Garden of Perilous Wonders

Rosalind had been dreaming about standing on the surface of Mars for as long as she could remember.

In her mind, it was always a sunny day. She imagined that the entire planet was covered in endless red sand dunes, and that her shoes would get all dusty even though they were made of plastic. She thought about how she would be able to see *all* the way across the horizon, even though she knew that wasn't true. But still, it was one of those things where you think you're different than everyone else because you've got this special picture of your own personal place in your head. It felt like she'd lived there forever, even though she really hadn't ever even left Earth.

It had been a surprise when she'd gotten the call from her boss Mr. Goldpyle. She'd started working for him when she was 16 years old and he had kind of been like a father figure to her over the years; teaching her things that no one else at school or home seemed to know anything about. He was always so busy with his work, but somehow he always found time to teach her things like how to use a soldering gun or how to read oscilloscope traces. He never asked for any kind of payment and Rosalind didn't want to owe him any favors, so they just kept their relationship as professional as possible. In fact, it worked out so well that Rosalind had mostly forgotten that Mr. Goldpyle was also human and not just some brilliant scientist robot that lived in his lab all day making electronics.

Rosalind's phone rang while she was driving herself home from work. She pulled over into the parking lot of an abandoned gas station and rolled down all four windows to let some fresh air in before answering. "Hello?"

"Rosalind! I need you to meet me at my house tonight," Mr. Goldpyle's voice said through the radio transmitter in Rosalind's earpiece. "I have something important I need to give you."

"Okay," Rosalind said hesitantly. "What is it?" She wondered if he'd finally decided to retire and wanted her to take over his lab or something like that. The thought made her stomach turn somersaults with excitement and nervousness at the same time. "Is it something that's gonna change my life forever?"

"I am not going to tell you," Mr Goldpyle said sternly as he clicked off Rosalind's phone without saying goodbye, or even giving her directions on how to find his house (which Rosalind knew perfectly well where it was).

Rosalind drove to Mr. Goldpyle's house, located in an upscale area on top of a hill overlooking a lake surrounded by acres of pine trees. When she arrived, she parked on the side of the road and noticed two people waiting outside. The two strangers were both wearing tattered clothes with backpacks strapped across their chests.

As Rosalind approached, one of them asked, "Are you Rosalind?"

“Yes," Rosalind answered. "My name is Rosalind Peek. Are you friends of Mr. Goldpyle?"

Before anyone could respond, Mr. Goldpyle opened his front door, motioning for the group to enter. They followed him inside and into his kitchen. Mr. Goldpyle took out a small bottle from his kitchen cabinet, unscrewed the lid, and poured some white powder onto a spoon.

Rosalind observed the scene with curiosity, feeling suddenly more anxious than before. What was happening here? She reminded herself to trust Mr. Goldpyle, but couldn't help the nagging feeling that something was off. Would this night reveal secrets that would change her life forever? Only time would tell.