The Mansion Deep in the Forgotten Forest

It was a cold morning, fresh snow on the ground and crisp cool air filled our lungs. Our fire from last night is still smoldering. Jack put more wood on it so we could start cooking what the other boys hunted down and killed early this morning. It was nice to see a deer carcass being dragged to our campsite since the last two days no one could get anything, not even a rabbit or a squirrel. Devin and Colby gave us the meadow report, telling us they saw a house in the distance about 5 or so miles north of us in the side of the dense forest on the mountain. We made a plan to pack up and start our hike north to this abandoned house. It was a long 5 miles going over treacherous terrain through the most dense forest I’ve ever seen. It's hard to believe the trees and brush can grow with it being so crowded. As we moved through the forest nothing exciting happened, we took a lunch break to start another fire and cook up more of the deer Devin and Colby killed earlier that day. The good thing about it being so cold up here is that you don't need to worry about any meat being soiled from the heat and if I had to guess it felt like it was 10 degrees. After lunch we head back out to find this house, Colby is leading us through the forest and at the top of a small clearing, you can see the roof of the house. We’re all excited to get out of the elements as we could see a storm rolling in. Time was not in our favor as this storm was approaching fast and we could already see the snow it was dumping on the land a few miles behind us.

After about 15 minutes of running as fast as we could, we got to the house but it's no house, it's a goddamn mansion. What the fuck is a mansion doing in the middle of the forest on the mountain side? All of the windows are boarded up, the siding is falling apart, the mansion definitely looked abandoned from the outside. We try the front door and it's unlocked, all of us pull out our guns in case anyone else is in here and to our surprise, there's no one. We put our weapons away and start to roam around a little bit. I get my flashlight out and point it to the ceiling where I see the most gorgeous ceiling paintings with gold foil shining back at me. It took my breath away, I mean how did someone even get up there to do that? The ceiling had to be at least 15 feet high, probably higher, with old chandeliers hanging from the centers of each section of the lower floor. This was the biggest house I’ve ever seen let alone been inside. I was completely in awe of the place. There's artwork all over the place, full body statues and head statues line the walkway to the main foyer and huge canvases covering what would be the windows. Cold black and white marble stretch across the floor with a thin layer of dust, leaving our trail to follow us. As we make our way to the main foyer we see a grand staircase that branches off into two leading to the next floor, we all make our way up them heading in separate directions. Erika and I go to the right and the boys to the left. We see multiple rooms and hear a faint noise, like a radio is playing. As we approach this room, it's warmer as if there's a fireplace in it. I'm taken aback when there's screens that span the length of the walls playing artwork like a slideshow, these pieces were different from the ones downstairs, these pieces were darker, sadder, and put a weight in my chest. Erika starts on the far side of the room looking for any clues that there's a person living here, and I stare at these pictures as they flash in front of me. Erika grabs my attention telling me she thinks she sees someone and that she thinks they may be dead. I come over next to her with our weapons drawn, and take the covers off the bed to find a very much alive girl with hair so matted it looks like she hasn't brushed it in literal years. We all stare at each other saying nothing for what felt like hours but she's the first to speak. “Are you with Brutus?” her voice shakes and cracks as the words come out. Erika and I share a glance, confused as to who the hell Brutus is. “Uh, no whos Brutus?” Erika asks in a sweet light tone. The girl hands us a letter. The letter reads,

To Janey,

I’m sorry to put you here but Brutus will be coming for you. I don't know when and I’m sorry to not have any answers for you. You won't remember anything and that's for your protection. You are 18 years old and have lived in the Arctic circle for your whole life. You were taken in the middle of the night from your mother and I and we fought until we got you back. We did but it wasn't safe for you or us. I hope you understand that we did this for your protection against who took you. I won't say much more than that incase someone else reads this letter. Your mother and I love you and just want you to be safe. This mansion can do that. I know you’ll be okay by yourself, you're a smart woman and I’m so proud of what you’ve done.

May we meet again my sweet daughter. I love you.

