The sounds of voices awoke Spence the second time. He lay on his left side, facing the forest where he had entered his shelter the night before. He knew it must be dawn by the dim light filtering through the green laurel leaves. He sat and strained his ears. Sure enough, he heard voices, still distant but moving in his direction. He grabbed his pack and staff and crawled out of the bush. He darted behind a nearby pine tree and waited.

He assumed the voices were from the others, but he wasn’t sure what to do. Should he go his own way or rejoin them? It probably did make more sense to stick together, and he at least needed his tarp for shelter. His staff was powerful, but it had to recharge between each use, leaving him defenseless during that time. And if he had to fight multiple opponents, he wouldn’t stand a chance. He needed to learn how to use his dagger and fight hand to hand. Maybe he could learn from Caleb or Trey. The thought of asking Trey for anything made him cringe. However, he did seem a little more civil since he rejoined them yesterday.

Then he suddenly remembered the encounter during the night. His heart instantly raced as he recalled the details. He reached inside his shirt and fingered the pendant. Was it a dream? Or had he actually met the god, Enki? Then he thought about the offer. He could lead the Draconians and rule Nibiru! Even the name, Draconian, sounded cool. What would they call him—emperor, king, lord, or God? An entire world to rule by himself. Nobody would ever tease or pick on him again. He recalled the Narnia books, where the kids from Earth had become the rulers of Narnia. The books were almost exactly like this.

Then he remembered the remainder of the conversation with Enki. He thought of the pendants each of the others wore. Each pendant probably represented a different race. They would receive a similar offer from one of the other gods. What if they already have? Nobody would know if they had a visitation during the night or even in their dreams. He wondered how the others would view the offer.

He could see Trey wanting the power and glory, although Trey also had a pretty good deal on Earth. He was already popular and enjoyed high school. He was the type of person who would somehow succeed in life despite being a jerk and a bully.

Morgan hated high school and life in general nearly as much as he did. But would she lead a race into a war and try to conquer and rule the world? He didn’t see that. She was antigovernment. She would not be one to support the subjugation of the other races.

Caleb was a wildcard. He could undoubtedly fill the role and lead, but he seemed too much of a loner to want to be a permanent leader.

Did the choice only come down to him? If he did accept the offer, what would happen to the others? Could he help them get home? Or would he offer them positions in his army or government? Or enslave them….

The voices were close now. Spence peeked around the tree and saw the other three following pretty much the same path he had last night. He forced his mind to temporarily bury the thoughts of power and strode purposely forward to intersect them.

“Spence, where have you been? We thought we might find you dead,” Morgan said.

“Dead? I’m a mage,” he replied with as deep and steady a voice as he could muster. “I scouted ahead and spent the night over in the bushes. I’ve been waiting for you to catch up.”

“Look, Spence, I’m sorry about snapping at you. But we all have to have each other’s back. Some mistakes can’t happen. Understand?” Caleb asked.

“Yeah, sorry, Spence. We’re all just tired and stressed,” Morgan said.

“Ditto,” Trey added.

Spence felt a little better at hearing their apologies. It still didn’t excuse how quickly they had turned on him, but it was better than nothing. At least this way, he could rejoin them, for now anyway, and save face. “No problem, guys. It won’t happen again. You know I have your backs,” he said. Or will stick a dagger in them. “You guys go ahead. I’m going to fish out some breakfast and eat as we walk.”

“I’ll wait on Spence. You two go ahead,” Morgan said.

Spence was surprised but good with the company. He wished he could tell Morgan about his encounter last night, or at least find out if she had had one too, but knew he couldn’t. He slapped together a meat and cheese sandwich out of the remaining scraps and washed it down with most of his remaining water as they walked. Hopefully, they were close to finding Illexya. Caleb and Trey were still in sight in the dim, eerily lit forest. “This is a strange place,” he said.

“The Forbidden Forest and the entire world. I’m just constantly on edge, waiting for the next battle. It’s not like we can get lucky and avoid it either. We know there will be something in here we have to fight.”

“Yeah, you’re right. I wonder if we’ll ever get used to it?”

“Probably about the time we die,” Morgan said, flashing the slightest grin. “Hey!”

“Hey, what?”

“You’ll never guess what Trey confessed last night!” Morgan was as excited as Spence had ever seen her.

