Chapter Two: Ivor and the Mountain Pass
Hello! I forgot to put the little intro at the start in bold.
That seems to be what everyone does, so I apologize. I am new at this. (Update: I've discovered how to edit chapters! Now the first chapter is in bold, too!) ;)
Anyway, I hope you liked the first chapter. Thank you so much to the people who favourited, followed and reviewed or simply read it. And to Noma9! Your review motivated me to continue. I'm glad you like my changes and my writing! It makes me so happy! :D I just figured that the Celestrians would be quite angel-like in how they do things. I imagined them elegant and fairy-ish with powers to kill, but they always have to think kindly and use their powers for good.
I did notice a lot of mistakes and errors after I put the first chapter up, so I made a point of editing this one very carefully. I hope it satisfies and that you all like it! :)
I've been spending a lot of time character designing OCs, as Avery will be making some friends soon. I've also made a cover! It took me forever to decide what Avery's main outfit would be, I'm sorry :)
I just have so many exciting things planned for this story, I've been getting ahead of myself.
Also, I forgot:
DISCLAIMER: I DO NOT OWN DRAGON QUEST IX OR ANY OF THE DRAGON QUEST GAMES.
Avery was floating. She was floating like she normally would in the human realm, but she was wet and cold and there was an uncomfortable burning feeling in her lungs that she didn't understand. She didn't know what was happening. She couldn't understand why the air was thrashing her around. She couldn't open her eyes, for if she did, they would be invaded with pain and blur.
It was then when she realised she was in water. This is what drowning must be like. And if she was drowning, she must save herself. She had a village to protect.
She moved her arms and legs, which seemed to be tangled in weeds, and burst to the surface, spluttering for the air that mortals breathe. She was in the pool below the waterfall of Angel Falls. Taking deep breaths and grabbing handfuls of weed, Avery managed to pull herself through the water, towards the closest land mass. The one where she set that old sailor's soul free. Her body was heavy and she was weak. She hardly had the energy to lift her head to free it from the tangle of yellow weeds stuck there. She pulled and pulled herself along through the green, trying to find solid land, all the while her lungs drew in ragged breaths. Finally, after a frantic panic attack, Avery's searching fingers found something solid. A large, cold ragged rock, and she clung to it like a starfish.
"Oh my goodness!" Avery heard a female voice gasp in horror. "Are you alright?!"
She heard footsteps on grass but the weight of gravity kept her head down, still tangled in weeds. She was simply too weak to move, feeling too vulnerable to let go. She could feel a person splash into the water and rush to her side. Delicate fingers wiped the weeds out of her face, which turned out to be Avery's own gravity-bound blonde hair.
"Here, let me help you..." The person said, but Avery's vision went black before she could tell who her rescuer was, or before she could question why this human could even see her.
Wasn't she, the Guardian, the one who was supposed to do the helping?
Avery woke to find herself under the warm covers of a soft bed, free of weeds and water. She was staring up at a wooden roof. To her left was a window showing a square of blue sky, and to her right, on the other side of the room, was another bed. It seemed that the room had mirrored itself, as the circular rug and the wooden wardrobe next to her were placed carefully in the exact centre line on the floor. The only thing disrupting the perfect symmetry was a chair in the far corner, seating none other than Erinn. She had her head down, and was mending a long white piece of fabric with a needle and thread.
Avery sat up and, at the same time, she realised her dress robes were gone.
"Good afternoon!" Erinn said, her head having snapped up at Avery's start. "You're finally awake! How're you feeling?"
Avery simply stared at white fabric in Erinn's lap. Could that possibly be her robes?
"Ah, yes." Erinn said, standing up and showing Avery her project. "Your dress was sopping wet. So, I washed it for you. But when it came out it was just white fabric. There were no stitchings at all. They just sort of... Dissolved. So, I decided I'd try to fix it for you. But I'm not having much luck. I'm sorry."
