Futo – Spring – Ray – Gitta (2^nd Month, 8^th Day, 1^st Week) Year 815 GE


    Zira followed her friends out of the woods and into the light of the evening sun. Her eyes watered from the intensity of it; forcing her to cover them with her hands.


    “Oh my,” she heard Namari exclaim just in front of her.


    Curiosity getting the better of her, she cracked her fingers, allowing some of the light to pass through. The sight caught her breath, a magnificent golden tree bathed in the sun’s evening glow stood before her. Its leaves sparkled in the light, as the evening breeze tossed them gently on their branches, causing their twinkling to shift and dazzle. Part of her mind told her she had seen this tree before, but for the life of her she could not remember where.


    “Amazing,” Lilac added from beside her, “Have you ever seen anything so enchanting?”


    “Nope,” Namari said at the same time Zira put in, “I don’t think so.”


    “I hadn’t heard about a golden tree out here,” Lilac indicated for the other two girls to follow her. Standing at the base of the trunk Zira felt even smaller than she was.


    “Are you sure this is a normal tree?” Namari asked, “Is it an oak? I’ve never seen oak in this coloring. Maybe it’s aspen, no that can’t be the leaves are all wrong and aspens are small. Birch, maybe…” She trailed off as she paced around the tree. “No, that’s not right either, the trunk wouldn’t be this large.”


    Zira and Lilac exchanged looks, before Lilac shook her head and the two split to catch their friend on the other side of the trunk.


    “Do you see this gold bit here?” Namari asked as she caught sight of Zira coming around the tree trunk, “I think it’s…” she squealed when Lilac threw her arms around her, pinning Namari’s arms to her body. Zira rushed forward, tickling her friend once again. Through the giggles and the squirming, she got out, “Fine… I’ll stop.” And with that the two girls released their friend, all three of them laughing. At some point they had fallen to the ground and were looking up at the tree''s foliage above them.


    “This really is a massive tree,” Zira said as she watched the twinkling leaves in the waning light.


    “Yeah,” Lilac breathed out, “But this isn’t what I brought you here to see.” She pushed up from the ground, her two friends following behind her, “In truth I didn’t know it was here, no one told me about it.”


    Zira was surprised to hear this. If she had been told about Lookout Point who wouldn’t have mentioned such a magnificent tree? “Then what are we here to see?” Lilac was leading them to the edge of the point.


    When they stood near the edge Zira felt her breath catch again, the ocean in the setting sun painted an amazing sight. “This,” she drew her hand out toward the ocean and the horizon, “I wanted us to watch the sunset together,” Lilac gave her friends a warm smile.


    All three sat, not far from the edge of the point, watching as the sun slowly dropped toward the ocean the colors like fire on the water below them. “Best birthday ever,” Lilac spoke softly, the other girls barely hearing her over the crashing waves on the rocks far below.


    Zira did not know how long they sat there, a sudden movement in the corner of her eye caused her to look toward her friend Namari. The Hollow’s creature was hanging from her back, one hand threaded into her ponytail for balance. She could not understand how her friend could not feel this creature hanging from her. He grinned at her, jumped from Namari’s back, then started beckoning toward the golden tree and the woods beyond. Zira clenched her teeth and launched to her feet, she knew the call of The Hollow as well as she knew her name, resisting it was hard. She brushed herself off, disguising her sudden jump to her feet. Lilac and Namari were watching her warily. “We should move around,” her fist was clenched, the pull a tantalizing treat she wanted nothing to do with at this moment.


    With a glare at The Hollow’s creature just at the base of the golden tree she thought toward it, not this time. Then grabbed her two friends, “Race you,” she was off, passing the golden tree and toward the woods, her two friends following not far behind.


    Getting back to the dorms took a little over an hour, having slowed down once they entered the woods. For the most part the trip back was filled with giggles and silly conversations. Zira could not remember what they talked about now as she lay down in her bed. Namari on one side and Lilac on the other. They had both fallen asleep quickly after cleaning up from their adventures. Zira could feel the creature waiting for her. If she closed her eyes, she wasn’t sure she would be able to come back again.


    Carefully Zira pulled her arm first from Namari’s grip, then a hand from Lilac’s. Sliding to the end of the bed as slowly as she could to keep from waking her two friends. She need not have worried; they were so exhausted from the day''s activities neither of them stirred. Once she was free of the bed, she threw a robe on and headed toward the door.


