Spirit of the Moon
Prologue
On an island south of the frozen plains, and north of the Desert of Humplings, is an island country called Karta. Karta used to be peaceful and happy, with no wars, and a royal family that was loved throughout the island. That all changed when a greedy elf named Gronlan attacked the capital, Hinsun Cin. That is, all but one. Gronlan wanted to be king, for no reason other than that he was greedy, and wanted all the riches of the kingdom. Many years ago, when Kinnik Brintan's father was kinnik, Gronlan was banished. Now, many years later, he had returned, in secret, leading an army from the northern and southern lands against the peaceful monarchs. The day before their third child was born, Kinnik Brintan and Quenna Artemisa received word of the attack. They sent word to the royal doctor, and when the child was born, she was whisked away, to a small village named Artet, in secret. The couple sadly informed the kingdom, and their twin sons, that the child had been stillborn, and the country mourned. The next day, the royal palace at Hinsun Cin was attacked, the royal family was murdered, and Gronlan took the throne. He thought, along with the rest of the kingdom, that the last child was buried in the ground, and the royal line was all dead. He was about to discover, fourteen years later, how wrong he was.
Chapter 1
"Safira!" my mother called from the bottom of the grand staircase, skirt swishing impatiently,
"What?" I yelled back, annoyed.
"Come on! We are going to be late!"
"I'm coming!" I finished pinning up my hair, a single strand hanging out of the mass of curls at the back of my hair, framing my face perfectly. I strode out of my room, snapping my fingers, and sealing the room with a wall of stone that matched the surrounding stone perfectly. I stopped at the top of the grand staircase, and posed. My mother smiled, then frowned.
"Why aren't you wearing a skirt?" I groaned, rolled my eyes, and said,
"Because I hateskirts, mother! I am a girl wether I am wearing a skirt or not. I will not wear a skirt, no matter what you say." Mother sighed,
"All right. Come on, we are definitely going to be late now!" I hopped on the banister, slid all the way down the forty steps, and rolled to my feet when I landed, and stood. I grabbed my nice hunting boots from beside the door, pulled them on, and told my mother,
"I'm going to go get Jayde. I will meet you and Papa there, alright?" I sprinted away without even waiting for an answer. I ran faster and faster, until I was almost flying. I caught sight of the creek, did a flip in midair, and landed on my feet on a rock in the center. I called,
"Jayde! Come on, stop preening, and get your fins out here!" I then proceeded to admire my reflection. I was wearing a midnight blue tunic, with black leggings, and my nice black hunting boots, which were shiny and clean. I had changed my hair type, normally black, straight, and glossy, to curly, and pinned it up in a dirty blonde mound on the back of my head. I am a changeling, very rare, which means that I can change what I look like. Today my skin was a deep tan color, like caramel, a candy which I have had only once before. My hair had white-blond highlights, and darker brown highlights too. I wore earrings that were the same dark, mysterious blue as my tunic, and the necklace that had been given to me by a mysterious traveler when I was born. It had a small stone embedded in the center of a crescent moon. The stone was the same blue as my tunic, and it changed color according to what I wore. As I admired my reflection, I saw a face rising up from the depths of the creek. As Jayde popped up to the surface, she said,
"Stop preening indeed, miss fairy-in-front-of-a-mirror!" I grinned impishly at her, and said,
"I can't help it! I'm just so attractive!" She grinned, and splashed me. I raised my hand to defend myself, and the droplets shot back toward her. She dodged them just in time, but we looked at eachother, shocked.
"Let's not speak of that, ever, shall we?" I pleaded. Jayde nodded, and I backflipped onto the shore. Jayde rose up out of the water, and posed for me. She wore a long strapless dress with a train, that was a black-blue at the bottom, and faded up to a white-blue on the top. it was beautiful. She wore pearl earrings, and a string of delicate pearls around her neck. She wore no shoes, because she floated along on a cloud of vapor. The train of her dress fluttered along behind her, looking for all the world like a floating wave, as we set off, laughing and talking towards the heart of Artet, where the MoonSetting was being celebrated. The MoonSetting is celebrated the night of the first full moon of summer. Everyone in Karta celebrates the MoonSetting, and on the first full moon of the winter, we celebrate the MoonRising. Everyone in Artet gets together to dance, and sing, and feast. The MoonSetting is very significant in a more grim way too, this year. This MoonSetting is the day before the fifteenth year our Kinnik and Quenna have been dead, and Kinnik Gronlan, may he die slowly, took over. It is also my fifteenth birthday. As Jayde and I crested the last hill before Artet, I looked over my small hometown, and I felt a jolt. I felt like I did not belong here, that I was meant for something bigger. I looked at Jayde, and I saw in her eyes that she felt the shock of knowledge too. We both knew that somehow things would never be the same again.
