Characters
Aero- a 13-year-old girl with silvery hair and silver eyes. Bonded to Dark Moon, a male red-tailed hawk. Homeland: Sky Kingdoms
Sky Rider- a 15-year-old boy with silver hair and sky blue eyes. Bonded to Wind Song, a female golden eagle. Homeland: Sky Kingdoms
Flicker- a 13-year-old girl with bright red hair and grey eyes. Bonded to Fire Storm, a male Bengal tiger. Homeland: Fire Clans
Spark Fire- a 14-year-old boy with red hair and dark grey eyes. Bonded to Flare, female Bengal tiger. Homeland: Fire Clans
Aqua- a 13-year-old girl with white hair and ocean blue eyes. Bonded to Streamer, a female river otter. Homeland: Tribes of the Ocean
River Runner- a 15-year-old boy with white hair and icy-blue eyes. Bonded to Delta, a male river otter. Homeland: Tribes of the Ocean
Forresta- a 13-year-old girl with sandy-blond hair and bright green eyes. Bonded to Stone Drop, a female silver wolf. Homeland: Earthen Cities
Cave Digger- a 15-year-old with brown hair and dark green eyes. Bonded to Tunneler, a male mountain lion. Homeland: Earthen Cities
Wolf Spirit- a 13-year-old girl with smoky-grey hair and green eyes, flecked with blue and white. Bonded to Shadow and Echo, a black wolf and a white she-wolf. Homeland: in a small nomad group
Tiger Strike- a 14-year-old boy with black hair and gold eyes. Bonded to Willow and Night, a silver female leopard and a male black panther. Homeland: in a small nomad group
Lion Song- a 14-year-old boy with black hair and gold eyes, flecked with green. Bonded to Moon and Sun, a female white tiger and a male lion. Homeland: in a small nomad group
Prologue
Aero sat on a lone cloud, letting it drift away from the Sky Kingdoms. She floated aimlessly in the sea of air, the bright midday sun shining overhead. She watched the earth pass by lazily below her. She saw the green forests reaching toward the sun's rays and the blue lakes that reflected its shine, creating a glare too painful to look at.
Aero looked to the north, to the forests and mountains of the Earthen Cities. She glanced east toward the Tribes of the Ocean, who lived by the sea. Swinging west, she stared out to the Fire Clans, the red-haired, ambitious, people who lived in the hot deserts. Finally, as she returned to the south, she looked over her own land, the Sky Kingdoms. Its beautiful, gleaming, crystal cities floating on clouds, watching the land below.
Aero remembered all the times, some recent, that the Earthen Cities attacked her people, trying to convince her father, Cloud Chaser, that they should rule the forests and mountains under his many kingdoms. Thinking of her father, the king, reminded her of all her responsibilities of being a princess of the Sky Kingdoms.
She sighed, turning away. She didn't want to be a princess; she never asked to be one. All she wanted was to be free, not to be controlled. Everyone expected great things from her because her father was like the greatest king in her peoples' history. She just didn't think she could be the heiress everyone wanted her to be. Why couldn't her brother, Sun Sailor, be king? He was older and wiser, and more tuned in with his powers.
Aero floated on the pure white, fluffy cloud without a thought in her head. She drifted over a large expanse of field, passing a large line of boulders on the way. She lay back and closed her eyes, letting her mind wander from her body, soaring through the air, free as a bird. In fact, she found herself looking through Dark Moon's eyes. The red-tailed hawk circled above the meadow under the Sky Kingdoms, eyeing his prey: a plump field mouse. He suddenly folded his strong wings and dove down with unearthly speed. At the last moment, he spread his feathered arms and landed on the fat brown mouse.
Aero heard a deafening screech and screamed as she sat up. Her eyes flew open and found herself drifting over the Earthen Cities territory. She fought as panic threatened to overwhelm her; she had to get home before something bad happened. Suddenly, something snaked around her ankle, wrapping it tight. She was jerked down, slipping through the floor of her cloud. She fell down to the forests below, closing her eyes and bracing herself for the impact- but nothing happened. She opened her eyes and found herself hanging upside down by one leg, staring into the sneering face of a brown-haired man. He wore a tan shirt and light brown leather shorts with dark green bands at the waist and the end of the pant legs. He had hard shields on his shins and bare feet. He had two companions, both male. Each one had a tan shirt, leather shorts or pants, and shields on their legs, just below the knees.
