The Mountain's Lullaby

Rajaelin ran through the bright, celebrating village, darting around people and pretending not to notice or care when they hissed as they recognized her red hair. The villagers had shunned her since she was seven years old; when her hair changed from brown to red and her eyes from hazel to gold.

She stopped in front of one of the many shops with bright drapes and curtains decorating the outside. The sharp smell of spices drifted out through the opened curtains. Raja slipped inside and looked around the dim interior. The shop was lined wall to wall with racks of spices, and more shelves sat in the middle.

As she wandered toward the rows of salts, the store owner caught sight of her. She grabbed the salt she’d been looking for and headed to the counter. She pulled out a small sack and made sure the coins inside rattled a little. People usually gave her less trouble once she showed she was willing to pay, especially since today was the summer solstice. The woman only frowned deeper at the bag of money.

“How much for the salt?” Raja asked tentatively as she set it on the counter.

“Get out,” the woman barked at her.

“Wh-what?” Raja was shocked. It had been a long time since someone had outright refused her money.

“I won’t sell my good spices to filth like you.” The woman seemed to get angrier as she continued. “Now, get out of my shop!” She slammed her fist on the table.

Leaving the salt on the counter, Raja turned and sprinted out of the shop.

Raja ran all the way out of town to the cliffs by the sea. Clutching her gold and red stone necklace, she sat with her legs dangling over the edge, sea spray flecking her bare feet, until her heart slowed. She sat until the lullaby reached her on the wind. The voice that sang it was deep, so unlike any of the village men.

She turned and stared at the village. She’d never felt at home here, at least not since the fire when she was seven. The fire that had burned the cottage down around her. It burned her too, though the flames didn't hurt as they should have. Even as she watched it flicker on her hands.

It burned away the brown in her hair, leaving it a bright red. It burned away her sun-kissed skin, leaving it pale no matter how long she sat in the sun. And, it burned away her hazel eyes, leaving them a bright gold. It burned away everything she thought she was until Takin, her adopted father, pulled from the flames.

They'd never learned what started it, which seemed to scare people as much as the fire itself. And made them fear her all the more. The child who should have never survived. The child who was pulled from the house with clothes, skin, and hair burning, but not a single burn marred her skin after.

The lullaby came to her again, driving away the dark memories. It sounded so full of love. Right there, Raja decided to find him, find her father and any other family she might have out there.

She ran to the little cottage on the hill outside town. Slipping silently inside she gathered a bag together. Packing mostly trousers instead of the light skirts she usually wore. She left out shoes. No sense in packing any when she hardly wore them to begin with. Once she gathered a pack of food, Raja left a note telling Tala and Kadin she was leaving. She’d miss them. They were some of the only ones who had stuck by her after that fire. The only ones who didn’t shudder with fear when they saw her.

She walked towards the mountain and left the little village of Telace behind her.

Three weeks had passed since Rajaelin had left Telace. She’d been crossing the island stopping at any inns and taverns she could, desperately searching, though she didn’t know what for exactly. Though it was still early, Raja decided to spend the night at Tinwa Goose Inn. The accompanying tavern was supposedly famous for its roasted goose.

She approached the inn keeper trying to keep her eyes down. She hoped the dim lighting would conceal her hair. Though this wouldn’t be the first inn she’d been thrown out of.

“Single bed, one night please,” Raja asked.

“So, another one stops in,” The inn keeper drawled.

Raja tried not flinch and looked up at the man.

“Always wondered why he went to the coast every two years on the solstice.”

Raja blinked, “Excuse me, sir, are you saying a man like me stays here.”

“Didn’t I just say that? The man travels through the week before the solstice heading to the coast and the week after the solstice heading up the mountain. Been doing it for nigh on fifteen years now.” The man pulled out a key.

“The solstice was three weeks ago. Did he come this year?” Raja asked trying not to seem too interested.

“Yup. Passed through two weeks ago heading for the mountain.” He handed her the key. “That’ll be fifteen coppers.”

“Do you know his name?” Raja asked as she set the money down. She could’ve sworn that lullaby wove around her.

“Shikazu.”

Three days later, Rajaelin was studying her stone pendant as she hiked up the mountain. The golden heart had always seemed unnaturally bright, but now it seemed to glow. The red had always made it appear to be on fire, but now, she could’ve sworn there was fire hidden inside. The lullaby wove around her once more. She couldn’t get his name out of her head. Shikazu. It seemed so foreign and familiar.

Raja paused as voices reached her up ahead. She tucked her pendant into her blouse and held her knapsack a little tighter. She rounded the corner to see three men setting up a campfire to cook their lunch. The youngest of them noticed her standing in the shadows first.

“Hello ma’am,” he called drawing the others` attention to her.

