Warmth ~<GreenWind>~

❄️{Six

Hours later, Lloyd was gathered around a table with several other staff members.

He had the map rolled out, and they were all examining and discussing what they saw.

And that task wasn't simple; it was very confusing. Everything was scattered around and there were scribbled notes and symbols everywhere that they couldn't make out. Some spots were circled or crossed out. There was so much yet so little.

"Is this for sure a belonging of those intruders?" Lloyd asked.

"I would say so. The paper wasn't too damaged with water so it must not have been there long." Someone replied.

Lloyd leaned in. "Should we let it dry out for a few days and see if anything pops up? I feel like we'll see what we're missing when we aren't looking for it."

Everyone agreed to that. The map was moved to a safer location around warmth to help fix the development.

Not much happened after that.

The days came and passed.

Lloyd walked by over and over again and still, nothing popped out.

The days he walked by would increase, only to drastically decline and then increase once more.

People started to lose the hope they felt Lloyd was losing as well.

Morro still wasn't back and there was no word of him. The possibilities scared everyone.

Lloyd got more and more depressed each time he got no step closer to figuring out where to go.

Soon, he couldn't fall asleep. Eventually, he just stopped. Laying in bed, staring at the wall.

He was my lullaby.

He's dead, isn't he?

He should be back.

You failed everyone.

Lloyd had nearly, almost completely forgotten the feeling of what it was like falling asleep next to Morro.

He tried hard to recreate the memory, but nothing shows up. It's been too long.

Too long.

"Too long!" Lloyd cries. He almost jumped out of bed. He runs to the map. "We've been looking for too long! It's so simple!" Lloyd is almost crying. He takes the map and holds it up to the light. Sure enough, he sees a light outline of the real map. It was a decoy. The map they had been looking at didn't exist. It would have lead them nowhere.

Lloyd ran to the kitchen and came back with milk and lemon juice.

Using a paintbrush, he spread a light layer of both over the map and then, using a candle, he used the flame as an activating heat source and held it up close to the paper.

Sure enough, he saw the new map appear and erase the other.

Lloyd got a clear understanding of where to go now. And he wasn't going to wait. Even at two in the morning.