CHAPTER ONE
Susan sat in the gloomy attic alone the many boxes around her like a fort of cardboard and dust. "Grandpa?" she called behind her but her grandpa was clearing the boxes downstairs. "Well the library won't get going by itself will it." She grumbled stacking another box of books. Her Grandpa was an amateur librarian, he had gotten the idea when they were living in London, she had been happy in London. She had been enjoying the buzz of city life; there would always be something that interested her like the many festivals in Trafalgar square, the tourist attractions and the tourists themselves. She also enjoyed watching the trains go by and the rush of wind as they flew past her, the wonderful flash of lights as for a second they are there and then gone in a blink. She picked up the trap door that led to a pull out set of stairs and climbed down. But London was far away now, she, her grandpa and a truckload of used books had moved to the country. Devon wasn't exactly the most action packed place on earth, if you were lucky you might see a rare moment when a cow gives birth or something but that wasn't really Susan's idea of a party; her and a bunch of farm kids stuck in a hot and stuffy building wasn't great either. She went downstairs to find her Grandpa lining the shelves with books of every kind and colour. "Where are the books on historic events Susan?" he enquired his back still to her. The question all the acknowledgement she was going to get. "They're still in the attic I finished sorting the entire fantasy section though." She replied hoping for some praise. Her Grandpa grunted as a result obviously now not paying any attention to what she was saying and more on the Latin book titles. She went back to the attic her mood downed slightly by her Grandpa's response to her hard work. The books became duller and duller as she read the titles and put them in their assigned pile. She was on the last box; the books were all in some kind of language she couldn't decipher. She had pulled out about three when she came across one that stood out from the others she stopped the usual ritual and dusted it off properly. The cover was a deep crimson with gold detail on the binding and more of the odd language written in silver around the edges in what must have been a well gifted hand. She surveyed the back and front before opening it properly. She held the book tightly as the pages flew faster and faster a blinding light spreading from the centre pulling her in, she tried to scream but her voice was lost as she was thrown into oblivion…
The first thing she heard was soft birdsong. The attic ceiling was gone and had been replaced with a blue sky, the walls had been replaced with tall trees, the dusty floorboards with soft green grass and daisies. She was lying down under a large oak tree, its leaves protecting her from the harsh red sun suspended in the sky. She noticed the book a metre or so away from her its silver lettering glinting invitingly. She stood up and looked around, she noticed that the clouds were rose pink and like the red sun unusually sinister. She picked up the book being careful to open it away from her. It seemed to buzz with some kind of energy as she cradled it in her grasp. She flicked through the pages slowly, each one was blank. Finally she closed it. Again nothing happened. She began to look around careful not to touch anything. She was in what seemed to be a forest; she also found what seemed to be a moving stump. She walked further marvelling at the strange things she saw like the bush that seemed to sing when you walked past it, the bird that looked half pigeon half parrot and the tree whose leaves seemed to change colour every time she blinked. It had been according to Susan's watch a full hour and with out realising it she had become lost as she walked deeper and deeper into the trees.
She noted the falling of the sun behind her as the temperature dropped and the trees that had looked so beautiful that day had become menacing claw like shadows towering above her keeping out the feeble moonlight that lit her winding path. She kept walking, the forest was changing as she went further, the trees grew taller and broader, suddenly she noticed a dim light in the distance. She began to run faster and faster towards the light following the impulse to discover the cause of it. It was getting closer as she gained speed the book clenched in arms her long hair streaming behind her in thick black waves. As she ran she noticed out of the corner of her eye another person running parallel to her own path a few yards away. She turned to look at this person never letting up pace, he was a tall young man about sixteen his skin was brown like he had been recently kissed by the sun, his eyes were a yellowish gold as far as she could tell, his hair was a striking white blonde ruffled by the wind and decorated with small autumn leaves like a Wildman. She picked up her speed and cut him off to enquire as to why he was running towards the light too. He stopped in front of her his eyes angry. "What did you do that for! Now it's going to run off somewhere else and I'll have to follow it for another I don't know ten years!" Susan noticed how he referred to the light as an 'it' like it was a living thing. Excuse me but what was that?" She asked ignoring his sentence completely. He flailed his arms in exasperation as though she had just asked a question about something obvious like what is a tree when there's one right next to you. "Well it was a lightning stag obviously!" He said pointing to the space where the light had disappeared. "I need one for my seventeenth versary I'm running out of years." He pointed to the pouch slung round his neck and pulled out a bottle, it was filled with a fine liquid the colour of blue lightning, he drank some and his eyes went from golden yellow to bright blue. "Now if you would get out of my way I have to get back to village before the snow starts." Susan caught his arm. " Wait, where am I?" Again he looked at her as though she was stupid. " Well are you dumb or something? You're in Daminia of course! I tell you some girls these days.." and he started to walk off leaving Susan in the cold, his bright blue eyes sending a last odd look in her direction before disappearing into the pitch black thicket. She decided to follow him, the book acting as a torch its blank pages seemed to glow in the dark providing a lit pathway. She could see his footprints in the mud they were her only route, if they weren't his she was probably following some poor woodsman or maybe a wild animal. Either way at least this way she would have a destination even if it was a big scary cave full of angry bears or a log house full of confused Daminian people. She kept walking for what seemed hours, the snow had began to gather wiping away some of his foot prints if she didn't get there soon the snow would cover everything and she would be lost. Suddenly she stopped, there was no longer a trail it had been covered by the snow her dark predictions had been right. She began to wonder in the same direction her arms felt numb, so did her legs. She noticed her body was violently shivering her thin jumper and jeans were no match for the cold that was numbing her entire body. She began to walk slower and slower her eyes clouded by falling snow her legs to weak to go on and then she blanked out….
