Before the Beginning: Chapter 1

Diaus:

              It was early morning. Mist still lay low over the valley and only the very first few rays of sunlight warmed the distant mountains. Birds chirped their morning tunes and the crickets and frogs slowly fell silent.

              The sky was still a soft dove-gray, but pink and gold bloomed on the horizon and haloed the rising sun. The air was cold but held promise of a fair-weathered afternoon. The scent of new life colored the breeze as it stirred the grass.

              August stood at the top of the hill. Shadowed by the massive tree that grew out from the new Home, sunlight dappled his shoulders and eased the night’s lingering chill.

              It was still hard to picture, and yet, when he looked, the image was almost as clear as the dawn. Before his paws, the ground sloped downward, the grass growing taller the further it got from the hill’s summit. Two young beings chased each other across the dew-covered field, peals of laughter ringing out like the chiming of bells.

              They were stryx, at least for now. There were so many plans, so much potential locked away in the both of them, and August couldn’t help but smile as he watched the smaller flop onto the damp grass and giggle as if she’d just heard the greatest joke in the world.

              Kii and Friday were humanoid at the moment, but that wouldn’t last. They had so much potential. They could be anything.

              For now, they would be stryx.

              Friday paused in running when he noticed his playmate remained on the ground. He returned to Kii’s side and impatiently gestured for her to get up and continue their game.

              The grass beneath their feet was green, though that was harder to picture than the rest of the scene. Beyond the gently rolling slopes, the trees were re-growing  the leaves they’d dropped during the summer, and flowers were beginning to bloom. Soon, the entire landscape would be covered in thick layers of cherry blossoms. August didn’t even know where they came from (were these trees cherry blossom trees?) but he looked forward to the sight.

              Mostly, he looked forward to the spring.

              Technically, it had already begun. The frost had melted and the stryx had lost their winter plumage a month ago. The weather was warming and the days were growing longer, spring officially overtaking winter’s chill for the year.

              Maybe it was his own rattled brain, but August felt like he only just then noticed the way everything was coming back. The green, the life, the sun, the warmth. It was all returning, and the future days looked so much brighter.

              He was pulled from his thoughts by a shrill whistle. When August turned to look, Agate was standing in the doorway of the Home, one hand on her hip as she joined him in the shade.

              “It’s cold,” she complained.

              “Morning tends to be,” August agreed. Not that he had much more experience, dealing with the early chill. Despite his best efforts, he too leaned more toward the shadows of night.

              So did Kii. Actually, August was pretty impressed that she was up at all, let alone letting Friday coax her into another round of tag.

              “Let’s get this show on the road,” Agate said before August could get lost in his thoughts again. She stretched her arms over her head and whistled again.

              Below, the two stryx stopped mid-game and turned to look up toward the tree. Eyes lit up and Kii gave a friendly chirping noise. Friday was silent, though he looked just as happy to be summoned.

              The young stryx shifted forms on their way to greet their companions. Feathers fluffed up against the cold, and claws sunk into the soft ground.

              “Long time no see, huh?” August greeted as Kii affectionately butted her head into his chest. Not even entirely full grown and she stood so much taller than he was. He couldn’t help but mourn the loss of the days when she was small enough to sit in his lap without threatening to break bones, but the feeling passed as he scratched behind her ears. So much was happening, and her future was only just beginning. It was hard not to smile in the face of that.

              “Where are we doing this?” Agate asked as she similarly greeted Friday. His welcome was a bit calmer, though he looked equally eager to get going. At least he didn’t bowl Agate over. It wouldn’t be hard; Friday was bigger than Kii and Agate was even smaller than August.

              “A cliffside would be traditional,” August replied thoughtfully.

              “Yeah, but I’m not trekking all the way to the Major Mountains,” Agate told him. She squinted at the horizon. The sun was steadily rising higher, warm rays glinting off her mismatched eyes. “Think it would count if we just have them start here?”

              August glanced back to the Home. “I think so? I’ve seen stranger allowances.”

              “’Allowances’,” Agate echoed with a snort. She gently pushed away from Friday’s affectionate head-butting and stepped around to his side. Before the tyto had time to crouch, Agate leaped up and situated herself between his shoulders. “The hill covers the shop floor,” she said, already directing Friday over to the base of the hill. “The drop over the storefront isn’t insignificant, and these two are small. It’s close enough to a cliff for me.”

