Chapter One

It was not yet dawn in Phantom Forest. Beneath a great oak tree deep in the Southwest reaches of the wood, a young woman dressed in dark green traveling clothes mounted a white horse. With a gentle nudge and a soft whisper, she urged the beast into motion and they took off through the forest at a smooth canter. They rode through the trees as the forest came alive with sunlight and the quiet chatter of woodland creatures. About an hour later, horse and rider emerged from the forest onto an open grassy plain. Here, they turned East, traveling faster now that they were out of the forest. After another half hour or so, houses began to rise out of the plain, growing larger every moment and when they reached the town, the girl pulled her horse to a walk as they entered the streets. Baytown was a peaceful village, children playing in front yards, chickens and ducks roaming the streets, women working in gardens. The girl smiled as she rode down the street and waved to the villagers as she passed.

“Aster! Aster!” the children cried, running after her. “Aster’s back!”

Aster waved and smiled at them, but did not stop, turning down a side street and going a little ways down it before dismounting in front of a small cottage with a beautiful garden in front.

“Good girl, Luna,” she praised softly as she tethered her horse to the fence. “I’ll be back soon.”

Luna nickered and bent her head to the lush grass at her feet. Aster opened the gate and walked up the path to the house and knocked on the door. After a moment, it opened and a young woman with a long, brown braid stepped out, a smile lighting up her face when she saw Aster.

“Aster! Come in! It’s so good to see you! How have you been?” she exclaimed, opening the door wider.

Aster smiled and went in as the other woman shut the door and then hugged her tightly. Aster tolerated the enthusiastic embrace and then followed the woman into a cozy living room.

“I am fine, as always, Phoebe,” Aster said, answering her friend’s question. “Where is Chloe? I need to check her cold.”

Phoebe seemed slightly taken aback by Aster’s cool response, but called her daughter in from outside.

“Chloe! Aster’s here to check your cold!”

A few moments later, a little girl of about 7 years ran into the room, sunshine blonde hair flying behind her. She squealed and threw herself into Aster’s arms, nearly strangling her with excitement. Aster gave a small smile and firmly removed the little girl’s arms from her neck, sitting her down on the sofa.

“How are you feeling, Chloe?” Aster asked. “Any trouble breathing? Sore throat? Coughing?”

Chloe shook her head proudly.

“I feel fine!” she exclaimed happily.

Aster smiled slightly and pulled a vial out of a pouch that hung at her waist.

“Drink this for me tonight after supper, okay?” she said, handing it to her. “It’s not nasty, I promise.”

Chloe nodded and Aster stood, ruffling her blonde hair a little before turning to Phoebe.

“Is there anything I can do for you while I’m here?” she asked. “Play with the children? Go grocery shopping? Cook dinner? Weed the garden?”

“You don’t have to do that, Aster,” Phoebe protested.

“Phoebe, what can I do?” Aster persisted.

“Well, if you would play with the children while I start supper, that would be very helpful,” Phoebe answered.

Aster smiled and went into the living room where the children were and sat down beside them.

“May I play with you?” she asked.

“Of course!” Chloe exclaimed. “Alex is the bad guy and he’s trying to eat me. You can be the hero and save me from Alex.”

“Perfect!”

Aster joined in the game, valiantly defending Chloe from the monster Alex who roared and growled at her in a terrifying manner. After a few hours of energetic playing, Aster knew it was time for her to leave. She stood and said goodbye to Chloe and Alex before going into the kitchen where Phoebe was finishing supper.

“Well, I have a couple more visits to make,” she said. “I must go.”

“Aster, won’t you stay here tonight and go home in the morning?” Phoebe asked. “I don’t like you riding alone in the dark.”

Aster shook her head.

“I will be fine, Phoebe,” she said. “I always have.”

“Very well. I know how stubborn you are,” Phoebe relented.

Aster smiled and hugged her before leaving and shutting the door behind her. Luna whinnied as Aster approached and tossed her head as she untethered her from the fence. Aster mounted and rode slowly through the streets to another cottage where she dismounted and knocked on the door. A blonde haired woman opened the door and smiled, hugging Aster tightly.

“Welcome, Aster,” she said. “It is so good to see you again. How are you?”

“I am well, Elena,” Aster answered. “And you?”

“I am alright. Come in and tell me about yourself. What have you been doing since last I saw you?”

“Oh, you know, the usual,” Aster began. “Traveling about the countryside, healing those who need me. You’ll be glad to hear that Orion is doing well.”

“Oh good!” Elena exclaimed. “It was so awful seeing those boys beat him. I’m glad you took him home with you.”

“I am too,” Aster said, smiling as she thought of her pet. “He has been a cheerful companion over the years.”

Elena smiled and looked out the window.

“Rosie is doing well,” she said. “She misses her father though. As do I.”

A tear trickled down her cheek and Aster laid a gentle hand over hers.

“It is right for you both to miss him,” she said softly.

“I miss watching him come home,” Elena whispered. “I miss seeing Rosie run out to meet him and him swinging her up into his arms. I miss his smile and his laughter. I wish he was here.”

