In the distant past, Tenelet, the god of fire, earth, and water, spread his arms over the Great Sea, and a land long buried rose from the depths and became the land of Tent.
The first king, Medlord, and his queen, Cerellous, were formed from the clay along the banks of River by the creator's hand, and they sang their love songs far into the night as the Wood Spirits danced under the light of the stars. A granite staff carved of virgin rock from the walls of Cliff marked the king's power and authority, and for ten thousand years, the world lived in peace.
A dozen children were born to the first parents, and at the birth of each, the god Tenelet forged an amulet from the metal of fallen meteors and infused in each a deep magic for power. Fearing his children would misuse the power of the amulet, Medlord hung the black disks from a golden chain around his neck, and with each additional amulet, his power increased until his thoughts brought fire from rocks and thunder from the sky.
But the seed of jealousy lurked in the heart of the secondborn who yearned for the throne and the power of the amulets. On the night Medlord died, Morfra grasped the staff, claimed the throne, and tore the amulets from his father's neck. Four brothers challenged him, and their lifeless bodies formed Morfra's footstool on the first day of his reign.
Morfra built his fortress on the cliff between the Great Sea and Swamp. He changed his name from Morfra, "Second Born," to Mored, "He Who Reigns With Fire," and he reigned with terror until a plot involving his remaining brothers ended his life. The amulets were dispersed over the continent.
A thousand generations later, Mored's power again darkens the land. The amulets are returning to the dark castle, and the people of Tent have lost their hope.
--from The Book of Records
Chapter One--The Thunderstorm
Thunder rattled the windowpanes in the split-level house, and something inside Cheryl jumped. "It's only a thunderstorm," she found herself telling Wendy, who stood next to the window. At thirteen and five years older than her sister, Cheryl felt she had to be brave. Sitting on Wendy's bed, she brushed her sister's doll's unruly hair, trying to look unconcerned. "You really ought to take better care of your doll. Her hair is a mess. And step back from the window. It isn't safe in a storm. You know what Dad says."
"Lightning is unpredictable, so treat it with respect," Wendy said in a deep voice mimicking her dad's. Stepping away from the window, Wendy added, "I don't like thunderstorms. They break trees, tip over garbage cans, and sometimes flood houses."
"Nothing bad will happen," Cheryl said. Lightning cracked directly overhead, and Cheryl flinched, dropping the brush to the floor.
"Wow, that was close," Wendy said as she picked up the brush and handed it to her sister. "It sounded like a cannon firing in a civil war play. Are the clouds fighting?"
"It's called a reenactment, not a play," Cheryl said. "And clouds don't fight. They aren't living. Dogs fight. Cats fight. Sometimes humans fight. Clouds clash." She glanced out the window. In the dark sky, the clouds boiled.
"They look like they are fighting to me," Wendy said.
Cheryl recalled a story on the evening news about a golfer hit by lightning while playing golf. Was he a casualty of war? Despite herself, Cheryl shivered. She decided not to tell her sister about the story.
A blinding flash was followed by a shuddering buzz, which swept through the house. Immediately, a clap of thunder sounded with such force that both girls jumped. An odd smell, reminding Cheryl of an overheated iron skillet, drifted through the muggy bedroom.
YOU ARE READING
Tent World
Teen FictionSisters mysteriously emerged from under a bed to find themselves in another world. They no sooner find a small village of secretive citizens when horse-riding invaders attack, and they have to flee for their lives.
