Prologue Previous Chapter

Lam

As he watched the stars racing across the sky, Lam could hear screaming in the distance. He ignored it at first, smiling dreamily as a trio of blues zipped across the night and quickly faded into oblivion. In the background, the screaming continued. Irritated, he tried to ignore it as another flock of stars, golds and reds mostly, burned through the sky.

Where do these stars come from? It was clear that they weren’t the true stars – most of those where white. And besides, they never vanished from the night sky. Two of the moving stars were colorful – the pale green First Wanderer, and the Red Wanderer, but they had always survived previous Starfalls.

Maybe they aren’t stars at all. No, Shaman had said once that they were stars, falling to remind the Clan of their past mistakes. So they must be stars, but…

Someone jostled his arm, and he snapped back to reality. The screaming grew louder, more immediate. “What is it Shara?” Kito cried out, rushing towards her.

“It’s coming!” she shrieked. “The golden spear. The Clan! We have to warn them!”

What? His thoughts were all tangled together, and he shook hs head, trying to clear them away.

Oola grabbed Shara’s face, speaking gently to her, as Shara screamed relentlessly. Kito hovered nearby, gently stroking his sister’s arm.

Curious, Lam walked towards the front edge of the Watching Stone, searching for the light of Red Cave. The great bonfire was burning as brightly as ever, and he watched, several torches flared into life. “The Council is over. They’re getting ready to leave.

In a flash, Shara rushed past him, hurling herself on her hands and knees right at the edge of the Watching Stone. “Get out!” she screamed at the distant village, as though they could hear her from here. “Run! Hide! Get away! The golden spear is coming.”

Bewildered, Lam searched the night sky. Stars continued to fly through the air. What is a golden spear? Far to the south, a great golden star grew steadily larger. “Uh. .. What’s that?”

Everyone ignored him. Shara was still screaming at the top of her lungs. Barak grabbed her by her left arm, pulling her upright, and slapping her hard across the face. “Snap out of it!”

Everyone froze.

In a blur, Shara’s fist whipped around, catching Barak on the jaw, sending him reeling backwards until he collapsed on the ground. As if nothing had happened, she turned back to Red Cave, collapsing to her knees again, repeating her warnings.

Lam stared at Barak for a moment, fighting to keep the grin off of his face as Barak sat on the ground, rubbing his jaw carefully. She knocked him on his butt.

Something buzzed in the back of his mind, and he looked back up at the sky. The golden star grew larger still, and a lick of flame seemed to surround it. A knife of dread skewered his chest as he glanced back at Shara.

“Run! Hide!” she was shouting down at the village. “It’s coming.”

He glanced at her, and then again at the star. Still larger. If that star hits the cave…

“Get under cover.” He shouted, grabbing Pak and shoving him towards the edge. Everyone turned to stare at him. “Now!” Turning, he bolted towards the far edge of the rock, diving over the edge, crashing painfully into the ground below. Rolling, he stood up, shouting back to his friends. “Get off the rock!” He gestured frantically. Several started walking towards him, tentatively. “Come on come on come on!”

“Look!” Reya was pointing at the sky. He glanced up involuntarily. The golden star roared angrily overhead, sizzling through the air as it descended. Transfixed, he watched it disappear below the far end of the Watching Stone.

A pillar of light bloomed before him, a tower of gold and white that climbed into the heavens. The wrath of the spirits. Realizing their danger, the others rushed towards him, leaping over his head, crashing down next to him as the air started to roar around them.

At the far end of the stone, he could see Kito pulling on Shara, lifting her to her feet, leading her towards the back. The golden light bloomed behind them, leaving two silhouettes stumbling towards safety.

Come on! Faster!

There was a howl in the air, like the shrieking call of a huge flock of crows all giving voice at once. The golden lights reached for them. Five steps… Four…

The larger figure stopped and shoved the smaller one forward, turning towards the light, holding her hands up as if to halt the spirits’ anger. The smaller one fell to his knees, just a few hands shy of the edge. Hands reached out to pull him down but he turned back, lunging at his sister, grasping for her.

Lam had one brief moment to see the golden cloud smashing into the pair, one standing stalwart against it, one reaching to save the other before it blew past them, smashing into his face, knocking him backwards. There was a sudden sharp pain.