“He’s a bully, jerk, loser, and male ho? Oh, we already know that. Closet transsexual?” Spence hadn’t spent much time around Morgan, but he was strangely comfortable with her. That was unusual, considering she was female and a Goth to boot.

Morgan laughed. “Hmmm…scary thought…. No, Caleb came out and asked him why he was so messed up and had to pick on and bully everyone.”

“Love or hate him, you have to admire Caleb’s balls. I mean that figuratively, of course.”

“Another scary thought.” Morgan laughed again. “Yeah, he doesn’t pull any punches. Trey actually broke down and cried!”

“No way!”

“Way! He was all up in his feelings. He finally told us his father is an alcoholic. After his mother died of breast cancer, his dad began drinking all the time. He’s abusive when he is drunk—physically and mentally. Nothing Trey does is good enough. His dad also compares him to his older brother, Tyler, the all-state running back who received the football scholarship to State. So, Trey is really insecure and feels like he must be the best at everything to please his dad. If he can’t be the best, he tries to tear down the ones who are better.”

The revelation amazed Spence. He reviewed everything he knew about Trey to see if it made sense. “Why does he pick on me so much?”

“He didn’t say specifically. I’m guessing because you’re smarter and have a relatively normal family life. And you’re OK with not being a jock.”

“And you and Caleb?”

“Well, Caleb is obvious. He doesn’t need the approval of others and is brave. He has no self-doubt, and Trey is filled with it. I’m not sure about me—probably just because I don’t try to fit in with the popular kids and don’t take any crap from him. I think he fears people who are different from him, and we’re all three very different.”

They walked in silence for several minutes. “I guess that makes sense,” Spence finally said. “Although, I still think people have a choice in life. Not all poor people are thieves or druggies or murderers. Trey doesn’t have to take his issues out on others.”

“Yeah, true. But you do hear that many kids raised in abusive homes also abuse their kids or spouses. Trey doesn’t have kids or a spouse, so he takes it out on his peers. But it does make me feel a little pity for him,” Morgan replied. “You never know what people go through behind closed doors.”

“True dat. I guess we’ll see if Trey tries to improve since he’s opened up.”

“It seems like he is trying.”

After several glances from Caleb and Trey, Spence and Morgan quickened their pace and caught them. “Where are we going?” Spence asked Caleb.

“Good question. For some reason, I’m just assuming we should head west. The river is to the east, and we just came from the south. So, we only have two choices. It looks thicker to the north too.” Caleb said. “Oh, and here’s your tarp.”

Spence stuffed the tarp into his pack, as well as his coat. The others had removed theirs, and the day would be warm enough not to need them. He then turned to the left and saw the trees did appear thicker in that direction. The branches stretched lower, making visibility much less than east and west. The forest was lighter now, with occasional bright spots on the ground. They weren’t precisely rays of the sun but just the more radiant glow of the sky fighting its way through occasional gaps in the thick branches above.

An hour or so later, the trees in front of them suddenly opened into a pine-needle-covered clearing. The area was at least a thirty-yard circle and the only completely open space they had encountered since entering the Forbidden Forest. The clearing was devoid of tree stumps or evidence of trees ever standing there. Bushes grew thick on both sides of the clearing and stretched out of sight in each direction. It would take a lot of effort to hack through or find a route around the clearing.

“This is strange,” Caleb commented.

“I wonder if it’s an elven meeting area?” Spence asked.

“I’m not sure. There are no seats or signs of foot traffic,” Caleb replied. He scanned up in the surrounding trees. The tree branches mostly covered the sky despite the distance between tree trunks. Only a small circle of bright light was visible directly above the clearing. The light was as close to seeing the sun as they had come in Nibiru, although it still couldn’t entirely penetrate the clouds. “This looks like a trap, though. Keep your eyes open.”

Spence scanned the ground for trip wires and ropes—standard traps in Warcraft. But the land was flat and smooth with pine needles. The surrounding trees also appeared unaltered. The clearing was definitely out of place, though. He began to think they should just go around it despite the time and effort it would take.

They were close to the middle of the clearing when the trap sprung. The ground simply fell away beneath the party. Spence inadvertently yelled and grabbed his staff with both hands instead of flailing wildly. His body was shifting backward, and he braced to land on his butt and back. The others emitted various sounds of dismay, with Morgan screaming the loudest. The pine needles swirled around them, adding to the chaos and confusion.