Chapter Two
Someone had just turned on the light. Even with his eyes closed, Justin could see the glow through his eyelids. If only the light had been on a moment earlier, he wouldn't have lost his footing and fallen. But honestly, he had no idea how he had done it. He was sure that he was securely braced against the bookshelf. Unless… unless he had leaned too hard into the bookshelf and pushed the entire thing over.
No, there was no way he could have done that. Even if he had thrown himself at the shelves from a run, he would have just hurt himself. So, how did he fall, and why did it feel like he was lying on carpet? He was pretty sure the bookstore had a hardwood floor. And why was this carpet itchy? Was it a shag carpet?
Pushing himself up on his elbows, he immediately knew that something was wrong. "If I don't open my eyes, then it isn't real." But the chirping of a nearby bird broke his delusion and forced his eyes open in a flash.
Stretching in front of him at eye level was swaying grass and what looked to be the bottom of trees in the distance."No, no, no." This time, his voice came out barely above a whisper. The bird chirped in response to his despair. "Oh, who asked you? Unless you can tell me what happened and where I am, I suggest you keep your chirps to yourself. I am in the middle of a crisis here."
An airy giggle sounded behind him. The squaw that escaped his throat sent the reprimanded bird to flight along with about a dozen of his brethren.
Justin whipped around so fast his neck popped. "Ouch! This is not my day."
"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to startle you. I just don't normally see many men lying face down in the grass while bad-mouthing birds. Is this a regular pastime of yours, or did you just start?"
Justin stared open-mouthed at the petite redhead who sat only 5 feet away from him on an outcropping of rocks. "Did you suddenly lose your ability to speak, or can you only speak to birds? If it would help, I can whistle a few tunes for you."
Justin took in 3 slow breaths to keep from hyperventilating before he dared try to speak. "Who are you? Where am I? And how did I get here?" The last word came out strangled as though he had run out of air.
The girl looked down at her swinging feet for a moment before slowly scanning his prone form. "I can help you with the first two questions, but if you don't know the answer to the third, I am afraid you might have bigger problems than talking to birds."
Justin's sigh was so loud that the girl had no trouble hearing it. "Why don't you get up off the ground and come sit on a proper seat?" Patting the space next to her, she waited quietly for Justin to decide if he wanted to take her up on her offer.
Realizing that he would get no answers from her until he moved, he slowly picked himself up off the ground and took a cautious step toward the rocks. "Don't forget your book." Justin froze at her words. Looking to his left, he saw the large red book lying prestinely on the ground as though it had been gently laid there by loving hands. "That's not mine." He didn't move to take it, but he also kept his eyes firmly on it. "It's not? Whose is it?" Looking up at the girl, all Justin could do was shake his head. "You don't know, or you won't tell me?" Justin didn't know this girl, but he swore he could almost hear sadness in her voice. "I found this book in an abandoned bookstore. It was lying in the back of a shelf, and when I went to open it, I ended up here. Please, where am I?"
"Come sit down, and let's talk." The girl's voice didn't hold pity, just kindness. A little bit of the tension that had begun to build in his shoulders eased as he made his way to the outcrop and pulled himself up. Once he was seated, he took a better look at her.
Her hair wasn't just red, it looked like shiny copper. It curled softly down past her shoulders. Her eyes were a gray-blue mixture that caught him off guard. He was positive he had never seen their match before. Her skin was lightly tanned, and her dress was modest and very flowy. It looked like the perfect dress to spin in. Didn't girls like to spin in flowy dresses? As he looked at her, he realized that "girl" wasn't quite right. She was probably a lot closer to his own age than he had first realized if the way she was filling out that dress was any indication.
"Hello, I am Maggie." She stuck out her hand and smiled as though this was a normal, everyday introduction. But her smile was so gentle that he couldn't help but smile and take her hand. "Justin. It is nice to meet you, Maggie."
Letting her hand fall back into her lap, she looked towards the book still lying on the ground as though gathering her thoughts. "Well, that answers question number one. Let me see if I can help with question number 2. "This is Aldervaile." Justin nearly fell off the rock. He would have if Maggie hadn't put a steadying hand on his shoulder. "You are trembling. What's wrong?" He shook his head at her in disbelief. "I was just in New York City on 5th Street in an abandoned bookstore. I didn't leave the bookstore, so how did I get here?" In an instant, a thought occurred to him that would answer all of his questions.
"I must have fallen in the store and been knocked out. This is a dream. I am actually still lying in the bookstore on the floor." Maggie looked at him quizzically. "No your not. You are right here. I can see you and touch you. And I know for a fact that I am not part of any dream."
"But, I have to be in a dream. If not, how do I explain the fact that I am now in a place that doesn't exist? At least, I am pretty sure it doesn't exist. I have never heard of Aldervaile in any case."
Maggie let out an indignant snort. Try as he might, Justin couldn't help but grin at it. "And do you know all of the places there are? I have never heard of New York City before, but I don't doubt its existence just because I haven't. There are many things I have never seen that I am sure are very real."
Shaking his head, he anxiously rubbed his hands across his thighs. "No, of course not, but I do know that I was just in a physical building in New York City. Even if Aldervaile is a normal place with normal people, it still doesn't answer the question of how I got here."
At that, they both looked out across the green field until Maggie broke the silence. "Well, the only thing that you seemed to bring with you from wherever you came from was that book, so maybe it has the answers." Looking down at it, a knot began to form in Justin's stomach as his mind recalled something one of his schoolmates said about role-playing games.
"We want to do a campaign where a group of friends gets summoned into a new world to do a quest. We just need something we can use that will take us there." Justin had almost instantly tuned him out, but he did catch the last sentence he spoke. "We could use a book or a madallion."
Looking over at Maggie, Justin swallowed hard and wrapped his arms around his waist.
"Unfortunately, I think you are right. I think that book is the very reason I am here."