Chapter One

    The bushes rustled and Merle flinched. He grabbed at something beneath the collar of his shirt and gripped it tightly. He waited to see if it would move again and soon they did. Something was trying to make its way through the branches. 

    Merle wanted to shout out, but a voice came to him across the evening darkness, "Gah! The thorns got in me shirt!"

    Merle took a deep sigh of relief, he knew the voice, "Do yeh need a hand?"

    The voice grumbled back, "Nah, I'll be fine. Keep spinning that rabbit."

    Merle laughed and scooted closer to the fire. There was a a spitted rabbit which was dripping grease into the flames. The smell was probably reaching the noses of all the nearby animals, but there was no need to worry. Merle's stomach growled as fat dripped and popped on one of the logs. 

    The movement in the bushes stopped and Merle could hear footfalls making their way to him. He looked up and saw a tall, lanky man making his way to him. He wore wire framed glasses and his hair had been attempted to be tamed to cover a small bald spot on his head. A pair of well-worn overalls were worn over a green shirt that was sun-faded nearly to brown. The man was looking at the sleeve of his shirt making worried remarks to himself.

    "Is it mendable?" asked Merle.

    "Aye. It will be once we finish this job."

    Merle nodded and spun the rabbit slowly, making sure to get the underside of their prey properly cooked. The last thing that either of them wanted was worms or some other sort of parasite. They had both been given food poisoning before from ill cooked meats and they learned their lesson quickly. Now their meats were closer to burnt than under-cooked. Merle swallowed a mouthful of saliva and heard his stomach rumble again. 

    "Buck, we got any more greens?"

    The man called Buck turned to Merle, he was still fussing over his torn shirt, "Uh... I'll check the caravan."

    "Check for stones too!" Shouted Merle as he picked up a stick to poke the cooking meat, he wagered that it should be done soon, by the tenderness of the rabbit.

    "Yeah, yeah! I know!"

    Merle could hear the groan of Buck's weight shifting the caravan's bed. One of the mules whinnied as it felt the large object move behind it. They were well trained and rarely needed to be tethered to anything solid. Buck could be heard shushing the beast of burden. Shuffling and the movement of goods soon started from the direction of their caravan, Merle had a feeling that their food stores were nearly out. They had a horrible habit of doing too many jobs and not spending enough time on things like mending clothes, eating properly or even visiting their families. 

    "Someone's gotta do the job..." Merle said quietly to himself, wondering how his wife and two children were doing back at home.

    Merle looked up at the sky and watched the stars and clouds above. The sky was a deep violet color and the stars shone bright enough to even twinkle behind some of the thin clouds. A quiet, yet warm breeze came from the south. Merle took a mental note of them and wondered if they could be storm clouds. He would have to ask Buck when he returned. 

    "Merle," Buck said, as he came out of the darkness and up to the fire, "All that I found was a cabbage."

    Merle looked at it and saw that it was only a day or so away from spoiling. He shrugged and told Buck to split it in half for the two of them. It was better to eat the food, rather having it go to waste. They were often paid with little frequency, but they were always paid well. They did a great service for the city of Skeigr, the towns of Margua and even to some of the forest and mountain tribes around Koli and Trevver. They had even been talking about possibly moving their services to the old ruins of Osnigoth, but that would have to wait until their current circuit was finished. They only had two more month, before they could switch with the others.

    Buck tried to break the cabbage with his bare hands, but his fingers were long and thin like he was and they only ended up taking off a few leaves. Merle laughed and Buck's reddened face was visible even against the fire light. Buck threw a leaf at Merle, who was too busy to catch it, as he spun the rabbit. 

    "Just use a knife, yeh dolt." Merle said still laughing.

    "I don't have one! Give me yers." Buck said holding out a hand. 

    Merle huffed as he took a knife from his belt with his free hand. It came out of it's leather sheath soundlessly. He tossed it to Buck, but far enough away from his companion so it did not skewer his leg. Buck still jerked to the side, making sure the knife landed no where near his person. 

    "Careful!" Buck screamed clutching the cabbage hard enough to himself that another few leaves detached. 

    Merle laughed again and returned to cooking their meal.

    In silence they prepared their dinner. 

    Buck sawed the cabbage in half wondering if his mother and father were still in good health and if their farm's crop was ready for harvest. Merle absentmindedly spun the rabbit as he thought about his two girls and how they were doing without him.

