The trail was narrow, only wide enough for one person at a time. Jessica couldn’t help but pause and stare in awe at the trees. These were the largest and tallest trees she had ever seen. Their canopy protected her from the sun’s rays. The sounds of birds chirping were comforting and pleasant. Undergrowth bordered the trail, and it was amusing to watch the squirrels chasing each other around, unconcerned with Jessica’s presence. Their comfort level gave Jessica a sense of ease. If they’re out here playing, there aren’t any large predators around.
Jessica wasn’t sure how long she’d been walking. The path wasn’t nearly as confusing as she had feared. It was well worn and periodically alternated between dirt, gravel, and aged cobblestones. Parts were a little overgrown with shrubs and moss. She couldn’t help but wonder who would have created this path and for what reason. Was there ever a time when this was all cobblestone? If so, who built it, and why did they stop maintaining it?
Jessica’s mind flashed back to the wooded path connecting Medlock and Mason Mill Park. She had a vision of some men pulling up and replacing the rotten and broken wood planks with new wood. “Hey, Mista Carver,” Jessica could hear the Caribbean accent of the man who appeared to be the boss, overseeing the work. Jessica shook the thought out of her head. What was that? She couldn’t remember walking on that path before yesterday when she met with Ori.
The sun was now high overhead and did its best to seep through the treetops. Jessica’s sweat-drenched shirt cooled her as it clung to her back. She walked past a marsh, where she stopped for a few minutes, captivated by large cranes. The trail looped around the marsh, and just as the path widened, Jessica found herself with three options. There was a gravel stone path to her left. She peeked down as far as she could, and it seemed like more sun was beating down on this path. It looks like there’s less shade that way. The path to the right seemed like a continuation of the trail she had been on. Mossy cobblestone appeared to continue, with more canopy. The path straight ahead was intriguing. It was a dirt path that meshed with the surrounding nature and had a thick, dark tree canopy. Jessica peered down this path. She wasn’t sure why, but this was the way she wanted to go. Jessica wondered what would happen if she walked down this path and turned back.
Jessica stood there, lost in thought, when the glint of something caught her eye. To her surprise, she spotted something lying on the path straight ahead. Jessica started down the dirt path to get close to the object. It was a half-full glass bottle partly buried in the mud. She pulled it out, twisted off the top, and took a sniff. “Gin?” Jessica said aloud. She emptied the contents on the ground, returned the cap, and placed it in her backpack. She was happy that she didn’t completely stuff her pack. This left her room to store the bottle until she found a more appropriate place for it than the forest floor. She looked ahead down the dirt trail and hesitated.
“Let’s check this out,” she heard Zach’s voice say, as her mind recaptured a vision of him leaving a wooden path and walking up a small trail on the neighboring hill.
“Why?” Jessica argued.
“If you want me to keep talking, then you better keep up. See,” Zach said as he bent over to pick something up from the ground. He turned to Jessica, holding a small blue plastic bag that people use to clean up after their dogs in his hands. “This doesn’t need to be here and if we hadn’t walked this way, we wouldn’t have been able to take care of it. Let’s keep on.”
Jessica continued down the dirt path for a while until she heard water rushing. The farther she walked, the louder the water became until her path opened to a large meadow filled with shin-high grass and dotted with pink, purple, yellow, and white flowers.
Where is the water? She surveyed the massive open field, trying to identify where she should go next. Suddenly, Jessica saw movement in the corner of her eye. She turned her head and saw someone at the far edge of the field. She walked quickly in that direction, hoping to catch the person. She even ran for a bit to close the gap between them.
As Jessica got closer, she noticed a little girl chasing butterflies in the field. She slowed her pace and just observed her for a while. The little girl was walking with a slow and cautious tempo, trying not to startle the butterflies. There was something familiar about the little girl, but Jessica couldn’t put her finger on what that was. It didn’t seem like she had noticed Jessica. Jessica followed her into the woods, trying to keep a nonthreatening distance. The little girl lost interest in the butterflies and now seemed to be searching for something. What could this child be doing out here?
“Hello, little one,” Jessica said.
“Hello,” the little girl said. She was wearing blue jeans and a pink shirt, both covered in grass stains.
“What are you doing out here?” Jessica asked.
“I’m Nia, the Explorer!” The little girl puffed her chest out and put her fists on her hips like a superhero. “Wanna make some discoveries with me?”
“Uh, sure,” Jessica said. “I’m Explorer Jessica.”
Nia laughed. “I know who you are, silly. C’mon, let’s follow the map.” Nia ran off, and Jessica followed her.
She knows me? “Wait up, Nia,” Jessica called after the girl. She was faster than Jessica had imagined. “Where are your parents?”
Nia turned to face Jessica and laughed again. “You’re so silly,” she said. “Now, let’s go.”
Nia disappeared deeper into the trees, and Jessica followed. The sound of water grew louder as Nia led her down a trail with willow trees providing an arch-like cover. The shrubs on both sides of the path reminded Jessica of a wall of defense. She lost sight of Nia for a moment. She stopped and looked around, hoping to see movement, then caught a glimpse. There she is. “Nia,” Jessica called as she chased after her.
When Jessica caught up to Nia, she had stopped, almost frozen in place, staring at a statue several stories high of a bald man with a broad nose and large eyes. “This is a great discovery, wouldn’t you say?”
Jessica nodded but couldn’t manage a response as she tried to catch her breath. She took her pack off and set it down by her feet.
A deep voice came from behind them, “I’m sure you are pretty tired.”
Jessica turned to see a mountain of a man with copper skin and long hair tied in a ponytail. He was wearing a T-shirt, and the parts of his arms that were visible were covered with tribal tattoos.
“Vau!” Nia shouted with joy as she ran over to him.
He bent down and scooped her up in his arms. “Hey, kid, you’re getting big.”
“I know,” she said with a smile. Nia tilted her head toward Jessica. “We were making discoveries.”
“I see that,” Vau said. He looked up at the sky. The pinks and orange colors of the sunset were coming in. “You’d better get back,” he said as he put Nia back down on the ground.
“But I want to come,” Nia moaned.
“You’re not that big,” Vau said, “but someday.”
“Ah man, you always say that,” Nia said as she ran back out of the forest.
Vau extended his hand to Jessica. “I’m Vau. You must be Jessica.”
“Hi,” Jessica said as she shook his hand. She gestured back toward the stone figure. “What is this?”
“This,” Vau said as he slapped the statue, “is an old mark of the travelers. It indicates that there’s an entrance to the Point somewhere close by.”
Jessica was studying the figure. “I’ve seen this before. I read about it…,” she tapped her forehead, “in ancient history myths of Central and South America, I think. These were built by the Olmecs, right? How did it get here?”
Vau shrugged. “How did they get anywhere?” Vau looked up at the sky again. “It’s getting late. We should get to town before we lose the sunlight.”