The Four as One

by R. F. Pace

       The trip seemed more like a funeral procession than a joyous home coming.  No one was talking, not even Ralnor.  Two hours passed like it was just a few seconds in time.  When they arrived at the entrance, Ralnor just pointed to the opening.  Jake commented, “It’s funny how fast the time went by when we didn’t want it to, and how slow it was when we were wanting it to go by fast.”  Ralnor remarked, “Time is a funny thing.”

  They got off their horses and handed the reins to Ralnor.  Ralnor said, “It has been a pleasure to serve each of you.”  Jake asked, “Will we see you again?”  Ralnor replied, “I don’t know, but if the opportunity arises, I would be delighted to see all of you again.”

   

  The four turned and walked into the tunnel entrance.

  CHAPTER 47

      The climb back up the stairs was very similar to the first time they entered the mountain.  The only difference was the way the inside looked…it was a different color rock and didn’t have any traps.  The long, slow climb took just under two days to make.  When they arrived at the top, they stopped before going through the exit.

       When they walked out, the sun was shining and it appeared to be late in the day.  Once on the outside of the cave entrance, the first thing everyone did was pull their cell phones out and check them.  Tammy said, “I have a signal.”  Sara said, “I have one bar.”  Jake and George said they didn’t have any signal.  Tammy said, “It is four o’clock in the afternoon.”  Sara’s phone updated, but the signal was weak; Jake and George’s still had no signal.  Sara said, “Let me get this map app update so I can find out where we are.”  It didn’t take long for the update to load.  Sara said, “It looks like we are just about a mile further west than our original spot where we entered.”  Jake said, “I’ll bet there’s a big mountain in the middle of our way.”  George sighed, “Isn’t that the way it always is?”

       It took them a few minutes to find the safest way to get down from the cave entrance.  Once they found it, it took another hour to reach the bottom.  George shocked everyone when he said, “I sure do miss my horse.”  That stopped everyone dead in their tracks.  Tammy asked, “Did I hear what I think I just heard?”  Jake remarked, “That’s kind of funny, because I thought I heard George say he missed his horse.”  Sara said, “George, are you feeling alright?  You know it is hot here, maybe the heat is making you delusional.”  George said, “Okay, get it out of your systems.  Yes, I do like riding on a horse.”  For the next few minutes they cut up about how when they first started their journey, George had complained about being sore from riding his horse and suggested they should walk to allow the horses to rest.

       About an hour into their travel, Sara started checking her phone.  “Great,” she said “no signal.”  Tammy pouted, “I don’t have one either.”  Sara looked over at Jake and George to see what their phone status was.  Jake said, “We didn’t have a signal when we were up high.  What make you think we are going to have one here in the valley?”  Sara frowned, “Just check anyways, please.”  George pulled out his phone, “Nothing here.”  Jake did the same and exclaimed, “I don’t believe it!  I don’t have a signal!”  Sara smacked him on the arm and said, “Stranger things have happened.”

       George remarked, “You mean like going into a world full of elves, goblins, other creatures and magic?”  That cause them all to laugh.  Tammy said, “At least there are fewer things around here that want to kill us or eat us.”  George agreed, “That is true.  At least we can be thankful for something.  By the way, how much further do we have to go, navigator?”  Sara replied, “We only have to get back to the place where we left the four-wheelers.”  Jake laughed, “Good thing you told him that, because he would have never figured that out.”  Grinning, George said, “Yes, I would have.  Or I think I would have.”

       The mood was very lighthearted and carefree.  Travel here was a lot easier than it had been in the other land.  Jake inquired, “We should be getting close, shouldn’t we?”  George said, “If we’d had horses, we would have been there by now.”  Tammy looked at him and said, “I know what you’re getting for your birthday.”  Jake announced, “A cow!”  Sara said, “Only you would think that.”  Jake said, “You can ride a cow too.”  Tammy just shook her head.  They entered into a clearing and could see their four-wheelers.

