PROLOGUE
An Occurrence at Elaigh’s Spring

Peorin had finally finished clearing the path from the back of their house to the small spring hidden in the foothills of the Claughnat Mountains. In celebration him and his sister, for whom he had made the narrow, secret path, ventured to the spring.

“You can’t catch me!” a five year-old child, Elaigh, shrieked. Her brother was chasing her around the shore of the spring. Two pairs of feet splashed around in the shallow water.

“Oh yes I can!” Peorin called out, suddenly inches from Elaigh. The little girl cried out in fear, falling forward into deeper water. Her brother laughed at her quick defeat, and offered her his hand. A small smile spread across Elaigh’s lips as she took her brother’s hand – and gave it one hard tug.

Caught unawares amidst his laughter, the tug brought him down into the chilly water.

Elaigh giggled happily, continuing to splash her brother with water. He splashed her back, and it seemed as though no other afternoon could be more perfect. The sun was shining above them, causing the water to glitter; the soft trickling sounds of the water spilling down from the creek into spring was calming.

But then an inhuman screech echoed around them, tearing through the peaceful day.

The siblings froze in their merriment, the sound sending chills down their spines. Peorin’s eyes glanced up at the cascade of water and saw a sinister black mist tumbling down the rocks. Quickly, he stood up and grabbed his sister by the waist, throwing her onto the dry shore. She tumbled into the sandy dirt, and rolled away to safety.

Tendrils of black mist began to wrap themselves around Peorin’s ankles. He had saved his sister from being exposed, but not himself. Realizing the danger he was in if he continued to stand in the water, he rushed back to the shore. But suddenly he felt weak, and he could no longer control his muscles. Reaching the dry shore, he collapsed, drained of energy.

Elaigh, still in shock, stared at her fallen brother with wide eyes. She crawled to his side and held his head.

“Peorin!” she cried, tear spilling from her cheeks, mingling with the water on his face.

Her brother had enough strength to shush her, his eyes transfixed on a figure at the mouth of Elaigh’s path. His sister looked up at the figure, and they both watched as the angel emerged.

With its wings spread, he walked across the black water, a smirk peeking out from beneath tangled strands of black hair. The mist had begun to cover the sun, and now the three were enveloped in darkness. When the angel reached Peorin’s feet, he stopped.

“I’ll see you soon.”

His hoarse voice made Elaigh recoil, and she dug her face into Peorin’s neck, wishing his presence away. Underneath his skin, Elaigh heard her brother’s weakening heartbeat. She held onto him tighter, hoping the angel had left, hoping her brother would survive.

When she glanced up again, the angel was gone, but the mist remained. Realizing that her brother would be in grave danger if she did not seek help, Elaigh stood. Her legs were shaking violently, and she found it difficult to stand. If she wanted to reach the village quickly, Elaigh would have to walk across the water to get to the entrance of the secret path. Still crying, she turned around, leaving the spring.

She would have to run to the other entrance to their village. But that entrance was so far! Elaigh picked up speed, going as fast as her short five year old legs would allow. She tripped and fell several times, and cried endlessly, but she never gave up. When she finally reached the village square, she saw that all the villagers were in chaos.

“Mommy!” Elaigh cried, running through the people. “Daddy, help!”

No one seemed to notice Elaigh as she ran about – everyone was panicking. But finally, Elaigh found a familiar body shape and quickly ran toward it.

“Mommy!” she sobbed as she clung to her mother’s skirts. “Peorin!”

“What about Peorin?” her mother asked, trying to tone down her fear as she spoke to her daughter.

“Peorin!” Her brother’s name was the only word Elaigh could manage to croak.

“Honey, I don’t know where he is right now. But we’ll find him, okay?” her mother offered, thinking that Elaigh wanted the protection of her older brother.

“Peorin’s dying, mommy!” Elaigh screamed, pulling back from her mother’s skirts.

“What?” her mother gasped.

“The black stuff touched him!”

Her mother’s eyes widened in fear. “Berjhio!” her mother called, searching for her husband. Glancing back down at her daughter quickly, she began to wipe away the tears. “Sweetie, where is Peorin?”

“He’s by the spring,” Elaigh cried.

“Berjhio, Peorin’s touched the water by the spring,” she called as her husband appeared by her side. “Go get him! See if anything can be done.”

Then Elaigh’s mother picked her up and held her into her arms, where Elaigh slowly stopped her crying.

When Berjhio and a few other men had finally reached Peorin, he was precariously close to death. He was quickly rushed to the village so that he could be tended to. But everything that the villagers did didn’t help Peorin. He couldn’t speak, and his eyes seemed to be focused on something far away. In less than a month, Peorin passed on. To everyone in the village he had been a brother, a son. The day of his funeral, there was not one dry cheek to be found.

A few days later the mist finally vanished and the waters were safe again. A good deal of their food supply had been killed off, and many feared that the end of the world was near.

The funeral procession led to the nearest lake, which emptied out into the Tombald River. With dozens of lily buds floating into the lake, a small boat with Peorin’s body inside of it had been released into the water. A thin veil covered his decaying body so no would have to see it, small candles floating in the river alongside him.

Some of the older girls in the village sang hymns, their haunting melodies wrapping themselves around Elaigh.

Oh, how she hated angels.

AUTHOR'S NOTE
I'm happy to be rewriting this story. It includes some of my favorite characters that I have ever created (and really, the characters that I am most attached to). So here it is, I hope you enjoy. And please review!

Alex