Albrek's Tomb

“It’s good to be on dry land,” Thrang said as they dragged the rowboat high up on the beach to prevent the tides from pulling it away. “No more rolling about on the water.”

“Please,” said Kat. “No talk of rolling about.”

Thrang was eager to start searching, but only Alex and Arco

“We should be able to find some sign nearby,” Arco

“Perhaps Arco

“Yes, that might be best,” agreed Thrang. “If you find anything or run into trouble, call out. We’ll come along as quickly as we can.”

Alex and Arco

“I would guess,” Arco

“By now, the trees would have grown over any paths,” said Alex. “If Albrek’s people made a road of stone, we might be able to find that.”

“Stone roads are slow work,” Arco

“I would think they’d need a stone road all the way to the sea,” said Alex. “It would be hard work carrying supplies across the open sand, and I would guess they had a lot of supplies and other things to carry.”

“Which way, then?” Arco

“Left?” Alex guessed. “There were some hills that way. Perhaps that’s where the dwarfs began their mining.”

Arco

“Here is something,” said Arco

Arco

“No dwarf would let that drop by accident,” Arco

“A sign?” Alex asked.

“A strange place for a sign.”

Alex looked at the empty beach around them before turning his attention to the trees. He noticed that some of the taller trees were scarred on the side facing the beach, and looked as if they had been burned at one time. He moved forward to take a closer look at the burned trees, Arco

“Strange,” Alex commented.

“Very strange,” Arco

“Let’s continue,” said Alex, returning the gem to Arco

Arco

“Odd that this path should be hidden from view,” Arco

“Maybe the dwarfs didn’t want just anybody finding the path to their homes,” Alex suggested.

“Or perhaps the trees have grown since the dwarfs left.”

They were both silent for a moment.

“I feel uneasy,” said Arco

“So do I,” said Alex. He knew there was no reason for him to be nervous, yet the feeling was there all the same. “I don’t know why, but something about this island doesn’t feel right.”

“Should we call the others?”

“Let’s look along the path a bit first,” said Alex, stepping forward.

Alex and Arco

“Nobody would drop these,” Alex said, holding the bag open so Arco

“The puzzle is a hard one,” said Arco

“I feel it too,” Alex agreed. “Let’s go a little farther, just to see if the trees start to thin. Then we’ll go back and get the others. Maybe Kat can help solve this puzzle for us.”

Arco

There was something wrong here on the Isle of Bones, and Alex wasn’t sure he wanted to know what it was. In the back of his mind, however, was a longing he didn’t understand, a strange desire to be here and to find the answers to questions he couldn’t remember. It was confusing, and he struggled with his thoughts, trying to keep things clear in his mind.

They walked for about a half a mile, picking up three more bags all containing riches of some kind as they went. With each bag they picked up, Alex’s uneasiness grew, and he began to wish they had never come here. Finally, the trees around them started to thin out, and they reached the edge of a small valley. They could see several stone houses in the distance, though they looked like they’d been empty for a long time. Alex reminded himself that Albrek had been there nearly two thousand years before.

“Let’s return to the others,” said Arco

Alex agreed that it would be best to continue the search as a group, and he hurried back along the path with Arco

“I feel much calmer here,” Alex said as the two of them walked back toward the rowboat and their friends.

“Yes,” said Arco

“What do you think it means?” Alex questioned.

“I wish I knew,” was Arco

The others were all interested in what Alex and Arco

“Not things you’d drop carelessly,” Thrang said at last.

“Or throw away without good reason,” Nellus added.

“We were thinking the same thing,” said Arco

“And the village looked deserted?” Thrang questioned, his scowl remaining.