Startouched

Eclipse

"I was born during an eclipse. I believe very much in astrology. If you were born on an eclipse, it indicates your destiny is chaotic"  ~Gloria Vanderbilt, designer

     

      The ruthless wind howled through the chilled morning air. Towering elms and oaks swayed in jagged motions as the wind tore through their limbs and leaves. As the sun continued to rise on the horizon, the sky shifted from creamy beige to pale pink, to lavender purple, until it was blue from East to West.

        A dark blur raced through the gale of wind on this cool morning, unwavered from its path despite the raging wind. Saliva hung from its mouth, as it exerted itself to run faster. It cut through the wind like an arrow, sensing that it's destination was near. The massive trees started thinning as it grew closer.

        Suddenly, the forest abruptly ended in front of a treacherous chasm. "The Great Ravine", thought the creature. The wind continued to rip through its dark fur as it came to a stop. The creature blinked its eyes, accustomed to the dark light of the forest and not the bright rays of the open area. The creature padded over to a small outcropping and promptly sat down, staring out to one particular bush in the forest on the other side of the ravine.

        A family of two cats lived in this particular bush, Skyalen and Clawrex. Skyalen had been expecting her kits for a while now, and she thought that today could be the day that they came. Now, dear reader, you may be wondering why today is so special.

         Well, the creature (where are my manners, calling this wolf a creature. Her name is Naika, if you have been wondering) has been carefully keeping track of stuff (not sure what exactly, I must ask her to remind me later), and she expects that today will be an eclipse. How exciting, if you're a human, at least. If you were an animal that is part of the Order of Faith, you'd know the old legend. Since you are most definitely a human, I must assume that you do not know it. In this case, I must recite it to you, so that you'll have at least a little understanding of what's going on.

        Long ago, before the rise of humans, select species of animal controlled everything.  The salmon controlled water, the eagles controlled air, the deer controlled earth, the wolves controlled fire, the ravens controlled darkness, and the loons controlled light.

        Coexisting, they all got along quite well, until one day, rumors started, and tensions grew. A devastating war started, and no one could get the upper hand. The animals fought and fought and fought, on and on and on. As they had no reason to combat each other, their intelligence faded, leaving only killing instincts. They became... animals... not literally, they were already animals, but... well, you get it.

        One day though, the animals all stopped their fighting for a moment to gaze at the sky. Now, why would they do that? Perhaps it was because, in place of the brilliant sun was a ring of brilliant silver light. It was an eclipse. Taking it as a sign, the animals stopped the fighting. They made peace, and a vow.

        To prevent future species vs. species wars,they decided that two special animals should control the mysterious elemental powers. The salmon, deer, wolves, and eagles split their powers in two, and gave each to two different, worthy animals. The ravens gave their powers to one, and the loons gave theirs to the other. The first who were chosen were Florencia the gray wolf, and Deffran the snowy owl. The holders of night and day were born.

        Now, we all know that animals die. Everyone has a time to live and thrive, but then those times expire. Well, the two guardians had an uncanny way of... well, not dying. It seemed that the day and night powers came with immortality. So, as no one wants to watch all of their loved ones die, only to get new ones and watch them die, Florencia and Deffran passed on their powers to two new animals. Coincidentally, this passage happened on another eclipse.