Erin struggled against her bounds to no avail. The tight knots she's tied to thwart the loggers now seemed to seal her own doom.
Just as all hope seemed lost, Erin heard a rumbling in the forest. She couldn't place it at first. Then she realized it was the sound of thousands to wings flapping. A huge flock of birds was flying toward her.
'Great,' she thought to herself, 'the helicopters spooked the wildlife.' Now, instead of being crushed by a falling tree in an old growth forest, she'd be trampled in a stampede.
Erin braced herself for the onslaught. At the last moment, the flock climbed upward, narrowly avoiding her and headed straight toward the helicopters. As they flew at them, the pilots took evasive action, diving out of the way. While one would have thought this would be enough, the birds banked back and made another run at the choppers.
This unusual turn of events was too much for the pilots who beat a hasty retreat.
Erin was struck by the monumental quiet that followed. The din of the helicopters quickly abated. Even more surprising was the absence of any forest sounds whatsoever. No birds chirping, no animals moving about, no even the sound of the wind rustling through the trees.
And it was good that she kept her head. When she wasn't drinking or dancing with the satyrs, she found herself embroiled in complex philosophical debates about the nature of things.
Her favorite opponent was Princess Dawn. While Madison remembered Pan's daughter as the human college student she had been, the Satyress Princess had completely grown into her new position. Madison found her beauty quite allurring, particularly when Dawn and her fellow satyrs would take a respite from the debates to make love.
The passion Madison witnessed in the satyr orgies and the release they experienced bought back a flood of appealing memories of her 'empowerment' of Julie. More than once, she longed to join in the orgy, cognizant of the fact that it would mean relinquishing her human form and becoming a satyress for all eternity. Something was holding her back. While she wasn't sure what it was, she was glad that there was no pressure from any of her comrades.
After two days and nights in the Satyr Woods, Madison knew that the time allotted to her by Pan was drawing short, but she was still no closer to a decision.
Madison was surprised to see Pan join the group in the glade. She hopped he was not going to tell her it was time to go.
"My children," Pan began, "One of the earthly forests linked to the Satyr Woods is being threatened by man. If it falls, the energy of our home will suffer irreparable damage. I must enlist your help to bring a stop to this." At once, several satyrs stepped forward including Sophia, Janice and Mark. Julie, Sid and Sharon also volunteered, but Pan declined, indicating that there help was needed protecting the Woods themselves alongside Dawn and him.
Pan was about to open the portal and send his troops into the woods when Madison spoke up.
"Lord Pan," she said with a slight quiver in her voice. "I would relish the opportunity to serve you again."
Pan smiled at her words, but he was unsure of Madison's intentions when he said ...
Thu May 1 14:21:09 2003