The Last Light of Eden (Sky Children of the Light)

Chapter One: Lights in the Sky

     A cool afternoon breeze swept through the valley, swirling tiny spirals of sparkling white snow up into the air. The last golden rays of sunlight streamed over the mountainous horizon, coating the grey brick houses and towering arches with a warm red glow. A small group of spirit children hurried down the sloping hillsides, their spectral blue bodies shimmering in the light of the setting sun.

     Elder Sage slowly walked up to one of the open walls that looked out over the entirety of the valley. As he neared the edge, he stopped, leaning heavily on his staff. He turned his masked face to the citadel courtyard far below. It was quite a sight to behold; the swirling gusts of snow combined with the almost fiery glow of the sun gave the valley a mystical, almost calm feel. . . Though it would never be quite as calm as the sandy purple beaches of the Isle of Dawn. As if to prove his point, a loud crash echoed from behind him. The elder winced. No. . . Not as calm as the Isle. Not at all. He turned and glanced back over his shoulder.

     Sitting bolt upright, his hands clasped in his lap, was Tun, one of the elders of the Valley. His twin sister, Tor, stood behind him with a book in hand, preparing to add it to the growing pile on her brother's head.

     "Stay still!" she hissed, and crouched down to make sure the stack of books was steady. "If you make me drop one more book. . ."

     "If I make you. . .!" Tun muttered, and turned his head to shoot his sister a joking glare. The stack of books tilted sideways and slipped off the elder's head, tumbling to the ground with a loud crash.

     "Look what you've done!" Tor snapped and bonked her twin over the head with the book, still tightly clasped in her hands. "All my hard work wasted!"

     "Oh, your hard work?" Tun complained. "My apologies, but I didn't see you sitting there for ten minutes straight while a lunatic with a book danced around trying to bash your skull in--!"

     This earned the young elder another smack over the head.

     "Tor! Tun!" Sage said sternly as he turned and slowly made his way back to the round stone table where the twins sat. "Just because I've left the room, doesn't give you permission to stop studying."

     "Yeah, Tun." Tor drawled and leaned back in her seat, setting the book down in front of her. "Better get studying--"

     Tun reached out and tugged at the back of her seat, flipping it over backwards and sending her sprawling across the grey brick floor with an angry hiss.

     "Tun!" Sage sighed, tapping his staff against the floor. "Enough!"

     Tun bowed his head. "Sorry, Elder Sage. . ." he mumbled, paused, and then added lightheartedly, "But she started it!"

     Sage gave a deep sigh and rested his forehead against the top of his staff, less out of annoyance, and more to hide his amusement. He had a feeling that, though they sometimes acted foolish, the two young elders would make great leaders one day. . . He glanced up at Tor who had snuck up behind her brother's chair, her favorite smacking book in hand. Obviously, that day was not today.

     "Tor--" he warned, but fell silent, his eyes focused not on the bickering siblings, but on the open wall behind them. He squinted in the afternoon light, and slowly, his eyes widened behind his mask. "It can't be. . ." the elder muttered and shook his head. "But that was years ago. . ."

     "Elder Sage?" Tun asked, giving his sister a hard push in the face. "Is something wrong?"

     Sage shook his head, and turned, hurrying towards the stairs, his staff tapping against the floor as he went. "Everything is fine. Stay here and continue your studies. I'll return shortly."

     "But--" Tun jumped up from his seat and hurried after the elder, poking his head out the door to watch his teachers' decent. "Where are you going? It's nearly nightfall. . ."

     Sage stopped and glanced up at the younger elder. He hesitated for a moment, and then tilted his head towards the ground. "I must visit the vault." he said, his voice betraying a flicker of concern. "I need to speak with Elder Hye." He nodded, more to himself than Tun. "Do not worry, young one. I'm quite sure this is nothing. . ."

     Without another word, he hurried under one of the citadels' towering arches and was lost from view.

     Tun stood in silence for a moment, the wind ruffling his spiky white hair. Finally, he turned to his sister. "What do you think--" he began, but Tor slapped a hand over the bottom of his mask.

     "Shh!" she hissed and glanced over the edge of the staircase. "Is he gone?"

     "Yeah." Tun muttered, pushing her hand away. "I'm pretty sure."

     "Good." she whispered and grabbed his wrist pulling him back into the room with a sharp tug. "Come check this out." She hurried past the circular table, nudging a few fallen books out of the way with her foot. Finally, they came to a stop in front of the window. "Look." she said softly and pointed a finger out into the sunset.

     Sure enough, a long trail of sparkling golden light slashed across the sky, nearly invisible against the faint glow of the setting sun. The light seemed to form an arching trail leading through the air. Tun followed the trail with his eyes until it disappeared below the clouds.

     "What is that?" he asked, squinting against the setting sun.

     Tor shrugged. "Looks kinda like something fell." she moved her finger further up. "And if you follow the trail. . . See where it came from?"

     Tun's eyes widened. "The Eye of Eden. . ."

     "Precisely!" Tor said, excitement edging into her voice. "The one place where no one's allowed to go! Not even the elders!" she nudged her brother with her elbow. "Seems kinda suspicious, huh? You know, something falls from Eden, and all of a sudden Elder Sage has to run off to the Vault of Knowledge. . ." she paused, giving her brother a knowing look before adding, "It's a long fly to the Vault. . . Elder Sage won't be back for awhile. . . Might even be long enough, to. . ." she shrugged, waving a hand towards the fading trail of light.

     Tun turned to look his twin sister in the eye. "You think we should go check it out." It was less of a question and more of a statement.

     She shrugged. "Elder Sage can't really expect us to sit here and study till he gets back. We'll tear each others eyes out!" she lowered her voice. "I'm serious though. . . What do you think. . .?"

     Tun paused for a moment and stared out at the sun, merely a sliver of light against the mountainous horizon. Finally, he sighed. "I think. . ." he looked up. "I think that we're going to be in so much trouble for this. Come on. Let's go break some rules!"

     As the twins hurried down the citadel stairs, the sun finally disappeared from view, casting the Valley into shadow. Though it wasn't clear now, the young elders had just cast themselves into something far greater than themselves. . . Something dark and treacherous that would change the world of Sky forever. . . And now, there was no turning back.