Magical Worlds: Fantasy Collection

By Linda McNabb

Three Magical Worlds in one volume. Each story is stand alone and perfect for all ages. (also sold separately)

The Stonekeeper's Daughter

Nakita, the Stonekeeper's daughter, lives in a remote village high on Eagle Rock. Her father guards four sacred stones and conducts mysterious experiments for his master. 
Cut off from the outside world, Nakita longs to see what lies below the mountain. 
She hears the whispering voices in the stones but when she gives in to her curiosity and picks up one of them her life changes forever. 
Then her village is discovered by two strangers she is forced to flee into the valley below where she discovers the world is much stranger than she ever imagined.

The Puppet Master 

I know what you are... 

Jac has no idea what Gabbi means. He thought he was the puppet master in Blyne's travelling circus. Other people seem to think he is dangerous and want to take away his newly found magic. Puppets are coming alive and there's a huge hole swallowing the town of Sweetwater! 

What is the mysterious Star Crystal and why is Ivan, the archmage, after him? 
The race is on to be first to reach the crystal and discover the truth about who Jac really is.

The Crystal Runners 

Jaelah longs for adventure. 
In her village underground, Jaelah knows she doesn't want to be a crystal runner. Not for her a life of filling crystals with light and life. No! Jaelah wants adventure - she wants to mix with the surface dwellers like her grandfather. 
The dimming of their light source gives Jaelah the chance she's been looking for. 
Dragging her twin brother, Aydan, behind her - she sets off to seek answers. 
She discovers their problems are not all that is wrong and that, in these times of terrifying change, the twins must work together with Kaen, prince of the surface dwellers, to save both their worlds. 

An adventure quest with magic and dragons that will keep you entertained and wishing you could go there!

• Language: English
• Publisher: Southern Star Publishing
• Release date: May 30, 2017
• ISBN: 9781386831389

Linda McNabb

Linda was born in England but raised in New Zealand where she currently lives. She write mostly non-epic fantasy that can be enjoyed by anyone who enjoys a light and uncomplicated story. They are all family-friendly stories and more often than not have a few dragons in them!

Book preview

Fantasy Collection

Magical Worlds

Linda McNabb

Copyright  Linda McNabb 2016

www.lindamcnabb.com

Linda McNabb asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording or otherwise without prior written permission from the author.

Cover © Vasyl Duda

The Stonekeeper’s Daughter  - Read it Here

Nakita, the Stonekeeper’s daughter, lives in a remote village high on Eagle Rock. Her father guards four sacred stones and conducts mysterious experiments for his master.

Cut off from the outside world, Nakita longs to see what lies below the mountain.

She hears the whispering voices in the stones but when she gives in to her curiosity and picks up one of them her life changes forever.

Then her village is discovered by two strangers she is forced to flee into the valley below where she discovers the world is much stranger than she ever imagined.

The Puppet Master - Read it Here

I know what you are...

Jac has no idea what Gabbi means. He thought he was the puppet master in Blyne’s travelling circus. Other people seem to think he is dangerous and want to take away his newly found magic. Puppets are coming alive and there’s a huge hole swallowing the town of Sweetwater!

What is the mysterious Star Crystal and why is Ivan, the archmage, after him?

The race is on to be first to reach the crystal and discover the truth about who Jac really is.

The Crystal Runners - Read it Here

Jaelah longs for adventure.

In her village underground, Jaelah knows she doesn't want to be a crystal runner. Not for her a life of filling crystals with light and life. No! Jaelah wants adventure - she wants to mix with the surface dwellers like her grandfather.

The dimming of their light source gives Jaelah the chance she's been looking for.

Dragging her twin brother, Aydan, behind her - she sets off to seek answers.

She discovers their problems are not all that is wrong and that, in these times of terrifying change, the twins must work together with Kaen, prince of the surface dwellers, to save both their worlds.

An adventure quest with magic and dragons that will keep you entertained and wishing you could go there!

