Prologue and Chapter One

Prologue

                “How much further?” whispered the young boy behind her.

Cassidy rolled her eyes. That was the fifth time her brother had asked that. “I don’t know, it shouldn’t take too much longer.” She replied with a heavy sigh. She knew she shouldn’t have brought him along, but he had threatened to tattle.

The two siblings crept through the dark, sandy field, guided only by the yellow beam of the flashlight. The air was still around them, making their crunching footsteps over the sand seem to echo. Cassidy looked up and could make out the rocky ridge in the distance. “There.” She breathed. “It’s just over that ridge.”

“That so tall.” Ian complained.

“Don’t be a baby.”

When they reached the base of the ridge, Cassidy wished she had brought a headlamp instead. She bit the end of the flashlight in her teeth and began to make the climb up the ridge. It wasn’t hard, the ridge wasn’t steep and the rocks made for great foot and hand holds.

Cassidy stumbled up to the top of the ridge and shone her flashlight down onto her younger brother. He was having a much harder time. Cassidy kept the light on Ian, but let her gaze wander back to the city they had trekked from. Her neighborhood was on the edge, so it had been easy to sneak out.

Ian crawled up to her, panting. “How did you get up so easy?” He whined.

Cassidy shrugged. “You ready?” she asked.

Ian nodded. Cassidy turned to face their destination. She gaped at the sight in awe. Ian squinted. “I wish it as light out.” He sighed. “I wanted to see this place for real.”

“Come on!” Cassidy grabbed her brother’s arm and dragged him down the other side of the ridge, causing a small cascade of pebbles behind her.

At the base, Cassidy knelt down in the grass and ran her fingers though the soft blades. The small of earth and plants was almost overwhelming, and Cassidy relished it. The planet was most sand and rocks and water, and what plants that could grow, were small and gnarled. Her parents kept a small tree in the house, but Cassidy was never allowed to touch it, as it was so rare and precious.

Cassidy looked up at their destination. Aeternus. The endless forest.

The great forest was a mystery to all. It spread across thousands and thousands of square miles. The outskirts were relatively normal, creatures you’d expect to find in a forest roamed there. Yet, there was something off about them.  Scientists had observed a flock of hundreds of deer travelling together. Rabbits could climb trees. Seemingly ordinary housecats lived in the outskirts.

The deeper into the forest you got, the taller and thicker the trees were. The creatures grew more and more freaky. The trees seemed to be level on the surface, yet the ones in the center of the great forest were miles tall and thousands of years old. The canopy was too thick to see through, and was believed to not let any light through. It was speculated that nothing could live in the deepest part of the forest, however, strange lights and sounds were recorded from a flyover of the center of the forest.

            Cassidy led her brother to the edge of the forest and shone the yellow light into it. Her heart thumped heavily in her chest. It seemed so dark, almost like the forest was swallowing the light from the flashlight. “We’re not going in there, right?” Ian whimpered.

            “We came all this was.” Cassidy mumbled shakily. “We might as well.”

            But something was stopping her. Cassidy couldn’t seem to move her legs into the forest. She reached for Ian and held his hand tightly. She took one timid step towards the looming trees. She took a deep, shaky breath and made herself walk into the forest. A strange vibe was seeping from the air around her. The stillness was eerie. The air was still and the only sounds were made by Cassidy and Ian’s footsteps. “Cass, I don’t like this.” Ian whispered hoarsely.

            Cassidy could feel the stares of creatures lurking just beyond her range of vision, even the trees seemed to be looking at her, yet she kept walking. There was no echo from their footsteps now. The forest seemed to know they didn’t belong here. The darkness was deafening. Cassidy couldn’t see anything outside of the flashlight beam. Ian’s hand felt sweaty in hers.

            Ian screamed when Cassidy’s light fell on the corpse of a large rabbit. Cassidy clapped a hand over her mouth and she felt sick. The rabbit felt like a warning. “We need to go.” Cassidy spun around, ready to run, but her light fell on a huge shape. She didn’t have time to scream before her light went out and the breath was ripped from her. Sharp pain exploded from her chest, and Ian’s screaming echoed in her ears before it faded forever.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Chapter One

 

            The sound of a soft trickle of water from a nearby stream and the rustling of leaves harmonized with the chittering of the bugs. The grassy floor was dappled with sunlight that filtered in from the canopy. Life chorused beautifully in the forest.

            Mariana jumped awake at the low moan of a horn. She dug her claws into the soft bark of the branch she had been sleeping on and peered downward. A scouting group of centaurs was returning. The large furry cat stood and stretched, pink mouth opening in a wide yawn. Her observant green eyes watched three centaurs gallop into the wooden gates of their village.

            Mariana sat in her perch in the tree, gazing at the world around her. Every movement of her head was accompanied by the soft tinkling of bells that hung from her antlers. “Mariana!” Came the faint call from the forest floor.

