Omega Crag: Zahra of the Uwharries

By Micki Bare

Zahra isn't just any fairy. She's The Convener who, at age 12, must bring together the Trilaterian-three special fairies who were born to save the future of scraebins. When ground-dwelling Rain Flowers throw her off track, jeopardize her life, and displace the

• Language: English
• Publisher: Level Elevate
• Release date: May 14, 2024
• ISBN: 9781685126452

Micki Bare

Micki Bare is a graduate of NC State University. Her career in education spans three decades, with service as a teacher, administrator, and marketing director. She is the author of three early-reader children's books, was featured in two anthologies, and wrote a human interest column for 18 years. Her first middle-grade novel, Society of the Sentinelia, won the 2022 AAUW NC Young People's Literature Award and was a 2023 Green Earth Book Award long-list nominee. Book two in the Zahra of the Uwharries series, Blind Fairy, won the 2023 AAUW NC Young People's Literature Award. Omega Crag is the third of five in the series. She loves to write, garden, cook, and hike. She and her husband reside in Asheboro, NC.

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Micki Bare

OMEGA CRAG

Zahra of the Uwharries

First published by Level Elevate 2024

Copyright © 2024 by Micki Bare

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning, or otherwise without written permission from the publisher. It is illegal to copy this book, post it to a website, or distribute it by any other means without permission.

This novel is entirely a work of fiction. The names, characters and incidents portrayed in it are the work of the author's imagination. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events or localities is entirely coincidental.

Micki Bare asserts the moral right to be identified as the author of this work.

Hardcover ISBN: 978-1-68512-644-5

Author Photo Credit: Lifetouch

First edition

ISBN: 978-1-68512-645-2

Cover art by Level Best Designs

This book was professionally typeset on Reedsy

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For Emma.

Dream big because dreams are meant to come true!

Contents

Praise for Omega Crag

1. Stuck

2. Blaze

3. Horizons

4. Hensley

5. The Second

6. Overnight Stay

7. The Hailing

8. The Farm

9. Mr. Jack Presnell

10. Misguided

11. New Plan

12. Amethyst

13. Rain Flower

14. The Hole

15. Poisonous

16. Reunion

17. Hope

18. Meditation

19. Third Sign

20. Underground

21. Sunset Side

22. Hungry

23. Alone

24. Recovery

25. Clara’s Story

26. Old House

27. Rain Flower Message

28. Assemble Skill

29. Gathering

30. Empty Warren

31. Crag Rock

32. Balance

33. Next Steps

34. Visit

35. Message

36. One Rain Flower

37. Broken Spell

38. Poppety

39. Birkhead Wilderness Colony

40. Third One

41. Wood Mouse

42. Return

43. Second Mentor

Book Club Questions

Acknowledgements

About the Author

Also by Micki Bare

Praise for Omega Crag

"As with the best hero stories, this is as much about the journey as it is achieving the goal of the quest. There is a moment toward the end (no spoilers) where I literally got chills. Speaking words of life, of affirmation can change the world. Bare has created a magical world inspired by the beautiful Birkhead Wilderness of the Uwharrie Mountains in North Carolina."—Kate B. Jackson, author of Agatha Award finalist The Sasquatch of Hawthorne Elementary

Bare’s imagination shines through in this unique tale, as she weaves together a compelling plot, exciting stakes, and heartfelt characters. Filled with strong friendships and epic adventures, this book is the perfect escape for young readers who love fantasy blurred with reality, sprinkled with a dash of magic.—Alison Schaffir, author of Your Dream for Me

"Set in the Uhwarrie Mountains, this fantastic, magical world of fairies and their heart animals … will carry you on an enchanting journey that both adults and children will enjoy. Bare’s characters are memorable and the crossing of friendships from different worlds in the past and present makes for a positive scenario into the future."—Sandra Rathbone, author of Skelee Boy and Skelee Boy and the Demon King

1

Stuck

The rock at the summit. Aiofe is sure that’s what she heard the cicadas sing to her. But she’s blind. Even if she could sense the rock, she can’t read it. That’s why I’m the one flitting around, checking every boulder and crag on the top of this mountain while she sits on the edge of a knothole and hums.