"Well, well, well, look at this." The first one chuckled, "If it isn't Princess Aero, from the Sky Kingdoms. Did your daddy send you over to give up your land territory?"
"No, Cave Digger, he didn't." she retorted coldly, glaring at the fuzzy-headed prince she had met two days earlier when the king of the Earthen Cities had visited her father to negotiate the land under the Sky Kingdoms. Cloud Chaser had refused, of course, saying that even though his people didn't live down there, they still needed the area to hunt.
"Then why are you here?" Cave Digger asked, as though he could care less.
"I was seeing where my hawk was. I didn't see where I was at." Aero apologized evasively. "Now I would much appreciate it if you let me down. It's very uncomfortable upside down."
"Fine." He motioned to one of his companions, a young boy with light brown hair. The boy loosened the trap and Aero fell hard on her back. As she sat up, Cave Digger's friends grabbed her and hauled her to her feet.
"Bring her." The prince ordered, starting through the undergrowth. No matter how hard she struggled, Aero just wasn't strong enough, and her light frame and naturally lithe body didn't help. Those facts made it very easy to pick her up by the underarms and carry her. She kicked and picked gravity increasing so she'd too heavy. Unfortunately, she couldn't do that, so she resorted to trying to fly away. Her captors only held her down. She finally gave in and reluctantly allowed herself to be dragged to Earthen Cities.
Aero hated the forest; she kept tripping over brambles and ivy tendrils. She groaned as another thorn bush scraped her ankle, sending shots of stinging pain up her leg. The transparent strips of cloth around her legs (below her knees) tore and ripped as brambles pulled at them, but they stayed on.
"Hurry up! We're almost there." One of the strangers pushed her into a mass of ferns. When she emerged on the other side, she saw a city. It was carved into the side of a large hill, surrounded by houses and other buildings built in trees. People hurried about, tending to their daily things. A small crowd of children gathered around and stared at her with large curious brown and green eyes. They threw a flurry of questions at her and Cave Digger.
"Where'd she come from?" a strong-looking boy asked, gazing at her even though he was addressing the prince.
"She is from the Sky Kingdoms, but we found her spying on us." Cave Digger answered.
Aero, though restrained by two stronger strangers, hurled herself at the lying prince, shouting her protests in his face. The surrounding children scrambled in fright as she struggled from her captors grip. The two boys kept her under control as she unleashed her fury. The air around her picked up into a fierce whirlwind, swirling around her and the two strangers, causing all that were near her to leap for safety. The young children who had stood in front of her fearlessly now ran around, screaming in terror.
Aero felt the energy drain from her and the wind died down, until it was merely a light breeze. Cave Digger, shielding his face with his hands, now turned to face the young ones, who were cautiously approaching her with wide, terrified eyes.
"And that's what could happen if you enrage an air-user. Keep that in mind when you train." The prince told them, beckoning his companions to follow. He strode toward the hill, entering a large building carved into the side. Aero was dragged in after him, following exhaustedly.
"Where are you taking me?" she asked.
"I'm taking you to my father." Cave Digger replied curtly, walking faster down the hall.
Feared tightened in Aero's stomach, making her stumble over her own feet. Odd, she thought. She was always light and sure on her feet, never tripping.
They walked through the large, bejeweled double-doors at the end of the hall. Inside, a large room swept away from them, large carved columns set every seven or eight feet. At the end of the room, a tall man with brown hair sat on a throne of gold and silver, rubies, diamonds, and topaz set in the arms and front legs of the royal chair. The king, Aero remembered from when he visited a few days earlier, stood and strode toward them.
"Well," the man said, "A guest, I presume. And none other than the Princess Aero of the Sky Kingdoms! What a surprise that you would visit so soon after… my talk with your father. He seemed so hostile."
"And with good reason." Aero hissed. "The forests under the Sky Kingdoms are not to be given away like trinket. We may not live there, but we must hunt." She glared at the king.
Cave Digger cut in. "She is no guest, father." The fuzzyheaded boy said. "I found her spying on our people while I was- ow!"