            The centaurs spoke a harsh, guttural language that most of the forest creatures couldn’t understand, but Mariana knew her name well. She carefully picked her way down the tree, leaping gracefully from limb to limb. Each landing caused a bright chorus of bells. He leapt from the lowest branch, landing with a soft thud in the grass.

            Her centaur, a rugged looking chestnut male trotted up to her and growled something at her, probably something along the lines of don’t wander off. “Whatever, big guy.” Mariana sighed, jumping up onto his horseback. A quiver and bow hung from his broad shoulders, and he turned away from the village, galloping into the open woods. Mariana tucked her paws under her and watched the trees zip by, and felt every muscle in her centaur’s back move.

            Many centaurs kept elafi as pets, and elafi stayed with them for food and shelter. In return, they helped hunt, track, and keep guard. Centaurs would often adorn their elafi with bells and jewels that hung from their antlers. Mariana’s centaur was a strong warrior, but not very rich, so he gave her bells made of silver.

            Centaurs and elafi couldn’t communicate, so each party only know the other’s name and a few commands. Mariana knew her centaur’s name was Machitis. She could also knew the words for “eat”, “sleep”, and “danger.” Machitis knew only the same of her language, plus a few extra commands.

            Mariana was almost as big as Machitis’ back, she was just big enough to comfortably fit on his back. She was small for her kind, most of her friends had to run alongside their centaurs.

            Machitis skidded to a hard stop, almost throwing Mariana from his back. He quickly darted behind a wide kapok tree. Mariana stood on her hind legs and places her paws on his bare shoulders. The two of them peered around the tree and Mariana saw what spooked the centaur; a huge pack of deer.

            Mariana watched them in silent awe. The deer had been moving away from their homeland in great numbers, as if they know something. This pack had to be a combination of several smaller packs, as there seemed to be a hundred deer moving together deeper into the great rainforest.

            One deer on the edge reared us with a frightened bray. The deer around him scurried away from where he had been, and a thick, black snake snapped at thin air. A huge buck stamped his hoof down onto the head of the snake with a wet crunch. The pack carried on ahead.

            Machitis waited for the pack to pass by before trotting off, approaching the dead snake. Mariana jumped from his back and sniffed the snake curiously. “Eat?” Machitis asked in a rough voice.

            Mariana prodded the smashed head of the snake with a timid paw. She sniffed where the snake’s mouth would have been. Something about it seemed off, and she stepped back shaking her head, tinkling the small silver bells. This snake was probably venomous, rendering it inedible.

            The shaggy cat padded alongside the great centaur, watching his hooves bite into the dirt with each step. A lanky rabbit darted from under a tree root and bolted for another tree, but Mariana was quicker. The rush of warm blood and fur in her mouth from the killing bite was sickly sweet to her. She turned to face Machitis, but he was disappearing into the brush, bow in hand.

            Mariana hauled her kill into a tree, settling on a low hanging branch, and dug in to the still warm prey. Blood trickled down her chin and paws, staining the bark of the tree. She looked up and watched a few winged mice chase a swarm of colorful bugs through the air. She had often wondered what it would be like to fly. She envied the mice and birds that could fly above the canopy and see the sky.

            A low, distant moan snapped Mariana out of her daydreams. The sound had come from deeper into the forest. The creatures of the outer forest knew not to go into the deeper part of the forest, where death lurked in every shadow. These days, the monsters seemed to be venturing farther from the depths and into the light, threatening the outer forest. The centaurs had built up their walls in hopes to keep off the nasty creatures that slunk from the darkness.

            “Hello beautiful.”

            Mariana looked down, to see a large brown tabby tom standing below her on the forest floor. She snorted loudly. “Aren’t you far from home, Raspen?” she taunted.

            “I couldn’t leave you out her all alone.” He called back.

            “I came out here with Machitis. I’m fine.”

            Raspen scoffed loudly. “Those beasts are an abomination. I don’t know how you guys stay with them.” Mariana leapt down and landed in front of Raspen with a loud chorus of bells. “Is it for the cheap ornaments?”

            Raspen was one of her suitors from Mariana’s old life. He had pursued her relentlessly up until she ran away to the centaur village, and sometimes found her in the forest. Mariana’s parents were the leaders of their small clan, and wished for Mariana to follow in their footsteps, but she had other plans. Her parents wanted to keep her close, train her to be a leader, and to take a mate, but Mariana wanted to roam and hunt. She left without a word, or a regret.

            Mariana stalked off in the direction Machitis went. “I wanted to be free.” She told him over her shoulder.

            Raspen darted up to her side. She could never seem to rid herself of the pesky tom, who was still head over paws in love with her. “Your parents miss you.” He said softly. “I miss you.”

            Mariana stopped and whirled sharply to face him. “My parents tried to make me something I wasn’t.” she snarled. “And so did you. I don’t need you coming after me like some rabbit that slipped through your claws.” Raspen reeled back in hurt, ice blue eyes a mix of anger and pain. He opened his mouth to respond, but thought better of his retort and shut it. “I’m with the centaurs because they treat me like a creature with my own thoughts and desires.” Mariana hissed.

