Shadows of Men (The Watchers Book 1)

by M. Lee Holmes

  “You have grown in age, Haneah.” Faine said to her and Haneah instinctively reached a hand up to feel her own face. She could not notice any difference through the feel of her skin but she knew that it had to be true. If her siblings had all grown in age then she would have grown in age as well.

  “What has happened to us?” Hebkya asked as she looked down to the green stone she held in her hand. It pulsed with an unnatural light, as did all of them. “I had the strangest dream.” She said.

  “I do not believe they were dreams.” Haneah replied as she looked down to her own stone. “I believe they were gifts.”

  They traveled to the mouth of the cave with Amag’mar lighting their way and when they reached the edge, they smiled with the joy of feeling sunlight on their faces and the cool breeze of fresh air in their lungs- all except Amag’mar. He stood motionless and let his fire die in the ocean breeze. Haneah tried not to watch him, for his foreboding mood was stealing away the bliss that she felt.

  “I feel strange.” Hebkya said as she peered over the edge of the cliff.

  “Strange?” Haneah asked with confusion. She was about to ask if Hebkya was sick when a sudden feeling of strength came over her. She felt it rise up in her chest and she closed her eyes to take in a breath.

  She heard the waves of the ocean crashing below her and the sound reverberated through her mind like a drum. She could not just hear the waves but she could feel them as well and she knew that the water was trying to reach her- it were drawn to her. She felt the tingling of the stone in her hand and opened her eyes once more. Looking down to the waves below, she knew that she could control them. She could will the water to move and sway to her own desire but before she could try it, Hebkya spoke again.

  “Do you remember that I can control the minds of animals, that I am able to make them do my will?”

  “Yes.” Haneah replied. It was a gift Hebkya had had all her life.

  “Well, I feel as though I could be an animal. I feel as though I can shift into one. I know it sounds strange and impossible but I feel it in my bones!” Just then, an eagle flew over their heads and Haneah pointed towards it.

  “Can you become an eagle?” She asked with curiosity. Something inside of her told her that her sister could become any animal she desired.

  Hebkya nodded to her sister then looked up at the eagle above. All of them watched in wonderment as she began to shift form. Her face became smaller and elongated as a beak appeared where her nose once was. Her entire body shrank and quivered until she was completely covered in soft, brown feathers and soon, she was soaring above their heads, cawing proudly at them.

  Haneah and Faine both shouted with joy and clapped as they watched their sister fly around the sun. She came swooping back and Haneah had to duck to avoid getting hit. When she turned, she found Hebkya standing in her natural form again and laughing with joy.

  “That felt incredible!” She shouted. “And I feel as though I could change all of you if I wanted!”

  “That would certainly be the best way for us to get home.” Haneah said. She turned back to the waves and the desire to control them overtook her. She raised her hands high in the air and felt her mind connect with the water below.

  It came in a small splash that traveled halfway up the cliff wall. Hebkya and Faine leaned over to watch the water swirl and ripple below them. Haneah knew that she had failed to impress them so she raised her hands again. This time, the ocean receded below them and pulled back farther than they could see. Haneah urged the water forward and they all gasped when they heard the roar of the wave come racing towards them.

  It was a wall of water, larger than any they had ever seen before and traveling at a speed that was incomprehensible. Haneah shouted at her siblings to run, knowing that she had doomed them all. Hebkya and Faine cried out in panic and raced back into the cave for safety. Amag’mar stood and stared blankly ahead, seemingly unaware of the danger he was in. Haneah urged him to run but her words were lost to him and soon the wave was blocking out all sunlight.

  Haneah knew that she had to stop it. She could not let her brother be washed away by her mistake. She stepped as close to the edge of the cliff as she could and raised her hands high in the air. She could faintly hear the sound of Hebkya and Faine shouting behind her but she ignored them and focused her mind on the wave.