Avery blinked at her. This girl had found her randomly in the river, saved her life, taken care of her, and she was now apologizing for not being able to fix her robes? Granted they never really needed a needle and thread, as they always just wrapped around her and floated.
"My name's Erinn." She continued, beside her bed now, the robes draped over the chair she was sitting on. "Do you mind if I ask what your name is?"
"Avery," she replied without thinking, in a croaked voice that caused her to clear her throat. That was strange; her voice had never done that before.
"Really?" Erinn gasped, her brown eyes wide and suddenly too close. "Oh!" She recoiled and took a step back. "I'm sorry. It's just that... Your name is the same as our village guardian. Guardian Avery." She gestured out the window and Avery looked out towards a high view of the small hill with a statue on it. She swept her eyes along the familiar sight of her village. How was she supposed to take care of it when she was stuck as a mortal? Her halo wasn't floating above her head and her back was bare.
Her wings were gone. How was she supposed to return to the Observatory without wings?
"I was so surprised when I found you by the river." Erinn continued, moving towards the wardrobe and pulling out a pile of neatly folded clothes in various shades of blue and white. "You must have gotten caught up in the earthquake and fallen from atop the waterfall. You're lucky you survived." Erinn smiled her usual sweet smile. "You must be hungry. I can make some afternoon tea and bring it up, if you want."
"It's okay." Avery said quickly, not wanting Erinn to trouble herself even more. "I can stand." She swiftly swung her legs out from the covers and stood up, at the same time she realised her skin felt strangely oily and dirty. Her golden hair, which normally flowed around her elegantly, fell somewhat lifelessly to her hips. She also noticed that she was considerably taller than Erinn, who was simply a twelve-year-old girl. Avery wondered how she hadn't noticed the girl's youth before.
"If you'd like, you can take a bath." Erinn suggested, shifting the weight of the pile of clothes to her left arm. "I heated some water from the river downstairs." She turned and handed Avery her robes. "The water here is special. It will make you feel better."
Avery followed Erinn out the door, along the landing and down the wooded stairs.
The ground floor of the house shared by Erinn and her grandfather made the room above look like a closet in comparison, simply because there was less in it. There was a small kitchen in the far corner, a bookshelf in the other and a small, round table in the very centre sporting four chairs. Underneath the staircase was a steel bath full of steaming water hidden behind a pink curtain.
"I'll leave these clothes here for you to change into when you're done." Erinn said, placing them on a stool beside the bath. "Take as long as you want, my grandfather is minding the inn until dinner.
She turned and left then, out the front door and closing it behind her. Avery faced the bath curiously. She had never taken one before, nor had she ever found it necessary enough to watch. But it was a simple part of human life, was it not? Avery didn't understand what or why this situation had come upon her, but getting rid of this slimy feeling was taking top priority right now. So, she shrugged and slid her feet into the hot water, sinking down into its weightless depths.
Avery wasn't completely sure she had gotten these clothes right, but as she looked in the hanging mirror on the wall behind the bath, she found that she resembled a normal (rather delicate) mortal girl of about fifteen or sixteen. Her hair was clean, and had a little more life to it than before she had washed it. Her skin smelled like flower petals from the pink bar of soap she had used, and was just as smooth. All in all, she felt a thousand times better than before.
The clothes Erinn had left for her involved a frilled white dress with puffed sleeves and a skirt that ended above her knees, matching white stockings and a corset that was the colour of the sky. The various bows, ribbons and trims on her outfit were a lighter blue. The dress contrasted against her hair dramatically, and Avery found herself liking her new outfit.
She pulled back the bath curtain and glanced around the empty room. The kitchen was clean and tidy, the various plates, bowels and cups piled on the shelves above the sink were made of tin and were dented into shape in some places. There was a single pink flower sitting in a small bottle of water on the windowsill below, facing the world outside. Avery wandered over and twisted the bottle so that the flower's head faced her, and, looking beyond it, she saw the guardian statue on the hill yet again.