       Jake was about to say something when he stopped and ducked down.  The other three followed suit.  Sara asked, “What’s wrong?”  Jake pointed in the direction of where the original entrance to the cave had been.  Jake whispered, “Look.”  Everyone was looking at the back of four people entering the cave.  “I wonder if they’re looking for us.” George said.  After getting a better look he continued, “I have a shirt just like that.”  With her mouth agape, Tammy asked, “Is that us?”  Jake said, “It sure is.”  After watching for a couple of minutes, George asked, “How is that possible?  If the portal moves when someone enters it and we have come through another one, then why is that one still open?  Jake just looked at him for a minute before he said, “Now how are we supposed to know that?”  “I know you don’t know.  I was just making an observation, not asking for an answer.” said George.

       Jake said, “Wait here for a minute and let me see if our gear has already been taken for the trip.”  Jake snuck over to the four-wheelers and back.  “Yes.  We got it,” he said.  Sara snickered and replied, “That sounds funny...  “Yes, we got it.”  I know we have it - look here.”  Mockingly, she held up her backpack and showed him.  Jake said, “You know what I mean.  They took it… we took it… oh never mind, just forget it.”  Tammy wasn’t about to let it go and said, “If they took it, how do we have it?”  Sara said, “Yea, Jake.  You’re not making much sense, if you ask me.”  Jake looked at George and said, “I don’t want your two cents worth.”  George replied, “I’m not going to give you my two cents, because those people stole it.  I need to file a police report is what I need to do.”  Sara started laughing.  She said, “Can you imagine the poor cop trying to take a police report on that?”  Jake said, “He wouldn’t believe it even if all four of us told him.  He’d want to lock us all up in the funny farm.”  George said, “Jake would look cool in a bright white jacket with his hands tied behind him.”

       Tammy said, “So, if this is just the first day of our campout, are we going to camp out or go home?”  George and Jake said, “Camp out!” at the same time.  Sara raised an eyebrow at them and said, “I hope you two have honorable intentions.”  Jake finished the statement with, “Or I’ll have to tell my daddy on you.”  Sara stuck her tongue out at Jake.  Everyone was in agreement to stay for a few days at minimum.  They waited for 15 minutes before they went to the four-wheelers and got on them.  Once they were seated Sara asked, “Where are we going?”  Jake said, “Let’s just find a nice spot near a creek and set up camp.  We can decide from there what we’re going to do.”  Tammy suggested, “There was a nice little spot a couple of miles back, if I remember correctly.”

       They started up the four-wheelers and headed back the way they had come.  They rode for about a half hour until they found a spot that looked good.  They stopped and unloaded their gear.  Jake said, “For safety’s sake we should probably stay like we have been.”  Tammy and Sara were giggling saying, “Yes, for safety’s sake.”  Jake went red in the face again.  George leaned over and whispered to Jake, “That was a bit awkward.  Glad I didn’t say it” and started laughing.  Jake looked at him and shook his head.  Sara said, “It would be nice to have a bath.”  Jake pointed out, “We have a creek.”  Sara asked, “Are you suggesting we bath, together?”  Jake started stammering with, “I mean, we could in our swimsuits.”  George said, “Man, I like your style.  I’m surprised you didn’t suggest skinny-dipping.”  Tammy slapped George.  George said, “It’s not my idea, its Jake’s.”  Tammy said, “Jake didn’t say that.
  If he did his head would have popped from too much blood going to it.”  Jake stood there not saying a thing.  Sara and Tammy were holding their stomachs from laughing so hard.  George whispered to Tammy, “I personally thought Jake had a good idea.”  Tammy smacked him again and said, “It’s not happening, good idea or bad idea, so get it out of your mind.”

      They set the tents up and started taking out various items to make dinner.  George had dug a small fire pit and placed a few small sticks in it.  He glanced over his shoulder and concentrated on the wood and used a fire spell.  Within seconds it was aflame.  George smiled to himself.  Jake noticed what George had done, but didn’t say anything.  Jake thought for a minute and couldn’t sense anyone else in the area.  After a few minutes, Jake said, “Nice fire, George.  How did you get it started so fast?”  Tammy looked at him and said, “Can we still use it?”  George nodded and smile at her.

