The Race, Chapter One

[gruush]

There are, quite simply, just three things that matter in Erekal: your family lineage, the royal family, and the Race. Any family worth more than a second glance can trace their lineage back at least six generations, bloodlines unsullied by marriages across borders to the southwest and east. Children of mixed blood are teased mercilessly, and the ignorant cruelty of children pales in comparison to the calculated prejudice of pure-blooded nobles toward the parents.

do Falustri. A name that bears all of the weight of thirty-seven generations of pure Erekalian blood; by far the longest, most prestigious bloodline in all the known lands, even outside of Erekal. No'al do Falustri, King of Erekal. Man'i do Falustri, Queen of Erekal. Shol'eth do Falustri, Crown Prince of Erekal. These are the names that dominate conversation among the noble classes.

Erekal is lit by two suns: the first, or Nom'ith, is a large, fiery orange disc. The second, Sus'ith, is smaller, more patient, a dull crimson red, yet wreathed in a halo of wavy fire that changes periodically from purple to blue to green. No pattern has ever been discerned, and the color of Sus'ith's fire is the subject of myriad old wives' tales concerning everything from health to the sex of the next royal babe to be delivered.

Every eleventh year, Sus'ith is eclipsed by Nom'ith, her fire obscured and hidden from the people for a time. The hiding of Sus'ith marks the beginning of the holy time of Wri-Falun - the time of the Race.

The Race is perhaps the sole aspect of Erekalian life where lineage and the royal family are unimportant. Each Wri-Falun, two Runners are chosen from a pool of Runners hailing from the farthest reaches of Erekal. The chosen two are designated the Runner of War and the Runner of Peace. Runners are trained from birth, and must turn eighteen years of age during the year of the Race. A Runner may be of any lineage. The selection of a family member as Runner as good as guarantees an invitation to join the highest of the noble ranks. Competition, therefore, is constant, unrelenting, and cutthroat.

The Race begins at the start of the eclipse. Several hours later, both Nom'ith and Sus'ith are eclipsed by the moon, Yak'maan, and Erekal slips into darkness for a period of some hours. When Sus'ith emerges from the shadow of her two larger siblings, the Race is over. The duration varies, but typically last for nine hours. At that time, the Runner who has advanced the furthest along the designated path is declared the winner.

The Race is no mere competition. By legislation, the Race determines the future course of Erekal. The two Runners, blessed by the priests, represent the true Path of Erekal desired by the gods. If the Runner of War wins the Race, then the royal family will lead Erekal down the path to war, confident that the dictates of the gods will bless them and lead them to victory. It has always worked in the past. If the Runner of Peace wins, then Erekal will remain at peace with its neighbors for eleven more years, and no matter how egregious the slight, they will not be coaxed from that stance. The winning Runner is deemed a Prince, equal in all ways to a pure-blooded child of the King and Queen. The losing Runner is put to death.

In the year 2442 of the do Falustri reign, Miriel do Uruvni, son of Galust of the Quoranian lineage, a middling merchant class lineage of no particular import, was Runner of War.

The Runner of Peace, for the first time during the do Falustri reign, was a girl.

[Eliana de Rael]

*Eliana’s long blonde hair rippled around her as she kicked lazily in the water. Lying on her back, smiling up at the two suns above her, Eliana’s lithe body moved slowly through the water, her arms and legs gracefully propelling her through the murky water of the large lake she had stumbled upon while looking for her lost horse. Long reeds and scattered water lilies fought for possession of her long blonde locks, though Eliana managed to swim for several yards without too much resistance.

