BEFORE
Where It All Began
For eons, the Stars made their beds in the ink-black sky, looking down as cities were built across the lands, and all manner of living creatures began inhabiting them. When the Stars grew bored, some would play wicked games on those below, turning cities to rubble and dust, just to see who would survive.
It went on like this, until one Star decided she was sick of being an observer. She’d seen the world below crash, burn, rebuild and repeat too many times and decided that with the power she possessed she could help these creatures instead.
But to Fall would be to give up her immortality; she would have to relinquish her celestial body and take on a humanoid form. To Fall would mean to never again see the world from above. However, her gentle heart couldn’t stomach the ache of witnessing endless suffering any longer. She wished to use her power to help the creatures below, to bestow them with gifts like her own so their sicknesses might heal faster, offering them a longer life and filling their hearts with hope.
This sacrifice would be mighty and isolating. So, before she fell, Opalus – the Star of hope, optimism and passion, and the creator of the sea, lakes and rivers – convinced three of her brothers to Fall with her.
Obsidianus – the Star of protection and shields, and the creator of shadows and night – was next. Unable to let his sister Fall alone, he followed her down, for she was the light to his darkness. Created in the same inky pocket of the sky, they never strayed from one another. In the sky they shone side by side, and Obsidianus planned to do the same in their new realms.
Achates – the Star of clarity and intuition, and the creator of the wind that filled the sky – was the third to Fall. He observed what his siblings had done with keen eyes, watching as they carved out their own areas and began building civilisations where they were revered.
Finally, the fourth Star, Molochitis – the Star of growth, risk and love, and the creator of fire – Fell. He loved all his siblings with ferocity and quickly began to love the creatures that flocked to his side as well. Molochitis became willing to protect them with his life. He followed in his siblings’ footsteps, hoping to create a world that thrived and remained prosperous.
Opalus encouraged her brothers to do as she did and bestow gifts to the creatures they found. Achates was not a jealous Star, but a tactical one. He had seen the horrors such a world could endure, and he had decided the gifts he’d bestow onto his creatures would enhance their minds. He believed if they were intelligent and strategic, they could rule their worlds rather than be crushed beneath them.
Molochitis bestowed courage and bravery to his creatures, inspiring them to take risks and most of all, love. In battle they had to be brave, or they would die afraid, which in his eyes was no way to die at all. The only fate worse was to die with no purpose. So, he gave them love, in hopes that having something to fight for would make them stronger, quicker, more resilient.
Obsidianus decided to gift his favourite creatures with protection, not only from physical attacks, but fromanythreat. He ensured that his creatures could not die at all.
For years, the Stars went on, teaching their creatures how to harness their abilities. To create a new way of life and nurture a realm where they grew and prospered. Until, one day, Achates called them to his side of the world. He missed his siblings and had been without them for too long.
‘Brothers and Sister, come. I have created a place where we can all live harmoniously together again. Let us combine our worlds. Bring your creatures; offer them sanctuary here among others like them and watch as they thrive.’
The Stars were together once more. They lived harmoniously, enveloped in the power they brought to their new home, basking in the glory that was their success, until one Star began to pull away from the others. Slowly a rivalry began to fester among them. Jealousy, spite and betrayal became their true downfall, and they succumbed to the same tragedies they Fell to prevent. The four Stars died with hatred in their ancient hearts. Left behind were not just those the Stars had infused with their magic to carry on their legacy, but a war that would continue for hundreds of years.
ONE
The wooden door looks one storm away from falling off its hinges. As I knock softly, I hear a bone-rattling cough inside and my back stiffens.
He’s getting worse.
My gloved fingers find the satchel at my hip; I toy with the little button and hop side to side to keep the blood flowing through my body. The snow isn’t too bad today, but the crisp wind bites at my nose and the apples of my cheeks like icy pinpricks. My lips are burning and chapped and even through my thick coat, I feel the cold seeping into my bones.
This is my final delivery of the day, and I saved it for last so I could take my time getting home. It’s midafternoon and my father should be home by now, so the longer I’m out, the better.
I’ve been making deliveries for my mother for the past two years. She retired as a healer in the war when I was a child, to homeschool my brother and me. My father on the other hand, while he has served for over the requisite fifteen years, probably won’t stop working until he physically cannot walk, move or heal a single thing.
The rattling cough sounds once more, making me wince. The medicine in my satchel feels heavier somehow, and I start to get fidgety wondering if I should knock again, when suddenly, I hear footsteps approaching just before the door swings inward. As it does, a warm plume of air hits my face.
Corvin’s lanky frame causes his head to almost brush the top of the doorframe, which is just as withered and cracked as the door he holds open. His familiar black wool hat covers the hair he keeps short for work. He joined his father in the mines at fifteen, and it only took him one day to cut his hair off once he realised how filthy it got down there.
Despite the dark circles beneath his eyes, they light up when he sees me, and a warm sensation fills me as I look at my friend.
‘Quick,’ he gestures for me to come in. ‘Get your ass inside before your toes fall off.’
‘Hello to you too,’ I half-heartedly tease but find myself rushing forward to escape the cold. My body shivers in response to the sudden temperature change as I’m wrapped in the warmth emanating from the fireplace.
I stamp my boots on the scratchy floor mat, watching melting snow fall from them, then turn just in time to find Corvin poking his head outside to scan the murky landscape. He looks left, then right, before twisting to face me. The door shuts quietly behind him.
‘Where’s your carriage?’
‘My father took it for some urgent meeting with the council this morning.’
His brows dip. ‘So you decided to walk? It’s freezing out there!’