Chapter 2
As Jayde and I came to the center of town, and we entered the large courtyard, we were greeted with colors of every hue. Faeries flew overhead, sprinkling the Dust of the Faye everywhere, and coating everyone. My mother and father stood by the long table with the feast on it, talking to one of the village councilmen. My mother saw me, and waved us over with a beckoning hand. We went over, and I hugged my father. Jayde sank to a sitting position on her vapor cloud, and my father said,
"So, what have you girls been up to?" and he then looked at what I was wearing, looked at my mother, and cocked an eyebrow.
"I made Mother let me wear this, Father." I said. Father looked at me, stroking his salt-and-pepper beard, and then his blue eyes crinkled into a smile. He chuckled, tucking tan hands into his hunting belt.
"Well, I suppose there is nothing wrong with wearing a tunic, especially since it is your birthday." I smiled, and hugged him tight.
"Thank you, Papa!" I spun around and trotted off, Jayde floating along at my side. We found a group of our Year-Mates, and joined them, talking and laughing. I felt something inside of me give a painful twist, and I gasped, clutching my stomach. Jayde looked at me worriedly, and asked,
"Are you alright?" I nodded, then shook my head.
"I think so. No, I'm not!" I inhaled sharply as my insides twisted themselves into another, tighter, knot. I fell to the ground, and curled up into a ball. Everyone got quiet, and then everything faded to black….
As I entered unconsciousness, I saw images flash before my eyes. I suddenly felt my feet hit something hard, and I looked down to see a dirt floor. I looked up at the sound of a woman gasping,
"Safira! Oh, my baby, Safira!" A woman and man stood in front of me, she was beautiful, and he was handsome. What frightened me most, though, was the fact that the woman looked exactly like me. The man smiled at me, and said,
"You must be confused. I am King Brintan, and this is Quenna Artemisa, but we are more than that to you. We are your parents." I gaped, openmouthed, for a moment.
"That's not possible. You died the day after I was born."
"Well, you see, dear," Quenna Artemisa said, "We got word of the attack the day before you were born, and so we arranged for you to be whisked away in the dead of night, only hours after you were born. We sent you here, to Artet, where we knew there was a couple with no children of their own. They have raised you well. Now, we are here for a reason. There was a prophecy made to your grandfather, that stated that his eldest granddaughter would liberate Karta from an evil personage who sought to keep the riches of Karta for himself. You are the eldest, and only, granddaughter. You must free Karta from Gronlan. We have hidden a sword for you in BlackSand Desert. Get that far, and you will know what to do." She smiled at me, teary eyed.
"How do I know that you are not lying?" I asked suspiciously.
"Look deep inside your memories, and inside your heart. They will tell you the truth." Replied the Kinnik. I looked deep inside myself, and I remembered a face, the first memory I have. The face of my mother, which looked so like my own. Then I remember bouncing along, darkness. I hit my head, and began to cry. I looked up, at my real parents, and smiled.
"I believe you." They smiled back at me, and my mother said,
"Look inside your necklace, dear. It is a family heirloom, and a magical artifact. No one can truly rule Karta without it. It holds the key to Karta, and a map to guide you on your journey. You have many undiscovered talents. Find them, and use them well." My parents began to fade away, and I cried,
"Wait! When will I see you again?"
"Soon, dear heart. Soon." Came my father's voice, faintly, as though from a distance. I smiled. Soon.
I opened my eyes to a crowd of people standing over me. I sat up, and I felt stronger than before. I did a back handspring, landed on my feet, and stretched. My parents looked at me, shocked. I looked back at them, coldly. Everything was crystal-clear. They had not told me, yet they should have. My whole life until this point had been a lie.
"I know." I told my parents. "I know the secret you have been keeping from me for fourteen years. I know." I turned to the rest of the townspeople. "I am not who you think I am. Everything you know about my heritage is a lie. I am going to find the sword that my real parents left for me before they died, and I need a companion." Immediately Jayde floated forward. I grinned at her, and then I said to my parets, quietly, but so everyone could still hear me,
"Keeping a secret of that magnitude from a person of royal blood is not a wise decision." They looked frightened, but I merely turned on my heel, and headed towards my former home. "Come on, Jayde. We have bags to pack." As I headed away, I smiled a feral smile. This could be fun.