LITERATURE: Spirits of Fog 3

Written by T. Ponder

PART 3 of my series features a place I've grown fond of in Asia named Hualien.

"Spirits of fog 3” Written and Edited by T. Ponder 

The hollowness of the sea through windows of Stella and Josh’s house was like a ghost as is…. Josh woke up in a sweat puddle and urged Stella awake. His thin arms had broken-out with welts that looked like horrendous Spider-bites. Stella turned on the light nearest Josh and stood over him like she was his doctor. Stella yelled as she viewed the unnatural sight on her husband Josh’s arms. Although the bites were new, they appeared old, worn-in, and disease-like. Josh got convinced to turn himself into the local doctor by his wife Stella. The time was 1:00am when Stella and Josh arrived at the local hospital. The couple waited a few minutes, then were escorted to see the doctor. 

Doctor Vlad: “I’ve never seen anything like this! Where have you been Josh?”

Josh: “Nowhere!....well, I was in the forest about one month ago”

Doctor Vlad: ”You might have come across a microscopic parasite” 

Stella: “Oh no!”

Josh: “Give me medicine so we can leave”

Doctor Vlad: “I will have you come back tomorrow after your results come back from testing”

Josh: “Okay that’s okay Doc” 

Stella and Josh stayed awake all night until daybreak, drinking beer, and holding each-other. Meanwhile, Josh’s arms were wrapped in garbage bags and ointment. The phone rang and woke both Josh and Stella, however....the last ring dawned silence within their home. The raspy voice of the doctor shrilled and echoed. 

Josh….you….should….be….OKAY just keep your open wounds clean at all times.

The day seemed more vibrant than the other autumn dullness Stella and Josh faced and had fun with. Stella counted Josh’s wounds and there was one less from what she recorded….although Josh seemed ill, they made love to each-other in the day-time. The evening approached and the couple decided to go to see a drive-in-movie. 

The drive took longer than usual but the autumn day was truly stimulating for the newly-weds. By the time the movie was over it was pitch-black out…. Josh was frantically scratching his right arm again, as Stella reversed the Subaru from the movie screen and the empty theatre parking spaces.

Josh: “Let’s just take the long route back home”

Stella: “There is no long route honey”

Josh: “If we turn the other direction the roads should connect to our route home” (meanwhile fighting his urge to itch himself) 

The car cruised the maze-like-streets heading East, West, North, and South and stopped at many stoplights. 

Josh: “Sorry, we might be lost”

Stella: “Just worry about that ointment, I’ll get us back to the drive-in-theatre”

The love between Josh and Stella was stronger than the pride of the mean directions to the drive-In. 

Stella: “How about we get some snacks from the gas station before we get on the freeway?”

Josh: (stops spreading the ointment and smiles) “YESSSS! Let’s do that”

The Subaru cruised into the gas-station few blocks away from the drive-in, which was lit brighter than the movie that the Lover’s seen together.

Josh and Stella entered the store where they agreed to split-up and gather snacks. The isle Josh walked up was overly organized and the view of the snacks started to shape-shift before Josh' eyes. Stella appeared from around another snack aisle that connected where Josh was. Stella yelled “BOO!” Josh forced himself to smile then told Stella the issue he was having. On the drive back to their home, Josh started to hyperventilate, Stella noticed a rest-stop sign and sped up the Freeway Exit Ramp, around a circle, and parked the car in a small-lot surrounded by massive forest trees, trees that stood in the shadows like towers. 

The lighting was dim and the moon beamed through branches. Sweat drops dropped on the cement when Stella opened Josh’s door…Josh slowly got up off the ground that smelled like tires and pine-trees. 

Stella: “Honey there’s even a trail! Maybe that will help you, how do you feel?”

Josh: “I'm not as sick as I felt in the car, yeah, we should but nothing over 1-mile”

The newly-weds Subaru was the only car in the rest-stop-zone. The trail led directly up a big inclining slope, up and away from town. The crisp ground was loud as they trekked into the romantic yet mystifying planetary. The hues were reflective to their sight, the trail was bright of moon plight.

Green tones became brighter, as the slope rose hundreds of feet above the rest-stop. The couple reached the same height as branches that looked like Bromeliads. The dense forest was like Hualien…. Very alien, the suspension bridge ahead of the newly-weds path was levitating over unknowns. Josh could not stop scratching both of his arms, his nails frantically scraped as the wind swayed the over-lining trees and forest objects.

Stella silently stood beside Josh, lost in the view of what was before them. Josh noticed a tree-like-figure moving on the ridges across the bridge….he realized it was the same exact Alienoid that saved him, although Josh continued digging in his arm, he was shocked in amazement- he did not completely realize that he was still scratching his disease-like-wounds....The numerous tiny bites started falling off of Josh’s arms

Stella: (breaks the awkward silence) “Let’s go back to the car honey”

Josh: (slowly responded) “Okay”

Josh and Stella got to the car and drove away from the rest-stop....Josh took one last look at the Trees through the window. The mystifying thought of the Alienoid gave him the chills, then, Josh noticed that all of his wounds were healed.