Egrariand Chronicles Book 1: The Curse of the Black Stone

Stranger in a Strange Land

Ava was not dreaming when she woke up in that strange world or ancient era. The earthquake, the forest, the ugly beast, the handsome knights, the castle, the chambermaids – all of them were real. How could this happen? Seriously.

She took deep breaths to calm herself down, contemplating everything happening while subconsciously playing with her watch, spinning it around her finger, but no! Her fucking mind couldn't understand anything. She dropped her watch on the bed. She shouldn't be here. She should be in Lucas's house. Lucas. Oh! she remembered. Is there any chance he was here too? He and Amara. What if...

Ava jumped out of her bed. It's possible! She needed to find them. If she had been transported into this weird world, they must be here too. It all happened at their house, so why not? She needed to get out of here. She was about to walk out of the door when she tripped and fell on the floor.

"What the hell!" she said, dumbfounded. She looked at herself as she stroked her fingers through her hair. She felt her stomach churn. "Damn this dress they made me wear!"

Ava was wearing an ancient scarlet dress that flowed from top to bottom. The delicate corset of her dress covered her stomach, its flow broken by a thick rope belt worn quite high around her waist. Her sleeves were fairly short and narrow as they flowed and split up just below the shoulder where they changed color into white and were divided by wide, luxurious bands.

"Whatever," she rolled her eyes then stood up again, holding the front of her dress, then rushed out the door.

"Are you fucking kidding me?" she muttered as she looked at the castle's hallway. It was elegant, but it was so big and had so many corners. It was like a maze.

Ava walked and walked. She turned right, turned left, walked straight, turned right again and straight and left. "Ugh!" she groaned in frustration. She then hopelessly flopped onto the floor. "How can I get out of here?"

She was drowning in her thoughts when she heard footsteps and men talking, and getting closer. She panicked. She had nowhere to hide. Heart pounding in her chest, she leaned against the wall, not sure what to do.

As she was trying to hide, she pressed herself hard against the intricate wall and the back of her heel pushed against something that clicked – the wall opened. Her scream faded as she disappeared behind the wall which closed directly after her as if nothing happened.

"Did you hear that?" asked the guard as they passed along the part of the hallway where Ava had been.

The other guard shook his head. They then shrugged their shoulders and continued walking.

On the other side of the wall, so dark and cold, Ava cursed. Where the hell was she now? Ava shouted as loud as she could, hoping someone could hear her. It was so frustrating. Did the heavens hate her this much? She knew she was difficult, sometimes, but to do this to her?

Ava had no choice but to continue walking until she found a way out. Her eyes slowly adjusted to the dark. It seemed to take an eternity. Eventually, she felt so tired, she slumped on the ground with her knees to her chest and her head resting on her arms. "Oh God, please help me."

She didn't know how long she sat there before she heard a familiar voice. She raised her head and listened intently to the distinct sound coming from somewhere close to where she was. It must be him, she thought. She stood up and started following the voice. Ava walked toward the voice until she reached a door. She silently thanked the heavens, then opened it and walked out of the darkness.