Silverbirch; A Tear in the Fabric of the Night Sky

By Robert Kaay

By eating an extremely rare mushroom that has a red lightning bolt image naturally built-in to its black-gilled underbelly, Nudge discovers he can create a tear in the fabric of the night sky that will allow his soul to legally leave Earth and enter Silverbirch.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Robert Kaay
• Release date: Oct 30, 2009
• ISBN: 9780980687736

Robert Kaay

Robkaay is an Australian author and musician.www.robkaay.com

Book preview

SILVERBIRCH; A TEAR IN THE FABRIC OF THE NIGHT SKY

PART I by ROB KAAY

Copyright 2010 by Robkaay Publishing

Smashwords Edition

More stories available from robkaay.com

CHAPTER 1

I HATE THE RED LIGHTNING BOLT

You can only control a person when they are not in control of themselves. This is the most important rule.

When you’re drunk, on drugs, in a fit of rage or sleep deprived you do things you wouldn’t normally do. You’re not yourself and often have memory blackouts. You wake up and wonder where you are and how you got there.

Who is this person pointing a gun at me?

How did I end up in this position?

You’re told you did something bad to someone, but you can’t remember doing it. You said something you shouldn’t have. You started the fight but you don’t remember how.

Did you throw that punch or was someone else controlling you, making your mistakes.

It is not just a simple case of autopilot with no memory.

My hand is as red as her lipstick. It’s holding my shoulder, which is bleeding profusely due to a bullet that very recently passed through it. I’d be in terrible pain right now, if I wasn’t numb from my current disbelief that every little thing that has happened in my life has come down to this. Still, I’m pressing hard on the wound, hoping to prolong the inevitable.

Hayley is a tall and beautiful twenty-something brunette. She looks more like a model than a killer. She’s towering over me clenching a large smoking gun, which doesn’t suit her at all, and she’s staring straight into my eyes.

I know it’s not the real her.

Behind Hayley is an office table. On the table sits an empty bottle of Jack Daniels. Still pointing the gun at me she walks behind the table, opens one of the drawers and pulls out a small plastic bag. She drops the bag next to the empty bottle then resumes her position in front of the desk.

Hayley’s attention shifts to a huge shattered window behind me, where red velvet curtains are being sucked outside the building. We’re on the top floor of a ten-story office complex in Encino, Los Angeles.

I’ve been here once before.

The last thing I remember is the Silver woman on the edge of the cliff, pointing her finger at me . . . everything after that is a blank canvas. That’s what happens when you have a memory blackout, things change but you don’t remember why.

You’re going out that window, says Hayley, still aiming the gun directly at me.

She uses her free hand to pull a little mushroom out of the plastic bag on the table.

Eat this right now and then jump out of that fucking window, she barks again as she throws the mushroom at my chest.

I don’t budge and the mushroom hits the ground.

Noticing my lack of cooperation, Hayley squats in front of me and targets the gun at a part of my body that distinguishes me as a man.

I can smell the alcohol on her breath. If only I had a match I’d have an escape plan.

You wouldn’t happen to have any tic-tacs handy, would you? I say as I hold out my hand.

Hayley picks up the mushroom and places it neatly in my palm.

This is supposed to be your revenge, right, I say, as I study the mushroom.

Underneath the head of the mushroom, naturally built-in to its black-gilled underbelly, I notice the red lightning bolt.

I hate the red lightning bolt.

Trying to think of a way out of this mess I poke my tongue out and drop the mushroom in my mouth. I know what happens when you swallow one of these things so I push it into the side of my cheek.

You’re not a fucking hamster, she says. Swallow!

You can’t blame any one of us for what happened . . . you did it to yourself, I mumble, with the mushroom still floating around in my gob.

Hayley cocks the gun, which still doesn’t suit her.

I swallow the mushroom, the one with the red lightning bolt.

She says, Either way, you’re entering Silverbirch tonight so I can deal with you face to face. You can enter on your own once the mushroom kicks in or I’ll make sure your body is never buried after I shoot you in the head.

