Stargazer: Chapter 4

Chapter Four



The next morning Serena was woken by Jade, who was gently nudging her limp body with her snout. For a moment, Serena had forgotten the events from the day before and screamed, forgetting who Jade was. Mid-way through the scream, all of the memories came rushing back. Sound no longer flowed from her mouth, yet her heart beat rapidly from her fright.

Suddenly a piercing pain shot through her head. Serena grasped her head in her hands and fell to the grass, shaking with pain. Jade stood nearby, watching Serena roll on the grass and cry out. She knew the pains were fierce, but Serena needed to feel them. She wanted to help, but there was nothing she could do.

Finally, after what seemed like hours - but was really only a few minutes - the pain eased. It had not completely stopped, but it was enough that Serena could open her eyes and loosen her grip on her head. She had been beaten before, the scars still lay across her back, but that pain felt like a tickle compared to what she had just experienced. Her head had felt as if it were going to burst, and she had wanted to detach it from her body to make it stop. She had never known pain until now.

“What’s wrong with me …” She whispered to herself while dragging her fingers through the grass. She stared blankly ahead at nothing in particular as the last of the pain ebbed away and her focus returned. Jade’s sensitive ears heard what Serena had whispered to herself moments before and she began to explain.

“You looked at the stars, didn’t you?” She asked gently. Serena fought through the last of the pain, trying to remember the minutes before she slept.

“Yeah … I think I did,” she answered. She was still in a slight daze.

“And did you see anything?” Jade inquired.

Now that the pain was gone, Serena was beginning to remember what happened the night before. The images came rushing back to her like a stream rushing to the wide ocean.

“Yeah, I did. I looked at them, fell asleep, and had a dream. It was the most realistic dream since I dreamt about the King unleashing dragons. Which turned out to be true …” The last sentence was spoken to herself. She thought it was weird, how her dream had come true. It couldn’t be a coincidence, could it?

Her thoughts were interrupted by Jade who perked up and jumped towards her. “What did you see?” She growled impatiently. Her feathers were rustling, something Serena had noticed happened when she was angry or impatient.

“I dreamt about a boy. It was back at the palace, and there were dragons. Four of them. One dragon, a red one, I think, was being chased by two others. The red dragon and the boy managed to escape, and that’s where it ended.” Serena was having difficulty remembering the details of her dream.

Jade took a few steps away from Serena. “A boy? This was not part of the plan …” She murmured to herself. She paced the ground in front of Serena, lost in thought, feathers rustling once more. Serena waited for Jade to explain what was happening, but the explanation never came.

“What’s going on?” She asked out loud. Jade nearly jumped, as if she had forgotten Serena was there. She paced the ground a moment longer before stopping to speak.

“Serena, remember last night when I talked to you about destiny?” Serena nodded. “One cannot escape their destiny, no matter how hard they may try to change the path of their life. You destiny will find a way to take place.”

Serena didn't understand what Jade was trying to tell her. But Jade had not yet finished, so Serena waited patiently as Jade continued. “Serena, you are something far greater than you could have ever imagined. You are a Stargazer.”

The words Jade spoke hit Serena with great force. How could she be a Stargazer? There were few Stargazers mentioned in the Legends of Tarnyk, four in total, two of which were not human. Serena knew little of Stargazers, only that they were closely related to sorcerers, but more powerful, being able to create magic out of nothing but thoughts. Stargazers were able to control the power of the elements.

At first, Serena did not believe Jade. Surely, she must be dreaming, for there was no way she could possibly be a Stargazer. But the more she thought about it, the clearer it became that she was a Stargazer. Stargazers were identified by their ability to predict the future by seeing visions in the stars. Her “dreams” had been visions, and that is why they had become reality.

“But how …” Was all she managed to say.

“You were chosen to be a Stargazer. From the moment you were born, the magic has flowed through your veins. You cannot avoid it, for it is who you are. Serena, you have a great power, and you must choose to make the right choices with it. I can train you, for I am also a Stargazer and know some secrets of magic.”

Serena was still having difficulty believing everything, and she knew it would be a day or two until she fully accepted her new life. It seemed so much to take in so suddenly. She would have never guessed that she could be something as great as a Stargazer.

Serena stared down at her hands. Now that she knew the truth about herself, she could feel the tingling sensation that was the magic flowing through her body. She held the power of the stars in her hands, and it was up to her to decide how to use it. Earth, fire, wind and water, they were all at her command.

