What was she holding?
Slowly, she moved the specimen away from her chest, but she didn't let it go, keeping it close to herbody. Her instinct advised her to carry the object close to her at all times. The feeling was so overwhelming that she didn't question it for a moment. She probably wouldn't have been able to resist even if she had wanted to, as if they belonged together.
Panting, Ava looked at her find. What kind of weird thoughts were these? Her and feelings? Her and a close relationship with a... stone? Shaking her head at herself, she lifted her gaze, and her eyes widened.
Directly in front of her stretched the river, but it no longer led into the dense forest. No—it led into a vast landscape that spread out right at her feet. A landscape just like the chimney sweep had drawn in her thoughts earlier that day.
There were high mountains spreading out on the horizon, and the sun was disappearing behind them. A path began right at her feet, as if she were really standing in front of a portal to another world, and the air was filled with a crackling. A crackling that smelled of magic and fire.
Chapter 3
Ava stood still for a while until her body came back to life, and then she started blinking and looked around. She was standing alone on the riverbank, the small town where she lived behind her. And before her there spread out a landscape she had never seen before.
She took the glimmering stone in one hand and rubbed her eyes with the other, but that didn't make the seemingly boundless area disappear. The mountains looked like they went on and on, though she'd never seen in any atlas. The river made bends that weren't marked on any hiking guide, and there were fields stretching far to the south, even though every map indicated dense forest in this spot.
Her gaze fell to the ground. She was still standing on the pebbles at the shore, but if she took two steps, she would enter the path that wound along the river and led into this vast terrain. The path that had never been there before.
Where would it take her? Why had she never seenthis stretch of land before? Was it true what the eccentric people in the village claimed? Was the river the portal to another world?
An unexpected smile stole across her lips. At the same time, she was gripped by a sense of excitement that had been lying dormant somewhere inside her. A question sneaked into her mind and wouldn't let go: Did she dare?
She stretched out her foot, and as soon as she set it on the path, a tingling sensation spread through her body. The tingling swelled, spread to her little finger, and only subsided when she had crossed the transparent boundary.
Instinctively, she pressed the shimmering find to her chest as she put one foot in front of the other, not knowing where this path led, whether it was wise to take it, and what the source of this unbridled joy was.
The path led up a hill and followed the course of the river. With an excited tingle in her body, she climbed the slope and as soon as she reached the top, she paused.
The path led directly over a landscape of gentle hills to a large city nestled in a valley. She saw numerous old-fashioned-looking buildings stretching towards the sky. There was a high wall reminiscent of ancient fortifications to protect against unwanted attackers, and dominating the city hill was a medieval-style castle, its tall towers seeming to reach to the heavens.
Ava stood still, looking in astonishment at the buildings, at the life unfolding before the city gates and within the walls, and at the castle. She swallowed.
Was what she saw real? Wait—was it possible she was dreaming? Probably. That must have been it. Sheslapped herself on the cheek with the flat of her hand and swallowed again. She felt the pain. Did that mean?—
"Keep me safe,"said a voice in her head. It sounded like the voice that had advised her to press the strange find to her chest just minutes ago. It sounded desperate and frightened, and it tugged at her heart. It gripped her like the cry of a child in need.
Blinking several times, she glanced at the object in her hands. This surely was no simple stone. But then what was it?
"Halt, in the name of the almighty king!" As if out of nowhere, four riders appeared on the path, although Ava had just been alone. The men were dressed like soldiers, and armed like them too.
Had the voice asked for protection from them?
Automatically, she went on the defensive. "Who are you?"
The soldiers saw no reason to introduce themselves. With eyes narrowed as if they could stare at her inner being, they focused all their attention on her. "Who are you? Identify yourself!"
She hesitated. "This must be a huge misunderstanding?—"
One of the soldiers grabbed the hilt of his sword hanging at his side and shouted, "Identify yourself, I said!"
"No problem." As aggressive as he was behaving, she figured she'd better not mess with him. Nervously, she rummaged in her handbag with one hand, although it occurred to her that the men might not be pleased with her ID. But one of the soldiers jumped off his horse and grabbed her wrist, as if fearing she would draw aweapon. Judging by the badges on his chest, he was the captain of the troop. With an energetic nod of his head, he pointed to her find, which she awkwardly pressed to her chest with one hand.
"What do you have there?"
Her pulse quickened as she kept the stone close to her body. She was overcome with fear that the men might try to take it away from her. She wouldn't give it up!
She yanked her wrist from his grip decisively, although she felt uneasy faced with the swords. "Let go of me! You have no right to approach me like this!" She wanted to turn around and run the sprint of her life if necessary, but it was too late to simply run away. The soldiers had already surrounded her without dismounting from their horses, which did make the possibility of simply running away more difficult, to be sure.
"Show me what you have there, or I'll show you what rights you have!" The captain spat on the ground.
