Dark Sun Rising

Chapter 1

 

The constant and woeful clatter of the train against the tracks both excited and unnerved Zari. She was leaning against the left window looking out into the Greywoods, which was covered in fog. Across the aisle, the right side opened up onto a normal, colored field of green. Lifting her hand, she wiped the condensation away, revealing the dense, gray forest outside, flashing by. The sky above was also gray, as was everything in the Greylands. The sight that would have scared the life out of a normal person fascinated Zari. She had always wanted to explore the Greylands and the myriad of creatures and mysteries they held. This train, however, was the closest she had ever gotten.

The legends of the Greylands, and those who braved them, had always charmed her more than anything else. Unlike people, stories never threw their ire at her. They didn't expect her to be exceptional or ask her to repress herself. No. They accepted her the way she was. In the world of imagination, she could escape from anything and be anyone.

Zari's peacefulness was interrupted when she felt a pair of eyes on her. She clasped her backpack and the book lying on her lap and buried herself further in her seat. It wasn't an unfamiliar feeling for Zari. Though she was tall – tall for a twenty-four-year-old human – her demeanor said otherwise. From a very young age, she developed burning anxiety which forced her to shrink into her frame. Sweaty hands, restless legs, frequent head scratches, and inconsistent breathing became her companions. A lot of it stemmed from her childhood and the things she faced back then.

Belonging to the powerful Mystic al'Reda family meant she was going to be an exceptional member of society – unique and stronger than others. Everyone in her family was gifted with immense talent. Some could turn the tides, make the clouds shower, control the air and fire, heal the broken skin or mend the grief-stricken mind, but her? She was a blank carcass with not enough space to hold any talent. While others enjoyed having one or more abilities just right at the tip of their fingers, she got pushed into a corner.

The shadows of her remarkably gifted family members were so tall that she turned into a walking body of overwhelming emotions. Nobody had to tell her how hopeless she was with no magic at her disposal because her mind would always take the liberty to do so. For the longest time, she waited for her powers to come to her, but as years passed, she stopped altogether.

Accepting her flaw was the first step to a happy life – she thought. But it wasn't quite so. It was why she took solace in books and video games – things that gave her the chance to be whoever she wanted and do what she liked. And so, she opened her favorite book – Dark Sun, and drowned her eyes in the pale pages among which she felt at ease. It was about a mercenary guild back in Antiquity. The leader, Isaac, was a real hero who stood up for the weak and fought evil to bring peace and equality to the world.

Usually, the words would take her all in, but something on the train didn't let her concentrate. Her mind was being pulled toward everything else going on.

From the corner of her eye, Zari could see a little human girl playing with her rattle. She was sitting beside a lady dressed in a white knee-length dress with a coat over it. As the little girl started to throw a tantrum, the lady moved her into her lap. Zari began to feel a new edge of grief wash over her.

Unlucky – a word Zari familiarized herself with too often because of the way life had been treating her. The comfort of her mother, the warm hugs and kisses she could no longer have because life took her too. When Zari was a teenager, her mother passed away, leaving her all alone. Well, she wasn't technically alone. Her elder brother Zayne and her father dedicated their lives to work. Though Zari had no powers, her brother was a skilled mystic of fire and air. His immense passion and love for fighting for justice got him recruited into the Mystic Forces of the Lyndon Army, their home country. As a teenager who had just lost her mother, Zari started looking up to her brother, but unfortunately, he didn't feel the same about her.