I won't hold you with an introduction, except to say that one of the characters in this story is also present in "Kingdom In The Desert." Be sure to check it out after you read this!
A young woman with fiery red hair stretched out contentedly in her orange camp chair as she stared into the flames of her small campfire. Her violet eyes followed an ember as it drifted into the air. She smiled at the sound of chirping birds as they flitted about in the rich green forest and she breathed the fresh clean air in deeply.
“I needed this,” she mumbled as she tended to her fire with a long stick. “Things have been so hectic lately.” She blinked and looked up at the sound of birds fleeing through the treetops. Shortly after, she heard the sound of heavy, and somewhat clumsy, footsteps through the underbrush. Moments later, she could see the source of the the disturbance as a scrawny young man stumbled into the clearing that she’d made her camp in.
The young man was completely oblivious to her presence as he stared at an ancient tome that he held open in his hands. Her right eyebrow raised at the sight and she cleared her throat loudly.
“Augh!” uttered the young man as he jumped at the sound. He had a look of confusion as he studied his surroundings and began to realize that he was no longer alone.
The young woman smirked. “If you’d gone much further, you would have ended up in my fire.”
“Oh, um” stammered the man as he glanced back at his open book and looked around with growing puzzlement. “There’s no landmarks here …” he mumbled as he seemed to completely forget the presence of another.
Annoyed, the young woman got up and walked over to him. “Are you lost?”
“Um … well … um. Not really. It’s just that the landmarks in the book don’t seem to match the surroundings anymore. The forest must have grown up since then.”
“Oh?” asked the young woman with a sound of curiosity in her voice. “You’re following directions or a map? What are you looking for?”
The young man looked down sheepishly. “No … you’d just think I was being foolish.”
“No I won’t,” insisted the woman.
“Yes, I’m quite certain you would.”
“Try me,” she replied with a stern tone.
The young man sighed. “Oh, alright. I’m looking for treasure. I found an old book that’s supposed to tell where some old explorer found and re-hid treasure with the hopes that he could come back to claim it later … but he never made it back.”
“Oh?” she replied skeptically.
“No, really! He’s supposed to have drawn a map before he died and someone recorded it in this book.” He angled the book down so the young woman could see the map.
She studied it for a moment and a slight smile formed. “I don’t think your problem is that the landmarks are different.”
“What do you mean?”
“Do you have a compass?”
“Yes,” he scoffed and he pulled one out of his pocket. “And the sun sets in the west.” He pointed. “So that’s that direction over there.”
She sighed. “Do you know how to read maps?”
“Oh course!” He paused. “Why?”
She drew in a breath and exhaled slowly through her nose. “Where do you think we are on that map?”
“Um …” He paused for a moment and pointed. “Here.”
She shook her head and pointed toward the far bottom-right corner of the map. “Here. If you go much further, you’ll get to that rock outcrop landmark if you don’t believe me.”
“Oh. Um.” He studied the map intently again for some time. He pointed off into the forest. “I guess I’ll go that way then.”
“Do you need me to help?”
“No! Of course not!” he huffed.
“Alright. Good luck.”
She watched as the young man traipsed off into the forest again and shook her head. “I wonder how long it will take before the gets lost?” She went back to her fire and added another small piece of wood to it as she shook her head and smiled as she imagined him stumbling back into her camp after going in an enormous circle. “I wonder,” she mused quietly to herself. “What was that book? It did seem pretty old. And those symbols toward and around the edge of the map. They almost looked like …” The smile suddenly faded from her face.
“Oh no,” she moaned. “I hope that that isn’t … That that doesn’t … I have to go find him.” She held out her hand toward the fire and moved her fingers in a certain way. The fire faded and went out, leaving only a thin tendril of smoke drifting into the air, and she took off in the direction that her camp-crasher left in. She found him a short time later, already veering off from his intended course.
He looked at the sound of her approach with a mixed look of surprise and annoyance that she was interrupting his search. “I don’t need your help.”
“I think you do, especially given that I don’t believe what you said about what you were looking for.” She sighed. “Besides, you’ve already went off your route.”
The young man paused and looked back at the map. “I … have?”
The woman chuckled. “Yes. You have. What’s your name anyhow? Since we’ll be walking together, I’d like to know what to call you.”
“Evan … and yours?”