As her pale blue eyes gazed up at the suns above her, it was hard for her to believe that in a few days time Sus'ith would be eclipsed by Nom'ith. Although Sus’ith was the smaller of the two, Eliana had always felt more in tune with the smaller sun, in fact it was said that her eyes changed colour to reflect the halo of wavy fire that changed periodically from purple to blue to green. Ever since her birth, she had known two passions in her eighteen years on this earth. The first was The Race, and her joy that she felt when she was running. The second was her love for the sun Sus’ith and all that it represented. Her father had old books that had been handed down from generation to generation, telling of the Goddess Sus’ith and how the sun had been formed. Of course her family’s beliefs were not shared with all in Erekal, in fact her family and their kin were of the minority when it came to religion and culture. She had long withstood the teasing from her peers about her family’s strange ways, but Eliana loved her Pagan roots and wouldn’t want to live any other way. It was the main reason her family had chosen her to train to be a Runner her whole life. Though she had no hope of being selected, let alone win the Race, it was hoped among her kin that if she did succeed, she would be able to spread the word about their religion and perhaps garner some acceptance for their ways.

While her mind turned to her peers, Eliana’s normally serene features creased into a frown that not even the calm waters of the lake could soothe. There was one boy in particular who was the bane of her existence, and the thought of him made her skin crawl. Miriel do Uruvni was only four months older than she, and as such had often found himself in the same social and education clusters as Eliana. They had automatically become enemies when they were eight years old and had both entered the local academia challenge. Though Miriel had done exceptionally well with a score of 99 out of the possible 100 points, Eliana had defied all expectations by acquiring a perfect score, the first in the history of the challenge.

Since then, the two had delighted in competing against each other whenever possible, always being the two people to come first and second respectively. While Eliana excelled in most Academics and the Arts, Miriel also excelled in the Academics and Mechanics of life and structure. Even if a subject arose that would normally not appeal to Eliana, she would often enter a challenge and use all of her energy to win if she found out that Miriel had entered, and vice versa. Her parents believed that competition was good for the soul, as long as it did not distract her from her true purpose in life: training for The Race. Even during that particular challenge, Eliana still could not escape competing against Miriel, and the two had often raced each other along the vast and open landscape of Erekal.

A cloud passed across the face of Sus’ith and it seemed to mirror the cloud that had passed over Eliana’s normally sunny disposition. Sighing deeply, she turned over in the water, and dived down into the murky depths of the lake. A few minutes later she reached the shore and rose, water dripping from her naked form as she moved towards her clothes. As the cloud passed Sus’ith however, she could once more feel her beloved sun’s warmth on her body, and chose instead to lay upon the rock and bathe in Her light.

Lying there in the sun, Eliana knew that she would have to leave soon. While she had found the horse she had been sent out to find, she had not yet had her daily run and she knew that once she returned the horse to its yard, that time would be escaping her. Sighing again, she rolled over onto her chest so that the sun now shone on her back and golden head. Once she was dry, Eliana would dress, return her horse and then go for her run. She only had a few more days to train before the Runners would be announced. Eliana felt a smile crease her soft pink lips as the warm rock beneath her made her tingle all over, while the suns on her back felt glorious. Normally shy and withdrawn, here she felt free to lay naked under the glory of her suns. The lake was in fairly remote territory and seeing no farms nearby she had no fear of someone coming upon her naked form. The only sound was the soft blowing wind in the trees, the lapping of the lake and the gentle whinny of her horse who was tied to a nearby Willow tree. Eliana stretched out her long lithe limbs and basked in the warmth of the heavens above, thoughts of Miriel and the Race soon forgotten. *

[gruush]

Miriel's stride lengthened, and a pleasant fire began to build in his lungs as he picked up speed over the rocky plains. He pushed himself harder, knowing that with each second he strained harder, he was grower tougher, more resilient. He was in uncharted territory today, as he often was these days. The path of the Race changed every Wri-Falun, so it didn't pay to run the same course over and over. He had to be prepared for anything. The path would not be announced by the elders until the day of the race. Careful divination rites were used to identify the landmarks along the path each Wri-Falun, and the Runners of War and Peace would be required to carry maps and visit certain those landmarks to ensure their progress was recorded. Failure to visit a landmark would result in disqualification. No one had failed before; the price was too steep.

