Welcome to the Point: A Point Epoch Tale by Cloud Riser (polar express read aloud txt) 📕

Since discovering my name and Trevor’s true identity, Delia has had a lot of questions. I love it. The more they talk about me, the stronger I become.

“I get that this William guy is so evil, but what makes him so bad? What did he do? What’s his story?” she asked.

Like a good girlfriend, she liked to visit Trevor at his workplace, The Shine On Cafe. There, he gave her free donuts, all the tea she desired, and made schmoopy eyes with her when he was supposed to be cleaning tables and checking garbage cans. The guy had it bad. I didn’t blame him because she was an absolute catch, but it always made watching them interact painful. He was so pathetic around her.

Trevor continued to wipe the same spot on the counter he’d been cleaning for the past three minutes. It helped him look busy even though he was doing nothing. No one else was in the cafe, though. He tried. Under other circumstances, I think he and I might have gotten along.

It took a long time for him to come up with an answer.

“His story is…complicated,” he said.

“I would think so since he’s trying to take over the world,” Delia said. “Come on, Trev, throw me a bone or two. This impacts my life, a lot since he seems obsessed with me. How am I supposed to stay away if I don’t know why?”

He glared at her. “Can’t you just trust me?”

“Do you really want to hear my answer to that?” She pursed her lips and met his glare with one of her own.

With a heavy, overly dramatic sigh, Trevor let go of his rag. “He is…he was a powerful warlock, for one. Self-taught, which means the magic didn’t come naturally. He killed a lot of people to get that power.”

“William is dead, though,” she pointed out.

Trevor growled a little. “I’ve told you to stop saying his name all of the time!”

“It’s just a name!”

“A name with power!”

“What kind of power! Explain this better!” The desperation in her voice was cute.

He pinched the bridge of his nose between his fingers and squeezed his eyes shut. “It’s so long and complicated and I’m not even sure of all of the details.”

“Where can I go then to get them?”

“Ugh, you’re never going to stop are you…”

Delia flashed him a smile. “Nope.”

After a long pause, Trevor finally relented. “Okay, let’s see. Did you know that Point Epoch used to be all farms?”

“Yeah, but what does that…”

He held up a hand. “Have to do with anything? Because it’s…” He choked on air for a moment. “William’s…fault that the town is the way it is now.”

Dear readers, rather than subject you to his terrible and inaccurate retelling of my life’s events, I will be sharing my story. There is no better place to get the truth than from the source.

Chapter Three

The Before

Point Epoch used to be miles upon miles of farmland. In fact, it used to not be called Point Epoch. The town got its name after the rip in dimensions formed. Before all of that happened, our small hamlet was named Becker. For the most part, the land was flat and rich with crops. My family grew several of them and tended to several barns worth of animals. You could say we were the largest and most prosperous in the state. I grew up with money, but no one would think that with the simplicity my parents preferred to live in.

Simple was boring and that was perhaps what initially led me onto my current path.

I spent a lot of my free time staring at the ceiling of my room. That should explain a lot. Chores took a lot of my time. Television didn’t exist. I had some books, but only nerds liked to read for hours on end. I’d never had the heart of a nerd in me. I was a guy who needed adventure, and adventure lacked something fierce in Becker.

The highlight of my life was going to the market to sell the goods of the day. On the day my life changed for the better, I had potato duty. Get rid of all the sacks, that was the goal, and I pushed those babies hard.

“They’re the best potatoes in the country! The largest too! You can’t go wrong with an authentic Hermanson spud!” I called out while also taking cash from a customer. With a nod and a grin, I passed off a bag and looked for my next buyer.

My eyes locked with the most beautiful pair I’d ever seen. Large and dark, that other set of eyes was the gateway to a rather deep soul, and I knew instantly I had to go exploring. “Miss, can I interest you in an experience of a lifetime?”

The young woman before me smiled and instantly I detected a hint of devilishness. She wanted to cause trouble; I could tell. Definitely my type. Slowly, her gaze roamed over my body more than a few times. “Possibly. Elaborate.”

“This potato is a gift from the gods.” I held up the root vegetable, never breaking eye contact with her. “It’s sweet like candy yet satisfies all of your savory cravings. Whatever you wish, it will become that desire.”

“Now you’re promising more than you can deliver.” She giggled, though. “Sounds like hogwash.”

“Tell you what, I’ll give you this one for free. You try it and see for yourself.” She reached to take that potato from my hand. Just as she was about to grab hold of it, I lifted my hand away. “One condition, if you do like it, you have to come back and buy a bag. The big ten pound one.”

Her dark eyes narrowed for a moment, and I thought for