by Nic Weissman
Erion felt a strange tingle that ran throughout his body and then a kind of brief but violent shaking that gave him a sense of nausea. For a moment he could see nothing at all, everything was completely black; it was total darkness which he had never experienced before, as if hung on an abyss as deep as hell. Suddenly, an intense blinding light forced him to close his eyes. He was back on land. Gradually, as he got used to the intensity of the light, he began to open his eyes again, blinking incessantly.
The rest of the group was there and watching him. The nausea he had felt for a brief moment had already vanished. They were in broad daylight and the sun shone with great intensity. It must have been late in the afternoon but it was still very hot. Now that he thought about it, he was almost suffocating. He began to remove his leather armor. He was wearing too many clothes for the temperature of the place.
“What a trip! How do you feel? Do you still feel nauseous?” Ithelas asked as he approached him.
“No. I only felt it for a moment, when I was ... inside,” Erion said. “I feel good, I guess.”
“It's a normal feeling when you use a long-distance portal. But it passes right away. And I've heard that if you use them often you get used to it,” Mithir said with gestures.
“Check your gear. Everyone, please! We must make sure we didn't lose anything during the jump,” requested Thost.
The members of the group took off their backpacks and began to check what they had in them. After, Ithelas and Mithir checked the equipment that was loaded onto the mule they had brought. Nothing seemed to be missing.
Erion took advantage to put some of the clothes he had on before crossing the portal in his backpack. It was sweltering in there. He realized he had not stopped sweating since he got there. The others had also considerably lightened their clothes, including Samar. She wore a green short-sleeved blouse, brown shorts and low boots. As usual, she wore her quiver on her back and her bow in her left hand. Erion thought she had never looked so beautiful.
“This vegetation seems tropical,” Ithelas said, pointing to some of the plants around them.
Erion then looked at the environment. They were in a dense forest of tall trees. Multiple green plants surrounded the area. Lush flowers of all colors flooded the meadow with their aroma. He could hear the sounds of many birds and other animals that he didn't recognize. Erion had never been in a place so full of life.
“We must seek higher ground. Then we can try to identify where we are and what direction the cave is. But we don't all have to go. Samar, your eyes can see farther than any of us. Find some nearby hill or some high place and try to figure out where we are. Take the map with you. But it is best you don't go alone. Erion, can you go with her?” Thost said.
“Yes, of course. It's best that nobody stays alone. We are in uncharted territory,” agreed Erion, happy with the knight’s choice.
“All right. Meanwhile, we will finish checking the equipment. We'll wait here,” Thost said.
Samar and Erion walked away, leaving their backpacks to be able to walk faster. The elf led the way and Erion followed, paying attention to the flanks and rear. He was responsible for protecting the girl, knowing that maybe she was protecting him more.
They walked briskly for about ten minutes. Erion breathed large amounts of air through his mouth. The intense humidity coupled with the high temperature made it difficult to breathe. The young man knew they needed to acclimate their bodies to that atmosphere as soon as possible. Although they were not running, Samar was following a steep terrain area, always looking for the maximum slope, which was exhausting.
The elf stopped and pointed to a small cliff ahead. It was the first place where Erion could see rock. Until then, the lush terrain only allowed them to see green. With quick and agile jumps, Samar began to climb the small ridge and, a little later, reached the top. Some large trees had grown there too. Although they were, perhaps, in the highest place they could find, they were still unable to see beyond a hundred steps.
“Wait here and keep watch,” requested the elf, while she placed her bow on her back.
Samar then began to climb the trunk of the biggest tree that was on top of the ridge. The agility she had was amazing. Soon after, the elf had almost reached the highest branch of the tree about thirty steps above the ground. The top of that tree had to be above those of the others. Erion was convinced that the elf would have a good view of the surroundings from there. The young man saw how Samar consulted the map and looked for a couple of different positions in the branch to be able to see in various directions.
After a while, she descended. Samar jumped from branch to branch, always looking for the bottom one. She did it in a completely upright position, leaning only with her feet. It was as if she were walking, literally, through the tree. In a few moments, she was about five steps from the floor in one of the lowest branches of the tree. She fell after holding on to the last branch with her hands. It was a considerable height, but Samar cushioned the fall with great skill, and fell on the floor in a flexed position.
The stunts and movements based on finesse were some of the skills that made Erion stand out, but the young man understood that he'd have to try hard to keep up with that girl. Samar stood and Erion approached her.
“Are you okay? What have you seen?” asked the young man.
“Yes, I'm all right. I think I could locate us on the map,” Samar said as she pulled out the scroll, unfolded it and pointed. “I estimate that we are in this area. Far to the south, I could see the sea. In all other directions there is a very dense forest as far as the eye can see. The terrain is quite hilly in this region but in the far north, there's a large plain. I have not seen any city or town, although I'm sure there will be some scattered farms and small villages between the forests. I think I've spotted the valley where we're headed to the southwest. Closer, in the westerly direction, there's the cleft in the ground where we should find the cave. It's not too far away. Under normal conditions it would be an hour or two of travel, at best. But in this area, it will take us longer.”
“And also this heat,” Erion said. “We better get back to the others as soon as possible and get going. It's going to be night time before we get to the cave. We must find a place to camp.”
The young man watched the elf again. “For Oris, she's so beautiful,” he thought. Samar folded the map and handed it to him so he could put it away. When he took it, the young man slightly stroked the girl's hand unintentionally. They looked at each other. Erion felt his pulse quicken. Samar's incredible sapphire eyes looked away after a moment; Erion thought they were magical.
“I'd be best if we continue,” said the elf, almost in a whisper.
They started walking and headed back, trying to return through the same path they had just traversed. When they had been going for a while, Erion grew impatient. They should have already found the others, but they couldn't recognize the field. The whole forest looked similar. The young man understood that it was extremely easy to get lost in the thicket.
“The others should be here. It's better if we stop,” proposed Samar.
“I agree. We must try to find them without advancing or we may lose the reference,” Erion said.
“I'll try to climb a tree again to see if I can locate them,” said the elf as she began to climb the nearest tree.
Erion waited impatiently as he watched her quick ascent admirably.
