Chapter 2

Hlao, now 15, begins her adventure.

Chapter Two

             Stargazing 

 

 

 

 

     Present day- at least for me. 

 

     

              “Ah, there you are, my little stargazer. I thought I might find you up here”

“Dad,” Hlao groaned in the well known tone of children who were exasperated with their parents, still squinting through the lens of her telescope. “I’m fifteen now, not exactly little anymore.”

  She continued to concentrate on the darkening sky above as Derek dragged a stool up behind her had sat down. She was where she spent the vast majority of her time: out on the balcony off her bedroom, staring up at the sky.

She loved to come out here every evening and catch sight of the first star appearing There was something magical about seeing that first little glint in the heavens. The stars had a real fascination for Hlao MacKellan; their silver glow reminded her of shards of glass, scattered across the universe at the moment of creation. She couldn’t help but feel incredibly small looking up at that endless diamond and velvet expanse.

 Whenever Hlao looked up at the stars, vivid pictures of fantastical landscapes, and wondrous creatures flitted through her imagination. Tucking a curl of her raven black hair back behind one ear, she swung the telescope across the arc of the sky until she saw it, that evening’s first star winking down at her.

The sun hadn’t fully set yet, and a pale glow still hung on the horizon. Hlao closed her eyes and made the same wish she had made every night for as long as she could remember. It gave her comfort to think that the stars might actually be able to hear her, as if someone were watching over her from far away.  I wish upon the first star tonight, to one day find my heart’s true delight. If anyone can hear my prayer, show me where I belong. Tell me what it is I’m meant to be.

 Leaning back from the telescope, she gazed up at the star with her unaided eyes. Looking up at the endlessness of the sky reminded her that there was so much in life she wanted to experience, so much she wanted to see.

Her nightly sentiment was a true one. She was possessed of a boundless curiosity about everything around her, a curiosity that fueled a burning desire and passion to learn as much as she possibly could. When most of the other village children were playing games together, Hlao preferred to stay behind, perusing her parents’ library, or listening avidly to the tales brought by passing merchants. Her parents were very proud of having “the brightest lass in all of Scotland.”

Hlao sighed, a frown of malcontent creasing her fair brow. That phrase seemed almost mocking to her as she thought about it. For no matter how bright she was, her society simply didn’t allow women, of any age, to go very far. She wanted to go to a university somewhere. But no, she thought furiously, aiming a vengeful kick at the balcony rail. They expected her to just sit home, sew and cook, and all that rot.

And Hlao was most certainly not interested in such a dull life. How could she settle for that when her imagination sailed beyond the furthest horizon, showing her possibilities no one could ever possibly understand? She longed for so much more, for excitement and adventure. Noting she could ever find in Fairnesse.

 At least her parents understood her, somewhat. They had never once tried to hold their bright daughter’s curiosity back, unlike so many others. They had hired numerous tutors to teach her languages, history, and arithmetic, with the added bonus of having to put up with the constant inquiries of a very curious young woman. Her parents had always encouraged her to dream, and she thanked them for that.  

Speaking of whom…

“No, you most certainly are not little anymore,” her father said with a fond sigh, softly stroking her curly ebony locks.

Hlao had been so absorbed in her own thoughts, that she had almost forgotten that her father was there.

 “Oh, come off it dad, you know you can call me that for as long as you want. So long as no one else is around,” Hlao amended, resting her head on her father’s strong shoulder.

“What were you thinking about just then? You looked so sad for a moment.”

“It was nothing, dad,” Hlao replied briskly, returning her gaze to her telescope. She told her father a lot of things; he was really the only one she could talk to. But this was one thing she wanted to keep to herself. The world she envisioned in her mind was her own private sanctuary. Somehow, the magic would be lost if anyone else ever knew about it.

            The laughter of a group of village children racing by underneath the balcony distracted Hlao from her stargazing once again. One, a freckly boy with fiery red hair, stopped when he saw her, waving energetically.

“Hlao! Hey, Hlao, we were goin ta play a game of hoops, want to join?”

 Hlao groaned inwardly. It was Carson; the lad just wouldn’t leave her alone, ever since she had saved his life when he got stuck in a burning barn three years ago.

That was when the dreams had started. The night before the fire, she’d had a dream of a burning barn, the smoke blackening the sky. A little boy had been trapped in the loft, fighting to get out. Much as Hlao had tried, she could do nothing to help him. The fire had consumed the barn until there was nothing left. Hlao had awoken from this dream screaming, tears streaming down her cheeks. That barn had been familiar. So had the boy. He came from a farm just outside Fairnesse. Hlao had often seen him playing with the other children, but had never gotten his name. The barn was his parents’ stable for their horses and sheep. Hlao hadn’t been able to shake the feeling that something terrible was going to happen on that farm if she didn’t do something.

