatever had happened, and then stumbled around shortly in a daze before regaining consciousness. I approached the men. Why had they attacked me? Did they not want me entering their sacred tunnel? What is it they are hiding? I stood over them. Four of them were dead, two were unconscious. For my own safety, I took the others' lives. I removed knives and a few other tools I found on their person and continued walking. I had been bleeding from my ears and nose. What exactly did that tool do? I was afraid to use it again. I considered myself lucky to have survived that time. I rested for a short amount of time. How long had I been walking? Would I ever find an entrance to these tunnels? I considered resigning myself to either returning home or leaving the jungle forever, both of which seemed much easier than entering these magic passages. I spent the next three days traveling without problem. I was still being followed, but I learned to take short naps in the day rather than sleep at night. On the third day, I approached another cliff into which the tunnel ended and two more split from. This cliff had a waterfall which led into the river. I presumed this is where the river was fed from. I looked up to see not a single cloud in the sky. The sky gave me the strange impression that I was trapped in a giant bubble. The feeling of walking around in circles didn't help either, I suppose. I did as I had done with the other cliff; walking to the first break in the tunnel and following it back. The river ran alongside the tunnel. It was relaxing. As I approached the waterfall, I witnessed something strange. The water in the pool at the bottom of the waterfall began to bubble and churn. The water-level dropped drastically in seconds and it seemed as if it was all being drained. The water rose again as suddenly as it had dropped and everything returned to normal. I wondered what that possibly could have meant. I continued following the glass passageway for another day before I had another run in with the men in suits. There were only two of them, and they approached me in broad daylight in a slow and peaceful manner. I was wary of their motives. I noticed that a large number of men in suits were watching from inside the tunnel and I wondered what they were up to. As the two approached me, I saw them reaching for the device that flashes. I pulled the one that I had gathered first, and quickly got behind the first of the men. I had it pressed to his back and began to push him forward. The other suddenly pointed his at us and fired. There was once again a bright flash and a loud crack. I felt the man in front of me go limp. I fell to the ground as well. I felt nauseous and had a terrible ringing in my ears. The man approached us, I lay perfectly still. As he leaned over me I fired my tool and he went flying backwards into the glass. I awoke moments later, covered in blood from my nose, mouth, and ears. The two men were dead. I looked to see no one in the tunnel. I arose and began walking quickly. I knew they would be coming for me. I soon felt better and began running. I ran at a steady pace for hours. I was not being followed to the best of my knowledge. I took a short break and began to walk. I could see something strange laying next to the glass up ahead. I wondered what it was. I jogged up ahead to get a closer looked. I was immediately seized with fear and disbelief. It was a dead doe elk, decomposing, and lying next to a large tree limb. I didn't know what to think. It was the same elk. It was the same branch. I had spent a week following this tunnel and had gone in a giant circle. I started to panic. I felt dizzy. Everything went dark.
A loud bird call pulled me out of a deep sleep. I was in my bed. In my home. And that's where all this has brought me. I am fairly clean, not anything like I remember being. Was it all a dream? Was it all just one big dream? No. It couldn't have been. I ran outside and climbed a tall tree. There are no clouds in the sky. As far as I can see, there are no clouds. I notice that closer to the horizon the sky seems almost gray. I realize now that even when I was at the big main tunnel the sky seemed gray. It seemed especially gray there. My heart stopped. I have never taken the time to think about it. Every time I see a tunnel I can see the forest behind it. But as I walked along the big tunnel I could not at any time see forest behind it. I could only see gray. I felt a pit in my stomach. I began to run as fast as I could. I ran and ran until I reached a tunnel. A small group of people stopped to look at me. They had rather curious looks on their faces. They were dressed so strange. They have always been dressed so strangely. I pressed my hands against the glass and looked at them. They seemed unnerved and walked away. I decided I would travel one more time to the big tunnel just to be sure. I began walking. I walked until it grew dark and I kept walking. Eventually I reached the main tunnel. And I'm staring up as the sky is growing light, and my world is falling apart. My mind is falling apart. At the top of this tunnel, this thing, it does not curve around. It stays a wall of glass. There is a ceiling inside the tunnel and beyond that is an artificial sky. There is no sky. There is no forest beyond this glass. Everything I know is contained in this forest. This whole time, I thought I was looking at people trapped inside of glass; but this whole time I was inside the glass. This whole time they were staring at me. I began to cry. I felt nauseous and began to dry-heave. I curled up against the glass and fell asleep.
A warm breeze brushes my face, and I awake in my bed.