There’s a good reason you’re buried when you die.

My face tingles as the room begins to swirl.

She paces around the table for a few minutes and glances at me periodically, while-we-wait.

She looks more like a wax version of herself.

And then the mushroom kicks in.

Hayley looks as if she’s melting. Her lips are dripping like red paint down her body and legs until they blend in with her lipstick red high heels.

She backs away with an enormous grin that can’t be her own.

I feel euphoric, but not in a relaxed flying way, more like in a the-plane-is-about-to-crash kind of way.

I told you, I hate the red lightning bolt.

I don’t know if you’ve tried drugs before, but this is a different high, this high is not just brain altering, its soul shifting.

Another level.

Walk to the window, Nudge, says the melted version of her.

With my back still at the window I crawl to the table and use it to help get me to my feet.

How did you get her to drink the whole bottle? I ask.

I didn’t, she smiles, still melting. You did.

Nothing is clear to me. This doesn’t make much sense.

Who is this person pointing a gun at me?

How did I end up in this position?

This is exactly what a blackout feels like.

I turn to face the window. The room is warped and the red velvet curtains almost seem alive. They’re as red as her lipstick, as red as my hand. It’s as if they’re coaxing me to jump, inviting me to make the change.

Things that shouldn’t be melting; are.

It’s getting windy in here, thanks to the mushroom with the red lightning bolt. I’m not completely certain if it really is windy, or just part of the effect.

What looks to be a gateway emerges a few meters outside the missing window, directly between the two sides of the living thick red velvet curtains, ten stories high.

You’re going to love Silverbirch, Nudge, says Hayley. Just make sure you jump far enough to actually make the gateway.

I stare at Hayley . . . well . . . the warped version of her.

The girl I miss already.

She means so much to me, even in this ridiculous moment, and I regret how we let outside forces influence our relationship.

I regret leaving her, instead of sticking it out.

Hayley, wake up! I have a plan, I yell at her.

You’re too late, she says.

CHAPTER 2

THAT EVIL DAY WHEN WE WERE KIDS

It doesn’t matter what the temperature is when you’re having a party around a backyard pool, as long as there’s a cloudless sky, you know you’ll be getting wet eventually. Especially when it’s your ninth birthday party.

You kids be careful around that pool, Mom yelled, in her Happy Birthday apron.

I’d heard her say it a million times before, but she knew it was her job to say it. God forbid something bad had happened and she hadn’t said those words. She wouldn’t have been able to live with herself.

That smart assed kid, that little brat . . . I remember Dieter sneaking up behind me and grabbing the back of my neck with his lobster claw, then leading me over to the deep end of the pool. I only invited him because our moms have always been best friends. They’ve always insisted we get along.

On the count of three we’re jumping in the deep end, Dieter said.

The lobster released his claw.

I was scared.

In today’s times, the government has you believing the scariest thing that can happen to you is a terrorist attack. If you watch any of the news channels, every few hours they’ll display a terror-alert meter that lets you know what your chances are of dying in the next twenty-four hours due to such an attack.

Yellow is elevated, orange is high and red is severe.

Back then, when I was a kid, they would show us the fire alert meter. Now, it’s the terror-alert meter.

Our fear meter has been upgraded.

I looked into Dieter’s eyes and could see he wasn’t joking.

My terror-alert meter was set to orange.

It was one of those old pools, where the deep end was deeper than six feet. They’re not allowed to make pools that deep anymore, but back then . . .

No way, I said. You don’t know how deep that is.

What’s the worst that can happen, said Dieter.

He was a boy of his word.

One.

Two.

Three.

Confident that nothing could possibly go wrong, Dieter jumped in.

I didn’t.

He slowly rose to the surface, took a big gulp of air and yelled, Pussy!

He thought he was better than me because he thought he did something dangerous. I didn’t think it was dangerous. I thought it was stupid. Why risk it?

Even as a nine-year-old kid I knew you didn’t have to do something just because someone told you to.

