E.R. COOK

This is an ongoing fictional serial book, one chapter published every week. If you have not read up to this point, please check out the other chapters.

Asha is a fifteen year old girl born into a savage world sculpted by tribal wars and elemental magic. She is chosen as the elder shaman’s apprentice, the akira. She is also a Raven’s Eye, one able to communicate and see through a raven’s eyes, a special talent even among the shamans. Though she will one day be powerful, she is looked down upon as the failed firstborn daughter of the chieftain of the tribe. As she struggles to understand herself and her powers along with dealing with the eternal hatred and shame of her father, she must also constantly figure out how to bring her tribe through the clouds of war and danger that the ravens tell her about.

As you can read, this book deals with violence and trauma, but it’s not all doom and gloom. Like other works of fiction, any resemblance to any living person, place or thing is purely coincidental.

The Dream World

Asha did not return by the trail that went up into the fields, but followed the river as it flowed alongside the village. Eventually, she came to the place where Tarren had been found. She stood for a long time, looking at the smooth flowing water, the surface once more unbroken except for the small rocks pointing up here and there. The water flowed clear, glittering in the sunlight. Only the shore showed signs of the trauma of the previous days, the mud churned and crafted by the many feet that had walked upon it.

Close by was a large, flat stone bathed in sunlight. Asha lowered herself onto it, smiling sadly to herself. It was the shaman’s rock, and a favorite resting place of Chalese as she had watched the village children playing in the river on the hottest days of the summer. She would often come her to meditate, saying that the river waters called to her strongest here. Though Asha’s own natural element was air, she wondered if the aura of Chalese would still linger here. Some morsel of the woman gone before her time.

A tear fell down her cheek, but she wiped it away, steeling herself. The time for tears had passed. If she cried too much, it would call Chalese off of her trail, keeping her from the Golden Lands.

What she needed right now was to concentrate and call the ravens. She had to know where her father was. Only she wasn’t quite sure how to call and direct them just yet. Mostly she just got quick visions, pictures in her mind, whether she sought them out or the ravens helpfully supplied them, although sometimes she could send a wish on the air and a raven might answer. like when she sent a wish that they would watch the forests for more enemy warriors. But perhaps the power of this place would help her focus her energy.

She settled into a meditation pose, closing her eyes and taking deep breaths. But no matter what she tried, irritations kept nagging at her focus. The stone beneath her was hard and cold. A bird sharply called overhead. An itch developed on the bottom of her foot. Finally, exasperated, she growled and opened her eyes.

“You never were one for patience.” A familiar voice chuckled.

Asha gasped. She was still sitting on the bank of the river, but everything had changed. There was a hazy, shimmering quality to everything. The river was a translucent purple, the rocks a burnt orange, like the sunset had been captured in the stone. The trees were so green, they were almost black. As a bird flew by, there was a blue trail behind it, like a long flowing tail that faded out of sight as it moved on. Asha couldn’t believe her eyes. “What? Where?”

“The Dream World.”

Asha looked to her left. A young woman stood on the bank. She was dressed in the white robe of the shaman, long silver hair down to her waist bound in a braid, a circlet of stones and twigs and gemstones on her head. Smiling blue eyes shone on her.

“Who are you?”

“Can’t you guess?”

A familiar vibration floated through the air. Asha gasped. “Chalese?”

The woman chuckled. “Took you long enough. Course I probably look quite a bit different. Personally, I like going through eternity like this.”

“But you. . .you are. . .” A thought came quickly to her mind. “No. You’re not in the Golden Lands! Did I call you back? I didn’t mean-”

“Relax.” Chalese chuckled, walking over. “Let me let you in a little secret. The Golden Lands are all around us. The forest? Merely your commitment to living a life of honor. When you die, you come to the dream world if you are deemed worthy. Otherwise you go to the Dark Lands.”

She pointed off to the north. Asha followed, her eyes opening wide. The mountaintops that once stood clear were now shrouded in dark clouds that roiled and burned with an inner red light. Ever so often, red lighting would skitter across the surface, like claws raking flesh. She shivered.

“So, I’m dead?”

“No. Shamans are able to cross to the Dream World through meditation. Although you will need a lot more practice. I could barely hear you. It took a lot of energy to pull your spirit over.” She sat on the rock, staring at Asha. “What is going on? The spirits have been trembling ever since the battle.”

Where to start? “The battle. After you. . .”

“Died. Get used to saying the word, my akira. Or should I say, otanna now?” Chalese gave her a sad smile. “There is so much I still needed to teach you. I barely even started. No one has ever heard of an otanna only having fifteen years.”