=-=

He was on a grassy plain that stretched as far as the eye could see in every direction. The grass was brilliantly green, full of life beyond anything he had ever seen before. He reached out to touch a tassel as it waved gently in the breeze. As his fingers brushed against it, it turned brown and withered, and crumpled into dust, leaving a brown patch. The other blades followed, and a circular swath of death opened up around him, growing and racing into the distance. In moments everything was dust, the plain was empty, desolate. Even the wind was gone. He was alone.

But wait… far to the south there was a hill. Black, and forbidding, covered in sharp rocks. A dark purple-gray cloud surrounded the peak, and lightning erupted continuously within the storm.

Inexplicably, he ran towards it.

As he closed, he could see that the hill was in truth a mountain, far more massive than he had thought. He could see the rocks now, black and shiny, with sharp edges and strange whorls and arcs of white and grey embedded in the very stone. Still, there was a path of sorts that led up from the edge, an area where the stones were crushed, and less treacherous. He took a step forward onto the mountain path. The mountain shook violently beneath him, knocking him to his knees as he felt raw power coursing through him, the power of the spirits. I can do anything. He turned and stared at the plain of desolation, raising his hand. Make it grow again.

The rain started immediately, pelting him angrily. He shielded his eyes from the stinging drops. Before him on the plain, each drop that touched the dusty ground caused a spear tip to shoot forth from the ground, stretching slowly upwards until it broke free, followed by a long wooden shaft. In moments, the plain was thick with them, and in a few moments more it was a dense forest of weaponry, with tips so close together you could walk on them.

And so he did – taking a step forward he felt the knife-like spear tips cut at his shoes and feet, but he felt no pain, and in a few moments he was running, feet tingling and twitching as he ran faster and faster away from the mountain, towards the horizon, faster, and faster, eager to see what was beyond this plain. And then the spear-forest ended and he fell forwards into the starry sky, burning and glowing, falling towards the earth. As he watched, his hands and arms burned away, and he feebly tumbled through the air until the fire consumed the rest.

Lam awoke with a start, heart thudding in his chest. A few white clouds drifted lazily through a blue sky overhead. Just a dream. Starfall. The celebration. The star. The mountain. What a dream! He shook his head, trying to clear away the fog. His head ached. Everything smelled like smoke. There was a strange, unpleasant taste in his mouth. Lifting his head, he looked around.

Pillars of dirty brown smoke surrounded the mountain, pouring into the sky.

He scrambled to his feet, his first thoughts of his friends. They were all around him, lying on the ground, asleep or unconcious. He glanced at their faces. Where are Kito and Shara?

He whipped around to look for them across the mountaintop, and was rewarded with a sharp pain in his neck. Wincing, he gripped the back of his head with one hand and more carefully scanned the area. “Kito? Shara?”

They had been on the Watching Stone.

He remembered the golden cloud, smashing against his face like a closed fist… They had been completely exposed to the brunt of the blast. Surely they weren’t still up there. Gingerly he pulled himself out of the ditch, trying not to disturb the others. Little spots of pain woke up all over his body, and his left knee throbbed angrily. Hobbling, he lurched around the side, and peeked over the top of the stone.

Empty. Where are they? He scanned the mountaintop, looking for motion, or even a human form.

Nothing.

“Kito? Shara?” There was no answer. Even the wind was silent.

Red Cave.

He turned northwards, across the overlook. A massive ruin of burned grass opened before him, stretching off into the smoke-blackened distance. Far to the east and west, a long sinuous line of fire slithered across the plains. To the north, he could see nothing but more smoke. Wait – a glint of silver – the river. He tried to follow it southeast across the plain, right past Red Ca-. No, he lost it.

Returning northwards, he searched for the river again, but the thick smoke hid it from view. Finally, another glint. His eyes locked onto it, unwilling to allow the smoke to take it away again. Carefully, patiently he followed it, waiting for the smoke to clear before moving down the river, around the big bend and…

There was nothing there.

Shara tried to warn them. “Shara!?” He limped back past the others, his voice shrill and childish in his ears. “Shara?”

An arm grabbed his shoulder, and he spun around, yelping in fright. His feet tangled together and he tumbled to the ground, and he hissed as his kneed shrieked in pain.

“Lam. It’s me. Armis.” The young man shook him gently.

