The Dawn of Skye (The Someday Children Book 1)

by E. B. Heimdal

  It doesn’t feel quite safe to move on, but Salomon’s curious and fights on, determined to get through the untamed and rough terrain. Finally he reaches the pile of trees and leaves and starts climbing to the top. Victorious, he reaches the top and curiously looks at the other side of the conquest he’s just climbed.

  With a lump in his throat he slowly sits down and leans his head back in despair. He closes his eyes for a short moment, before he gets up and starts climbing down again. Quickly he runs down the muddy mountainside as he tries to keep his balance on the slippery ground and not trip over the many exposed tree roots. The rain’s intensified and the sharp branches rip his soaked clothing, which is torn, piece by piece. Several times the sharp tentacles get a hold of Salomon’s skin and tear it, but he doesn’t feel it. The only thing he can think about is getting back to the camp as quickly as possible.

  “Pass me the large branch, Skye.”

  Dagwood shouts at Skye through the rain as he tries to cover the last large hole in the roof. He’s annoyed that the rain’s returned so soon. The few rays of sun that found their way to the camp in the days after the flood were only temporary guests. The others have sought shelter inside the hut, and Puk has finally managed to get a fire going with the semi-dried firewood that’s been drying in the sun for the past few days. Most of the floor is dry, but the dark corners are still damp. Axton and Lark sit together under an old blanket getting warm.

  “We needed a few days more without rain. Everything’s still damp and gross.”

  Puk looks at Evi as he speaks, and tries to cover her chest with the fur lying over her.

  “But at least we have the fire to warm us … and plenty of food in the pot and in the supply box.”

  Over the past couple of days they’ve collected several of the drowned animals and have hung them to dry before the meat can turn rotten and become infested with larva. The temperature is so low that most of the small bugs have disappeared. It’s only once in a while that a large buzzer finds its way to the meat and circles it, hoping for a meal. The adult dogs help to keep them away. Puk’s trained them so that they try to catch buzzers in the air, and as a reward they get pieces of the meat.

  “It smells good,” Dagwood says with a smile, as he and Skye enter the hut. He hurries to take off his wet shirt and hangs it to dry by the fireplace. Skye hesitates a little before she unties her shirt and looks at the clothing line, hoping to find another shirt she can wear instead. Lark gets up and grabs an undershirt.

  “Here, take this …”

  She smiles understandingly at Skye, who takes the dry undershirt with relief. Normally she has no problem undressing in front of the others, but lately she’s become strangely aware of her body. Suddenly she’s shy at the thought of someone seeing her without clothes – particularly Dagwood or Salomon. She’s as slight as a small, scrawny bird, and the ribs on her chest and her hip bones quickly become too distinctive if she doesn’t eat properly for a while.

  Lark looks at her.

  “Did Dagwood patch the last hole in the roof?”

  Skye nods as she turns away from the others sitting by the fireplace.

  Lark continues as Skye takes off her wet shirt: “It must be hard for him now that Flo’s gone …”

  Skye’s puzzled by Lark’s remark and she turns towards her.

  “What do you mean?”

  Lark’s surprised by Skye’s reaction and pulls her head back a little.

  She replies nervously: “Well … there’s a special bond between them … They have each other. Flo told me before she left … And he’s going out to find her, right?”

  Skye doesn’t understand what Lark is saying. What special bond? Has she misunderstood or overlooked something? Did something happen between them while she was alone in the forest? She feels like asking more questions, but she doesn’t want to show Lark her surprise and confusion. She quickly changes the subject instead as she scowls at Dagwood.

  “How’s Evi doing?”

  Lark smiles relieved and relaxes her shoulders, happy that Skye isn’t asking any more questions that she might not be able to answer.

  “Puk says she’s doing better. But she hasn’t said that much yet. It’s like she’s struggling to find the words. And her arm is also a little limp …”

  She leans towards Skye, whispering: “I think that she’s acting a bit strange, but Puk will get her well again. Like he did with Twice. He’s told me how he woke him from the dead with a lot of care and healing herbs.”

  Skye tries to concentrate on Lark, but she finds it hard to take her eyes off Dagwood. He sits by the fire, laughing together with Finch and Axton as Puk stirs the pot with food.

  Then Dagwood calls to her: “Skye, come over by the fire and get warm. You mustn’t get cold.”

  She smiles back at him and quickly puts the dry undershirt on. Soon she sits with him under the blanket, with a warm bowl of food in her hands. The raindrops drum on the roof, and the dogs are half asleep by the door. The terrible ordeal of just a few days ago suddenly seems far away, and their hut is starting to look like a home again. They still need to build new beds and to clear the area around the campfire, but they’re all starting to have hope for the future. Skye feels safe and happy to be there with the others. She can’t imagine a life without them, and she feels she’s always known them.