Aero quickly pulled her foot close as the prince to bent to clutch his knee. She had kicked him and now stared defiantly at the king. "I'll have you know that I was merely testing the bond between myself and Dark Moon, my bonded. When I came to my senses, I found myself floating over your territory. I was going to leave as soon as possible, but your son caught me in a trap and dragged me here. He's been poisoning the minds of children, giving them the wrong idea about my people." She finished with glared at Cave Digger, who stood.
"How dare you accuse me of such a thing!" The prince snarled, glancing between her and his father.
The king sighed heavily. "I have enough to worry about right now. Cave Digger, I trust you'll do the right thing. This will be your assignment as a prince." He declared.
"As you wish, father." The boy bowed and led Aero out of the throne room.
Outside, he turned and glared at her. "How 'bout you stay for the night; I'll give you a nice cozy prison cell to sleep in. It'll be a home away from home."
"I thank you for the offer, but I must get back to my people." Aero replied curtly.
"I think you are mistaken," Cave Digger said, faking a polite tone. "It wasn't an offer." He grabbed her shoulder and hauled her to a wooden structured, like a cell with tree branch bars. He shoved her inside and locked the door behind her. She rushed at the door, slamming it hard with her shoulder- nothing happened. She tried repeatedly, but still nothing happened. She shook the bars; they were set firmly.
"Let me out!" she screeched, staring out at the people hurrying by. "Let me out!"
A small crowd of children gathered in front of her cell, staring through the bars at her. "Why did Prince Cave Digger put you in there?" one asked, she had curly brown hair.
"Because she was spying on us!" Aero recognized the strong boy from earlier. The younger girl looked back to her.
"I was not spying." Aero retorted lightly. "I did not notice where I was until it was too late."
The children stared at her like she was an alien. She sat down on the ground near the bars. The curly-haired girl stepped forward on tentative feet, reaching out to touch the torn transparent cloth that hung from Aero's leg. She allowed the girl to feel it, look it over, and lay it down gently. Even then, she gazed at the tattered cloth in awe.
Aero tore the see-through cloth from the black band to which it was sewn and held it out to the girl, who took it cautiously.
"Thank you." The curly-haired girl whispered, clutching the fabric closely.
"I have plenty more." For some reason, she found a fondness for the young one.
The boy who had spoken earlier tried to take it from the girl, who was smaller than he was. "Don't take gifts from the enemy. What if it's poisoned."
The brown-haired girl held the cloth away from his grasp, but looked fearfully at it.
"I assure you, it is not harmful in any way." Aero promised.
The girl sighed, looking relieved. She drifted away from the group, staring at the fabric adoringly.
Aero decided to try a few simple air tricks she knew to impress the children. Maybe they would get her out of the cell. Either way, she was bored and needed something to do.
She held her left hand flat, breathing lightly over her palm. Instantly, a tiny tornado kicked up and swirled around on her hand. The kids stared at the whirlwind warily, the little girl rejoining the group. Aero swept her right hand through the tornado and it disappeared. She then levitated, hovering cross-legged over the ground. The children responded to the trick with a chorus of oohs and aahs. Still floating, Aero whipped small, harmless blasts of air around the children, making them brace for a large impact. She laughed at their relieved and surprised faces when they found that nothing happened.
"I thought the air-users were dangerous and mean…" a young boy spoke up, sandy-brown hair framing his tanned face.
Aero smiled gently down at the boy. "Not at all. We know how to control our emotions, but we do know how to let them out through our powers."
"Oh…. I didn't know."
"Hey, no worries. I'm not offended." She reassured him.
"If you don't mind me asking," began the little girl who she had given the cloth to, "What does the Sky Kingdoms look like?"
"It's beautiful. The cities are made of crystals, though mainly diamond and sapphire. The parks are completely created from topaz. The battle arena is an emerald building, open air of course. With no roof, the arena helps my people harness their power. Most houses are made of ruby and they look amazing at sunset. The Sky Kingdoms are very colorful." Aero replied, remembering the gorgeous crystalline city. Thinking about her home made her miss it terribly, and she had to fight back the tears.
The children stared in awe as they pictured the kingdoms in their heads.