I look at Janey confused, as does Erika. “How long have you been here?” we both ask Janey with urgency in our voice. Janey looks a little more comfortable and tells us she's been here for 7 years if she keeps track right. It can be hard when you have no concept of day and night. We sit on the sofa that's on the other side of the room, so many questions are running through my head I don't know which one to ask first. “Wha- what did you do to be brought here? Why did your parents drop you off like it's some school field trip? How the hell does this place have power? Who built this I mean this place is crazy huge and full of art, like how did your family know of this place, did they build it? Why did you leave the door unlocked? That's dangerous. I mean we could cold blooded killers that walked in.” I ask Janey as I'm pacing the length of her room.

Janey looks up at me like I just asked her if she put the moon in the sky. “Did you even read the letter?” she says to me with some of the most brutal attitude I’ve heard in a while, even the boys don't have an attitude like that. Erika goes to sit on the bed, she's always been a warmer person and knows how to talk to people better than I do. “She’s just confused because this place looks run down until you get up here. How did you figure out how to turn the power on for this room?” Erika asks her in a sweet and light tone, something I struggle with unless it's with an animal.

Janey gets out of the bed, her muscles are toned and you can tell she's well fed. She leads us to the breaker box she found in the closet, a weird place for it but this is a weird mansion so it blends in. She proceeds to turn on the whole second floor and you can hear every light turn on and a few fans start to run. She goes on to tell us that like the letter said, she doesn't remember what happened even now, the only thing she understands about it all is someone is always watching over her as food and water have never ran out. She doesn't know if it's her parents or not but everyday she waits for Brutus, a man she does not know to come and save her from this lonely house. By this time the boys are also in the room, they are just as confused as I am about this whole situation. She leads us to the dining room, a room that did have large skylights and tall windows that went floor to ceiling but are now covered by huge canvases with brilliant pieces of artwork on them. Janey offers us some tea, and we all accept as we haven't had anything other than water in months. It was nice to have some flavor in our cups.

“To answer your question,” Janey looks over at me, “I’ve only done the smaller works of art, I couldn't find large canvases, only small ones and I don't know who built this or who made the art you see. When I got here it was like this already. I think this has been used as a hideout for ages and as people come and go, more art is added to the house. I’ve never gone outside since the letter said not to, so I don't know where we’re at other than somewhere cold. Who are you guys and how did you find this? Did you run into anyone on your way here?” Devin, Colby, and Jack all look at each other like they just received a pop quiz, not knowing what to say. I start to tell Janey that we heard of this place from Colby’s dad who said this house had artifacts left in it from World War II, that these have been stolen and never found again since the house is hidden from the world. “From the outside the place looks like it's about to fall to the ground and turn to dust but inside it's sound, at least that's what it looks like. If it's okay with you, we would like to stay here for a while to rest and then we’ll be on our way.” I ask Janey nicely, “Also, I’m sorry about earlier. I don't really know how to approach situations like this.”

Janey takes us on a tour of the mansion, this place is much larger on the inside than it appears on the outside. As we’re walking through the rooms and the halls, I start to get this feeling like I’ve been here before. Almost like I know who made these artworks and lived here before it became abandoned. I ignore it because there's no way I would know who made any of this. It looks older than me by two lifetimes. As we all start to get tired Janey leads us all to our own rooms, we haven't slept away from each other like this since that wretched night. Erika and Devin go into their room, they’re basically married. I couldn't fall asleep so I go to Colby and Jack's rooms to see if they’re awake and they are. We all climb into the big bed in Colby’s room and within minutes I’m sound asleep.

I'm walking in the forest, I’ve been here before. I’m alone, and it's not winter, it's spring. The birds are singing and the forest is alive. I look ahead and see the mansion. It’s alive with life, there's farm animals around the house and a beautiful garden on the sides of the house. Huh, it looks so different with life around the old house I saw today. I walk up to the house where the man outside yells to me, “Nicole! It’s about time you came back from hunting! Nice work, that's going to feed us for a whole week!” I look down at my hands that appear to be holding about 5 rabbits each. I walk into the house, I look up to see if the ceilings are painted and about half of it is done. A woman comes up to see and takes the rabbits and asks if I’m going to continue working on it today. “Working on what?” She laughs and points up, “Did one hunting trip give you memory loss? You told me to pressure you into doing it today if I thought you didn't want to.” She walks away and I’m left staring up . I did that? But how? I head towards the stairs and go into the room that Janey had been in. Everything felt familiar and in the room next to mine was full of art supplies, the same room Janey had said she got the paint and canvas from. As I walk around the house, my name is on all of these paintings. Nicole Jackson. I head back downstairs to work on the ceiling and my hands start moving on their own, their muscle memory was powerful and created a beautiful scene. I felt as if I was in a dream inside a dream, that I had no control over what was happening, I was just watching.