    With the meat cooked and the cabbage butchered in two nearly equal halves the two of them ate. Each took a leg off the rabbit and began to eat ravenously. They had not eaten since the morning and they were famished. The meat tore in their teeth and the cabbage was a nice refreshing crunch to the main course. 

    With a mouthful of food Merle asked, "How many stones do we have?"

    Buck swallowed a large piece of meat and crispy skin, "Last count... I think seven."

    Merle clicked his teeth, "Is it me or are we getting less?"

    Buck shrugged and began to eat again, "It happens. Yeh can't control it."

    Merle nodded and finished his cabbage and rabbit.

    The two them sat content around the fire after they had both finished their meal. They left a little meat for breakfast in the morning. One of the donkey's brayed loudly. Buck leaned back against a nearby tree. Merle looked up at the sky and noticed the clouds passing over the stars again. He remembered he wanted to ask Buck his thoughts on the weather. 

    "Do you think those are enough fer rain?" Merle asked pointing to the sky.

    Buck looked at them quickly and without much interest, "Does it matter?"

    Merle gave him a look to show his exasperation, "It does when we only have seven. Give me the bag."

    Buck groaned and rolled to his side. He took a small leather pouch from his pocket and tossed it to Merle. The pouched landed on Merle's lap and he could hear the stones clacking together inside. He opened it up and poured them into his hand. Small shimmering stones fell out in a torrent, no larger than apricots. They were of different sizes, but most were nearly tear drop shaped. They were the same color violet of the night sky and swirls of pink, mauve and white swirled beneath the surface of the stones. 

    "There are only six..." Merle said, "I thought you said there were seven."

    Buck was lying with his back against a tree breathing heavily.

    "Buck?" Merle asked, but his friend was sleeping. 

    "Good fer nothing..." Merle said to himself as he put the stones into the pouch and then the pouch into his pocket. 

    He wanted to check the caravan for himself and make sure Buck had gotten all of the stones. He groaned as he stood up and walked past his friend, who was now snoring quietly. Merle could see some of the rabbit on Buck's chin and he could smell it as well. 

    He laughed to himself and wondered if a small animal may try to lick it off his face as he slept. 

    Merle walked to the carriage in darkness, stopping occasionally to have his eyes adjust to the night. Soon he could see the carriage, small and covered. It was large enough for the two of them to ride on, along with enough space to keep provisions for themselves, the donkeys and their trade. Merle was behind the caravan and placed a foot on a foothold to boost himself into it.

    Both donkey's cried suddenly, making Merle jump and slam his shin into the wooden side. 

    "Quiet!" Merle said sternly to the animals, "Yah going to put me to an early grave."

    With his heart pounding and shin throbbing he climbed into the carriage. There was a dull purple light that filled the cabin, which was just enough to make one's eyes see the shapes in the night. The light came from a large stone that hung from the carriage's covering. It was nearly the size of a keg of ale. The colors of this stone matched those of the smaller that were inside the pouch in Merle's pocket. They swirled more violently in the larger stone. It was secured by a large metal chain and cuff that was clamped onto the top of the stone and to the roof of the caravan. The bottom was wrapped in old linens and burlap and a small bucket lay in the middle of the cloth pile. The rest of the caravan was filled with empty boxes and papers of calculations and drawings, but none could be read in the darkness.

    The donkeys shrieked again this time trying to pull the caravan with it. Luckily, Merle and Buck had secured it to not move, but they pulled it hard enough to shake the caravan and Merle in it. He fell to the ground and heard some clang into the bucket. He looked inside and saw a small glowing purple stone.

    "Now, we got seven." Merle said as he picked it up.

    The donkeys were now heehawing and still trying to pull the caravan. It kept swaying back and forth as they tried to move. making the caravan feel like a boat. Merle felt his skin prickle. He held the stone tightly in his hand. Something was out there.

    "Damn, animals." Merle said searching for a weapon to use, "I swear if I have to use one of these..."

    He found a long plank of wood and held it in his right hand as he held the stone in his left. The stone was starting to become warmer than his skin, but not unpleasantly. He stumbled out of the caravan and quickly made his way to the front to confront the loud donkeys. They were still screaming and kicking wildly as they tried to escape from the caravan. He tried to place his hand on the haunch of one, but it kicked out at him and he barely dodged in time.

    "Calm down. Shhh. Calm!" Merle said loudly, "Hey, Buck! I need some help!"

    Suddenly the donkeys began to shiver in fear and no longer kick and bray. They were scared of something and Merle knew if they were this scared he should be too. He ran back to the campfire, which seemed to be not as bright as it had before. The fire was still high, but the shadows seemed to be creeping closer to the flames.

