POP!!!
Mira popped the top off a can of cold brewed straight black coffee and poured it down her throat. This was no time to be sipping hot lattes. She needed to be alert and slightly edgy, and she needed it NOW!
Portal hopping with a heavy load to lug around was not something she could do half-asleep, but there was no need to worry about that today.
Today, Mira was too nervous to be sleepy.
She had only ported three times in her life, and all three times, it was either an accident or Zander had taken her through without her being aware that it was happening. This would be the first time she would experience it for herself.
She threw her head back, drained the last of the canned coffee and shoved the can down the garbage chute. Then she threw a small cross body bag over her shoulder, grabbed onto the Hello Kitty ammo transport device, and stepped outside.
She didn't even bother to lock the french doors behind her. If Zander or Daran and Carol needed to port back here for whatever reason, they would need to be able to enter the house.
It was still dark.
The tiny sliver of moon hung low in the early morning sky as a band of alto-cumulus clouds flew past its face, picking up the sparse golden moonbeam. A sprinkled dusting of stars was being swirled around by a gusty morning breeze which ruffled her hair and sent chills down her spine.
Without any garden lights, Mira picked her way carefully across the dark expanse of grass, avoiding the random clumps of knee-high bushes and the occasional stone cherubs trying to grab her ankle. It would be sheer bad luck if she stepped into a pothole and sprained her ankle, on her way to a portal that led to another world.
It did not take long to reach the clump of grass in front of the three willow trees. She stopped a few feet in front of where she knew the portal would open and pulled the carry-on forward. Then she pulled a black baseball cap onto her head, and slid her long ponytail through the hole in the back of the cap, letting it swing freely behind her.
The black cap did several things. It kept her head warm and her hair out of her eyes, and it hid her crown from sight. The fact that it made her feel more like a badass was an added bonus. She needed whatever confidence boosters she could get.
It was still too early for the portal to appear. Mira had begun to recognize the atmospheric light condition that was required before the portal would activate.
Even though it was still quite dark, the sky was slowly starting to brighten. Soon, the black objects around her would begin to take on the greyish cast of predawn. Once the colors begin to reappear, there would be a sliver of time lasting around fifteen to twenty minutes, when the portal between the worlds becomes activated.
That would be her time to portal hop, and this---her fingers reached up and touched the choker necklet---this was her key to the kingdom. Should her senses fail her, it would alert her when the portal winks into existence.
Her right hand reached out and touched the Victorian Pink Glock. It was in its holster, but not strapped down, should there be a need for her to gain quick access.
Lord knows what would be waiting for her on the other side of the bog. Morning here would be evening there. The Tourmaline Bog night life would be out en-masse. She needed to be ready for anything.
It didn't take long for the buzzing sensation to slowly wind its way around her ears. Sure enough, the choker necklet also began to vibrate.
The air began to shimmer in front of her, tiny sparkles of light began to form around the edges. She waited a few minutes for the sparkles to grow stronger---and then, on a wing and a prayer, Mira stepped through the portal.
SPLASH!!!
Her knee-high boots stepped directly into the marshy waters of Tourmaline Bog. The dank smell of wet and decaying vegetation rose up and hit her in the nose.
Mira immediately crouched into a defensive position, her hand automatically reaching for the Glock. Its cold aluminum touch was reassuring.
She looked around, taking note of each suspicious clump of ragweed that was large enough to hide anything larger than a bogmink. Nothing was stirring under the rapidly darkening sky. Everything seemed quiet, but Mira did not trust the silence. She knew that in stepping through the portal, she had made a loud splashing sound which would draw the curious and the hungry.
She was also the only thing in this bog that smelled non-boggie.
The greenish-brown grasses bobbed on the water's surface and swayed gently in the evening air, dancing gracefully with the spikes of reeds and ragweed. Clumps of black trees with moss-covered trunks stuck out in grotesque poses in the distance, challenging the rare traveler. Above the indigo sky, the almost full moon shone with a brilliance that seemed almost surreal.
This was a rare and unexpected blessing.
For some strange reason, the moon on Ashrya was, to a considerable degree, much brighter than Earth's Luna. Perhaps it was made of a more reflective material than Luna was, but that wasn't saying much since the Earth's Moon happened to be one of the dullest darkest moons in the solar system.
Add to that the fact that Luna was barely a sliver when she left Earth, whereas this moon was almost full meant she would be aided by the generous amount of light it offered. She made a mental note to ask someone what the name of this moon was so she could give a small offering of thanks...if she survived through the night.
The portal was thankfully situated in the middle of a fairly flat expanse of grasses with nothing large or bulky enough to hide behind. Even the clumps of grasses and reeds growing in abundance along this side of the marsh were so thin and spiky, they provided very little cover for anything much larger than a bogfrog.
There were certainly no bogwargs in sight, but that didn't mean much. It was best to stay vigilant and start moving quickly.
The temperature had plummeted ten degrees upon entry. With her advance preparation for the watery conditions, her feet had remained warm and dry, but the instant shock still rattled her nonetheless.
Mira glanced down at the mud-splattered face of Hello Kitty and grimaced. The carry-on did not fare as well. As soon as she stepped through the portal, the heavy luggage sank half a foot into the water. It was not waterproof, but the bullets were. Still, to be on the safe side, she had placed the bullets into numerous quart-sized zip lock bags to minimize the damage and to lessen clean-up time.
She silently offered a quick prayer to the gods of protection and pulled out the manual compass in one of her side zipped pockets.
According to the map that Zander had made for her, a map which she had committed to memory, Tourmaline City was the closest settlement to Tourmaline Bog, due south.
It would be a two hour walk in the dark.
The last time she was here, they were both riding on Gobi, but he was not walking that quickly. In fact, he was so lackadaisical that if Mira kept up a good pace, she could get to Tourmaline in less than two hours.
Compressing her lips firmly together into a determined line, Mira grabbed her luggage and set off for Tourmaline City.