I woke up in a cold sweat, Colby and Jack weren’t in the bed or in the room, I heard everyone downstairs, it sounded like breakfast was being cooked. I go to the bathroom to splash my face with water, I’m already used to being somewhere with water readily available, weird. The cold water helps bring me back to reality but I can't shake that dream I just had. What was that? I go downstairs to be greeted by my best friends and Janey, although she is growing on me. Shes kind and caring with a lot of attitude, makes for very entertaining conversations especially when the boys say something stupid.

When I looked up from my plate everyone was staring at me. “What happened?” I ask, quickly darting my eyes around the table to meet everyone's gaze. “I asked how you slept, Colby and Jack told me you guys couldn't sleep without each other and you slept in so I was just checking in.” Janey says to me, a little concerned. “Oh, uh -- yeah after I was with those two I fell asleep right away and slept pretty good. Not having to be worried a bear is going to attack you in the middle of the night is nice. The blankets were soft too, it made it very easy to sleep. Thank you for asking.” I dropped everyone's gaze and went back to gathering my eggs with my fork. I asked what we plan on doing today since we still have food from yesterday's kill and Erika suggested we go out and explore, just me and her. She’s always known when my zoning out is either legit or I'm in another world. She was never wrong.

It's chilly outside but the sun is slowly warming the air, thin spots of snow are melting, spring must be around the corner. We start going further up the mountain and when we’re about half a mile away from the mansion, she asks what happened at the table. I told her about my dream and she began to tell me about past lives and how everyone's souls are reused and sometimes you can see into your souls other lives. She knows I don't believe in that shit. If there was another side where the so-called ‘Creator’ lives, I wouldn't want to be in the same space as the asshole who did this to everyone. People praise these ‘Gods’ for the good they do and I can't help but laugh. There's nothing but evil around us. “Yeah, whatever. I think it's just a dumb dream.” I told her with a snarky tone that I know she hates. We gather some wood for a fire and head back, talking as if the past conversation never happened.

It's been 4 days and we’re still in this mansion with Janey. She told us we can stay until summer if we want to, that shes okay with the company since she hasn't talked to anyone in years. Last night I went into the room with all of the paint supplies, I couldn't sleep not knowing if I really knew how to paint and like the first time, I was watching my hands go to work. They knew what to do while I just stood there and watched. After hours the sun started to come up but I couldn't stop, I was almost done with this painting. A skull with candle sticks all around it, it was huge. I painted over an old painting that had the initials N.J. so I felt that I could revamp this painting with no hard feelings to my past self, if that was even real. “Holy shit. Nickel how the fuck do you know how to do this?” Colby asks with his mouth open so big you could catch butterflies with it. He stares at the work I’ve spent all night on, the look of awe in his eyes.

“Would you believe me if I said somehow, somewhere, some way I made everything with a N.J. on it? Erika thinks I saw my past life where I made all of this and I lived here but you know how I feel about that. I haven't been able to get it out of my mind ever since I woke up from the dream so I had to try and see if I could really do it and well, I can.” I said kind of shrug like, I don't like receiving compliments on anything so I brushed it off and changed the topic. While we were talking about where we would go for today’s hunt, Janey came into the room. She looked at my painting and her jaw dropped. She ushered us to wake everyone else up and meet her in the dining room. Odd request but alright. Colby and I went and woke the rest of the crew up and we all went downstairs to sit in our seats at the table. In front of us were photos and other documents Janey said she found a long time ago in the attic and one of the photos was of a woman standing in front of the painting I spent all night working on. She looked like me and didn't at the same time. Her eyes were full of life, her smile was happy, she looked like she enjoyed her life and what she does. I should’ve walked in front of a mirror to see if that life was reflecting back to me in my dream or if my real self was there, just in the dream as a placeholder.

