Chapter 1

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            Having your nose in a book may be a great way to spend your spare time

 unless you do it to the exclusion of everything else. You get up, grab

 your book, and read until night comes when you’re forced to put it

 down for sleep. Oh sure, you have the occasional interruptions in the

 pattern like eating and school, but that I suppose must be tolerated.

 James Reese, a young man in his senior year of high school, does just

 that. Unless there is something of dire importance demanding his attention,

 he will be found lying on his bed, deep within his current favorite

 book. He sees nothing wrong with spending every possible, available

 moment reading. Reading to him is grand adventure, new ideas and it sure

 keeps him out of trouble. His main interest is fantasy adventure books,

 though he does dabble in sci-fi occasionally. He has kept every book he

 has ever read since he was around twelve. His book collection, now

 pushing over five hundred titles, is the one thing he takes the most prid!

 e in.

            An obtrusive knock at the door brings him back from the middle of a

 particularly exciting battle. “James, breakfast is almost ready,” he

 hears his grandmother’s voice through the door. “Put your book down

 and get ready, or you’re going to be late for school.”

            Finding a good place to stop, he carefully inserts the bookmark and

 places it gingerly on his nightstand. He’s read it before, many of the

 books lining his walls have been read several times over the years, and

 most are still in very good condition. Some think that he cares more

 for his books than for anything else. There are times when he thinks

 they may be right. His friends always kid him about rereading the same

 book over and over, but he asks them if they ever saw the same movie twice

 or ever went to the same place for a vacation. Having made his point

 they leave him alone.

            He picks up some clothes from off the floor that don’t seem too

 dirty and gets dressed. After slipping on his shoes, he grabs his backpack

 which he’s rarely seen without. Slinging it over his shoulder, he

 opens the door.

            Coming out of his room, the aroma of eggs, bacon and biscuits fill the

 house. His grandmother is in the kitchen where she’s just finishing

 cooking breakfast. “Have a seat at the table, James,” she says from

 the kitchen. “It’ll be ready in a few minutes.” His grandparents

 have raised him for the past five years, ever since his parents were

 killed by a drunk driver.

            At the table, his grandfather is reading the morning paper. So intent

 is he on an article that he doesn’t notice him right away. James has

 some trepidation about disturbing his grandfather. For the last few

 months his grandfather has been encouraging him to get a job and has been

 directing his attention to the latest ads in the paper that he feels

 James might be interested in. It’s his senior year in high school and

 it’s almost over. He knows he needs to make some decisions about his

 future but has never been that great trying new things. Some call him

 antisocial but he thinks of himself as just nonsocial. He doesn’t hate

 being around others, he just prefers time to himself, with his books.

            Setting his backpack on the floor by the legs of his chair, he joins

 his grandfather at the table. Having noticed him, his grandfather leans

 toward James and shows him an article in the paper.

Local Teen Missing

Seth Randle, a teen from Haveston, was reported missing by his mother

 when he failed to return home Wednesday evening. The police have issued

 an Amber Alert and teams of volunteers have been combing the local area

 but so far have been unsuccessful. He was last seen on Wednesday

 leaving Haveston High School, where he is currently enrolled as a senior. If

 you have any information please call 911…

            “Isn’t he one of your classmates James?” his grandfather asks.

            “Yes he is,” James replies, “but I don’t know him very well.

 He’s on the football team and is well liked by everyone. Hope he’s

 okay.”

            Just then, his grandmother emerges from the kitchen with breakfast.

 James grabs a biscuit and helps himself to a big portion of his

 grandmother’s jam. It won 2nd place at the county fair last year, old Widow

 Jones took 1st place. His grandmother always says that Widow Jones puts

 too much sweetener in her jams and that is why she wins every year.

            “James,” she reminds, “let’s say grace first.”

            Looking at his grandmother, he sees that look in her eye. He puts down

 the biscuit he was about to eat and bows his head for prayer. His

 grandfather prays, “Dear Lord, please bless this food to our good, watch

 over us and guide us. And please help James find a job! In Jesus’

 name. Amen.”

            “Leave the boy alone John,” his wife chides him as she places her

 napkin in her lap. “He’ll find one when the good Lord is ready.”

 Turning her attention to James, she adds, “Just find one that you are

 interested in. There is nothing worse than spending your life at a job

 that is dull and lifeless. One should come along when the time is

 right that will be just right for you. Now hurry and eat or you’re going

 to be late for school again.”