“You are one too?” She asked Jade. Jade nodded. This must be an extremely rare occurrence, as there have never been two living Stargazers at one time in any of the Legends, Serena thought.

“Yes,” Jade answered, “though I am not as capable as you to use magic. It is a complicated matter, but I can tell you that it has something to do with me being a dragon, and you being a human. Any Stargazer of my species is telepathic due to our great knowledge, while Stargazers of your species excel in magic.”

“You can teach me how to work the magic?” Serena asked excitedly. She had always loved tales of magic. Sometimes, when she was a young child, she would run around the palace pretending to be a sorceress from Legends until someone would find her and send her to bed. Who knew her simple games would turn into something so real?

“I can teach you the basics of magic, but most of the magic you will have to learn yourself. It will come to you naturally.”

Serena wanted to start learning the tricks of magic right away. But before she could say anything about it, Jade opened her mouth to speak again.

“But we will not start with magic so soon. You are young, and magic drains power quickly. You must learn slowly, or you may drain your body of too much energy and die.”

“Die?” Serena whispered. She should have known that being able to use magic would come with a consequence. But death? As long as she was careful with the magic, she would not run out of energy and die. She would have to learn to monitor her use.

“How is your head feeling?” Jade asked. Serena had nearly forgotten about the pain that had shot through her head less than an hour before. With all of the talk of being a Stargazer and magic, every other thought in her mind had not seemed as important.

“Oh, it’s fine now,” She replied, waving her hands over the dew-covered blades of grass. A steady breeze blew over the plains and through the trees. It blew the white, fluffy clouds through the clear skies with ease, and overhead a flock of birds flew through the air. It was a fine day.

“You may have to get used to them. Stargazers are known to have piercing pains the morning after their visions. But you shall survive. After a while they begin to weaken until they are nothing more than a migraine.”

Serena winced at the thought of more pain. “So last night, that dream I had was actually a vision? When will it come true? Why did I see it? What does it mean?” Serena had so many questions, everything was so new to her.

“I do not know. A Stargazer may have great powers, but those powers are limited. Your vision is likely to happen in the near future, but there is no way to know. It also may not happen exactly as you saw. As for why you saw it, and what it means, there is no answer. A Stargazer could see anything, at anytime.”

Serena was overwhelmed by everything. She did not know that a Stargazer's powers were limited, everything was so much more complicated than she had thought. She wished Jade would explain more, but Jade had become focused on something else. Her ears were perked and her feathers were rustling as she looked to the south.

“Serena, get on my back,” She said, not moving out of her position.

“What’s happening?” Serena asked. Jade’s sudden change of mood worried her.

“Get on my back!” Jade growled ferociously. Serena did as she was told. She did not want to disobey a dragon.

Once on Jade’s back, the memories of her first flight came back and she was consumed by dizziness. She didn’t think she would be able to handle another flight so soon.

“Jade!” she called out. She could hear her voice becoming weak already. Jade must have also heard it.

“I will not fly, but we must go for I sense we are being followed. Hold on tight!”

Serena barely had time to grab onto one of Jade’s spines before she shot off with her back legs at great speed. Jade ran faster than any animal on the island, using the strength from her powerful back legs to propel her forward. Serena looked back to see the grass torn up in spots where Jade’s claws had gripped the soil and torn away the ground as she pushed herself ahead. Serena knew Jade would prefer to fly, but because she could not yet handle flight, they had to settle for the next fastest option - running.

The scenery flew past them as Jade rushed on, and Serena had not felt sick at all. They had been running for over half an hour now, and their old camp had been left far behind them. Jade began feeling confident, and spread her wings out to both sides. Serena’s heart began racing as Jade’s wings caught the wind and they began to rise off the ground.

Jade pulled her tired legs close to her body, lifting them completely off the ground. They were now speeding faster over the land, being held just over a tail-length into the air by Jade’s light, feathered wings. Serena was relieved when Jade did not climb higher.

Miles behind them, a group of soldiers were just arriving upon the remains of Serena and Jade’s camp from the night before. One of the men held up his hand and ordered them to stop. He then lowered himself off his large black horse onto the ground where he inspected the bones of a large animal lying over blood-stained grass.

It was a fresh kill. He knew this by looking at the blood-stained ground. Only a large creature could devour an animal this large, and on further inspection he could see marks where large teeth had scratched the bone. The only creature large enough to do this would be a dragon. They were on the right path.

