Prologue
Wishing on shooting stars
On a night that I will never forget, I saw an enormous and stunning mass of burning rock hurtling across the night sky of Earth. I looked up just in time to see it flash momentarily as it was scorching across the Earth's atmosphere. I closed my eyes tight and made a wish with all the life, emotion and energy I have. I yell my wish in my head. I want to scream my wish as loud as I can. Thankfully I choose to resist this urge. Whenever anyone makes a wish one should keep it to one's self or it may not come true. I began to gaze deep into the eyes of my one true love as we lay underneath the span of flittering starlight. She returned my stare with a wide cheerful smile. My desire for this wish to become true was so strong it began to pound hard like a drum in my heart.
"Hey look a shooting star. Did you make a wish?"
She asked me curiously. My eyes gleamed with joy when I responded to her.
"I can't say it out loud or else my wish won't happen silly! I can tell you something about that wish though."
I paused for a moment with a look of complete delight. I told her something remarkable.
"It came true…" I then detailed to her a memory of a lifetime we shared long ago.
"We once knew each other very well many lifetimes ago. We lived far away from Earth in another dimension and in another galaxy. We went by different names, ate different foods, and even spoke another language. Our souls have been growing together one lifetime after another. We are always reincarnating together in the same world and time because we have never wanted to let our love for each other die. We are weaving in and out of each other's existence as we flow down this cosmic river of life. We fight each other and for one another during these hard times. Fighting for what we know should be protected and safe. I would not be who I am today without your help through these very demanding and challenging stages of my multiple lifetimes."
I told her that starry night how she and I once became more than human. Her name was Jinni in that life. My name was Jak. We were skilled Magi who defended the Planet Hypoborea from onslaughts of panther dragons, crazed death cults, sneaky gargoyles, and far too many other threats to name.
"We raised our soul's vibration level to a more complex and advanced degree of living. We became gods in that lifetime. However we chose to sacrifice that life and be born to this world here called Earth. You and I, along with a few dozen other souls, did this in order to help the life and love that live here. We are higher vibrating lifeforms that have chosen to lapse back and live at this lower vibration. If we had not chosen to do this, Earth life would have been doomed years ago in a violent and terrifying Armageddon. It is up to us to do everything we can to nurture life, protecting it always. Can you remember that lifetime we shared long ago?"
I asked her questions that inquired much.
"Do you recall the magickal wonders of the Agarthian's? Can you reminiscence on the beauty of Agartha's Mushroom kingdom and his majesty The Mushroom King? I can remember the exhilaration of soaring through the clouds. It is hazy from the forgetting we all go through after death and before birth. I would never forget you though."
I told this to her with all my love.
"The light in your soul is divine. You are beloved by more people than you would like to accept as true. If you only knew how many people have been moved in glorious ways by you, you would be astounded. So many individuals care about you. More than you know. You are so loved. Be happy! Happiness is a gift all life can experience without any requirement. It is your right to be happy!"
We both had a hard time holding back tears. I couldn't help but think how I loved the moments we shared together.
"Always choose on the basis of love. At every moment of time we are all faced with one simple choice. That choice is: Fear or Love? Fear wants to hide away. Fear locks doors with avarice and paranoia. Love sees us all as one. Love opens hearts and brings freedom to our pain. I am amazed and respect the fortitude of the human body. There is so much it can take before it fails. We continue our life onward with strong bodies. The human bodies we occupied on the planet Hypoborea though are slightly more advanced than Earth humans are now. That Hypoborean life was many ages ago in another dimension. The Hypoborean humans live long lifespans of over 200 years. Their technology may not be as advanced as it is on Earth. Never the less Hypoborean souls became much more advanced than the Earthlings. The Hypoboreans do not have a need for advanced tech. They live in a steam powered society with no need for computers, gadgets, or any other form of tech we have here on Earth. They use magick and ingenuity to accomplish what they need instead.
"Let's go back to that lifetime long ago when we became something more than human, though we did start that existence as such. If you close your eyes can you see that life? Do you remember what happened? I could listen to this story over and over again. I'm sure if you try you would be able to see Hypoborea, and the forest glade where it all started. Look inside your mind's eye."
We both closed our eyes. She and I lay together on the ground holding hands.
"We are going to be spectators will arrive to Hypoborea as spirits. First, there are a couple rules: We cannot affect anything in that lifetime in the slightest. We do however get to observe as much of the world and the people as possible."
I finished with a deep breath. I began to laugh because I was cheery with excitement for the upcoming experience we were about to have.
"Are you ready?" I asked.
She nodded with a lot of exhilaration.
"Okay, let's go!"