From this distance, the statue looked more like a cloaked nun with angel wings rather than herself. Is this how humans think the guardians look? Or are her eyes just missing something? Maybe it still looked like Aquila, or even the first guardian that looked after this village. Avery turned and drifted to the front door. She considered taking off her stockings in order to walk on the grass, but spotted a pair of ankle-length leather-brown boots beside the door with steel soles. Slipping them on (a perfect fit), she twisted through the front door, making sure to not make any noise (she was used to not making any noise, or 'becoming the wind', as Aquila had put it), and started on her way towards the small hill beside the waterfall.
The sun was low in the sky, and Avery figured it to be around three in the afternoon as she climbed the grass towards the statue. She dragged herself up the last few steps and met with a pleasant slash of mist. A soft breeze picked up her hair and she smiled with the familiar feeling. So this was how the humans lived in this gravity-bound realm. The wind made Avery feel free; it gave her a sense of flying. And the healing, misty waters of Angel Falls sprinkling on her skin gave that sense even more reality.
Avery's guardian statue stood a few feet above her head and was glistening wet in the sun. It didn't look anything like her. Nor Aquila or the guardian above him, who she knew was male from the times he had spoken of him. Perhaps the statue didn't change, but the plaque certainly did:
Our Guardian, Avery
She was stuck on the protectorate, yet she was still the guardian? If the plaque has not changed then it's possible that The Observatory has been damaged far beyond being functional. Here she was, worrying about herself and how she would get back to her realm, when her people could be in trouble up above. Were Aquila and Apus Major okay? What about Yildun or even Aries? She had ignored the most important thing that had happened last night: that purple beam.
What was it? Where had it come from? Had it destroyed The Observatory?
"Hey, it's that girl who turned up just after the earthquake this morning." Avery caught her breath as she heard a male voice behind her down the hill. It snapped her entirely out of her thoughts.
"Oi! Wakey, wakey! What are you doing there, staring into space?" another called out obnoxiously.
"Ivor," Avery whispered under her breath, recognising this one. Still, she kept facing the statue. Was she going to experience his angry temper first-hand?
"I don't know what Erinn thinks she's doing bothering with the likes of her." Ivor was saying loudly, obviously trying to get to Avery. "She doesn't know where she's from. I wouldn't trust her as far as I could throw her."
"I bet it's her name that's got Erinn so keen. It's the same as our village guardian after all." The other voice replied, slightly quieter, so that Avery could hardly hear. She figured this voice belonged to Ivor's only friend, Hugo.
"I doubt it's even her real name." Ivor scoffed. "I bet she's just some no-good wandering minstrel taking on a guardians' name to get free lunch. Well listen to this, oddball! I won't let you get away with any funny business on my patch." He yelled directly at Avery. She finally decided to turn around and face them, her eyes blank.
"Yeah, watch your step!" Hugo added, less threatening. "Ivor doesn't like Erinn giving all of her attention to you."
Ivor jumped and turned to his friend. "Shut up you idiot! Why would you say that?!" Avery couldn't help giggling at his reaction, which caused him to glare.
"What's going on?" A new voice asked. "What are you two bothering Avery for?" Avery saw Erinn making her way up the hill, carrying a basket of clothes.
"Hi, Erinn!" Hugo said, quickly covering up their petty bullying. "Nothing's going on. Just teaching Avery here a few village rules."
But Erinn wasn't buying it. She had the face of a mother who'd just found out her children had painted on the walls of her house. Hugo and Ivor, in return, looked like the children who had just been busted in the act of painting on the walls of her house.
"Anyway, we were just leaving." Ivor said quickly, walking down the hill quickly in an effort to regain confidence. "Come on, Hugo."
Erinn turned and watched them as they went, sighing. "I don't know why Ivor's so full of himself these days. He never used to be like that."
Avery blinked at this in surprise. Erinn couldn't see that Ivor had fallen in love with her? Avery now wished more than ever to be invisible again. She could help the two of them fall in love. Erinn wouldn't be alone and Ivor would stop acting like a jerk.