              “Fine,” August relented with a grin. He gave Kii’s head a pat and then took hold of the thick feathers of her neck to lead her after Friday. “By the way, this thing starts with a race, remember?”

              “yeah?”

              “A race on foot.”

              “Oh right.”

              The two stryx and riders paused at the base of the hill. Really, given his height and just how steep the far side was, it really did look like a cliff that led to a sheer drop at the top.

              “Ready?” Agate said. She had both feet on the ground and leaned forward. Despite the somewhat unique configuration of her legs, she was able to run just as well on four legs as two. August still found it ingenious as design decisions went.

              “Been ready for a while,” he replied and copied her stance. Running on two legs was well and good, but he needed all four if he had any hope of keeping up with two energetic stryx.

              Agate grinned, sharp fangs glinting in the morning light. “Go!”

              It felt a bit unfair that she was the one to call the start, but whatever.

August threw himself forward with all his strength. The ground, damp in the shadow of the hill, was damp and soft, his paws sinking into the grass as he raced his counterpart up the slope. The wind pressed his mane away from his eyes and the cold air stung his nose.

The two stryx ran ahead, racing each other more than their riders. Their legs were so much longer and they both had so much energy (Friday especially. The morning was his element).

August managed to whistle a polite reminder that the two were expected to catch him and Agate when they leaped off the hill’s edge.

Kii and Friday made no acknowledgement that they’d heard him, which wasn’t promising. Still, when the ground evened out and the sun’s rays landed fully on August’s face, he hurled himself into the open air.

With the light as bright as it was, he could hardly be sure that anyone was going to catch him, and there was a brief moment in time where he hung suspended, unsure if he was going to hit the ground or not.

Then he smashed face first into a wall of thick fluffy feathers. August sank into the dark plumage and, holding on for dear life as Kii unfolded her wings and took off. The two were so close to the ground that the white-speckled tips of her wings brushed the grass before rising again.

Wind roared in August’s ears, deafening him to everything except Kii’s breathing and his own heartbeat. Blinded by the sunlight before him, he kept his eyed on his stryx. Her feathers were pressed close to her body by the wind, the bright glow at the base of her neck nearly obscured by the dark feathers above the nokt marks.

A shadow passed overhead as Friday overtook the two. His wings were nearly as silent as he was, the only evidence of his presence being the downdraft his wings created.

The ground receded as the stryx climbed higher. The air grew icy and thin and Kii screeched with glee. Friday made no audible reply, but it was safe to say he was just as enthusiastic about the quick ascension.

Kii finally banked in a wide arc, bringing her around to face the north. Home lay at the center of the valley and was surrounded by forest and then, distantly, mountains on all sides. From where they were, the frosted peaks were just barely visible through the clouds.

Sight restored, August looked to find Agate and Friday just ahead of him and Kii. The pale tyto’s tailtip flicked just a few feet away from Kii’s beak and she playfully snapped at it as the two raced each other through the morning.

Despite her much smaller wings, Kii flitted past the larger tyto, her whip-like tail smacking him in the face as she went.

The two flew like that for a long while, taking turns leading and following, too evenly matched to declare a definite winner. Not that either seemed to really care, and August found that he didn’t either. The chase, the wind, the sky; it was enough.

Eventually, their flight evened out, slowing from a high-speed chase to a more leisurely competition.

Agate twisted around from her perch between Friday’s shoulders and offered a feral smile that stretched nearly ear to ear.

August returned her smile, and for a moment, everything was okay. No, more than that, things were good. The world faded away, the fluffy clouds reflecting the glow of the sun. Pink and gold overtook the paler colors of the sky and the world below was illuminated by the light in a way August felt like he’d forgotten it could.

Breathless with the infinite possibilities that filled his chest, August gave the command to dive. The two stryx had gone far enough for the Diaus tribute (not to mention the fact that Friday and Kii would compete forever if allowed).

The two tytos folded their wings and raced each other down to where the Glow Forest overtook the plains. The branches grew so close together that they completely obscured whatever lay beneath. Even in dawn’s shadow, the signature glow of the trees’ fruit was hidden from view.

Just as well. Friday and Kii weren’t here to pick fruit anyhow.

There was a single gap in the branches, just big enough for a very small stryx to slip through without getting hurt. August directed Kii over to it, and she shot through without hesitation.

Wind disturbed leaves and branches, the sound crackling through August’s ears as the treetops overtook them. Behind him, Agate had Friday followed close, the paler tyto right on Kii’s heels.

