Cassie Davis's Arc

Chapter 1 of 4

Cassie pushed open the warped door of the old schoolhouse and stepped inside. Two weeks of carrying the dead wizard's notes had taught her one thing: keep moving, keep looking. Someone had told her a traveler once camped here. She wanted whatever they left behind. Dust coated the floor. A bedroll lay crumpled in the corner. On a desk sat a heavy clock, its face scratched with chalk tally marks counting down to zero. Cassie touched the marks and felt her stomach drop. Beside the clock lay a leather-bound album. She flipped it open. Inside were bright photos of a girl in swimsuits, laughing by a pool with friends. Someone like her. Someone from home. The last pages had been used as a journal, the handwriting tight and rushed. Cassie read the final entry twice to be sure. The portal closes forever at dawn. Whoever wrote it had not made it back. She checked the clock against the sky outside. A few hours left. Not enough time to decode the wizard's notes alone. Not enough time to do this by herself. Cassie shoved the album into her bag and ran. She hated asking. She hated him. But the apprentice could read the notes, and dawn was coming whether she trusted him or not.