Night Falls: Chapter One

Every night at midnight, the purple clouds came out to dance with the blushing sky.

“Those are the spirits of our ancestors,” Alewen whispered, pointing up to the faint amber hues that set brightly against the sparkling sky.

“If you look closely—the clouds are almost alight—crystalline shades of fuchsia, wild orange, autumn velvet, radiant peach and polar crimson; all the magnificent colors of our spirits, our souls and our flowering minds. No two colors are the same—heirs of the Sun Leprechauns, Hygrids, Firbeards, and Sharpstumps— those of us who’ve passed over to the other side.”

Merith paused curious to the new sights. Back home she'd only ever seen the clouds as they mirrored off the lake—"so you mean to tell me each day whoever dies go up into the skies in purple, hazy clouds…”

“Yes my dear, like fireflies—souls from all over the world float up to meet the moon and soar with the clouds on their way to heaven.” Alewen continued; a proud smile on her face as she watched miles and miles of clouds soar high above.

“But only when it’s your time,” Alewen added carefully. “You hope to die before night falls or else you might get stuck waiting in the in-between…”

“She’s right,” Aiduin interrupted, “but for those of us who live in the Underburrows it’s a wondrous sight to behold.” Aiduin—normally observant and quiet was bordering on annoying—boisterous even, bouncing off the walls as he tried catching the purplish dust in his hands. He was a Luehorn, hailing from a long line of misfit Grimmons to be exact—pale, short in stature and covered in rupturing green boils. Aiduin was not the most attractive or exciting of the group but he was the only one left of his kind.

“It’s a tribute pendant— for my collection, I capture bits of the clouds in here,” he shouted excitedly over the dull roar of nearby creatures—mostly striped beetle-mantinoids, garden spiders the size of a small hand, and an assortment of varying creepy-crawlies that hummed, whistled and chirped as they rustled in the leaves.

“Contrary to what everyone else thinks about me and my studies of the clouds, I’m trying to see if can identify who they were or were they come from. Advances in Science have come a long, long way but I'm hoping to carve my own mark. Besides, the clouds look magnificent, absolutely stunning under the right scope—swirling and swimming in all the cosmic ashes.”

“I’m not surprised,” Alewen murmured, interrupting—“he knows how much I get bothered by his studies but it’s no doubt definitely a work of art regardless. He hangs the tribute pendants in the windows of his studio when he's done and they shimmer like dozens of jewels. Of course, I think it’s dangerous to interrupt their journey as the spirits Passover. Never know if you might separate some poor soul by capturing pieces of the clouds but he persists anyways…”

Merith smiled nervously. She was new to the group. Her short red hair snaked up around her ears and she wore large oversized glasses to cover a smattering of mysterious orbs that peppered her skin. Today was no exception; she tried her best to hide as the freckles lit up like unruly constellations smoldering from the sun on the apples of her cheeks, rivaling even that of the wondrous display above.

“Your face,” Aiduin croaked, jumping over a withering log, quickly pulling a jewelers loupe from his waistcoat to examine Merith's skin closely.

“I’d appreciate it if you’d not—“ Merith grunted, swatting Aiduin from her vicinity as he stepped back, a look of stunned confusion on his face.

“I’m not one of your clouds you can prod and poke and inspect.”

“Right, so sorry Merith, I wasn’t trying to offend you…” Aiduin stammered, his lips pursed uncomfortably and he bowed his head.

"I'm supposed to be in the water...to make sure the stars shine...hint why my face looks like this. How am I supposed to do that here?" She mused aloud—"what'd you say this place was again, the Underburrows? Never heard of it before."

"Wait...you're a Hygrid aren't you..." Aiduin called out, even more excitedly than before.

"I knew it...I knew it...I'd recognize those marks anywhere...well, never met one on land before but still..."

"Aiduin, don't pry," Alewen hissed, "keep your voice down, you know better, don't want to excite the others...they'll have a lot of questions mind you."

"Questions?" Merith queried, but it was too late. A light rumbling came from beneath their feet as the soft dirt shook and roots began to upturn sending them scrambling for cover.