            Stuffing his mouth full of eggs and bacon, he mumbles, “I’d better

 eat on the run.”  He tucks several biscuits in a napkin to eat on

 the way. “Thanks for another award winning breakfast,” he says to his

 grandmother before giving her a peck on the cheek as he heads for the

 back door.

            “Don’t forget your lunch, it’s sitting on the table by the

 door.” she reminds him.

            “Got it!” he hollers back to her as he stuffs it in his backpack.

 Opening the back door, he leaves the house and heads for the garage.

 Pulling his bike out of the garage, he hops on and quickly makes his way

 down the road to school. Haveston High isn’t much more than a mile

 away and only takes him a few minutes to get there.

            As he arrives at school he notices several police cars, both marked

 and unmarked, in and around the parking lot. Pulling into the bike rack,

 he grabs his chain and starts securing his bike. His best and only

 friend Dave soon rides up and parks his bike in the slot next to him.

            “James, did you hear that Seth is missing?” Dave asks as he

 secures his bike.

            “Yeah, I saw it in the paper this morning,” James replies.

 “Wonder what happened to him?”

            “Don’t know. Let’s go and see what’s going on,” he says as

 his lock clicks into place. Grabbing his backpack, he spies a nearby

 policeman and heads that way with James following right behind.

            Approaching the officer Dave asks, “What’s going on?”

            The officer turns to them and says, “We’re interviewing students

 about Seth Randle. His mother says he’s been missing since Wednesday

 evening. Would you boys know anything about it?”

            “No,” replies James, shaking his head. “We barely know him.”

            “That’s right,” Dave adds.

            The officer hands each of them a card and says, “If you see or hear

 anything that might help us in locating him, please call.”

            “Sure,” says Dave.

            “If we hear anything we’ll be sure to let you know,” James adds.

            Heading to class, they both can’t help but wonder what’s happened

 to Seth.

            The rest of the day, all anyone could talk of was Seth. They had an

 assembly before lunch where they were told the facts surrounding his

 disappearance. Evidently, he had been heading downtown after school and

 that was the last time anyone had any contact with him. They were given

 the standard lesson on strangers and what to do in emergencies, the basic

 “Don’t talk to strangers” lecture they’ve had for years.

            At lunch James and Dave sit in their regular spot in the lunch room.

 They both brought their own lunch today but Dave was not very

 enthusiastic about his.

            Reaching into his lunch sack, he pulls out a poorly wrapped sandwich.

 “How about a trade,” he asks James with longing in his voice. “My

 mystery meat sandwich for whatever your grandmother made for you?”

            James pulls out a six inch homemade hoagie and smiles, “Not on your

 life, bud. My stomach isn’t that strong. Besides, after all these

 years of your mom’s infamous cooking, you should be use to it by now.”

            Taking a bite, Dave replies, “I suppose so. No use in subjecting

 another living thing to this stuff.”

            Hearing a sigh from his friend, Dave looks over to see James holding a

 small piece of paper he had just pulled out of his lunch sack.

            “What’s the matter?” asks his friend.

            “I thought I had gotten off easy this morning,” James explains.

 “You know how my grandfather always mentions jobs he thinks I would

 like?” When he gets a nod from Dave, he continues. “Well, instead of

 pressuring me about it this morning, he slips one in with my lunch.”

 He reads the ad as he continues eating his lunch.

            “This one is at least interesting, if a little odd,” he says after

 several bites.

            “What do you mean?” asks Dave curiously.

            Handing him the ad, James says, “Here, read it.”

            Wiping his hands on his pants, he takes the ad:

Magic! Real Magic! Ever wanted to learn?

We require someone with intelligence and a disciplined mind. Those well

 versed in fantasy novels and role playing games a plus. May need to

 travel. Only those of good character need apply.

No appointment necessary.

For preliminary interview, drop by at:

1616 Commercial Ave

Room 2334

Haveston, Ca

            “That is different, I’ll give you that,” affirms Dave as he

 hands the ad back to James.

            Putting the ad in his wallet, James asks, “What do you think?”

            Pausing for a moment to think while he finishes the mouthful of food

 he’s working on, he replies, “Well, it is right down your alley. You

 have read more books than I could even hope to get through, and we

 play D&D every once in a while. Maybe you should look into it. You’ve

 always said you would like to travel and see the castles of England,

 maybe this will be your chance. It sounds like some traveling magician or

 something like that.”

