Tag the Shadow Dancer Where is he?! She thought. Where is that miserable bastard! This wasn't the first time he has done this to her. Leave her here rotting in this God forsaken tavern in this pathetic town. All this misery to follow some Knight/mage or whatever he is on some quest to, what seemed to be, self-destruction. He's probably holed up in the temple to that infernal Goddess of his. Why does he do this? Well, if he won't come to me I will go to him. As she thinks of all he took from her, her joy; her jest for life; her INNOCENCE...damn it, her walk becomes more frantic. She looks at her arm seeing the mark that sent her on this quest. TAG. Carra has had it for as long as she can remember. Even her adoptive mother hadn't been able to tell her what it meant. No instead I found this clown with the same mark and decided to follow leaving everything and everyone I love behind. Even my chance to become one of noble blood. She throws open the doors to the temple, searching she starts to scream with all the anger she feels "TAG YOU LOUSY SON OF A BITCH" �Patience My Child� as the whisper caress�s the crock of her Neck. � Your destiny will be revealed to you in time�. Startled she turns to fine herself staring into his malevolent eyes. She finds herself immobile, wanting to fear him but compelled to love him, to follow him to the ends of the Earth. He turns, with a whip of his Robe she finds her surroundings melt away, become an amalgamation of her memories. As they walk her haunted past revisits her and she notices he was there, always in the shadows, watching her waiting to consume her at any min. But who was he? It wasn�t the same man she is entranced with now. Or was it. She had to find out, she tries to scream out but the walls seem to drowned out her voice, her thoughts are over-powered by the laughter of children playing, chanting over and over � Tag Carra your it. � As the dizzying ecstasy melted away, she finds herself in the library. Damn it she hates that. "Where are you worm?" She hears the scratching of pen to paper in the transcription area. As she walks down the rows of volumes towards the elongated table where thirty scribers where busy taking down history, she sees him. "Where have you been?" He looks at her with those dull brown lifeless eyes that see everything and replies," Right here and you?" "We were supposed to leave this place in the fourteenth month to the eastern hills. Why are we still in this repulsive place?" " I have not finished translating the old Iridina symbols yet that are the key to breaking this mystery." " Well we should have left eons ago," she says in her best pouty voice. "We'll be here for how ever many 'eons' it takes" How did this creature ever get so high up in the rank of life? She wonders. Peeking over his shoulder she sees the symbol for life, the coupling, death, and the repulsive TAG. She hears that soft, perverse, lascivious voice saying it over and over again "TAG you are IT" Whipping around speaking without saying a word " Silly girl we do not have time for your childish games." He re establishes himself in the scroll, double checking his translations. His life is at stake; caution is his only true companion. This girl though is a key to the mystery this infernal brand upon his arm holds. A gust of wind swiftly over takes the room and the sound of a thousand souls lost in damnation echo in their mind. She Gasp�s is this his doing? He sits calm, unmoved by this event. The folds of his robe flap in the wind. Her blouse is ripped from her torso. The other transcribers finish as if never there. She stands vulnerable, open to the torments of her own demise. The emblazoned mark on her arm is now pulsating as if alive. As soon as it started the wind dies, the room returns to a state of perpetual oblivion. Transcribers write, nothing is noted in the pages about this event. How, how can this be? Scattered among the text on the pages of history are the letters T A G. Carra runs farther and faster than she ever have before. Not sure where she is going or why. The voice and the lust for his touch is what impels her. She feels the warm sensation of knowing he is near, seeing her scar glowing to red. "Come my child" Weary and slow she sees him in the shadows, always the shadows. "Tell me please, tell me my destiny. I can't push any farther" she whines. "You have to lead him lead him to the appointed time and place. For without the knight all will be lost" "Let me be here with you for all eternity when this is all over." "Your wish will be granted. But for now go and spread the word TAG" (WHAAAAACK) � You Stupid Woman� He says in a chillingly calm voice� Wake up! He is playing you, don�t you realize that, or are you as blind as I thought?