Myths and Magic: An Epic Fantasy and Speculative Fiction Boxed Set

by K.N. Lee

  We hugged and she caught me staring at the ring and raised it so I could have a better look. The rock was quite impressive.

  "That's a nice rock man. Good job" I said, patting Drayton on the back and he smiled with an air of pride.

  The look I saw on his face as he gazed at Ophelia was one I recognized. It was the same way I looked at Faye-Minita when I thought she wasn't looking.

  Faye-Minita stood looking at all three of us. I noted that she hadn't changed out of her clothes. She looked wonderful. Our eyes met and she smiled.

  "So, where were you guys headed?" I asked, tearing my eyes away from hers and reopening the conversation.

  "To find you actually,” Faye-Minita said.

  "Oh. Well, you've found me. Come on; let's go see who else has arrived. I’ve got to admit, I was having some reservations concerning this get-together, but now, with you guys here, things are starting to look up" I said, as we walked off in search of Danielle.

  The thought of Danielle and her comment that morning when we arrived, came back to me. She'd always wanted to be one of the popular kids. And if there was one thing we hated back then, as the so-called popular kids, a thing we hated even more than the nerds and goody two shoes? It was a poser. A wannabe.

  They came in handy and we usually turned to them when we needed things we knew, only they were desperate enough to help us get. They always did it, hoping for some sort of acceptance.

  Danielle had been a sort of wannabe, but to her credit, she'd come in handy a lot. Especially when it came to raves.

  I couldn't tell yet how much she'd changed over the years, but I could already tell I didn't like her much.

  That hadn't changed.

  Seeing Drayton and Juan bond had been picturesque. They'd been similar back then and even now that we'd all changed for the better, they were similar as well. It was a marvel to see.

  We soon found Danielle and she ushered us into the dining room, which, as was the normal trend in the manor, was a behemoth space.

  The dining hall had a huge table in the middle and very ornately carved chairs lining it all around. Chandeliers hung from the ceiling, providing lighting for the room and for whatever reason; there were candles on the walls, held by expensive looking holders.

  The table was full of food and I wondered if she had prepared for a much bigger crowd because we weren't that many. Were we?

  We took our seats then. Juan sat beside Ophelia and me and Drayton sat beside each other.

  Once we were seated, Danielle got up and we all looked at her, putting an end to the murmur that had picked up. She looked around the room, that small smile still played around her lips. There was a glint in her eye I recognized from before, I couldn't tell what it was, but it left me feeling rather unsettled.

  She cleared her throat and then addressed us.

  "Good day. I'm glad we all have been able to make it" she started, pausing to look at each of us. Juan shifted in his seat slightly and Drayton cleared his throat.

  "Well, what can I say? I am incredibly happy to see you all. Guys, it's been a while" she smiled, "I know you all must be very curious as to why I have called for this gathering. I assure you that it will be revealed in time, but for now, we should all just catch up, you know? It's been so long, we've all gone through changes. We've all grown up. We're no longer the teenagers we once were, we're adults. Hell, some of us are even getting married..." She nodded at Drayton and Ophelia, who smiled contentedly.

  "Some of us have impressive careers. Faye-Minita is a big city lawyer now. One of the best if the newspapers are anything to go by".

  I tried to keep a straight face as she nodded towards me, managing to nod back in return. Where was she going with this?

  "My point is, we all have changed. Some, in more ways, and more drastically than others, but we have changed. We knew each other as we were; let's get to know each other as we are now. Some of us are yet to arrive, as you'll notice there are empty seats. But they've assured me they'll be joining us shortly. Also, guys, I'd like to introduce us to Bobby Dodson. He's renting one of the rooms here for the summer. Oh, and he's an artist, he came out here looking for inspiration".

  The man she referred to wave shyly and bent his head, I could tell he was timid. He was unexceptional and had plain features. She continued,

  "There we have Vagner Peachcomby. He's a wilderness researcher, he'll also be staying here". The man smiled at everyone at the table as he was being introduced then turned back to watch Danielle give her speech.