"Anyway," Erinn continued. "You must be feeling better now if you're out walking around. Anyway, I'll start on dinner. There's nothing more to do at the inn for now, so Grandpa will be coming home soon. Enjoy the rest of your walk. But make sure you don't overdo it okay? I'll see you back at the house." Avery, who hadn't spoken a word, simply nodded. She wasn't used to talking to members of her flock directly. It was, as Aquila always stretched, forbidden. And she watched as Erinn disappeared around to the front of her house.
Avery looked behind her shoulder at the statue of the unknown celestrian. "Enjoy the rest of my walk?" she questioned to herself, then shook her head.
Over the bridge onto the far land mass was most of the village of Angel Falls. The item shop resided near Erinn's house, but that was about it. Avery had explored this village to the fullest under Aquila's orders, so there wasn't really anything to do. Still, even in this mortal form, she could try to at least listen to people's problems and fix them. And so, she wandered down the hill towards the bridge.
"Dear, oh, dear." An old voice was saying. "First there was the earthquake, then wild animals running riot. The mountain pass is completely blocked, too."
"I know. It's just one thing after another isn't it?" Said another. Avery backed again the wall of the item shop and peeked around the corner. There were two old women dressed in colourful robes attending to the village garden.
"I'll tell you what I think." One holding a walking stick continued as her companion worked in the dirt. "You know Erinn and the strange person she's befriended, the one who fell from the waterfall? Well, I think it's her that brought all this misfortune to the village."
The woman kneeling in the dirt nodded in agreement. "She's angered the guardian."
Avery took a few steps backwards as quietly as she could, and then slowly turned and skipped across the bridge. The guardian isn't angered, she's simply lost. But it's better that those women don't feel guilty talking about their opinions. It's her fault for eavesdropping.
Avery wandered over the bridge, past the church and the inn to the very left of the village. Hardly anyone was out and about, as the sun was setting, yet Avery could feel eyes staring at her through windows. The largest building in front of her was Mayor Litlun's house.
"Isn't it about time you did something useful with yourself rather than just hanging about the place causing trouble?" Some was shouting loudly from inside. Avery crept over and peeked over the sill to look into the large kitchen. The mayor of Angel Falls was yelling at none other than Ivor, who was his son.
"You'd do well to take a leaf out of Erinn's book." The mayor continued. "She puts in a lot of hard work at the inn, that girl. Visitors always want to come back because of her."
"What's Erinn got to do with it?" Ivor snapped. "I am trying to find something I want to do, anyway. And when I figure out what that is I'll work my socks off!" his eyes snapped to movement at the kitchen window behind his father, and he looked directly into Avery's green eyes. Avery ducked down and skimmed around to the back of the house. She heard the front door slam open and footsteps on the grass to the place that she had been snooping. Slowly, she circled around to the opposite side of the house and peeked around the corner. Ivor was not there. Taking a chance, Avery ran towards the church, taking a detour behind it, and didn't stop sprinting until she reached Erinn's house.
She leaned on the door and panted. She had had full knowledge that she wasn't invisible, yet she invaded their privacy. Now she had done it. Ivor would dislike her even more now. Avery sighed and opened the door to Erinn's home. Wonderful smells of baked potatoes and buttered onions met her nose. Erinn's Grandfather was seated at the table, and greeted Avery with a kind smile.
"Hello again, Avery." Erinn said from the woodstove. "I've just this minute finished the food. You look like you've had quite a long walk. Did you enjoy the village?"
"Yes." Avery answered instantly, clasping her hands in front of her politely. "Everyone's… very curious about me."
"I know what they've been saying, but they're just worried." Erinn's Grandfather said in an old, gravelly voice. "They're simply using you as a scapegoat." Avery blinked at him, and then returned his smile.