            “Yeah, you’re right. Maybe I’ll go down tomorrow and see what

 it’s about. If nothing else, it should please my grandfather and maybe

 get him off my back for a while.” Taking a bite out of his hoagie,

 James ponders the ad, thinking it was definitely worth looking into.

            Pointing off to the right Dave says, “There’s Alyssa. You should

 go invite her to the dance next week. I know you have a thing for

 her.”

            Smiling, James says, “I haven’t quite worked up the nerve yet.

 I’ve tried twice, but my mouth gets all dry and I can’t find the

 words. I’m afraid I’ll look like an idiot.”

            “You need to get out of that room of yours more. Stop spending so

 much time in there alone with your books and start to live in reality a

 little more. She’s nice and I believe still available.”

            “I know,” he sighs. “Maybe I’ll ask her on Monday.”

            “If you ask her at all.” Dave’s attempts to bring him out of his

 room have met with very little success, but he keeps trying.

            After they finish eating, they leave the lunch room and head over to

 the chess room where they spend the rest of their lunch break playing

 one role playing game or another. James is usually the one running the

 game since he enjoys making the campaigns more than Dave does. Back in

 his bedroom he has a whole collection of campaigns that have never been

 played. He simply likes designing them almost more than playing them.

            Dave on the other hand prefers to be the character, or characters,

 like what he’s doing in this one. He’s playing a thief and a mage who

 are currently trying to find the third ring of Xanak, the god of fire.

            James sets up his godwall and removes the dice and papers from his

 backpack. He always keeps meticulous notes during his campaigns. Dave gets

 his papers, dice, and the player’s rulebook ready as well. Once

 everything is ready, they begin.

            “Your mage and thief had infiltrated the Red Rogue’s Lair,” he

 began giving a brief recap of where they left off the day before. “You

 had just found a flight of stairs and were beginning to descend.”

            “On to fame and fortune!” Dave exclaims with a grin. “Thief is

 checking for traps as they go down the steps.”

            James nods. “No traps were found. Upon reaching the bottom step, you

 discover a long hallway stretching far into the darkness ahead. A

 sound can be heard coming from out of the dark, and it seems to be coming

 toward you…”

            The rest of the day goes along pretty much as usual. Classes,

 including the dreaded PE class that James is about ready to flunk. He simply is

 not much into sports or anything else exertive. His gym teacher tells

 him that he needs to show more enthusiasm for the physical side of

 life, but his teacher’s arguments do nothing to sway him in that

 direction. It’s not that James is fat or anything, he actually looks quite

 fit. He just doesn’t go for that sort of stuff.

            After school at the bike rack, Dave informs him that he plans on

 accompanying him down to the interview. For moral support, as he puts it.

            “You don’t have to come with me you know,” James tells his

 friend.

            “I know. But you stand a better chance of following through if I

 do,” Dave replies.

            “Are you afraid I am going to chicken out or something like that?”

 he asks.

            “As a matter of fact, yes, yes I am!” he replies with a smile.

            “I plan on catching the 512 at 9:00 a.m. If you want to go with me,

 meet me at the bus stop.”

            “I’ll be there,” insists Dave.

            “Okay, see ya tomorrow!” With that, James hops on his bike and

 heads for home.

            At dinner, he tells his grandparents about his decision to go to the

 interview tomorrow.

            “Now, remember, James,” his grandfather says. “When you are at

 an interview you are interviewing them as much as they are interviewing

 you. Never settle for conditions that you are not going to like. Be

 assertive.”

            “I will,” responds James. “I don’t plan on making any

 decisions on the spot. I plan on finding out what the job is and how much it

 pays. It sounds interesting though.”

            Showing concern on her face, his grandmother says “Be careful while

 you’re there. The last place anyone saw poor Seth was heading into

 town. Watch yourself.”

            “Please don’t worry about me, I’m almost eighteen. Plus Dave

 plans on coming down with me. I’m sure that between the two of us,

 we’ll be able to handle any situation.” Knowing that it is love that

 prompted his grandmother’s concern, he comes over and gives her a

 reassuring hug.

            A little after dinner, James is again in his room reading. There’s a

 knock on his bedroom door.

