A Hidden Escape: Y/n's Journey Through Time and Magic.

The first thing I noticed was the colors. It was like a dream, a fantasyland. The scenery was breathtaking, with breathtaking colors! All around me were trees, in shades of green and blue and red and purple. And the sun was shining down upon them, making everything look more vibrant than I had ever seen before.

I looked down at my hands - they were tanned and rough. My fingernails were black with grime. But I wasn't in New York anymore. I looked around me, trying to find anything familiar. Nothing but trees as far as the eye could see.

"Hello?" I called out, my voice cracking as it echoed through the woods. "Is anyone here? Hello?"

No one responded to my calls, but I didn't hear any animals either. I started walking forward, towards a clearing that I could see up ahead through the trees. It got warmer as I got closer to the clearing, and for a moment I thought about turning back. But then someone stepped into view, and all thoughts of leaving fled away. He was tall and muscular, his skin tan like mine. His hair was dark brown, spiky and wild, his eyes a piercing emerald green that seemed to stare right through me. He wore only a pair of tight fitting black pants, showing off his chiseled abs and broad shoulders. Around his neck was a strange tattoo that glowed with its own light. In his hand he held a long staff. He stared at me for several moments before speaking up:

"Who are you?" he asked in a deep voice that sent shivers down my spine even as it intrigued me at the same time. "And why are you here?"

"I-I don't know," I stuttered, looking down at myself to see if there was something on me that might give away who I am or where I'm from. "I just woke up here."

"How do you not know where you are?" the man questioned further, stepping closer to me so he could look me over more carefully now that we were closer together. "What is your name? Where are you from?"

A pang of fear went through my heart as he tried to take hold of my arm to inspect me further. I pulled back instinctively and started backing away from him cautiously while holding my hands up defensively: "Wait! Please! Don't hurt me! You're scaring me!"

"You shouldn't be here," the man said calmly after observing my actions for several moments without any other response besides backing away from him again slowly this time instead of running away immediately like I had at first when he tried to grab hold of me again after hearing what he said next: "You should turn back while you still can."

"Turn back?" I asked softly after taking another step back out of reflex: "Turn back where? What do you mean by that? Where am I anyway? Am I dreaming? Are you real?"

"I'm very real," the man replied in amusement now instead of sounding threatening suddenly as he had before when he told what sounded like an order for me to turn back: "This is Vespia."

"Vespia?"

"It's what we call this place," he explained patiently: "The world outside these woods is called New Zealand."

"New Zealand..." I repeated quietly to myself while thinking harder about where it sounds familiar from suddenly: "...Wait! That's somewhere in Australia! No way am I in Australia! How did I get here?!"

The man smiled warmly at my reaction before explaining further: "That's how it works over here."

"...Are you telling me...that somehow...I'm in Australia...without flying anywhere...and just...woke up here?!"

He nodded slowly with his smile turning into a soft chuckle at my disbelief before offering an answer: "Yes."

My jaw dropped wide open upon hearing that explanation as my eyes bulged out of their sockets too in shock before shaking my head rapidly from side to side: "No way! There has to be some mistake or something!"

The man shrugged his shoulders while silently mouthing 'maybe' with his lips twitching slightly as he did so: "Maybe..." He then turned towards one side suddenly and pointed further into the woods behind him: "There!" Then he turned towards another direction: "Or there!" Then back towards the other side again: "...Or maybe somewhere else!" He then laughed hysterically after finishing that sentence while pointing all around us indiscriminately now until finally calming down enough to say more seriously again: "You really have no idea where you are or how you got here do you?"