Summer Son

By Rhys Adam Fairweather

As his Concornation approaches, Nicolai finds himself becoming tangled in a quest to stop the spreading Darkness in the west, finishing the work of the parents he cannot remember. Nicolai's tale twists and turns through legend, and myth, in a world where magic is science, and even the stars cannot be trusted. In Summer Son, Nicolai tells the tale of how his journey began, and how he found himself facing the beauty and tragedy that is life. As he follows his destiny, he finds that although the sword is sharp, jealousy is sharper, and though the setting sun can be full of warmth and brilliance, there is nothing quite like a lovers embrace. As his tale ebbs and flows, he experiences joy and sorrow, peace and chaos, creation and destruction, life and - of course - death. If you enjoy hearing stories of youth from someone looking back on a life full of action, beauty, mistakes, grief, and all the things life has in store, then this first person account of Nicolai's not altogether heroic life should be well worth your time.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Rhys Adam Fairweather
• Release date: Nov 26, 2014
• ISBN: 9781311046857

Book preview

Summer Son

Rhys Adam Fairweather

Book 1 of The Light of Galtesh

Take note that this is a fictional work, and not to be taken as truth

This is an original work by Rhys Adam Fairweather

Copyright © 2014

The rights to all work within is owned by Rhys Adam Fairweather and may not be used without permission.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgements

Dedication

Chapter 1

Chapter 2

Chapter 3

Chapter 4

Chapter 5

Chapter 6

Chapter 7

Chapter 8

Chapter 9

Chapter 10

Chapter 11

Chapter 12

Chapter 13

Chapter 14

Chapter 15

Chapter 16

Chapter 17

Chapter 18

Chapter 19

Chapter 20

Chapter 21

Chapter 22

Chapter 23

Chapter 24

Chapter 25

Chapter 26

Notes

Pronunciation

Biography

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank my family for supporting me; in particular my mother and sister for providing some help with editing. I would also like to thank the encouraging teachers at Essendon Keilor College. A lot goes into a book, so much more than a story, so I would like to thank everyone for the influences they have had in my life, and more than anything I would like to thank everyone reading my novels, for listening to my stories, and sharing my dreams.

Dedication

To those loved who remain only in memory

You are sorely missed

Chapter 1:

Let me tell you the tale of how all this began, but I warn you; to make mistakes is human… and I am no exception. It was summer, a week before my Concornation; the old ceremony held for each boy as he became a man. In the Concornation I would have to undergo three tests successfully in order to be recognized as a man of the tribe. The tradition came from long ago, well before we settled this village, which had come to be called Salvair.

This particular morning was exceptionally hot, so hot that a man could fall after a mere hour in the sun. Our tribe lived on the short patch of grassland between the Undin forest and the Sahir desert. To go into the desert in the summer was suicide, only the greatest of our warriors had ever lasted more than a day in the Sahir during the summer, and today, not even Dalon; the most resilient warrior our tribe had ever known, would risk heading west into those sands.

In the early hours of the morning, my dearest friend Melody; a beauty like no other, with golden brown hair flowing in gentle waves down to her mid back, skin like the yellow white sand at the edge of the desert and eyes like the sky, woke me from my slumber and pleaded with me to go with her into the Sahir. Nicolai! I had a dream she said in her cool quiet voice, that there is a man only a short journey from here, in the desert, he has collapsed from exhaustion! If we don’t do anything… he will die!! as she said this she dragged me up off my straw mattress and I saw that she was fully dressed from neck to toe. She never covered her head – much to the distress of the older women – claiming that if she did, it would take days to untangle her hair.

She threw clothing at me which I pulled on over my tunic, and then pulled me toward the door. The sun was just creeping over the trees of the Undin. I need to eat I complained, and if we’re not careful, we’ll end up lying dead in the sand along with this mystery man. At this she reluctantly released her grip on my wrist. I quickly ate a hunk of stale bread and downed some stagnant water, putrid as usual. Melody was hurrying me along the whole time, and as soon as I’d finished the horrid water, she tore me toward the door once more.