  She immediately felt its power and its speed. With the force of her mind and the power of the stone, she willed the wave to slow and soon it was shrinking and shrinking and when it reached them, it was a mere spray of water that drenched Haneah and Amag’mar in a cold spray.

  Haneah stood panting for a moment, unable to believe what she had just done. She watched the water below, as calm as it was before she played with it. Hebkya and Faine stepped to her side and patted her on the back. They laughed and cheered at her ability to control the wave and soon, Haneah was smiling again.

  “What can you do Faine?” Hebkya asked her twin brother and a sly smile spread across his face.

  “I can control the wind and the air. I can feel it begging me to make a storm!” He stepped to the edge of the cliff, raised his stone into the air and focused on the few puffs of white clouds that lay before them.

  Suddenly, the sky began to darken and the wind began to howl. Haneah reached up and grasped her hair with her hand to keep it from blowing into her eyes and watched in horror as a great funnel of cloud formed in front of them and reached down towards the surface of the water. As it spun, it sucked up the ocean water and began to move with the motions of Faine’s hands. He laughed and cheered as the twister moved to his will. Then it was hurtling towards them and Haneah grasped Hebkya by the shoulder and began pulling her back.

  “Stop, Faine!” She shouted as the power of the wind grew and she could feel herself being pulled back towards the edge. Faine turned and when he saw his sisters struggling, he lowered his hands and the twister died just as quickly as it had been brought to life. The sky grew light once more and as the dark clouds disappeared, the wind abated. Haneah sighed with relief and smiled at Faine.

  “That was impressive.” She said.

  “All of it is impressive!” Faine exclaimed. His proud smile never faded as he turned to Amag’mar who still stood staring blankly ahead. Haneah shivered once more as she remembered the coldness of his eyes but she took a deep breath for courage and stepped closer to her youngest brother.

  “What about you, Amag’mar? Do you feel any different?” She asked in almost a whisper, as though she did not wish to disturb his waking slumber. He turned his head towards her slowly and glowered as though the question had offended him.

  “Yes.” He replied in a hiss and Haneah stepped away from him, unable to hide the fear in her face.

  Hebkya and Faine seemed unaware of the change in their brother and began to urge him to show them.

  “Show us what you can do!” Faine said with excitement.

  “We want to see what your stone has gifted you!” Hebkya said and she placed a hand on his shoulder. Quickly she pulled away from him as she noticed in the same way that Haneah had the iciness of his touch.

  Amag’mar turned away from them all and looked down towards the world that stretched on before them. “In time,” he said in a soft but empty voice, “you shall see the greatness of my powers.” It seemed to the three of them that he was not speaking to them but to the world below.

  It was nightfall before they reached their hut that rested on the outskirts of Axendra. It was a small village called Sun Hill that consisted of several huts, three large farms and less than one-hundred people. Their father had moved them to Sun Hill when there was no work for him to be found in Axendra. He came here to be a farmer’s hand.

  The four of them stalked quietly up to the house from the bushes and stopped just before reaching the front door. Haneah knew that their mother would be furious at them for staying out past dark and she had yet to come up with a proper excuse. She thought for a moment of placing the blame on Am
ag’mar. She considered telling her mother that he had run into a cave and they were forced to chase after him and find him but from the look on Amag’mar’s face, Haneah knew that placing the blame on herself and dealing with her mother’s wrath would be better than dealing with her brother’s wrath.

  She stood at the threshold and took a deep breath for courage before reaching for the door handle. She stopped, however, when Hebkya spoke.

  “Why are there no candles lit?” She wondered as she looked to the front windows. Haneah turned and was baffled by the sight of the darkened windows as well. There was not a single candle lit on the inside from the look of it.

  Have mother and father gone away? She wondered to herself. She knew the only way of finding out was to enter the hut. Slowly she turned the handle and pushed the wooden door ajar.

  The air inside was musty and cold. Haneah shivered as she stepped inside and began to rub her arms to warm them up. She stepped aside to let her siblings enter and once they were all in, they shut the door behind them. Haneah squinted in the dark to see but when her eyes refused to adjust, she turned to Amag’mar.

