Read The Plain White Room for Free Online Page B

larger and larger. The branch which had been as thin as a pencil was soon as thick as a human torso. It also had quite a bit of weight to it. Then Lepus noticed the house was getting bigger too. Still holding the ever growing branch Lepus’s feet took off from the ground. It was then that he realised the tree hadn't grown, but that Lepus had shrunk. He grabbed the branch with both hands as the ground became further and further away. Until he was swinging from the branch, no bigger than a thimble.
 
    Lepus pulled as hard as he could to try and get on top of the branch. Being of a particularly skinny build but with few muscles. The best he was able to do was get his legs to straddle the base of the branch. Looking down his heart started pounding. If he fell he was sure that he would break his legs, if not die.
 
    He started to shuffle himself towards the trunk of the tree. Once there he scrambled to his feet and caught a hole in the trunk. Using it to shift his weight he grabbed the trunk with all his might and panting clutching to it as hard as he could. Then lowered himself to the ground.
 
    Once he was back on the forest-like floor, Lepus looked around. Straining his eyes to make sure there was no trace of either the Dragon or the Scorpion having returned.
 
    He started walking towards the bush where the Scorpius had run to. All the way, he looked at the ground trying to find any footprints. Or scuttle prints as the Scorpius had six feet. He decided to see if he could catch a glimpse of his house. Or his neighbour’s house, to help get hisbearings. All he could see were the plants and bushes from his garden. All seemingly hundreds of times their normal size.
 
    Lepus started to panic as he realised it was getting later in the afternoon. Soon the sun would be going down. Tiny and outside at night would not be a safe place. Being so small, he had not walked far from the tree. He started to hear a slight high pitched buzzing noise. Looking up he saw scores of the bugs that the dragon had been eating. They were descending upon him. To him, they were as big as lions. As vicious too. Their wings were moving so fast that they were almost invisible. Their snarling gnashing teeth as sharp as knives. Lepus ducked to the ground as one whooshed past his head biting at him. They swarmed just above him like a terrible black blood as they poured towards the tree. Lepus rolled to get away from them. Then started scrambling as low as he could towards the row of bushes. He crouched and hobbled his way under a branch. Two or three of them had been able to take flying bites at him. From most of the bites they had drawn blood and many of the wounds were an inch long. They were all up his back and in his arms. He slumped down, cowering and watching them from the safety of the bushes. The swarm moved closer to the tree then seemed to fade upon reaching it. Lepus stood up and dusted the dirt off his clothes. Looking around under the bush he found a trail leading out to the other side of the bushes. He followed it, staying as low as he could in case the nasty bugs returned.
 
    Moving a branch from out of his way revealed a huge opening behind the bush. Although they were small in actual terms, to Lepus, a vast open plain spread out before him with rolling hills. It was a buzz with a life, however, teeming with violence, Lepus was overwhelmed and shocked. He had not expected to stumble onto something so strange, as the battle that lay before him.
 
    The dragon sat on a long sharp rock which was sticking out of the ground.
 
    The Scorpius was on the other side of the field, clamping its massive talons. The dragon stood on its hind legs and let out a long roar.
 
    Between the two of them, there were hundreds of insects of all different kinds. Ants which wore world war two helmets. Holding little rifles equipped with bayonets. There were spiders with Pickelhaube helmets and armor on their eight legs. Overhead there were all kinds of