Lyra froze. Her whole body blushed as she stood rooted in the pentagon. Every eye in the chapel bore into her and she knew she could not remove it and reveal her deformed finger. Frantically she searched for some way to refuse. She fumbled with her fingers but made no move to comply with the Sakovan leader’s order.
“Lyra, Child of the Sakova,” smiled RavenWing, “remove the Ring of Sakova.”
“I cannot,” Lyra whispered. “I cannot remove it. Ever.”
LifeTender looked at Lyra quizzically but nodded for her to comply. Buzzes and murmurs shot through the assembled Sakovans and RavenWing sat there and smiled. Tears started to well up in Lyra’s eyes and she wanted to run and hide. Finally Lyra thought to put her hand in her pocket and remove the ring. Then she could return it to the Sakovans with her other hand. No one need see her deformity. RavenWing read her intentions and smiled as he shook his head. Defeated, she slowly slid the ring off her finger.
As she felt the ring slide off her finger, a brilliant flash of blue light shot out of her finger and illuminated the room. The Mark of Sakova on Lyra's finger sent a stream of blue light in each direction, painting a blue star on each of the five walls of the chapel. She watched in amazement as the blue stars rose up the walls towards the ceiling. As the five blue stars converged at the apex of the ceiling, the embedded blue star of the roof burst into brilliance and started to resonate. The resonance built, rising in pitch as it grew in volume until the sound resolved into the ringing of a bell. The ringing was so clear and so loud, Lyra could feel its vibrations resonate through her body.
Lyra tore her eyes away from the ceiling and saw that everyone in the chapel had fallen to their knees. Only she was left standing and RavenWing sitting. Finally the ringing stopped.
“Forgive me, my Star,” RavenWing said quietly. “I fear that I cannot bow with my present body. I ask your forgiveness,”
“What?” Lyra asked as she looked around to find whom RavenWIng was addressing. “What is going on? What is happening RavenWing?”
“You heard the reading of the Scroll of Kaltara,” RavenWing replied. “It foretells of your coming, Lyra. The Star of the Chapel has verified your authenticity as I knew it would. Sakovans have waited for this day for centuries. Kaltara has returned to us and sent us his Star. The bell will tell the world of your coming.”
“No,” Lyra shouted. “I am not the Star. I am just Lyra. This is a mistake. I did not even know of Sakova until days ago.”
“God does not make mistakes,” the priest intoned from his kneeling position. “The bell rings as it has at the coming of a Star ever since the dawn of time. While you may not realize what this means yet, there is no mistake. You have been chosen by Kaltara to lead the Sakovan people. The fate of our nation is in your hands.”
“I am just a girl,” cried Lyra.
LifeTender looked at RavenWing questioningly and the stricken leader nodded to her. LifeTender rose and walked over to Lyra and put her arm around the girl’s shoulders. “You are just a girl,” soothed LifeTender, “but you have also been chosen by God to serve Him as our leader. Be strong. You are among friends and we will help you do what must be done.”
Chapter 21
The Star
SkyDancer halted the column as she heard the bell pealing. The Sakovans all sat with expressions of shock on their faces and Temiker rode up next to StarWind.
“What is it?” the old mage inquired.
StarWind blinked and turned to Temiker. “It is a prophecy fulfilled, wizard. It is a sound that I have hoped for every day of my life and yet one I never expected to hear. Kaltara has sent us a new Star. The Sakovans have a new leader.”
“No more hiding in the wilderness,” StormSong declared. “It is time for the Omungans to fear being caught.”
“We shall see,” StarWind cautioned. “If we had been minutes earlier, we might have seen the Star of the Chapel glow. Come, let’s ride.”
The returning Sakovan column was indeed just minutes short of the tunnel into StarCity and they galloped to the cave entrance. Once through the tunnel, they raced for the palace and noticed the streets empty. StarWind led the way onto the palace grounds and they abandoned the chokas to race up the stairs. They reached the roof only to find it mobbed with people.
“Whoever it is, he must still be in there,” SkyDancer suggested.
“It is not a he,” Jostin stated his red head poking out of the crowd before them. “It is that outlander girl you brought in, Lyra.”
“Lyra?” StarWind echoed with amazement.
“I told you she was special,” smirked MistyTrail. “Good thing I didn’t let HawkShadow kill her.”
“I’ll be damned,” HawkShadow shook his head. “Give that elf a clova chip.”
“I am not an elf,” MistyTrail insisted. “There are no elves.”
“Quiet back there,” someone shouted. “We are trying to hear what is going on.”
Because everyone could not fit in the chapel, news of what was happening was relayed back through the crowd and MistyTrail and HawkShadow ceased their bantering. Temiker, who had been left behind in the mad dash to the roof, finally arrived. StarWind heard his panting and turned to him.
“You niece is the new Star,” StarWind reported. “There is no way we can get into the chapel, so we will have to wait until it is over to find out what has happened.”
“Sounds like a mighty burden for a young woman,” Temiker stated, “but if she is as tough as Rhodella, she will do fine.”
“She’s coming out,” Jostin shouted.
The crowd parted and Lyra appeared with LifeTender at her side. The Sakovans dropped to their knees as she approached. StarWind and the rest of the Sakovan hunting party dropped to their knees with the rest of the people, but Temiker stood staring at his niece with wonder.
“On your knees Temiker,” StarWind ordered. “She be your niece, but she is our Star.”
Temiker got down on his knees and watched Lyra pass. Lyra did not notice him or anyone else. Her eyes were misted over with tears as LifeTender led her through the crowd.
As soon as Lyra passed them by and started down the steps, StarWind grabbed Temiker’s arm and indicated that he should follow her. StarWind ran down the stairs and saw LifeTender steer Lyra towards her room. StarWind followed and entered Lyra’s room with Temiker in tow before the door closed.
“Forgive my boldness,” StarWind apologized, “but I have brought your uncle back with me.”
Lyra spun and saw Temiker and ran to him and hugged him. “Uncle Temiker,” she cried.
Temiker comforted her and led her over to the bed and sat her down. “What is all this about you leading the Sakovans now?” he asked.
Lyra raised her right hand and showed her deformity. “It was an accident,” she explained. “I was trying to learn to cast a fireball and the ring interfered and scarred me.”
Temiker gently took her hand and looked at it while LifeTender and StarWind crowded around. “That was not caused by any fireball spell,” he declared. “I have never seen anything like it, but it was not caused by your spell.”
“It was,” Lyra insisted. “My hand burst into flames. MistyTrail had to heal me.”
Temiker ran his finger gently over the inlaid star on Lyra’s hand. “It shines like a gem and looks like a gem, but it feels just like skin. Lyra, I have practiced magic all my life and I have seen every kind of accident there is. This mark was not caused by your spell.”
“How then?” she asked.
“Kaltara chose you,” LifeTender interjected. “For whatever reason He has, He has decided that you are the person He wants to lead the Sakovans after centuries of abandonment. Perhaps He has been waiting for a person with your qualities. I cannot begin to suppose why He does what He does. We must accept what He gives us. You must accept it too, Lyra.”
“Lyra,” StarWind added, “you are special. MistyTrail sensed it and refused to kill you. RavenWing sensed it and sent me after you. He broke the law in bringing you here. That is how strongly he felt that you must come to StarCity. All of us have treated you differently from all other outlanders. Perhaps Kaltara has been guiding our thoughts to make sure that the Sakovans received their new Star.”