Just outside the door, Melody grabbed a waterskin that she had dropped there on her way in, and started west at a run. Though I could cover more distance in a day, Melody far outmatched me when it came to a sprint, and to begin with, I struggled to keep up. She particularly outmatched me in the open; the forest slowed her more than it slowed me, but here running toward the desert, she was the faster. Before long our pace slowed to a jog. Melody was starting to tire, and the feeling that my whole world was about to be turned upside down sank into my chest.

We started to feel the sun on our backs as we reached the edge of the tribe’s houses, and Melody turned slightly toward the north. At least she seemed to know where she was going. It was too early for small talk, and I was still waking up, so we travelled with only the sound of our feet hitting the sand, which was already starting to heat up. Sweat was beading on my forehead, I could see from the drops in the sand that Melody was perspiring too. As time passed, I began to admire her physique, the sun reflecting off her perfect hair, while it heated my dark, short hair. The way the waterskin sat perfectly across her back, like a bow on a ranger. Even the distance between her footfalls were perfectly even until she came to an abrupt halt and I almost ran into her.

I looked over her shoulder and saw on the ground, almost completely covered in sand, a dark skinned man who seemed dead but for the rasping of his breath. I stood shocked for a moment, but Melody knelt down and began to drip water into the man’s parched mouth without hesitation. After my moment of shock I knelt and began to quickly brush away the sand that was covering the dying man. He was wearing crimson red robes so buffeted with sand that they appeared to be closer to a sandy color with patches of blood than crimson with embroidered lions.

Melody’s dreams – or visions as the elders called them – always seemed to show her what was happening at that time, never the past or the future. Just before she woke that morning, she had seen the dark skinned man stumbling as he climbed to the top of a sand dune and then collapsing. Since then the wind had blown the sand so that he was almost hidden inside the dune. His robes were magnificent, embroidered with jade silk in the shapes of eagles at the shoulders, and lions about his waist. He wore gloves made of woven cotton, and boots of leather. After what seemed like hours, but must have been merely minutes, as the sun hadn’t seemed to move, I had cleared most of the sand off the man. As I looked upon those brilliant silk robes, the fire of jealousy sparked within my chest, but it was quickly quashed as a raspingly dry cough reminded me of his suffering. Melody had succeeded in bringing him back to consciousness.

He just stared at her for a few moments, then pulled himself out of the sand and crouched looking at her, confused. My name is Melody, and this is Nicolai, Melody said, and then she began to explain her dreams. For a few long moments the Man remained silent, and I began to wonder if he could understand a word she had said. Then he spoke in a deep, curious voice;

I have heard tales of white-skins before, but we thought you had all died out long ago Melody and I were stunned, our tribe was mostly white-skinned, only the tanner and his family were dark-skinned, but we’d seen many dark-skinned traders, and many white-skinned traders, how far had this man come if he had not seen a white-skinned person before? He pulled off one boot, emptied the sand, and replaced it on his foot, then did the same with the other boot. There was silence as we looked at each other; him looking at each of us, we in turn were looking at him and at each other, until the sun began to burn our exposed skin.

I broke the silence. Why are you out here in the desert?

I was the leader of my tribe, he explained, Five sunrises ago we were attacked by a larger tribe. They were more advanced, and unlike any tribe I’ve seen. Their skin was as dark as night, and their weapons made of the finest metals. I have worked steel before, even gold, but these blades shone, some blue, some red… some were even black, as black as the darkness that seemed to follow them wherever they went. They walked through our settlement and demanded that we submit to their rule. I refused. They slaughtered my family and threw me into the desert. I have been heading east ever since, taking refuge under rocks during the day as much as I could.

I was amazed. A single day in the desert is life threatening at this time of year, and lately even an hour. Come back to our village I offered. He simply nodded and we started back east, toward home, but our pace was slow. The man stumbled often. After a short while, Melody and I took an arm each and helped him along. The man was a head taller than me, and Melody was only up to my nose, so she wasn’t even up to this gigantic man’s shoulder.

What’s your name? she asked

I am known as Algoma he replied and then we were silent once more.

We made it back to the settlement shortly after we finished the last of our water. We were all grateful to see shade, for the sun was relentlessly hot. Once the sand under our feet began to fade to dirt, we all ran the last hundred meters to the first of the buildings, then rested for a moment in its shadow. After a while, our breathing settled, and we continued on into the settlement, heading straight for the hall of the Elders.