There was always a natural rivalry between Dieter and I. We were like chalk and cheese. He was always trying to think of ways he could be better than me. Back then, when we were nine, he knew I had a crush on Hayley, so he had to have a crush too. The lucky girl was another one of our friends called Zoe. According to Dieter, Zoe was better looking than Hayley, but I didn’t agree.

For as long as I can remember I’ve had a crush on Hayley. The moment we met at day-care I had to be close to her, so Mom tells me.

Even as a nine-year-old kid I knew that the feelings I had toward Hayley were unique.

Back in the pool when we were kids, Dieter splashed around while I was getting along swimmingly with Hayley and Zoe. My best friend Chase eventually arrived through the back gate carrying a plastic bag full of costumes.

It was time to really get this party started.

I remember thinking, Dieter can be the Indian, I’d rather be a Cowboy.

We’re going next door to play Cowboys and Indians, I yelled at Mom.

I don’t know about that, Mom said, that house seems a little dangerous.

I’d heard her say it a million times before, but she knew it was her job to say it. God forbid something bad had happened and she hadn’t said those words. She wouldn’t have been able to live with herself.

We’ll be alright Mom, I replied.

Hey everyone, let’s get changed into our costumes now, follow me, I yelled to my guests.

It was my party. I gave the orders.

Hayley, Zoe, Dieter, Chase and me, we ran next door toward the abandoned house. All the windows and doors were missing and anything that wasn’t bolted down had been taken by local petty thieves.

We don’t have long; Mom will call us soon for my cake! I said, as we stormed into the house.

The house looked like it had been vacant for years and most of the old wooden floorboards were exposed. Hayley and I were dressed in classic Cowboy outfits. Chase, Dieter and Zoe were dressed in Indian gear, complete with face paint and feathers on their heads.

A classic game of Cowboys and Indians ensued and we played out our respective roles to perfection . . . running, chasing and hiding from one another.

Hayley would later tell me that she had been chasing Zoe at one point, gaining on her as they wove through the door-less openings around the house, before suddenly losing sight of her. They were running and laughing, having the best time, until an unexpected total silence. Hayley tiptoed carefully across the wooden floorboards; she slithered around the corners as she tried to track Zoe down.

Meanwhile, us-boys, we were pretend-killing each other at the opposite end of the creepy house.

Still tiptoeing, Hayley heard someone crying. She crept toward the battered kitchen pantry door and opened it slowly to reveal Zoe crouched down in the corner, sobbing onto her little knobby knees. Her long blonde hair was acting as a shield for her face while the feathers on her head pointed in awkward directions.

What’s wrong, little Indian girl? Hayley asked.

Zoe looked up from her blonde shield and said, I just saw my mother, up there, and she pointed to a spot on the high ceiling.

Hayley turned to look up at the ceiling but didn’t see anything. As she turned back around Zoe shuddered once more, as though she’d just seen her mom again over Hayley’s shoulder.

The blonde shield resumed protecting her face.

But your mom’s in heaven . . . and there’s no such thing as ghosts, Hayley said.

Zoe remained quiet.

Dieter was hollering like an Indian while I chased him. Through the empty rooms of the house he weaved, thinking he could lose me, thinking he was faster than me. But with each step I took I got a little closer to having my revenge for the pool incident.

Even as a nine year old kid I didn’t like to be embarrassed.

I was seconds away from catching Dieter when his foot went straight through a wooden floorboard and he crashed over onto his face. I tripped over his fallen body and after a loud and bloody racket we both began to moan.

Hayley, Chase and Zoe came charging into the room.

What happened? Hayley yelled.

Chase tried to pull Dieter’s foot from the wooden hole, but Dieter screamed out in pain. I picked myself up and staggered over to the wreckage. His foot was messed up.

I wanted revenge, but this was too much.

At the time, even though I didn’t know what it meant, I thought it had something to do with karma. Adults were always calling him naughty, so I figured that’s why bad things would keep happening to him.