Contents

The Stonekeeper’s Daughter

CHAPTER ONE - THE VOICES

CHAPTER TWO - MARK OF THE STONE

CHAPTER THREE - VISITORS

CHAPTER FOUR - WORD OF HONOUR

CHAPTER FIVE - A NEW KEEPER

CHAPTER SIX - LEAVING EAGLE ROCK

CHAPTER SEVEN - IN SEARCH OF BANDITS

CHAPTER EIGHT - TWO RIVERS

CHAPTER NINE - THE MONEY LENDER’S HOUSE

CHAPTER TEN - STONES FOR SALE

CHAPTER ELEVEN - THE LONG WINTER

CHAPTER TWELVE - PRINCE OF THE REALM

CHAPTER THIRTEEN - CRYSTAL PALACE

CHAPTER FOURTEEN - HOW MANY WISHING STONES?

CHAPTER FIFTEEN - GO ASK THE EARTH DWELLERS

CHAPTER SIXTEEN - THE WISHING WELL

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN - THE EARTH KING

CHAPTER EIGHTEEN - HOME TO EAGLE ROCK

CHAPTER NINETEEN - BLACK ICE

CHAPTER TWENTY - DRAGON CAVES

CHAPTER TWENTY ONE - KOBEN’S CASTLE

CHAPTER TWENTY TWO - THE MARK OF A DRAGON

The Puppet Master

CHAPTER ONE - BABYSITTING A DRAGON

CHAPTER TWO - WATCH OUT FOR THE TROLLS

CHAPTER THREE - TWO FRIENDS LIKE DANEL

CHAPTER FOUR - DO YOU BELIEVE IN MAGIC?

CHAPTER FIVE - THE PUPPET SHOW

CHAPTER SIX - FLYING GUARDS

CHAPTER SEVEN - BRING ME THE TALL ONE

CHAPTER EIGHT - THE HOLE

CHAPTER NINE - MORE PUPPETS

CHAPTER TEN - A COPY WON’T DO

CHAPTER ELEVEN - ROOM FOR ONE MORE

CHAPTER TWELVE - A FAST HORSE

CHAPTER THIRTEEN - CITY OF MAGES

CHAPTER FOURTEEN - THE BOX

CHAPTER FIFTEEN - CHASING RAINBOWS

CHAPTER SIXTEEN - THE STAR CRYSTAL

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN - RAINING INK

The Crystal Runners

CHAPTER ONE - FATHER’S RETURN

CHAPTER TWO - WHEN THE RIVER TURNS

CHAPTER THREE - FILLING THE CRYSTALS

CHAPTER FOUR - END OF THE RUN

CHAPTER FIVE - LOST AND FOUND

CHAPTER SIX - THE ROCK

CHAPTER SEVEN - THE SURFACE

CHAPTER EIGHT - BLUE CYRSTAL

CHAPTER NINE - TREES AND MORE TREES

CHAPTER TEN - KILLING THE RIVER

CHAPTER ELEVEN - DRAGONS’ GOLD

CHAPTER TWELVE - INTO THE DARKNESS

CHAPTER THIRTEEN - CRYSTALS OF LIFE

The Stonekeeper’s Daughter

Linda McNabb

CHAPTER ONE - THE VOICES

‘V isitors!’ Rylan almost choked with laughter as the word burst from his mouth. ‘Hah, that’s your worst prediction yet, Roza.’

Nakita watched as her father slapped his thighs and roared with laughter, causing a tear to roll down his heavily lined face. He wiped it away and then ran his hand through his untidy mop of jet-black hair before striding out of the sunny sitting room of their small house.

Granny Roza simply smiled as if she didn’t care if he believed her or not and continued to rock slowly back and forth in her rocking chair.

‘We can’t have visitors up here.’ Carlene, Nakita’s mother, shook her head slowly and frowned at the old woman. Carlene’s pale skin looked almost blue today as it stretched tightly across her small, skinny bones. She had been sickly as a child and now, as an adult, she was even frailer. Just getting up and eating breakfast seemed to drain her of all energy for the rest of the day. ‘How would they get up to Eagle Rock?  There’s no path or road and there are sheer cliffs all around the village. Are they going to fall from the sky?’

‘But we will have visitors, and soon,’ Granny Roza insisted calmly and then closed her eyes, pretending to be asleep.

‘You know as well as I do that only Wizard Koben has ever come to the village and his visit isn’t due for another two moon cycles.’ Carlene shook her head again when Granny Roza did not reply. She walked slowly out of the room but Nakita stayed sitting on the brightly woven rug at her granny’s feet.

‘When are they coming?’ Nakita asked as soon as the glass-panelled door clicked shut behind her mother. Others may not believe her granny’s predictions but she did and if granny said there were visitors coming, then they would come.