It was tribal law that any visitor was to be assessed by the elders, to ensure that they were not a threat. This is why traders always set up their stalls just outside of town.

In the hall were the five elders, each with two or three advisors. There was Galdor, who was well versed in war, with his advisors; Dalon, who was strong and resilient, and Bora, who was a skilled strategist. Centrin was a master builder, with Angela, his daughter, who had designed all of the more complex buildings in the settlement, and Salthor, who was our best carpenter. There was Eliza, who raised and trained beasts of burden, with her advisors Andin, the horse lord, Kiven, the bird watcher, and Shalnor, the tamer of beasts. There was also Gavin, the farmer, with his sons Palnor, the orchard master, and Oron, master of the field. The last of the elders was Haldor, the hunter, he and Galdor were brothers. Haldor’s advisors were Yima, a master of the bow, Sarah, the silent killer, who could sneak up on any animal she had encountered and drive a dagger through its heart before it knew she was there, and Lulu, the trapper. Each of the Elders were considered equal, and when there was a problem in their profession, they dealt with it individually, however when there was a newcomer, they would all have to agree that the person is safe; else the person could not stay. Although some of those in the room were more tanned than Melody or myself, Algoma was perplexed by the room full of white-skins, and took a few moments to regain his senses.

Galdor took the role of leadership when it came to the security of the tribe. He instructed Algoma to tell the council of Elders who he was, where he had come from, and why he was here. Algoma told what was requested of him. Once he had explained about his village, wandering eastward through the Sahir, and how Melody and I had rescued him, Eliza asked him why he had taken the risk of crossing the desert. I had heard he replied, that if you manage a direct line east, it is only a few hours walk, and I knew that should I come out on the west of the Sahir, the night-skins would rip my body apart as an example; I had heard stories of this before my city was invaded. North and south were further than east, so I came east. The journey was hard, and the dunes made it impossible to continue in a straight line, but each evening I started with the sun at my back, and then found refuge in the morning, I knew travelling by day would be suicide. At this the Elders sent us outside so that they could deliberate and discuss the best course of action.

While we waited for their decision, we went to Melody’s hut, it was cleaner than mine, but still had the same structure and filling. The building consisted of four wooden walls, a straw roof and a dirt floor. Inside the hut there was a straw mattress, a table, and a single chair. Melody sat on the bed and invited Algoma to take the chair. I stood.

After a few minutes Algoma broke the silence that had developed. Are the stories of the east true?

Which stories? Melody replied.

The stories of elves and wizards, Centaurs and Griffins, Pegasi, Hydras and the dreaded Basilisk! I heard many stories from traders of what lay beyond the Sahir, and it seems at least one of them was true. He meant the story of the white-skins.

We too have heard some of these stories, but- I began to answer but Melody cut me off,

We’ve seen no proof of any of them she concluded. When Melody left to fetch some water, I explained her attitude to Algoma; Her father deserted her when she was a child, leaving her mother to care for her. The tale is that her father was an elf, and couldn’t stay out of the Undin for long. Her mother died when she was seven years old. She had believed as a child that her father the elf, would come back and take care of her and her mother. When her mother died, she decided that elves could not be real, and so neither could the rest of the stories.

After a few long moments in which the information sunk in, Algoma asked; And what about you? but just as I was about to begin answering, Melody returned with a bucket of water and the news that the elders were done deliberating, so we headed back to the hall of the elders. When we entered the room, every face was set like stone statues, no expression, all looking directly ahead. Centrin spoke. The visitor Algoma has been deemed harmless enough to remain with the tribe for a short time. However he must leave before the Concornation. This was to be expected; the Concornation was a very important, momentous occasion in a man’s life, and could be very dangerous if there was outside interference.

For a moment no one moved. Galdor waved his hand, releasing Algoma. When the three of us turned to leave he stopped us Algoma is free to go. Nicolai, Melody, you must remain Algoma looked at Melody, she nodded once, and he left.

Melody Haldor began, these visions of yours are becoming more and more frequent, and you are dragging Nicolai along with you to investigate them. You could have died out there today!

But he would have died if we hadn’t – Melody began, but Galdor held up his hand for her to stop.