            The next morning, Hlao had run as quickly as she could to the outskirts, with no breakfast and no explanation to her parents. By the time she had arrived at the farm, a thunderstorm had rolled in. It had been a dry summer; a bolt of lightning had ignited the withered bushes on the side of the wooden barn. The dry timber went up like kindling, the flames licking hungrily at the wood. Without having to search or listen for his pitiful cries, Hlao had known that Carson was in there somewhere. He’d probably gone in there to do the morning chores, not knowing that the barn he was in could turn into his tomb. Hlao had run for the farmhouse not far away, shouting at the top of her lungs for help. It had been the smartest thing she could think to do under the circumstances. Thankfully, she had been able to raise the family in time, and they had managed to pull the boy out just before the roof collapsed. Carson had been slightly singed, and had inhaled a lot of smoke, but being young and vital, he had made a full recovery.

Hlao had run back home before any awkward questions could be asked. She hadn’t known how to explain how she had known that the barn was burning. But ever since, Carson had hero-worshipped her, constantly pestering her to come join the other children in their games. He was the only one who ever seemed to want her company; the others just sniggered and ignored her.  

“No thank you, Carson,” Hlao gritted out with a tone of forced cheeriness. “I have… things to do here.”

“Nonsense, Hlao, go and enjoy yerself. Ye spend far too much time cooped up here on yer own, it’s not healthy for a growing girl,” Derek said.

“But dad…” Hlao protested.

“But nothing. The stars’ll still be here when ye get back,” Derek cut in insistently.

With a reluctant sigh, Hlao put the protective leather covers over the lenses and stood up from her stool, giving the telescope a pat as if it were a living thing. She knew it was pointless to argue with her father; after all, she’d inherited her stubbornness from him. As she walked towards her room, she dragged her feet in exaggerated reluctance, a look of tortured innocence on her face. Derek gave her a light shove in the back, chuckling.

“Oh for heaven’s sake, I’m not sending ye off ta be tortured. Being with people your own age will do you good. Just be back in time for supper. Go on now.”

 

Hlao smiled, stretching up on tiptoe to kiss her father on the cheek. Then she closed the door of balcony behind her and grabbed her cloak off the back of the cushioned chair that sat in one corner of her room. It was a simple, spacious chamber, with windows in three of the walls offering a nice view of the sloping lawns of the MacKellan estate.

It could get a bit drafty in the winter, but the stone fireplace took care of that. The rest of the space on the walls was taken up with a pair of carved wooden shelves to house Hlao’s collection of artifacts, and charcoal drawings of some of the fantastical landscapes and creatures she saw in her dreams. The dreams that haunted her every night.

It was the same thing, over and over again. She was flying over a pristinely beautiful landscape, full of strange trees and plants like nothing she had seen on Earth. And then there was the city, constructed of shimmering white stone and wrapping around the face of a mighty mountain. The place felt so familiar, yet so strange. It was as if she had been there a long, long time ago.

            She headed down the winding stairs, trailing a hand on the ornate banister. Her parents had told her the story of how the place had been given to them by a very generous and very mysterious patron, whom they hadn’t glimpsed in fifteen years, but Hlao wasn’t sure she believed that far fetched tale. Nevertheless, featured in her collection of artifacts was the same metal cube that had won patronage for the Fairnesse project.

            A project that, despite plentiful funds and supplies, had progressed with painstaking slowness. They had uncovered a flight of stairs descending into a huge central chamber. Whoever had constructed the place had dug very deep, making that initial excavation take almost five years.

Couple that with the fact that the winter chill froze the ground, halting all work until the thaw of spring came, and the project had dragged on much longer than anyone had foreseen. Only within the past few years had they begun to uncover an impressive maze of passages and rooms deep underneath the heather covered hills.

Going out the heavy front door and out onto the sloping lawns, she found Carson waiting impatiently for her. The rest of the children had already moved off. As soon as Hlao had joined him, Carson dashed after his other friends, forcing Hlao to run to keep up.

“So were are we going anyway?” she panted.

“To that scary old cave your dad found,” Carson whispered back confidentially.

“What? You never said anything about going there!” Hlao exclaimed, coming to a halt.

“Shh, keep yer voice down, mate! Of course I never said anything ‘bout it, not in front of your dad. All children are forbidden from going to the site, remember?”

