The Ancient Jungle (III)
While keeping a wary eye on Tlalli’s fight against the monster, you head over to Sophie, slingshot at the ready. Sophie glances at you out of the side of her eye, frowning.
“What are you doing here?”
“Staying with you. Just in case.”
“W-Why, thank you, then,” She flushes red and gives you some reluctant gratitude. “I must admit that I was feeling rather nervous about being by myself.”
You give her a nod, not knowing what else to say and hoping that would be enough to reassure her.
“I suppose this isn’t be the best time to talk, but… I guess we don’t talk much, do we?” says Sophie after some time. She is correct about both, you think. You just nod again, affirming her statement. Sophie giggles suddenly. “You don’t talk much in the first place, so that’s not my fault.”
“Still, I say, Madam Tlalli is really quite the amazing woman, even though she is the furthest one could get from being a proper lady,” Sophie says, peering through her glasses. Tlalli has the hag in a chokehold at the moment, attempting to twist its head off. The monster shrieks and begins transforming once again, turning into a seal-like creature and slipping out of Tlalli’s grasp.
“Indeed, the Grand Old Lady of the Hunters’ Association truly lives up to her name, does she not? Why, to think that even this is not the full extent of her ability. That is truly a scary thought, hmm?”
Someone speaks up behind you. You whirl around, placing yourself between Sophie and the newcomer.
A tremendously fat man stands before you, monocle on one eye and a clownishly tall top-hat atop his head. His tailcoat is a deep blue, strained around his immense belly. It looks as if his buttons are about to pop at any time. A wide, toothy grin is spread over his face as he twirls his cane joyfully. Most of all, you can feel a wrongness about him… a wrongness you last felt with the monk in the ruins.
“Oh, pardon me for interrupting, dear children,” he says, tweaking his handlebar moustache. “I must have lost my manners somewhere in the swamp, hmm? Dear me, what a chore it would be to roll around in the mud looking for it! Thankfully, I always come prepared with an extra set of manners. My name, you see, is John Bull.” As he takes a deep bow, you sense a subtle change in your surroundings. Somehow, the world feels less
real. A mist has descended around you, obscuring all visibility beyond a few meters. You back away from the man, feeling Sophie clutch onto your clothes tightly behind you.
“Marvellous instincts, little chap!” chuckles John Bull jovially as he observes your reaction. “But there is no need to be afraid –“
“Help! Help!” shouts Sophie instantly. But no help comes. It is as if her voice has been swallowed up by the mist.
The fat man laughs. “As I was saying, my dear, there is no need to be afraid, hmm? I just want to talk.” He leans over gleefully, his blue eyes almost bulging in excitement. Striking the ground with his cane, he continues talking. “I came to talk with Dame Tlalli, mind you, that dear old friend of mine. Imagine my surprise when I found such wonderful little children along with her, in such a dangerous place! How very, very risky indeed, hmm?”
“What do you want?” you ask curtly.
“Why, all I desire is but to do what any gentleman would! I cannot in good conscience ignore the plight of children lost in the woods. Indeed, I had thought better of the Grand Old Lady than to bring such delectably young, upstanding youths into the jaws of danger, tsk tsk. What would I be if I did not offer my assistance to you then? A monster, hmm?”
“And how do you plan to help?”
“I can, dear boy, get you home.” John Bull’s grin widens even further, as if to split his face apart. “And… oh, bless my old eyes and hope they may be right, but you are one who is marked, hmm?” His gaze falls upon your bad leg, twinkling with interest.
“You can… get us home?” asks Sophie, half hopeful, half afraid.
He spreads his arms and makes a pirouette, his girth belying a surprising agility. “Yes, indubitably! My Astra, the Silver Compass, lets me travel through the floors in the wink of an eye! Why, my dear, should you care to take a ride with me, I will have you home and tucked in bed before the hour is past!”
You look the fat man in the eye, and he looks back, not shying away from your gaze, grinning all the while. “It’s a very jolly good proposition, if I do say so myself, hmm? But tick, tock, time is running out!” Taking out a pocket-watch, he makes a big show of peering at it. “I am a busy, busy man, you know! Places to be, people to see!”
“What about Elizabeth?” you ask.
"Elizabeth? A beautiful name, yes?" nods John Bull. "I have no idea who Elizabeth is and where she is, but why, I suppose we could just pick her up as we go! It would be no problem at all for a gentleman of my stature, hmm?"
“W-What should we do?” whispers a nervous Sophie quietly, breathing into your ear. You are mildly surprised that she is asking for your opinion, and at such a close distance too.
***
You decide to:
A. Accept John Bull’s offer.
B. Turn down John Bull.
C. Reject John Bull by firing your slingshot at his head without warning.
D. Attempt to stall for time by engaging him in conversation.