‘Soon!’ Granny Roza’s brilliant blue eyes snapped open and shone with a glow of anticipation that made her look years younger. Even though her hair was grey, it had streaks of silver that seemed to shine brighter as she spoke. ‘Before the next full moon.’

Nakita wondered who the visitors would be. There had never been a visitor in the small town of Eagle Rock for as long as anyone could remember. Nobody knew why there were no roads or paths off the rock but nobody seemed to care. Nobody except Nakita. She longed to see something other than the small plateau of Eagle Rock and she had plans to make sure she saw it soon.

‘Nakita.’ Her mother’s voice drifted in through the open window. ‘Come help with the laundry.’

Nakita rose obediently and smoothed her long black skirt. She noticed yet another small hole which would need to be patched and she knew it was something that would be left to her to do. She knew there were no holes in her deep green shirt though as she had only just finished making it from scraps given to her by the village tailor. 

Nakita had been helping around the house ever since she was old enough to understand that her mother couldn’t do it alone. She longed to spend more time with her friends at the small schoolhouse at the far end of the village but her mother seemed to need her more and more lately. She would be twelve soon and then she wouldn’t be able to go back to the schoolhouse, anyway.

She pushed a stray curl away from her face and tried to tuck it back into her long plait that hung almost down to her waist. She had inherited her father’s green eyes and unruly black hair and plaiting her hair was the only way to keep it under control.

By the time the noon meal was ready, made by Nakita of course, she was tired and bored. Her ten-year-old brother, Bradon, and her eight-year-old sister, Krysta, were at the schoolhouse and would be out running around, pretending to eat the lunch that she had made for them.

She let a small sigh escape as she packed a basket with food for her father. She had already served her mother and granny but her own soup sat on the kitchen bench going cold. She had to take lunch to her father before she could eat. She made a small clucking noise with her tongue but her pet monkey, Patch, did not come to join her. She hadn’t seen him all day and Nakita knew that her sister must have taken him to the schoolhouse again.

She went out the back door that led off the kitchen and walked around the side of the house. She didn’t see why her father couldn’t come home to eat his lunch. Keeper’s Hall, which stood in the centre of the village, was only about a two-minute walk from their house.

Nakita had no idea what he did there all day, and she wasn’t likely to find out. The title, and honour, of being ‘The Keeper of the Stones’ was passed down from father to son. It made her family the most respected one in the village as without the Keeper the wrath of Wizard Koben would fall on them all. Well, that was what they were taught. She had no idea what it really meant.

Nakita paused as she came to the three stone steps that led to the huge wooden doors of Keeper’s Hall. Ornately shaped, flat iron bars wound their way over the heavy double doors, disguising their true function of making the door unbreakable. But who would even try to break into Keeper’s Hall?

The rest of the building was built from slabs of stone so thick that it would take a month to break through with a pickaxe. There were no windows and Nakita disliked the closed in feeling that pressed down on her whenever she went inside.

‘Father,’ Nakita called as she reached the top step. She preferred to hand over the basket at the door so that she didn’t have to go inside but today her father did not come out to take it from her.

Resigning herself to going inside, she lifted the latch of the immense wooden door and pushed it open. She slipped inside and closed the door behind her. Dozens of candles lined the walls of the small foyer but there was no sign of her father.

There were two doors off the foyer. One led to her father’s workroom, and the other was the stoneroom. The door to the stoneroom stood ajar and Nakita could hear whispering coming from inside. Who was in there?  Her father never permitted anyone in the Stoneroom but she could definitely hear voices; at least three or four.

‘Father, I’ve brought lunch,’ Nakita called out in a voice not much louder than those she could hear as such an important place made shouting seem wrong. The whispering continued without a pause but the words were too soft to make out. Her father did not come out or even answer her and Nakita hovered in the foyer, unsure what to do now. If she left the soup here without telling her father it would go cold but if she went into the Stoneroom to tell him, she would be in trouble. Girls were not permitted in the Stoneroom.

Finally, she decided to just lean around the dark wooden door and get her father’s attention. As long as she didn’t actually go in she should be okay. She put the basket down on a small round table and walked over to the door. Her heart was beating faster and louder as she approached. She had always wondered what was in there and now she was going to find out. Bradon had been in several times but he refused to tell what he had seen. The tall, solid door felt cold as she pushed it open far enough to see around and steadied herself against the doorframe to lean into the room.

