Golden Girl

Chapter 1

Zoria had been her parents' pride and joy. They knew without a doubt that he would become the village leader as soon as she was old enough. She was clever and astonishingly beautiful; she possessed a dainty physique, and stunning blue eyes, a trait that was rare and treasured among her people. Her parents would boast that at the tender age of four she already knew all the ritual dances and had the talent to invent new ones. She was kind, and helped the elders as much as she could, and they smiled and applauded when she danced for them. Her childhood in the small village was a happy one, and like all the children she was healthy, cherished and well fed.

Zoria spent her time playing and learning her lessons. She learned about the City People, and could tell the stories as well as old Fadra. How the People had come in great ships, thousands of years ago, in numbers as vast as the stars. Her ancestors had watched quietly as they emerged and began to build a village, which soon became a town, and then a huge city. They were a gentle people, who cared for the land around them as much as the animals they had brought with them. They never bothered Zoria's ancestors. In fact, it was said they never knew that the planet was already inhabited.

But they did know. They had been sent to the planet as an experiment. Unfortunately, they could not intermingle with Zoria's ancestors; the inhabitants were so very different from their own. And so, the two peoples co-existed for centuries. The City People continued to build. The city went up and up, not out, soon became a large cluster of tall, bustling buildings, whose tops disappeared in the clouds. Zoria's people had no use for anything the City People used. They needed no pots nor riches nor unnecessary decorations. It seemed the only thing they took were small amounts of the gold that streaked the inside of nearly every cave in the region. As long as they left most of it be, the ancestors felt it was alright.

Then one day, the ships arrived again, and the City People took what they could carry, along with a few of the animals, climbed up the ramps to the ships, and left! No one had any idea why. The City stood empty and abandoned from then on, left to crumble and fall as the years came and went.

After they realized that the people were not coming back, the ancestors discussed perhaps moving into the city or taking some of the pretty things that had been left behind. But in the end, it was decided that they really needed nothing that the gentle people had made, and so, all was left as it was.

Zoria was now ten. Her very best friend was Pela, and her parents already knew what Pela and Zoria did not, that they would eventually unite and become one. It was said that destiny could be foretold in the clouds, and the old Shaman had seen the wedding of these two children. They had not been told of the however, as to not put a strain on their friendship, though they often wondered why the old ones would smile knowingly at them and whisper to each other behind their hands.