  "There's more than enough to eat guys, so, let's dig in. It's not a rave, but I'm certain we will have a lot of fun", she concluded, sitting down, as polite laughter erupted across the table.

  “Wow, what a speech”, I heard Juan mutter under his breath and I pinched his knee. He smiled and reached for a napkin.

  I looked around the table; the faces I saw were very familiar faces. Faces from my past nonetheless, but familiar all the same.

  I was surprised at how easily their names popped into my head. I caught sight of Tabitha Adams. She was Danielle's younger stepsister. She had, on occasion, followed her to some of the parties her sister went for, but she'd never really had a strong taste for it.

  Peggy Kincaid sat across from me and winked at me as our eyes met. We used to be friends back in school. No, acquaintance was more the word. We met at party and she'd almost been as wild as I was, but she'd been a poser and we never really hit it off.

  Besides Danielle, at the far end of the table, sat Moira Daniels. Moira was known to everybody as Danielle's sidekick. She followed Danielle around like a lost puppy and occasionally did her bidding, no questions asked. She was peculiar because she was a shy girl ordinarily. But when she got some booze in her, she turned into a wild, wanton vixen at whatever party she was in. The last person on the table was Blake Donnelly, Tabitha's friend. I didn't really know him well as he usually kept to himself, but I knew whom he was.

  Juan, I noticed, had pause eating and was also looking round to table. We were all familiar with each other, apart from the artist and the wilderness researcher. I knew I was not the only one wondering what we were doing at the manor.

  So far, Danielle had kept her intentions a secret.

  She sat at the head of the table, eating, with a content look on her face.

  I reached for a plate. One way or the other, sooner or later, all would be revealed. For now, I was suddenly hungry.

  Danielle's intentions could wait.

  7

  Dawn came rather quickly. It seemed like I'd hardly slept at all, but for some reason, I felt refreshed. As it turned out, the day brought with it an extra surprise of its own. Danielle informed during breakfast of some of the activities she had planned for us.

  "Hey, so, I organized a scavenger hunt?" She said suddenly, looking around the table and we all paused for a second. I dropped my fork and paid attention. Scavenger hunt? When was the last time I had participated in one of those? The idea seemed a bit odd, but I couldn't deny that I was intrigued.

  "Yeah, a scavenger hunt", she repeated, smiling at our expressions, "Under your plates, you'll see the names of the people you've been paired with". She said, gesturing towards the table and we all checked beneath our plates. Sure enough, there was a piece of paper underneath mine and one name was boldly written across the laminated sheet.

  "I've got Blake", I announced looking across the table at him and he smiled, showing me his own paper which read ‘Faye-Minita”.

  "I've got um…Tabitha?" Juan said beside me and I looked at him, he shrugged and raised the paper with the name boldly written on it and Tabitha nodded, looking at his paper which no doubt read “Juan”.

  By and by, soon, everyone knew who their partners were. Danielle said she'd gotten an external party to do the pairings at random. Danielle had been paired with Peggy, Drayton had been paired with Vagner and Ophelia had been paired with Bobby.

  Bobby looked at Ophelia and smiled shyly. I noted this with sl
ight amusement, wondering how those two would get along. They had very different characters.

  "Okay, so...now that we all know who we've been paired with, here's how it's going to go. We'll each be given a clue, leading to another clue, right? And when we get the second clue, we'll be led to another...”

  "So like a typical scavenger hunt then," Juan said mock-speculatively and laughter arose at the table. I nudged him from under the table and watched him struggle to hide his smile. Danielle nodded, smiling broadly,

  "Exactly Juan. So we have six hours to locate all the items and return to the Grand Hall before the stroke of eight o’clock. Strict adherence is advised please, even though we're all encouraged to have fun. I know I'm gonna. We'll be having a party to celebrate the winner and everyone else really after it all. If you examine the way the party planner has set this up, you'll know that there's no cheating involved, so we're all on an even field, including me" she said looking around the table.