“Summer. Now, let me see that book and I’ll get us back to where we need to be.” And I can keep an eye on what you’re doing.
Evan hesitantly held his book out so Summer could view it more easily. She studied it thoughtfully, looking at the runes and language that decorated it. The border isn’t even written in common but in Arcane Script … I thought my uncle said that it wasn’t really used anymore, not even by mages. Here eyebrows scrunched as she tried to decipher the text. I wish I paid more attention to what he said about it.
Summer turned her attention back to the map and glanced at her surroundings. “Hm … If I have my bearing right,” she pointed at the map, “we should be about here.” She pointed off further into the forest. “And we need to go that way. There’s a gorge we need to go around, so we can’t go directly to our destination.”
“Oh.” Evan studied the map and noticed the lines that indicated the gorge Summer mentioned. “Hm.” He looked over the other features of the map and then considered how quickly he managed to wander off his path before pausing and looking at her. “You know this area very well.”
“I’ve gone camping out here a lot. My uncle is friends with the land owner and I’ve been given permission to come out whenever I want.” She smirked. “Speaking of which, this is private property …” she looked at him more slyly, “behind a fence.”
“Oh … um” stammered Evan.
“It’s okay. So long as you’re with me, it should be permitted.”
“Oh … well …” He gestured off at the trees. “Lead on then.”
= = = = = = = = = = = =
Summer led the way through the forest quietly for a bit and then glanced back at Evan. “So, what are you looking for?”
Evan’s step stuttered for a moment. “I thought I said it was an old treasure map?”
Summer huffed and stared ahead in silence as she walked. He does not have a treasure map … at least not one someone with no magical knowledge should follow. But what could I tell him? I can’t let him know that I know about magic … If I’m wrong he’ll think I’m crazy, head off by himself, and get lost again. “So what do you plan to do with this treasure?”
“Hm. I haven’t decided yet. Sell it I suppose? Museums would love to get any artifacts I find. It would be important for the continued spread of knowledge.”
“Except not all knowledge should be spread. Some could be dangerous if it got out.”
“How can one know unless it’s been found?” countered Evan as his excitement grew. “Just imagine the possibilities of what could be undiscovered just over the horizon!”
Summer gave Evan a weary look before looking back ahead and continuing her internal debate about what to do with her directionless traveling companion. It sounds like he knows it’s not a real treasure … and that means that I need to find out just what it is that he hopes to find out here to make sure he … or someone else doesn’t get into trouble.
= = = = = = = = = = = =
The rest of the walk was mostly silent save for Summer asking to see the book once more to make sure that she was going in the right direction. When they finally arrived at the place marked on the map, she looked around with a confused expression. “I don’t see anything. If I could look at the book, I might be able to help find what we’re looking for.”
Evan closed the book and pointed toward a large boulder situated a ways away from a larger outcrop. “There’s supposed to be a hidden lever of some kind. If you look over there, I’ll look over here.” He gestured towards the larger outcrop.
Summer eyed him suspiciously for a moment and walked over to investigate where he suggested. I’ll look but keeping an eye on you is more important.
She heard him put his pack down and stow the book that held the map in it. If only I could get a look at that somehow … She made a show of searching for a hidden switch while glancing frequently at Evan. He ran his hands along the rock face of the outcrop and seemed to be testing each large stone that stuck out in it. She watched more closely and her eyes widened upon realizing something. There’s something in his hand! Alarmed, she quickly walked over, dropping all pretense of hiding her scrutiny.
Evan heard her approaching and reached up higher toward another rock. Summer noticed a vial as he poured a silvery powder on top of it and her eyes widened even further. Arcane powder! How did he get something like that?! She ran toward him. “What are you doing?!”
Evan placed some more powder on top of a different rock as Summer reached him. She grabbed his arm and pulled him back. “Are you crazy! Do you know what that is?!”
He winced and managed to to pull hard enough against her firm grip to place powder on one last rock. They both stared in silence for a moment as all the rocks where Evan placed arcane powder began to glow. The glow spread into a series of narrow lines on a flat portion of the outcrop.
“What did you do, you idiot!” demanded Summer as she put Evan into an armlock.
Evan cringed. “Ow, ow!” He struggled against her, but quickly found that Summer has more strength in her build than he had in his own scrawny frame.
