Author’s Note: This is the opening chapter of the ninth book in my fantasy series. This is a YA noblebright ensemble adventure starring both the LadyStar Expedition and the Ironjammers Crew as they meet the challenge of the Hollow Forks Mine and whatever lurks in its shadowy tunnels and caverns. This is one of the books I plan to
send to schools as part of the Action Faction project.
I always study maps extra hard because adventurers who say “let’s go!” read a map first so they know! I found out there’s a special region in Gacenar called Threelands. It’s where Isia, Chaer and Gacenar meet. Kind of like if you had a pizza with three pieces and you put a little flag right at the center like they do at Doubler’s. That’s what Threelands is like. If you stand right on top of the middle part and go east, you’re in Chaer, which is a long flat kingdom that’s mostly desert and rocks and stuff. Then if you go west, you’re back in Gacenar. If you go kind of south and then east, you’re in Isia, which is where I learned how to be a priestess!
Well, you’ll never guess what we discovered after that! Not very far from Threelands there’s a place the villagers and farmers call the “Red Castle.” Everyone says it’s made out of coral but me and Talitha think that’s just a fable or something because how can you have coral in a desert? So anyway, someone lives in the Red Castle and they have a team of mercenaries that are trying to find treasures like the ones we’re looking for! They’re not very nice, so I said we should try and steer clear. Ranko said we should go get ’em, but I said we shouldn’t start fights. Then Chance said he was going to follow them to find out if they know anything! I said to be extra careful but I don’t think he was listening, because Chance had only been away for a few days, and when we went back to the Inn there was a letter at the desk, and it had an Ironjammers seal on it! You’ll never guess what was inside! It was another map!
Me and Ranko decided Talitha should look at it because she knows about books and stuff. It wasn’t a map with roads and villages and it wasn’t a big map like the whole continent or anything. It looked like a bunch of tunnels and caves or something. All the different parts were labeled and there was a big red ‘X’ right in the middle. Ranko said that might be where a monster lives but I said what if it’s a treasure map? That’s when Talitha noticed some writing at the bottom of the page. It said ‘there are two of these maps’ and it was written in Thesian. That’s when I got to be smart! Out of aaaaaaall the adventurers on our team there’s only three of us who can write Thesian. Me, Chance and Isor, and Isor can only write arcane syllables in it. So I said it had to be from Chance!
Now all we gotta do is find out where he went and why there’s a second map. So I got Shannon to help, because she’s good at finding people and stuff. We gotta remember to remember our questy rules too. LadyStar Expedition! Shee-ha!
Jessica Halloran and Talitha Casey didn’t look completely out of place standing by the huge cypress tree on the south road to Hollow Forks, but it wasn’t long before someone questioned the hour of their decision to leave the well-marked route and stop at the edge of the forest.
“You two look like you’re waiting to rob a lost merchant,” Ranko Whelan quipped. The red-haired girl didn’t look too winded from the journey south to where the others were waiting.
“Hi Ranko! You’ll never guess what we got!” Jessica exclaimed. Talitha was busy examining the map the two girls had received only that morning. Ranko peered over her shoulder. All three girls were wearing their traveling clothes and their most durable boots. It was a foregone conclusion they would be exploring on foot for a while. Normally they would wear house clothes consisting of sholas and comfortable sandals, but out here in the dark forest, leather tunics, laced leggings and gloves handy in cinch or pouch were by now a habit and considered minimal protection from whatever they might have to cross.
“Night light?”
Talitha nodded. Ranko had noticed the tiny bloom of glowing Bartleby root the bespectacled girl had affixed to the top edge of the crusty paper. It provided enough brightness to illuminate the entire map comfortably. At Shannon’s insistence, the two girls had decided the light from Jessica’s blessings would only complicate things outside the village limits at this time of day. The sun had set almost half an hour before Ranko’s arrival, and the only remaining evidence of daylight was visible as a deep orange along the western horizon. Ranko also noticed the sturdy cross between a pouch and a basket Talitha wore across one shoulder. Inside was a colorful collection of berries, seeds, acorns, rinds and flowers. Ranko called it the “a plant for anything” bag because Talitha could quite often reach inside and produce almost any growing leaf or fruit for almost any purpose.
“Well, I’ve had all the excitement I can stand for one day. How about we retreat to the nice village where all the guards are?” Ranko said.
“We gotta find Shannon first,” Jessica replied. “All we know is Chance went somewhere and then sent us this map. We don’t know where the other boys are yet. What if they’re lost?!”
“One step at a time. What about the boss and little bit?”
“Alanna took Cici back to the outpost,” Talitha said. “They’ll be safe there.”
“Yeah, we can’t all be in the same place unless it’s a super-emergency. ‘Cause Reina said so.”
“Okay, so let me get this straight. It’s dark.” Ranko said as she began counting her fingers.
“Right,” Jessica replied.
“And we’re not sure where Captain Pickpocket went.”
“Check.”
“And now we’re in a forest with a glowing map.”
“Oh my goodness,” Talitha said quietly.
“Roger,” Jessica added.
“Looking for the Warrior of the Night. Okay, goofy? What’s wrong with this picture?”
Jessica looked sideways at Ranko. “You’re not afraid of the dark are you?” She did her best version of claws with her hands. “Maybe a monster will jump out and go ‘rawrg!'”
“That would be the longest day of its life, especially with forest girl over here. What is the deal with that map?”
Talitha was no longer reading the document. She was analyzing it. “This paper is new. Very new. Perhaps a few days old. Everything here was drawn freehand. There’s no tracing, which is unusual since Chance did say there’s a second copy. But if this is the original, why would he need two maps?”
“You’ll let us know when you have it all calculated, right professor? Meanwhile I’m headed for town. There’s a bowl of stew and some of those salt crackers with my name on them, and if there aren’t, I’m not going to leave a good review.”
Just then, Jessica noticed an out-of-place shadow among the trees not far away. At first, she was more than a little startled, but then she realized whatever it was, it had an enormous bow on its back.
“Shannon,” Jessica whispered.
“Why are you three so loud!?” Shannon hissed as she emerged from the darkness, making impatient gestures. Unlike the other three girls, the Night Warrior was dressed in her full battle regalia, complete with the leather hook on her draw hand and the teeth and claws decorating her long black hair. “You want something to eat? Why not place your order from here! I’m sure the cook will hear every word!”
“Bah!” Ranko grumbled. “Anyone looking for trouble at this time of night won’t be much of a challenge.”
“The Coral Tower Hunters are involved in this,” Shannon said. “I’ve been tracking them for two days. If what you got there is genuine, that’s going to be all the challenge we need.”