Suddenly it seemed as if we were both soaring through a colorful tunnel or a kaleidoscopic worm hole. We left our Earth bodies that night to watch our old life we once had all over again, once more. We became spirts. I couldn't help but think what a privilege to observe our past lives. Wishes really do come true.
Long ago in another dimension, on the planet Hypoborea deep in one of the forest glades of Riverwood A baby is discovered by a simple man who has been testing one of his latest great inventions. The inventor Niko Stein finds this baby sleeping peacefully at the base of a large oak tree. He looks around to see where the baby could have come from or if anyone is nearby. After a systematic search of the area and finding no one in relation to the child, Niko then returns to the quite sleeping baby. A mysterious voice speaks to Niko as he approaches the baby.
"Niko Stein, You have been tasked by the Hypoborean sages to take care of this child. Her name is Jinni. This girl will save Hypoborea from a very great threat. It is an honor to even be in her presence. She is Hypoboreas' chosen hero."
A small green stone appears on the ground out of the thin air in a burst of bright green light. Niko picks up the child gently. He grabs the stone and takes them back to his home, welcoming Jinni into his humble life. He began to take care and watch over Jinni as if she was his own daughter. He gave everything he could to this delightfully animated and happy girl. Even when hope was all but gone, he struggled onward. He did this for his precious baby girl. Love kept them alive.
Unexpectedly, on what would be remembered as a very terrible and grave day, he died from a disease of the heart. She had just reached the age of twenty-two before he died. It would not be hard to take care of her needs without him. That was not what mattered to her though. The agony of losing her father is hard for Jinni. She somehow found a way to get though the heartache.
Not knowing how to control this sting of lose that she has felt ever since that day, she closed herself off inside the house she had just inherited. This didn't stop her best friend from coming over to check up and to hang out. This best friend is an orphan named Jak who lives straight down the road from Jinni's house. She came out when he told her how much fun he was having without her down at the dojo. Being with him all the time began to become more regular, just like it was before Nikos' death.
A relationship with Jak came more easily for Jinni since he grew up not knowing his parents. She told her stories to Jak as he listened to her speak about Niko. Hearing these stories made Jak feel like he had parents again. While listening to her stories about Niko, Jak would put himself in her place to remind himself the pleasure of a parents love. They started to share many memories together as Jak would also share stories of his life with her.
The two of them have fun as much as they can whenever they have the chance. Playing music and dancing together during festivals is always a fun time for them. At evening they go out to the open wheat fields that are just beyond the village, to lie down and stare at the stars above them. Jak started to strum his guitar as they lay in the wheat field, and Jinni played her pan flute along with him.
They started to speak of everything on these fantastic nights. Jak frightened Jinni when he spoke of unnerving tales that consisted of beasts from the other worlds in their star system. This other world is known as Darca. The Panther Dragons, the Azari, the Darxians, and the Plantoids all live on the planet of Darca. They are the darkness that spreads throughout the universe. A balance between light and dark is what keeps them from an initiating an all-out attack on Hypoborea. The balance has been wavering these last few cycles, giving darkness a stronger hold over the universe.
Jak told these stories with much detail.
"The plantoids are a race of beings that vary in their appearance. Their body type ranges from trees to flowers to mushrooms to pretty much most any plant you have ever heard of. These plant people were awoken far too early then what had been set for them. They would have awoken happy and joyful if only a few hundred cycles had passed to let them finish their dreams. The darkness gained control of these monsters when they awoke."
Jak kept talking to Jinni about the evil creatures from Darca without even pausing for breath.
"The panther dragons are a beautiful species. Many have wondered how such an elegant species could be created and are so evil. There are the leaders and overlords of the world Darca. They have long serpent bodies that range from fifty to seventy feet in length with a circumference of about five feet. They have smooth black florescent fur that covers their entire body. They have a dragon like head covered in fur and puma cat ears. Their arms and legs are also like a puma's arms and legs."
Jinni listened intently with a fear of the ugly beast creatures slowly growing larger inside of her. Jak spoke with interest when he continued.
"The Azari beasts are humanoid with arms and legs that are very muscular. They stand from ten to fifteen feet tall when adult. They have the head of a lion and the body of a man. Their fur is either black or grey and only covers their head and shoulders. They also have large black wings protruding from their back. Their wings make a wingspan of nearly twenty feet wide. The Azari are the creations of the panther dragons Azari were created as an army to invade Hypoborea. The panther dragons needed to create a species that would exceed the Hypoborean intellect and their cunning. So the Azari were created to eliminate the water elves."