“You couldn’t have known they would be cowards.” Asha struggled against her trembling emotions. “You couldn’t have known how far the dark shaman had fallen.”

Chalese growled. “Pact breakers. I always knew the Vark were a little twisted, living in the North. But I never thought they would willingly go to those lengths.”

She eyed Asha. “Tell me. How are you not dead? How is the village not destroyed?”

Asha stared at her for a second, licking her lips. “I’m not sure. The dark shaman grabbed me, trying to feed me to his demon. But when it touched me, something happened.”

“Something?”

“I don’t remember. All I remember is waking up to the dark shaman dead and the Vark fled. Tiran, he said that something possessed me. Only it wasn’t a demon.”

“Of course not. I would have sensed that right off. But there is something different.”

“He said the demon spoke to whatever it was. It called it an Old one.”

Chalese stared for a moment, then whistled. “An Ancient One has awakened. And it came to you.”

“There’s more.” Asha steadied herself. If anyone would understand. . .”I’ve been having visions. Dreams. She called to me. She says I need to find her.”

Chalese was lost in thought for a moment before shaking her head. “Oh my. No wonder the world is shaking. An Ancient One came to you.”

She continued, “I am so sorry, young one. It appears you have been set a hard road to walk. But I fear it must be walked. The dark forces of the world are awakening. Already the Dark Lands are creeping, growing stronger. If they cannot be contained, if the Pact cannot be restored, they will take over the Golden Lands.”

“How do we restore the Pact?” Asha growled. “No one has heard from the gods since the Pact was first made. Unless you know something I don’t know.”

Chalese shook her head. “No. But I think I know someone who might. Your Ancient One.”

“She’s not my Ancient One.” Asha snarked. “But anyway, how do I even go about finding her? I don’t even know her name.”

“Tell me about your visions.”

Asha’s fingers softly toyed with the belt pouch where the stone sat. She could feel it softly vibrating. “It’s a battlefield, torn bare. She’s dressed in a dark robe, and ravens fly overhead. But that’s it. All she says is come find her.”

“There is one possibility.” Chalese mused. “But you will need to be much stronger to attempt it.”

She stood, looking off to the South. There, the lands disappeared into mist. Asha stood as well. “What is that?”

“In your world, it is the lands of the plains and desert. Keep going and you reach the sea. But here, they are the Outer Lands. The Beginning. No one who goes there survives. No spirit anyway. But others I have met here have said they believe it is the home of the gods. And probably the Ancient Ones.”

“How do I go there?” Asha asked, exasperated. “Kill myself? Kind of seems to defeat the purpose. Anyway, you said no spirit can go there.”

Chalese chewed on her lip, a nervous habit she must have had even as a child. “I know. But I believe you can.”

She looked up at Asha. “The Ancient One came to you. Protected you and the village. I believe that if anyone can break the barrier, she will allow you.”

“Again, what do I do? Go walk over there?”

“In a way.” Chalese took a deep breath. “But your spirit is not strong enough to walk that far. In the Golden Lands, time and space are not the same as they are on the physical plain. You could walk for a year here and never leave this village. It takes focus and vision to break free and travel. I can barely do it.”

Asha huffed. “That’s great. What am I supposed to do? I don’t think the demons are going to give me time to grow that old.”

“Watch it.” Chalese glared at her. “I’m still powerful enough to smite your spirit. But as for experience, maybe there’s a shortcut.”

“What’s that?”

“If in the physical realm you go to the south, it might bring you physically closer to the barrier in this world. Then it would just be a matter of getting through it.”

“Oh, is that all?”

“Look, I’m not saying it’s going to be easy. I originally wanted to find you just to help continue your training.” She looked back over to the North. “But the tale you told tells me that we don’t have that kind of time. Not if we are going to stop the complete destruction of all of our worlds.”

“Tell me what to do.”

Chalese sighed. “I can’t do that. Because the biggest tool you need is one that only you can develop.”

She stared somberly at Asha. The younger woman felt her insides grow cold. “My father.”

“Not just him, but yes. You need to face your own demons. You need to take control of the village. Of yourself. You need to believe in your own power. Every shaman has a seed of power within them. You have already been tapping into it, starting to feel the energies of the universe around you. The river. The rocks. The ravens. It’s how you made it here. The more we grow that seed, the more powerful and connected we become.”

She continued, “But our seeds do not grow out of some spell or magical stone. It is us tapping into the power, believing in our power, believing in our truth. Our reason for being. You asked before why one would give themselves to the demons? Because they are a shortcut to that power. But the true power can only be unleashed through true confidence.”

“Confidence in myself?” Asha huffed. She thought back to the cave and gave an odd smile. “Maybe I already started finding that.”