The lines continued to spread as they formed a number of runes on the rock face. After a few moments of no new lines appearing, the entire rock face began to glow brightly. Summer and Evan both had to look away, and after the light faded they both looked in stunned amazement at a doorway. Evan became ecstatic at the fruits of his labor and a surge of adrenaline, combined with Summer’s surprise, allowed him to force his way out of her grip.
Before Summer could respond, Evan had snagged his pack and made dash for the door. “No! Don’t!” yelled Summer as she reached for him.
Evan managed to dodge and dive headfirst through the door. Summer got to her feet and stared in disbelief. “That idiot” she mumbled. The door began to flicker and she cringed. “If that closes he’ll be trapped on his own and would never make it …” She dashed for the door. “If I don’t kill him myself first!” she declared as she leaped through.
Summer tumbled onto a sandy dune and looked up at Evan, who was staring in stunned amazement at the scenery. “It worked. It worked,” he muttered. “It’s another world.”
Summer got to her feet and glared at him for a moment before slugging him on the shoulder. Evan was spun around by the force of the punch and collapsed. “Ow! What was that for?!” he snapped.
“How do you think that we’ll get back?!” she demanded.
“Simple! We’ll just go back through the …” he gestured towards the doorway and his jaw dropped. “Where is it?”
“It was only a one-way trip you bleeding idiot! It was made as an emergency escape route for someone to get away, not to get back!”
“Oh …” He got back to his feet and stared at her for a moment. His eyes widened once more as excitement overcame him. “You mean you know about magic!? Is this really the planet Terebethia!?”
Summer took a deep slow breath. “Yes. This is really Terebethia. Yes, I know about magic … and I’m reallly sorely tempted to use some on you right now … because if you hadn’t noticed …” She drew a deeper breath. “You dumped us in the middle of the freaking desert with no idea of how to get back to Ereth!”
Evan looked at her silently for a moment before raising a finger. “I didn’t ask you to come with me.”
“No, but how long did you think you would last without help, Mr. I Can’t Even Read A Map? What sort of survival skills do you have? Could you even defend yourself?”
“Um … I have cloaks in my pack that I thought would be generic enough to blend in with the culture here, two water skins, some bread, and a load of jerky. I even scraped enough together to get some gold for trade.”
Summer sighed. “I guess you aren’t totally inept.”
“Hey!” he snapped. “I’m not stupid! I have a photographic memory!”
Summer smirked. “That just means that your intelligent, not that aren’t stupid for jumping through a portal to another planet without any idea as to where you’d end up.”
“Um … So, if you know about this place, I assume you’ve been here?” he asked hesitantly.
Summer sighed again. “No, but my uncle has and travels back and forth between the two worlds as a trader. We just have to find a way to contact him and he can get us back.”
Evan lit up. “Great! Let’s get changed and go where the nearest civilization is!”
“I’m not sure we’d want to go there,” said Summer with a scowl. “The last I heard from my uncle, there was some warlord going around The Great Desert conquering everything in sight and enslaving anyone he comes across. I think that’s where we are.”
Evan blinks. “Oh. Um … so. Desert. Let’s get out of it.
“Hand me a cloak and let’s get going.” Summer held out a hand and gave him a very frustrated look. “I’ll try to keep us alive.”
“Oh, yeah.” He took off his pack and chuckled nervously as he dug out the cloaks.
A short time later, both travelers were changed and on their way north with the goal of finding a road that would lead them out of the desert. As they neared the crest of a sand dune, Summer slugged Evan on the shoulder again, just for good measure.
As we continue on in these uncertain times, remember your social distancing, practice good hygiene, and stay home as much as you can.
As you shelter in place, be sure to do things to keep your mind active and get sun, even if it just means sitting in a window while you read a good story. We all need to be careful because of Covid-19, but that doesn't mean that we should add cabin fever and Vitamin-D deficiency to the mix. Please be sure to share this story with other people to help them pass the time! As always, I have multiple things going on and I've been making good progress on some of them, so you can expect to see some announcements soon! Until then, feel free to pass the time with some of the short stories here in my "Writer's Corner." Also, if you'd prefer to read fully edited versions of many stories, as opposed to the raw versions posted online, click on the "Books" tab to find how you can get a compilation in either ebook or paperback forms!
Enjoy and read on!
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