    At first, she didn’t know where she was going, she just knew she wanted to keep moving. Her eyes adjusted to the darkness when she got away from the main compound and the lights that always seemed to burn there. Zira was looking at the woods she had come out of with her two friends just a few hours before. To Outlook Point then, she thought, as she stepped into the darkness of the trees. Since her first Zitta was installed, Zira had found that darkness never seemed as dark to her as it was for some of the other trainees. Katovian, Byevern and Yadoh, depending on what mammal they represented were all rumored to be able to see easily in the dark as well.


    Zira easily navigated through the trees. “Boo!” She jumped, spinning around scanning the trees.


    The Hollow’s creature was hanging from a branch not far from her. Zira rolled her eyes, turning away from the creature, “Not now.”


    Her next step seemed to put the chess board before her, “Now!” The creature insisted.


    Their chess game now hovering before her, Zira could see her king was still in check, the creatures queen poised to take it. Zira reached out and moved her pawn into the creature''s way. And started to walk through the woods again. She paused when the creature moved a pawn to the other side of the board, freeing up his rook.


    Zira thought a moment before she moved her knight on the same side of the board. She started walking again, it was strange to feel herself in both places. Her mind was clearly slipping into The Hollow, but at the same time she could still move her body in the real world. She moved as quickly as she dared through the woods. The creature moved his rook as she expected, the next couple of moves were small, one of her pawns, his knight, her knight, his queen. None of the moves seemed to give either of them an edge in this fight on the game board.


    The opening in the trees she and her friends had gone through just that evening was finally coming into view ahead of her. The Hollow’s creature moved his queen, escaping her knight; she took one of his pawns with her bishop. The exit to the trees was moving ever closer. The creature moved a pawn near his king, poised to take her bishop. Zira retreated, the creature taking one of her knights with his queen instead.


    Zira nibbled on her nail, trying to come up with some strategy. She felt that if she lost to the creature in this game, it would be the last time. She moved her pawn, poised to take the creature’s knight, and freed up the area for her king.


    The creature ignored the danger to his knight and moved his queen into striking distance of the pawn’s current position. Zira took the knight, not realizing she was opening up her rook to the queen''s attack. The creature did not hesitate; he took her rook.


    Zira was struck by a gust of wind as she stepped out of the trees. Her mind still on the game being held in The Hollow she did not notice the golden tree as she moved her queen to cover the bishop the creature’s queen could have taken. He seemed unfazed by her choice, taking the pawn before the queen instead, aiming for the knight just on the other side of it. Zira could see she had this knight covered with her bishop, so she moved a pawn to the other side of the board instead. She passed by the golden tree, heading toward the edge of the cliff. The creature moved his bishop, removing another of her pawns, but leaving its queen cradled in the corner on her side of the board.


    Sitting down at the end of Lookout Point, she dangled her feet over the dark ocean below her. Only the light crash of the waves against the base of the cliff told her it was down there at all. The board now hovered to her right, as though the creature was afraid to station itself over the empty air before her. She filed this knowledge away for another time, then removed his bishop from the game with her queen. He grumbled at the loss before he moved his rook into position to take her queen. It was covered by the pawns he had not moved yet. Zira retreated with her queen, moving it instead into checking his king. The grumble intensified, and when the creature realized his only choice was to move his king, he roared aloud. Zira expected this response, he was predictable that way. She didn’t notice the crackle of breaking bark behind her as she studied the board. Once she was sure her queen would be safe, she moved it forward, taking the pawn before it.


    The creature’s composure was starting to slip. Where it didn’t move before, it now rocked back and forth. Finally, it moved its rook next to the king, discouraging her from killing it with her queen. She took the pawn beside her queen instead.


    The creature took this moment to line his rook up with her queen, grumbling that his queen was still stuck in the corner, no way to escape. Suddenly Zira jumped, something had touched her hair in the real world. Her eyes darted around. She still had not fallen fully into The Hollow, she was surprised to realize this. A beautiful woman with long golden hair stood behind her, placing a gentle hand on Zira’s head.


    “There you are daughter of the Shadows,” she spoke with a gentle voice, taking a seat next to Zira. Zira stared at the woman in shock, she had what looked like white-gold bark protruding in patches on her exposed skin. Her golden eyes showed an agelessness that did not match the youth in the woman’s features. A thought occurred to Zira, she turned to where the golden tree had been. Zira was not surprised to find it was gone was this woman the golden tree? Zira racked her brain, has this happened before? The Hollow’s creature was raging beside her, tugging on Zira’s hair, trying to turn her back toward the game, forcing her to make her next move.