‘Father?’ Nakita frowned as she peered into the large, high-ceilinged room. Plush blue carpet lined the floor and a long wooden table stood at the far end of the room. Apart from the table and a long shelf on the wall, holding dozens of candles, there was nothing else in it!  A long black cloth covered the top of the table and there were several lumps under it. Her father was definitely not in here, nor anyone else, yet the whispering continued.

Nakita pulled back from the doorway, confused yet curious. Her father must be in his workroom and she knew she should go and knock on his door but here was maybe the only chance she might ever get to go and see the secrets of the room. The fact that there was only a table in there made her want to know even more. What was under that cloth and who could she hear whispering?

She forced herself to walk away but stopped with her hand raised, ready to knock on the door of her father's workroom. She just couldn't pass up the opportunity. She went back to the stoneroom and slipped quickly inside. She left the door ajar as just being in a room without windows was bad enough and she had no desire to enclose herself completely.

Her heart was beating even faster as she looked quickly around the dark corners of the room. The whispering was louder now, and she glanced nervously back at the door. If her father caught her in here, there would be trouble for sure.

Nakita walked slowly towards the table, nervous but excited, and stopped a few paces before it. There wasn't much to see so far, and she took the last steps towards it then lifted the edge of the cloth.

‘Oh!’ She couldn't help the gasp that escaped her lips as she saw a green-coloured stone about half the size of her palm. It was sitting on top of a white velvet cushion and reflected the flickering candlelight, throwing off streams of green light at odd angles that matched the strange shape in which it was cut.

The whispering was loud enough now that she should be able to pick out what the voices were saying but there seemed to be so many speaking at once that she couldn't separate one to understand it. She lifted the cloth a little further and uncovered a blue stone, similar to the first but with slightly different surface cuts. It too reflected light around the room and Nakita pulled the rest of the cloth away from the table in one flick. Two other stones lay on white cushions. One was a pretty rose-pink colour and one so black it seemed to suck the light from the room instead of reflecting it.

Nakita let the cloth slip from her hand as she stared at the four stones. So this was what the Stone Keeper guarded. She had always wondered what the title meant. This must be what Wizard Koben came to check on twice each year.

She reached out her hand, letting it hover over the rose-pink stone, knowing that she probably shouldn't touch it but feeling drawn to it. The thought that she might never get this close to them again made her decision for her. She reached down and scooped up the rose-pink stone, cradling it in her palm. It felt cool on her skin and a tingling sensation ran through her hand and up her arm.

The whispers were louder and clearer now and Nakita could tell that there were dozens of different speakers and some were children. They all seemed to be coming from within the stone and she looked deep into the stone wondering how it could be possible. Still holding the rose-pink stone she walked along the table and realised that each stone had more voices. All except the black stone. It was silent and Nakita felt a chill run down her spine as she let her empty hand pass over it and then stepped back as she didn't want to touch it.

She moved back to the cushion where the pink stone belonged and carefully replaced it. This would not be the last time she came in here; that was something she was going to make sure of. She had to find out what the whispering voices were saying and why they were coming from the stones.

Glancing nervously back at the door, Nakita picked up the black cloth and reluctantly spread it over the stones. She wished she could stay longer to hold the stones one by one, except the black one, but she had stayed too long already. She paused to make sure the foyer was empty then slipped around the door and pulled it closed with a soft click.

‘Who's out there?’ A voice came from the other side of the workroom door. It opened so fast that Nakita took a guilty step backwards before reaching out to grab the basket off the table.

Her father glared out into the foyer with a look of fear that bordered on panic but at the sight of his daughter he relaxed and smiled at her.

‘I... I've brought your lunch,’ Nakita said with a small stutter, hoping that her indiscretion wasn't obvious to her father.

‘Oh, thank you, Nakita.’ Rylan took the basket, turned and went back into the workroom, shutting the door behind him.

Nakita breathed a sigh of relief and turned to leave. As she walked past the door to the stoneroom she wondered if she could sneak back in. No, there would be a better time than this. She went outside, squinting into the sunlight, and walked slowly down the stone steps.

Granny Roza was standing in the kitchen when Nakita opened the door. She was grinning broadly, and she stared at Nakita with a look that was full of delight.

‘Which stone did you pick?’

