The Pre-Journey

The sun was just peeking out over the horizon, breaking the darkness that shrouded the light. Lauren stood at the open door, taking in the beautiful scenery of the morning sun's ascension into the sky. The Starstone pulsed in its satchel that was still in Lauren's pocket.

"Lauren, you've been staring out of that window for twenty minutes now. Come over here and get some breakfast."

Amias was hovering over a small, wooden table, placing silverware and food that appeared to be some sort of pancakes. Lauren trudged over and sat down in a hand-crafted chair. The pancakes looked like pancakes, but grainier. Amias looked at Lauren. "I am very glad you came when you did."

"Why is that?"

"Because the people are starting to lose hope that you will ever come. Some are thinking about surrendering to Icas. But you can change their minds."

"Me?" Lauren asked in shock. "How can I convince them?"

"The first line of the prophecy says that from the ashes, a fire shall be woken. You are the fire that will awaken the people and bring their hope back.

Lauren grew more interested. "Tell me more about the prophecy."

Amias sat himself down across the table from Lauren. "Each line of the prophecy means something, but we don't know what every line means. I only know the first line and I told you pretty much everything that I know.

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After breakfast, Amias and Lauren left for his store. The town was run-down. People were dressed in rags scurrying around the town. When they saw Amias, they put their hand over their hearts and went silent.

"What are they doing?" Lauren whispered.

"They're showing respect for my father. That's to let me know that I am not alone and that they have faith that the Moonstar will defeat Icas Thornton and the Nites.

The people's eyes soon drifted to Lauren and they just stared at her. She looked up at Amias and she saw him nod. When he did that, the people started smiling and running up to her, peppering her with questions.

"Are you the Moonstar?"

"Have you come to save us?"

"When did you get here?"

"Are you from the prophecy?"

"Where did you come from?"

"Is Earth real?"

Lauren was never one to be scared, but she was soon overwhelmed and shrank behind Amias like a frightened toddler.

"Okay, okay everyone!" Amias called out. "Move back! Don't scare her away!" That did the trick, and the people instantly quieted down and moved back to give their newfound savior some room. "Yes," Amias continued. "If you are wondering, she is the Moonstar." The crowd started murmuring amongst themselves with excitement. A young boy walked up to Lauren and hugged her.

"Thank you for coming," he said.

"How do you know she is from the prophecy?" Someone shouted.

Amias nodded at Lauren and she pulled the satchel out of her pocket, undid the drawstring, and plucked the stone from its bed of Prismatic crystal shards. She held it out in front of her and it glowed as bright as the sun.

"Is that enough for you?" Amias asked. The crowd nodded and continued talking amongst themselves happily. "See?" Amias said to Lauren. "They love you. They need you." Lauren smiled. It felt nice to feel appreciated and wanted. She never felt that before.

The sound of horse hooves on cobblestone ricocheted off the houses and buildings and filled the town square. The people scattered, running into houses and stores.

From around the corner, a dozen men in full black armor rode into the square. Lauren recognized them as the soldiers that she had seen on the island of Alvista. Amias grabbed her by the arm and dragged her into a nearby alley. Lauren heard commotion coming from the Town Square and she crept up to the edge of the ally to look at what was happening.

The soldiers had restrained a young boy. He couldn't be more than thirteen years old. He had short black hair with side-swept bangs. Lauren recognized him as the boy who had hugged her back in the square. Lauren could only make out a little bit of the confrontation.

"...she's here! The Moonstar is here and she'll get rid of you!" the boy shouted. One man whose armor had embellishments dismounted his horse. The man wore a cloak as he approached the boy. He pulled back the hood. He had jet-black hair and a small beard. "You won't win, Icas!" the boy shouted.

So the man was Icas Thornton. The man who murdered Amias's father. Lauren glanced back at Amias who was staring at Icas with sheer hatred in his eyes. Lauren heard a sword being unsheathed and turned just in time to see Icas run the sword through the boy's chest. The boy let out a pained gasp and fell to the ground, dead.

Lauren gasped and Icas turned toward the alley. Icas pointed towards her. "There she is! Kill her and stop the prophecy!" The men on horses took off towards the ally.

"Run!" Amias shouted. Lauren took off after him through the alley. At its end, they rounded a corner and continued running. The Nites were in hot pursuit, gaining speed on them due to the fact that they were riding horses.

Amias quickly rounded another corner and opened a door and shoved Lauren inside and closed the door after he had entered. Amias and Lauren were both breathing hard.

"Where… are… we?" Lauren asked between breaths.

"My store. This is a back entrance."

Lauren's brain went back to the boy. "He killed him! Why would he kill a little boy?!"

Amias sighed. "He's evil. He's killed people younger than that because they were only repeating what one of their parents had said. The girl was only five years old."

Lauren shook her head. "Then I'll have to take him down won't I?"

Amias nodded. "I see the fire has already awoken inside you."

The front door to the store opened and a Nite walked in holding something wrapped in brown cloth. Amias instinctively moved in front of Lauren.

"Amias," the soldier said and looked around him to see Lauren. "And the Moonstar." he finished.

"What do you want?" Amias asked through gritted teeth.

"Since you asked, I'll tell you, short and sweet." The Nite paused. "I want to join you."

Lauren looked at Amias whose face betrayed no emotion. "Why should we believe you?"

"Because I hate Icas for the same reason you do. If you still don't believe me, believe this." He put the wrapped item on a table and pushed it towards Lauren. She reached for the soft cloth and unwrapped it to reveal… a sword.

The sword was the most magnificent thing Lauren had ever seen in her life. The blade was made of pure silver and seemed to dance in the dim light of the shop. The cross-guard was made of citrine with a small, oval hole in its center. The hilt was made of a soft, red, velvet material. The pommel was the shape of a diamond. The light blue crystal danced and sparkled with the blade and the cross-guard, making a beautiful sight to behold.

Lauren picked it up and like the Starstone, it seemed to sparkle and glow brighter when she held it.

"This is the sword of the first king of Eddeathra." The Nite explained. "Therefore it belongs to you."

Amias, who had been quiet the whole time, finally spoke up. "Why would you give her this, Nite?"

"First of all, my name is Odi. And second, I told you, I left Icas' army years ago. He crossed a line."

"Must have been some line," Amias muttered.

Lauren carefully sat the sword back on the cloth. "But you don't want anything from us?"

"All I ask is that I can join you."

"No, absolutely not," Amias said. "We can't believe him."

Odi moved over to a shelf and removed a dusty piece of parchment paper and unfolded it to reveal a map.

"We are here in Wakemark," Odi explained. "We would have to cross the Stelpond Forest, the Ashvon, and the Sundermere mountains just to reach the Liminglow forest where the Knights of Evermore are hiding. But, luckily for both of you, I know this country very well. After all, Icas has sent me on many assignments in the past, so I know my way around…"

Lauren's mind trailed off. Back on earth, the nurse named Sasha had said that her father was a member of the Knights of Evermore just before she gave her the Starstone, which gave her an idea.

Lauren looked at the oval-shaped hole on the sword. It looked just big enough to fit the Starstone. She removed the stone from its pouch and placed it inside the oval hole.

With a small click, the Starstone shone so brightly that Odi and Amias dropped their conversation and covered their eyes. When the light died down, they looked at Lauren who was holding the sword and smiling. "I figured out another line of the prophecy," she said. "A light from the shadows shall spring. The light is actually Odi, emerging from the shadows which are the Nites. Renewed shall be blade that was broken." Lauren pointed at the sword. "The blade was 'broken' until I placed the Starstone back where it belongs."

"Well," Amias finally said after a silence. "I guess the three of us are going on a journey."