  Dagwood puts his arm around her under the blanket, and strokes her arm gently. He holds her close and kisses her forehead. It feels nice until she sees Lark looking accusingly at her. A feeling of guilt rushes through her, and she straightens up as she pulls away from Dagwood. Why should she feel guilty over something Lark said that doesn’t make any sense? Would he hold her this gently if he was emotionally attached to Flo? How could Lark have overlooked Dagwood’s attention to her, and think that his heart belonged to Flo? No, she doesn’t want to think about it anymore, or feel the need to justify her feelings about Dagwood to Lark.

  She lets her head rest on Dagwood’s shoulder and closes her eyes. His skin feels soft and warm and he smells of rain and fresh leaves. Quietly she dozes off to the sound of the others’ small talk and the crackling of the fire. She’s almost fallen asleep when a squeaking sound wakes her ,and she instinctively opens her eyes. The two large dogs rush to the door, wagging their tails as they snivel with excitement. In the doorway, Salomon stands looking at her.

  Dagwood quickly gets up, hurries to Salomon and hugs him. He’s happy and relieved to have him home again, safe from The Scavengers and other dangers. A few days ago he wouldn’t have worried about sending Salomon out on patrol, but after the attack by The Scavengers and the destruction of the flood, life suddenly seemed more fragile than before. Nothing must be taken for granted, and the same goes for the survival of Salomon.

  Skye stays in the background, watching them. Safety, strength and love gather in two boys who love each other like brothers. The two most important people in her life melted together into one person for a brief moment.

  Finally, Dagwood lets go of Salomon and says with a smile: “You’ve been missed. Come inside and get warm. We’ve plenty of food.”

  He pulls him through the room towards the fireplace as the dogs follow with their tails wagging. The mood among the others has lightened and everyone’s happy to see him. But Skye sees that Salomon doesn’t smile. On the contrary, he looks tired and worried. The water’s dripping from his long, black hair and his clothes are soaked and torn apart. The small cuts everywhere on his body and face have mixed with the raindrops and colored his light shirt red. It’s not until they get closer to the fire that Dagwood sees what a wretched state Salomon is in, and he tries to hide his fright.

  They both sit down by the fire and Dagwood asks, worried: “What’s happened, Sal? Did you find The Scavengers … and Flo? Did they attack you?”

  He stops his stream of questions as he sees the hopelessness on Salomon’s face, a
nd he tries not to force him to answer. But he’s worried. Puk comes with a bowl of warm food and passes it to Salomon with an encouraging smile. Disheartened, he takes it and puts it in his lap. But he doesn’t eat anything. Skye puts a dry blanket over his shoulders while she sends him a cautious smile, but he doesn’t return it.

  Suddenly Puk breaks the silence with a slightly shrill voice.

  “Have you seen how far we’ve gotten putting things in order? The water has almost receded completely, and before long we’ll make the campfire look nice again! Dagwood’s also repaired the roof and …”

  “It doesn’t matter. You’ve all worked in vain.”

  Salomon interrupts him in the middle of his euphoric explanation with a voice drained of excitement. He buries his head in his hands as he shakes his head.

  “All our work is wasted. I’ve been running half a day to get back to you, but I only have bad news. Up in the mountains a huge monster is lurking. It lies waiting, gathering strength. It’s only a matter of time before it attacks …”

  Dagwood is puzzled over Salomon’s cryptic way of explaining. Normally he never speaks in riddles, but this time he doesn’t understand what Salomon means. What monster is he talking about? The others around them all look at each other in wonder, and to Salomon, who seems to be talking to himself and not the others. Dagwood quickly exchanges a look with Puk, who shakes his head, clearly not understanding.

  Skye sits down next to Salomon and takes his hand. She squeezes it gently and asks carefully: “What kind of monster have you seen, Sal?”

  “There’s something inevitable coming. Probably not today, but maybe tomorrow.”

  His voice is dull and disheartened, drained of energy.

  “The river’s been eating its way through the mountain. Its streams have parted in several directions, and have gathered into a large dam that’s lying there in wait, like a lurking monster. Each drop of rain falling from the sky will make the dam, the monster, stronger and bigger. A flood’s coming soon. It will happen again!”

  Skye lets go of his hand and gets up in shock. Dagwood grabs her and hugs her.

  “We’re doomed. What are we going to do? We’re going to lose everything … again.”

  Lark’s voice is desperate and panicky, and instinctively they all think back to the time when the world changed and they lost everything for the first time. During their short lives, all of them have lost more than you ought to in a long and full life, and the thought of having to wander into the unknown once again is terrifying.

  The dogs start reacting to the nervous mood spreading through the hut. They run back and forth, whimpering, making everybody even more nervous. Storm’s particularly frightened, and it’s obvious that he’s not used to being around domesticated dogs.

