I sat the basket down on the brick walkway and opened the door to the castle. I tugged the basket inside and set it upon the long wooden desk next to the doorway. I figured I could handle one more load before I left Cormecka, so I took another wicker basket from the pile at the doorway and walked out towards the forest.
The Cormecka Age was a world Atrus created for the sole purpose of food; a harvest Age. He had written it during his time in D'ni to make sure he would always have food. And now since I had a linking book to Cormecka, I knew I wouldn't starve either.
The Cormecka Age is a small island in the ocean that is totally covered by trees, each bearing a rich variety of fruits. Brick paths go in every direction around the forest, winding its way around the vast number of trees. Along the path are benches for resting, and the occasional stepladder for reaching high branches of a tree.
The lagoon has a dock with three fishing boats complete with nets and poles. The schools of fish ran predictable patterns, and were almost always just outside the lagoon in the early morning. The outside ocean was usually calm, but I have never stayed here long enough to notice patterns in the weather conditions.
Just off to the beach lies the castle. The castle is a large octagonal granite structure designed as a basic shelter for visitors of the Cormecka Age. The castle has a freshwater well, and other equipment for gathering food on the island. Also inside is a large fireplace for cooking and warmth, several beds, and a huge bath for those who plan longer trips to this Age.
Power to this Age was supplied by a series of waterwheels placed strategically along the river that flowed through the middle of the island. There was an ample power supply to generate lights for the castle. The fireplace was connected to a ventillation system around the castle that distributed the heat, including heat for the bath.
It has been a month now since I had first arrived on Myst Island. After I had met Atrus in D'ni, I returned on Myst Island. I didn't see Atrus again until the following morning.
Atrus came back to Myst Island with two linking books. One from Myst Island to Cormecka, and the other one blank. He took the blank book and began to write in it. He explained that he was writing a linking book from Cormecka back to Myst Island, and he could only do it here, in the library on Myst.
After about two hours of writing, he took the finished book and went to the Cormecka Age. Later on that day, I visited Cormecka for the first time.
On my first trip to Cormecka, I found Atrus in the forest, sitting on a concrete bench. He was just sitting there, relaxing.
I sat down next to Atrus and asked Atrus about the possibility of returning to Earth.
It was then that Atrus told me how the descriptive books created the Ages, and how the linking books allowed us to travel between them. There were limitations to the D'ni written language (the Art), and one of them involved the limits as to what Ages you can link to, and how the linking books were written.
Atrus knew nothing of my world, and he still isn't even sure as to how the Myst book arrived on it. For the time being, I was trapped on Myst Island, and there was nothing that Atrus or I could do about it.
I couldn't beleive it. I was trapped here by some unfortunate accident. I may never see Earth again. Not that Myst Island was a bad place. In a way I felt both cheated and lucky to have this strange opportunity.
So, I tried to make the most of my new home. Atrus had given me his library, so I tried to rebuilt it by restocking it with books. The journals that I have written along the way now adorn the shelves, along with the descriptive books of the four remaining Ages. Atrus had trusted me with the books and was grateful that someone would be able to guard them while he continued with his work.
I still visit the ages occasionally, learning new wonders here and there, sometimes performing simple experiments for Atrus. I would collect soil samples in one Age, or measure the angles of the sun in another Age, that sort of thing. I always ask him what he does with the information I collect, and he always says he will tell me later.
While I enjoyed visiting the Ages, I had always felt a little depressed. Three of those ages were once filled with human life, but that life was destroyed by greed and madness. I still couldn't fathom how two people could create so much destruction.
I recall a trip that I had made back to the Stoneship Age to collect some water samples for Atrus. While I was below decks on the ship I saw the remains of a human arm float by next to the undersea lamp. After squinting a bit I realized that about forty feet away from the lamp were the remains of other bodies, half buried in the deep mud.
What a waste of life.
I never had the courage to ask Atrus how he had felt about the destruction of the Ages, and how he felt about his final decision regarding his sons. I could never image what was going on inside his head, and in a way I hoped that I would never have to go through such pain and misery.
His wife, gone; his sons, banished (or dead perhaps). Atrus was alone, less myself of course. I really doubted that I could make a suitable companion for him. Sure a friendship could be maintained, but it would never replace the love of his wife or that of his children. Atrus was indeed alone.
I walked along the brick path until I found a suitable apple tree. I climbed a small stepladder and begin picking, dropping the apples into the basket lying on the ground. It was then, from my high vantage point that I saw Atrus, sitting on a concrete bench further down the path.
Should I talk to him? He was rather difficult to talk to at times. Did he enjoy talking with me, or did he prefer solitude? He may sometimes enjoy the conversation, but I'm not sure if I'm the one Atrus needs to talk to.
Catherine. She was what Atrus needed right now.
I stepped down the ladder and waved hello. He waved back and turned back to his book. From here I could tell that he was working on an Age. He was still in the planning stages because he was using regular paper and ink. Once he was finished and sure it would work, he would transfer the work onto the special papers and ink that would bring the Age to life.
I had promised Atrus I would help him out when the time comes, I just wish I knew when that time would be. He told me himself that he wasn't sure when he would need me, but he would definitely inform me when the time comes. All I could do for now was wait.
Basket in hand, I made my way back to the castle. In the distance the giant structure loomed into view, its granite walls covered with vines that clung to the castle as the years went by. I opened up the giant wooden door and walked inside.
In the wall behind the table was a grid of black and white squares, five across and five down. To me it resembled a miniature chess board, but Atrus said it was a game used to teach math to D'ni children. (Apparantly, the D'ni used a base 5 numeric system.)
To open up the panel I had to press the appropriate squares in a certain order. The sequence was revealed in a series of panels just like this one that had a single square highlighted. Of course the real trick was to figure which way to go along the paths to get the proper sequence.
Atrus is very protective about his linking books. It had taken me about an hour to figure out the solution to the panel, not as long as it has taken me in the past. I think I'm starting to figure out how Atrus' mind works when it comes to these puzzles.
I entered the sequence and the panel slid upwards revealing two linking books. One for D'ni and one for Myst. I took the Myst book and opened it up to the final page. In the descriptive window the image of the library came into view. Juggling with the baskets in my left arm, I reached my right hand, touched the window, and returned to Myst Island.