    Zira forgot she was staring, her mouth agape, until the woman spoke again, “You must continue,” she gave Zira a lovely smile, “The darkness’s beast will not let you stop now.”


    Trying to clear her mind, what did she say? She thought to herself, can this woman see The Hollow’s creature and our game? Zira was confused now, she knew the creature was all in her mind, no one else could see him as he held onto their shoulders and pulled their hair. None of her friends acknowledged him as he yelled for them to leave or demanded that she stay. It took some time before Zira spoke aloud, “You can see him?” She indicated the creature sitting on her right, the opposite side of where the strange tree woman now sat.


    “Not like you see him,” she said with a smile, “But I can tell he is there, and I know enough of his kind and where they come from.” She indicated in the same direction Zira had, “Now finish your game so we can talk in earnest.”


    Zira turned from the woman and back toward the game, the creature’s angry face lit into a grin, “So, you’re not just in my head,” she mused aloud before she moved her queen away from the rook, putting his king in check again. She could see he only had one place he could run to, unless he moved his rook to defend the king''s location. The creature chose to move his rook. Zira again moved her queen, putting his king in check once again. This time the creature roared in frustration, glaring at Zira. He gripped the edge of the board flipping it, throwing the imaginary pieces all over the point. Zira watched, shocked as the board righted itself and the pieces returned to its surface, exactly where they had been placed a moment before.


    The Hollow’s creature roared again, grabbing his king and slamming it down in one of the two safe places he could move it. Zira noticed she could easily check his king again, but this dance was getting her nowhere. Instead, she moved her knight toward the creature''s end of the board.


    Zira could feel the tree woman combing her fingers through her loose hair.


    The creature gave an evil grin, lining his rook up with her queen. Zira wondered if he was getting frazzled, because he left the rook unprotected. She moved her queen, taking his rook. The creature roared again, looking around frantically as he decided which piece to move next. He settled on the pawn before his king, allowing it more movement. Zira shifted her own rook down the board from his king and the pawn before it.


    The creature’s queen finally free, and his king not immediately in danger he moved it forward, stopping just before his own pawn, putting Zira’s knight in danger. Zira moved her knight to the only place safe for it, against the wall just one row from the back.  He looked from her to the remaining pieces on the board. With another evil grin in her direction, he moved his rook next to his own king, giving it some protection, but not going far enough that Zira could take it with her queen. The tree woman stroking her hair seemed to be calming Zira down, she thought a moment before she made her next move. Once she was sure the creature could not kill her knight she moved it forward, taking his bishop, “Check” she called aloud. After some study of the board, she added with a bit of shock, “And mate.”Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more.


    The creature launched up from the ground beside her, throwing the board from the cliff. His eyes were circling back and forth in his head, rage clear in his features as he picked up rock after rock, throwing them from the cliff. When finally, he looked at her, his eyes registered her position next to the edge. When Zira went to push away from the cliff the tree woman stopped her stroking, putting pressure on the child’s shoulder holding her where she was.


    “That’s enough, you,” the tree woman called out, the creature paused in his menacing advance. “You know the rules.”


    He shrieked again, “She cheated!”


    “I did not!” Zira cried out as the tree woman said, “You know very well she cannot.”


    Again, The Hollow’s creature shrieked at the top of its lungs and demanded “I will have what is mine!”


    “She was only yours if you could beat her in the final game,” the tree woman was calm, responding directly to the creature.


    “I thought you couldn’t see him,” Zira shifted to look at them both, taking care not to move too close to the edge.


    “Oh, well, I likely don’t see what you do, child,” she spoke in a motherly tone, “but I do see the darknesses beast, as I would see it.” She directed her gaze back toward the creature, “Now away with you, she is free of your hold.”


    The creature growled and charged toward Zira, when the tree woman waved a dismissive hand in the air the creature turned to smoke taking away the darkness it brought with it. Zira stared, her eyes on the woman, did she just use a casting? Zira thought, looking for any Zitta on the tree woman’s body.


    “Now,” the tree woman started, but when she found Zira staring at her puzzled, she smiled, “What is it child?”


    “How did you do that?”


