In the cold, relentless rain, Sierra ran, clutching Beth to her chest. Her legs burned, but the fear driving her was a greater than any pain. A loud, chilling scream cut through the night; the sound of her mother burning alive. It tore through her heart. A thick cloud of smoke and the sickening smell of burning flesh hung in the air, a final, horrifying memory of home. Beth began to sob loudly in her arms.
Sierra paused, turning to see the orange glow and black smoke rising from the direction of her village. The rustling of leaves and the distant, barking of dogs were followed by the thunder of galloping horses. "They're coming," she thought. She resumed her desperate flight through the slippery forest, her foot catching on a root. She fell, her body instinctively curving around Beth to shield him from the thorny branches and sharp stones. A gasp of pain escaped her as a jagged rock tore into her leg.
She struggled to stand, but a soldier's voice cut through the night. "Over there!"
Adrenaline surged through her. She leaped away, praying to Xai for refuge as the men gained on her. Blinded by sweat, blood, and tears, she spotted a small cave hidden behind a curtain of vines. She slid Beth inside first, then, with a muffled cry, squeezed herself in, the rough rock scraping her skin and tearing her clothes. Just seconds later, the soldiers stormed past. Holding her breath, she clamped her hand over Beth's mouth to muffle his sobs.
"I saw her here!" one of the soldiers said frantically. "She couldn't have disappeared. Where can a wounded girl go?"
"Fan out! She has to be around here somewhere," the captain commanded. "We need her alive!"
In the cramped darkness, Sierra and Beth were as silent as mice. The only sound was the drip of rainwater from the cave walls, drowned out by the thunderous downpour. The soldiers moved farther and farther away, their shouts fading. The rain washed away any scent, and the blood stains on the forest floor were gone.
Sierra finally let out a shaky sigh of relief as the hoofbeats of the horses galloped away. Soaked in sweat, blood, and rain, her body trembled with exhaustion and pain. Worse, Beth was burning up with a fever. If the soldiers didn't get them, the wild animals would, or they would eventually bleed out and die
After what felt like an eternity, the storm quieted, and the moon emerged, casting a silver glow over the forest. Sierra and Beth were shivering uncontrollably, waiting for the inevitable end, when a soft humming sound reached them from the distance. She looked out and saw the moon, and suddenly, to her amazement, her skin shifted to a brilliant, luminous blue, and the deep wound in her leg instantly healed.
Filled with a surge of hope, she carried Beth in her arms, following the gentle hum. It led her to a lake where the moonlight shone brightly, making the water glow. She laid Beth at the riverbank to clean his wounds, but to her shock, the water began to heal him.
The river's flow stopped, the wind stilled, and everything went silent. The gentle hum grew louder, filling the air.
"Sierra… Sierra…" a soft, ghostly voice called her name. She looked up, and gasped, taken aback by the sheer brightness of the one who had called her.
Hovering above the lake was a beautiful woman, her skin luminous like the moon, her hair as white as snow. Her dress seemed woven from pure light, and her voice was as clear and gentle as a cool morning breeze.
"Who are you, and how do you know me?" Sierra asked in awe.
"I have been, I am, and I will be. I have known you since you were born and before, child with a great destiny."
"I don't understand… My parents… my village… they are all…" Sierra stammered, hot tears spilling down her cheeks.
"I am terribly sorry, but all that has happened and will happen is for the greater good. You, my child, are the key to the present and the future."
"How? Why?" Sierra's voice broke with emotion.
"You have questions, and I have answers. Perhaps it is time for a little story about a legend..."
***
"WHAT?! What do you mean you lost her?!" Kilo roared, smashing a vase against the wall.
"It was as if she disappeared, sire," the captain said, terribly shaken, he bowed his head in fear.
Cedilla bit her lip in fury, her patience wearing thin. "How could a wounded girl, carrying a dead weight, possibly escape an army of men on horseback?"
"Forgive me, my lady. I will conduct a search throughout the city. She must be in here somewhere," he said, falling to his knees.
"You better find her! And don't bother coming back without her. Now get out!" Kilo shouted, his rage a heavy force. The captain scrambled out of the chamber.
Kilo slumped into his chair. "What am I going to do now, Cedilla?"
"Patience," she said with a hint of a smile on her lips. "It wouldn't be so hard to find a blue girl now, would it?"
Kilo looked at her, and a glimmer of his old ambition returned. "No. We've come this far. At least I know now that there's a chance."
***
"Long ago, there was a prophecy about a girl born to heal this world and save it from the hands of a tyrant and the curse of a wounded witch," the goddess said, her voice calm and soothing. "And that child is you."
"Me?" Sierra asked, her voice a small and fragile thing.
"You are chosen by the heavens and blessed by the earth. You are The Seed."
"The what?"
"The seed that can seal the leak in the underworld, the leak that created this nightmare. But you cannot do it alone. There are people out there who will assist you in your mission. You have to find them."
"But how? I don't know anything about this… I didn't ask for any of this," Sierra said, her voice filled with despair.
"True. But it has been written. Do this not for me or for yourself, but for mankind, for your parents and for your brother."
Sierra looked at Beth, who was now sleeping peacefully, his wounds healing. Tears rolled down her cheek. Beth was all she had left. She was an outlaw, hunted by a power-hungry tyrant. It was too much for a seventeen-year-old to bear, but what choice did she have? Her parents' deaths could not be in vain, and she wanted a better life for her brother.
"What am I to do?"
"The seed can close the underworld, but there is a price: the price of blood. You must sacrifice yourself to close the leak."
"So you're saying that in order for me to seal the leak, I have to die?"
"Not just any death. You must be killed by the dagger in an ancient crypt in a place called Hiyatoon; the lost land of the dead. Your blood must be poured into the bowl of mystical powers, held by the Raven sisters and then by the hands of a skilled priestess powerful enough to hold the sacrifice; a Venerian."
"I thought Veneria was wiped out during the Great Divide?" Sierra asked.
"It was," the goddess assured her, "but you will meet someone during your quest who will help you."
"Who?"
"When the time is right, they will reveal themselves to you."
Sierra bit her lips in worry, sinking to the ground. "So why avoid Kilo if I'm going to end up dying anyway? Why stay alive?"
"Because if Kilo gets his hands on you, not only will you die, but humanity as you know it will perish. Beth and the blood of everyone spilled will be in vain."
"I've never heard of any of these places. How do I even get there? What if I fail?"
"The night is young, and the journey is tough, but you are not alone. In the morning, you will find someone to guide you on your mission. Now, rest."
"But I have so many unanswered questions," Sierra pleaded.
"Rest, child of destiny, for the journey that lies ahead is long."
With that, the river began to flow again, the breeze whispered through the trees, and the lady was gone. Sierra laid down beside her brother and closed her eyes, but she couldn't help but wonder, filled with fear, about what lay ahead for her and Beth