The Dying Sun

SONYA TOTEM. A guard and friend of its master, whom it does not abandon and does not fail to the point of death. A spirit figure disguised as an animal, reflecting the power of its master. It appears in a dream as a golden flame. A spark of spiritual power that human possesses. This prophetic revelation is a signal that the master should summon his servant. Sonya looked forward to such a day with longing. She was getting older; her sixteenth birthday was approaching. Though she came from a family where the totems were beautiful and powerful, she showed no talent herself. Years ago, her peers walked the streets accompanied by their defenders. Even those younger than her could boast of wonderful life companions many times. And she? She only had the last few weeks to live up to her hopes and no disappointment in her parents' eyes. The more that she was the third child of the leader. The girl sighed heavily as she braided her golden hair into a thick braid, and then put on a leather bandage. Strings decorated with beads and colorful feathers ran down her temples. Grimacing, she put on a collar of black feathers glistening green, the hard shoulder straps of which irritated her golden tanned skin. She got up from the stool, letting the simple white gown drip to the ground. Sonya did not like to dress like that, because it made it difficult to move efficiently, but she knew that as the daughter of the chief, who sowed respect Helios, she had no chance to wear something more modest. She stamped her sandal on the floor to make it more comfortable on her tiny foot. She looked in the mirror again. She looked nice and not very haughty. The ornaments in her hair matched her oval, chin-narrowing face and large brown eyes. She had a small, shapely nose and shapely, naturally pink lips. She did not dazzle with her beauty, but more than once she felt the flattering gazes of the boys on her. Sonya reached for the candle and lit a lamp from it. She left her room, which was underground in a carefully carved rock. The ceilings and walls of this part of the house were supported by massive wooden beams. The hallways were cold and dark, but nowhere else she felt safer. The blonde lifted the lamp a little higher and started walking. She climbed the stairs carefully. Upon reaching the second floor, she immediately met her mother's stern gaze. "Sonya..." the woman began with a sharp tone, and the daughter immediately contracted in her arms. Hiru was a heavier, heavily tanned woman with sallow, cool eyes. Her golden-blonde hair curled into the waves her daughter had inherited. As the chief's wife, Hiru had a strong character and raised children with a firm hand. She never hit any of them, but more than once she used a sharp, scolding tone of voice. She hated opposition, and she was quickly losing her patience. "Today is the first time you are going to a conference with your father." Hiru said a little calmer, and Sonya breathed a sigh of relief. "You have to remember not to embarrass yourself. Under no circumstances should you say anything, no matter what your thoughts are. You only have to listen and watch whoever will speak," she pointed out firmly. "Do you understand, daughter?" "Yes mum." The girl humbly nodded her head and curtsied. "Okay." Mother brightened a little. "Go ahead. Father is waiting for you." Sonya hesitantly kissed Hiru on the cheek, then scampered outside. She did not feel comfortable showing affection with her parents. And when she stood in the company of her father, she had the impression that she was on an even shorter leash. Helios was the epitome of a warrior. The image of a brave commander who looked after over three hundred inhabitants of the settlement, Bonfire, and two hundred ruthlessly devoted subordinates. Almost two meters tall, with broad shoulders and a muscular torso, the man was overwhelmed with presence. He had a thick red beard and equally fiery hair. His brown eyes were thundering from under bushy eyebrows. Even though Sonya had to dress up for this meeting, her father wore only leather pants and a sword belt slung over his shoulders. He did not react to his daughter's presence with even a smile. He just turned around and started walking towards the meeting point. Even though Sonya knew it was going to be like this, she felt hurt by it. She never received special attention from her parents. She realized that deep down they were disappointed by her. Her twin brothers - Sonn and Sooraj - owned totems they summoned as twelve-year-old boys. Sonn prided himself on a beautiful wild boar that had fierce fangs and a fine brown coat. Sooraj, on the other hand, summoned two twin foxes, whose neat, fluffy fur evoked red flames. Meanwhile, she... still hasn't shown any spiritual power. She was beginning to doubt that she had that power. Or was she a complete lack of talent, a weakling whose spirits refused to inhabit? She was afraid it was true. She followed her father humbly, even though it was so hard to keep up with him. She was short and petite, very inconspicuous. She had no chance of maintaining this pace for a long time. She felt herself getting weaker every moment, but tried not to think about it. She focused on the passing houses and villagers. All the people of the Sun Tribe had brown eyes, regardless of shade; red, light brown or blonde hair and skin that is more or less tan. Many boasted their freckles, which Sonya quietly envied, who would not enjoy kisses for the Sun itself? She sighed as she scanned several buildings. They were very simple, built of sand-colored stone with wooden trim. Dry-loving plants or citrus trees grew by the houses, and from time to time an inconspicuous well appeared between them. The population of the village raised goats, chickens and geese. Sonya was already panting under her breath with exhaustion, when they finally arrived at the building, where the Fire Elders held weekly meetings. Usually, the twins had accompanied their father, but now they were on a reconnaissance outside the stockade that surrounded the village. Therefore, Sonya was forced to replace them. Her stomach tightened with stress. Helios did not push the door