  "Well I don't know about cheating, but I know my man Vagner and I are going to wipe the floor with your individual asses. Isn't that right?" Drayton said smiling and the entire table laughed,

  "You said it man", Vagner responded, equally smiling. The wilderness researcher was a fit man and as I watched him, he caught my eye and winked, then looked back at Danielle. He seemed like a friendly guy.

  "Well, a little friendly competition is encouraged", Danielle, said smiling at Drayton.

  "Glad to see that you’re all into the idea. We'll begin as soon as we're all done eating" she said and returned to her food.

  I looked at Blake from across the table. I'd seen him a few times back when I still used to stay in Rosendale, but we'd never really spoken to each other. He caught my eye and smiled briefly and I nodded to him before promptly returning to my food.

  Soon enough, we all finished eating and we were all given our first clue.

  Blake walked towards me with the clue in hand and a bag to collect our items in. The others made their way in search of the things described in their clue.

  "Okay, this is an odd one", he said as he got to me. Then he stretched his hand for a handshake,

  "I’m Blake, by the way." He shook his head, "Sorry, you knew that. Nice to be working with you on this" he said looking slightly flustered.

  I smiled easily, returning his handshake.

  "Faye-Minita. I'm glad as well, let's kick butt, yeah?" I said and he smiled seeming more relaxed. Good.

  I took the paper from his hand and read the clue,

  "I am an object lost in time, yet relative to the human eye. Find me. Good luck"

  I looked at him and he shrugged looking lost, and I looked at the clue again. 'Lost in time' 'yet relative to the human eye'.

  "Time..." I wondered out loud, “so, maybe it’s a watch? Clock?"

  Blake shrugged again, looking thoughtful, but something had already hit me.

  Yesterday, when Ophelia, Drayton, Juan and I had been searching for Danielle, I'd caught sight of a grandfather clock. It seemed to have stopped working a while back as the hands were not moving, but it still hung there. Sentimental value perhaps? So, in a way, it was 'lost in time' or stuck, but it was still there because it had sentimental value. So it belonged to a relative? Was it kind of like a relative?

  I felt like I was grasping at straws but what did it matter? Blake obviously seemed even more stumped than I was, and it was a place to start off our search. I relayed my idea to him and he looked at me contemplatively for a second, and then he shrugged,

  "Well, it kinda makes sense and I have no idea what else it could mean, so it's worth a shot," he said and he asked where I'd seen the clock.

  I couldn't quite recall exactly, but I described how we'd searched for Danielle and where we'd started from till we arrived at the dining hall. He nodded, saying he had an idea where it was that I was describing and he led the way as we went in search of the grandfather clock.

  "Are you certain?" I asked and she nodded enthusiastically looking very convinced that she was correct. Tabitha nodded her head at Juan.

  I sighed as I looked at the clue again,

  "I exist to quench your thirst when all other water in the mansion runs out. Find me. Good luck".

  "I still think it's a well though, you know there is one just outside the mansion, right? It's not very far" I emphasized, but she rolled her eyes, shaking her head.

  "Think about it Juan, C'mon. A well? Really? It's got to be the wine cellar" Tabitha said, looking at me like she wondered how I could not see just how right she was.

  While I figured that the clue was referring to the well just outside the mansion, Tabitha had a different opinion. According to her, the clue was most definitely referring to the mansion's wine cellar, which she had used to quench her thirst more than once when water just didn't do the trick anymore.

  The statement came off to me as odd, but then again, she was more familiar with the mansion and moreover, the cellar was closer. Better to check out her idea first and then, if it turned out she was wrong, like she most probably was, we'd just go out to the well. It sounded like a plan.

  "Alright, if you insist. We'll check your place first. Lead the way", I said and she smiled brightly, obviously happy to have gotten her way.

  She walked down a corridor towards the stairs that led downstairs to the wine cellar, and I followed her, studying the clue as I went.

