Heavenfall: Ascension of a Primal Hunter - #6 - Welcome to the Haven

First Chapter - Second Chapter - Third Chapter - Fourth Chapter - Fifth Chapter - Next Chapter (Royal Road)

The days passed, as did the great storm above. Thorn lay in his tent, staring up and thinking about tomorrow: the time to depart.

Everything happened so quickly—so suddenly.

He thought about the Chief's words in an attempt to piece together the big picture, but all he got out of it were more questions.

The Chief told Thorn he flew, but if he didn't see it himself, feel it himself, experience it consciously, did he fly?

Was it so amazing?

Did the world have such grand secrets and grand history that seemed so impossible in comparison? Did it have something to do with his dreams?

Thorn pressed his hands against his face and groaned. It was too much. Everything suddenly became complicated—he had to leave the village and tribe, go who knows how far into the wilderness with the Sage he'd only ever seen at a distance, and what came after, he didn't even know.

The Chief was trustworthy. Thorn knew that much, but even then, he couldn't help but gaze at the peak of the tent, envisioning the stars above.

Gradually, he drifted asleep. This time, the dreams avoided him. As the storms drifted away, and so, too, did the monsters that plagued Thorn's sleep.

Before the dawn horns blared, the Chief and Sage came to Thorn's tent and awoke the boy.

"It's time, kid. Your life's about to change drastically, but remember to be brave and honor our tribe out there," the Chief said to the melancholic Thorn.

He then added, "But, just remember, Thorn, once you reach the haven, you're not at home anymore. That means you don't need to hold yourself back for the sake of proving yourself to anyone over there. Fear is a poison. Once you show it, they'll suck you dry until nothing remains. So stand strong and be firm, my boy."

Thorn nodded. The atmosphere weighed on him as a line of tears slid down his cheeks. "I understand, Chief... I'll show them our tribe doesn't raise any cowards," he said through choked, stifled sobs.

The Chief ruffled the boy's hair and sent him on his way. It was time for the baby bird to fly from its nest because the skies were far too grand for the little tree it nested in to remain the only tree it knew.

The three left the tent, and Thorn couldn't help but wonder, "Chief, won't the Sage leaving be an issue for the village? Who will perform the morning ceremonies?"

Footsteps and laughter echoed softly as several figures appeared, all resembling the Sage's cowled form from top to bottom.

"You have nothing to worry about, kid. The village is safe," the nine sages voiced simultaneously.

Thorn's eyes widened. "What the? How is that possible?"

"The truth is..." the Sage spoke, seriousness lacing his aged voice. "It's a secret," he said, laughing nine times over. The eight sages who showed up vanished just as quickly, and only the original remained.

"Now, time for you to go," the Chief said. "Protect him well, Fox."

"I know, Alder," the Sage waved him off. "He's a precious seed. I'd be foolish not to nurture him well."

The Sage, Fox, waved his hand and surrounded Thorn in a transparent energy that pulled the boy behind him. "We'll be quicker this way, kid. Bare with me."

Forceful winds rippled around the two like a vortex of power, and the Sage lifted into the air, silent and instant. Quickly, they passed the village's palisades and ascended into the clouds, leaving the village grounds and the territory they called home.

As they left, one of the tents opened, and a youth stepped out, his gaze penetrating the clouds. Briar smiled and turned to the Chief. "Will he reach the stars? It's been a long time since our territory had some hope," he said in a hushed whisper that seemingly moved through the air and into the Chief's ears.

"I believe he can."

The two exchanged a knowing glance and separated.

To say that Thorn's journey was an eventful one would be a deceitful tale—although to say that it was uneventful would be equally false.

The boy who had never stepped foot out of the tribe's sprawling territory finally had a chance to see a world greater than his mind could grasp. Vast landscapes of shifting violet hues, grassy plains of turbid greens and rotting reds, trees that blotted out the sun, and seas that spanned the horizon no matter how much time passed.

The Sage's protection was supreme. Shielded and protected and atrociously powerful beyond what Thorn knew possible. Colossal creatures appeared one after another throughout the journey, yet each time, the Sage would either avoid them with such ease and grace one would think he'd journeyed the world countless times. Or, he'd simply kill.

Yes, despite the peace. More often than not, the Sage would snap his fingers, and a beast would vanish into a bloodied pulp before Thorn could even see what had happened. To the boy, it was a wonder that far surpassed his dreams, even with the grand and mystical scope they achieved.

As such, it was a strange journey; the time passed by—a fleeting moment within a moment, a fragmented moment that spanned four months—an eventful, uneventful moment filled with nothing and something.

Finally, the two reached an island far beyond the horizon. Jagged stretches of icebergs prodded out from the sea, impaling outward from the vast landmass that stood fortified within the center. Each one was several times larger than the village palisades and far sharper and more lethal looking.

Bloodied crimson splotches accentuated several of the prodding spears of ice, painting an explicit image of a ferocious defense.

Thorn gazed out in awe, but his moment didn't last long before the Sage opened his mouth and spoke, "Elder Fox of the White Alderwood Tribe requests an audience with the Primeval Hunter Council! I bring with me a seed who has resonated with the Primal World!"

A sequence of horns thundered from the isolated island in the sea.

One strike. Two strikes. Three strikes.

Each strike rippled the waters surrounding the land and caused the clouds to swirl above.

Several figures appeared in the sky above the island. Some winged. Others were standing on foggy mists and corporeal plants that hovered aloft.

Each existed in a shrouded form, their images hidden beyond a layer of smoke.

One stepped forward and spoke, "Elder Fox—This is inappropriate. Barging into the haven uninvited is treacherous."

"Bullshit!"

The Sage raised his voice and blared, "There is no crime of treason when it involves the Children of the Sky! The boy is a seedling who meets the criteria! You will take him and nurture him as per the Primeval Tome's Commandments!"

"Dare ignore the call, and it is you who is committing treachery. This fact, I shall stake my name upon."

The shrouded figures stood silently, energy swirling in strange and mystifying ways.

"As you wish," a different figure said, their voice a commanding tone that surpassed the previous figure's attempt at judgment.

"Welcome to the haven."

"Precious child; may the sky truly bless you as the Elder claims it to be."

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