Archer's Quest Read Free Page B

king?"
    Oh, yeah,
Kevin thought,
my dad's a king all right—King of the Nerds.
He let out a snort. "Not hardly. He's a computer—" Oh, jeez, no way was he going to try to explain computers to Archie. "I mean, he works with numbers, sort of a mathematician."
    Kevin's dad was a programmer at the local university. Kevin was pretty sure that his dad was a genius—but a boring genius. He didn't talk much; he seemed a lot more comfortable reading computer books or watching
business-news shows on television. Kevin had often wished that his dad liked sports—at least then they could have talked about football or baseball.

    Not that Kevin was himself much of a jock. He played soccer in the summer: a substitute, not a starter. His coach had once told him that if he'd put in some time outside of practice—juggling, shooting against the garage door—he could improve his skills and maybe make the first team. But he hated those kinds of repetitive exercises. So boring.
    A couple seasons of baseball. Clarinet in the school band. Swimming lessons. Nothing held his attention for very long. Sometimes he thought he was the only kid he knew with no special talent or interest.
Being ordinary, average, and normal—my best features.
    For once, this was not a normal day.

    Archie rose from his seat on the bed. "It has been a most interesting visit, Young Stranger," he said. "But it is time for me to return home. If you would be so kind as to indicate the direction I should take, I will begin my journey."
    Kevin stared. "You're going to walk..."
    "Unless you have a horse you can lend me. But I think not, as I see no stable." He nodded toward the window.
    "Archer—" Kevin stopped and tugged on the bill of his cap in frustration. "Wait, I'll be right back."

    He raced down the stairs again and fetched the big globe from its place on the living room side table. Back in his room, he put it on his desk and turned it until he found Asia.
    "China," he said, tapping the right spot on the globe. He moved his finger. "The ocean. You know the ocean, right?" Then he spun the globe halfway round. "On the other side of the ocean—this is America. And this"—another small turn—"is Dorchester. Here, near this lake."
    Archie was looking at the globe so hard he was almost cross-eyed. He started to speak, stopped, shook his head. Hesitantly, he reached out and touched the globe, as if it might bite him. Then he turned it back to Asia and examined the markings closely.
    "A map," he said at last. "A round map."
    "That's right," Kevin said, nodding.
At last, we're getting somewhere.
    "I cannot fathom the mapmaker's reason for making it round," Archie said, "but it is clear he possesses some knowledge. He has drawn China, the land of my birth, as well as the kingdom where I now live, in its proper place." He touched a spot on the globe.
    Kevin leaned closer.
    Korea. So that was it—Archie lived in Korea.
    "And then," Archie continued, touching North America, "a dream world beyond the Great Sea."

    Kevin groaned. He seemed to be doing a lot of groaning, but he couldn't help it. Archie was so—so
dense.
    "Archer, please," he said. "You know you're not in your own country anymore, right? Everything's different—the glass, the bed—it's a different place. I know this place better than you do, and you're just gonna have to trust me when I tell you that you
can't
walk home."
    Archie peered at him closely for a few moments. "I do not know you well enough to trust you fully, but I shall indeed trust you in this instance. Tell me, then: How will I return home? I must go. My people need me."
    Kevin shook his head slowly. A plane ticket to Korea probably cost hundreds of dollars, maybe even thousands. He knew without asking that Archie didn't have that kind of money with him. And Kevin's own savings weren't nearly enough—not that he'd give Archie the money anyway. After all, he hardly knew the guy.
    Still, it was