  “A little light, please?” She asked him sweetly and the second he raised his hand, a flame appeared. Haneah had never seen him conjure a flame so quickly. It was as though the act happened naturally with the movement of his hand and he no longer had to concentrate.

  Haneah turned when the sound of Hebkya’s gasp reached her ears. She stepped forward in disbelief at the sight before her and felt her body begin to shake.

  “What has happened to mother and father?” Faine asked as he stared at the empty hut before them. All the furniture had either been removed or was rotting where it stood. The straw ceiling had not been repaired in a long time and water had been dripping through and gathering on the floor below. The wood beneath their feet did not feel as it had that morning when they left. It felt old and rotted and Haneah knew that it could give way at any moment.

  They all stood in silence, unable to speak. Haneah shuffled forward slowly then stopped. She felt tears begin to take form and fall down her cheeks. She suddenly knew why they all looked and felt older, why they had changed so much within the course of one day. It hadn’t been one day at all, it had been several.

  The sound of footsteps from behind made Haneah whirl and Faine quickly reached for the door to reveal a woman, standing at the threshold peering in. When she saw the children, her face turned from curiosity to disbelief. She gasped and grasped at her chest as though her heart was threatening to jump from her chest.

  “It’s you!” She exclaimed in a tiny whisper. The disbelief she felt made it nigh impossible for her to speak.

  “Aunt Ana!” Haneah shouted and she ran to her aunt to embrace her. Haneah could feel her Aunt shaking as they held each other tightly. After a few moments, Aunt Ana pushed away from Haneah and held her out at arm’s length, examining her from top to bottom.

  “I cannot believe it!” She said louder this time and she turned her attention to the rest of them. “All of you are here!” She shook her head once more. “I must have fallen asleep and am dreaming this.”

  “You are not dreaming, Auntie Ana. We are here.” Faine said.

  “What has happened to our house, Aunt Ana?” Hebkya asked with concern.

  “What has happened to mother and father?” Haneah asked, wanting to know where their parents had gone.

  “Oh children.” Aunt Ana said. She shook her head once more and looked to them sadly. “You best come home with me and I will feed you, get you cleaned up and tell you everything.”

  Aunt Ana lived next door to them in a hut that was similar in size and shape. It was Aunt Ana who had convinced their father to move to Sun Hill when the hut next to hers was vacant.

  The entire hut was lit up with bright candles, giving the room and cheery glow. She told the children to sit in any chair they could find and stood in the center of the room, looking all of them over in disbelief. It seemed as though she could not take her eyes off of them.

  “Where have you children been?” She finally asked. She turned to Haneah just as the question escaped her lips, as though Haneah was the only one who could give an honest answer.

  “We were playing on the beach.” Haneah replied, unwilling to tell Aunt Ana the entire story.

  “And?” She asked with impatience. “What happened to you? Where have you been all this time?”

  “On the beach.” Hebkya replied, obviously trying to take some of the pressure away from Haneah.

  “Oh children.” Aunt Ana said again. “I was with your mother the day she sent you off to play. That day was three years ago exactly!”

  “What?” Haneah shouted. She had expected to learn that some time had passed but three years was much longer than she had anticipated. “You must be mistaken!”

  “There is no mistake!” Aunt Ana said with an air of regret. “I thought my eyes were deceiving me when I saw the four of you scurry up the steps to your hut. I thought that perhaps in my old age, I was beginning to hallucinate! You are not a hallucination, are you?” She reached out to grasp Haneah by the arm as she asked this question, squeezing gently to see if she was real.

  “We are not a hallucination, Aunt Ana. We are truly here.” Haneah replied.

  “Then it is a miracle.” She said and a smile formed on her lips.

  “Where are mother and father?” Faine asked again, growing impatient for an answer.

