The Portal Key
Copyright© 2025 by Duncan7
Chapter 2: Lost in Elyria
David stood at the base of a cliff, facing a forested area.
“What do I do now?” he thought. “I can’t stay here. Who knows what might come along? There might be wild animals!”
He pinched himself. Ouch! No change. David sighed. He half-hoped he was dreaming.
First, David marked a spot on the cliff with an X, using a rock, to indicate the tunnel’s former location. He might have to return here.
Then he left the cliff, entering the forest. There were no discernible trails, and he pushed through bushes and plants. Some had a kind of bioluminescence and glowed in response to his touch. It was an unfamiliar experience. David noticed a fresh yet earthy smell.
“If I’m still on Earth, I must be in a different time zone, perhaps due west,” he thought. “But these plants are unlike anything I’ve seen before. I don’t know where I am.”
David continued downhill, and deeper into the forest. He heard birds in the distance. At least they could be birds.
Under the canopy, it was darker, and David needed to find shelter before nightfall. He was unsure whether predators lurked nearby.
“I can kiss my job goodbye. I don’t see myself returning soon,” he thought. Honestly, he found the prospect of no longer seeing his boss quite appealing...
About half an hour later, David heard water somewhere to his right. He remembered he never got his cup of tea, and he was getting thirsty. He adjusted his course towards the sound.
As the light dimmed, David brushed the bushes with his hand as he walked past, triggering their bioluminescence. Though their light output wasn’t so bright, it helped him see a little better.
At last, the creek’s sound grew louder; he’d arrived. It looked about six feet wide, and perhaps a foot deep, running along.
David crouched down beside the water, intending to take a drink.
“Wait!” said a voice.
The voice, his first since arrival, startled him. He almost tumbled into the water.
David sat up, turning toward the voice. A small but pretty young female was standing beside a bush. Her skin was pale green, and she had pointed ears. With the hood of her cloak casting a shadow over her face, and her fingers resting lightly on the bowstring, the arrow poised for release.
“Don’t come any closer or I’ll shoot,” she said, pointing the arrow in his general direction.
“I’m just sitting here. I promise I won’t move.”
“You’re not álfar? Are you ... human?”
“Yes, I’m human. I’m rather lost, and very thirsty.”
“That water isn’t safe to drink unless you have a strong stomach,” she said.
“Thank you for the warning.”
“You don’t work for the Dark Queen?” she asked. She stood tense.
“No, I’ve only just arrived here today. I don’t know any Dark Queen.”
“How did you arrive here?”
“I appeared at a cliff back there.” David gestured.
After a moment of consideration, she reached into her cloak and pulled out a flask, which she tossed to him.
“Here, drink this.”
He pulled out the stopper and took a sip. It tasted good. He drank some more before replacing the stopper and tossing it back.
“Thank you,” said David. He realized they were speaking the same language. Wherever he was, at least they spoke English.
“My name is Saria. I’m álfar.”
“My name is David. I mean you no harm. I’m lost, and I just want to go home.”
“Where is your home?” she asked.
“I don’t know. This is all strange to me. I have to get back, or I’ll lose my job.”
“You’d better come with me. It’s getting late. I can take you to my aunt. Perhaps she can help you,” she said.
They left the creek and walked on.
“How did you find me?” asked David.
“You kept touching the bushes, causing them to glow. I could see you from a distance. You’re lucky I found you and not someone else,” said Saria.
“Oh. I didn’t think about that.”
“Well, come along and stop doing it.” She grinned at him.
A while later, David and Saria walked out into a clearing. David saw several thatched buildings.
“This is my aunt’s home,” she said.
“Wow, I wouldn’t have known it was here unless I stumbled upon it.”
“That’s álfar magic for you. We conceal our homes for protection.”
David followed her to the largest building. She opened the door, and they went inside. He had to bend low to avoid hitting his head.
Inside was an elderly woman. Same green skin and pointed ears. She looked up at David with apprehension.
