“I found it!” Liesel said, calling us back over.
We gathered around the table.
“I do have a map as to where the waypoint in my sector is. Employees don’t get overall park information, because we generally wouldn’t need it. The waypoint for this sector—the Dark Woodland Sector—is found inside the wood, about two miles down the trailhead, then off to the left about a quarter-mile along a side path. I’d estimate about an hour’s walk from here. You can use the other waypoints to get back home, without too much trouble.’ She looked up, relieved. “That means when you cross into other sectors, look for the waypoints as soon as you can.”
“I suppose tomorrow, we should set out. Since Zaran stole the key from the priestess of the Summer Kingdom, and she’s the one who imprisoned Devastey, that means that we should seek her out. We can’t go looking for him—the necromancer would kill us to get it back.” I shivered. “How far is the Summer Kingdom from here?” I asked. “Do you have any maps?”
“Yes, let me get one.” Liesel sorted through a bundle of documents and pulled out an actual, old-fashioned map. She spread it out. Somehow, Abarria looked so much less daunting on a fantasy map, than it did now that we were in it for real.
“Let’s see,” she said, we’re here—” She pointed to a forested region, then began to trace a path. “The Dark Woodland. And the Summer Kingdom…well, it’s through the forest, then you go here—to the Cryptic Marshes. After that you travel over theMountains of Kartell, where Zaran is from. And the Summer Kingdom is on the other side.”
I glanced over the map. It was huge—Abarria was an open-ended game, and the Dark Woodland only covered a fraction of its surface. Seeing the unending expanse of land and water stretching out before us once again drove home the fact that we were truly in a different world.
“Each sector has its own waypoint, at least. It will make it easier to return.” I glanced at Star. “I can’t leave her for too long.”
“She’ll be all right with me, and this is your home, for as long as you need.”
“I’m going to stay here with you,” Geoff said. “I can’t chance being stuck, without being able to use a waypoint, especially if they fix the game and I can leave. I need to be near the beginning, you know. I hope you don’t mind,” he added. “I can help Liesel and help protect the place against intruders.”
I nodded, disappointed, but I understood. “Of course. I’d make the same decision. We’ll be fine. And I do feel better knowing Liesel won’t be here alone.”
“I can go out hunting, too.” Geoff looked almost embarrassed. “I feel odd, because you saved my life, but?—”
“But nothing, dude. It’s all right,” Thornhold said. “We’ll be back before you know it.”
“Well, let’s make up your backpacks,” Liesel said. “You’ll need food for the trip, and you should take some gold coins to trade with, at least. You’ll also need better weapons, so we’ll go talk to Issel this afternoon—he’s a local weaponsmith. All right, we’ve plenty to do.”
If she was disappointed, she didn’t show it.
We scurried around, under her direction, preparing for the trip. All the while, I kept thinking of Zaran, and if he knew the key was missing. Would he be able to track it? Would he figureout that whoever stole it probably needed to find Devastey and head for her prison? And we’d have to go over the mountains, which meant dealing with winter weather.
With a million thoughts racing through my mind, I picked up Star and gave her a long cuddle. “It’s going to be hard leaving you behind, but until you’re grown strong and big, it’s safer for you here.” But inside, I couldn’t help but think that no place in Abarria was safe.
CHAPTER 22: THE DARK WOODLAND
We startedout at first light. In the chill of the autumn morning, the road covered with rolling mist that skittered along the ground. I looked over my shoulder. Geoff and Liesel were waving from the porch steps, and I was glad that he was staying with her. As nice as it would be to have him along, I had been worried about leaving Liesel.
Heading out on the road seemed far more intimidating than it had the day we’d stepped into the game. Everything seemed more vivid, more threatening. But at least we had a place to return to, and Geoff would help protect the homestead, if Liesel needed it. And my Frazzle cat would be in good hands.
The sky was clear—it looked like it would turn into one of those autumn days, when everything was illuminated by the pale morning glow, and then gradually the light cast a golden sheen that glowed without warmth.
“It’s beautiful,” I said, stopping to take in the view. Ahead of us, down the long road, were the houses that preceded the Dark Woodland, and then—the path vanished into the forest. We had everything we needed, so as we continued along, walking in comfortable silence, we focused on the journey ahead.
I tried to keep to the here-and-now, tried to focus on the present. Not the past, nor the future. For right now, all we had was the present moment. And when I looked around, I thought about how lucky I was. I could be locked within some dystopian nightmare, but instead, here we were, in a fantasy realm of wonder and beauty.
If we had to be stuck anywhere, this was as good of a place as it got.
The forest itself loomed near,and the path entered the center of the expanse, vanishing into the gloom. We had stopped at lunch, and now were nearing the entrance of the forest. I paused, thinking. I wanted to record what was happening for others who might come long after. But I didn’t want to waste the batteries of my watch. So I just committed to memory everything I could—the sounds of the birds, the smells of woodsmoke and spice from the houses behind us, the feel of the road beneath my boots—I tried to record it all.
After a moment, I asked, “Are we ready? The forest is only a few yards away.”
“I am,” Thornhold said. “Let’s go. We’ve delayed longer than we planned.”
“We couldn’t help it,” I muttered, but then sighed.
“I know you’re scared,” Brynn said, “and I would be too, if I were wearing a tool created by a level fifteen sorcerer. But aren’t you just a little bit excited?”
I could tell she was trying to make me feel better. “Yeah, I guess I am. I’m scared shitless of this key, mind you. But I doubt if any of us would play the game if we didn’t want to dive deep into its legends and lore.”
