Here is Chapter One. It's a bit short, but I hope you like it anyway. Feedback is always appreciated and thanks to those who have left such wonderful reviews for my stories already. It really makes my day.

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Time passed quickly after that night when Joel visited the temple of Daya and Chhaya. Summer grudgingly gave way to autumn, bringing with it cooler winds, a relief for those unfortunate souls who worked in the fields day in and day out. Harvest came and went, and with it, the turning of the wheel passed by. There was much celebration, as it had been a profitable year and the region was thriving.

In an burst of frost and bitter cold, winter settled across the land, bringing with the cold the guaranteed promise of snow. It was on the eve of Joel Adelwijn’s twelfth birthday that the first drops of frozen rain fell from the sky in scattered flurries, dusting the solid ground in a white, glistening glaze. It was also the day on which tensions between their region and neighboring Raelin to the west reached a new height, and finally exploded…

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Joel stared out of his bedroom window, watching the large flakes of snow fall from the sky. Some of them crashed into the window pane itself and he watched those unfortunate flecks melt before his eyes, unable to survive against the warm glass. Those flakes turned to water in an instant, which dribbled down the window in small streams to disappear beyond the ledge.

He sighed, exhaling deeply. It had always been a special event while he was growing up; watching the first snowfall of winter. As a child, Joel would run outside and stick his tongue out wide, trying to catch the fluffy drops in his mouth. There was something magical about the first snowfall, something beautiful and serene. Only this year, Joel didn’t feel the magic.

Perhaps it was because he had outgrown his childhood fixation. Or maybe he was just getting older, less naïve. As a child, he had thought only of the positive aspects of winter; building snow castles, having snowball fights, and making snow cones. Now, he knew better than to think it was a time for games. Winter was hard on the region. His mind passes to those unfortunate soldiers who were currently on the border of Raelin, freezing and hungry as the bitter standoff continued. Joel was certain the coming of snow was not a childhood fantasy for them.

A shrill laughter broke Joel’s sinister thoughts as his younger sister, Carmen, burst into the room. A youthful child of nine, she was yet to understand the severity of the border conflict, and like Joel had been only a year ago, she was blissfully ignorant.

“Joel, it’s snowing!” she called out, green eyes sparkling. Her naturally pouty lips had spread apart, a wide grin across her face.

He smiled back, if only for the sake of humoring her. “I know. I’ve been watching it.”

Carmen bounded over to the windowsill to stand beside him, wrinkling her small nose just slightly at him. Her curly black hair was pulled back into a ponytail at the nap of her neck, and looking at her, Joel realized how much she was beginning to look like their mother.

“Want to go outside?” Carmen asked eagerly. “We can play in it. It’ll be fun!”

Again, Joel sighed. He turned his icy blue eyes back to the window and continued to gaze outside for several passing moments. He was glad for her- that she could be so excited. If only he could feel the same way again. “Not right now.”

His sisters’ face fell, the disappointment undeniable. “Why not?”

“Because. Why don’t you ask the twins to go with you?”

Carmen looked thoughtful for a moment, then she smiled. “Maybe I will, since my brother is too cool to play with me.”

Joel chuckled. It never ceased to amaze him how witty his sister was, especially for her young age of nine. Again, she took after their mother in that respect.

Carmen elbowed him in the side and stuck her tongue out. “Fine. Stay here alone.”

Joel sighed, looking apologetic. “Some other time, alright? I promise.”

“You owe me!” his sister laughed, already trotting towards the door. “See you later for dinner?”

“I wouldn’t miss it.”

After she had disappeared from sight, Joel pressed his forehead against the glass window, eyes sliding shut. For some reason, despite the light mood, he was unable to shake the feeling that something awful was about to happen.