open. The sentinels awaiting him must have done it. The entrance to the massive stone building was just as exaggerated. Immediately behind them was a short passage and a meeting room. The room surprised Sonya with its richness and brightness. In the center of the room was a round table with twelve chairs beside it. Almost all of them were occupied by gray, bearded old men. Thick stone pillars with torches piled around the table. The ceiling was made of overlapping beams and a wooden candlestick hung from it. Sonia saw ornaments of polished rubies and amber and mysterious, tightly closed trunk. Helios walked over to an empty seat, and his daughter hurriedly joined him. She sat down at his right hand and stared at the tabletop. A moment later she realized that she should be looking at the elders. As she did, as she immediately thought that she was not in the right place for her. "Let's start," Helios' deep voice echoed off the walls of the hall. "Today's meeting concerns mainly one man, as well as the concerns of the people of the entire Sun Tribe that he sows in them." He cut it off by examining the emotions on the faces of those gathered. "I'm talking about the prince of the Moon Tribe, Levone." Sonya trembled at the mere mention of the man. She had already overheard something about him from her brothers. Now she was going to find out how terrifying he really was. She wanted to leave this place even more. "Prince Levone is still a kid, he is only eighteen, so he is not much older than my daughter, Sonya," he glanced briefly at the said girl, which the others did as well. "Still, he has the strength of a hundred warriors, and his blade is eternally dripping with the blood of his victims. He is a powerful enemy... There is no such dangerous man in our ranks." The old men nodded in agreement, and Sonya tried to chase away the image that appeared in her head. Imagination suggested the presumed figure of Prince Levone. He was a mountain of meat; he had a wild look, and his weapon was dripping with blood. She saw his mocking smile, frightening, ugly face and silvery hair so special to the people of the Moon Tribe. She shivered involuntarily, then tried to push the image away from herself. "Levone brings a real problem..." one of the elders took up his speech. He was bald, with warts on his nose, and his voice was hoarse. "Whenever he shows up on the battlefield, the matter on our part is lost. A truly terrifying man." "After all, he is the future heir to the throne of night grubs," said another of the assembled. At the malicious nickname of the Moon Tribe, some smiled. "We should not let him live. As soon as we meet him the next time, your sons, Helios, should deal with him. The two of them will exceed his strength and take his life." "I'd be happy if it were possible," the chief nodded, "but Levone's bodily strength is not the only problem. He also overwhelms with his spiritual strength. His totem... or rather totems, is a pack of angry wolves," he revealed in horror. "He is the first man in the history of our world who has more than two totems at his disposal. His pack consists of seven individuals." The shocked elders started muttering among themselves. Sonya almost stopped breathing. The news worried her more and more. "We know," Helios's voice rose above the voice of the others, "that the pack is drenched with black, and their eyes are ice-blue." He cast a thunderous look, silencing the members of the deliberations. "Wolves are ferocious and protect their master, even if it threatens them to dissolve. It is impossible to attack the prince's back." "I'm afraid to think what it will be, when this ruthless monster attacks us," said the man to the chief's left. "Will our settlement, so close to the lands of the Moon Tribe, be defensible?" "The Sun Tribe must be strong," said another old man. "We are one, and during the day our Creator, the Sun, watches over us. As powerful as the prince of the night grubs is, I don't think he can summon all his power in the daylight." "Rumors say even a day doesn't make him weak..." said someone else. "Moreover, he is very good at sword, spear and javelin. A frightening man... He should die at birth so as not to endanger us." Sonya simply did not want to listen to the further discussion. She was overcome by fear for her and her family, for her friends and relatives who were threatened by the bloodthirsty prince. The session ended a few moments later and the girl left the building with relief. Politely, in silence, she said goodbye to the elders, and in turn began to return with her father to the household. She was tempted to talk to Helios, but she feared his ignorance. That's why she only looked at her feet, pulling her dress up so that it wouldn't interfere with her walking. "Sonya." Suddenly, the father grabbed the blonde's arm and forced her to look at him. "I'm starting to worry about the fact that you still haven't summoned the totem. Your sixteenth birthday is approaching. The last moment for you to agitate the spirits within you." "I know, father." She looked down lest the man see her sadness. "I am doing my best, but I still haven't had a dream. I'm sure it's only a matter of time..." "I hope so." Helios quickly moved away from his daughter. "I don't want you to bring shame to the family... There is no room for ineptus in our bloodline. And you cannot be one either." The ineptus... A person worse than vermin, who had no ghosts in him, so he couldn't summon a totem. Formerly, the ineptuses were born in the Sun Tribe only once in several decades, but nowadays there are more and more of them. Sonya knew what it meant with the appearance of the ineptus in her family, so she looked into Helios' eyes and said calmly: "Yes, Father." The chief nodded with satisfaction. He started home more briskly. Sonya trailed after him, regret flooding her. She was afraid of the fate of the ineptus and knew that something much worse could have happened to her. If she turned out to be the ineptus, she would be beaten, burned and banished... What would she do then? Join the Wild? She shivered, biting her lip and repeated in her mind like a mantra that everything would be fine.