“Of course I remember, and we’re not allowed in there for a very good reason. It’s dangerous! We’ll get in serious trouble if anyone catches us.”

“Oh come on, don’t be such a scardey cat. We won’t get caught, not if you don’t tell on us. And you must swear not to tell!”

Here Carson paused, glancing at Hlao sharply until she crossed her hand over her heart and spat on the ground. Then he smiled and said, “Besides, haven’t you ever wondered what was down there?”

Hlao paused in thought for a moment. Of course she wondered what was down there. Every day. She had begged her father over and over again to bring her down, just once, but he had refused, frightening her with tales of hideous booby traps.

Rolling her eyes at how easily she had been led into this, she held out her hand declaring dramatically, “Alright, I’m sold. Lead on.”

“Great, come on! The others will be waiting by the wall,” Carson cried enthusiastically, seizing Hlao’s hand and dragging her headlong through the streets.

The ran through the now quiet town, just a collection of simple wooden houses and shops, all of them slowly darkening as they closed down for the night. The streetlights had already been lit, making a patchwork of light and shadow on the sidewalk. A pair of horses tethered outside the inn snorted and tossed their heads as the pair passed by. Laughter and music drifted out the open door of the common room.

By the time they reached the edge of town, Hlao was thoroughly out of breath. Without warning, Carson darted off the path and into some bushes lining the sturdy stone wall surrounded the town. The rest of the children were all huddled here as well, whispering to each other and casting disapproving glances Hlao’s way. Hlao held her chin up and ignored them, instead whispering to Carson, “So how’re we goin’ ta get through mate? That guard’s ne’er goin ta let a bunch of kids like us through. Ye need a special paper signed by the king himself to pass through.” As she was speaking, a carriage made its way toward the western gate. The watchman on duty shouldered his riffle at its approach. He stepped into the middle if the lane, forcing the carriage to halt. The voices of the watchman and the passenger in the carriage carried on the evening breeze, so the children could hear every word clearly from their hiding place.

“I’m sorry, but no one’s allowed outside the gates past sundown,” the watchman said, bending down to peer into the window. “Ma’am,” he added with a polite tip of his hat upon seeing the passenger.

The woman inside tried to explain her purpose, but the watchman just shook his head, refusing to budge. “I’m terribly sorry, ma’am, orders y’know.”

The carriage slowly turned about and rattled off back into the village, most likely to the inn.

“Any bright ideas?” Hlao asked Carson. The freckly boy grinned at her and laid a finger beside his nose knowingly. Beckoning, he led them all quietly along the wall, explaining in hushed tones as he went.

“We’ve snuck out here for months, scraping away at the mortar and chucking out bricks to make a hole to crawl through. Aha, here it is!”

Sweeping aside some concealing branches, he revealed a hole in the wall, just big enough for them crawl through. Hlao shook her head in disbelief, chuckling softly.

“You lot must’ve been planning this for a long time,” she said.

“What do you expect? We’ve all heard stories about the wonders of the site growing up. I’m surprised you weren’t trying to break out to see the site yourself,” Carson replied.

“If I’d known you were planning this, I would’ve been one of your first volunteers,” Hlao grinned. Carson returned the smile and gestured to the gap.

“After you.”

Without a trace of hesitation, Hlao slipped through the hole, turning to offer her hand to the other children as they climbed through. Carson was the last through, pulling the branches back into place behind him. Hlao checked the gate to make sure the guard hadn’t noticed their departure; the gate was still closed, the guard patrolling on unaware. Hlao couldn’t contain herself, and she started to laugh. This was the first time she could recall ever breaking the rules and it felt…exhilarating.

“Come on, let’s go!” Carson hissed at her. Hlao glanced back at the gate one last time, and then she set off after the others, grinning.

The group of children ran across the rolling, heather covered hills, laughing together at their newfound freedom. Some of them even forgot their usual dislike of Hlao and chattered jokingly with her as if they were old chums.

The dig site was only a half of a mile outside of Fairness, so it only took a few minutes before they saw the heaped piles earth surrounding the yawning blackness of the entrance. The gaggle hung back at the head of the stairs leading down into the pit, trying to decide who would go down first. With an unsuppressed tingle of excitement, Hlao grabbed one of the lanterns and took a match out of her skirt pocket. Striking the match, she lit the lantern and held it before her glittering eyes.  

“You lot can stand here gawking if y’like, but I’m going in there.”

Without another word, Hlao descended into the unknown darkness, her lantern casting a swinging pool of light behind her until it finally disappeared. 

Author's Note

I hope you continue to enjoy Hlao's tale, please feel free to let me know how I'm doing!