ONE

 

The only thing that separates Fear from Excitement is perspective. The words had stuck with him from the very moment he had heard them. Craning his neck to view the spectacle that was unfolding on the cliff’s edge he spied the one who had caused him to learn that lesson so early in life. Standing atop the tallest rock, perched on the very edge of the natural wall that reached high into the sky, he shuddered as he beheld her. Intimidating and powerful, her red hair danced in the high winds, and her very presence announced her unyielding authority, still capable of striking terror into his heart. Watching the women who surrounded her, he couldn’t help but wonder if they felt Fear, or Excitement, knowing what awaited them as they looked over the drop.

At the same time every year, he was lured out to bear witness as the group prepared for their descent and he couldn’t deny that he had felt Excitement as the day drew nearer but now, with the events unfolding before him, he could not easily ignore his Fear that something would go wrong. Cautious by nature, it seemed he had little choice in how he viewed the activities, especially when his fears were triggered by the woman at the head of the gathering.

​

He had emerged from his cavern early, the muggy heat threatening to push him from his bed long before the sun had even risen. The season had been hotter than any other he had experienced in his adult life, or perhaps he was simply becoming less tolerant of such things in his old age. With the reckless abandon of whatever youth remained within him, he had not hesitated as he neared the mouth of his earthen home and launched himself off the small landing outside the opening to dive into the cool, welcoming waters below. Only twenty feet from the surface of the lake, he knew from experience that even a short drop could cause considerable pain if the water was not properly breached. Weightless and cooled, knowing what he knew, he could not remove his eyes from the women who stood atop the eastern rim of that same lake, over two hundred yards above, and again he wondered what they were feeling in the moments before he saw the first of them jump.

 

His heart was in his throat as he saw the body launched over the edge, arms stretched wide as her back arched gracefully, embracing the fall. For so long, she remained horizontal, so long that he feared she would not right her angle before she collided with the water but not twenty feet from the surface, her body tilted and her hands rose above her head to break through the barrier that could have easily killed her.

Though far in the distance, he heard the cheer rise from the women who waited above and then another, somewhat nearer to him, from the women who had already reached the lakeside. It was their way. Those who were too old to make the jump, and those too young or in a state that was not favorable to the fall, departed their village within the jungle two days before those who would jump. It was always the young women, who were to be initiated into adulthood during the coming days, that were the first to dive. A rite of passage, testing courage, faith, and the willingness of the young women to face down their fears, there truly was a no more spectacular way to begin their three days of worship.

 

Summersend marked the passing of one year into the next. For those on the precipice of womanhood, that meant shedding their childhood, letting go of their girlish needs as they were welcomed into the sisterhood. He didn’t understand much of what that meant. Being apart from their society, he knew only what he could learn of them during the festival’s three days and what he picked up from the acolytes, so few of whom ever spoke to him.

 

Another small figure sailed through the air, this one less free in her acceptance of her fall. Stepping warily over the sheer drop, she had wrapped her arms around her body and positioned her feet to greet the water first. Feeling even greater concern for the cautious display, he closed his eyes briefly, praying that she remembered to point her toes. He’d seen legs broken on such entries.

 

Do not fear, child, the voice came to him. Deep, rich and powerful, it absorbed his concerns in the instant he heard it. Her technique is sound.

 

Opening his eyes in time to witness the moment she connected with the pool, he waited for her to surface. Hearing her laughter as she broke free from the water, he sighed.

 

Every year you worry needlessly. They have been prepared well.

 

And every year you tell me so, he responded ruefully to the voice within his mind. But it’s in my nature. I can help it no more than you can help being a Goddess.

 

Laughter cascaded through his consciousness, a merry sound that made his heart rejoice at the thought of Her, unable to see what he saw as She waited in Her grotto for the women—who displayed their devotion by falling from such a grand height—to come to Her home and pay tribute to Her as they sought Her blessings for the year to come.

 

Disappearing from his mind, Her presence—as always—was immediately missed. Feeling a void open within him upon Her abandonment, he took a deep breath and pushed it aside. He knew She remained with him still, and that in every way that mattered She always would.

​

‘Uwan!’ Loud, unruly and unexpectedly predictable, the call brought a smile to his lips and he turned his attention away from the spectacle to view who lingered on the nearest shore.

​

Barely catching sight of the young woman before she ran at the water, diving off the small ledge, he glimpsed her dark skin as it plunged beneath the surface as she swam out to meet him. Darker than he would have thought possible, given the pale hue of his own, golden skin, he marveled at the wonderful variety that he knew would be present in the flat Grasslands around the caves as the Summersend Celebrations continued. From his tanned complexion to the palest of whites—kissed pink by the suns warmth and freckled—to the blue-black of his companion, and every possible shade between, he marvelled at the differences.

