Part One - Mathews destiny unfolds

An ancient sea explorer who had lost everything, discovers his destiny, as it was written in the scrolls of life.

Mathew started his day as usual, as he stood there at his smoldering camp fire emptying the last of his coffee, he noticed a flash of light, that appeared down in the valley, then it was gone.
Dropping both his coffee pot and cup he screamed,
"I think I just saw the legendary Glowing Ring".
Without hesitation, Mathew ran to his tent, his fingers trembled as he fumbled through his keys,
"I know which key it is, Daisy" he said laughingly to his faithful companion Red Beaked Hawk.
He twisted and pulled at his long thin mustache as his eyes caught his journal after he opened up his lock box.
Forcefully he ripped through the pages until he found what he was looking for;
"See Daisy; come have a look at this"
The massive yellow bird turned its head to the scroll, squawked with a piercing screech, and then flew out of the tent, and headed towards where the flash of light came from.
Mathew stood completely still, he watched Daisy fly off, then begin studying the torn battered scroll,
" Petronas had wrote this scroll over 2000 years ago, this is one of the few remaining ones left" he thought as he remembered what Thomas told him as he gave it to him.
"Do not think that for one moment, you can show this to anyone, the mystery of the Glowing Ring has never been answered, all those who have tried to find it and unlock its power have failed”, Thomas's voice deepened as he clenched Mathews shoulders, "The only way to find and unlock the Glowing Ring is through this scroll, you must remember that."

Shaking his head, as he studied the scroll, "these markings, must mean something” ...
Nine 6 pointed stars circling three 5 pointed stars, circling a smaller 4 point star.
Mathew put on his long brown leather coat, gently folded up the scroll and put it in his pocket, then took his bow out of the lock box.
As the stern thin strong man locked up the box, he seen a glowing light appear, what seems like 200 yards to the north east of where it happened before.
He took out the scroll and looked at it...

"What the hell...The stars have all changed, they all seem to be pointing towards the north east now, how is this even possible?" He said with such a strong voice, it echoed through the canyon.
Mathew looked at where the light appeared, then looked at where it appeared the first time, then looked back at the scroll again, "Hmmm" he mumbled, and then headed towards where he first saw the light flash.
Nearly three hours had past as he approached the area, he looked up at the unmistakable huge boulder, then over to group of trees, then looked north east. He looked down, "This is remarkable" he thought, "its right here, and I can see it, the grass looks like something was resting on it"
He took out the scroll, and bent over, "It fits exactly"
Just then Daisy flew down and landed on a near by tree branch.
"Squawk, squawk" she purred. She then flew down and walked over to Mathew, then looked at the ground where he was studying, she then flew off again, heading back to the camp site.
Mathew looked towards where the light flashed the second time, "it’s a good six hours hike down the mountain." then he looked towards his camp site, "I should head back"
It was around mid day when Mathew reached his camp site, even though he had not eaten since last night, the glowing ring was the only thing on his mind. Never the less, he still was very hungry, and proceeded to check on his traps. “Ahhhh” he mumbled as he approached one of his snare traps. He had caught a very nice plump Jack rabbit.

Later, as Mathew was finishing off his meal, he decided to head out again, this time though, he packed up most of his belongings, for he knew he wouldn't be back for a while. Mathew spent the last 15 years of his adult life in these mountains, he knew them inside and out, he knew exactly where that light flashed again, and he knew without a doubt, the best way down the mountain to get to it.
Dusk approached as he reached the area, "just like the first place" he thought, as he placed the scroll over top of the area in the dirt. "It’s as if this scroll was placed here before" he said to Daisy as she watched him study the scroll.
Just then, a massive gust of wind came, and encircled the ground, stirring up the dirt, and completely covered over the markings in the ground. "This is getting very interesting", he thought. "This must be a sign that I am getting close to finding the Glowing Ring"
"Well Daisy" ,Mathew smiled, "it looks like we will be camping here tonight." he looked around, found a nice flat area and laid his blanket out, and as he laid back looking up at the stars, he thought about the flashing light and the scroll, then he fell fast asleep.

Three days had past, with nothing unusual happening, then on the fourth day, just as he had finished cleaning up after a hearty breakfast of potatoes and onions covered in brown squirrel meat, it happened again. This time though, the light flashed randomly, in 4 different areas, and Mathew began to realize the pattern it was creating in the mountain side.

Mathew unfolded the tattered scroll, and looked at the middle 4 pointed star. Then he looked up at the mountain side.
"Daisy, it has to be there" he said as he pointed towards the middle of where the glowing lights were flashing, at that moment, the lights stopped and were gone.
Mathew hurried and put out his fire and grabbed his bow and headed back up the mountain side.
Hours had past as he reached the area the lights directed him to, "Oh my Lord," Mathew cried out as he studied the rocks and his scroll, "this has to be the place, the stars must represent these rocks, but the middle one is not there"
"Hmmm", he thought as he gazed at the rocks formed into the side of the mountain, his hand trembled as he touched the area where the middle star should have been. He then took the scroll and placed it there, immediately it started to glow and then reformed itself and turned into a 4 pointed star shaped rock, and then all the rocks started to glow.

Mathew stepped back and studied the rocks. To his surprise, the rocks stopped glowing and the middle one turned back into the scroll and fell to the ground. Mathew picked it up and looked at it, "I do not believe my eyes" his voice cracked as he said that, he then showed it to Daisy.
"Look girl, the stars have changed, the middle one is now a 6 pointed star, the three around it are still 5 pointed ,but the outer 9 stars are now 4 pointed", Mathew looked back at the rocks again, twirling his long thin mustache, he wondered what this means, "I know there is a pattern to this, I just can not figure it out" It then became clear to him, "Yes, yes, oh my Lord YES" he began dancing and shouting out, Daisy seemed to have understood him, she began running in circles ,squawking and chirping.

