Phoenix Rising

by Ephie Risho

  The group cautiously left the trail and went directly up the hill toward a rock outcropping. It turned out to be a small clearing, but the rocks were out in the open and had a vantage point of the forest below. So they set up their camp for the night, with their backs to the rocks and a view of the sunset.

  Basil pulled out a needle and thread to patch the gaping hole in his pants as Theo and Amber pulled out some of the fresh food to cook over a fire. With a warm fire, food in their bellies, and a view of the sunset, the weary travelers’ mood picked up, and they enjoyed one another’s company.

  “Hey, Amber,” Theo said, “which cup has the rock?” He’d set three drinking cups upside down on a flat rock.

  “That one.” She pointed to the middle one.

  “Good.” Theo lifted the middle cup. “Now watch the cups. Don’t lose focus on the one with the rock.” He proceeded to move the cups around quickly. It was all she could do to follow the cup with the rock. Finally, he stopped moving the cups. “Ok, which cup is it in?”

  “That one!” She pointed to the cup on the right. Theo lifted the cup, but no rock was in it. “Hmm.” She scratched her head. “Ok, that one!” She pointed at the next one. Again, the cup had no rock. “That one?”

  Theo lifted the third cup, and no rock was in it. He and Basil started to laugh.

  “Where is it?”

  Theo smiled at her. “You really don’t see it?” His voice sounded a little odd.

  “No,” Amber said, then looked at Theo’s face. The rock was in his lips! “Good trick!” She smiled with admiration, then changed the subject. “Hey, nice shot back there. I was really worried about that goblin. It was right on top of me.”

  “Yeah, thanks.” Theo said. “I definitely don’t use a bow like you, but it all came back to me when I saw you in trouble.”

  “Let’s hope you don’t have to use it again,” said Amber.

  “There are worse things . . . like studying about leeches with Chandler!” He gave Basil a wink.

  Basil gestured as if pulling a leech off his arm and smiled. “Who knew there were fifty different medical benefits of leeches?”

  Theo chuckled. “There’s at least one they didn’t mention in the textbook—helping you fall asleep when you study about them!” They all laughed.

  Theo filled in more of his map, and Amber stared at it with interest, thinking of how far she’d traveled. My village must be way over there, past those far mountains. I hope they’re ok and have no more issues with the phoenix.

  The stars came out, and Theo told some stories about the constellations. The great dragon who came and devoured the sea creature. The brave hero who was riding a bear. She was fascinated. She knew some stories from constellations but very few, and she was eager to hear more.

  That night they went to bed happy and glad for each other’s company. The next morning, Basil nudged Amber as she slept. “Look at that!” he whispered.

  She rubbed her eyes. He was pointing into the sky. There in the distance, a large red dragon flew over the forest below.

  “Wow!” she whispered. “A dragon!” Its red-and-yellow body glistened in the early sun as it flew over the land. They watched in fascination when it dove down.

  “Ooh!” they all said in unison. They waited with breaths held, then the dragon rose above the trees holding a bighorn sheep in its talons. It flew off toward their left and disappeared from their view around the mountain.

  “Whoa!” Theo said. “Unbelievable.”

  “I never thought I’d see a dragon in my whole life!” Amber thought of the description of the creature that had burned the field back in Seabrook. Definitely smaller than that large creature! That dragon was more like the size of twenty or even forty cows, not three or four. It had to be a phoenix that burned the field. But why? I hope Sage has some answers.

  They packed up and continued on their way. “Let’s go already!” Basil called and trotted off ahead. The others rode after him but soon realized they had absolutely no idea where to go. They rode around a mountain and saw another three to choose from. They took a break and examined the mountains for clues.

  “Do we have more information to go on?” Theo sounded discouraged. “If we don’t know where we’re going exactly, we could wander these goblin-infested forests for months! Are you sure Sage is on one of these mountains?”

  “I don’t know,” Amber admitted. “This is starting to feel like a long shot.”