Then the world was plunged into darkness.

Galyx:

Kii’s glow burned bright against the shadows, illuminating the dark as she sank down through the branches. The trees of the Glow Forest grew so close and the branches interwove themselves so tightly that only a single beam of light managed to cut through the gap. The rest of the forest was a lattice of vines and branches, the ground masked in shadow below.

Morning light slipped through the tiny gaps in the canopy above, bright pinpricks of pink and gold against inky black. The air was thick with the smell of dew and early air. Still in the shadows and cut off from the rising sun, the forest was cold, breath coming as tiny clouds of condensation before being whisked away by the breeze. Birds sang their morning tunes beyond the trees, but none dared enter the shadows.

Kii gave an enthusiastic chirp as she dove lower, and August ducked low over her neck to avoid losing his ears to the branches above.

Behind them, Friday trailed after his counterpart. His wings were as silent as the air itself, flashes of white in the darkness. As the two tytos flew, he pulled on ahead, pale feathers standing out even in the low light.

Agate crouched between the pale stryx’s shoulders, sharp fangs gleaming in the dim light as she grinned.

Friday was a good bird with a gentle heart. He had a love for all things that grew and lived and displayed a remarkable sense of both charity and mercy whenever given the opportunity. There was no reason for him to be as good a hunter as he was.

However, Agate taught him well. She molded him herself from egg to being, and painted the colors of the sunset into his feathers. She was the one who made him a beacon of light despite the darkness that made up his core. She had plans for him, August knew.

As for hunting, Agate taught Friday herself.

A whistle rang through the air and Agate leaned forward, so low over Friday’s neck that the smaller wings on his head nearly obscured her face. The order to hunt had been given, and the softhearted tyto was suddenly transformed into a silent omen of death.

Kii followed close behind the flickering tip of Friday’s tail, knowing better than to get in his way when he was on the hunt. Not that the smaller tyto was a bad hunter, but August passed over hunting when it came to her training.

Signs of spring crept into the forest as well, glowing flower buds scattered across the tender shoots of new grass. Both managed to grow, even thrive, despite the lack of light. The stiff black leaves of the uppermost branches were evergreen (more like everblack), but smaller, brighter leaves began to unfurl along the ends, new growth spreading their reach even further. Raindrops glittered, reflecting Kii’s nokt as she passed. The clouds had lifted and the rains passed, but only a few days before.

Friday was a silent creature (August wasn’t sure if it was by character or design), so it was only when Kii gave a particularly enthusiastic screech when August realized he’s found something.

Lamplings were small raptor-like creatures with round bulbous heads that shine bright enough to blind someone should you look directly at it. A small group of them hissed and squeaked furiously when the tytos drew close. The long fins around their heads flashed in warning, framing their bright faces, and skinny twig legs flailed as they ran, snapping at each other as they went.

Friday swooped down, long legs stretched before him and hooked talons gleaming in the lampling’s light. August watched until the tyto’s heart-shaped tailfeathers blocked both claws and prey. When Friday unfolded his wings again, a light had been snuffed out, and a lampling’s limp body was clutched in his claws.

August nodded his approval at Agate and she cackled in a mix of pride and exhilaration. Their prey caught, she urged Friday forward. The forest wrapped around the fields, enclosing the area within a wall of darkness. Ahead, light began slipping between the gaps in the trees, revealing the edge of Home.

Not one to be outdone, Kii folded her wings and dove, following the remaining lamplings as they made a beeline for the break in the trees. Her own glowing marks shone steadily brighter until August was squinting against the haze of turquoise that threatened to blind him. His front paws held fast to the thick feathers before him. He couldn’t see when she caught her chosen prey, but he heard her muffled squeak of triumph when she did.

The rest of the lamplings made their escape as the tytos burst from the trees, their prizes held aloft as trophies, evidence of what they’d accomplished, evidence of their time in the Core coming to an end.

The sun was up properly by the time the stryx escaped the reach of the shadows, and once free, Kii flew on ahead. Proud of her victory over the lamplings, she ascended with her back to the sun, trophy clutched tightly in her jaws.

Friday followed, and their game of tag was renewed, though this version was a bit slower than the first. They rose and dived, banked and arced, lazily chasing each other through the clouds until Agate and August decided to cut short their game and prepare for the night’s proceedings.