  A boom sounds from the sky, and the rain intensifies as if it’d heard Salomon’s words and has been waiting for his signal to launch the next attack. They’re all shocked, and Skye tries to hide her despair. Without letting go of her, Dagwood sits down in front of Salomon.

  “Are you completely sure? Isn’t there something we can do to stop a new flood? What if we all go up there? Can we secure and reinforce the dam so that the water doesn’t break through?”

  Salomon shakes his head.

  “No, it’s impossible. The forces of nature can’t be tamed and are more overwhelming than any of you can grasp. I saw it with my own eyes. Trees were torn from the ground as if they were small, fragile flowers and thrown onto a pile like twigs on a fire. The river’s only waiting for the smallest weakness in the dam so that it can push through again and explode over the forest and the valley and flood everything again.”

  He looks at Skye, and he feels like tearing her away from the arms of Dagwood and holding her tight. But she’s safe where she is. Dagwood’s the support she needs and someone she can count on. He’ll never let her down, or lose his courage like he did back then in the arena with Kop. But how he wished it was different! She was the only thing he could think about on the long, cold way back from the mountains. And even though he found her with Dagwood, he couldn’t stop thinking about their time alone in the forest. She’d felt something for him then. He’s certain of it! And until she tells him otherwise, he’ll hold on to that moment, even though it might only exist in his mind and heart.

  His focus returns to the others when another boom sounds from the outside and a flash lights up the dark sky.

  He goes on: “We don’t have much time left. We can’t stay here. We have to find a new home, or we’ll all die.”

  The mood in the hut is as black as the night, and they all sit next to each other without speaking. They’re all shocked and in apathy. Except Skye. Thoughts and memories race through her head, and she can’t keep her hands still. Again and again she hears the excited words of Ecco in her head. He’d found a place so amazing that it was worth killing for. Worth killing another human for.

  She shivers inside at the thought of that night, but even though she knows what the right thing to do is, she’s afraid to say it aloud. Afraid of being torn back to the time in her life when she was the most lost and afraid. In despair over her own actions, afraid of herself and the monster within her. And she doesn’t feel like being confronted by those memories again, or the place that will bring back the memories. But she also knows that she has to, no matter how little she wants to. It’s not just about her but about their survival, her friends, her family.

  She looks around at the worried and sad faces of the others and takes a deep breath. She stands up and breaks the silence in the room with a loud and clear voice.

  “I know where we can go. The Valley of Plenty.”

  CHAPTER 46

  They left the next day as the morning sun crawled up from the horizon and the buzzers of the night found rest in the shadows. Only the most necessary things were packed in their rucksacks. Everything else they left to an uncertain future in the hut. The rain had stopped for a while, as if it wanted them to escape The Light Valley without drama or bad memories. It was a beautiful last goodbye to the time they’d spent living here together, in peace and harmony. They’d had so many happy and memorable hours here before their irreversible controversy. But they’d also had unhappiness and sorrow, and had faced challenges that had made them stronger and bonded them closer. They’d said goodbye to people they loved and to people who had let them down.

  None of them knew what the future held, but they’d accepted their destiny. They left with hope in their hearts and Skye’s words on their minds, even though none of them had any idea what fear that hid behind them.

  “There’s a wonderful place by a large lake filled with swimmers. Close to the lake, there’s an empty hut with solid stone walls and a roof to keep the rain out. And in the surrounding forest we’ll find plenty of animals, fruit trees and nut bushes. It’s the most beautiful place I’ve ever seen, and it’s there just waiting for us.”

  Like the others, Dagwood had tied his hopes for the future around Skye’s words. He deeply hoped that the place was there waiting for them and would welcome them warmly. It sounded like a dream.

  The group had moved slowly ahead through the forest like a limbless, scaled animal in the grass. But with every step they took, a question grew stronger in his head. Why had this amazing place been abandoned? Who would want to leave such a place voluntarily?

  He looked at Skye, who was walking in front, next to Salomon, as they showed the way together. She looked so composed and determined, and the nagging question disappeared. It would be all right. He was certain of it.

  DICTIONARY

  Bloodsucker: mosquito

  Flat-tailed rodent: beaver

  Button: nipple

  Long-ear: rabbit, hare

  Mouse killer: cat

  Roundsnout: wild boar

  Scaled animal: lizard, reptile, snake

  Horned animal:
deer

  Stinger: bee

  Buzzer: flying insect, moth, butterfly, fly

  Swimmer: fish

  Deer killer: mountain lion, bobcat, lynx

  Salomon’s Song

  Book Two of The Someday Children

  In their search for a new home, they’ve finally reached The Valley of Plenty. But they’re not the only ones looking for a new start. Someone else is already there. Will they flee, or stay and claim their new home? It’s not an easy choice because the wrong decision could cost them their lives.

  Skye is torn by her feelings for Dagwood and Salomon. It’s so easy to love one of them. So how come she feels drawn towards the other?