Chapter 4

It was quiet in the deserted village. No villagers or animals lived in those lands anymore. All they had left behind was an abandoned house and some other buildings.

"Here we are!" exclaimed Sammy G. Powell. He opened the door and led everyone inside.

The four children gasped when they looked around. This room was bigger than any other building in the village. There were many shelves filled with wooden chests and jars full of mysterious liquids. Each of them carried different objects and tools. Some of them, like a shovel, hatchet and axe, belonged to Sammy G. Powell. Others were different. Amongst them, Analokia recognized a sword made out of metal. She also recognized a pair of scissors. She raised her eyebrow and gave her friends questioning looks, but no one seemed to notice them. Cyroz, however, noticed them immediately and shrugged. Her eyes widened when she spotted a large bag full of gold coins lying near the shelf full of stuff. Analokia frowned. She hadn't realized that there would be so many different kinds of money in that bag. She thought that their bags would contain the normal kind of money like paper money or coins. However, as she looked deeper, she found a few coins with different colors mixed inside. She felt a little uncomfortable when she saw it. These coins weren't hers. At least not the kind she used to use. These were new, with different colors and sizes, but all of a piece. Analokia shivered. Something seemed off about all of these. After thinking carefully and trying to remember what had happened in the past days, Analokia finally managed to remember what Cyroz, Samson and Sammy had told her about having lost their memories and about how Sammy was taken away by somebody. As she thought about this, she suddenly heard a loud noise coming from outside. It wasn't thunder, it was a bell, ringing loudly.

"What in the world…" muttered Cyroz softly.

After listening closer Analokia could hear voices shouting something. Then another sound came to her ears. It sounded like a bunch of horses whinnying. She quickly put her hand over her mouth and looked at Cyroz and Samuel with wide eyes, terrified.

Cyroz and Samuel were also shocked by the sudden noises. Analokia, on the other hand, had completely calmed down and she felt that there was nothing scary about the sounds. She felt more curious about what they might be. She had never seen the horses in the village. However, she was beginning to feel more confident about finding out what this unusual sound was.

"You guys stay here. I' ll be back in a minute," announced Cyroz before leaving the room.

She went outside as quietly as she could and walked down the path between the houses. Soon she reached where the sound was coming from: a huge field filled with stables full of horses. Cyroz gasped in shock as she observed the animals.

"They really are beautiful!" whispered Cyroz. "Why did they come here?"

Suddenly one of the animals snorted and raised its head slightly, as if it had sensed Cyroz approaching. Cyroz looked at it for a moment, fascinated by the way it moved. She was completely distracted. Suddenly she jumped when she heard another voice. She turned around and stared with amazement at the man standing at the entrance of the barn. His hair was black and curly, which made the color of his eyes stand out even more. It was almost purple and sparkly. He had sharp green eyes and looked a little older than her brothers. His face was pale and serious, as if he was tired, but he still wore a smile and a friendly grin on his lips.

"Who are you?" asked the young girl suspiciously.

The man grinned as he approached her slowly and knelt before her.

"My name is Jack. And it is a pleasure to meet you, little lady!"