They landed in the field they’d played in earlier. The grass was dry and warm from the sun, and the sweet smell of it filled the air.

The lamplings fell to the ground, each with a soft thud, and the two ketters followed. Friday and Kii stood beside their respective kills, both waiting for the Masters’ appraisal.

“Clean kills,” August decided after a quick inspection.

“Of course,” Agate told him. She reached up to touch Friday’s beak. “I trained him.”

“I was referring to both.”

“You taught Kii well too.” Agate dropped her hand and took a step back. Addressing the stryx, she said “You two did well. Go get some rest before tonight.”

If Friday and Kii noticed the heavy note in her voice, neither acknowledged it. The two picked up their respective kills and ran off to enjoy their meal. They were young and carefree, happily darting back down the slope and chasing each other across the field.

When they were out of hearing range, Agate looked to her counterpart.

“Do we know what we’re doing?” she asked.

“Of course not,” August replied. “But we know better than we did before.”

Agate gave a slow nod. “They both have quite a journey before them.”

“They do.”

The two stood at the crest of the hill for a while longer, watching the stryx eat and then laze about in the grass. August was glad they were doing so. After all, they only had until the night.

Nokt:

              The day had been chosen specifically for the night. The sun sank beneath the horizon, darkness fell, and the valley was touched to silver by the full moon. The bats had long since taken off on their nightly voyage and the frogs and crickets were singing. Sweet spring grass waved gently in the breeze, looking almost like a wave as it covered the hills. Petals from distant cherry blossoms floated across the sky.

              August was pretty sure they didn’t have any cherry blossom trees in the Core (not yet, anyways) but decided not to question it. The Core did what it wanted, and apparently it wanted cherry blossom petals to dance across the star-filled sky.

              Friday and Kii stood at the top of the hill, which served as the roof to August and Agate’s establishment. Their claws kneaded the earth as they waited, impatient to be off.

              “So, after tonight –” August began, if just to break the tense quiet. Energy crackled through the air.

              “Let’s just do this,” Agate interrupted. She leaped up between Friday’s shoulders, using a firm grip on his feathers to keep herself steady. “You ready?”

              Kii answered for him, giving a cheerful shriek before shoving her head into August’s chest. The impact was nearly hard enough to wind him. When he reflexively grabbed onto the longer feathers on her neck, she must have taken it as a sign to continue. The tyto didn’t pause for a moment to throw herself off the ledge and into the air.

              August yelped, arms looping around Kii’s neck and holding on for dear life as his feet dangled over empty air.

              “You were supposed to wait!” He shouted, but the wind snatched his voice away as the two ascended.

              At least she seemed to realize her mistake. Kii folded her wings and fell a few yards, the sudden shift in direction putting August’s body above hers. It was only for a moment, but long enough for him to situate himself on her back.

              Her wings unfolded and caught the air, jerking them upwards once more.

              Behind them, Friday and Agate were having more success. Without a similar accident marring their takeoff, the two hovered nearby, watching the ordeal unfold. Agate was laughing, and though he didn’t make a sound, Friday looked equally amused.

              “I thought we were gonna do the jumping together!” Agate joked as Kii flew to join her and Friday.

              “That wasn’t exactly planned!” August shouted back.

              She laughed again and then turned her face to the moon.

              August looked too, and for a moment, time stopped. Silvery blue light covered the ground below like a blanket. Up that high, the air was thin and cold, smelling of water and ozone. The cherry blossom petals were below them, unable to reach such heights. The few clouds that lazily drifted through the sky were also beneath the two stryx, their silvery topsides reflecting the moonlight so well they almost seemed to glow.

              It was beautiful.

              “Hey,” came Agate’s voice. She must’ve been partially using telepathy, because there was no way August would’ve heard her without it.

              “Yeah?”

              “You ready?”

              August took a deep breath. Beneath him, Kii was patiently letting him catch his breath, but anticipation radiated off every feather. She was a nocturnal being of the night, and despite the busy day the group had already had, she was just as full of energy as when the sun had risen.

              Though expressing it in a slightly more subdued way, Friday was equally excited to get on with the night’s event. His wings beat as even and silent as ever, but the small wings on his head flapped madly in an attempt to expel some of the excess energy.

              August very carefully let go of Kii’s feathers and got to his feet. His own wings unfolded and flapped a few times to keep balance, hind claws sinking into Kii’s plumage in an attempt to hang on.

              Across from them, Agate did the same, standing on Friday’s back. The tyto held steady, waiting for his Master’s command or move.

