After following the river for some time, I have realized some things. Firstly, the trees seem to be changing in an extremely unnatural way, for the trees are changing shape. At first, I thought it was just me seeing new trees by walking, but as I stopped after hitting a rock, the pine trees in front of me changed into palm trees. Though afraid, I continue on down this steam, my mind beginning to shake back and forth.
The river seemed to be calmer the further down you went, and I could of sworn that I could walk right over it on my hindhooves. I go to the water's edge, a small squirrel scampering away from me, and dip a hoof in. The water was deeper and stronger than it appeared, nearly dragging my entire body underwater. I pull out my hoof, but something got stuck on it. I look closely, seeing yellow sprinkles of metal on my hoof.
Gold.
I shake my hoof over my pocket, putting the gold in my pocket. It must have come from upstream, so I continue on with my journey to find the source of this river, for I still hadn't seen any kind of city near me. Weirdly, I was hungry again, but I saw one of the pines in the distance turning into an apple tree. I quickly trot that way, nearly tripping over a random rock that had probably been there for years, and stumbling into a tree instead of falling into the floor. Something fell on my head as I hit the tree, hurting me even further, so I curse under my breath a few times. Or more than that.
Picking up the object, I see it is an apple. I kick down a few more, eating them one at a time. One tasted sour, another sweet, and one absolutely bitter. I laugh, happy to partake in this odd feast, so I hit the tree again. It was now a palm tree. I frown, going back to the river, and continue walking on a full belly.
Night is arriving soon, so I go into the western (according to the sun) part of the forest to the river. I look around for the most tight and uncomfortable spot possible, for the trees cannot be trusted to lay in and that less big predators could fit there. I find a large rock, seemingly cut through by unknown means, and analyze it. It was like a ring-shaped boulder, half submerged, and has engravings on the inside. I lay inside of it, but there is not enough light to see it. I would make a fire, but then they would see it, or I would set the forest on fire, or something else will find me. I don't want any of that, so I just get as snug as possible, slowly falling asleep...
I wake up, the sun in my eyes and bugs in my face. I nearly scream of shock, until realizing that they were harmless caterpillars, and just shake them off. I look at the engravings inside the rock, finally, and begin to read somewhat. I skimmed through it, but I could see that it was a chant of some sort. Bored, I recite it.
"Puh," I spit, "gluey maggle'naf 'Kulu Really waggah'nagal Ftagn?" I say, believing it to be an odd chant. Suddenly, though, I felt my back be pressed hard against the wall, so I jump out of the rock. I roll into some brush, feeling small cuts on my legs, and witnessed the horror that happened to the rock. It was being molded into a new shape, something sinister, and it made me slightly sick. The figure that was displayed looked like a hideous, bipedal, creature with no hair. It was covered in scars and rags, but it felt so known to me. I realized why it is. It is a hairless ape.
The poor sod, shaved down to his skin, was smiling proudly to the sky, unashamed. I look away, feeling embarrassed for the man, and trot back to the river.
Traveling upstream once more, I jog on my hindhooves for some long-overdue practice. It felt good, better than normal, and my bones felt revitalized. The trees seemed more lively and slow, as if they wished to remain as one tree instead of changing every single hour,and the air itself felt more alive than normal. I feel bad that Mr. Bubblepants isn't here, but that child probably needed him more than I did. Is it weird that I think that? If so I wonder if that chant did more than show me a naked ape. I look sullen at the ground for a bit, but remember something.
Even the naked ape was courageous and proud, so I should be, too! I think, running bipedally upstream.