Onward

Chapter 6: A New Friendship

——————————🪄——————————

Ian, Barley and (Y/n) we're back on the road, still in shock over what had happened.

"That was unbelievable. I mean you were like bzzzzzzzz...and the beam was just floating there! My brother is a wizard!" Barley praised.

"I can't believe that worked." Ian said in disbelief.

"Oh, you're gonna nail dads spell now."

"Except we don't have a map." Ian reminded him.

"But we've got this. Behold!" Barley held up the children's menu. Ian sighed and (Y/n) looked at him uncertainly. "Look, on a quest, you have to use what you've got. And this is what we've got."

"The best part is, little Kayla already solved the puzzle." Barley pointed at the finished puzzle.

"Well according to Kayla, we just have to look for Raven's Point." (Y/n) said pulling out a map. Ian looked over her shoulder and pointed at mountains labeled 'Raven's Point.'

"There!"

"Yes! The gem must be in the mountain. We could be there by tomorrow morning." Barley said.

"Tomorrow morning?" Ian asked, shocked.

"That still gives us plenty of time with dad."

"Yeah." Ian agreed.

"Well, it looks like the expressway should take us right there." (Y/n) observed.

"Mmm. Expressway is a little too obvious. On a quest, the clear path is never the right one." Barley explains.

"What?" (Y/n) asked, slightly amused.

"During one Quests of Yore campaign, Shrub Rosehammer and I took the east route, led him straight into the belly of a gelatinous cube. Only reason I didn't suffer the same fate? I followed my gut. And it's telling me we take an ancient trail called the 'Path of Peril'." Barley took a highlighter and highlighted a different route.

"But the expressway is faster." Ian argued.

"Maybe not in the long run."

"I know you want this to be like one of your adventure games, but all that matters is that we get to spend as much time as possible with Dad."

At this point, their dad had managed to wriggle out of his torso and walked up to Barley and touched his foot with his.

"So we should just take the expressway right?" Ian reasoned.

"Yeah, you're right. But if we run into a gelatinous cube, I'm taking dad and (Y/n), and you are on your own." Barley joked.

Barley made the turn that took them up on the expressway.

....

"Manticore's Tavern ahead on your right." Laurel's GPS said.

Suddenly, her phone rang and saw that Bronco was calling her.

"Hey." She said.

"I'm just checking in. Did you catch up with the boys yet and (Y/n) yet?"

"No, not yet. But I'm a little worried because we had a weird family issue come up, and, well, this isn't like Ian to run off. I mean, Barley, yes, but not Ian. And I can't imagine how (Y/n) would've ended up getting roped into this, but I called her parents and they said she was staying at our house."

"You know, it's late, you shouldn't have to be out looking for them."

"I know, it's silly. I'm sure they're all probably...on fire."

"Fire?"

"Fire! The place is on fire! My boys! (Y/n)! I gotta go!"

"Laurel!"

Laurel rushed out of the car and into the crowd.

"Hello? Excuse me? Please. I'm looking for three teenage elves." She called.

"I told you already, there were three teenage elves." The Manticore said.

Laurel rushed over to where she was.

"Oh! Those are my boys and their friend. Where did they go?" She frantically asked.

"Oh. They went on a quest to find a Phoenix Gem. But don't worry, don't worry. I told them about the map, I told them about the gem, I told them about the curse." The Manticore then gasped. "I forgot to tell them about the curse!" She shouted.

"The what?"

"Oh boy. Listen, this ones gone a little...woo-woo." An elf cop whistled, making the crazy sign.

"Your boys and their friend are in grave danger! But I can help!" The manticore promised.

"Woah, hey, hey!" The cop said. "You're not going anywhere. We got questions for you." He waved her over to another spot.

"I know where they're going! We can still save them!" The Manticore said, following the cop.

Laurel panicked for a moment before looking over and seeing an abandoned first aid kit in the back of an ambulance.

"Last name 'Manticore', first name 'The'." The Manticore was giving her name to a cop when Laurel came over with the first aid kit.

"Hold on, you're right. She has gone a little...woo-woo. It's no wonder with a wound like that." Laurel pointed to a few small scratch marks on The Manticore's foot.

"That's just a scratch." He deadpanned.

"Oh, I'm sorry, are you an expert on Minotaurs?"

"Manticores."

"Manticores?"

"Well, no." The cop confessed.

"Well, then you wouldn't know that when their blood is exposed to air, it makes them go bonkers." Laurel explained to him.

"I don't think that's true." The Manticore said.

"See? She's already losing her grip on reality. So, why don't you let me save her life before it costs you yours." She threatened.

"Okay!" The cop gave in.

"Thank you. Could we have a little privacy, please?" Laurel asked, bringing The Manticore to the front of a police car. "Just lie back. That's good. But get your head a little bit higher." She instructed. The cop turned away and started writing things down.

"Just don't take too long back there, okay?" He called. No answer. "Hey, you hear me?" He turned back and started walking over to where the Manticore was sitting. "I said don't take too long back there, because...agh!" The cop came face to face with the melted mascot costume.

Laurel and The Manticore drove away, The Manticore ducking down in the back seat.

"Alright, how do we help my boys?" Laurel asked.

"Ooh! I'm gonna like you." The Manticore said.

——————————🪄——————————