BOOK 2 | CHAPTER 1: STEPPETREE

Fig. 1

The Lurkers arrived in Steppetree in groups of three. They wore collections of dark robes. They were strangers to The People of Steppetree. Some of The People of Steppetree heard The Lurkers were rebels from the West. Others thought they were assassins sent to kill Cuthway Hane.

Fig. 2

Cuthway Hane came from Landing, the capital city of Firstborn. The First Star was kept in Firstborn. The followers of the First Star took over the government recently. Cuthway Hane was a follower of the First Star but was unfavored by his superiors. Cuthway Hane was sent to Steppetree. Cuthway Hane wanted the favor of his superiors. Cuthway Hane taxed The People of Steppetree. The People of Steppetree could not pay the taxes.

Fig. 3

Steppetree was a town by the sea. The buildings of Steppetree were nestled in the roots of a giant tree. The tree was hundreds of thousands of spans tall. A thousand people holding arms might circle the giant tree trunk. The town roads wove under, over, and between the giant roots. The buildings were protected in the elbows of the roots or carved into the trunk of the giant tree. The upper branches of the giant tree blended into the blue sky. The land around the giant tree was unforested. The People of Steppetree were traders, farmers, fisherfolk, hunters, and craftspeople. The People of Steppetree didn't follow the First Star. They heard rumors the First Star was a stone from the night sky. They heard the stone bled.

Cuthway Hane called The People of Steppetree to The Town Hall. The Town Hall was the biggest structure in Steppetree. The Town Hall had exposed wood beams supporting the high roof. The wood beams were painted black. The windows were made with iron frames. The windows kept out the wind. The iron chandeliers were crude and thick candles high above. The People of Steppetree murmured. There was a cage cart full of The Children of The People of Steppetree on the tall dais. Cuthway Hane was on the tall dais. Cuthway Hane said he took The Children because The People of Steppetree did not pay the taxes. Two Town Guardsmen pushed the cage cart full of The Children into the tunnel in back of the stage. The tunnel lead beneath the giant tree.

Fig. 4

The People of Steppetree were angry. The People of Steppetree shouted. Cuthway Hane ordered The Town Guard to control the crowd. Cuthway Hane went into the tunnel after the cage cart full of The Children. Town Guardsmen entered the hall on either side. The Town Guard were townsfolk who wanted to please Cuthway Hane. They used their polearms on The People of Steppetree. Some of The People of Steppetree died. In The Town Hall there was a slaughter. 

Fig .5

Some of The People of Steppetree broke away from the slaughter and charged the dais. The People of Steppetree wanted The Children. They slew the Town Guardsmen who stood in their way and went into the tunnel. They found the wheel tracks of the cage cart, which held The Children, and entered a corridor. The corridor was lit by torches on the walls. The floor was stone. Out of the shadows of the far end came Helox Gringe. Helox Gringe, worked for Cuthway Hane and collected the taxes. Helox Gringe had a sword. Helox Gringe used the sword on The People of Steppetree when they didn't pay the tax. The left arm of Helox Gringe did not work. It angered Helox Gringe. He was known as Helox the Cripple. Two Town Guardsmen were with Helox Gringe.

Fig. 6

The Town Guardsmen, charged the crowd with their polearms. The People of Steppetree slew the Town Guardsmen with blades. Helox Gringe brandished his sword to The People of Steppetree. The People of Steppetree hit Helox Gringe in his head with a club and slung rock and he died. The People of Steppetree continued down the corridor.

The corridor lead to a cavern under the giant tree. In the cavern was Cuthway Hane and a crater. Cuthway Hane's back faced The People of Steppetree and he was looking at the crater. In the crater was The Viscous Liquid. The Viscous Liquid was blue. There was a ramp which lead up to the lip of the crater. Two Town Guardsmen pushed the cage cart filled with The Children into The Viscous Liquid in the crater. The cage cart sank slowly into The Viscous Liquid. The Blue Viscous Liquid came over the top of the crater and went slowly down the sides of the crater. Cuthway Hane raised his fists over his head. Cuthway Hane called out, For the First Star.