“I know. But he is not. And he would not want you to pine after him. He would want you to move on and take care of Rosie. She needs you, Elena. Right now, you are her world.”

Elena nodded and then stood, going to the door and calling her daughter inside. The little girl came in and hurled herself into Aster’s arms.

“Aster!” she cried excitedly. “I missed you! Are you going to stay? Please will you stay? Please?”

Her blue eyes sparkled and her lower lip stuck out a little as she begged.

“I am sorry, little one,” Aster said. “I must return home tonight. I just stopped by to see you and your mother before I left. But someday I will come to stay for a few days. How about that?”

“Promise?” the little girl asked, not quite satisfied.

“I promise,” Aster agreed.

Rosie smiled and Aster hugged her tight before kissing the top of her head and setting her back on her feet. The little girl ran off and Aster stood.

“I should go. I do not want to ride long in the dark.”

She hugged Elena tightly and then whispered in her ear.

“Have courage, Elena.”

The two women separated and Aster left the house, mounting her white steed. She looked back at Elena for a moment, smiling encouragingly at her friend before pulling her hood up and riding off into the night.

The sun had just set and streaks of red and pink still painted the Western Sky. Aster rode as fast as she could to get home and arrived late in the evening. She put Luna in her stable and entered her home. It had only a library, a bedroom, a storage pantry, and a kitchen area with a sofa.

As she entered the kitchen, a white kitten with light grey patches on his face jumped down from the sofa and rubbed against her legs, purring. A young screech owl cooed softly from its perch and Aster went over to it where it sat in the window and stroked its feathers. It cooed again and walked carefully up her arm to sit on her shoulder. She moved about the kitchen, preparing her supper, humming as she worked. Venus cooed quietly again as Aster ladled some stew into a bowl and carried it to the sofa. When she sat down, Orion curled up on her feet and Venus climbed down to sit on the arm of the sofa, staring directly at her with her blind eyes. They were midnight blue filled with white specks that made them look like windows into a starry night sky. Aster ate her supper and washed her dishes before going into the bedroom with her pets. She changed and climbed into bed with Orion curled up beside her and Venus perched in the window.

The next few days were spent at home and in the forest. Aster went hunting, worked in her garden, cleaned her house, and smoked meat, preparing for winter, which tended to be harsh even though she lived in the southern lands of Kosmos. She stored the smoked meats in her pantry and dried herbs that she harvested from her garden. She often hummed or whistled or sang while she worked, enjoying the solitude of her life. When she had finished preparing for the winter, she packed her saddlebags with enough food and healing materials for a week. She loaded them onto Luna’s back and then went back inside to retrieve her weapons. Returning a few moments later, armed to the teeth, she mounted Luna and rode off through the forest. She followed the same route she had taken to Baytown, stopping there for the night. She put Luna in the stables and pulled her hood up before entering an Inn called The Rising Tide. She often stayed there when she was passing through on her trips to the farther villages. When she walked into the Inn, the room immediately fell silent. Aster was used to it. Her hood and cloak completely hid her body and face so that no one could see who she was. It was intimidating and Aster intended it to be so. Being half Iatreian and half human had its disadvantages. People feared the Iatreians because of what happened so long ago in Phantomtown. It used to be a beautiful town called Kallos where humans and Iatreians dwelt together in peace and unity, but when the accident happened and the town and most of its inhabitants were destroyed, humans and Iatreians separated in enmity, retreating to opposite sides of Kosmos. But Aster knew that the accident wasn’t the Iatreians’ fault.

“It’s her,” a man whispered. “The traveling healer. She healed my son a few months ago.”

“Who is she?” another asked.

“What’s her name?”

“I don’t know,” the first answered. “She never gave a name. Just healed my son and left.”

The people in the Inn watched as she took a seat at a corner table and slowly, the conversations started up again. One of the barmaids came over to Aster’s table and Aster looked up at her.

“What can I get you for tonight, miss?” the barmaid asked, a slight tinge of fear in her voice.

“Just a cup of soup and a glass of water please,” Aster requested.

The barmaid hurried off to the kitchen and returned a few minutes later with the requested meal.

“I would also like a room for the night,” Aster said, taking out a handful of silver pennies and handing them to the girl. “Keep the change.”

The girl’s eyes widened and she hurried off again, pocketing the money and disappearing up the stairs. Some time later, she returned.

“Your room is ready,” she said. “Would you like me to prepare a bath?”

“No, that will be all, thank you. Can you show me where it is?”

The barmaid led her up the stairs and down the hallway to a room on the right. She pushed the door open and Aster went into the room and shut the door. She listened to the girl walk away before bolting the door and shutting the curtains. Then, she removed her cloak and weapons, setting them on the chair in the corner. She made sure the door and windows were locked and then laid down in the bed, going to sleep almost immediately.