She woke up in a warm room, a thick woollen blanket wrapped around her like a human parcel, a girl sat in the corner of the room, she looked no older than eighteen, she was petit with a long white blonde plait all the way down her back and bright blue eyes almost silver. The strange girl called through the doorway informing someone that she was awake. Susan waited while the girl looked her up and down before speaking. "I am Eden. My papa found you in the snowdrift he brought you back here. What is your name?" Susan sat up from where she was lying down, "Susan McKenzie." The girl frowned. "Strange. I never heard of anyone having two names, odd it makes it sound as though you are two people. Hum… I shall have to ask papa about it…" She studied her again marvelling at Susan's converses with the neon pink laces and green souls. "You wear interesting clothes Susan what are those things you have on your feet?" Susan noticed that under Eden's long brown dress she went barefoot. "They're called shoes don't you have any?" She asked astonished. "These 'Shoes' are an unknown word to me. I wear only the flesh and bone Daminia gave me for that is all I need…" She seemed to drift off about then apparently no longer interested in the conversation. At that very moment a tall bearded man with the same striking white blonde hair and silvery blue eyes hurried into the room his arms laden with hot tea and biscuits. "I hope you slept comfortably." He said in what Susan thought was a Scottish accent. "Very well but, I still don't know where I am." She replied. The man put down the tea and walked over to where Susan and Eden were sitting. "I am Aaron, I guess you've met my eldest daughter Eden, I also have two other children both girls as well. My youngest is thirteen her name is Marissa, my other child is fifteen, her name is Eloisa she is…difficult to get used to." Susan noticed Aaron's face darken slightly when he mentioned Eloisa. "We live in a small village not written on many maps but still important to us and its other villagers." He seemed to say this sentence like a threat as if Susan planned on insulting it. "We are ruled by king Gareth o' far, his son is William o' far one day he will rule us. I'm guessing you are a traveller. I can tell by the fact that only an idiot or a foreigner doesn't know about the snowdrifts!" He laughed a great throaty laugh at his own joke, throwing his head back with amusement. "Oh! By the way I got that book you were carrying back safely, here you go." Susan reached her hand out to get it, she started to pull it away from his grasp but he didn't let go. "I was wondering why you had a spell book with you. A young girl like yourself shouldn't be going around forests with enchantments. Its not right...not healthy." She took the book from him, her eyes lowered not knowing whether to speak or not after what must have been a warning from the old man. He changed the subject quickly his eyes still following her while he explained the customs of his people. "We are going to one of the festivals tonight, I wonder if you would like to go?" Susan nodded; the old man's intense stare not something she could say no to. "Eden will fetch you some warmer clothes. And I will tell my other daughters of the occasion." He still looked at her with curiosity and anticipation as he left through the heavy oak door. Like he was waiting for her to do something, or say something that could be a danger to him and his small family.
Eden placed a pile of clothes on the end of the bed. "I will shut the door call for me when you are…decent." She walked off awkwardly shutting the door quietly behind her. The pile of clothes contained; a long brown dress a grey shawl and no shoes. True to her word Eden did not think shoes were essential. Either that or she didn't like company much.
The festival was held in a great hall, almost like an oval shaped greenhouse, the walls were made of thick shining glass covered in creeping rose vines and what Susan thought were crystals entwined in them.