              A moment’s pause.

              Then August leaped forward.

              As if she’d already known exactly what he was going to do and when, Agate jumped at the same time. The two sailed toward each other coming close enough to touch if they wished. For a heartbeat, they hung, suspended in air at the peak of their arcs. Then gravity returned, and the two fell.

              Below them, the tytos surged forward, charging toward each other. Agate landed on Kii’s back, and August landed on Friday’s. Rather than standing, he ducked down low and held on tight. The two stryx came very close to hitting each other head on, turning at the very last moment. Despite the roar of the wind, August could hear the whisper of their primaries brushing.

              Friday and Kii wheeled around to face each other once more. This time, when they charged each other, they flew up to avoid collision. Their wings beat in perfect sync as the two rose, bodies so close they couldn’t even lock talons for fear of accidentally clawing the other.

              When the air turned frigid and the atmosphere was so thin, August almost felt like he was already floating in space, the stryx parted, tipping backwards in a loop. Wind rushed all around, pressing feathers close to the body and forcing the Masters to stay low and hold on tight. The stryx continued to dive, paths completing the loop and bringing them back to a more manageable altitude.

              Their paths were about to cross again, but August and Agate didn’t have time to stand. When the two tytos were close enough, they simply let go. Being heavier (and not having as much influence over the Core’s physics), the stryx continued to plummet even as their Masters were left behind, falling at a slightly slower rate.

              August looked across to his counterpart, and Agate stared back. Her orange and yellow eyes burned bright as fire against the night.

So much had changed, even just within that day, and no one knew it more than they did. The past, the future, and the two were falling through the layers in between. The World was in their hands, welcome to the transformation that took place, the change that was to come.

              Time sped up as the moment passed. Below, the ground was rushing toward the two ketters.

              Just beneath their feet, Friday and Kii crossed each other again, wings flaring out as soon as they were out of the other’s range. Their dive turned into another climb, the stryx catching their respective Masters on the way up.

              Kii’s feathers were warm and bright beneath August’s paws as he held on, the wind tearing away thought and sound. Across from them, Agate and Friday mirrored the move, rising again toward the full moon.

              By then, the moon was at its zenith, blazing a cold silver and shedding blue light across the valley below. A billion stars glittered well out of reach, and August wondered if each could be a story. Of course it could, but even more importantly, he wanted to be the one to write them.

              Agate looked like she was similarly distracted and in her head. She stared up at the sky as August did, though her expression suggested a darker route of thought. She leaned down close to Friday and gripped his feathers tight.

              As the night slowly wound down and the moon began to set, the two stryx circled each other more slowly, wings held calmer as they glided on warm updrafts that suddenly drifted through. The dance was done, the tributes made, and a new choice would be offered.

              The moon was beginning to dip below the horizon when Kii finally touched down. The sky was as black as ink and would soon be growing lighter.

              Despite her earlier enthusiasm, Kii stumbled a bit when she landed. She was breathing near as hard as August was.

              Friday looked equally exhausted as he came to a running stop on the hill they’d jumped off of that morning. He took a moment to catch his breath before leaning down and unceremoniously dumping Agate onto the ground.

              “I guess I can let that slide,” she huffed as she got to her feet.

              August hopped down from Kii’s back. His knees buckled as soon as he hit the ground, still feeling like he was flying even with solid ground beneath him.

              Addressing the stryx, Agate continued “You guys did very well today, and we’re proud of you both.”

              Kii gave a happy chirp and nudged August’s shoulder so hard he nearly fell over again.

              Friday gave a happy nod, though he knew better than to do the same with Agate.

              “Go get some sleep,” August said, scratching behind Kii’s ears. “You’ve both earned it. We all have.”

              With the sky slowly beginning to lighten, the stryx did so, trotting off into the tall grass to find a place to spend the night.

              After all of the activity, August desperately wanted to follow their lead and figure out a sleeping space in the new Home. However, he and Agate still had work to do.

              “Have our plans changed?” she asked once the stryx were out of sight.

              “Maybe,” August replied. They did, of course, but he hadn’t decided how yet. There were still so many possibilities, even within the new parameters.

              “How about I make some tea,” Agate suggested. “Let’s talk about all this.”

              August nodded and watched as she turned toward Home. He wasn’t sure how to envision it.

              However, either way, there was no rush. The night would last as long as the two remained undecided.