Cowl spread out his arms. Tam leaped over the line of crystals and jumped into his embrace. With a lively step, he carried her into Major Four and turned back towards Elyssa. “We are ready to explore a new world.”
“That’s wonderful, Cowl.” Elyssa felt a tear welling in her eye. “Just wonderful. I hope to see you again soon.”
Randall took Elyssa’s hand in his fingertips and kissed her knuckles. “It has been a pleasure, dear lady. It might take some time to get these folks situated. I don’t think Drexel and his conspirators will be happy to see me or the Lost Ones, so I’ll try to blend them into the communes until I figure out what’s going on. If you’re not back by then, I will return to search for you and Jason.”
Tibalt pressed a fist against his chest. “And so will I. That young buck can’t open the gateway without me.”
Elyssa laughed. “You two do that. We might just need you.”
Natalla strode back into the anteroom. “You have to find Koren and help the cattle children.”
Elyssa stroked the back of her head. “I promise you from the bottom of my heart, I will find Koren. And Jason and I will do everything in our power to bring every last human to freedom.”
Natalla gave her a sad nod. “When you see Koren, please tell her I love her, and…” Her voice faded away.
“And what?”
A weak smile dressed her lips. “Tell her it looks like I really did get promoted.” Natalla walked back across the portal and took Mark’s hand. “I think I found a new daddy.”
Mark laid an arm around her shoulders and pulled her close. “And when Petra gets here,” Mark said, “she will have a new daddy, too.”
After Randall helped the men haul the raft into Major Four along with torches and flint stones, he set his sword down at Elyssa’s side and joined Tibalt and the children at the river.
“By the way,” he said, pointing at the stairs. “Jason’s sword is outside. He might need it.”
“I’ll put it somewhere he can find it.” She stooped and grasped the peg, gazing at the flowing river. Might this be the last time she would see her home planet? Would she ever be in her mother’s arms again?
As if reading her mind, Randall smiled and said, “Don’t worry about home. I’ll let your mother know that you’re alive and well. No mountain bear could ever be smart enough to outwit that clever daughter of hers.”
Tears welling, Elyssa nodded at him and returned his smile, but no words would squeeze through her tightening throat. She pulled the crystal from the hole, and when the other world disappeared, she let out a long sigh.
Wallace stooped beside her. “You’ll get home eventually. I know you will.”
She swiped a tear away and squeaked, “How can you be so sure?”
“Because of something Koren once said to me.”
Elyssa nodded. Although she had seen Koren only from a distance as a dragon carried her away, she could tell from the young woman’s determined expression that she was remarkable. Elyssa rose and reached for Wallace’s hand. “Tell me what Koren said.”
Wallace slid his hand into hers and stared at Elyssa’s necklace as he spoke in singsong.
When hands entwine, two hearts in line,
Impossible things come true.
Together we’ll hold, together be bold,
As long as it’s me and you.
As she gazed at him, more sincerity poured forth from his single eye than any pair of eyes she had ever seen. This young warrior would be a partner she could count on.
She picked up the sword and pressed the hilt into Wallace’s hand. “Lead the way, warrior. Let’s find Jason and Koren.”
Jason stood on the raft and steadied himself. The logs seemed stable enough, and the anchor at the end of the trailing rope held fast in the riverbed below. Near one corner of the raft, the bag of food—bread, dried fruit, and salted meat—rode the current without a problem. Tree boughs arched overhead and swayed in a cool breeze that carried unusual odors, some sweet and some earthy. Using his tracking skills in this new world wouldn’t be easy. Even the shadows fell across the river at odd angles.
Koren looked on from shore, holding a torch that carried a tremulous flame. With night settling in and a moon rising over the trees, the feeble lights barely illuminated her face.
“Ready?” Jason asked, reaching toward her.
“Ready.” Koren took his hand, stepped aboard, and tapped out the flame on the side of a log. When the flickering light died away, only moonlight remained, casting them both in near total darkness.
“To the Northlands?” Koren asked, still standing.
As his vision adjusted, Jason took in her sparkling eyes. They seemed excited, yet pensive. Many worries dragged against her sense of adventure. He smiled, trying to communicate a dose of confidence. “To the Northlands. Maybe I’ll find my answers there.”
“Answers?” Koren sat down and crossed her legs. “What are the questions?”
“I’m not sure I know all of them.” Jason knelt and pulled up the anchor, then picked up a pole and pushed it into the water, shoving against the riverbed. The current caught the raft and sent it along at a quick but comfortable rate. Staying on his knees, he looked at Koren. “The biggest question is how to get the slaves off Starlight and back to my world.”
“That’s why we have to go to the Northlands. Arxad once told me someone is there who might be able to help me. Maybe that someone can tell us how to come back and free them.”
“Okay, that’s a good start.”
Koren spread her cape over her legs. “What other questions trouble you?”
“Let me think…” Jason watched her callused hands as she smoothed out the rich material, an intriguing contrast of slavery and high position. Her blend of confidence and modesty also seemed contradictory somehow, yet oddly appropriate for this mysterious girl.
He sat down fully, copying her cross-legged pose. As he leaned forward, a pendant dangled from a necklace and twirled slowly—Elyssa’s pendant. The two sides took turns coming into view—closed hands and open hands, slavery and freedom. Earlier, Arxad had taken them to the mine so they could find out what happened to Elyssa and the others. Elyssa had left the necklace draped around one of the crystal pegs with the open-hands side showing, her sign that slavery had lost the battle. Freedom had triumphed. And finding his bloodied sword nearby proved that Randall had aided the effort heroically.