    “I’m afraid you’ll have to be more specific.”


    “How did you banish him just like that? I don’t see any Zitta on you, how can you cast without Zitta?”


    “Oh, that,” the tree woman smiled again, “Don’t believe everything the Goren’s people tell you.”


    Zira was disappointed that she would tell her nothing more, so she asked instead, “Why did you help me?”


    “Child, I did nothing you couldn’t do on your own.” Zira did not believe the woman before her. How could she have banished The Hollow’s creature?


    “Will he come back?” She finally asked.


    “In a way, but you’ll likely never see your creature again, and the darkness will not have the same kind of hold on you, when you do find yourself staring into it.” She spoke as though she too had suffered through the effects of The Hollow.


    “How can you be sure?”


    “It is just how the power works, child.”


    “So does everyone have to go through The Hollow then?” Zira was confused, only those who lost their Zitta seemed to suffer from The Hollow.


    “Is that what you call the shadow lands, The Hollow? Interesting,” she leaned back, looking up at the star filled night sky. “These Zitta that you mentioned, they are truly the problem. There was a time when each child who could manipulate the power had to cross into the shadow lands and meet their other half. It was only after their shadow-self gave them permission, and connected with them, that allowed them to use the magic,” she turned toward Zira, seeing the confusion there, “Think of it this way, there are two versions of Semi, one is the Shadow world. In the Shadow Semi, magic is abundant, everything is coated in it, but the inhabitants cannot use this magic themselves. Then there is this version of Semi, the light world. Light Semi only has small amounts of magic. In this version of the world the magic is inside its inhabitants and rarely found in the world around them.” She checked to make sure Zira was following, when she did not find her too confused with this description she went on, “But in Light Semi those who can manipulate the magic must meet specific requirements before they can use it. The casters’ minds must be young and flexible, yet not so immature that receiving the ability to cast would become a nuisance. Even still, only a small bit of magic transfers from the Shadow Semi to the child in the Light Semi. These small manipulations of the power help to keep the balance between Shadow and Light Semi, bleeding off the excessive production of magic in the Shadow realm.”


    “Wait,” Zira called out when the tree woman stopped for a moment, “So you’re saying some of us should have access to the magic even without Zitta installed?”


    She smiled, “All of you with the Zitta installed would have access to the magic even without them installed. The difference is the amount you would have access to,” she shifted on the cliff, looking back out over the ocean. “The Zitta allows for those here in Light Semi to use a great amount of power from Shadow Semi. Draining the power from the shadow realm causes it to die off, throwing everything out of balance.” Zira was looking into her hands, the faint glow from the Zitta under her right eye giving them an eerie red hue.


    “So why do we get the Zitta then? Especially if it is hurting this Shadow Semi.”


    “To explain that first you would have to know how it was before. When a child was born in Light Semi with the ability to pull magic from the other realm, another child would be born in Shadow Semi. These two children would grow up simultaneously, neither knowing the other existed until the day arrived for the magic to start shifting through the child in Light Semi. After the first time the child uses the magic, they and their shadow self would fall into a world, something like a halfway state between Light Semi and Shadow, meeting each other for the first time. Here the Shadow child would test the Light one, checking to make sure they are worthy of manipulating the magic of their Shadow realm.”


    Zira’s mind was struggling. Had she been made to meet her Shadow self, was that who The Hollow’s creature was? Guilt pulled at her heart, hearing the shrieks of the creature again in her mind. The Hollow’s creature had been fighting to drag her further into the darkness. “Was the creature me from the Shadow Semi?” Zira asked, not realizing she had interrupted the tree woman during her descriptions.


    “Yes and no,” it did not satisfy Zira to hear this, “There was a time the creature you saw would have been you from the Shadow Semi. However, with all the magic bleeding off from their land it twisted the people there. What you met was one of the beasts the Shadow Semi created in a final effort to restore the balance.” The tree woman was staring at Zira now, she could feel those ageless eyes, trying to figure out what was going through her mind.


    “Then…” she paused looking out over the water before them, “How do we restore the balance?”


    “That is the question,” the tree woman smiled again, “And the reason I have approached you.”


    Zira turned, surprised, “but what can I do?”


    “More than you think,” she brushed a strand of Zira’s hair out of her face, locking it behind her ear, “You’re no ordinary child. Have you ever wondered why it was shadows that you could manipulate? Or why there have been so few of your kind throughout the entire history of the Goren’s rule over Light Semi?”