The wind whistled past his ears, and he could feel the blood pounding in his ears. This was when he felt the most comfortable, out here in the middle of nowhere. No one to push him, no one to hit him, no one to take out his own failures on his only son. Miriel snorted in aggravation as thoughts of Galust do Uruvni intruded on his run. A long, steep hill rose before him, and he took the opportunity to push them from his mind with the challenge of his run. He dug his toes into the sand and began the climb - Runners were allowed no footwear, and only a loincloth for the actual Race, although most Runners practiced in more normal attire. For the past month, Miriel had been practicing in the traditional attire. He was surprised to find that it made a difference. Running without a tunic resulted in problems he had never anticipated. Wind kicked up sand and small rocks that could be distracting, even painful. Rain could bring hailstones, and chill his body rapidly.

Today was warmer than Miriel would have liked for a run as difficult as this one. Yak'maan would be out soon as the twin suns set, but he was still struggling to maintain his pace. Miriel's powerful thighs pumped rhythmically as he pushed his way up the hill. His breath came more quickly, and he wiped sweat from his brow with his forearm. He counted to himself silently, once for each step. It was an old habit that gave him a sense of progress when he was pushing hard. Forty-three, forty-four, forty-five...

Lost in the rhythm of the run, he was almost surprised when he crested the hill. He hadn't realized how far up the hills reached in this area. The vista was impressive, and he allowed himself a brief break to catch his breath. To the southwest lay the Academy, nestled between rolling green hills. It was well out of running distance for today. He would need to head for home soon; he had chores and coursework to attend to. Further to the west, the fertile river valley of Aren stretched, peppered with a variety of farms. The Aren wiggled and stretched its way north from there, twisting towards the rockier foothills where Miriel was. Down to his right, the river abruptly turned and ran straight away from the foothills, as if seeking better soil. Nearby, probably just a five-minute run from here, sat a small lake, as if pointing out that water could be perfectly happy here in the rocky soil. Sus'ith's face reflected waveringly on the surface as she dipped toward the horizon.

A variety of large rocks and boulders were scattered on the south side of the lake, and a brace of willow trees surrounded the rest of the lake, dipping gracefully until they nearly touched the water. The effect was almost like a face, with the willows acting as hair, the lake as a round moon of a face, and the rocks a stubbly beard. On the far right, just where the willows began, a horse grazed peacefully. Miriel realized with a start that a figure was there, lying on the rocks. He was too far away to see any features, but from what he could see, the person wasn't moving. He wondered if something was wrong, and his heart beat more quickly.

[Eliana de Rael]

*Eliana sighed softly as she rolled over slowly, so that she was now lying on her back. With her eyes closed, and the suns shining their light upon her body that was now completely dry, it was all too easy for the girl to fall into a deep peaceful sleep.

Dreams of the Race danced through her head, peppered with images of Miriel as he appeared here and there to distract and torment her. Her head tossed listlessly to one side as words that she would not normally dare to utter in public crossed her sleepy lips. Soon, her dreams turned to her idyllic life on the farm, of peaceful days where all she had to focus on was her runs. Even though it was only a dream, Eliana could feel the dirt beneath her feet as she seemed to run all the way up a mountain until she was running on top of the clouds. They felt like cotton candy brushing against her skin as her body fell gently through them, and Eliana sighed contently as her arms and legs moved slightly upon the rock.

She did not know how long she had slept, but when her horses’ whinnies awoke her moments later, she opened her eyes in surprise to see that the suns were no longer right above her. Now they had begun their descent to their respective corners of the globe, and would soon set, Sus'ith in the East and Nom'ith in the West. When they arose in the morning, their positions would be reversed and Eliana smiled to herself as she thought of the morning ritual that lay ahead of her for the coming day. For now though, night would soon be upon her and she realised with a start that her father would begin to worry soon if she was not home before the rise of Yak'maan and the beginning of nightfall.