“How’s that?”

“I told Tiera that I would break the tradition. That if Tiran or another challenged my father, I would not let her and her children be thrown out of the village.”

Chalese was silent, and for a moment Asha thought she had offended her former mentor with her taboo thought. But finally Chalese just smiled, an odd twinkle in her eye. “That’s my girl. I knew you had it in you.”

“What? You agree with me?”

“I’ve been waiting for someone to challenge that stupid rule. Wasn’t even the will of the gods. Just stuffy chiefs not wanting to have to deal with rivals. I thought I’d have to when your mother died, but fortunately the ravens chose you first.” She sniffed, nodding approvingly. “I think you’ll be okay. But it will take more than just having an idea to find your true power.”

Asha looked at her hand, feeling the burning of the gem from the morning. “It’s not easy being touched by Fate, is it?”

Chalese barked a laugh. “No, my dear. It is not. But I told you. I knew you had power and potential. I would have picked you, even if the ravens had not. I won’t sugar it, you are in for a hard road. I will try to guide you as I can, but I’m afraid that this is a road you alone must figure out how to walk.”

Asha sighed, and closed her eyes. When she opened them, the world had sharpened again. Chalese was gone. Asha looked around wildly, wondering what she had done wrong. But after a few breaths she realized that she had already stayed too long in the spirit realm. Any longer and she would have risked not coming back to her body. Chalese had merely sensed her approaching the limit, and let her go.

You will have to get a lot stronger.

Asha stood and started walking back to the village, consumed with the upcoming battle with her father. She was so lost in thought, she almost didn’t see Preen stalking up to her.

The woman’s eyes were hard. “What are you doing out of bed?”

Asha couldn’t help but bark a laugh at the woman’s seriousness, which seemed to offend her even more. Asha tried to stifle her laughter but it was hard. The small, petite woman who was generally very easy going and sweet was now so fierce, like a tiny weasel going into battle. It was that thought, that gave Asha an idea. As long as I’m breaking one tradition, might as well break a few more.

“I was going to speak to Tiran about something. But Tonka got to me first. Tiera requested my presence.”

Preen’s face was still tight, but she tried to take a breath, remembering that she was speaking to the shaman of the village and not her patient. “You were out for a week and you’ve barely had anything to eat. You shouldn’t be running about, summons from the queen or no.”

Asha smiled. Truth was after all the walking and her dive into the Dream Lands, she was starting to feel tired, and her stomach grumbled about that stew and broth that she’d never drank. “How about this? Answer me one question and then I’ll go back to bed.”

“What’s that?”

“Would you be my apprentice?”

It was Preen’s turn to laugh, but quickly looked confused as she saw Asha’s somber face. “You’re serious? But I’ve been married. I’m older. I’m. . .”

“Perfect for what I need. We both know this village is going to have a hard time taking me seriously. For one, I barely started my own apprenticeship, and I shouldn’t have been taking over for many years yet. The second problem is my relationship to my father. Too many still see me as his failed daughter. The only chip I have right now is that I apparently saved the village, although Tonka is trying her best to twist that too.”

“Which is why you need someone traditional. Someone the village will accept. I’m an Outsider.” Preen was snatching at her skirt, twisting it in her hand in her nervousness.

“Which is why I want you.” Asha took a deep breath. “We both know there are big changes coming to the village.”

Preen caught on. “Your father. He’s sure to be challenged.”

“It’s what Tiera called me about. She asked to not be put out.”

Preen chewed on her lip. “But the gods. . .”

“Don’t care about that rule. That was something man created, in order to wield power.” Asha sighed, her eyes suddenly starting to hurt. I guess I’m more tired than I thought. Or maybe it’s just the thought of the gigantic storm that’s coming. “The truth is, I’m going to stand up for her. And while I’m breaking that tradition, I might as well break a few others.”

“So that’s why you want me, shock value?”

“No. I want you because you’re steady, you’re knowledgable about the healing arts, and you understand how to do what needs to be done. That’s who I need behind me. And yes, you are an Outsider. But I need someone with a view outside of this village. Outside of the drama. Because like it or not, that’s all I’ve known. Now I need knowledge, and with Chalese in the Golden Lands, I can use all the help in this realm that I can get.”

The other woman was looking down at her feet.

Asha was nervous. The more she talked, the more she knew she was right. If she was going to survive the coming storm, she needed a fighter at her side. “What do you say?”

Preen just laughed and shook her head, but as she raised it Asha caught the twinkle in her eye. “You are a strange shaman. But I am with you. Now will you get back to bed and rest?”

Asha laughed. The coming days were certainly going to be interesting.