Page 25 of Sea of Stars

"They never would have come here if it wasn't for your wife. We let one divinare into our town and she repays us by leading a whole herd of those small demons right to our doorstep. They threatened our village with their monstrous beast. If there weren't so many of them, they'd all be hanging right now, your wife with them."

"It wasn't her fault that the new king came here! You know that.”

“How dare you tell me what I know! And how dare you speak of him as a king. He is no king of ours. Remember your place boy, before you get us both killed.”

“I’m defending my family, just like you should be doing. And you know it was not Trina’s wish to go along with him. She wanted to protect the rest of us. That is the only reason she agreed to go.”

“Yet the baby remains here. Neither that little thing you call a king, nor your wife wanted the mutant child. And I won't let it live here anymore. It is not worthy of either race.”

“It? You’re speaking about my daughter,” the younger man snapped. “How could you say that?”

The older man stepped away from the other. “Do as you wish, but you are no longer welcome in this town. You have brought us nothing but trouble. You have brought me nothing but shame. Just leave us in peace.”

“Father,” the younger man pleaded, but the other man had already started walking away. The man stood there and watched his father venture back to the town. He pulled the cloth away from the package and I heard the coo of baby. I craned my neck to see the young girl in his arms. She looked a lot like her father, with black eyes and hair. She had long hair like a divinare baby girl, yet she had the same ears on the sides of her head as her father. I had never seen a mixed child before and I couldn't help but wonder if she could hear from her ears and through her hair.

“We will get your mother back,” the man promised his baby. “And we will spread the word tha

t a new king has taken the throne, a king unworthy of power.” He hugged the child close and disappeared into the tall grass.

I wanted to call out to the young father and tell him that he was right, that Breghton did not deserve to be king. But I didn't dare. I did not know this man. He could be dangerous, just like the strange man from the tree. I touched my thigh where the man had so fiercely grabbed me. Humans were not good people. They couldn't be trusted. I waited a few moments and then stood. The man was nowhere in sight. I stepped out onto the path and quickly reentered into the grass on the other side. The man was not visible, but I could hear him.

For a long time, I followed slowly, not wanting to be heard or seen. Silence eventually accompanied the growing darkness and I knew that the man had stopped to rest for the night. The silence was broken once the sky grew completely black and the baby started crying.

“Hush, little Dawn,” the man said gently. “There is no darkness this night. The Lights of the Lords are above us.”

I looked up at the stars. My mother had often spoken of the Lights of the Lords. I stared above, looking at the Lords twinkling down on us. I remembered hearing her tell me the story before I would go to sleep at night. I was just about to recite it to myself when the man began the tale instead:

“The world was once dark. Wars plagued the land as the darkness entered our hearts. The Lords came together as one to end our misery. They used their power to light the sky for day, reminding us of their presence. But at night they too grow tired. They go their separate ways to sleep and their lights dim in their solitude, but their presence still remains above. For a long time the great Lights of the Lords allowed all people to live in harmony, day or night. Eventually many began to wonder why the Lords needed the night for solitude. Did they not always care enough to light our way? The rumors sent the darkness back in our hearts. And the Lords did not know what to do. Had they not already given us everything? We had the light of day and the stars at night to always guide us. But their presence was diminishing. Our land was once again in chaos as the darkness encroached upon us. Desperate for peace, two Lords were sent from the sky to live in this world. Their inner light glowed on their skin, lighting the way for our future. With light by our sides, peace once again filled the lands.” The man paused in the story. “See little one. We are always surrounded by light. Darkness shall not scare us anymore.” The man’s voice quivered slightly as he spoke.

He had purposefully left out the end of the story because the child in his arms was only a baby. She did not need to know that the lands were once again in chaos. My mother had always ended the tale saying: “But darkness has returned. Greed has sent the light back to the sky.” And her voice would always tremble at this part of the story. I didn’t dare move my cloak to look at the glowing marks on my body. For the first time in my life I understood why my mother always told me the story of the Lights of the Lords. She was subtly teaching me about our people. Divinares were the descendants of the Lords.

Quiet sobs filled the night air, making me shiver in the hot night. I understood why the man cried. He probably felt as alone as I did. His wife was kidnapped, his father had disowned him, and he had to take care of a baby and he probably didn't know how. I did not trust the man, but I knew we shared a hatred of Breghton. I too wanted to cry, but I didn’t dare risk him hearing me. The end of the story had always overwhelmed my mother. When she would get upset reciting it, she’d always make me promise not to let darkness fill my heart. And I had broken that promise. Anger and fear had consumed me. I took a deep breath and looked up into the sky.

“Release me from the darkness,” I whispered to the stars.

The man and his child slept silently beyond me in the grass. The sun had risen and I was growing restless waiting for the man to rise.

Breghton had told me that the power of the Moira was taken away from the divinares. This power was the "light" from the story. I believed it was the Lords’ intention for me to reunite the land. I was blessed with the power to do so. I needed to rid the world of darkness, just like in the story. I didn’t have to be told it was true, I could feel that it was my destiny.

The only mystery that remained was what the symbols on my skin meant. I still needed to find a divinare that could read them. I began to drum my fingers against my leg, waiting impatiently. Finally, I heard the man stir. Soon his footsteps could be heard swishing through the grass. I waited a few moments and then began to follow. The man’s longer legs made his pace faster than mine. I had to jog in order to not lose him.

After many minutes of quietly following him, I stumbled out onto a matted path. I was once again on Breghton’s trail. It was heading in the same direction that the man was going. We must have intersected it from one of our paths being slightly crooked. I looked behind me. The silence around me was startling. Where had the father gone? I was about to turn around when a large, strong hand covered my mouth and the other hand grabbed me from behind, holding my arms still.

“Why are you following me?” hissed the familiar voice of the young man.

I wanted to curse and scream and bite at his huge hand, but I didn't want him to kill me. Instead, I tried to reply, but his hand was covering my mouth so all that came out were words too muffled to be understood. He released his grip and turned me towards him. He was kneeling so that he was eye level with me. His hands held either of my arms firmly so I still couldn’t move them. I would have kicked him in the crotch if there wasn't a knife strapped to his leather armor.

“I wasn't following you. I was already on this trail yesterday when you and your father appeared. I hid in the grass until you were done talking.” I paused, not knowing what to say next. I felt awkward having overheard his private conversation. “I didn’t want to follow the path to your town. From your conversation, it was clear that I wouldn’t be safe there. So I thought I’d cut through the grass until the path reappeared.”

He stared at me skeptically. “You’re right. They would have killed you just like they wanted to kill my baby.” He sighed and loosened his grip on my arms. “Why are you following the new king’s trail anyway?”

“He stole something from me,” I responded without thinking.

“He has stolen something from me as well,” the man said. “What has he taken from you?"

I studied the man’s face. His eyes were swollen from crying. There were lines on his forehead from worry. He didn't look crazy like the human from the tree had.

He stole my hope. “He took my dagger,” I said instead.

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