"The Darxians are the citizens of planet Darca. They have dark grey skin and pointy ears. They are humanoid. They are a varied culture with many different skills. They are known as the dark elves by many. A Darxian is very powerful in hand to hand combat. They are well studied in warfare and dark magic. They are an evil force that uses evil forces at their command."
"You know so much about the world of Darca Jak. I can't say I'm surprised since your mother and father were one of the leading scientists in the affairs of Darca"
Jinni told this to Jak with a warm hug.
"Thanks Jinni. I wish I could have known them. They died when I was so young."
The story of how Jak lost his parents was not a memory Jak had shared with Jinni yet. Jak grew into a man without his parents there because they were murdered when he was just a child around the age of six. He watched this happen right in front of himself, powerless to do anything, while he was sitting down having dinner with both them.
"Tell me what happened to them Jak… Please, I want to know you better."
Jinni asked Jak in a calm and friendly voice.
"Okay Jinni, I'll tell you what happened the day my parents died." Jak responded "The tragedy of my parents begins sixteen years ago as dusk approaches and the sun sets softly behind the forest covered mountains. My mother and father had just sat down at the dinner table when intrusively the door is bashed open with a thunderous crash."
Jak started to breathe deeply as he told Jinni what happened.
"The door was shattered open. It broke into splinters of wood causing wooden chunks to shoot out in every direction. One of these splinters flew so fast it stabbed my father in the chest knocking him to the ground with a heavy thud. My father's blood burst over onto my mother, me, and almost the entire kitchen as my dad fell to the floor bleeding to death."
Jinni let out a gasp of fright and started to cry a little. Jak did not stop telling her what happened as he saw it was making her cry. That was an appropriate response. He continued hoping this would be the one and only time he would have to share this story.
"When my father fell this is when my mother let out an ear shattering scream that pierced my ears with a loud ringing noise. I looked in the doorway and saw that there stood two large beasts, wearing black and red cloaks."
Jinni quickly thought to herself that the intruders' cloaks indicated they were acolytes of death. Jak looked right into Jinni's eyes at this point
"The acolytes of death Jinni, It was that damn cult. They killed my parents Jinni! One was an Azorean beast who stood much taller than the doorway allowed. This caused him to duck almost entirely. The other was a human with sharp daggers who looked ready to slash and stab anyone at any moment.
"I don't know how or why, but I seemed to be invisible to the acolytes. I did what I could to assist my parents. I tried to scream for help. I even tried to move over to my father who was now bleeding out on the floor. Some sort of force held me in place though. I could neither speak nor move at all. Some sort of unknown magic turned me invisible and made me motionless. I am sure of it.
"So there I stood motionless, unable to help as I saw one of the men knock an arrow into his bow. He stood only ten feet away from my screaming mother and let his arrow loose at her. The large arrow streaked through the air piercing mom directly in her throat. I know her screams had stopped at that moment with an abrupt halt, yet I could still hear her scream pierce my ears with a loud and deafening ring. The acolytes walked over to my mother and father as the lay in pain on the floor. I couldn't help myself as I watched the Azorean grotesquely rip dad into pieces with claws and teeth. The human, at the same time, went over mother and killed her with his two daggers."
Jinni abruptly gave Jak a very big and long hug. The two sat there holding each other for a few moments. Jak gave in, letting his emotions take hold, and began to sob deeply while in Jinni's arms. He didn't realize how much emotional pain he hid away from himself. This is why Jak was friends with Jinni. She always knew how to help Jak through hard times.
"Thanks Jinni, I am so happy you are my friend."
Jak said to Jinni through deep sobs
"That was how my parents passed away. I hope that you don't get nightmares from that, I know I did."
They sat in silence as Jinni took in what she was told. After a moment she held out a clasped hand out in front of herself towards Jak. Jak looked curiously at her hand, wondering what she was trying to give him. He held out his hand in return and Jinni dropped a heavy gold locket and chain into his open palm. It was a very ornate and well-designed necklace. Items like this were not easy to come by in Greystone village.
"You will always have a family with me Jak. You have always been there for me when I needed you most. You are a lifelong companion who I fall in love with more and more every day. I hope this locket will remind you of our love and friendship."
Jak smiled back at Jinni having never received a single gift since before his parent's death. He was so thrilled to have something that he cherished deeply. He opened the locket to see a gorgeous picture of Jinni inside. They both fell back into the fields of wheat, falling on their backs so they could look up at the stars once more before they went home. An enormous star shot through the sky as it flew through the Hypoborean night.
"Don't forget to make a wish Jak."
Jinni exclaimed to Jak as they both watch the magnificent star fly above them in a flash.
"That's okay Jinni, you can have my wish. I already have everything I want." He said to her with love. "As long as I have this locket with me there isn't one single wish I desire to have."