"Let's eat!" said Erinn. "Can you help me lay the table, Avery? You can have a rest as soon as we've finished eating, don't worry." Avery nodded; kicked off the boots she had borrowed and retrieved three knives, three forks and three tin plates from the shelf. Erinn placed a pot of onions, a platter with three baked potatoes and three steaks on the table. Avery realised that she must have gone to a lot of extra effort in order to make three meals instead of two as she normally would, and resolved to help the girl clean up after dinner if Ivor didn't attack her during that time.
"Grandpa, how was your day?" Erinn asked as she started cutting a slice of steak in bite-sized pieces for him.
"It was silent, Erinn dear." Her Grandfather answered with a small sigh. Avery retrieved a potato and a steak from the platter and spooned a small helping of onions onto her plate. She had never eaten before, as a Celestrian, she never had to, but a hollow feeling in her stomach caused her to copy Erinn in the act of cutting her steak.
"There's normally many visitors here during the weekend, isn't there?" Avery put in without thinking, but Erinn and her grandfather nodded.
"It's a real worry." He said. "I suspect that during the earthquake the mountain pass that connects us to the outside world was blocked by a landslide. Now nobody can reach us anymore." Avery didn't reply. She knew of the mountain pass, but only from hearing conversations from travellers.
"Lots of people visit our village because of the famous angel tears water that we get from the falls." Erinn continued. "That's how we managed to make such a success of the inn, you see. But, if no one's able to get through the mountain pass, they won't be able to get rid of their sicknesses. I'm worried some might not make it."
"Sicknesses? That's what you're worried about?" her grandfather asked in wonder, accepting his cut-up dinner. "You're such a sweet girl, Erinn," His granddaughter grinned sweetly and sat in her own chair. Avery smiled at her food. Leave it to Erinn to worry about everything except herself. She would make a better guardian than Avery ever would.
"Morning, Avery!" Erinn said as she drew the curtains. Avery sat up in bed, surprised at the sudden burst of light. Erinn was dressed in her normal outfit, and looked slightly annoyed.
"Good morning," She said cautiously.
"You have a visitor."
"I have?" Avery realised with a jolt that Ivor must've arrived and complained about her snooping. Did he turn the entire town against Erinn and her Grandfather for their kindness of letting her stay?
"Ivor's here." Erinn replied, rather flatly. "He's got something he wants to talk to you about. He knows you're here. So I can't turn him away. Just give him a few minutes of your time, okay?"
Avery refrained from sighing in relief. "Sure."
"If Ivor says anything rude to you, make sure you don't let him get away with it." Said Erinn. "I usually only give him three chances before I strike back." She then turned and clambered down the stairs, muttering something about it being too early.
Avery slid out of bed into the fresh morning air and slipped into the same clothes she wore yesterday. She had that oily feeling again, but used a washbasin that was sitting on the chair to get rid of it on her face. She also found a hairbrush next to it, which she used to transform her hair into looking almost a fresh as it did yesterday.
Downstairs, Erinn was making a breakfast of eggs and bacon. Her grandfather was sitting at the table reading a newspaper. Across from him was Ivor, slumped with his arms folded across his chest, looking like he'd rather be anywhere but there. All three looked over when she made it to the wooden landing, Ivor stood up, glaring. Avery grimaced.
"Don't look so horrified." Ivor said with annoyance. "There's something I want to talk to you about that's all. We can't talk here though. Come outside a minute." He flounced out the front door, and Avery followed, after exchanging a confused look with her two hosts.
The air outside was crisp and chilly. The leather toes of her boots were darkened with dew from the grass as she walked. The sun had yet to evaporate the droplets, as it still was so low behind the waterfall and cliff that the village was cast in grey shadows. Ivor led her towards the top of the hill near the guardian statue.
"So, here's the thing." He stopped and turned to face her. "You've heard about how the pass has been blocked by a landslide, right?"
"Yes," Avery answered curiously.
"Well, that pass is a lifeline for us here in Angel Falls." Ivor continued. "We're totally cut off if we can't use it. It's a real problem for Eri-" he cut himself off, but quickly continued. "It's a real problem for everyone, I mean. So, I was thinking: what better time for Ivor to come to the rescue?"