    Zira looked at her surprised, she barely knew that she was a shadow caster, let alone have time enough to look into those who could use shadows in the past. Realizing she had confused the child; the tree woman pressed a gentle finger against Zira’s forehead.


    A storm of memories rushed through her mind. The day she got her 5th Zitta, her first mission, Master Porain always there for her Zitta installations, becoming a common acquaintance in her life. Being taken to Goren on her 16th birthday, Porain his personal Kander as well as three others. Reading a book about the last shadow caster. She whimpered aloud when the report of Lilac’s death was presented to her and Namari in another memory. Her leaving Home Base to set out on her own. Her mind circling around all her memories, collecting them all. She curled up, pulling her legs from the cliff side, tucking her head into her knees.


    “What did you do to me?” Tears were streaming down her cheeks as she continued to stumble through her memories. A cold hand pressed against the back of her neck; the storm of images started to slow down, allowing her to sort through them.


    “I was just restoring what was yours,” her smile was as radiant as her leaves dancing in the breeze had been. “You needed to remember who you are, and that this is all but a dream of your childhood.”


    Zira was confused now, if this was a dream, then how was this tree talking to her, how did she know all this information. “Who are you?”


    That brought a smile to the tree woman’s face, “I thought you would never ask; I am Gamiani Osisi, oldest of the Osisi.” She gave a quick bow, Zira uncurling, moving away from the woman and the cliff. “I sent you into this dream so we could talk.”


    Zira was wracking her brain, trying to figure out where she had heard the name. A lifetime of memories now at her disposal. Osisi, the woman Puurimi, Zira remembered meeting her and she said something about a Gamiani and true dreams. “You’re the golden tree from the grove.”


    “You do remember me.” Gamiani the tree woman smiled.


    “Then, I never met you in my childhood?” She looked around the scene before her.


    “You did, we had a conversation much like the one we are having now, the only difference was that you thought everything that happened that night to be a dream, forgetting it all in the morning. Which was best, since the medical team at your facility questioned you day in and day out to find out how you came back around.” She stood, turning toward the night sky, just inches from the edge of the cliff. “Now come here, stand beside me. What I truly wished for you to remember is about to begin.”


    Not seeing any harm in it, Zira did as she was bid, standing next to Gamiani, the tree woman, turning her eyes up to the sky, “What are we waiting for?” She asked after a time.


    “This,” Gamiani gestured her hand just as the stars started to flit in and out across the night sky.


    “Shooting stars,” Zira breathed out, watching as thousands of little lights danced across the night sky. Suddenly a star larger than all the rest came into view, this one moving slower than the others. Zira couldn’t take her eyes off the larger star, staring in amazement. “What is that?” She asked as it passed out of view, dropping below the horizon.


    “That, little one, was the Guardian Dragon.” Gamiani had been bowing to the larger star as it passed, only straightening again when it was no longer in sight. “Every 20 years or so, he passes by all those stars that are part of his domain.” She looked down at Zira, a mere child of no more than 9 years of age, “This is what is important child. The Guardian Dragon is testing each of his stars as he approaches. Checking them to see that they are healthy, and everything is kept in balance. If one of his charges starts to fall out of balance it becomes a threat to his other stars,” she turned back toward the night sky. “I’m afraid he too can feel that this land has started to die, that it has been falling out of balance at a quicker rate than it had been before.” The last of the shooting stars twinkled out of sight, leaving darkness behind. “We need to start correcting the balance, those before you have failed. You cannot afford to fail. If the balance is not corrected in the next 20 years. I fear when he passes again, the Guardian Dragon will likely deem Semi a threat to his other charges. Dealing out a harsh fate, as he seems fit.”


    “I’m not sure what I could do, even if I’m not a child, I don’t have that much power.”


    “That is where you are wrong. You remember the mention of other shadow users?”


    “Yes, I read about Huam the last Hije, shadow caster. He was trying to find something in his journals, but he never mentioned what. Unfortunately, the books just end after he gets his 8th Zitta installed.”


    Gamiani was nodding her head, “Right, Huam he was a good kid,” she gave a quick smile, “He too was tasked with restoring balance.”


    “Then what happened to him?”