  “What I have to tell you is not easy.” Aunt Ana said, turning to Faine and taking in a deep breath. “For days we searched that beach for any sign of you and finally, the town came to the conclusion that the tide had come in and all of you had drown.” Aunt Ana said this with such sadness; it was as though the pain of it still plagued her heart. “Your mother succumbed to the heartache of losing her four children and threw herself into the ocean!”

  “No!” Haneah shouted. She fell to her knees and cried hysterically into her open palms.

  “I am afraid it is true.” Aunt Ana said as she patted Haneah on the shoulder.

  “And father?” Faine asked. The shaking in his voice could be heard by all.

  “It was not long before your father followed your mother into the grave. They are buried up on the hill.”

  Hebkya and Faine both raced to where Haneah knelt and wrapped their arms tightly around her. She was unaware of how much time had passed but the three of them wept together from the sadness of their loss.

  How could we have been asleep for three years? Haneah wondered. How is it that we are even still alive?

  “You’d better stay here with me, children.” Aunt Ana said. “You have nowhere else to go. I shall fetch some blankets for you and you can eat some bread and cheese before going to sleep.” With that, Aunt Ana turned and disappeared into the back of the house.

  Haneah, Faine and Hebkya all loosened their embrace on each other and looked up to their youngest brother. He sat in a darkened corner staring at them with hatred in his eyes. Haneah looked back to him for a moment and tried to remember a time when her brother looked to be so full of anger. She could not find a single memory. Amag’mar had always been so sweet and full of cheer. Now he looked as though he resented being a part of this world. Haneah wondered what had happened to him. She wondered what her little brother had dreamt about for three years. She wondered what could have made him so bitter towards them that he did not even seem to care that his parents were dead.

  …

  It was still dark in the room when Haneah woke. She sat upright with a start and rubbed the sleep away from her eyes. When she looked around, she could see the outlines of Faine and Hebkya, sleeping on the floor beneath her. When she looked to the spot where Amag’mar had been lying, she found it empty.

  Haneah threw the blankets off her legs and jumped down from the feather couch she slept on. She wasn’t certain how she knew that Amag’mar had left but she was determined to find him. She raced to the door and opened it as quietly as possible, trying her harde
st not to wake Hebkya or Faine.

  The night was cold and Haneah could see her breath as she hurried along the dirt road that led her out of Sun Hill. She stopped when she saw the moonlight pouring over the hill and the small figure of a boy standing at the top.

  Haneah ran as fast as her legs could carry her, up the hill and over until she found him.

  Amag’mar knelt down by two gray stones that protruded from the ground. His face was gaunt and his hands shook as he traced a finger over the etching of their mother’s name Ellena.

  “I knew you would follow me.” He said softly without looking up in her direction. “I wanted you to come.” Amag’mar stood slowly and turned to Haneah. His eyes shone fiercely against the moonlight and Haneah knew then that her brother was completely changed. He was no longer the innocent child she had known and loved. He had become something far greater and far more dangerous. Haneah felt fear begin to take hold of her. She wanted to scream and run away quickly but instead, she began to back away slowly.

  “Where do you think you are going?” He asked annoyed. “I wish to show you the gift I have been blessed with.” Haneah stopped at these words and looked to him with curiosity.

  “What gift has been given to you?” She asked, uncertain if she was ready to hear the answer.

  “The gift of life.” He hissed and he turned back to the stone at his feet. He raised his hands into the air and suddenly, Haneah knew what he was about to do.

  “Brother, stop!” She shouted. He ignored her and she watched in horror as his body began to shake. A dark cloud suddenly appeared from nowhere and surrounded Amag’mar like a blanket. It swirled around his hands and fingers then dipped down to the ground beneath his feet. It was like a living fog that he could conjure and control; heavy and dark even against the black night. A silent rumbling could be heard from beneath the ground and Haneah knew that she had to stop him. She raced forward and grasped Amag’mar from behind, pulling him off his feet and throwing him to the ground.