Here we go! Chapter 8! Woo!

Okay not that exciting I know, but the next chappie will have us entering Riven! How will Melody handle facing Gehn and perhaps meeting someone new? *wiggles eyebrows*

As always I own nothing having to do with Myst. All I have control over is Melody. She will not let me say I 'own' her.

The next question was where to find the missing page Atrus needed. She searched the island for hours, but found nothing. The thought of having to search the four Ages gave her a headache. What if Sirrus and Achenar hadn't hidden the page, but burned it?

She clamped down on her rising panic. No, she wouldn't think like that. There had to be something she was missing.

When she remembered what it was, she wanted to slap herself.

The vault!

She had never looked for the vault! That had to be where the page was! It would explain why Sirrus and Achenar had gone to such lengths to hide the location of the vault.

Pulling the paper out, she reread the note.

First she had to turn all the marker switches on. She flipped on all eight, then looked at the note again. Making her way to the dock, she turned the marker switch off.

The bottom of the marker box opened.

Inside was a single white page.

Melody's hands shook with excitement as she opened the green book.

Finally, she was going to meet Atrus face to face. Turning to the front, she placed her hand on the page and felt the familiar rush as she linked to D'ni.

Melody opened her eyes to see she was inside a large room, like the dungeon of a castle. Atrus stood from his desk and came toward her.

"Do you have the page?" he asked.

Her hands were shaking as she handed it to him. Going back to his desk, he placed the page inside the book.

Then he turned to her. "You've done the right thing. I will return to Myst and bring justice to my sons. Please wait for me. I will return shortly."

She watched open-mouthed as he placed a hand on the page. His body glowed and then faded.

Sitting on a stone off to the side, Melody tried to take in all that had happened. Somehow, it still didn't seem real. How had she gone from being a broke, jobless and soon-to-be-homeless ordinary girl to having an adventure beyond her wildest imagination? What would she do when she went home?

Melody laughed. She would certainly never look at books the same way again.

She felt a rush of air and looked up to see Atrus appear.

"It is done," he said. He placed the book on his desk and sat down.

"Atrus," she said hesitantly. "I would really like to talk to you about..."

"I'm afraid my writing cannot wait... Melody, wasn't it? It is the world where my wife is being held hostage."

Melody gasped. "Catherine? Hostage? By who?"

"I don't have time right now to explain. What I'm doing here is urgent."

She felt a chill go over her. "But I... I was hoping you would help me get home."

He looked up at her. "I'm very sorry, but this writing is a matter of life and death for many people. All I can offer you is the library on Myst and the books that are there. You will no longer have my sons to deal with, so you may explore the remaining Ages at your leisure."

Melody couldn't believe her ears. "What am I supposed to do? There is nothing in those Ages, nothing for me at least." She felt embarrassed as tears gathered in her eyes. "I don't want to be alone anymore."

Atrus was moved. "These past few days must have been very difficult for you. I'm truly sorry, but there is really nothing I can do presently to help you get home. If it would make you feel better, you are welcome to remain here with me for as long as you like."

She smiled, wiping away her tears. "Thank you."

Atrus returned her smile before going back to his writing.

Melody decided to explore this place which would be her home for who knew how long. There were only two doors in the entire place. One led to a bedchamber, the other to a garden which seemed to grow edible plants.

She returned to the bedchamber and laid down. A sudden exhaustion had overtaken her and she sank into a deep sleep.

Melody awoke slowly, forgetting where she was for several minutes.

Slowly, the events of the past days came back to her. She had found Atrus, but she couldn't go home. What was she going to do now? Atrus wrote in that large book on his desk feverishly, not stopping to rest and barely taking the time to eat. He had said it was a matter of life and death that he keep writing. If she helped him with it, would he have time to send her home?

It was worth a shot.

She entered the large room where Atrus was still writing. He looked up as she approached.

"You are awake," he said. "You slept for quite a while. It shows how much of a strain you've been under. I apologize again for my sons."

"You have nothing to be sorry about Atrus," she assured him. "Thank you for allowing me to stay here," she leaned over to look at the book. "You said that Catherine was being held hostage in that world you're writing in. How can I help you rescue her?"

He shook his head. "I can't ask you to do that."

"You're not asking, I'm offering. I want to go home. You can't help me until Catherine is rescued. I'll help you if you promise to help me when it's over."

"I am facing a foe much more dangerous than my sons," he said, and sighed. "I feel terrible about you taking such a risk, but I will certainly need your help to free my wife. I would be grateful for your help."

"Tell me what to do."

He pushed the Myst book toward her. "First, I need more ink. Can you link to Myst and retrieve my supply from the library. It's in a compartment behind the map of the island."

Melody nodded and linked to Myst.

Going to the library, she glanced at the shelves were the red and blue books had been.

Now there was only ash and burn marks.

Melody whistled. Atrus hadn't been kidding around about bringing justice to his sons.

She found the ink and returned to D'ni.

"Thank you," Atrus said when she sat the ink down. "I will need a few days to prepare something that you will need. I suggest you rest. The journey ahead will be difficult and dangerous."

Nearly a week went by before Atrus said he had prepared everything.

"There is a great deal of history you should know," he told her. "But I'm afraid I must continue my writing." He handed her a journal. "Most of what you will need to know is in there. Keep it well hidden."

Melody placed it inside the backpack-like bag she had discovered among Atrus' belongings. "Where exactly am I going?"

"To an Age called Riven. For reasons you'll discover, I can't send you there with a way out."

Her eyes snapped to his. "Are you telling me I'm basically stranding myself in an Age with a villain worse than Sirrus and Achenar?"

He regarded her gravely. "I'm afraid so. But I can give you this," he handed her another book.

She opened it. A moving picture of D'ni greeted her.

"It appears to be a linking book," Atrus explained. "But it is in fact a prison book such as the ones my sons were trapped in."

Melody nodded. Atrus had explained prison books to her. "So this is a one man prison made to look like D'ni."

"Precisely. You'll need it to capture Gehn."

"Gehn? Is that the name of the guy holding Catherine hostage?"

Atrus nodded. "Once you have captured Gehn and released Catherine, signal me and I will come with a linking book to bring us back."

"Signal you? How?"

"You'll need to create a major disturbance in the balance of the Age for me to notice as I am writing," he replied. He held open the giant book to her. "Go now. Time is of the essence."

Melody stared at the moving page hesitantly. She had never entered an Age with no way out before. What if she got trapped? What if she couldn't find a way to signal Atrus? What if this Gehn guy captured her along with Catherine?

She looked up at Atrus, who was watching her steadily.

"Atrus," she said worriedly. "I'm not so sure about this anymore. I want to help you and Catherine, but what if I mess up?"

Her new friend smiled. "After everything you've accomplished my friend, I have complete confidence in you."

Melody smiled at the reassuring look in his eyes.

Looking back at the page, she took a deep breath.

"Here goes nothing," she said as she linked to Riven.

Okie dokie then! Melody is ready to face the unknown in an effort to save Catherine and get home. What will Riven bring her? You'll have to wait and find out :)

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