"You're going to clear the land slide and make it passable again?" Avery said, looking behind him at the statue. "That does seem to be what is making this village unhappy, isn't it?"
"You heard my Dad." Ivor muttered. "It'll get him off my back for a while."
"Erinn will be pleased as well." Avery said with a sly smile, causing Ivor to glare.
"There's just one hitch with my perfect plan." He said. "Since the earthquake, there have been lots of wild animals running around like crazy and it's pretty dangerous to leave the village now. I don't want to be attacked. That's where you come in. I was thinking that maybe you could tag along. You minstrel types are generally pretty handy in a scrap right? Can I count of you to help me out?"
"I'm not a minstrel, Ivor." Avery replied, staring up at the statue again. Yesterday, she had been dwelling on what had happened the night before last. But today was the future. There was nothing she could do about her situation. However, she could still watch over and help her village, perhaps less anonymously than before, but she still had a duty to these people. "But I will come with you."
Ivor caught his breath in surprise and Avery look directly into his young, grey eyes meaningfully.
"I'll meet you at the church after breakfast." He replied, walking back down the hill after breaking eye contact. "Let's keep this to ourselves, okay? We don't want everyone sticking their beaks in."
Avery, of course, was interviewed about her conversation with Ivor during breakfast, and she told Erinn and her Grandfather that Ivor simply wanted to apologise for the way he and Hugo treated her yesterday. This was technically true, if you exchanged Avery's invasion of privacy as making them even.
After her breakfast, she left with the excuse of exploring the village some more and met Ivor outside the church. Without a word, he led the way to the village gates and Avery followed. It was a short walk along a small, curving path until they met with their first obstacle.
"Here comes another lamb to the slaughter!" Hugo called to Avery. "You can't go out there, you know. It's dangerous."
"Stop trying to scare people!" Ivor said to him, appearing from behind Avery. "We're leaving the village and there's nothing you can do about it."
"Wait a minute. What are you doing with her, Ivor?" Hugo asked. "Since when are you best mates?"
"You are a pain sometimes!" Ivor snapped at him. "Just let us by will you? Hold us up any longer and there'll be trouble."
"Ivor." Avery said in a warning tone, before stepping forward to address Hugo. "There's nothing to worry about. We're not going far."
Hugo blinked at her, and then stepped aside. "Go on, then. I'm not stopping you."
The dusty road to the pass was surprisingly short. Just ten minutes of walking along the river brought them to the woods on the far side of the mountains. Ivor had only pulled his knife on a rustling bush once, which turned out to only be a white rabbit.
"So much for dangerous," he had muttered, and Avery had giggled.
"The landslide's somewhere in these woods, apparently." Ivor said, glancing around the green area. The trees were spaced, letting the sun shine through the thin, leafy roof above and cast a glowing-greenish light around them. The only movements were the tiny creatures breathing around them, and the only sound was the excited chirping of birds. Avery did not feel in danger, she felt in peace. How could a beautiful place like this be home to rabid animals?
It was only a short ten paces along the path until she saw it. The ghostly form of a steam train, looking like it had been shoved into the trees across the path by a giant hand.
"What are you staring at?" Ivor yelled impatiently. "It's just a fallen tree. I don't get what's so fascinating about it."
"You can't see it?" Avery gaped at him.
"Could you get any weirder?" Ivor asked, annoyed. When Avery didn't reply, he walked away from her. "I'll go on ahead."
More than happy to be left alone, Avery trotted towards the downed Starflight Express eagerly. This was her ticket home! If she could get whoever was inside to take her back to the observatory, she could see if everyone was okay. She could see Aquila and Apus Major. But as she neared the vehicle, she slowed her pace and stopped.
She could see the green grass through the steps up to the back door of the front carriage. In fact, if she focused, she could see the forest beyond through the ghostly vehicle. Ivor couldn't see the carriage at all. And as a celestrian, Avery could see its solid golden form as clear as day. Did that mean that she somehow was still a celestrian? Half-celestrian and half-human, stuck between the realms. Seeing was one thing, but could she touch?
