The Root Of Life

Part 1: The Oracle

Thunder and rain fill the night sky. I squint my eyes trying to see through the chaotic atmosphere and litter of trees. The wind blows aggressively pushing against me but i fight through it.

My heart sinks immediately when i get to the unfamiliar forest clearing. The stench of death fills the air.

I fall to my knees with tears in my eyes as i repeatedly punch the wet ground as though it did something wrong. Piles of bodies cover the clearing like a landfill. People I know, my whole family, the entire Shadow peak community.

The scene changes and i find myself at the top of the mountain, an overwhelming sense of fear takes over me as I stare at the scene in front of me. My chest tightens with every breath i take. The whole valley filled with bodies piled up on top of each other, to the brim. What..in the world?

I jerk up on my bed breathing heavily. The dream i had, was it a dream or? No...This can't be good.

*****

We live inside caves in the mountains that surround the kingdom of lemeet. The kingdom of Lemeet itself is situated inside a valley; THE valley I saw in my dreams.

I make my way to my sisters bedchamber and find her sitting at the foot of her bed reading a book.

Her room is dark and dimly lit by 2 candles on opposite sides of the chamber. Her room is made up of a large bed, a small bookshelf and a dresser for her clothes. It looks just like my room.

"Aisha," i call her, "mhm?" she responds as she looks up from her book, her eyes light up when they meet mine, "hey, come in."

I move to sit next to her feeling anxious but she quickly catches on to my discomfort with her killer senses, "what's wrong?"

I breathe in, trying to figure out how to tell her.

"Sahai," She gestures at me to speak.

"I had..a dream aisha." I stare at her still anxious, her expression changes to one with concern. I keep going as i let out a stressful sigh, " It...I... It wa-...bodies. Bodies EVERYWHERE, something is coming Aisha I feel it."

"here? To the mountains?"

"No i think lemeet? No, I think it's the whole world, i know it sounds crazy but-"

"It DEFINITELY sounds crazy," she chuckles nervously, "but you're an oracle Addie and thats what worries me."

"I know," i grab her hands locking our eyes intensely, "The whole valley was filled to the brim Aisha. Thats like...A lot of people."

We both just stare at each other, "So? What should we do? Did you tell mum?"

"No, absolutely not, look, mum ALWAYS says dreams aren't reliable sources of prophecy or any oracle business even if im an oracle. But you need to understand this one was just...different.

"I spent a few days after the dream trying to figure out what I can do, i know mum would tell me to just move on its just a dream but i just feel strongly that its something deeper than that.

"So i decided that if the dream came to me then it must be for a purpose, it means i can do something about it, or talk to someone who can do something about it. I want to prophesy to you." I blurt out.

Her face falls flat.

I know she probably isn't happy with having to be involved with anything like this, especially because of how big this could potentially be.

Aisha is a warrior. One of the best trained shadow assassin youth we've got. The problem is, she's so talented that they had sheltered her as one of the reserves for when we truly needed exceptional talent. Her lack of experience could be holding her back.

"Aisha you need to step out of your comfort zone for once," She shakes her head in her palms, "noo Sahai...no" she wines. She lifts her eyes to look at mine, her distress is so evidently plastered across her face. I can only smile back at her with encouragement.

"We have to Aisha," I whisper, "its an honor to get a prophecy,"

"I know its just-" she looks down upset, "it's a lot. I don't have any real experience outside of the Shadow peak mountains. Im just scared, it sounds like a big deal and I don't know if i will be able to do it."

I totally understand where shes coming from i mean shes only 18, but i still think she's overthinking it, "we don't even know what it's going to be, Just trust me, okay?"

She looks at me for a bit. I know she's in her head about it, "okay fine."

I smile gratefully and drag her onto the floor with me. With crossed legs, we both sit facing each other. "It's going to take a minute to connect with spirit, give me your hands," i grab her hands as i prepare myself to get started.

I enter a deep state of meditation through my breathing and a mind empty of thoughts.

After a while I can feel a force taking control of my body and my mouth begins to move...