In the morning, she continued on her way, reaching the shores of River Twilight by late afternoon. She had stopped only twice to let Luna drink. When she and Luna had rested once more, she boarded the ferry with her steed and crossed the river to Twilight Village that was nestled between the river and the bay. The rumor had reached her that many of the inhabitants of this village had fallen ill with a terrible cough that was taking the lives of the children. She rode through the streets to The Twilight Haven and stabled Luna, bringing her bags into the Inn and renting a room for the week. She went upstairs and got settled into her room and then went back downstairs to the common room and asked to speak with the innkeeper. A few moments later, when she was sitting down at a table, a short, timid-looking man came and stood nervously in front of her. She flicked her hood back, letting her hair tumble about her shoulders and the fear in the man’s eyes lessened somewhat.

“Have a seat, kind sir,” Aster said politely. “I wish to ask you a few questions if it’s alright.”

The man nodded and sat down, eyes fixed on Aster’s face.

“What can you tell me of the illness that is going around this village?” she asked.

“It started a few weeks ago, miss,” the man answered. “It starts as a minor cough but then settles into the lungs and once it settles, there’s no way of gettin’ rid of it, miss. It takes the little ones and the children before the old.”

“What are some of the symptoms?” was her next question.

“Like I said, miss, it starts as a cough, but when it settles, the victims often cough up blood.”

“Hmm. Thank you, sir. Please tell me if you hear anything else.”

Aster handed him a few silver pennies in return for his time and pulled her hood back over her head. She sat there for a while and ate before going back to her room and getting into bed.

The next morning, she awoke and went out into the streets, carrying her healing supplies with her as well as her daggers and throwing knives which could be easily hidden beneath her long overdress and cloak. She did not want to seem too intimidating as she needed the villagers to trust her before she tried to heal their children. She left her hood dangling down her back as she wandered down the streets to the marketplace, hoping to hear more about this illness. She went into an herbalist’s shop and looked at all the herbs and plants, recognizing each one.

“Are you a healer, miss?” the woman who owned the shop asked tentatively.

“I am,” she answered.

“Would you please go see my friend’s son? He just came down with a cough this morning and he’s only two. She lives on the third street to the right of here and then the fourth house down on the left. Tell her the herbalist sent you and she’ll let you in.”

She nodded and gave the woman a coin before following her directions and knocking on the door of the house. A woman with dirty blonde hair opened the door and looked at Aster suspiciously.

“Forgive me,” Aster began gently. “The herbalist in the marketplace sent me. She said your son fell ill this morning with the cough that has been going around the village. I am a healer. May I come in and look at him?”

The woman opened her door and allowed Aster to come in, eyes widening slightly.

“What is it?” Aster asked.

“Would you please set your weapons down over here?” the woman asked tentatively.

“Of course,” Aster agreed, setting her healing supplies down on a chair before unstrapping her weapons and setting them on a table.

The woman’s eyes widened as she saw the six throwing knives and two long daggers on the leather belt.

“That’s all of them, I swear,” Aster assured her.

“My son is this way,” she said, leading Aster down a hallway to a room.

Entering the room, Aster saw a little boy with curly brown hair lying in a crib. He was asleep, but as she watched, he started coughing weakly.

“Do you mind if I pick him up?” Aster asked the boy’s mother.

The woman shook her head and Aster gently picked the boy up, cradling him against her chest as he coughed. His coughing became more violent and Aster carried him out of the room and into the kitchen. The boy’s mother followed and Aster quickly scanned the kitchen before retrieving her healing supplies from where she had left them.

“Boil some water, please,” Aster said, patting the little boy’s back as he coughed and sputtered.

The woman hurried to obey and when the water was boiling, Aster handed the boy to his mother and crushed some leaves into it. Immediately, a fresh herbal smell filled the air and Aster took the boy again, holding him face down over the steam rising from the pot.

“This will help to clear his lungs,” she explained to the woman. “It will help him breathe. I know he is young, but try to get him to drink some hot tea, as hot as he can without hurting himself. Sweeten it with honey. This is the tea I want you to use. One teaspoon in eight ounces of water. Twice a day, once in the morning and once at night.”

The woman nodded and took her son, holding him gently, but tightly.

“How can I ever thank you?” she asked, tears welling up in her eyes.

“No thanks is necessary,” Aster replied, smiling kindly. “If he gets worse, I am staying at The Twilight Inn and will be in town all week, possibly for the next two weeks. Do not be afraid to come and find me.”

The woman nodded and kissed her son’s cheek as Aster gathered her supplies and weapons and left. Walking back down the streets to the Inn, Aster looked around at the town, wondering how many of the villagers were sick with this cough. Hopefully she would find a cure and hopefully it would be soon.

Aster stayed in Twilight Village for two weeks and at the end of the first week, she had found the cure. The process she had used for the first child healed him and she spent the second week distributing the tea and herbs to all the sick villagers as well as providing them to the herbalist who had first told her about the illness.

At the end of the second week, Aster returned home, stopping for a night in Baytown on the way. She arrived home by late afternoon the next day and went straight to bed, exhausted by her journey. Over the next week, she stayed home, tending her garden and preparing for a trip to Petros, a Iatreian village just south of the Lake and just West of the Forest Stream. The night before she was to leave, she packed her saddle bags full of food and healing supplies and made sure her clothes and weapons were ready, setting everything out so that she could leave as soon as possible in the morning.