She reached out and, to her great relief, her fingers closed around the door handle as if it was solid. However, when she tried to pull the door open, it wouldn't budge. Avery gripped it with both hands, and tried to force it open.
"Avery!" she heard Ivor call to her impatiently close by. "Come here. I found it."
Avery let go of the tangible door handle and stepped backwards. She could come back later. It's not as if the Starflight Express was going anywhere.
Several metres to her left, through the trees and along the path, was where she found her second surprise. Ivor was standing several metres ahead of her, dwarfed by a wall of loose brown dirt and rocks that had fallen from the pair of mountains that it lay between.
"This is worse than I thought." Ivor muttered as Avery wandered to his side, her eyes glued to the new mountain ahead of her, created as a result of the earthquake. "It's so much bigger than I imagined."
"You and I will never be able to shift this on our own." Avery replied, studying the dirt thoughtfully. "Perhaps if we went back and got every capable person in the village to help, we could clear it within a few days."
"Stupid landslide!" Ivor exploded in anger, startling her. "And I was all ready to see the look on dad's face when I came back to the village a hero!" He kicked a small pebble in anger at the landslide. The loose dirt slipped and gave way to a larger rock, which rolled down towards Ivor. He yelped in horror and Avery grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, pulling him out of harm's way before the rock could hit him. Ivor straightened himself, trying to regain some dignity as Avery fought back a smile.
"Is somebody there?" A voice echoed around them, causing the 6both of them to start.
"There's somebody on the other side." Avery muttered, making sense of the voice.
"Hey! We're over here." Ivor shouted towards the rocks. "We're from Angel Falls!"
"Someone from Angel Falls!" the voice replied in a mix of relief and surprise. "We're soldiers sent from Stornway. King Schott sent us to clear the landslide."
"I suppose that means were not really needed here then." Avery said with a weak smile as she leaned forward slightly with her hands behind her back, looking at Ivor's reaction.
"Now I wish we hadn't bothered coming all this way," Ivor slumped his shoulders.
"Are you still there?" The voice questioned.
"Yes!" Avery called back.
"There's an urgent matter we need to ask you about." A new voice said, sounding deeper with authority. "Do you happen to know if a lass called Patty made her way to your village? She works at the Inn in Stornway, but she took off for Angel Falls and we've heard nothing of her since."
"Patty?" Avery repeated, looking at Ivor.
"Doesn't ring any bells." He shrugged, still deflated. "Unless that's your real name."
"Why would she want to come to Angel Falls anyway?" Avery called to the soldiers, ignoring Ivor.
"Rumour has it she was on her way there through the Hexagon." The first voice called. "The path there's been blocked too. So, we've no way of finding out where she is."
"The hexagon?" Avery repeated in confusion. Aquila had never mentioned anything about another path to the cities beyond.
"It's an old path we used to have to go traipsing all the way through before this pass was built." Ivor said, crossing his arms. "But no one goes there anymore. It's falling apart so badly it might come down on your head. There's even a rumour of a monster down there." He turned to the landslide and cupped his hand to his mouth, shouting. "There's no way a woman would go there alone. The rumours must be wrong."
"Alright." The second voice said. "Well, perhaps you could just relay to your village the fact that the road will be open soon. And if you could ask about Patty while you're at it, that'd be grand."
"No problem!" Ivor leapt at the challenge. "Just leave it to me!"
"You can count on us." Avery called in assurance.
They quickly made their way back to Angel Falls, and Avery only stole a tiny glance at the silvery steam engine before rushing to fall into step with Ivor's eager pace.
"I see. So the soldiers from Stornway should have the pass cleared before long." Mayor Litlun muttered in understanding after Avery and Ivor had explained all that had happened that morning. They were standing in the front room of Ivor's large home, opposite of the kitchen, and were rather exhausted from their little adventure.