Haldor is correct, you could have died, and you are correct, Algoma would have died. You are not here to be scolded. We have a request for you. He saw the shock in Melody’s eyes, but continued; We have heard whispers of movement in the Undin. Figures between the trees, watching, coming toward our settlement, and we need to investigate this. Though sending our few troops into the woods would be folly, you know your way through those woods, and could see what is happening without drawing too much attention to yourself. The choice is yours, though should you manage the task, it would be my hope that you would become my third advisor Melody was struck by the offer. As an advisor she would have a large influence on the way things were run, and she would know before everyone else about every change, every occurrence. She was done thinking about it.

I will go she responded, and she was allowed to leave, leaving me facing the entire council alone.

Each of the elders spoke a word to their advisors, and then all the advisors left. Fear flowed through me and I was rooted to the spot. I had never even heard of anyone being in this situation before. I struggled to keep my composure. The elders came closer, forming a semi-circle around me. My breathing hastened. Galdor spoke in a soft murmur that I had to concentrate to understand. It is against tradition to send a boy on a quest before his Concornation, and it is unheard of to send him so close to his Concornation. This was very true, one needed to be well rested in body and mind in order to manage to complete his Concornation. If one was too tired, the tasks could be dangerously difficult, and if the mind were not properly prepared, it could send a man mad. However, each of us admits that should your parents still be alive, they would permit it. As they are not, the decision lies solely with you My terror was clouded by a wave of confusion and then Haldor continued where his brother had left off.

What we said about the movement in the forest is true, but we are not all that concerned about it. We have been watching Melody for some time, and decided long ago that she should become an advisor to Galdor. We are sending her so that people will not be suspicious that you are gone, thinking that you are with her. I was astonished; the elders were not people who would often deceive the people of the Tribe.

The elders let what they had said sink in for a few moments, then Gavin spoke, his croaky voice harder to understand than the others. "This Algoma spoke of an army of night-skins, if his words are true, we fear that the prophecy of Galtesh is coming to pass. The prophecy warns that ‘night will come upon the land like a wave upon the shore. Many men will not see the coming of new morn; their blood will sink into the sand, making red the great Sahir, then one without a father, riding north shall he appear. All seems lost, there, before the light of dawn arrives, his mother’s life given, so the fire could provide. This light shall ride a flying one, with fire at command. Before his mighty power, the darkness cannot stand. Within a burning hour, the battle shall be won, and then when it is all over, the real war has begun’… he was quiet for a moment, then continued. You must begin the search for the light."

At the look on my face, Eliza quickly spoke. The decision to leave must be yours, and we only ask you to begin the search. You must not miss your own Concornation, and you must not speak of this quest to anyone, it would only cause alarm where it is not needed. The elders left, all except Centrin. It was strange to be alone with one of the elders, and being in that large hall made it even stranger.

Do not get caught up in the prophecy. Your father would not want you to worry about the things you cannot change, but there is another reason that it must be you. This belonged to your mother from a fold in his shirt he brought forth a ring, a band of white gold topped with a yellow gem that seemed to radiate light.

This is the Anulum Lucis; the ring of light. It held the darkness at bay the last time, and it is rumored that only when the light of Galtesh wears the ring and flies forth will he know how to vanquish the darkness once and for all. He handed it to me, it felt heavy for its size, but I slipped it on the middle finger of my right hand, it seemed to expand and contract to fit perfectly. I covered it with my glove and there was a moment of silence, then with a pained voice Centrin continued; Nicolai, I… good luck

Thank you Centrin was all I could say, and then I was alone. Alone in the hall of the elders with shock and confusion raking through my entire being.

When I finally left that dark hall, night had fallen. The moon was almost full and the stars were bright lights in the sky, it was easy enough to see, and usually I liked to walk at night, but I was tired, so I went to my hut, lay down on the stiff straw mattress, and let sleep overtake me.

*

Sunlight streamed in through the cracks around my door, waking me with gentle warmth. Once I’d fed and watered myself, I headed out for a walk, to ponder what had happened and what had been said the previous day, and realized that there were only six days until my Concornation. I walked through the settlement. Each house was made of the same wooden walls and straw roof, each garden an assortment of flowering and fruiting plants, with the occasional young tree. We’d been settled in the area for most of my life, but it was only over the last few years that people had begun to feel safe about investing energy and love into their gardens, moving on from bare necessities and beginning to grow beauty. For the six years of my life before we settled here, and for years before that, each place we settled had been destroyed by animals, fires, or even other tribes within a year. At times the tribe had been forced to relocate three times within a single year, so people had become more fleeting, less willing to become attached to any one place. Now they were finally feeling secure enough to invest themselves.