    “I wish I could tell you. I felt more than I heard of his passing. The only thing I knew at the time is that he had been in the area you call Home Base when it happened,” she gave a sad look out at the night sky, the stationary stars once again twinkling. “What is your name? I did not think to ask it when you were a child, and as such I would like to know it now.”


    “Zira,” she said as she stared at the tree woman. Gamiani scared her. Was Zira now to pick up this mantle of returning the balance to the world? Was that even possible? How could one person do anything?


    “Zira, that is a lovely name. It is time Zira.” Her gentle voice enveloped Zira as she turned to face Gamiani.


    “What is?” With that the Osisi woman pushed her from the cliff. Zira felt her heart accelerate, her mind racing, was she going to die after all? The sensation of falling, wanting to panic but for some reason she was calm. If this was her fate, she had no energy to fight it. Darkness rushed toward her, circling her in its layers, protecting her, calling to her, embracing her.


    A strangely familiar beeping sound seemed to be coming from somewhere in the darkness. Her mind tried to place where she knew that sound. Suddenly she felt as though she had fallen into a vat of tar, her body heavy, her eyes sealed shut as she heard that beep again. You can do this, she thought to herself as she tried to force her eyelids to open. Her throat felt dry and scratchy and her stomach hollow, she started to regain senses she hadn’t realized had been lost. Finally, her eyes cracked open. The light was a dull glow as if the morning sun was just peeking through the trees. Trees, Zira thought, was I in the woods? Her mind was struggling to catch up with her current situation. Moving her eyes about she took stock of the area she was tucked into. Dark blue roots were encircling her, cradling her as she tried to move her muscles slowly. The pain told her she had been in that position for some time. Beep, that familiar sound rang through the woods again. Zira tried to flex the muscles in her legs and bit back a cry of pain; they too were stiff and uncomfortable.


    It took time, and pain to get her body to finally move. She sat up, her back pressed against a dark blue Colour wood tree trunk. She was sure had not been there when she had fallen asleep. The residue of the fire she had burned that night in the woods was a vague memory for her, as if months had passed since she had fallen asleep. Beep, she looked down at her ring, it had been going off at regular intervals, warning her of a message. She pressed the carving on her ring, and twisted her arm so she could see the HUD that appeared above her bracelet.


    “2,583 unread messages”. She stared down, unsure what she should do, how she could have missed so many messages. She noticed that all but eight of them were from the Home Base.


    Zira scanned through the messages, the 2,575 messages from home base all had a heading, “Vitals low, report.”


    Beep, another message came through, “Vitals reported, stabilizing, report.” She clicked on the last message, her heart in her throat as she responded.


    “12 Zitta Zira Kander reporting,” she added, “A lapse of judgement ended in being drugged and put into a coma like state.” Zira noticed the date when she hit send. Goroh – Autumn – Mune – Forte (5th Month, 3rd week, 24th day) exactly two weeks from the day she had fallen asleep. Her mind was reeling at the possibility. How had she been asleep for two weeks? How had she lived through two weeks with no water or food? She stared at her hands, Beep, another message came through.


    Zira read, “12 Zitta Zira Kander, Position, unknown, report position.”


    “In Colour Woods on Gillian Continent to the south of Suthen City.” Was the response she sent back to the Home Base.


    “Report condition,” The response came only moments after she hit send.


    “Hungry but otherwise appear to be in good health.”


    “Report twice daily until advised otherwise.”


    “Understood,” she responded and returned to her other unread messages. Answering the Home Base had cleared all the messages related to her health. The remaining eight messages were all from her friend Namari. After reading through each of them she understood what had happened. When the Home Base could not get ahold of Zira herself, they had contacted Namari to see if she could get through to her. Zira smiled as she wrote, “Sorry to worry you, just chose the wrong vegetation to burn for my campfire.”


    The response was nearly instant, “You had me so worried!” Zira could picture her friend yelling at her, then grabbing her in a hug.


    “Sorry won’t do it again.” And with that, she pushed up to her feet and tried to dust off the dirt, she seemed to have collected during her two-week nap.


    She looked at Puurimi the first Osisi she remembered meeting, now a large dark blue tree that seemed to have been guarding her as she slept. After a moment she headed away from the clearing, her mind running through what she had learned in the dream that took her back to her childhood. So, the Guardian Dragon, she thought as she turned back toward the clearing once more, catching sight of a golden tree not far from where she had camped, “Gamiani,” she breathed and turned back in the direction she had been heading, a faint smile on her face.


    END