‘Pink.’ The word was out of her mouth before she realised what she was saying. She stared at Granny Roza with surprise, a red burning of shame rising up her cheeks. Granny knew what she had done. Would she tell father?

CHAPTER TWO - MARK OF THE STONE

‘I chose the blue one ,’ Granny said as she pulled out a chair to sit down. Her eyes glazed over with a dreamy glint of a fondly treasured memory.

‘You’ve seen the stones?’ Nakita didn’t see much point in trying to pretend she didn’t know what her granny meant. By the look on her face it didn’t seem as if she was going to tell on her.

‘I was about the same age as you...’ Granny Roza’s mind seemed to wander and she fell silent with a distant look in her eyes.

Nakita walked around the table, pulled out a chair opposite her granny, and sat down to wait for her to continue. When she did start talking again, it was so sudden that Nakita almost jumped.

‘Ruben thought that letting me see the stones would impress me. He had just taken the title of Keeper and he thought he could break the rules if he wanted to.’

Nakita tried to remember her grandfather but all she could recall was that he was a small, neat and grumpy old man. He used to slap her knuckles with the flat of his knife if her elbows ever rested on the dinner table.

‘I only touched it for a few seconds then Ruben dragged me out of there. He knew he’d let me go too far and he never let me in there again.’ Granny Roza sighed deeply.

‘Did he ever tell anyone you’d touched the stones?’ Nakita felt the tension drain away now that she knew her granny had touched them and got away with it.

‘He didn’t have to. Within a few days it was obvious to everyone what I had done. The magic works quickly and it scarred me for life.’ Granny peered hard at Nakita as if looking for something.

‘Scarred?’ Nakita repeated. What sort of scar was it?  If her granny had only touched the stone and been scarred then what would happen to her as she had held one for several minutes?

‘Wizard Koben saw it too, the next time he came to Eagle Rock, even though I tried to hide it. He was furious, and I was sure he was going to strike me down where I stood.’ Granny Roza was almost whispering and Nakita realised that she had leaned closer across the table to hear.

‘Did he?’ Nakita realised it was a dumb question even as she spoke as her granny was still here.

‘He laid his staff on my head, drained away the magic and he said that if anyone touched them again, they would be cast off the cliffs. It was enough to keep everyone away from the stones... until now.’ Granny Roza stared at Nakita with a look of expectation and long buried excitement.

‘The stones ‘gave’ you magic?’ Nakita had been so worried about the scarring that her granny had talked about that she had totally ignored the magic part. She was also trying to forget the wizard’s threat of being cast off the cliff.

‘I could tell that I was different somehow. I never had much of a chance to find out how since the wizard came only a few weeks later.’ She grinned suddenly, a grin that said she had a secret. ‘But he didn’t take it all. A little magic remained, and I made sure nobody ever saw it as they had done before.’

‘You really do see the future, don’t you?’ Nakita asked, wide-eyed and amazed that she had been right all along.

‘Sometimes,’ Granny Roza admitted, ‘but not as clearly as I would like.’

Granny stood up and walked over to the coal bucket which stood next to the kitchen stove. She reached in and picked up a small flat lump of coal and then deftly threw it to Nakita. Nakita caught it automatically and looked over at her granny in confusion.

‘You’ll need that if you don’t want anyone to know about your magic,’ she said with a grin.

Nakita was about to ask what she would need a lump of coal for but her mother chose that exact moment to come into the kitchen and their conversation was cut short. An uncomfortable silence fell as she hid the coal in the folds of her large skirt, thanking the stars that she had worn black today.

‘I want you to clean out the upstairs rooms today, Nakita,’ her mother said as she looked suspiciously from one to the other. ‘You can’t be hungry if you haven’t finished your soup by now.’

Carlene held the door open and looked purposefully at her daughter. Nakita stood up and left the kitchen wishing her mother had waited a few minutes longer before coming to find her. She clutched the coal as she wondered what she would need it for and just how the magic would scar her.

By the time her little sister came home that afternoon Nakita had looked in every mirror at least twice, trying to see if there were any signs of her morning’s activities. Perhaps this would just bring forward her decision to leave Eagle Rock. She had planned to leave as soon as Krysta was old enough to help their mother around the house. Now she might not be able to wait that long as was sure that Wizard Koben would carry out his threat.