    "Buck! Something's out here. We need to go..." Merle said, but as he grew closer to the fire he noticed a shape over the remains of the rabbit.

    It was larger than a dog and Merle could not see its features, but he thought it looked like a mountain lion. The shadows kept him from seeing the details of the animal and he could not even guess the color of it, but for some reason his mind told him black. It had not noticed him.

    He took careful steps to his friend who was still leaning against the tree sleeping. He poked at his friend hard with the wood plank trying to rouse him from sleep.

    "Buck!" hissed Merle.

    Buck's body slumped to the ground and the pool of blood grew underneath him as his opened throat drained into the dirt. Merle gasped, but made no more noise. He looked back up to the cat-like creature that was eating the rabbit.

    It was no longer eating the rabbit. It was hunched ready to attack Merle.

    Merle dropped his wooden plank and with his newly freed hand grabbed at something beneath the collar of his shirt. It was a necklace with a tear shaped stone inlaid in it. This stone had a soft, warm red light that came from it, but his hand closed around it. It warmed his hand quickly and suddenly the fire next to Merle doubled in size.

    The shadows around the fire shrank away momentarily and the cat-like creature backed off as well. That was when Merle noticed it for the first time. The creature had no features. It had no visible mouth or eyes and it was indeed black.

    "No..." Merle said realizing what he was seeing was impossible.

    The fire suddenly died down again and Merle ran to the caravan. He needed to get back to it. He would be safer there. Clouds were quickly rolling in above him and thunder could be heard in the distance. The scent of rain was thick in the wind.

    "Come on, come on, come on!" Merle said feeling the stone beginning to grow hot in his left hand. He was no longer holding his necklace in the other.

    Lightning flared in the sky and illuminated Merle's surroundings.

    He heard something animal-like shriek behind him. He did not spare the time to look behind himself. He needed to get to the caravan and the donkeys.

    Lightning flashed again and Merle could see that the caravan was in front of him and that the donkeys were no longer there. His palm pulsed with heat and his forearm tingled all the way to his bicep. Another streak of lightning showed that the donkeys were still attached to the caravan, except they were lying on the ground. It also showed Merle that something bigger than his caravan was standing over them.

    Its neck and body were long and its front arms were holding the donkeys down. Merle could not be certain if they were dead or not, but he would have wagered them gone. Attached to the neck was a slender head which swiveled towards Merle.

    His hand grew hot with a burning sensation and a bolt of lightning crashed from the sky and at the large figure. It roared as it was struck and the head turned away from Merle. A smell of ozone and burnt flesh filled the night. Merle darted to the caravan even though the large creature was feet away from it.

    It will be my only chance, he said to himself, as he felt the heat from his hand being replaced with icy cold.

    He threw the stone on the ground and reached into the leather pouch in his pocket and took out another. He climbed into the caravan as another bolt of lightning came crashing down on the creature. It roared again and Merle could hear other creatures scurrying away and screaming in the night.

    "I need it!" Merle screamed as he lurched for the large stone that was being supported in the caravan.

    A large clawed hand suddenly tore through the caravan as if it were nothing more than paper and the purple stone went cartwheeling away from him into the darkness. Merle stared into the slender head's purple eyes and saw that its body would have been larger if it was not halfway into the earth. He clenched on the stone in his hand and felt it heat up again.

    Something swift came up behind him and raked across his back. He screamed in pain and felt himself drop the stone he was holding. He collapsed to the wooden floor of he caravan and watched a black cat-like figure stand in front of him. The larger of the two creatures went after the large stone and Merle could see its body was now larger than before. It had a hunched back and its powerful legs kicked off the ground as if it were trying to leap into the air. It grabbed the stone in its front arms and he watched in horror as it began to breathe fire onto the stone. The fire lit up the area and he could see what the creature was.

    "Im-Impossible..." Merle whispered to himself.

    Large shafts of light broke free from the stone and the fire-breathing creature began to sink back into the earth. The fire stopped and Merle's eyes were blind to the darkness, but there were still the shafts of light coming from the stone. They were multiplying and suddenly it exploded. The noise was deafening.He could see that the large creature was gone and there was a crater where the stone and creature were last.

    "No..." Merle said quietly and as he did he felt the hot breath of the cat-like creature on the back of his neck.

    Merle felt the heat of the necklace on his skin as the jaws of the creature sank into his neck.