            “You should at least visit us. Just to see your family.” Raspen mumbled.

            Mariana turned away from him and bolted after Machitis, following his hoof prints, hoping if she ran fast enough, she could outrun her past.

 

 

            “Mary, no!”

            Mariana’s wide grin dissolved at her father’s angry at the sight of her. “Where have you been, and why are you disgusting?” her mother hissed.

            Mariana flattened her ears against her head and stared down at her muddy paws. “Viktoria and I went to the pond to catch frogs.” She responded meekly.

            “A lady does not dirty herself so.” Marline examined her small daughter with a harsh eye. “And she does not surround herself with such lowly elafi. You should make some friends of more noble status.”

            “But I like Viktoria!” Mariana wailed jumping to her feet abruptly. “She’s my friend!”

            Theisen stepped next to his mate. “Not after today she’s not.” He said sternly. “You can’t be seen like this, Mary, you’re to be the next leader of our clan.”

            “It’s a great honor, dear.” Marline murmured. “Now, go get cleaned up in the stream. And if anyone asks why you’re so dirty, tell them it’s because someone pushed you into the mud.”

            “But, that’s a lie.” Mariana protested.

            “Go!” Theisen boomed.

            Mariana slunk past her parents and hurried to the brook where the nobles gathered to bathe and relax. She slipped into the warm water and watched the mud turn the water brown. Lucky for her, the few elafi who were at the stream didn’t notice her. She crawled out of the water and shook herself dry.

            Mariana looked at her reflection in the stream. Her pretty white fur seemed dull from the muddy water that still dripped from her. Her antlers were still small for her age, mush to her parents’ dismay. Her lineage had been highly praised for their huge antlers and were regarded as a sign of high status.

            Long ago, the elafi were not as civilized as they were now. The ancestors of this clan had fought for dominance, and as time progressed, the offspring of the original elafi followed in their ancestors lead. Mariana’s ancestors had been the biggest and strongest of the original clan, and were made leaders by fighting their way to the top. The only reason the nobles were that, was because their ancestors had established their dominance.

            Rustling in the foliage caught Mariana’s attention. A young ginger tabby peeked out from under a large fern. “Hey Mary!” she whispered excitedly.

            Mariana looked behind her in a panic, making sure the nobles hadn’t noticed the lesser in the ferns. She looked back at her friend. “Viktoria!” Mariana hissed sharply. “You can’t be here!”

            “Come on, Miss Princess, let’s get for a run.” Viktoria motioned her head for Mariana to follow her, but her paws wouldn’t budge.

            “I can’t.” Mariana thought of her mother’s harsh words towards her friend, and how furious they’d be if they found out she had snuck off with Viktoria again.

            Before Viktoria could protest, Mariana ran back towards the clan, heading straight for the tree her family called home. She curled up at the base of the tree, small in comparison to the kapok trees that formed the canopy above them. She was told her tree was called a cacao tree. The fruit it produced was strange and inedible to most creatures. Monkeys and lemurs like to bust open the hard exterior of the fruit to get at the seeds inside, but it was mostly for curiosity, or to lick off the sweet coating on the seeds. Mariana’s mother hated the small monkeys that swooped through the trees, but they were always kind to Mariana.

            “Come on up, Mary.” Her father called from a branch. “Come eat.”

 

 

            Mariana found Machitis hunched over a freshly killed deer, muttering a soft prayer. He looked up at her arrival and smiled, an ugly smile, but endearing to Mariana. Machitis had that effect on everyone. He looked rough and angry, but in a sweet way. He suddenly stood, and drew back his bow, and Mariana turned to see her old friend again.

            The tabby’s eyes were wide with fear at the sight of the half-man, half-horse that was holding an arrow to him. “No, Machitis.” Mariana sighed.

            Machitis snorted and stamped his hoof, but lowered his bow. “Mary, why him?” Raspen’s voice shook pathetically when he spoke, pulling a sigh from Mariana.

            “Go eat a frog, Raspy.” She spat. “Even though it sounds like you already did.”

            Behind them, Machitis hauled the buck onto his horseback and whistled for Mariana, which she obeyed, turning to follow him home. “You’re really going to let him whistle at you like a mindless beast?” Raspen sounded horrified.

            “Are you really holding onto some sliver of hope that I’ll suddenly decide to some home?” Mariana asked, without turning from Machitis.

            “Yes.” Raspen walked up to her side and looked into her eyes. Mariana hated his eyes. They were made of ice, and his gaze was just as cold to her. “I love you, Mary.”

            Mariana clapped him on the ear with a thick paw, hearing Machitis draw his bow again at the outburst. “You just loved the power that was to come with me.” She hissed at the tom that was now shying away from her, as a scared kitten shied from a threat. “Now get lost.” Quick as a whisper, Mariana bounded to Machitis and stood at his side, watching Raspen raise his frightened eyes to hers. “And never call me Mary. It’s Mariana.”

            With that, cat and beast made their way home, as Raspen scurried away defeated.