If she spent a few hours each day on her tunnel, she would be able to leave in a few days. Nobody else knew about her tunnel. She found it deep in the back of one of the caves on the northern side of Eagle Rock when she was little. Someone in the past must have been as desperate as her to leave this village for a hand-hewn tunnel slanted downwards for several hundred feet through the rock. She had spent the last year chipping away, so she was sure it must be nearly at the base of Eagle Rock by now. The rock had given way to compacted soil a few months ago and Nakita knew that was a good sign.

A screeching noise brought her out of her planning and she realised that Patch was trying to get her attention. She scooped up the little monkey who immediately climbed up onto her shoulder and wrapped his tail tightly around her neck. It was his favourite place to sit and the white patch around one of his eyes was the only thing that stopped him from blending in with her hair.

‘What’s the idea of going off with Krysta all day?’ Nakita scolded the monkey with a gentle voice and tickled under his chin. He chattered back softly into her ear and she laughed as he sounded like he was telling her what he’d been doing all day.

She sat opposite her granny at dinner and wished the others would go away so that she could ask her some questions. She crept out of the house just after dark to get at least a few hours of digging done. She had to be gone before Wizard Koben came. If her granny couldn’t hide her magic, she wouldn’t be able to either.

She didn’t feel any different yet so if the stones had given her some of their magic then she hadn’t seen the change. She didn’t light her lantern until she was inside the cave and several hours later she emerged, covered in dirt but happy with her progress. She decided to go up to Lookout Peak to see if she could see the visitors coming.

Nakita looked back over her shoulder as she walked carefully up the path. She was sure she heard something but nothing stirred the bushes behind her except the gentle night breeze. She turned back to the narrow path and gave it her full attention. It was treacherous at night and even more so tonight as there was no moon to guide her steps.

The path ended abruptly and Nakita slowed to a shuffling pace as she worked her way slowly but confidently through the trees, keeping hold of each one as she moved slowly forward. One step too many and she would tumble over the cliff face into the valley below. Her foot reached out and found no solid ground and she knew she had reached the precipice.

Old Granny Roza had never been wrong before and Nakita knew she wasn't wrong this time. She pulled her foot back to the safety of solid earth and dropped onto her stomach. From up here she had a clear view of the valley that circled her home village of Eagle Rock.

She looked out into the inky blackness for any signs of a fire or anything that might show up a campsite. Looking during the day was impossible due to the thick forest that filled the valley. There was no sign of anyone camping that she could see and only a soft glow of light far away on the horizon marked the town of Two Rivers.

Nakita sighed and let her thoughts wander. She wondered what it was like down in the town. That was the first place she was going to go as soon as the tunnel was finished. She came up here often at night just to stare at the lights.

‘Patch?’ A small, frightened voice drifted up through the trees and Nakita swore softly under her breath. Patch must have come looking for her and Krysta had followed. Patch had always been able to find her wherever she was. She scanned the valley one last time but the blackness of night covered the valley like a blanket. She sighed as she wriggled back from the edge and moved slowly down to where the track was.

‘Stay there, Krysta,’ she hissed softly. There was nobody anywhere near that would hear but sound travelled easily at night and she didn't want to risk it.

‘Kita, it's dark up here.’ Krysta's voice shook with fear and Nakita moved more swiftly once her feet found the small rut that formed the track.

‘Krysta, I told you to stay at home,’ she scolded her little sister when she finally found her huddled up at the foot of a tree with a small lantern clutched in one hand.

‘Patch ran off and I didn't want him to get lost,’ Krysta explained, letting a stifled sob show how frightened she was.

Nakita turned her attention to the monkey who sat next to her little sister innocently licking one of his paws. Even in the dim light cast by the lantern she could see his mischievous eyes glinting as he enjoyed the commotion he had caused.

As for getting lost, Krysta should know there was nowhere to get lost in. Patch, and the rest of the monkeys, lived in the trees that grew thickly around the perimeter of the plateau with no way off. Patch had attached himself to Nakita many years ago and followed her everywhere.

‘Thanks for looking out for him,’ Nakita said kindly, not seeing any point in upsetting her little sister any further by saying she need not have bothered.

She picked up the little black monkey, his white patch of fur around one eye catching the light of the lantern and glowing brightly, then pulled Krysta to her feet.

‘Come on, we'd better get home before father finds out we're not in our room.’ Nakita started walking down the track and Krysta followed.