Mathew walked over to the rocks and put the scroll back in its place and stepped back and watched the rocks begin to glow again, then the scroll fell back out again like the last time, as he studied it, he noticed that the stars reverted back to their original state, "I know now what this means" he said sternly and then he headed back down the mountain to his camp site, "Daisy proudly walked with him, chirping and purring in a language that only Mathew understood".

That night as he laid there studying his journal, he came upon his notes on the three Gods of his ancestors. "One thing that all three of them have in common, is the stars" he says to himself, "The 4 pointed star represents purity, where as the 6 pointed one represents balance, and the 5 pointed one represents power."
Mathew was now convinced that the three 5 pointed stars on the scroll represent the three Gods of his ancestors, he rolled over and looked as Daisy, who was fast asleep, with her head tucked under her left wing, purring, Mathew then put his journal into his lock box, poked at the fire, and then laid back down on the soft warm grass and fell asleep himself.

That morning, after eating and cleaning up, he was sitting on a tree stump studying his maps, and marking the places where the lights flashed early that week, "Mathew then stated that the last three places he visited must have been the points of the 4 pointed star", and then he marked the last point in and circled it, "standing up" Mathew pointed towards the mountain and said "Daisy, there lies the answer to unlocking the mystery of the glowing ring"

It took Mathew all day to reach the area and after a lot of effort and determination he finally found the spot on the map that he had circled. "I know I am close, I can feel it," he said to himself as he walked around studying the area. He then saw it, carved into a massive oak tree, "Daisy, I found it," he said proudly as he touched the 5 pointed star. Upon examining it closer, he noticed a small crystal clear gem in the tree, right above the top point of the star. Mathew then got out his pocket knife and carefully carved around the gem until it freed itself, his hands trembled as he held it up to the sky, "it's magnificent, flawless, and perfectly shaped" Mathew then got out the scroll and placed the 4 pointed star shaped gem on top of the 4 pointed star on the scroll and noticed how perfectly it fits.

Mathew then headed back down the mountain and around to where the rocks were glowing, at which, by then, it was completely dark out, but he couldn't give up now, he had to figure this out, his torch gave off just enough light for him to see the rocks as he came up to them.
Nervously, he put the scroll onto its spot in the rocks and watched as it turned into a 4 pointed star and began to glow, he then put the gem over top of it and to his amazement it turned into a glowing ring as he held it.

"I have found the legendary Glowing Ring" he shouted at the top of his lungs, which echoed so loudly that it startled every living creature all the way down the mountain.
Mathew turned and looked at the rocks, which were glowing brightly, and at that moment three transparent massive shadows appeared before him. "Hello? Who are you? What do you want of me?" The three shapes began to take on human form; Mathew fell to his knees as he realized that before him, stood the three Gods of his ancestors; Josepha, the God of Power; Vireos, the God of Love; and Petronas the God of Equality.

Josepha spoke first, "you must give us the Glowing Ring, it is to great for a common man of your nature to possess," Josepha paused talking and looked down at Mathew, motioning with his huge arms he proclaimed "rise up and come to me", Vireos stepped between them and protested "No Josepha, this has been fulfilled by destiny, it is done, your great power can not change what has been written in the scrolls of life" he then preceded to hand Mathew a old tattered book. "Go my son, take this book and learn all the secretes of the Glowing Ring, you have proven worthy to possess it. Petronas said nothing as he touched Mathew on his shoulder and smiled at him, at that moment they vanished, leaving Mathew alone.

Mathew gazed at the book and held up the ring in the moon light, looked at it for what seemed like hours and then he put it in his pocket and started down the mountain. he was completely exhausted when he reached his camp site, he didn't even bother to start a fire, he put the book that Vireos gave him into his lock box and stretched out on his blanket, "Ahhhhhh, I have never been so worn out in my whole life" he whispered to himself as he took out the Glowing Ring and begin to study it, he then put it on his left ring finger and fell fast asleep.

That morning, Mathew awoke to the sound of his coffee pot perking, as he looked up, there stood Thomas, "good morning sleepy head" he said, and then his eyes caught the Glowing Ring, he was unable to speak, he could only motion with his hands, "Ahh, Umm... Ohh My Lord" finally came out of his mouth.

Mathew stood up and stretched, "Thomas, it seems you wish to say something to me," he smiled at Thomas as he folded up his blanket. "Oh, is this what you are looking at?" He grinned and he pointed at his ring finger. He then proceeded to pour a cup of coffee and walked over to Thomas.
A sense of emptiness entered his composure as he stood there staring at the Glowing Ring, Thomas finally spook, slurring his words " I...I.... never expected it to be ... aaaahh..you Mathew, I k..K.knew you had just as much of a chance to find and unlock it, but", he paused, cleared his throat and said "I just didn't think anyone would ever find it, the Glowing Ring has been hidden for over 2000 years." At that very moment he fell to his knees and began weeping, Mathew then realized the reality of having finding the Glowing Ring and began weeping as well.
Thomas stood up and put his arms around Mathew, and whispered, "you are the chosen one, and you do know that right?'
Mathew answered back with a stern voice, in spite of his sobbing, "Yes Thomas I know"

Author's Note

Thanks for reading