​

Waiting for his friend to emerge from the water he felt his lungs growing tight. She had always seemed to need less air than him but he felt the limits of even her capabilities stretching as she swam underwater to greet him.

​

Breathing easily as she emerged by his side, she began talking immediately.

​

‘Did I miss any?’

​

‘Three,’ he said as, again, his eyes returned to the rim, his companion’s own gaze barely even touching him as she commenced her viewing.

​

‘Ten more,’ she replied as the next jumped. ‘A standing start, she’s brave.’

​

Uwan could hardly disagree. Had he been required to take the leap, he would have been forced to run at it so that there would be no way he could back out.

​

‘Thirteen this year?’ he asked.

​

‘Two more than last time,’ the woman replied with a nod that Uwan spied out of the corner of his eye.

​

‘Is everything readied for Laaria to receive them?’

​

The young woman shrugged as her arms moved through the water, keeping her head above as her eyes remained fixed on the rim. The bottomless lake made it impossible for anyone to stand at any point within the deep, dark water.

​

‘Nabari,’ he chided her, his tone expressing his disapproval. ‘It’s your responsibility to—’

​

‘Ensure Laaria is prepared to welcome them into adulthood,’ she said almost bitterly. ‘I know, but let the others see to it.’

​

Nabari had been delivered to the temple four years ago, when she had first leapt from the cliffs. Laaria had chosen her as an initiate, despite her being so young. Sensing her confidence, her bravery and her commitment to her people, Laaria’s choice had been well made.

​

Having seen only twelve summers at the time, she had been perfect to tend the Goddess’ needs but now, sixteen summers into her life, Nabari’s seriousness had all but disappeared and she seemed to view things with a reckless abandon that could be perceived as dangerous to anyone who didn’t know her. Sometimes Uwan missed the thoughtful ways of the girl-child who had bestowed shy smiles on him and seldom spoke, intimidated not only by his age—being eight years her senior—but also the fact that he was a man. She was one of many women who had been charged with the maintenance of Laaria’s temple but Nabari was unlike them all in every way that mattered to Uwan.

​

She was his friend, the only woman within Laaria’s temple who spoke with him freely; if the cave could rightly be called a temple. The simple ways of the women ensured that the cavern in which their Goddess abided was worshipped with as much reverence as Laaria Herself, but Nabari’s lack of devotion to that cause was becoming noticeable. Uwan knew that she took her vows seriously, that she looked upon her occupation as a calling that she truly embraced, but she was bold and sometimes reckless and it had been noticed amongst the older members of her order. Laaria forgave her inattentiveness, claiming that it was one of the many reasons Laaria had chosen her, that She had seen Nabari’s desire for adventure even in the instant she was born and that it would prove a boon to the causes that she was destined to embrace, but Uwan could think of no cause that would benefit the Goddess that might require such whimsical attributes within an acolyte.

​

‘Oooh!’ Nabari said loudly, pointing to the display. ‘Here she comes!’

​

Two more had dived while Uwan considered Nabari’s behavior but the next to take the plunge was the reason she had shirked her duties. Seeing the dark form take her position, Uwan watched as she backed away from the edge before beginning her approach.

​

‘She is showing off,’ Nabari scoffed as they watched the young woman skip before she flung herself forward. Flipping along the ground as she made her way to the edge, Nabari shook her head as the young woman’s acrobatic display saw her final flip carry her over the edge, her tumbling continuing as she dropped. Twisting and turning in a convoluted, yet beautiful, routine Uwan couldn’t help but cheer as she broke the water’s surface with perfect timing, resulting in the smallest of splashes.

​

‘Hush!’ Nabari laughed at him. ‘If she hears you, you will only fuel her arrogance.’

​

Flicking a wall of water at him to fully express her disapproval, the liquid found its way up Uwan’s nose and he spluttered, coughing as Nabari’s laughter continued.

​

‘We can’t have that,’ he agreed when the need to expel the water from his nose had passed. ‘One arrogant sister is more than enough.’

​

‘Me?’ she scoffed, turning her dark, almost black, eyes on him to convey her disbelief.

​

‘I’ve only ever seen one other girl tumble into her jump,’ he teased. ‘Are you really surprised? It can’t be easy living in your shadow. Prized acolyte, most efficient swordswoman and most adored daughter of the greatest warrior the Amentaran’s have ever known…’

​

‘Enough,’ Nabari laughed at him again. ‘I am not the most adored. Calenta was always the favorite.’

​

Shrugging, Uwan knew the action was lost to the depths, but he sighed. The sisters were each others’ greatest rivals—going by what Nabari had told him—but he sensed Nabari’s pride in her little sister, whom he had never met, as he paddled by her side waiting for the other girls to perform their jumps.

​

With all the new initiates in the water, looking up to the rim at the other women who had walked with them as they waited for them to commit themselves to the pool below, Uwan’s smile grew. This was what he had longed to see

...

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