       Jake stated, “If we can still use our magic then we must be very careful not to draw any attention.  We don’t need to be labeled freaks or witches.”  Sara stood and waved her fingers in the air and cackled.  Tammy laughed, but Jake just shook his head.  George remarked, “You two are acting like us now.  Leave the acting like children to the professionals.”  Jake smiled and said, “I do not act like a child.”  Jake stomped his feet as if he were throwing a temper tantrum.  Sara said, “I see a tree someone is going to be looking at if he doesn’t stop.”  Jake laughed, “No, not the nose to the tree.”

       Tammy asked, “What are we going to do until dark?”  George snickered and was struck by Tammy again.  Sara suggested, “We can go swimming if everyone would like.”  They all agreed.  After everyone had changed, they headed down to the creek.  The area they chose was calm and only about 5 feet deep.  George took a rope and rigged up a swing from a branch.  For the next couple of hours, they laughed and played around.  George finally asked, “What are we going to do about dinner.”  Jake replied, “It’s too late to hunt or fish.  What kind of supplies do we still have?”  Sara said, “We still have most of what we packed from home.”  After they dried off some, they walked back to the camp and started rummaging through the packs.

       George pulled out a can of chili and some crackers.  Tammy said, “Not if you are going to stay anywhere in the area will you eat that.”  Sara laughed.  Jake pulled out a couple of cans of beef stew and a bag of rice.  “I’m sure it’s not going to be as good as Fontun’s, but it should fill us,” said Jake.   Sara said, “That sounds good to me.”  Tammy and George nodded in agreement.  Jake removed two pots and a cooking rack from the four-wheeler.  He rigged them up and started heating the stew and water for the rice.  Dinner was ready about thirty minutes later.  The four sat down and ate.  Sara said, “You will not be replacing Fontun anytime in the near future with cooking like that.  Looking offended, Jake asked, “What’s wrong with my cooking?” George started laughing and said, “I think it’s just fine.”  The other three started laughing at him.  Tammy said, “Fontun isn’t here to cast a dragon spell on the plate.”  George continued laughing, “I don’t care.  I’ve learned my lesson about making fun of someone’s cooking.”  Jake said, “I think it’s just fine.  Tomorrow someone else can cook.”  Jake looked over at Tammy and Sara.  After eating dinner, they decided to call it an early night.

   

  ***

   

       The sun had just risen and Sara woke Tammy up.  Tammy crawled out of the tent and asked, “What’s wrong?”  Sara whispered, “Come on, let’s go catch some fish to eat later.  We can surprise the mighty sleeping warriors.”  They left the guys to continue sleeping and slipped off to go fishing.  The two had been fishing when they were younger, but that had been a long time ago.  They grabbed two of the poles that the guys brought and headed to the creek.  Once they were down there, Tammy asked, “What do we put on the hook?”  Sara answered, “Worms.  Do you have any?”  Tammy said, “Yep, let me dig them out of my magical pocket.  No, I don’t have any and I have no clue where to get any.  How are we going to fish with no bait?”  Sara giggled, “We can find something to use, I’m sure of it.”  Sara went back to the campsite and grabbed a plastic sandwich bag.  Looking at the bag, Tammy asked, “Do you expect the fish to jump right in?”  Sara rolled her eyes and said, “No.  It’s for collecting bait.

       For the next half-hour they flipped over rotten logs and collected various insects.  Once they had enough, they headed back down to the creek.  The show started when the two of them tried to attach the insects to the hooks.  Once the hook was baited, they would cast the line out and the bait would go flying off.  After several failed attempts, they were able to get the insects to stay on the hook.  The first nibble was a sight to see.  Sara felt something hit the bait and yanked it so hard the hook flew out of the water.  If there had been a fish on it, she would have ripped its lips off.  Tammy screeched with laughter at Sara.  Sara looked at Tammy and said, “I almost had it.  I pulled hard to keep it from getting tangled in your line.  Tammy was still laughing and couldn’t say a thing.

       Tammy’s bobber started jiggling and she patiently waited for a pull on the line.  When the pull came, she started reeling in what she thought was a monster fish.  When she got it out of the water, it was less than the size of her hand.  Sara started laughing at it.  Tammy threw her nose in the air and said, “It’s a lot bigger than the one you caught.  Oh, right - you can’t catch one.”  Sara took the challenge.  Tammy put more bait on her hook and cast it back out.  Just a few minutes later she had another bite.  This time, the fish was a keeper.  Tammy announced, “Two to nothing.”  She no more than said that, when Sara reeled one in.  Sara stuck her tongue out at Tammy and the two laughed.