  “Yeah. It is.” Theo pulled out his map. “I feel like we’re wasting our time here. There are more mountains than map space! And even if we do find the right mountain with Sage’s lookout, and happen to find his secret hiding spot on that mountain, what if he isn’t there?”

  Amber felt a lump in her throat. Maybe Theo was right. Were they wasting their time?

  Theo wrung his hands. “Basil, why did you drag me out here? There are goblins and even dragons! I can barely use a bow well enough to be any real help. I’m useless anyway.”

  “Not true!” Basil stood with his fists on his hips. “I know you’re not a fighter, but that’s not all we need! Your map is helping us track where we’re going.”

  Theo rolled his map up and tapped it into his other hand assertively. “But look at us. We’re wandering around searching for a hard-to-find lookout in the middle of who-knows-where and constantly in danger. Is this really worth it?” He turned to Amber. “Are you sure Sage is going to be worth all this trouble?”

  Amber lowered her eyes. “No. I’m not sure. I don’t know anything about him.”

  “See? Once again, Basil, you’ve pushed me past the point of reason. This time it’s gone too far. There’s no way we’re finding this wizard, and even if we do, what if he doesn’t help?”

  Basil pointed his finger at Theo. “Here we go again. Whine, whine, whine. Why can’t you just look on the bright side of things for once? Maybe we won’t find the wizard, but isn’t it nice to be outside in the fresh air?”

  Theo stared him in the eyes. “Basil, I had to kill a goblin. This isn’t for me. Don’t you get it? Finding the wizard is futile anyway, and there’s more danger than ever out here in the wilderness. This isn’t for me. You know that.”

  Theo sighed as he saw Basil’s face soften. “Listen. We gave it a chance. I’m not done helping. But let’s be smart about things, not just go rushing off on some fool’s errand.”

  Basil kicked a rock uncomfortably and avoided looking at Theo in the eyes. “I don’t know. I guess you’re right.”

  Amber’s heart dropped. It was one thing to have Theo losing hope but Basil as well? She felt tears welling up. She turned away and put her hands in her pockets.

  Basil sighed and put his hand on Theo’s shoulder. “Ok, Theo. I’m willing to admit this adventure seems foolish. We could just wait for Sage back in Wakefield. I don’t want to put you in any more danger.”

  “Thanks, Basil.” Theo smiled.

  Basil turned. “What about you, Amber?”

  Amber felt tears welling up. Would she keep going alone? Was it even worth it? “I . . . I don’t know. I guess . . . if you’re planning on going back to Wakefield . . . we can always hope Sage will show up there.”

  But even as she said the words her heart sank. “Can you give me a few minutes to think about it?”

  Basil and Theo nodded, and Amber walked to a small clearing, with the mountains in the distance. Could Sage be on one of those mountains? So close, but we’ve no way of knowing. It felt futile. If only there was some magic way they could find Sage’s lookout . . .

  “Wait!” Amber ran back to Theo and Basil. “I was told to only use this when I’m desperate. But this is starting to feel that way.” She pulled the small, white pixie-enchanted stone from her pocket.

  “What’s that?” Theo and Basil asked in unison.

  She lifted the rock by its attached string and watched it spin. “This . . . is an enchanted rock. I can ask it where to go, and it will point us in the right direction. I can only ask
it one thing. It was a gift from the pixies. We can ask it where to find Sage.”

  “And if Sage is clear across the continent?” Theo asked.

  “Well, at least we’ll know we’re wasting our time here.” Amber shrugged. “What do you think? Is this a good time to use the rock?”

  “Definitely!” Theo replied. “I can’t believe you have something that amazing in your pocket! I don’t think we’ll be able to find Sage without it. Let’s do it.”

  “Ok,” she said. “Here goes.”

  “Wait!” Theo frowned in thought. “Make sure you frame what you’re going to say well. If you just tell it to point us toward him and he’s halfway around the world, we’ll have no idea. If it only works on one thing, we want to be sure what we ask it.”

  “Sounds good.”