It was in the last move before we settled Salvair that Melody’s mother had died. Melody was seven years old at the time. Her mother was weak, but she pushed on, well past the limit her body could handle, moving my sheer force of will, carrying her scared, screaming child at full speed away from the attacking desert wolves. It was where she drew her last breath that we decided to begin the new settlement. The hall of the elders was built over the very place she died. It was the memory of her mother’s final day that drove Melody on, gave her determination… and filled her with sorrow. It was this memory, above the fact that I had been raised by the tribe as a whole, which drove me to my decision. I was not going to let my family perish, not going to let the efforts of my best friend’s only known parent be forgotten. I would find this light. And by weeks end I would know where to start. At least, that’s what I had thought.

I looked around to find that I’d ended up in Palnor’s orchard, the trees around were beginning fruit, the autumn harvest would be the most bountiful we’d had since we’d settled there. The ground had started fairly dry, with only the strongest plants surviving, but with plant matter, and animal manure decomposing in the ground, it had been becoming softer and richer each year. Palnor always said ‘Anything worthwhile takes time’ and as time passed, he seemed to be more and more right.

I had made my decision; I would go on this quest, this adventure, follow this destiny. The only problem was, I had no idea what I was meant to do. I had to find a light, but all I’d done all my life was to help other people. It had taught me many things, but nothing that no one else knew. Where could I find a light? There was the sun. At that time of year it was certainly bright, and fiery, but the Summer sun wasn’t a person, nor was the moon, and the stars were too far away, not to mention that they couldn’t be trusted at that time of year.

I went over the prophecy of Galtesh in my mind. "Night will come upon the land like a wave upon the shore that was fairly straight forward, we’d heard of the army of the night-skins. Many men will not see the coming of new morn; their blood will sink into the sand, making red the great Sahir this seemed pretty obvious too, though somewhat disturbing. People would die, bleeding into the sands of the Sahir. Then one without a father, riding north shall he appear a little more complex, how can anyone be born without a father? All seems lost, there, before the light of dawn arrives, his mother’s life was given, so the fire could provide. I thought; perhaps it would seem that the night-skins will have won, and then this light that I was meant to find would show up. Someone whose mother was sacrificed to the great fire. I’d heard stories of the fire; it takes the shape of a bird. It is alive, a magical being, it could burn even without air, or when it was under the water, but it’s only hot when it chooses to be. The mother of this ‘light’ must have been consumed by the great fire, father of the Phoenix. This light shall ride a flying one, with fire at command there were plenty of flying creatures, but I had no idea which one Galtesh was referring to, and this fire couldn’t be the great fire, no one can command the great fire. I was getting more and more confused, but moved on. Before his mighty power, the darkness cannot stand I was glad for an easy passage, the light would knock down the darkness. Within a burning hour, the battle shall be won, and then when it is over, the real war has begun" clearly something to do with the fire winning the battle, but what war would begin? My head throbbed just from thinking about it, but it was my quest to find this predestined light, no matter the cost.

The sun was high in the sky, it was midday. I left the orchard and headed for the outskirts in the south. The traders knew many stories, and perhaps some could offer me some advice, though it would likely be at a price. The only thing a trader wanted was something better than what he had. When it came to information; he… or at times she, wanted something they had never had before. Fortunately I had a few rare souvenirs, some others would have, like the teeth of a desert wolf, or the simple rocks and herbs, but there were some things, like the polished jewels I’d found in the Sahir, the cross bred herbs I’d grown from those I found in the Undin, and of course, my sapphire tinged sword, but that was mine, the only thing I had left of the father I never knew. I stopped by home and quickly added some things to my pack, but left the sword in its place under the straw mattress.

When I got to the outskirts the traders were busy, haggling their wares, mostly dull jewels or old furniture, some dried meats and such, but half the tribe was out there. Some were trading small amounts of rare things for large amounts of common things, others doing the opposite.

There were children learning how to haggle, trading things without a care for what they were. Parents watching from a distance while talking to friends