            “Yes?” he says without removing his eyes from the pages of the

 book.

            “James,” his grandfather’s voice comes through the door, “You

 should come and see this.”

            “Now what?” he says to himself. Slipping his bookmark within the

 pages, he gets up off the bed.

            Out in the living room, he finds his grandparents raptly watching the

 news. “There is another missing person,” his grandmother informs

 him. “This time a girl”

            The news reporter goes on to say that this is the second person who

 has come up missing in the past week. There are no leads, no connection

 between them. They come from different cities in the same area. They

 both just up and disappeared without a trace. The report continues on with

 interviews of different family members of the two missing people.

            “This is getting serious.” his grandfather says. “You be extra

 careful tomorrow when you’re downtown.”

            “I will,” James assures him. He continues watching the report on

 the missing teens until the reporters begin repeating themselves. Then

 he returns to his room where he lays back down on his bed and picks up

 his book.

            He found it difficult to concentrate on what he was reading. After

 realizing he read the same paragraph three times he decides that it’s a

 lost cause and put his book down on the nightstand. Thoughts and

 worries about the interview tomorrow make him far too nervous to be able to

 concentrate on reading. The ad continues running through his mind,

 ‘well versed in fantasy novels and role playing games’, ‘may need to

 travel’. It all sounds exciting. Maybe Dave is right. It could be a

 traveling magician.

            Different theories and thoughts continue running through his head

 until he finally gets up and undresses for bed. Crawling in under the

 covers, he reaches over and sets the alarm clock for seven thirty before

 switching off his reading lamp. He lies there in the dark, enjoying the

 cool night air as it drifts in through the window over his bed and wafts

 over him. Eventually, he’s able to fall asleep.

            It seems like he no sooner fell asleep when his alarm goes off.

 Hitting the off button, he rolls over onto his back and tries unsuccessfully

 to keep his eyes open. He is just way too comfortable and almost

 doesn’t have the energy to pull the covers off and get this day going. His

 sense of responsibility eventually overcomes his laziness and drags

 himself out of bed. Also, Dave would never let him hear the end of it if

 he left him waiting at the bus stop.

            After a quick shower, he put on some of his better clothes. Not his

 church clothes to be sure, but ones good enough to look nice. Once he’s

 dressed, he takes his backpack and empties all of his role playing

 paraphernalia onto his bed. I’ll clean this up when I get back. He puts

 a clean handkerchief in his backpack along with the book he’s

 currently reading. Pausing a moment, he decides to take the two candy bars

 lying in the pile on his bed and places them inside as well. Shouldering

 his ever present backpack, he opens the door to his room and goes out to

 see about breakfast.

            Sausage, eggs and biscuits, are already on the table. His grandparents

 had been nice enough to wait for him before eating. “My, don’t you

 look nice,” his grandmother says.

            “Thanks,” he tells her as he comes to the table. “I better eat

 on the run, or I might miss my bus.” He throws together two sausage,

 egg, and biscuit sandwiches. Wrapping them in a napkin, he heads toward

 the back door. His grandmother’s “Good luck James!” follows him

 out the door.

            Eating, he hurries down the road to the bus stop where he’ll catch

 the 512. When he arrives, he finds Dave is already there, waiting.

            “Good morning James,” Dave says when he sees him approaching.

 He’d always been a cheerful morning person, which usually irritated

 James.

            “Good morning yourself,” replies James somewhat moodily as he

 finishes his last bite of breakfast. He definitely was not a morning

 person.

            Keeping an eye out for the bus, Dave says to James, “I hear they

 have a new laser tag area at the arcade. Wanna try it out after your

 interview? The loser pays for lunch.”

            “You’re on, I can almost taste the burgers now,” boasts James as

 he keeps a lookout for their bus. When he sees it turn the corner he

 announces, “Here comes the 512.” Picking up his backpack he prepares

 to board the bus. The 512 pulls up and they have to wait a moment as

 an elderly woman leaves the bus, then they get on. Showing the driver

 their bus passes, they then move to the back of the bus and take their

 seats. The 512 will take them most of the way before they’ll need to

 make a transfer to the 33 for the last leg to Commercial Avenue.

            “Nervous?” inquires his friend after they sat down and the bus

 begins to move.

            “A little,” admits James. “I’m glad you decided to come along,

 it’s partly the reason I am even here. When I woke up this morning,

 all I wanted to do was lay there. But knowing you were going to be at

 the bus stop waiting for me helped to get me out of bed.”