"That's right." Said Ivor proudly, hands on his hips. "Everyone will be so relieved to hear the news. Ivor saves the day, eh?"
"Don't be ridiculous!" Litlun snapped in anger. "You were foolish to go all the way out there, just the two of you. Utterly foolish"
"Why are you so angry?" his son responded, furious. "If we hadn't gone to the landslide, you'd never have known it was about to be cleared."
"We would have found out soon enough! Knowing a little bit sooner is hardly worth risking your life for. That's why I'm angry. That's why you're foolish."
"You are so infuriating!" Ivor growled in frustration, and turned to storm out of the room.
"He only cares for your safety, Ivor." Avery said, causing the boy to stop in his tracks. "Tell him what else we found out."
"Oh, right." Ivor said, still facing away from his father, suddenly turning serious. "We heard something else from one of the soldiers. They want us to find some girl called Patty who went missing on her way here."
"Wait a minute!" A familiar voice gasped from the hall. "Is that true?"
Avery turned to see Erinn standing in the hall, puffing as if she'd just ran a mile.
"Erinn!" Ivor yelped. "What are you doing here?"
"What do you think?" Erinn replied impatiently, straightening herself. "I'm here because Hugo said you whisked Avery off on some silly adventure! Anyway, never mind that. Is it true that Patty of Stornway has gone missing?"
"Ah, yes." Litlun spoke up knowingly. "You're from Stornway originally, aren't you Erinn? Do you know the woman?"
"I seem to remember my dad talking about someone called Patty from his days in Stornway" the girl replied. "Maybe she didn't know he'd passed away and she was coming here to see him."
"Well I can understand everyone's concerns, but we can't very well send off a search party with no lead to go on." The mayor said.
"Actually, the soldier said something about how she might've been on her way here through the Hexagon." Avery spoke up. Surely, somebody could send out a party to look for her, right?
"Is that so?" The mayor muttered. "Well, even if that's the case, we still can't be of any help. The Hexagon is far too dangerous nowadays. Erinn, why don't you take Avery home? Try not to worry too much." He reached forward and seized Ivor by his left upper arm. "I'd appreciate a bit of privacy so I can talk some sense into this pig-headed son of mine."
"There's no need for that, dad!" Ivor said, recoiling away from him.
Erinn entered the room and started pulling Avery away by her hand, though she didn't fight her grip. She looked over her shoulder at her struggling companion. "I'm sorry, Ivor."
"Don't worry about it, Avery." He said, his eyes down. "Thanks for the help."
Erinn pulled Avery along until they were almost at the bridge. There, she let go and turned to face Avery, her eyes wanting an explanation. However, Avery turned to look back at the mayor's house. She could almost hear the argument from here.
"Poor Ivor." She sighed. "All he wanted to do was get his dad off his back, but we made it worse."
"So, that's what you were doing this morning?" Erinn said, sounding tired. "Planning a little adventure to risk your lives? I was so worried when I heard you'd left the village. But I'm glad nothing bad happened."
"I'm sorry, Erinn." Avery said sincerely. "I just wanted to help. You've been so kind to me."
"That's okay." Erinn smiled her usual smile, which quickly faded. "I am quite worried about all this talk of Patty going missing. It's a shame the Hexagon is really far too dangerous. I couldn't possibly ask anyone to go and check it out. All we can do is pray to the almighty to keep her safe." Avery watched closely as Erinn clasped her hands together in a prayer. "Guardian Avery, please watch over Patty and see that she comes to no harm."
Avery's breath caught in her mouth sharply, but Erinn continued to walk across the bridge, apparently not hearing her gasp.
"Watch over Patty?" she repeated silently to herself. A gust of wind caught her blonde hair and drew it away from her shoulders, and again she looked upwards at the guardian statue on the hill.
Yes. She was the guardian of Angel Falls. And she had a duty to answer their prayers.
There you go! I hope there were less mistakes this time. I'll try to update sooner :) (Update: I found out how to do the line thingy between scenes! Yay!)