  They discussed a few variations on what to say, then she finally turned to the rock. “Enchanted rock, lead us to the place where we can encounter the wizard Sage the soonest.”

  Theo gave her a grin and a big thumbs-up. The rock spun slowly on its string, then settled with the black notch pointed toward the mountain on their far right.

  “Looks like this way!” Amber’s eyes sparkled. “Let’s hope it’s this mountain here, not ten mountains behind it!” She felt a lightness return to her heart, and somehow the day seemed brighter.

  Basil and Theo laughed, and they mounted their horses. With no trail and lots of thick underbrush, the going was slow. They tried finding the best trail while also keeping in the general direction given by the stone. At one point, as afternoon was growing hot and weary, they discussed options.

  “I think we need to decide whether it’s this mountain or the next.” Basil paused to wipe leaves and twigs out of his hair. “Because if it’s the next, it’ll be a lot quicker if we go around the mountain rather than over it.”

  “That’s true.” Theo unrolled the map and drew another mountain. “And there’s really no risk, because the rock will let us know. As we go around, if we’re supposed to go up to the top of that mountain, it’ll continue to point to the top.”

  “Yes, that makes sense,” Amber said. “You seem to be good at figuring out stuff like this.”

  “Oh yeah,” Theo beamed. “We do riddles all the time back home. This is just like a riddle.”

  “Riddles? I like the sound of that.” She thought about how different her life would have been if she’d grown up with Basil and Theo in their larger town.

  As they traveled around the mountain, sure enough the rock pointed to the next mountain, so Theo’s idea saved them the trouble of crossing directly over it. But the going was slow, and they decided to camp again that night, before it got too dark.

  The next morning they set out again. It was cold and windy, and the horses seemed to be moving at a snail’s pace. As they moved around the next mountain, the stone pointed up to the top, and the trio’s mood picked up, knowing they were finally on the last mountain of their journey.

  They stopped for lunch, then continued ascending the mountain. The path grew quite steep at some points, still passable for their horses, although a few times they had to walk and scramble up the slope.

  After an hour, Theo pointed up the mountain excitedly. “Look! A building!”

  They stared in awe. All the way up this rough climb, in the middle of vast stretches of wilderness, someone had built a structure on the top of the mountain.

  “How did they build that up here?” Basil shook his head in amazement.

  “Donkeys?” Theo wondered aloud.

  “Huh. I don’t know. It’s not only steep, it’s all the way out here in the middle of nowhere. I can’t think of any normal way someone would build this. Maybe it was magic?”

  Close to an hour later, they rounded the last bend in the trail and saw the house before them. It stood at the summit of the mountain, with a full view in every direction.

  The house was a perfect hexagon—with tall windows on all six sides and supported by many legs, raised about eight feet above ground. There was a wooden ladder hanging down from the middle of it to the ground below.

  “Look at those windows!” Amber said. “They’re so big! I’ve never seen a window like that, ever.”

  They weren’t fully floor-to-ceiling but may as well have been. They started a few feet up and reached high with an arch at the top, around eight feet tall and four feet wide, with two on each wall all the way around.

  “This definitely has the look of a wizard’s place.” Basil stood with his fists on his hips, admiring the handiwork. “I can’t imagine anyone else living out here having such a magnificent building.”

  He turned to Amber. “I think we’ve found Sage. What does the stone say?”

  “This is it.” She nodded and felt a little thrill of exhilaration, her thoughts spinning. “Let’s hope he’s friendly—and can give us some helpful information.”

  The three travelers tied their horses to some trees in the shade and took off the saddles, then walked over to the building. The only way they could see to get up to the house was directly underneath, using a sturdy wooden ladder attached to a trap door in the floor.

  They looked at one another, and Basil started climbing up. “Wait here. In case I have to come down quickly.”

  Amber and Theo nodded and watched him climb. He got to the top and turned the lever to release the door. It opened upward, so he slowly raised it and peered in. He took another step and stuck more of his head in.