       The girls didn’t see Jake and George off in the distance watching the action and laughing at them.  Sara moved a few feet down the creek to cast.  When she threw her line out, she lost her footing and all anyone could hear was a screeching, than a big splash.  She popped up sputtering.  After dropping her pole, Tammy rushed over to help Sara out of the creek.  When she noticed Sara was okay, Tammy started laughing so hard she had to sit down.  From a short distance away the two guys were doubled over with laughter.  Sara and Tammy turned and looked at the two of them.  Both girls stopped laughing when they saw the guys.  Jake and George had been worried to start with, until they saw she was okay.  Once they knew she was okay, they walked over and tried to help her out of the water.  Sara refused their assistance and made her way out by herself, growling, “It’s not funny.”  Tammy started laughing again, “Yes, it is.”  Sara tried her best to put on a pouty face.  As hard as she tried, she couldn’t because she kept laughing about it.

       Once Sara was out of the water, she said, “We are trying to catch you guy’s lunch, so I recommend you be more thankful.”  Jake said, “I am thankful, dinner and a show, what more can I ask for.”  Sara with her hand on her hips looked at Jake, “Do you think you can do better?”  George announced, “I think the gauntlet has been dropped.”  Jake headed back to the four-wheeler and retrieved the other two fishing poles.  When he returned, George said, “It looks like the challenge has been accepted.”  Tammy said, “Looser has to clean and cook.”  Jake smiled big, “Accepted.”  George asked, “How long do we want the challenge to last.”  Sara said, “Three hours sounds good.”

    Jake and George walked a little way downstream to find a better spot.  Once the two were out of sight, Sara and Tammy went back to the campsite and kicked back.  Sara said, “This is so wrong.”  Tammy replied, “Yea, but they want to be the providers, so let them provide.”

       After two hours passed, Sara and Tammy returned to the place they had been fishing. They no more than cast their lines into the water and both had bites.  Reeling in their line, they each had a large fish.  Tammy said, “I don’t think this was the plan, was it?”  Sara laughed, �
��Might as well keep them, they look good enough to eat.”  The next hour passed and the guys returned with five nice size fish on a stringer.  George held them up and said, “See them and weep.”  Tammy said, “Wow, look at those fish!  How did you do it?”  Sara pulled their stinger from the water and added, “Yes, how did you catch such small fish?  You’ll have to teach us that one.”  Sara walked over to Jake and handed him the stringer with seven fish.  Three huge, three just a bit larger than the ones Jake and George had caught and one about the same size.

       George asked, “Where did you go to buy them?  I know you didn’t catch them.”  He walked over to the fish and started inspecting them.  He said, “I know there is a price tag on one of them, somewhere.”  Jake laughed and said, “Nice job you two.”  As they walked back up to the campsite Sara informed them of what they had done.  Neither, Jake nor George were happy about it.  They had fished for three hours and didn’t catch as much and the girls had fishing for only forty-five minutes.  Jake cleaned the fish and George cooked them.  The lunch was good, but not great.  After they finished eating, they lounged around for a while, then went swimming.

  CHAPTER 48

   

       The week passed with them just hanging out and swimming most of the time.  The day came when they packed up all their gear and headed home.  The ride home was dreadful as no one was looking forward to leaving each other.  The ride to Jake’s house passed very quickly and before they knew it they were sitting in his driveway.

       Jake asked Sara, “Do you want me to ride with you and help put your gear away?”  Sara replied, “Thanks, but no.  After you get your stuff put up, you’re welcomed to come over if you’d like.”  Jake said, “That sounds good.  I’ll sent you a text when I’m done.”  The other three rode off, as Jake just stood there and watched them leave.

       His parents came out as the three were leaving.  Jim asked, “So, how did it go?”  Jake replied, “If I didn’t know better, I would say it felt like we were gone for months.”  Jake had a grin on his face and chuckled to himself.  Donna asked, “Did you have fun?”  Jake replied, “It was almost a storybook type adventure.”  His mother gave him a funny look, but didn’t inquire any further.  Jim helped him unloaded all his gear.