She remained in the shadows to hide her hair as she responded. “Hello. Sorry to disturb you.”

“No need,” the oldest man said. His eyes wrinkled as he smiled. “Come join us by the fire. We’ve got plenty of extra rabbit meat.”

Raja hesitated but stepped toward the fire as her stomach growled.

The middle-aged man tensed as he got a good look at her. “Another one,” he muttered.

Raja stared him down with her gold eyes. She was tired of backing down all the time. He shifted uncomfortably under her stare.

The old man handed her a stick with a slab of rabbit meat on it. “Don’t mind Galin. He’s a superstitious fool.”

“I don’t,” Raja said matter-of-a-factly. “I’ve lived with the likes of him my whole life.”

“Really?” The young man asked. “You don’t live with the rest of ‘em?”

Raja stopped mid bite. “The rest of them?”

“Yup. Supposedly there’s a whole city of you people living inside the volcano here.”

Raja stared up a Mount Kimanajo. It had been dormant for centuries. People could live there she realized.

Galin’s father gave her a warm look, the first she’d had in days. “You’ve been looking for them haven’t you.”

Raja nodded and pulled out her pendant. She rubbed its smooth surface.

“A familial stone,” the old said.

Raja glanced at him. “You seem to know a lot about these people.”

He paused. “My father was one, but I got my mother’s looks, so they refused to let me live among them. A tip lady, go home. Those people aren’t what you expect.” he warned her.

“I have to go. Just tell me how to get there.”

The old man had been right. Rajaelin had been more than a little surprised when she’d seen the great gates with fire phoenixes carved into the stone around them. No one had been guarding the gate, though with the city kept so secret she supposed they didn’t need one. As she followed the path down into the volcano, the sunlight became dim, and strange lanterns lit the path.

As Raja reached the outskirts of the city, she noticed people working outside on the streets. All of them had bright red hair and pale skin. She walked into the city looking for signs telling her what the place was called and found nothing. A tall man wearing what appeared to be armor appeared in front of her.

"Follow me," he said and turned around. He paused only long enough to see if she listened. For a moment, Raja debated ignoring him, but decided she didn't want to wander alone.

People stared at her as she walked past. Each one was unique, but all shared her skin, hair, and eyes.

They approached a large building near the center of the city. The man stopped just inside the doors. The entryway was grande and ornate doors stood closed at the far end of the room.

"Wait here," he said and waved his hand to the chairs along the wall.

Not knowing what else to do, Raja sat and waited.

It seemed forever before the guard returned. "The Dronthki will see you now." He said as he lead her to the giant doors at the other end of the entryway. The doors opened to reveal a man adorned in robes of gold and ivory silk sitting on a red throne.

"Welcome, young traveler." The man said, his deep voice echoing through the large room. "I am Dronthki Trinond, leader of the Adamond people."

Raja stared in awe of his presence. "I- I am Rajaelin," She stammered.

"I know who you are, Rajaelin Lejand daughter of Shikazu Nanki adopted by Tala and Kadin Lejand." He snapped his fingers and two guards escorted and man in. The man's golden eyes widened at the sight of her.

"I am glad you've joined us here. I'm sure your father is excited to meet you," Trinond smiled.

Shikazu Nanki, her father. He was here. Right in front of her. Her necklace seemed to warm at her chest, and the lullaby enveloped her.

"Why is she here?" Shikazu asked. His voice was deep, but cold.

"I came to find you," Raja said before the Dronthki could reply. Both men turned to face her.

"I left the village almost a month ago to find my birth family," Raja explained as she stepped toward her father.

"You should have stayed," Shikazu snapped. Raja looked down at her feet. Then she started singing. The light melody wove around her as she softly sang what she remembered of the lullaby. When she finally stopped singing, her eyes stung with tears.

"I'm surprised you remember that." Her father said as emotionless as ever. "Your grandfather sang that to keep you quiet when we left you by that village." With those words, the ground seemed to shatter under her feet.

"We left you in that village because you didn't fit in here. With your looks as a child, you were quite normal," he said as if she was nothing and nobody. "It's too bad really. Had you been born as you are now, you'd have been considered quite beautiful here. But since your blood came through because of a fire and not the solstice as is usual…" he trailed off with a shrug. "I suppose if you hang around long enough the people might accept you eventually."

Raja took a shuddering breath and glared at her father, "No. I will not live with people who decided to abandon a child because she looked different. The village may have shunned me, but at least my family didn't cast me aside for something I couldn't control. So, no, I will not live here because, while you may be my father, you are not my dad." With that, Rajaelin turned and left the great underground city. She would return home and show the villagers she was a person, not a bad omen. She'd make her own place in the village, beside her family, the people who loved her.