Chasing Sparks

Chapter 6.1

Wren had been running east nonstop for over four hours but, incredibly, he wasn’t tired. Not even a little bit. The effect of the spark was amazing. He’d always had good powers of recovery but this was unbelievable and he could actually feel the Celestial energy from the spark healing away his weariness. Crazy.

He did however feel a bit hungry. So the spark, while providing some kind of energy, didn’t seem to be doing away with his need for food. But this wasn’t his biggest problem right now. It would be dark soon and that was an issue. Running blind in a forest at night was a bad idea, no matter how fresh you felt.

But he knew he couldn’t stop. His only real way to escape his pursuers was to keep moving. So, his plan was very simple, keep running and hope he didn’t bump into anything larger than a rabbit.

Earlier in his flight upstream, he had picked up a good sturdy stick as a source of protection. If he’d had a knife he could have fashioned it into a spear but his knife, along with all his other survival tools, was lying useless on the floor of his room. So, he would just have to defend himself with a stick if needed.

Glancing up through an opening in the jungle canopy, something in the twilight sky caught his eye. He slowed to a stop and squinted through the trees to get a better look. There seemed to be a bird of sorts circling the trees above him. He wasn’t initially sure what kind of bird it was but as it flew lower, the distinctive flap of the wing and glide through the air, gave it away as a forest hawk.

As the hawk circled nearer, Wren noticed the speckled grey breast and flash of blue in the tail. And despite his current predicament, he couldn’t help but smile. It was Master Dirs’ bird.

The hawk landed on a branch across the way from him. Wren immediately noticed the tube tied to the hawk’s leg and with slow precise movements, slowly walked towards the bird making sure not to startle it. As he reached the tree the hawk was in, he paused and tapped one of the lower branches three times in quick succession, the way he had seen Master Dirs do.

The hawk looked around nervously before hopping down to the lower branch. Sensing the hawk’s discomfort, Wren quickly untied the tube from its leg and shooed the bird back into the sky.

Wren then turned his attention to the tube. Unplugging one end, he gently wiggled the rolled up piece of paper inside free and in the fading light, started to read:

Dear Wren,

I hope this letter finds you well. We had some interesting visitors earlier today, four of the Duke’s Seekers no less. They are under the impression that you are carrying an affinity spark.

Do not come back here. They have likely considered the possibility you will try to return home. Keep running. Do not come back.

But, you not coming back leaves me with a problem. I promised your mother that I would look out for you and with you not here, there is little I can do in that regard. But out of respect for your mother’s wishes and our friendship, I have enclosed a small gift. I am not certain it will be of help to you but if my suspicions are correct, I think you may find it very useful indeed.

Good luck, Wren. Your friend always.

Dirs

Wren smiled to himself. Even miles away from the Gardens, Master Dirs was still making him feel better. He was the best.

Wren knew he should really get moving again but was curious about the gift, so being careful not to drop anything, he poked his finger back inside the tube until he felt something down the far end. He then carefully pulled out, what he assumed to be a small leather bag.

It felt empty. He carefully checked again along the full length of the bag and this time detected something small stuffed into one corner. It felt like a ring. It was too small to fit on a finger and was more like something the women in the Capital might wear in their ears. Reaching inside the bag he slowly pinched the ring between his thumb and forefinger but was forced to release it immediately, as a burst of light exploded before his eyes.

His heart was racing. Looking around in a panic, he tried to identify the source of the explosion but in the near darkness he couldn’t see anything. He continued to wheel around looking for whatever caused the burst of light but there was nothing there. No obvious threat, just him flailing in circles.

Gradually, his heart rate began to slow and he started to think a little more rationally. At which point, he reached back inside the bag and touched the ring again with his finger.

Once more, the blackness around him vanished, to be replaced with a blaze of colour. He instinctively let go of the ring again. The contrast was too shocking to do otherwise but his fear of what was happening was fading. Determined not to let go this time, he reached inside the bag and pinched the ring firmly. The colours erupted but this time he held on.

The sight was amazing. Everything was almost as bright as day. He could make out the trees around him as well as the bushes, leaves and other things in the area. He could even see the clouds in the sky through the break in the jungle covering. Wren slowly shook his head in amazement.

The colours he saw were not the same as those seen during daylight hours but they were just as distinctive. The branches were a deep grey colour and the leaves had a slightly brighter, almost silver hue to them but they were both really easy to see. There was also a scattering of even brighter dots all over the place, and it was only when they started moving that Wren realised they were living animals.

Wren had always wondered what nightvision would be like, but he never imagined it would be quite so brilliant. A smile spread across his face as he began to look more carefully around. He was able to identify most of the animals in the area and was pleased to see there was nothing larger than a mouse in the vicinity. This gift truly was a boon. Holding this Wren could travel through the night almost as safely as if it were daytime. Master Dirs really was the best.

As Wren continued to grin and look around in wonder, he found another strange phenomenon beginning to happen. The ring was calling to him. It was a little like the way the spark had called to him earlier but different at the same time, too. Thinking himself safe for a few minutes, Wren sat down against the trunk of the nearest tree and focused his attention on this strange sensation.

As he did so, he realised a small amount of his Celestial energy was beginning to pool at the point where he was touching the ring, as if the ring was drawing energy towards itself.

Wren had noticed in the last few hours that his spark was like a store of power and he could direct this energy around his body by simply bringing his awareness to different areas. But the ring was different. It was syphoning a small amount of energy towards itself without Wren doing anything.

Then without warning some of the pooled energy in his fingertips leapt out from his fingers into the ring causing it to come apart in the middle. Looking curiously at the open ring, Wren raised it up next to his left ear, putting the opening on either side of his earlobe. He wasn’t quite sure why he was doing this but it just felt right. When he thought he had the ring in the correction position, he touched the ring to his ear whereupon it immediately closed and formed a perfect circle again.

“Ahhhhhh,” Wren mouthed, as a drop of blood fell onto his shoulder.

Recovering from the slight shock, he tested the ring and was happy it fit well. 

Looking around again at the bright new world facing him, Wren shook his head in amazement. Foresters and Cavers may take this for granted, as they were both born with nightvision, but this was something quite extraordinary to him.