“It’s gone. It’s gone. It’s gone.” Lam repeated, staring at his leader. “I have to find Shara.”

Armis’s face rose up before him. “Lam?” He felt himself shaking. “Come back to me.”

“Red cave is gone. We have to – we have to find Shara.” He gasped, trying to wriggle from Armis’s grasp. “She knew. She tried to warn us.”

Armis wouldn’t let go. “Lam! She’s gone!”

Lam froze. “What?”

“She’s gone.” Armis stared at him, his face covered in dirt and dust. “I saw the- I saw the cloud destroy them. They’re gone.”

Worms gnawed at his heart as he remembered how the golden light had washed over Shara, and Kito. His mouth filled with saliva, and he lurched sideways, vomiting across the top of the stone. Gagging and choking, he spat and wiped his mouth until it was clear again.

“Are you ok?” Armis asked, touching him gently on the shoulder.

“It doesn’t seem real.” Lam said, the sour bile still burning the back of his throat. “How can Kito be gone.”

“I’m sorry.” Armis said.

Sadly, Lam shook his head, to clear his thoughts of the dead.

He looked up. “Red Cave.” Scrambling to his feet, he raced towards the edge of the mountain.

“Lam! Wait. Where are you going?” Armis grabbed out at him, snatching at his clothes. “We have to go back. The Clan. We have to get back to Red Cave.” He twisted mightily, but Armis wouldn’t let go. “Let me go.” He shrieked, spinning around, flailing his arms, smacking Armis in the face. The hand loosened, and he jerked free, stumbling backwards.

Falling!

=-=

Pop!

He opened his eyes with a start, gasping. Blue sky. Small clouds. A crackling noise from nearby. He lifted his head, and his stomach heaved. Moaning, he layed down again, closing his eyes, trying not to throw up again.

“Sssh. Don’t move.” A shadow fell across his face. Opening his eyes, he saw Mika leaning over him, face drawn with worry. “You hit your head pretty hard when you fell.”

He almost lifted his head again, but caught himself just as his neck muscles were tightening. “What? When did I fall?”

She frowned. “Earlier today. Don’t you remember?”

Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a flash of orange. “Fire.” He whispered. “The mountain is on fire.” He tried to lift his head again, and was immediately stricken with a new wave of sickness.

“Relax! It’s okay. I made the fire. We’re safe.” She was gently rubbing his shoulder. “Rest now.”

He closed his eyes for a little while, letting his stomach quiet again. “Can I have some water?” He whispered.

Mika frowned again. “Armis said to be careful with it.” He blinked, she pondered. After a moment she smiled. “Still, I think you probably need it more than the rest of us.” She floated out of sight, and he stared at the sky. Watching the clouds drift overhead gave him the distinct sensation of falling, even though he could feel the rough stone against his back.

“Here.” A thin trickle of water dripped into his mouth, and he lapped it up eagerly. The tang of the river weeds was still strong. Too soon, she pulled the water away, and he sucked on his lips for a moment, searching for every drop.

He closed his eyes again. The sun was very warm on his skin, and his skin began to itch all over.

=-=

Pop!

He opened his eyes again, and found stars overhead, cool stone beneath. Nearby the fire still burned,
“Hello?”

“Oh good, you’re awake again.” The voice was much sharper – Reya.

“Could I get some water?”

“No.” She said firmly. “Armis said not to waste it.”

Ugh. “Where’s Mika?”

Reya’s voice got a little sharper. “She’s out searching with the others.”

“Searching?” He felt lightheaded, and fuzzy. “Searching for what?”

“Shara, and Kito.”

Lam blinked. “Armis said they were dead.”

“Oola didn’t agree.”

I should help look. He tried to sit up, and found a hand pushing him firmly to the ground. “Stay here.”

For a moment he thought about arguing, but quickly gave up. “What about Red Cave?” He asked, staring at her, hoping for a smile. “Red Cave is fine. We will be with them soon.”

But there was no comfort in her eyes. She shook her head sadly, her eyes glistening. “No lights. No torches. Just a few dying grass fires.”

His stomach heaved again and filled with stabbing pains. Moaning, he pressed his hand against his belly, trying to pressure them away.

He turned his head, and stared at the fire. She can’t be right. They must be there.

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Tuesday, March 14th, 2006 at 2:15 am.
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