The Glass Key
by
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"Is this the only way in?" Toby asked, scratching his head in puzzlement. "That's some massive pile of stuff in there. And even with help, it would take days to haul out the tons of stone and rock that must be in there."
Belle, still carrying The Glass Key in her hand, pointed at all the rock and stone rubble, agreed that perhaps they should look for an easier way to enter the caves. Instantly, as she pointed, the stones and rocks noisily began to shift and tumble into distinct patterns, forming a steep but quite passable set of steps down into the deep well shaft.
"Yikes! What's going on?" cried Belle alarmed, as the heavy stones shifted into steps. "What did I do? What's happening?"
At once leading the way, Mennoc warned them to watch their step on the steep steps, but now he stopped, looking abashed. Tapping his forehead as if suddenly remembering something important he wanted to say. "Oh, Belle please forgive me, I forgot to tell you....The Glass Key contains a bit of magic."
"Ha! You call that a 'Bit of magic,' do you, Mennoc?" Toby laughed. "Belle, you'd better be careful where you point that key, or who knows what might happen next?"
Toby was still teasing Belle about the magic in The Glass Key, as they slowly descended the steep steps. Reaching the bottom step of the shaft, they found themselves in a wide passage opening into a cave.
Instantly, the steps behind them fell into rubble again, completely blocking the well. Now blocked too, was the dim light from the well shaft. Immediately, they were engulfed in utter darkness:the absolute darkness that exists only in an underground cave.
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About the Book
Toby and Belle, BFF, never forgot that day, and ever after called it “The day everything changed.” Because of a family crisis, the friends dreaded this might be the very last summer they would ever spend together. Trying to shake off and forget their gloom, they decided to find comfort in hiking one of their favorite trails. Then things changed.
On the trail where they found the tiny Key, gritty with age, they had no idea it was exceptional in any way. Yet soon enough the little Key revealed its power: magic so potent it freed Mennoc, their grandfatherly friend trapped by a spell. In gratitude Mennoc invited the friends to join him in Story-Travel to a Far- Past-Time. As Mennoc explained, Story-Travel would allow them to see into the Past while not actually entering that world. To help them find the cave where the Story-Travel could begin, Mennoc gave Belle The Glass Key: passed down to him by his ancestors.
As Mennoc began their Story Travel, he briefly held The Glass Key for emphasis, but accidentally fumbled and dropped it. In a flash, Toby and Belle found themselves inside the world of the Far-Past which only a moment ago Mennoc had described to them: a place he warned them never to enter, a place full of dangers.
Transported now into this Far- Past- Time, the bewildered friends found themselves inside a village controlled by a vile, shape-shifting Wizard. With heart-stopping relief the two friends met and were helped by a lad their own age, Enon. His kind family looked after them and helped hide them from the Wizard. Yet safe as they now were, they felt dangers lurked ahead. Can Toby and Belle help Enon rescue the young boys trapped in the caves by the Wizard? Even more important, how will the two friends find a way to get home again?
About the Author
Joanna Marsden treasured listening to “Let’s Pretend,” radio’s famous series for children. Those dramatized stories of adventure and magic, featuring both exotic and humble characters, created an enduring imaginative platform in Marsden’s life, which inspired The Glass Key. She is an avid amateur naturalist who lives and writes in New England.