The Orb

Since the war, Jake MacCorkle's unanswered questions haunt him. He drifts through life in a flat, emotionless routine between his father's home and the VA ...until the dreams start.

At the breakfast table, he jokes about them with his father. The reaction is not what he expected. Without explanation, his father says "We need to talk".

When his father dies in an automobile accident, Jake is devastated.

In the will, his father leaves him thousands of acres in the North Georgia Mountains with ironclad caveats: never cut a tree, build a road, and never sell it. The lawyer knows nothing. A handwritten letter from his father asks a favor, "Spread my ashes on the land", followed by a single intriguing hint "experience it for yourself".

For his father's sake, Jake travels to the mountain property. As an Army Ranger, the trek to spread his father's ashes should be a simple job, but it isn't. Trails appear and disappear, and it seems the forest conspires to thwart him.

After grueling hours pushing through the forest, the mesmerizing sound of the river, and his mixed feelings about the trip had stolen hours. Standing on the rock in the river, he unscrewed the urn's cap, faced downstream, and held the canister high toward the waning sun. A lump grew in his throat.

"I love you, Dad."

Ashes dispersed. A gust of wind swirled ash into his face. Unable to see, a shuffling in the leaves, not far, something large, was on his right. He splashed water into his eyes. Vision blurred, he struggled to see. Both sides of the river were lined with hundreds of people. The canister clanged off the rocks. He swiped gritty water out of his face.

Sure, of his insanity, he hides in a small cave overnight. Falling asleep to the sound of the rushing river, the morning reveals that the back of the cave is open, exposing a path into the heart of the mountain. Should he enter? Should he experience it for himself or run? Either way, Jake's life and destiny will change forever.