Prologue

Situated between mountains and sea, Seattle shares the beauty of both. Laced with waterways, lochs and lakes, it is a fluid, ever changing city. The
sparkle of light and the shifting cloud shadows impress images on the air. The rich smell of green stands sentinel to prove life and growth. The ancient
mountains fire dance, a slow shifting dance, building and forming earth; a solid foundation creeping unseen to new shapes, new highs, new
lows.                                               

This is a city where old and new mingle and mix in intricate patterns; it is home to legends and stories, to sightings, predictions and portents. Seattle is, in
fact, home to more than is obvious to the lesser awareness of its mortal inhabitants. Otherlings, mystical, magical beings live undetected among and beside humans. Lives interwoven, warp and weft, building the universal tapestries of time.

There is a web which protects the Otherlings; a mask of mist and shadows, a veil of forgetfulness. Once upon a time that veil was torn. The symbiotic balance tipped, and the result could have heralded the end. The end of magic, whimsy, of the stories and joy provided by the Otherlings. Much strength is provided by this unseen world. Therein lies the texture, the warp to mankind’s weft, the depth and meaning. The loss to the human world would have been great, but for the courage of those who stepped into the rift.