Chapter 11

Volume 1 is out on Amazon as a paperback! This is the start of Volume 2. All Chapter will now be released on Sundays!

"We will stop and build a fire here." 

The four men dropped the massive packs they carried along their journey across the long carrot field. One by one, they began to open the bags and began to dig out supplies. One took out a bundle of rocks. One took out a dagger and started to cut the stems from nearby growing carrots. One man took out his sleeping sack and rolled it out. The last man took out a large bundle of sticks and rocks. 

The fire grew bright as the men preoccupied themselves with chatter. 

One of the men held a large piece of paper, scribbled with pictures and notes written out in charcoal. 

"When was the last time we have gotten to put something new on this map?" 

The chattering went quiet. The morale of the group suddenly disappeared. The man in his sleeping sack shuffled up to his elbows to speak. 

"We are mappers. We map the landscape, even the long stretches of nothing." 

The man with the map stared down at his feet. His hands slowly began to crumble. His eyes leaked tears onto the map. 

"I don't know." 

The man with the sticks and rocks kept his eyes down on his project. He took a dagger and sharpened the edges of his rock into a spade. He would take twine and attach them to the sticks. Next to him, he accumulated a pile of makeshift arrows. One of the men reached his hand over the fire and pointed at the map. 

"When we find the fire cavern, this map will lead the people away from the Shadows. We will be heroes." 

The man holding the map wiped below his eyes. 

"We will be heroes." 

The fire began to flicker out. The man with the arrows glanced at the others. It was clear enough that it was his turn to collect carrots. The man stood to his feet, dagger in hand, and turned out toward the blinding horizon. 

"The fire cavern." The man thought to himself. In this land, there was only flat ground with the occasional hill. But the legend spoke of this land formation called a cavern. It was to go beneath where the carrots grew, but it was never recorded down with proof. 

The man took his blade and ripped a handful of carrots from the ground. He collected them with his large hands. He turned toward the fire. As he took a step, a smell was forced into his nose. The scent lit his eyes wide open. He dropped the carrots and reached for his dagger. 

"That smell. It can't be." The man knew the familiar, staining stench. He didn't want to believe his nostrils. 

"It's a lake of-"