Knowing that she had to leave, but still reluctant to move, Eliana stretched out her long lithe limbs as she enjoyed a precious few more moments before leaving her sun warmed rock. A cool breeze began to blow across the lake, causing ripples in its smooth surface and gooseflesh to break out upon Eliana's naked form. *

[gruush]

Miriel stumbled headlong down a particularly steep stretch of hill. His feet scrabbled painfully for purchase as he tried to stop himself from falling. The lake was farther than he had guessed, and this segment of the hillside was comprised almost entirely of rubble and sharp pieces of shale, making it a treacherous descent for someone without shoes like himself. But his sense of urgency was mounting by the second. It was definitely a woman down there, and she was tossing and turning, spread across the boulder. She didn't appear to have any clothes, and Miriel's heart was in his throat, thinking that she must have been waylaid by bandits, and was hurt, perhaps badly.

Miriel regained his balance just in time to fall heavily against a large outcropping, slamming his shoulder against it painfully. Well, at least it had slowed him down. He stepped around the rock and continued his descent. As he approached the level stretch of land leading to the lake, the boulders at the bottom of the hill loomed left and right, making it difficult to keep an eye on the injured woman. Anxiously, he picked his way around the stones, catching increasingly detailed flashes: she had long, blonde hair. She was young. The horse seemed to be unharmed. There was no sign of anyone else in the area.

Breathing hard, he finally broke free from the shale obstacle course. His shoulder throbbed painfully, and the sharp rocks had sliced through even his callused feet, leaving him with several painful cuts on the soles of his feet. Miriel did his best not to think of the ramifications of that, and took advantage of what he did best - he dashed for the lake, telling himself that every second could be important if she was badly hurt.

Miriel closed the distance to the woman swiftly, although from here the rock was clearly not flat, and it slanted away from him. Only the locks of her hair falling over the edge of the rock told him he was still headed for the right one. As he reached the rock and stepped around to help, he called out, "M'lady! M'lady, are you alright?" His breath caught as he saw her lithe, naked form, and he flushed involuntarily. He tore his gaze from her breasts and forced himself to look at her face. At that moment, his heart nearly stopped beating in his chest, and his hand flew to his mouth. His gut ran cold, and he felt completely and utterly mortified. It was Eliana de Rael! If he could have hid, he would have, but there was nothing for it now...

[Eliana de Rael]

*Eliana stretched out her long lithe muscles like a feline soaking up the sun on its masters front step. She was about to drag herself into an upright position when she heard the voice of a man calling out to her, asking if she was alright. Although she could not see him just yet, the sound of him approaching told her that he was near. Just as she was about to respond, that yes, indeed she was just fine thankyou, she looked up into the eyes of her mortal enemy Miriel do Uruvni!

So surprised was she, that at first she was frozen in time. Lying there naked before him, Eliana could only stare up at him in shock for what seemed like an eternity before the cold breeze blew again, reminding her of her naked state and causing an immense blush to break out over her entire body. Jumping up quickly, she ran to where her clothes were.

~Yes, I am quite fine, thankyou Miriel! At least I would be without men like you spying on me! Is this how you get your kicks, hiding in remote places, waiting for girls to undress and go swimming?~

She dressed quickly, pulling on her tunic before her pants as she knew the loose light green material would cover her immodesty more quickly than if she only covered her bottom half. Once her tunic was on, she quickly stepped into her light brown pants, and strapped her sandals back on. Finally, she pulled her long slightly damp blonde hair out of the top of her tunic as she rose to her full height and glared at him.

He was dressed in the traditional race garb of nothing save for a tunic and she forced herself to stop staring at his broad and muscular chest. With a hand on her hip, she snarled at him as she tried to cover up her embarrassment with sheer unadulterated hatred.

~I see you are dressed for a run? You don’t still harbour hope that you will be selected do you? I’m sure they have already announced the Runners by now, in fact.. it was today wasn’t it?~ she cursed herself for forgetting. She had planned to be in town when the announcement was made, but with the drama of the lost horse she had forgotten all about it. Slowly, the realisation dawned on her. Miriel would not have forgotten, and would surely have been there to hear the announcement. Yet, he was still training, which could only mean one thing. He had been one of the Runners selected! With her heart sinking in her chest, Eliana’s hand dropped down to her side as she sighed.

~I guess.. congratulations are in order then? You were clearly chosen.. am I right?~ *