The man got back on his horse and signalled for the others to follow him. About two dozen armed men on horses followed him over the hill and into the plains which lay before them.

Jade had flown for a few hours or more now, and her wings were becoming sore. They were not accustomed to holding her massive body – as well as the body of a human – in the air for such a long time. It was becoming late afternoon, the sky was beginning to darken and shadows were growing longer. “Jade, you should rest soon!” Serena called out.

Jade slowed her flight so that she could land upon the ground gently. Even though they had travelled faster than any man or horse, Serena could sense Jade was not at ease with the distance put between them and their pursuers.

“Jade, please calm down. We have travelled far, there are many miles between us and them. Why won’t you rest?”

“I fear the risk of being captured. The King has sent his men after us, I felt their presence, I could sense their thoughts. It is only a matter of time before we are within their grasp.”

“Oh…” Serena had not known it was the King’s soldiers who were pursuing them. Now she understood the reason for Jade’s worry. “What do you think we should do?” She asked. Jade looked into the distance towards a cluster of lights that was a village.

“Tomorrow you shall go into the village. Find out as much as you can about the King’s plans and actions. I will be close if danger should arise. Do you have any coins?”

Out from under her dirty, torn dress, Serena pulled out her small maroon sack and shook it. The sound of coins jingling came from within it. Jade seemed pleased.

“Then you may wish to buy a weapon, if you have enough coins. There may come times when I cannot be there to help you, or magic may be useless. I want you to be armed if the worst should happen. You may also want to find new clothes, people may become suspicious of your attire.”

Serena nodded, agreeing with Jade’s plan. Together, they looked out onto the horizon, watching the village lights grow brighter as the sky darkened. Serena began thinking about her freedom; about how she now longer had to be a servant. She was a Stargazer, and she controlled the power of the elements. Just thinking about it made her heart beat faster.

As the night went on, the two were silent, and Serena found herself thinking about her father. Was he out there, on this very night, seeing the stars shine dimly through the clouds? She wished she could see him. Excitement rose inside of her as she realized that she could. She was free now, and able to do anything she wanted to. She decided she would make it her own little quest to find her father and show him what she had become.

The night had grown dark. Jade yawned, exposing her sharp, gleaming teeth. It was not long before she would be asleep. But Serena could not rest, her mind was still full of questions. She rolled onto her stomach and asked Jade to tell her more about Stargazers. Even though she was tired, Jade’s eyes lit up and she began.

“Stargazers were once not uncommon. Back in the days before the Legends took place, a Stargazer could be found in every other village or town one went to. The Stargazers were helpful to the villagers, and it was a great time for the island.

“Until one day, when a Stargazer who's name has been lost in time discovered he could use the magic for evil. Some liked his idea, and joined him. A great battle raged on between Stargazers of all species for many years until he was finally defeated. The island had been destroyed in the process, and as a result of the fight, few Stargazers were left. The remaining Stargazers spread to every corner of the island, and were never seen again.

“Now, you and I are the only Stargazers on the island. I do not know why we are what we are. Being a Stargazer is something that happens randomly, but it is our destiny. It is our responsibility to help the island with our visions we see in the stars. But we may only have a vision when every star in the sky is visible on that night, and not blocked by clouds. The visions usually come true in the near future, but the most powerful Stargazers can see ahead many years.

“The island is counting on us, Serena. A terrible force will soon destroy the island if we do not stop it. I felt your presence at the castle, I rescued you from certain death, and now I need you to help me. Are you sure you wish to continue?”

Serena thought for a moment. She loved being out here, exploring the wide open plains and the world she had never known existed. There was still so much more out there for her to explore. She loved being a Stargazer, and was looking forward to learning how to use the elements to her advantage. And her father was out there, she had to find him.

“Of course I do!” She answered. How could Jade think she didn’t want to continue?

Jade seemed relieved. “Very well then. Thank you, Serena. But for now we must rest, for it is getting late and tomorrow you will go into the village. If we have enough time before you go, I will try to teach you some simple tricks with magic to help if you get into some trouble.”

A smile grew on Serena’s face. Magic! She felt as if she couldn’t wait. If Jade wasn’t tired, she would have begged her to teach her magic at the very moment. But Jade had already closed her eyes, so Serena curled up beside Jade, feeling the heat that came from within her large body. The heat was soothing, and Serena soon found herself asleep.