“This makes so much sense! I had a dream a few months ago where someone told me that I would be meeting the ‘one who started it all’ and it must be you, Nickel! There's no way that you remade that painting down to the brushstroke if you and her weren't the same person. I’ve had a lot of dreams where I’m told things and then they happen like the time I was almost found here but a pack of wolves took down the two men, just like I was told in my dreams. We have to figure out how you and her are the same person years apart.” Janey exclaimed to all of us, but mostly me. Erika looked at me with raised eyebrows as if to say “I told you so.” There's a silence for a while, I think they were waiting for me to say something. I told them all about my dream I had a few nights ago, which made Janey very happy. We all start to brainstorm what this could mean and how we make it happen again so I can try to figure out why we came back here and if we were sent. By whom I have no idea but I mean how did we stumble upon this mansion in the forest with no tracking equipment when countless governments couldn't even find it?

“Ah, look who it is, it's about time you showed up. I was wondering if you got any of my messages, I’ve been sending them for almost a year. You know I got worried and you didn't even send a raven, I thought you were dead.”

“You know I can't die, that was the whole deal. It's hard to find a raven in the middle of a war Nicole you know that. You’ve seen it, it's no man's land out there!” The man was angry but relieved to be home.

“Well since you never got the chance to read them, I found her.”

“Really? You did? Does she know?” I could tell he was on the edge of his seat, as was I. Who are they talking about?

“She's with a group of friends. They’re in these woods as we speak, heading this way. When she gets here, she won't know this place but I already got everything ready so she can help us passover. We’re almost done with this, Jack . It’s almost over.” She's excited.

“If she agrees. She’ll have to convince Jack to do it too and it's not like it's an easy thing to convince someone of.” He sounds defeated. I decided to come around the wall and ask them what the hell is going on. I come around the corner and they both look up at me and back at each other, with a confused but excited look on their faces. “She’s stronger than I thought, Jack.” A smile creeped across her face.

“What do you mean you guys can finally passover if my friend and I help you guys? How is this place real and alive but not at the same time?” My thoughts are much more put together in the dreamstate, it's nice for a change.

“It’s a long story but you and I are the same person on different timelines. We both live in this house and make the same art and do the same things, just at different times. It's hard to understand but you will once you and Jack outlive everyone you know. Some people aren't people, they are raw souls, as we say, they do not form to the same time that other people do. In a sense, you are here and everywhere all at once. Your friends are close with the idea of a past life, except this life has never ended and it's not in the past, it's right now. You-” I cut her off, what is she talking about? This was not the answer I thought I would get.

“You’re saying this life I’m living right now will never end? That's not funny to joke about. What do you mean that you and I are the same? Yeah we look the same but we are not the same person there's no way!” I can feel myself starting to get red in the face, I'm confused and getting more and more annoyed. Why won't she tell me straight up what's happening?

“It doesn't have to be forever. If you allow us to ‘die’ you will be able to live our lives in your present day mind. You and Jack have to set us free. Our jobs are done, we have kept you both alive for long enough and you can do it without our help now.” She looks like a sad child. Like she was just told her childhood dog had just died but she's choking on her tears.

“So you’re telling me that my friend Jack and I have to ‘set you free’? And what do you mean that you guys helped us stay alive during this life and don't need to watch over us anymore? Are you the reason all we’ve seen is evil and destruction?” I asked with urgency in my voice.

“We are the reason you survived. Be grateful. You all could’ve spent an eternity as a prisoner of war while they try everything under the sun to kill you, always being unsuccessful. We have always been hunted, that's why you found your home. This house was built and created by you and Jack, as we are right now. Janey was the missing piece in this whole puzzle as she is the same as us, that's why she's being hidden in this house that is only found when it wants to be. Others will see a foundation of where a house once stood, its people will see what you and your friends see. You're not the only ones but in this matter, you and Jack are the key factors. Janey will be able to help you guys set us free. I sent her to you, or really sent you to her. You will go through a ritual that will connect us as one, our souls will combine back into one and we will live the rest of our lives in your and Jack's bodies as you are right now, in your timeline. Think of it as finding the last piece to your puzzle that was under the dresser, once you find it, the puzzle will be completed and you can rest. It won't hurt, it won't be scary, you will finally feel whole, and that ache in your heart will go away. I promise you it will, we are both hurting and this is how we make it stop and also put an end to our lives so we aren't living through the end of time. This is the only time we can do this so we need to act fast.” I couldn't believe what I was hearing. Is this why I felt like I knew the mansion but I've never stepped foot in it? I wonder if Jack had been experiencing any of this.