I took a look at the hole and managed to rip up some of the wood. Chase succeeded in removing Dieter’s foot, but it was scratched and bleeding badly. His face paint was smudged from the crash, tears and scratches of blood.

As Hayley attended to Dieter’s foot, I examined the hole and noticed a dusty metal box just inside the darkness. I pulled it out and opened it. The box was black and made of solid metal with a latch to lock it, but the lock was missing. On top of the box, caked in dust, appeared a dim red lightning bolt symbol.

I’ll never forget the first time I saw it.

I opened the metal box and found a small plastic bag of dry mushrooms and some old pieces of paper. I examined one of the mushrooms and was amazed to find another red lightning bolt symbol underneath the head, in the black gills. I took a smell and then threw the whole bag of mushrooms back into the hole.

I lifted the pages from the box, being careful not to rip them, and began scanning through. The pages were fragile and hand written and I remember being forced to squint to read some of the writing.

I knew I had the gang’s entire attention but decided to whisper the first line from the first page to myself, Human, understand that it is not an accident that you’re reading these pages. Many of you have heard of such things as Angels and Demons, but what you don’t know is, there truly exists a greater life force than your own.

Speak louder, Zoe said.

I flipped through the pages and read the first sentence that caught my eye; "To open the gateway to Silverbirch from Earth one must consume a rare and unique mushroom that grows beneath an old

Reviews for Silverbirch; A Tear in the Fabric of the Night Sky

[allizabeth · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Description: Twenty years ago, five childhood friends stumbled upon a mysterious box with a red lightning bolt on it - and its contents, (a letter and a bag of strange mushrooms), dictated the course of their lives. Now, the estranged friends have reunited, and the past has come back to haunt them. Can they figure out what the "Silverbirch" pages mean?, what the lightning-bolt mushrooms do?, and who, or what has been controlling them their whole lives? Or, will each of them be forced to surrender their souls to the tear in the fabric of the night sky? Review: When I started to read Silverbirch, I had no idea the kind of fantastical action I was in for. The fast-paced read immediately sucked me in, and before I knew it, I had been reading for three hours and was on the last chapter, eagerly awaiting the finale. The characters are interesting, the story-line is well-developed and entertaining, and the dialogue, although crude and repetitive at times, is anything but flat. I did find a few spots that needed tweaking, as well as a couple cumbersome areas, but they didn't inhibit my enjoyment of the overall story. I really hope that Rob Kaay plans on a continuation, because the ending was quite a cliff-hanger and I would like to get to know the characters better. I can't wait to read more about Nudge's adventures involving Silverbirch - such a strange, yet intriguing concept! I recommend this book for older teens and adults who are into action-packed fantasies filled with blood, guts, magic mushrooms, and mysterious portals.Rating: On the Run (4/5)*** I received this book from the author in exchange for an honest and unbiased review.

[marcush_42 · Rating: 4 out of 5 stars]

Silverbirch is a unique action, fantasy novel that is very entertaining. As children, a group of friends stumble upon a tin box with a lightening bolt on it. What they find inside alters the direction of each of their lives forever. The story continues as the friends come together after 20 years of separation. Dieter has spent time in an insane asylum for violently attacking a man without any recollection of the attack, Chase is a successful lawyer, Hayley is a successful adult dancer, and Nudge is a professional hit man. As they come together, the memories that of their childhood are brought into stark reality and they all must face the possibility that their actions over the past years had been influenced by a higher power.As the group tries to figure out the meaning of the Silverbirch pages and lightening bolt mushrooms found in the box from their childhood, the mystery surrounding their individual and collective experiences pulls them deeper and deeper into a world they can hardly understand.The story is fast paced and intriguing, there are issues in the writing style that may distract the reader. Specific lines are repeated over and over and at points the reason may not be clear, and slows the inherent fast pace of the story down. At other times it seems like the reader is being directly addressed, which at times also slows the story down.Overall the story is very original and entertaining, outside of the need for an editor. I look forward to reading more from Rob Kaay and hope that he continues on with Silverbirch.