            “I thought so, that’s why I’m here,” Dave grins. He’s glad

 that he could help his friend.

            “You know,” Dave begins after a few minutes, “you didn’t have

 to go and kill my thief off that way.”

            “What do you mean?” asks James. “Is it my fault the guy had an

 IQ of a turnip? He never should’ve rushed in like that. He was

 greedy.”

            “Maybe,” admits Dave. “But I’ve been playing him for over a

 month now. He was all the way to level five.”

            “Oh well, that’s life.”

            As they get closer, James begins turning quieter as he starts thinking

 about the upcoming interview. Dave tries a couple of times to get him

 interested in further conversation but his mind really isn’t on it.

 Finally, he gives up and they ride the rest of the way in silence.

            When the Park and Ride is announced where they’ll be getting off to

 transfer to the 33, James grabs his backpack and readies to disembark

 from the bus. When the bus pulls in, they get off and go over to the

 water fountain for a drink. Dave looks at his watch and says, “We’ve

 got about five minutes before the 33 shows up.”

            The 33 does a loop through downtown and passes right down Commercial

 Ave. Going over to Berth 4 where it will stop, they stand in line behind

 several other passengers. Dave nudges James when he sees a pretty girl

 wearing practically nothing, but James is too preoccupied with what

 lies ahead of him to pay much attention. The mere thought of the

 interview is making his stomach do flip-flops.

            Finally, the 33 shows up and pulls into Berth 4. They show the bus

 driver their passes and get on, going all the way to the back. They have

 to wait a few more minutes before it’s time for the bus to leave. When

 it does, it isn’t long before they see a tall building displaying

 1616 Commercial. James hits the cord and the bus pulls over to the next

 bus stop and comes to a halt. They get off and make their way back

 toward the building. The butterflies are beginning to congregate in James’

 middle.

            Passing through the front door, they make their way over to the

 elevators and press the ‘up’ button. While they are waiting for the

 elevator to arrive, Dave notices James looking at the building’s list of

 businesses. When he moves over to join him, James glances at him and

 says, “There’s no listing for 2334.”

            Dave just shrugs and says, “Maybe they just moved in and haven’t

 had time to get the sign adjusted.”

            “You’re probably right,” replies James. “Or maybe they just

 don’t want to advertise who they are. That way if they’re well known

 and rich, the applicants won’t know to ask for more pay.”

            “You and your conspiracy theories,” Dave says, shaking his head.

 “You always think someone is playing an angle or something.”

            Shrugging, James just smiles.

            Ding!

            The elevator door opens and they get in along with several others.

 James presses the button for the 23rd floor.  It takes a few minutes to

 get there as they stop at several different floors to allow various

 people on and off. By the time they reach the 23rd floor, they’re the only

 ones left. Another Ding! and the door opens onto floor 23. Stepping

 out, they turn down the hallway to their right and come to the door

 marked 2334.

            Once at the door James turns to Dave and asks, “Should I knock or

 what?”

            “Naw, just go on in.” he says.

            Getting up his courage, James opens the door and enters with Dave

 right behind. The room is empty except for several chairs and two end

 tables, each with a neat pile of magazines and a few books upon them. Across

 the room from where they entered stood a closed door marked

 ‘Private’ in bold letters.

            “I guess we should sit down and wait,” suggests James.

            “How are they going to know that we are here?” wonders Dave as he

 enters and closes the door behind them.

            “There’s probably an alarm on the door. Someone will most likely

 be out in a minute,” reasons James.

            Looking through the material on the nearest table, James doesn’t

 find anything of interest so he moves to the other table by the door

 marked Private. Lying on top of the other reading material, sits a small

 brown book with a weird design inscribed in gold leaf on the cover.

 Intrigued, he picks it up and is startled when he receives a static shock.

 Reflexively, his hand lets go of the book and it falls to the floor. The

 book lands on its edge and a piece of paper slips out. Bending over to

 pick it up, he notices writing on the paper.

            “Welcome and thank you for coming. Glad you found the book. If you

 could read the first page and then walk through the door marked Private,

 we can begin the interview. If you brought anything with you, please

 feel free to bring it along.”