‘What were you doing up on Lookout Peak?’ Krysta asked and Nakita frowned. She had hoped that Krysta wouldn't ask that. She couldn't keep secrets, even though she tried really hard, and they seemed to just slip out at the very worst time.

‘I just wanted a walk,’ Nakita lied.

‘But nobody is supposed to go up here,’ Krysta pointed out.

‘Quiet... we'll get caught if anyone hears us.’ Nakita held one finger up to her lips as they emerged from the trees near the outskirts of town.

They crept through the silent cluster of houses, along the worn cobbled street, and into the centre of the village. The cobbles were cold on Nakita's bare feet even though her feet were toughened from never wearing shoes. Leather was scarce since there was no renewable supply on Eagle Rock and no chance for trade since nobody ever came there.

At least it wasn’t snowing here. Nakita knew that it snowed down in the valley but never up on Eagle Rock. It seemed that the snow was down in the valley most of the year and Nakita thought it must make for a cold summer.

‘Why are you so dirty, Kita?’ Krysta asked in a whisper that was almost as loud as her normal voice.

‘I fell over,’ Nakita hissed back in a tone that told her little sister not to ask any more questions.

They almost made it back to their bedroom without being caught. Carlene stood at the top of the stairs and glared down at them as they hesitated at the bottom.

‘Where have you been at this time of night?’ she demanded and Nakita heard a chuckle from behind her mother. Bradon popped his head around his mother and his eyes said it all. He had told his mother they weren’t in their room and was delighted to have dropped them in trouble.

‘Patch ran off. I didn’t want him to get lost,’ Krysta said in a frightened little voice.

‘Well, Nakita you should have known better than to let her go running off in the night... and you’re covered in dirt!’ Her mother appeared content with Krysta’s explanation for which Nakita was thankful.

She allowed Krysta to scurry past her off to the bedroom but she caught hold of Nakita and dragged her off to the bathing room. Nakita didn’t object and started to wash the worst of the dirt off her hands while her mother unbraided her hair to brush the dirt from it.

‘I don’t know, Nakita. You’re more like a boy than your brother...’ her mother muttered, half angry but without the edge to her voice that told her temper was roused. ‘Just look at all the dirt in your...’

The brush hit the floor and her mother fell silent before Nakita realised that something was wrong. She turned to see why she had stopped and her mother’s face was as white as the sheets that Nakita had hung out today.

‘No...  no...  it can’t be...’ her mother whispered, fear and horror clear in her eyes.

‘What can’t be?’ Nakita asked, putting out a hand to steady her mother who looked suddenly unstable on her feet.

‘Your hair.’ Her mother’s gaze was fixed on Nakita’s long wavy hair that hung loose about her shoulders.

Nakita grabbed a handful to see what was wrong with it but her mother crumpled to the ground and hit the floor with a soft thud.

‘Father!  Father!’ Nakita called out as she knelt down and saw that her mother was unconscious.

Her father appeared in the doorway a few seconds later and picked Carlene up.

‘What happened?’ He asked as he looked at his wife with a frown.

‘She just fainted,’ Nakita said, not really knowing any more to tell.

Her father carried her from the room and Nakita turned back to the mirror, wondering what had upset her mother so badly. She pulled the lamp closer and then sucked in a huge breath in surprise. Sprinkled throughout her hair were dozens and dozens of pure silver hairs.

CHAPTER THREE - VISITORS

Nakita stared at the silver strands for several minutes before she started to pull them out. The sharp sting she felt was nothing compared to what would happen if anyone else saw them.

‘For every one you pull out, two more will come in its place,’ Granny Roza said from the doorway and Nakita spun around to look at her.

‘Really?’ Nakita asked with a sigh. ‘I guess this is what the coal is for.’

‘I suggest you use it before your father sees. Your mother won’t tell him about them but if he sees them for himself, there will definitely be trouble.’ Granny Roza threw a lump of coal to her and then stepped forward with another in her hand. She rubbed it down the silver hairs, dulling them but not completely hiding the glowing strands. ‘I never had this many, even after several weeks.’

Nakita scrubbed at the ones she could reach but got more coal on her hands than her hair. Granny Roza just carried on, calmly and patiently until it blended every strand into the rest of her hair.