Aero sat back and closed her eyes as the group scattered when Cave Digger stalked up. "You think it's fun, don't you?" he hissed. "You think of this as a field day; your disrupting my city."
"Last time I checked, your father was still alive." She responded without opening her eyes. "This can't be your city unless the king dies, since you're just a prince."
"Well, I'm the one that locked you in prison."
"Yes, and I don't appreciate that much." She said, "You know my father's will come here when I don't return home this evening. The Earthen Cities will be the first place he'll check. Maybe it's because of the fight he had with your father that will set his mind on this city. Or not, I really don't care."
"My people will meet your father with an army so great, he'll change his primitive little mind and go home." Cave Digger growled.
"My father is not primitive!" she snarled, then stopped. "You really think he'll come without a fighting force? He will not stop until I am safe in the Sky Kingdoms."
"We'll see, Princess." He backed away, melting into the crowd of people.
"Yes, we will." Aero whispered when he had gone. A single, wisp of wind blow through the city. She listened closely and heard her father's voice in the breeze.
"I'm coming, Aero. Answer me if you're there." It breathed.
Recalling the lesson on wind whispering, she sent a message back to her father, "I am here, in the prison in Earthen Cities. Be careful; Cave Digger will meet your arrival with a fight. Dark Moon will show you the way." Then she called her red-tailed hawk, telling him to lead the king to the city. In her mind, she felt him change directions and head for her father.
Now all I have to do is wait, she told herself.
Chapter 1
Wolf Spirit ran through the undergrowth, dodging brambles and leaping over ivy tendrils. The rabbit bounded under a thorn bush, she wouldn't let it get away. She had chased the furry creature for hours on end, tracking it through the forest.
She wasn't even supposed to be here; the nomad group she lived with was currently hiding in the Earthen Cities' territory. They had traveled too long to get here and they weren't going to leave after only a month. The Earthen people had not found out they were living in the forest, but they had suspected something was stealing their prey. She had to be careful around this part.
Wolf Spirit dug under the bush, ignoring the thorns that scratched at her face and arms as she tried to get at her next meal. She had starved for too long, her frame growing thin and scrawny. She snapped the low branches off the bush and tried to crawl under it. She felt around for the rabbit, but she didn't come across the furry lump. She wiggled in farther and, without warning, something kicked her in the face. She recoiled out of the bush and held a hand to her face, jerking it away when she felt a wet substance. The little beast had left a gash on her forehead.
Thinking quickly, Wolf Spirit cut the bottom of her pant leg off with her knife and tied it around her head. She pulled her white Birchwood bow out of its case, which was strapped to her back, and strung an arrow from her quiver, also across her back. She froze for a split second and then released the shot. Satisfied with the screech that emanated from the bush, she crawled back under, grabbing the dead creature by its leg. She made sure it was lifeless before she tied its hind legs together and slung it across her shoulder and moving on.
Wolf Spirit had to hunt as much as she could before returning to her home. As she rounded a bramble thicket, she came face-to-face with a startled deer. He jumped back and then charged, his antlers low. Wolf Spirit leaped out of the way, landing on her knees, and grabbed her bow again. Before she could string an arrow, the stag was on her. She screamed and held up her left wrist, her protection amulet surrounding her in a silver orb. The deer slammed headfirst into the shield- and bounced off harmlessly.
Wolf Spirit's defensive bubble melted away and she crawled over to the motionless deer. She cautiously laid her hand on the back of the deer's neck, feeling the vertebrae. The stag had broken his neck. Her village would eat well tonight! She just wished that the deer had not died like that; she wished she could have caused the poor creature less pain in his final moments. But what was done was done; she dragged the lifeless body back toward her temporary home.
A tingle of fear ran up Wolf Spirit's back as a cold object was placed at the nape of her neck.
"Drop everything." Ordered a rough voice behind her, pressing the flat of the blade into the back of her neck.
Wolf Spirit obediently released the deer and laid the rabbit on the ground next to the stag.
"Everything." The voice stated, pushing the blade harder. Wolf Spirit immediately unstrapped her bow and quiver and put them down on top of the dead deer. "Put your hands in the air, kid. And no tricks."
Wolf Spirit raised her hands and slowly stood up. She turned to see a brown-haired boy who looked only a few years older than was; he was flanked by a younger girl with sandy blond hair and bright green eyes.