Aiofe and I are here because we’re scraebins who are also fairies. Most scraebins who are not fairies don’t believe in fairies. When a scraebin is born with what elder scraebins call fairy traits, they’re not treated well. Aiofe was born with three traits. That’s why she was blinded, injured, and then left alone in the forest when she was young.

I’m thankful my family is more accepting of fairies. My parents have known all my life I’m a fairy. I found out about a year ago.

This mission Aiofe and I are on to find the Scraebin Tomes etched on a rock has me frustrated. I know I should trust Aiofe because she is one of the Trilaterian—a group of three special fairies marked with all three fairy traits and born on the same day. The Trilaterian is supposed to save the future of all scraebins. My job as The Convener Fairy is to unite all three Trilaterian Fairies. So far, Aiofe is the only one I found.

We’re at the peak of this mountain looking for something that’s going to help us find the other two. We traveled from the forest where we live—humans call our forest the Birkhead Wilderness in the Uwharrie Mountains. We’ve been here most of the night, but now the sun is rising and this place will be covered with humans. We’re at the end of a hiking trail on Purgatory Mountain. I know the name because it’s written on all the signs.

Scraebins can’t read. Most scraebins who are also fairies aren’t able to read, either. But I can. It’s one of my special skills. That’s why I can read the wooden signs that stand all over this mountain. Unfortunately, they’re for humans who need trail information. We’re looking for a specific rock, the Omega Crag. That’s where the ancient writings of scraebin-fairies are supposedly etched. My mentor fairy, Miss Jellisia Levion, and Aiofe believe the Tomes include all the signs that warn of the extinction of scraebins. My job is to read it. But I have to find it first.

Are you reading? Is it here? Are you reading yet? Aiofe calls out.

I look around. I’ve checked the clump of rocks near the sign at the peak. There are lots of clusters to check. Rocks poke out of this summit like bumps on a frog. I shake my head.

No, Aiofe. Are you sure there wasn’t something more the cicadas told you? Is this the right place on the right mountain?

Yes, Yes. Sure. Aiofe is very, very sure, she answers. Then her head drops. Zahra is upset with Aiofe? Zahra doesn’t believe?

I take a deep breath and fly over to Aiofe. I take her hands in mine. I do believe, Aiofe. It’s just that there are so many rocks. There must be something more. The sun is up and there will be humans walking through here soon. We have to go. I can look again tonight.

It’s here. It is, she says. Her head nods as if it’s stuck in snail slime. A tear slides out of the corner of one of her closed-up eye holes. The cicadas sang it. They sang it. The rock at the summit. This is the mountain, yes, yes!

I hug her the way my sister used to hug me. I know. We’ll find the right rock. I’ll just keep looking. I say.

Keep looking, yes, yes. Keep using your special eyes.

Are we at the top yet, Mr. Harris? a human boy calls out.

I pull Aiofe closer to me. Aiofe, we have to hide. I can hear humans coming, I whisper.

Hide, hide. Yes, yes! Come inside the knothole.

We turn and crawl inside. She sits against the wall at the far end of the empty space. I peek out and watch as a swarm of human kids and two human adults walk up to the mountain’s peak. Some of them sit on rocks. They’re all dressed in matching blue clothes.

My heart pounds. This knothole is too close to the ground. It’s too close to the trail and all the humans. I slide back next to Aiofe. We crunch down. Our wings wrap around our bodies to make us invisible to humans—especially the curious ones who might look inside the hole. Our wings are a color human eyes can’t see. I whisper that we need to camouflage, too. Camouflaging is a skill fairies use to seem invisible by blending in with our surroundings, like chameleons. She nods. We disappear against the inside of the tree and wait.