  “Hello!” he called. When there was silence, he looked down the ladder at the others. “Come on up!”

  Amber and Theo climbed the ladder to the main floor. Before even noticing what was inside, the vista from the building was unbelievable—stretching in every direction as far as the eye could see. Amber wondered if the haze she saw to the north was the sea, near where she lived. It had to be fifty miles away but seemed nearly visible from the lookout.

  “It’s so green!” Theo said quietly.

  The mountains rolled in every direction, and a variety of lush greens filled the land. To the west, mountains and forest turned into plains, far in the distance.

  After a moment, Basil said, “Look at this!”

  Amber was torn from the view and looked at the table where Basil was pointing. It was a map of the entire land, even bigger than what they’d seen at Chandler’s place. They peered at it and found where they were, then noticed a number of red putty globs placed in locations all around, mostly to the southeast.

  “That’s my village!” Amber pointed at a spot to the northwest by the sea that had a small red putty marker on it. There were markers on all the villages of the coast within twenty miles east of hers. It’s like they’re targeting the sea towns, Amber thought.

  After examining the map for a while, the group looked around. There were a few bookcases and dressers, some large chests, and another table with four chairs. A basic cot was in one corner, and in the center was a small fireplace with a metal tube that ran up through the ceiling. In front of the fireplace was a comfy chair and some furs on the ground.

  “Hey, look at that!” Amber pointed toward the ceiling at another trap door with a ring.

  “Here!” Basil picked up a stick with a hook at the end and lifted it up to the ring. He pulled and a folding staircase came down halfway. He grabbed the bottom stair, and it reached the ground perfectly. The stairs led into a dark chamber above, but it was still light enough to see a whole other space.

  Basil stepped up the stairs carefully and peered in. “Magic!”

  Amber and Theo climbed up after him. Although the slanted roof made the ceiling angle down to six feet on the edges, it still felt spacious. It was much clearer now that the building was in the shape of a hexagon—six angled skylight windows were built into each section of the ceiling. They were a foot wide and four feet tall, enough to let in plenty of light to see the room and its contents.

  A large, black cauldron sat in one corner, and one of the walls was lined with hundreds of vials
of all sorts of shapes and colors. They had labels but most weren’t in a language that any of them recognized. They looked like ancient runes from another age.

  Theo peered at a vial of purple liquid with the label Protection. He tapped the glass gingerly and the liquid sloshed about like thick sauce. “This sure seems like a wizard’s hideaway. I wonder who owns all this?

  As if on cue, they heard a voice behind them. “Ahem!”

  They jumped and turned to see a short, old man with a sparse black beard, bright-yellow billowy shirt, and black pants standing behind them, watching them sternly.

  “U-u-um.” Theo stammered. “Nice place?”

  14

  Forming a Plan

  THEY ALL STOOD WATCHING EACH OTHER in silence for a moment. The trio was too shocked to say anything . . . the old man appeared to be assessing them sharply.

  Finally, Theo spoke. “Are you Sage? We’ve been told to find you.”

  The stern brown eyes softened, and the old man smiled. “Indeed? Now who would do such a thing?” He spoke with an accent none of them recognized, as if from a far-off land.

  He was exotic—slightly slanted eyes and darker skinned than those in their communities. His jacket had an unusual design unlike any they’d ever seen, barely perceptible swirling circles, with six large fabric buttons in the front and sleeves that billowed.

  Amber felt her tongue finally come unglued. “It was Old Mr. Thompson. He said you might be able to help.”

  “Ah!” Sage nodded slowly. “Well then, you’ll want to get the tour!”

  Theo looked at Amber with wide eyes and mouthed, That was easy!

  She smiled and followed Sage downstairs to the main floor. The first thing he showed them was a large black telescope they hadn’t noticed earlier. “This magnifies what you’re seeing ninety times,” he said proudly. “One of the best of its kind.” He glanced at Amber. “The spyglasses used by your folks in Seabrook only magnify fifteen to twenty.” He patted it happily.