  Danielle smiled as I read the clue again. Anyone who saw it would immediately have thought I definitely cheated. And I wouldn't have blamed them because how could I? It was so darned easy.

  Okay, to be honest, I didn't really expect to be thrown off by any riddle that pertained to my own mansion, but I was especially in awe of how easy the clue I held in my hand was. Only one place fit the description and Peggy and I were on our way there.

  I looked at the clue again; wanting to make sure I was not going off on a hubris-fuelled intuition that would prove to be wrong.

  "I am a place where no evil may enter. Find me. Good luck."

  I laughed again,

  "I'm so glad I got paired with you. I mean you know this place like the back of your hand. We're so going to crush them,” Peggy said beside me and I nodded in agreement.

  The place the clue referred to was the chapel, which had been built at the back of the mansion. My great-grandmother had it built because she believed the forest where Faye-Minita had been found to be the home of evil spirits and all sorts of other malevolent entities.

  Of course, she had no proof of that, but then again, she was cocksure of herself and had the chapel built with the intention of warding off the evil spirits.

  I laughed again, as we walked towards the Chapel. Her paranoia was about to put me ahead of the others.

  "A painting always needs a muse and a muse needs to be amused. Find me. Good luck”, Ophelia read.

  I looked at Bobby quizzically as the latter stared at the clue. I could see that his mind was hard at work and I thought about what the clue could mean as well. It obviously had something to do with art and Bobby was an artist, so there was that.

  "This house is full of paintings. We can't possibly check all of them and then hope to still win this", Bobby contemplated out loud and I nodded in agreement. There had to be something.

  A muse needs to be amused. So, painting of a laughing model then? Was the Mona Lisa not said to have a small smile on her face. That could be amusement.

  Amused.

  Amused.

  Suddenly it hit me. Amused. The previous day, when Drayton and I had arrived, before we ran into Faye-Minita, we wandered around the mansion a little bit in one room; I'd seen a painting of an amusement park.

  I remembered wondering how much fun the people in the painting seemed to be having.

  Bobby looked at me in slight wonder, as I relayed my thoughts to him. He nodded eagerly agreeing it was a good enough place to start. There really was no time to waste, as there were other clues to solve.

  Without wasting
much time, we took off in search of the painting.

  "When darkness falls, you must rely on the lights", I read the clue out loud in an effort to make sense of it, but I was unable to make heads or tails of it. Did we have to wait for nightfall? Wouldn't that be too late to do anything tangible? The game would be ended by then.

  Vagner suddenly murmured to himself and I looked up from the clue I was still studying,

  "What is it? You've got something?" I asked and he shrugged,

  "Well, I'm not certain if it makes sense, but well, I figure we take it literally, yeah? If the lights were to go out now, if darkness were to fall suddenly, we would have to rely on backup generators, right? This mansion has got to have one,” he said and I nodded solemnly.

  It made some sense. There definitely had to be a backup generator somewhere in the mansion. I nodded and told him I agreed with his idea and we ran off in search of the backup generators.

  Faye-Minita stared at the fourth clue and for a second, wondering how the others were doing. The grandfather clock had been the answer. Inside, we'd found two watches and tossed them in the bag. The next clue had led us out back to a small storage cabin where we read 'Till the earth till it can be tilled no more". A quick search of the place showed us a place marked 'X' outside the storage cabin beside a discarded till that looked like it had been there for a while.

  We dug and discovered a small box. The box contained what looked like miniature collectors cash registers. It seemed all the items were in duplicate. We'd also unearthed our fourth clue in the box.

  "I occasionally go ‘beep’. Time I keep, but my real job is to heat. Find me. Good luck."

  "What's that? A microwave? Are these getting easier?" Blake asked.

  "Well, that's just our luck isn't it?" I replied as I wondered how many kitchens the mansion had and how many microwaves were in each.

  "Well, we'd better be getting along then. We've got some searching to do", Blake said and we raced towards the nearest kitchen.