            He picks the book up, bringing it and the letter over to show Dave. As

 Dave begins reading the letter, James says, “That’s a dumb way to

 start an interview. What if I had never found the piece of paper? I

 could’ve been sitting out here for a long time!” he exclaims.

            Finishing the letter, Dave looks up at him and shrugs, “You’re

 right, this guy must be some kind of an eccentric or something. In the ad,

 he mentioned role playing games. Maybe in his mind this is some kind

 of test.”

            Nodding in agreement, James sits down in one of the chairs and opens

 the book to the first page.

Underlying Principles of Magic

The practice of magic is very simple and basic. Magic is the process by

 which the individual taps into the reservoir of strength or power

 inside himself and manifests it into changes of the world around him. Every

 individual has a different amount of power available allotted to them.

 Some have very little, just enough to do simple spells while others

 have vast amounts that can be used to literally bring down mountains.

            Looking up from the book, James turns to his friend and says,

 “Unless I am mistaken, this book is going to explain the workings of a magic

 system. Not Houdini type but Gandalf type. It is talking about using

 the power within you to manipulate things in the world.”

            “Weird. This guy must be a real character,” Dave jokes.

            “Yeah, but character or not, a job’s a job.” Turning back to the

 book, he finishes the first page quickly as it’s not too long.

 Closing the book, he climbs to his feet and looks at Dave. His friend could

 see the nervousness in his eyes. “Wish me luck.”

            “Luck!” replies Dave, giving his friend a thumb’s up.

            Slinging his backpack over his shoulder, he carries the book and walks

 over to the door marked Private. Pausing only momentarily to calm his

 nerves by taking a deep, soothing breath, he opens the door. Stepping

 through to the other side, he suddenly finds himself in the middle of a

 small meadow that’s entirely surrounded by a forest of trees. A small

 stream cuts through the middle of the meadow.

            He stands there momentarily in dumbfounded shock as his brain tries to

 make sense of what he’s seeing. Turning around to ask Dave if he’s

 hallucinating or something, he receives another shock when he

 discovers the doorway is no longer there.

            Did I just cross over into the Twilight Zone?

            Unable to believe what his own eyes are telling him, he rubs them and

 then looks around the clearing again as he works to make sense of it.

 Trees swaying in the gentle breeze, the sound of birds singing in their

 branches, and the soft trickling melody of the stream as it makes its

 way across the meadow to disappear in the trees on the far side give

 this place a surreal feel. Especially since there’s no way it could’ve

 been on the other side of that door.

            Movement out of the corner of his eye causes him to glance across the

 stream to a fallen log lying near the edge of the forest. What he sees

 there almost convinces him he’s lost his mind. Sitting atop the log

 is a strange little creature, about four and a half feet in height with

 skin that’s a dark greenish color. Wearing a blue vest and a crazy

 felt hat, it looks out of place in such a surreal place as this. There

 seems to be intelligence behind those yellow eyes and they’re looking

 right at James.

            I’m having a hallucination.

            Not knowing what else to do, he walks through the short grass of the

 meadow toward the creature. He pauses at the stream uncertainly when he

 sees the creature hop off the log and get to its feet. When no hostile

 action is forthcoming, he carefully jumps across the stream and walks

 the few remaining feet until he’s standing before the creature.

 “Hello,” James says.

            To his utter astonishment the creature says “Hello” right back at

 him.

            “You can talk?” exclaims James in shock.

            “Of course I can talk. Any intelligent creature can talk. But not

 many have anything worthwhile to say,” it replies.

            Before James can get his next question out the creature says,

 “‘Where am I?’ Was that to be your next question? You’re not where you

 started out, boy. My master has set me here to get you started and that

 is all I intend to do. I am not here to hold your hand or wet nurse

 you, do you understand?” The creature gives him an intent look as he

 waits for a response.

            Nodding his head, James gives a weak, “I think so.”

            “Good. Now listen up and listen well, for I am here to tell you some

 things and I will only tell you once.”

            “First of all, magic works here. Read the book you have in your

 hand. It will help you get a handle on it. Your survival may well depend on

 it.”

            “Secondly, you can’t go home, at least not right now. Don’t try.

 We won’t try to stop you, but take it on faith that the way is

 simply not open to you.”

            “Lastly, you need to get your sorry butt to the village of

 Trendle.”

            With that, the creature jumps into the air and with a faint popping

 noise, disappears.

            James ol’ boy, he thinks to himself. You’re screwed!