“Saria, why did you bring a human to my home?” she asked.
David was confused. This was the second person to treat him with suspicion.
“Auntie Kilyn, this is David. I found him wandering in the forest. He’s lost and wants to find his way home. I sense no evil in him,” said Saria.
“Are you certain? The only humans I’ve seen work for the Dark Queen.”
“He said he didn’t know her. I thought you’d want to bring him to the elders.”
“Very well. David, sit here. I must talk to my niece.” She gestured to a small table.
David sat gingerly on the tiny chair, hoping it wouldn’t collapse beneath him.
Kilyn and Saria walked outside and talked for a few minutes. David sat and waited.
Warm light spilled from the fireplace, casting a golden glow over the room, but David had to duck to avoid hitting his head on the low-hanging beams.
Eventually, Kilyn returned.
“Saria has gone home. No doubt you haven’t had supper. I’ll get you something,” said Kilyn.
David looked at her and smiled. Gratitude showed on his face. Kilyn walked into an adjacent room, which he assumed was a kitchen.
Soon, she returned with a bowl of some kind of stew, piping hot. She placed it on the table in front of David, together with a spoon.
“This should suffice,” she said.
It smelled good. David tasted a spoonful. After hours in the forest, it was a relief to have some hot food. It reminded him of a stroganoff.
“Thank you, Kilyn. This is good.”
Kilyn sat down opposite him. “Few visit us here; none of them human.”
“I didn’t plan to visit. I, er, well, I’d just bought an old lamp. When I touched it, it transported me to a cave. I stumbled out of the cave, and I was in the forest,” said David.
Kilyn considered him for a moment, then spoke.
“So, magic brought you here?” she asked.
“It seemed like magic. Where I come from, we don’t much believe in magic.”
“I can’t speak for where you came from, but magic is real here.”
“I just need to return home.”
“You’ll need our help, which means you need to convince my people you’re worth helping,” she said.
“I’ll do my best. If I can help your people, it may convince them I’m a friend.”
“You might have to. Are there álfar in your world?”
“No. Or at least I’ve not met any,” said David. His mind wandered to the old lady in the curio shop. “None that identified themselves as such.”
“It’s getting late,” she said. “Tomorrow, I’ll take you to meet others.”
“Thank you, Kilyn. I appreciate that.”
“David, we don’t normally trust humans. You have a good heart. Saria vouched for you, and that means a lot,” she said. It was perhaps the first time she smiled.
“I’ll set up a place for you to sleep.” Kilyn stood and went about organizing her tiny home. David sat and waited.
Kilyn rolled out a mattress in the corner opposite the entrance. “This should suffice for tonight.”
“Thank you.” David lay on the mattress and soon fell asleep.
David awoke the next morning feeling disoriented. It was unfamiliar, yet slightly comfortable. David lay on a mattress on the floor of a darkened room. He sat up with his back against the wall.
“Ahh, you’re awake,” said Kilyn. “I wasn’t sure about the custom of waking guests.”
Kilyn sat at the table across from him. She stood and pulled aside a curtain, letting the morning light stream into the room.
“Well, as I’m awake now, it doesn’t matter. Thank you for your hospitality. I slept well.”
“The privy is outside to the left.”
David got up and stumbled outside, regaining his sense of balance. He hoped to awaken and find it was a dream, but he remained here. The reality of his situation was disturbing.
When he returned a few minutes later, the mattress was gone, and Kilyn had served breakfast.
They both sat at the table to eat. A bowl of mixed nuts, berries, and vegetables sat before him, with colors and textures enticing despite his initial uncertainty. Not unlike a strange breakfast cereal, but with no milk.
Kilyn provided cups of herbal tea again, without milk. Perhaps they didn’t have cows here? At least the tea was hot.
“Tell me what it’s like in your world?” she asked.
“There’s no forest like this. I live in an apartment, and I work in an enormous building, typing in numbers on a computer.”
“I don’t fully understand what you say. You don’t have a forest?”