The humans talk, drink, and eat. Maybe when they’re done with their meal, they’ll leave. Then we can find a better place to hide until dark.

Mr. Harris, will we get extra credit for the Fur, Feathers, and Ferns Badge if we fix this tree? one of the child humans asks.

I hope he’s not pointing to the tree we’re in, but I’m too afraid to look.

I don’t know about extra credit, the adult human says. But it would be a nice thing to do for this poor tree.

My heart pounds so hard I can hardly breathe. I focus on listening to the humans. What are they doing? How close are they to this knothole?

The clomping of human feet grows closer. The knothole goes dark. Clear as if I were sitting on his shoulder, I hear the child human say, I placed the mesh. Billy’s holding it so I can spread the plaster. How’s it looking, Mr. Harris?

They’re closing up the knothole with us inside!

Looks great, boys. Good job, says the adult human.

Tears fall down my cheeks. I sniffle.

What, what? Why are you crying? What has happened? Aiofe asks.

Shhh, I snap. Then I whisper back, We’re stuck.

Stuck? she asks in a much quieter voice.

Yes, we’re stuck in this knothole. The human kids just closed up the hole. They did it to fix the tree.

Aiofe shakes her head. Fix? Fix? And now stuck?

Yes, we’re stuck. The word ‘stuck’ lingers like mud in my mouth.

We’ve been looking for the Scraebin Tomes since last fall. That’s when the ground-dwelling cicadas popped out of the ground. The rising of cicadas in the fall season during an early snow was the first sign that foretells of the path scraebins are following toward extinction. There are seven signs. They’re all supposed to be listed in Scraebin Tomes. I have to gather the three fairies of the Trilaterian before all seven signs happen. That’s the only way we’ll be able to find the path to save our kind.

Fall and winter have passed. The trees are budding, flowers are blooming, and we’re still searching. We know the Snow Cicadas were the first sign. We also sense that Rain Flowers, with petals that shed tears, are the second sign. So far, we haven’t found any. But they could pop up at any time.

Aiofe and Miss Jellisia Levion are sure about these Rain Flowers. I never heard of them until last fall. When I asked what they were like, Miss Jellisia Levion looked away and said no one had seen one in hundreds of years. She’s never seen one. Her mentor fairy mentioned them once and described them as shrill, unscrupulous, and sticky.

I have to believe the Scraebin Tomes etched into a rock on this mountain somewhere will explain everything about the seven signs, including what to expect from the Rain Flowers. I also hope it gives us clues about where to find the other two Trilaterian Fairies. They could be anywhere.

Danni would have a plan? A plan, is that right? A plan? Aiofe asks.

I smile. Yes, Danni would have a plan. I haven’t seen my best friend Danni, who is a human, since the cicadas left last fall right after her twelfth birthday party. She wanted to have a party to celebrate my birthday season, which is winter, but that didn’t happen. It couldn’t happen. I had to leave my colony and stop seeing Danni so I could focus on my job as The Convener.

Danni helped me find my family when our tree was destroyed. She helped me find Aiofe. I can trust her to not tell other humans about scraebins. Best of all, she and I are great at coming up with plans together. But now, my job has to come first. So now, I have to come up with plans on my own.

Since The Convener’s job is to find and bring together the Trilaterian, my number one priority is to find the other two fairies that will help Aiofe save the scraebins. But now, we’re trapped in a knothole without a plan.

We can plan, plan, plan. We are good friends like Danni and Zahra. Aiofe and Zahra can make a plan, Aiofe says a little louder than a whisper.

Shhh, I repeat. We don’t want those humans to hear us.

We wait until humans leave. Let’s nap. Nap, nap, nap is the first plan, she whispers back.

That sounds like a great plan. If only I could sleep.

2

Blaze

My mind is too busy to nap. I listen for more humans. The group that closed our knothole is gone, but I hear footsteps and talking throughout the day.

