Stormdancer

Chapter 1: Stormdancer

     A planet of ghosts would've felt less lonely. But this planet had no ghosts, just rain trickling down through the leaves of the banyan trees and one lonely soul considering fate. A silent sentinel shrouded by the fog and traveling through the forest by its branches. Like a ghost themselves, the figure glided from tree to tree, trying to find a place more protected from the rain. 

       Finally, they found a sheltered spot and sat down. The figure, a girl near womanhood, shifted on the branch, trying to get comfortable. It had been raining all week, and the cloak she was wearing was on its last legs. It stuck uncomfortably to her bare arms, and small streams of water were starting to run down her back. Shivering, she removed the damp fabric and tried to hang it in the branches above her. Once her make-shift tent was completed, the girl sat back down, rubbing her arms as the goosebumps rose over her flesh. Despite all this, she stayed. The animals didn't need her, but she had nothing better to do than watch the herd of Algiaks as they grazed. Besides, her time in the cities did nothing but increase her loneliness. Out here, she had a connection to the planet. Among the Algiak herds, she found some peace. She felt a hint of pride fill her hearts. A Lifirian by birth, she found it satisfying to know that a part of her culture had survived through the years.

     The animals moved through the fog like strange sea creatures, their long legs gliding across the ground. One moved towards her, its long neck extended to reach the branch she sat on. Then, with a gentle nuzzle, it laid its ovular head on her lap and looked up at her expectantly. The girl smiled and gave the Algiak a tender pat.

      Suddenly the low, trilling bellow of an Algiak cuts through the monotonous pitter-patter of the rain. The herd all turned their heads to the sound in unison. But the girl was already up and grabbing her cloak. Her two hearts were racing, and her entire body shook with something other than cold. That had been a warning bellow, and it was the most exciting thing to have happened in years. There was a light, squelching sound as the Lifirian jumped from her perch and onto the wet ground below. The mud seeped between her toes, adding to the already growing layer of filth that covered her feet. Without a sound, she moved forward, gliding between the tawny brown bodies of the Algiaks like an apparition. Her presence seemed to calm them. Some sniffed the familiar body, expecting treats or a passing rub on the muzzle. When their questioning pursuits had been answered, the Algiaks went back to grazing contently.

     The girl pulled on her hood as she drew closer to the center of the clearing. Now that she was no longer under the forest's canopy, she would take what little protection the cloak could provide. In the center of the clearing, she found the Algiak that had caused the commotion. He was the lead male of the group. The Lifirian ran her hand along his neck with long, gentle strokes. He untensed but still stared upward. She followed the Algiak's gaze, searching for what had caused his previous outcry.

     She instinctively grabbed the dagger around her waist when she spotted the ship hurtling across the sky. Just as quickly as it had appeared, it was out of her view, but she could tell it had been heading southeast, towards the city of Amorin. The Lifirian ran back towards the trees and leapt into the nearest tree bough. Climbing hurriedly upward, her head emerged from the canvas of leaves just as the ship passed directly overhead. Rain pattered on her hood and around her more loudly above the tree's protective branches, but she barely noticed it. Nothing could distract her as she scanned the ship. It had been so long since she'd felt this way. Everything slowed down; the falling rain, the ship's flight, even her own racing hearts. Hot blood coursed through her veins, filling her mouth with the taste of metal. A fire burned in her core. It was a familiar flame, one that made her fingers tingle and muscles tense with anticipation. Part of her hardly believed it was real; so long had it been since she had last burned like this. So long since she had felt like a hunter.