“So what do I need to do?” Living a longer life than anyone else sounds absolutely awful, so I would like to get this show on the road.

“When you wake up, Janey will show you and Jack what to do. You will need to help her convince Jack that this is real, and this is the only way to put an end to everlasting life.”

“Wait, how did you even gain that ability in the first place?”

“Well, I begged that Jack wouldn't be taken from me without me going with him and after 90 years and neither of us have aged past 50, I knew something happened that I didn't see or feel. I talked to my mother who had passed over and she told me where the other parts of our soul were. You and Jack are the last pieces and she told me you guys would be the hardest to get as you guys are us, not the trees in the forest or the butterflies that roam the fields. You are as close to human as we are.” She explains with a soft voice, a comforting voice. I felt close to her the more I let my body and mind relax. I wanted to be with her. I told her I will see her soon, and told Jack he will see Jack soon and we can all reconnect again.

Janey comes barreling into my room right as I wake from my dream. Could you even call that a dream? It was more like a real life conversation I had with myself. Janey tells me we need to get Jack and go down to the river, 2 miles down the mountain. We get Jack and on the way down we both explain our dreams to him and he tells us he was visited by a man that looked like him but had no left hand and now knows where his birthmark came from, a thick line going around his left arm, in the same spot where the other Jack’s arm was no longer there. He knew fully what was happening because in his dream he was shown what would happen if he didn't go through this ritual. We gather the supplies needed, Janey telling us what to grab for the ritual and head back up the mountain to the house. Once inside, the others are standing in the doorway waiting for us. They all had dreams that told them what was going to be happening too.

As the night rolls around, we all gather around Janey, who had spent the whole day getting the ritual ready. No one understood what she was doing but we all trusted her. She was told everyone has to be included in it for different reasons but all of us will be healed afterwards. I can't believe I actually believe this shit that's going on but I do. We all sit down in a circle surrounded by candle light and an assortment of herbs and other little things that I’ve never seen before. We all have something dear to us in our hands and Janey starts to call out to the owners of the mansion. Before I know it I’m back in the original mansion, Nicole and Jack are there, smiling. They run up to me, my friend Jack is next to me but I don't know if he can see me. When I’m face to face with myself I hug her, and it's like we melt together the way lava and the earth glide under and over each other. Just like that I’m back in my body, as a 22 year old woman and I do feel a sense of warmth that I’ve never felt before. I look around and the only person that's with me is Janey.

“They’re still in it. You were the first to be mended back but that's what I was told will happen. Now you help me help the others.” Janey pointed to Jack next to me, and I started to talk to him.

“Jack it's me, Nickel. You need to accept it.” Just like that Jack comes to and is in our present day. He starts to cry because he's overwhelmed with warmth and love he's never felt before. He is whole again.

As everyone is coming to, we all realize that we have all known each other for ages. Through different lives and different pasts, we have all been together, one way or another. We were led here to find the truth about ourselves and why we always felt like something was missing. Our souls were missing from our bodies and we were only one fragment of them, that's why none of us felt warmth or love or true happiness, because we weren't whole like everyone else is.

It was confirmed that this house is only found when it wants to be, after staying with Janey for a year and never having a visitor, we all put in the work to remodel the mansion. Jack found a new love for woodworking and building, as did Colby and Devin found a new love in cooking. Erika, Janey, and I made everything for inside the house. Erika and Janey reupholstered all of the furniture while I went back to painting the walls and ceilings. Little by little this mansion went from looking dusty and not lived in to being what I first saw in my dream, a house that lives. So now we will live out the rest of our lives together, knowing it’ll end and start up again somewhere else along the timeline, and for once we are all excited for the future.