The boy smiled. "What do we have here? A thief? What do you think, Forresta?"
"It seems we have found our prey stealer, Tunnel Finder." The girl replied, looking Wolf Spirit over. "You were always my smartest brother."
"I'm your only brother." Tunnel Finder laughed, beckoning to Wolf Spirit. She tentatively stepped forward, trying to ignore the knife held at her throat. The boy inspected her closely. "A little thin aren't you?" he remarked. "From that nomad group that wanders the woods, am I correct?"
"It depends." She spoke evasively.
"The answer will come in time, I suppose." Tunnel Finder said.
Wolf Spirit dared glance back at her bow and arrow. If she could only get her weapons and the rabbit, she could make a break for home.
"I think you'll find the Earthen Cities to your liking, kid." The boy told her.
This was her chance! Wolf Spirit leaped back, swung around, and grabbed her bow and arrows. Before taking off, she took the rabbit's rope. Running as fast as her skinny legs could take her, Wolf Spirit charged through the undergrowth, the rabbit flopping limply at her back. She hurled herself over a fallen tree, landing wobbly but still keeping her footing. If she could only reach the village, her people would protect her. Then she remembered her protection amulet: the teardrop-shaped chunk of pure, shining silver that hung from a black chain bracelet with a long, bright red leather strip interwoven into it. She could not use that now, the two would capture her and lock her up for good.
Wolf Spirit focused on finding her village again, streaming through the woods with as much speed as she could muster. She picked up the pace as she passed the fallen birch that had a flower carved onto the trunk, leaping over the log. She could see some of her people running back and forth. She couldn't lead those Earthen kids into camp! She had to do something, quick.
Shadow, Echo! Help! Wolf Spirit sent a telepathic message through the forest, calling to her bonded animals. Suddenly, a large black wolf leaped out of the bushes in front of her, his dark eyes gleaming. A smaller white she-wolf jumped out behind him, her unseeing white eyes glancing around fiercely. Shadow and Echo stalked toward her.
We heard your call, huntress. Shadow spoke telepathically.
"Yes, I need-"
Tunnel Finder and Forresta burst through the undergrowth.
"-help." She finished. Shadow, powerful but thin, dove straight for Forresta, knocking the girl flat on her back. She stared up at the gleaming black eyes with unmasked fear. Tunnel Finder leaped for the black wolf, but Echo, lithe but bone-skinny, barreled into him. The boy, since he was caught off guard in midair, hit the ground at an angle.
"Chase them far away from here!" Wolf Spirit said, hurling through the ferns and bracken. She pushed into the village, a group of people living in the trees around a clearing in the forest inhabited by the Earthen Cities.
"Tiger Strike, Lion Song!" she called, dropping the rabbit by Ivy, the Healer and her sister.
The two black-haired twins came up to her. "What's wrong?" Tiger Strike asked. They both hurtled into the woods when she told them.
Wolf Spirit dropped to her knees, exhausted. She listened to the sounds of the fight that was probably taking that very moment. Though starvation had lightened her to the point of protruding ribs, her senses were as strong as usual.
Tiger Strike and Lion Song soon returned with the Earthen kids in hand. They tied the two to a tree and left them, ignoring their protests.
"Let us go!" Forresta shrieked, struggling with her bonds.
"Untie us this instant!" Tunnel Finder shouted.
Tiger Strike appeared at Wolf Spirit's side, helping her to her feet. "Come on. You'll be more comfortable in the trees. Roc chicks patrol this area, looking for human prey." He pushed her up the nearest tree. Wolf Spirit gazed at him from a low branch, watching him cross the clearing.
As if he had summoned them, a huge shadow flew across the meadow.
"Roc!" Wolf Spirit screamed, but it was too late. As Tiger Strike looked up, the Roc chick was on him. Large as a tree, the hawk-like bird swooped down and, talons extended, grabbed the black-haired boy before he could dodge out of the way. The Roc took off into the sky, taking a Tiger Strike with it.
Wolf Spirit strung an arrow and aimed for the huge birds head. The shot came too late, falling short of the winged beast entirely. She watched helplessly as the Roc shrunk it was no more than a black speck in the blue sky.