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Chapter 2 Over The River And Through The Woods

It has been exactly one year since that day.

Ivy reached into her backpack and took out the letter. She studied it for the millionth time, following the line on the crudely drawn map with her finger, looking up to ensure that she was next to the correct landmark: three massive boulders in a horizontal line at the bottom of the mountain. She read the letter stapled to the back of the map.

The letter was placed on her bed over six months ago; it read:

Ivy, I know that I am absent a lot, so this will come as no surprise. I will be gone for a long, long time, longer than I have ever been gone before. I'm not going to lie to you or make excuses; I have neglected you for purely selfish reasons. You should be able to understand and relate to that more than anyone. If I am not back within five months of you receiving this letter, I want you to follow the map and instructions on the other page.

Once you are strong enough, you will see me again if you so choose.

We will meet in the center. I know ‌you are smart, strong, and talented; you will make me proud one day. -Lilith.

Ivy neatly folded the note back up and placed it in the small pocket of her backpack. She had a massive grin on her face, "Almost there," she said to no one in particular as she shouldered the bag and jogged past the boulders and towards the mountain.

When Ivy started her adventure last week, she packed only what she thought she needed: water, lots of candy, and a single sandwich. It turned out to be a pretty big mistake when she had already eaten through half her food supplies after the first two days. Foolishly thinking it would take only two to three days, the whole trip here was a four-day ordeal. Her starting point: a small island southwest of the United States—Dodola Isle. Following the map Lilith had drawn her, she took a boat to Texas, where she ran until she reached the edge of the ocean that bisected the US, crossing the bridge that spanned the gap. Something had split the continent thirty-three years ago. Sprinting the rest of the way until she reached the surrounding lake—flathead lake, taking another ferry across to get to a little, almost deserted ocean town.

Ivy reached the edge of the mountain; the dry pine needles made crunching sounds below her black combat boots as she sprinted through the forest that encased the entire mountain.

It took her only thirty minutes of running before she slowed down, her mouth feeling as dry as a desert. Ivy had made it about a quarter of the way up the mountain and ran a little over eight miles. Looking around and closing her eyes, she intently listened for any running water. The slight breeze blew through her long black hair; it was slightly spiky, looking as if her tongue had recently made contact with a power outlet. Falling autumn leaves and pine needles had embedded themselves in it while she was running. The sounds of creatures scampering up trees and bird wings flapping as they soared above, looking for a meal, were the only things auditory to Ivy at that moment. "There's got to be a river or lake around here. The animals have to drink from somewhere." A creature Ivy didn't recognize bounded through a small clearing in the distance. It was a thin white creature with grey hooves, multiple pairs of eyes, and an enormous head. It was followed by its offspring, disappearing into the forest just as quickly.

Ivy ran up the mountain again, this time paying attention to every sound she heard, as her life may have depended on her getting water. If she were to get dehydrated and pass out, no one would know she was out there, and she would most likely die alone in the woods. After another ten minutes of running, she heard it; it was so quiet that most would have thought it was their imagination. Ivy had heard it, though, as clear as day, the sound of something small breaking the surface of a body of water.