‘Sure would have been easier if you were blonde,’ Granny Roza muttered as she stood back to view her handiwork. ‘I think a scarf would be a good idea if you don’t want your pillow to turn black.’

Nakita quickly plaited her hair and rinsed her hands clean before tipping the dirty water out the window. She slipped quietly down the hall to her room. As she passed her mother’s room she saw her father sitting next to her, mopping her forehead with a damp cloth.

‘Should I fetch the healer?’ Nakita asked softly.

‘She’ll be fine in the morning. She’s just done too much today,’ her father assured her and Nakita pulled the door closed.

Krysta was already fast asleep and Nakita tied on a scarf and fell into bed too. Today had been an exhausting day all round.

Carlene wasn’t better in the morning though. Nor was she the next day, and she just lay looking at the ceiling, muttering incoherently. They finally called the healer, and he announced she had a fever. That she wasn’t even hot didn’t seem to matter, everyone believed him. Everyone except Nakita and Granny Roza.

‘Will she be all okay?’ Nakita asked her granny as they stood at the foot of the bed looking at the delirious Carlene. She had just spent almost an hour touching up her hair as there were twice as many strands of silver now. If it got any worse she would have no hope of keeping it covered.

‘She’ll get over the shock but I don’t think she’ll do that while you’re still here. Every time she sees you it will remind her of what the wizard will do if he finds you. Are you almost ready to leave?’ Granny Roza asked quietly.

‘You know I’m leaving?’ Nakita asked and then remembered that the future wasn’t exactly a secret to her. So far there had been nothing to let Nakita know she had been changed by touching the stone, except for her hair of course, and she didn’t even feel different. ‘I broke through to the valley yesterday but I didn’t want to leave when mother was so ill.’

‘The sooner the better going by the amount of silver in your hair. What did you do, take a stone with you?’ Granny Roza eyed her hair critically.

‘I only held one for a few minutes,’ Nakita assured her. ‘I didn’t like the look of the black one at all though.’

‘What black one?’ Granny snapped and looked suspiciously at Nakita. ‘There wasn’t a black one when I was young.’

‘There were four, green, blue, pink and black,’ Nakita told her.

‘I only saw two and I’m sure there weren’t any more than that.’ Granny frowned. ‘I wonder where he’s getting them from.’

Nakita just shrugged as she couldn’t even begin to guess. She didn’t have time to think about it the rest of the day either as she got ready to leave. She decided to go just after breakfast the next morning as it might take the whole day to walk to the town of Two Lakes. She didn’t want to spend the night in the forest.

That evening was hard as she tried to store away every moment to carry with her on her journey. She had expected it to be a special evening, her last with the family who had been her whole life, but it was just a normal evening for everyone else. If she had told them she was leaving it would have been different but they would try to stop her.

Granny Roza came out to help her with the dishes but with Krysta popping in and out of the kitchen they never got a moment to speak alone. Finally, they just gave each other a hug and Nakita felt a tear slide down her cheek.

The false light of pre-dawn came far too soon and Nakita pulled her small bag from under the bed and tiptoed quietly from the room. She cast one last look back at her little sister, feeling sad that she would probably never see her again, and then hurried down the stairs. Patch scampered along after her and leapt to his usual perch, warming her neck with his tail.

Nobody was up yet as she moved quickly but quietly through the village and she reached the cave without seeing anyone. She hadn’t left a note as her mother would know why she left and Granny Roza could tell them. Usually she lit a lantern that hung just inside the entrance to the cave but she was already half way across the cave before she noticed that she didn’t need one. She could see quite well even though it was dark. Was this one of the magical things the stone had done to her?

A minute later she reached the entrance to the tunnel, and she had only taken a dozen steps when a small noise made her stop and listen. It was a scraping sound, followed by a shuffling, and it was coming from down her tunnel. She decided it was probably just a mouse and started walking down the tunnel again. The noise came again, but louder this time, and she heard a grunt that definitely didn’t come from a mouse. Perhaps it was an animal that lived in the forest?  She left the tunnel opening unblocked yesterday and some creature probably thought this was a nice warm cave.

She backed up until she was in the cave again. What should she do now?  Wait until it left the tunnel?  What if it came all the way up?  If the villagers saw an animal that didn’t belong on Eagle Rock they might find out how it got there and she might not be far enough away by then.

The scraping, shuffling and grunting got louder and Nakita realised that she had a bigger problem. What if it was a