Jason grasped the hilt of the sword, now safely tucked away in his scabbard. Yes, Randall was truly a hero, a far better man than Jason had given him credit for. They had worked together and risked their lives to free the captives, and now many slaves were in a new world, no longer fearing the punishing whip of the dragons. These Lost Ones were no longer lost.
He tucked the pendant under his shirt and let it rest against the litmus finger. Now bright blue, it pulsed against his skin, though not painfully. Would it become a guide again in the coming journey? Only time would tell.
“Let’s see,” Jason said slowly. “I was wondering what happened with that black egg. What was it saying to you?”
“Oh, that.” Koren dangled a hand in the river. “He reminded me that if I came back to him, even though I would have to wear chains for a while, he would make sure of my safety.”
“Came back to him?”
“It’s hard to explain. I don’t really want to reopen my wounds. Maybe later.”
Jason glanced at her wrists. Even in the poor light, the bloodstained abrasions were visible. “Okay, I guess my next question is about Elyssa, but you likely can’t answer this one. When will she come back to try to find me? I know she will eventually. And where are my brothers, Adrian and Frederick? I haven’t told you about them yet, but I think they’re here somewhere.”
She drew her hand out of the water and pulled her knees close to her chest. “I think we have plenty of time. Tell me about them.”
Jason looked up at the sky. Arxad flew across the face of the moon, his wings flappi
ng slowly and the bag dangling from his claws. What a mysterious dragon he was. At times he seemed to be on the side of the humans. His willingness to take them to the mine and his gift of food for the journey gave them every reason to believe it. Yet, when he claimed that he would kill them if they didn’t keep their end of the bargain, his vicious eyes and the clear globe proved that he really meant it. He was a mystery, indeed.
“I’ll tell you about my brothers,” he said, “but I want to learn everything about you and this place, too…Starlight.”
Koren smiled and pointed at a moon setting on the western horizon. “First lesson. That is Pariah, our smallest moon. It is one of three that often rise together. And Trisarian…” She shifted her finger to the opposite horizon where a larger moon peeked above the tree line. “Trisarian is the one that shines brightest, but it’s always alone when it rises to its apex. Sometimes I think Pariah needs to be alone as well.”
“Pariah is a sad name.”
Breathing a sigh, Koren nodded. “It is appropriate. He always seems to be wearing a sad face. It is said that sky rocks constantly strike his surface, and the other moons hurl insults at him.”
“Insults?” Jason suppressed a smile. “Do you really believe that?”
Koren laughed. “No. There are many superstitions that I play along with, but I don’t really believe them.”
Jason laughed with her. Koren seemed so innocent and naïve, yet filled with wisdom at the same time. Maybe her slavish life of poverty and sacrifice had given her more insight during her few years than most get in a lifetime. She might be able to teach him a few things. “How do you separate superstition from reality?” he asked. “Who is to say what’s true and what’s not true?”
Koren looked up at the rising moon again. “Most of my people can’t tell the difference, but I can.”
“Because you’re a Starlighter?”
She straightened her cloak again, though it was already straight. “No, that’s not it.”
“Then how can you tell?”
Turning back to him, she slid her hand into his. “I have so much to say to you about our ways here, Jason. If you’ll just stay with me, I will teach you, but not all at once.”
Jason looked at their clasped hands. Her hand was rough, hardened from her many labors, but it felt cool and good, a touch of friendship that revived memories of his adventures with Elyssa when he and Adrian stormed the castle to rescue her from the clutches of dragons. “Okay,” he said. “Not all at once. But can I at least have a second lesson? I was hoping for more than just a moon’s name.”
“Very soon. I promise.” She released his hand and took the pole from him. “You look exhausted. Lie down. I’ll guide the raft for a while and sing you a song. The words will be a symbol for our journey.”
“A song?” Jason lay down on the rough logs, keeping his gaze on her. “Sure. Why not?”
As the raft continued following the river’s gently meandering course, Koren looked out over the water and sang.
When hands entwine, two hearts in line,
Impossible things come true.
Together we’ll hold, together be bold,
As long as it’s me and you.
When she finished with a sigh, Jason sat up and slid his hand back into hers. “That sounds good to me.”
“Yes,” Koren said. “As long as we follow the light together, the Creator will help us find our way.”
About the Publisher
Founded in 1931, Grand Rapids, Michigan-based Zondervan, a division of HarperCollins Publishers, is the leading international Christian communications company, producing best-selling Bibles, books, new media products, a growing line of gift products and award-winning children’s products. The world’s largest Bible publisher, Zondervan (www.zondervan.com) holds exclusive publishing rights to the New International Version of the Bible and has distributed more than 150 million copies worldwide. It is also one of the top Christian publishers in the world, selling its award-winning books through Christian retailers, general market bookstores, mass merchandisers, specialty retailers, and the Internet. Zondervan has received a total of 68 Gold Medallion awards for its books, more than any other publisher.
a cognizant original v5 release october 26 2010
Share Your Thoughts
With the Author: Your comments will be forwarded to the author when you send them to
[email protected] With Zondervan: Submit your review of this book by writing to
[email protected] Free Online Resources at
www.zondervan.com/hello
Zondervan AuthorTracker: Be notified whenever your favorite authors publish new books, go on tour, or post an update about what’s happening in their lives.
Daily Bible Verses and Devotions: Enrich your life with daily Bible verses or devotions that help you start every morning focused on God.
Free Email Publications: Sign up for newsletters on fiction, Christian living, church ministry, parenting, and more.
Zondervan Bible Search: Find and compare Bible passages in a variety of translations at www.zondervanbiblesearch.com
Other Benefits: Register yourself to receive online benefits like coupons and special offers, or to participate in research.
Bryan Davis, Starlighter
Thank you for reading books on BookFrom.Net Share this book with friends