The bright morning sun seeped through the palm frond thatched roof. I heard the sweet sound of a waterfall trickling down rocks and the birds chirping in the blooming sycamore. I stand up and stretch, and then step out into the morning sun.
Although I've lived here for all of my fourteen years, the breathtaking view of the entire valley never fails to amaze me. The bright colors leap at you from the valley floor, entangling your senses in a brilliant display of vibrant magentas, deep indigos, and lushious greens. My father called it the Pallet of the Gods, and told me stories of how Techne, the goddess of art herself, would use our valley to make the most magnificent paintings anyone had ever seen. He once told me that the reason the valley turned orange and red in the fall or white and gray in the winter was because those were the colors she required to complete her masterpiece. Long ago, however, she used to change them at her will, causing a huge disruption in the enviroment. The Goddess Demeter, "Mother Nature," did not approve of the minor goddess' tampering in her domain, but she was reasonable, and they made a compromise- as long as Techne respected the older goddess' request, Demeter would change out her "paints" four times a year, resulting in the changing of the seasons. But that's only a theory.
I wake at dawn every morning to witness the birth of a new day and watch as the waking sun stretches across the landscape, accenting the already-breathtaking view and entrancing you with a feeling of tranquility as well as energy in a perfect mix. I then grab my shoes, quiver, and bow, and head for the base of the largest tree in sight- a healthy, beautiful sycamore with branches that spread across the land like veins and leafs that dance in the wind. It's in the very heart of the valley, in fact, I'd even say it is the heart. It gives the valley a feeling of being alive, almost as if it were a giant person who had melted into the earth.
My best friend lives at the base of the heart-tree. He's not exactly your typical guy, however. My best friend is a 30-foot-long, 3000-year-old, fire-breathing, giant flying serpent. In other words? I hangout with a dragon. You may know his brother Python-long story short, Zeus was going to have a kid with the goddess Leto and Hera didnt like that so she sent Python to persue Leto and then when Artemetis and Apollo grew up, Apollo went and killed Python.
I am thinking of this daily schedule as I wait for the sun to rise. It is almost noon when I start getting ready, but when I get to the kitchen my little sister, Hayley, has a worried expression on her face as she stares out the window.
"What's wrong?" I asked her.
"Marni, I don't think you should go to the tree today. Look." She pointed out the window and for the first time today I noticed the big black cloud looming over the majority of The Unknown, a large forest deemed off limits by the founders of the country of Raquelathia.
"Hayley, Its not like I'm going off the boundaries of Xthia. I'm only going to that tree right over there. Don't worry; I'll be back before you know it." I smiled at her, and with that, I left.
By the time I reach the tree, the black cloud had nearly doubled in size. I noticed Roku seemed very on edge today, and I could tell it had something to do with the black cloud. I raised a single eyebrow at him, and he just shook his giant dragon head.
-Hayleys been kidnapped-
I did a double-take. The last time I had heard voices in my head, I was just a baby.
Roku chuckled slightly at my expression, and turned back towards the cloud. As soon as he looked away though, I felt all tingly and oddly pleasant. That nice feeling only lasted a second until it was replaced by a jolting pain that caused me to double over and pass out.
* * *
I awoke to the wind in my face, and I was soaking wet. I didn't feel very good, not to mention my splitting headache. I rubbed the sleep out of my eyes and looked around. It appeared to be early morning. I sat up and immediately wished I hadn't. The throbbing pain in my head became twice as bad, so I leaned back on my hands and closed my eyes.