Fig. 7

Two Women of Steppetree ran up the ramp. A Woman of Steppetree pushed a Town Guardsman into The Viscous Liquid. A Woman of Steppetree jumped into The Viscous Liquid to save The Children. She sank slowly. A Woman of Steppetree put a pitchfork into Cuthway Hane and he died. A Man and Woman of Steppetree went up the ramp and killed the Town Guard.

A Man of Steppetree had a grappling hook. A Man of Steppetree threw the grappling hook to A Woman of Steppetree in The Viscous Liquid and she secured it to the cage cart before she drowned. The People of Steppetree pulled the cage cart from The Viscous Liquid. The Children in the cage cart cried. Some of The Children were covered in The Viscous Liquid. They were The Children Covered In Viscous Liquid. The People of Steppetree broke the lock on the cage cart and removed The Children from it. A Woman of Steppetree was The Healer. The Healer examined A Child Covered In Viscous Liquid. A Child Covered In Viscous Liquid lay motionless. It's eyes were wide and unblinking. It's mouth, agape, the interior covered with The Viscous Liquid, like a lacquer. A Child Covered In Viscous Liquid rose and grabbed at her. The Healer moved away.

Fig. 8

The Children Covered In Viscous Liquid moved. Their arms moved quick and grabbed The People of Steppetree. The Children Covered In Viscous Liquid bit The People of Steppetree. Some of The People of Steppetree fled. Some of The People of Steppetree attempted to save The Children who were not covered in The Viscous Liquid.

The Three Lurkers prevented the escape of The People of Steppetree. There were always three Lurkers. The Lurkers wore collections of dark robes. The Lurkers shed their collection of dark robes. Underneath they wore human skins. The Lurkers pulled off the human skins. Some of The People of Steppetree were frightened. 

Fig. 9

The forms of The Lurkers were dark gray, like some stones. Their bodies moved quick. Their bodies fell toward each other. Electricity grew in the point where their bodies joined. Blue electric bolts shot out and felled some of The People of Steppetree. The Lurkers' bodies formed The Lesser Voyager, Combined. The Lesser Voyager, Combined, had two legs. Each leg was twice the span of a human. The legs were covered with long hair. The legs were attached to a humped body. The human head of The Lesser Voyager,  Combined, was on a stalk. On the humped back of The Lesser Voyager, Combined, were three arms. The tail of the Lesser Voyager, Combined, was a long, thin appendage with many knuckles. The knuckles were covered with delicate skin. The Lesser Voyager, Combined, pulled a tube from a pouch. From the end of the tube unfolded The Crystal Blade. The Crystal Blade unfolded in sections. The Crystal Blade was three times the span of a human. The Lesser Voyager, Combined, struck The People of Steppetree with The Crystal Blade and The People of Steppetree disappeared.

Fig. 10

 

The People of Steppetree woke. They lay on a rock. The rock was a glyph. The sky above them was gray. Flecks of snow fell. They saw they were on an island of ice. Dark blue water surrounded the island. In the distance was another island made of stone. The island was a wide column. At the base of the column, at the shore, was a city. The column rose into the clouds. Among the clouds large rocks floated. The sky at the horizon was orange as flame.

Fig. 1 "The Lurkers Travel In Threes," Benjamin Marra
Fig. 2 "Cuthway Hane," Benjamin Marra
Fig. 4 "Town of Steppetree," Benjamin Marra
Fig. 4 "Massacre at The Town Hall," Benjamin Marra
Fig. 5 "Helox Gringe," Benjamin Marra
Fig. 6 "A Town Guard of Steppetree," Benjamin Marra
Fig. 7 "The Death of Cuthway Hane," Benjamin Marra
Fig. 8 "The Children Covered in Viscous Liquid," Benjamin Marra
Fig. 9 "The forming of the Lesser Voyager," Benjamin Marra 
Fig. 10 "A Lesser Voyager, Combined," Benjamin Marra