Our heart animals—my cat, Gigesdi, my squirrel, Flicker, and Aiofe’s turtle, Garvin—are not with us in this knothole. They’re all somewhere near the peak of Purgatory Mountain, waiting for us. I’d say they’re worried, but they’re probably just annoyed.

After Aiofe’s nap, we come up with a plan to wait until nighttime when there are no humans around. Then, we’ll dig our way out of whatever they used to plug up the hole. It sounds like a good plan until I touch the hole. The gooey stuff they smeared on it is now rock-hard.

I take a deep breath. Aiofe hums. She sounds happy and calm.

What if we can’t dig out? What’s our backup plan? I ask her.

She continues to hum.

How about I push at all the walls and see if there’s a passageway to another part of the tree? Maybe one that leads to another knothole? I push and poke as I explain my idea.

Aiofe hums.

I check the ceiling, then the floor. I check the walls again.

She stops humming. Listen, listen. Do you hear? she asks.

Hear what? I stop grabbling the walls.

Listen, Zahra. Listen, she says. Close your eyes so you’re like me. Then hear, hear, hear with your heart.

I sit down next to her and close my eyes.

I listen.

SCRITCH

SCRITCH

SCRITCH

It gets quiet. Then we hear it again.

SCRITCH

SCRITCH

SCRITCH

What is that? I ask.

Aiofe doesn’t know. Aiofe listens.

SCRITCH

SCRITCH

SCRITCH

It sounds like it’s coming from under our feet. Below us, I say.

A new heart animal, Aiofe feels. Your new heart animal, yes, yes, she says.

Are you sure it’s not Flicker down there trying to scratch his way in? I ask.

SCRITCH

SCRITCH

SCRITCH

Yes, yes, Flicker. And Gigesdi. And another. There’s another. Aiofe feels.

Just then, the floor crumbles under us. We slide down through spongy dried wood. We land with a thud on the rocky ground at the base of the tree.

I help Aiofe up. We brush splintery dirt off our clothes. Flicker is next to me, but I don’t see Gigesdi or Garvin. What I do see is a rust-colored, ginormous fox with pointy ears and a fluffy tail. I’m frozen with my mouth wide open. The only things I move are my eyes. I search its face.

Please have purple eyes. Please have purple eyes.

The fox looks directly at me. The air trapped in my lungs seeps back out. Its eyes are a deep amethyst purple, just like Gigesdi’s, Flicker’s, and even Garvin’s.

I look at its paws. Every paw is white, with nothing blue or red. That means it’s my heart animal, not Aiofe’s. She was right.

Eventually, I’ll have seven heart animals according to Miss Jellisia Levion. When I first met her and learned she was my mentor, she saw seven rocks sparkling in a stream. She said that meant I’d have seven heart animals. So far I have three—a cat, a squirrel, and now a fox. They make an odd team for a scraebin that’s about as tall as a barn owl feather. But I’m glad they’re with me.

I try not to be scared, but the fox is so big. It’s much bigger than my heart cat, Gigesdi.

Give it a name, Zahra. It needs a name, it does, it does, Aiofe says. A name makes it happy, happy. Not scary.

Danni named Gigesdi for me. And Flicker, well, he flicks his tail all the time, so he was easy to name. Garvin, Aiofe’s turtle, bleated his own name out. He also bleated out ‘Eeeefah,’ which was how I learned Aiofe’s name.

I look at the fox, but can’t think of anything but her rusty red color. Maybe I should name her Red. Then I look at her feet. Even though her fur is mostly rust-colored, her feet are pure white as if she were wearing boots. Boots could be a good name. Then I look at her fluffy tail. When it’s puffed out, it looks like fire. Maybe I should call the fox Blaze.

The fox blinks and bows its head.

She couldn’t have read my mind, so I say the names aloud. Still looking at the fox, I ask, Aiofe, should her name be Red? I pause. Boots? I ask, then pause again. Or Blaze?

As soon as I say ‘Blaze,’ the fox