� He stands there over her lifeless body; she shivers from the cold breeze upon her naked breasts. She looks at him startled, afraid that with a twist of his fingers or a blink of his eyes she would be dammed to eternal hell. Or was that what she was already in? He helps he to her feet without raising a hand. She follows him outside the room into the courtyard, it is already daybreak, where had the day gone, or was it just one day? She was lost in her own mind; all she could do is stare at the shadows hoping that somewhere in the silence an answer would appear. Nothing, the was the problem there was nothing, no sound, no bugs chirping, no wind rustling through the aged oaks, Nothing. The sky glowed as if the sun had fully risen, but there was no sign of the life-giving orb. The sound of his voice soon filled her thoughts again, �T-A-G� over and over. It grew louder until she could no longer bare it. She fell to the ground in agonizing pain. Screwing out �Why, why won�t you reveal yourself to me?� The mage just stopped turned oh so effortlessly and stared. He resumed his walking and whispered in Carra�s thoughts �don�t give into him child, all will be revealed to you in time. Be strong and you will be able to TAG him soon.� After a hot bath given by the servants, she tries to sleep. Afraid, always afraid. She rips on her riding clothes and soft boots. She leaves her room and wanders out into the cool night. She looks at the sky. She sees four moons instead of the normal three and a weird formation of the stars. Carra runs. While she is running someone is watching, laughing and saying, " Go ahead and run my child you can't escape the destiny of TAG" She runs, runs as fast as she can. Carra finds herself lost in the forest when she stumbles upon a cave. The opening seemed foreign to her; she had been through these woods before and surely would have seen this formation before. She wonders in, cautiously she walks forward. The walls where sticky to the touch, the ground moved under her feet as she stepped forward. She progressed through the cavernous structure, it did not seem to be made of natural causes. �Silly Mage� she thought, �I knew I could find this damn place on my own.� A bone chilling wind blasted her from behind. It seemed to pierce right through her. She had felt this wind before in the library. She looks around, � Who are you, you cowardly Son of a Bitch, show yourself!� �Beware child for you know more than you should about the future of your world than you should.� The voice came out of the shadows but seemed to have no point of origin. She turned and ran back to the mouth of the cave, running as fast as she could the walls chanted Tag-Carra, Tag-Carra. As she got to the mouth of the cave she saw no light, it was as black as the cave but she kept running. As she reached the mouth of the cave and pierced the darkness she found herself back in her room. She falls to her knees weeping when the door opens. She looks up to see nothing but blackness, then a frail hand reaches out from the corner of a robe. �Come my child it is time.� Says the soft comforting voice. Stay strong Carra she chants to herself. She is following the mage in the thickening darkness. All around her she hears the voices. Some she knows well, too well. She stops and tries to turn around, but she is lost. How in the four heavens do I get out of this mess? The mage answers, �You know how, give me what is naturally mine.� �I cannot�, she utters. �All I ask is for the child, the one of true blood born of the perfect mother, is that too much?� he asks. No mother would give the child up for this purpose. How do you plan to persuade her? �NO I WON�T DO IT!!!! DO YOU HEAR ME?? NEVER! I will say only this to you mage...TAG.� Child do you really think you can stop me? I am there in your sleep, I am there in your dreams, and I watch you internally. This cannot be stopped. He has given you a power that not even I can control. Sister, we must do this, in your heart of hearts you know that this is the right path to travel. If you allow this child to be born onto him the universe will never be the same. We have an arduous journey ahead of us; save your strength you will need it. Ignore the voices, they will drive you mad if you surcome to them. Protect yourself and the unborn child, he is our only hope. �HE?� she asks. �Hush my child the journey is long, you will need your strength.� Carra let�s her mind wander thinking of the journey, but all she can hear is tag�tag�tag�tag�tag�tag� Carra is on one of her walks. This time she is surrounded by the lush plant life of the river. She thinks of all that has happened in her short life. She recalls the first time she heard the voice speak to her. She was only eight cycles. She had followed that voice only to be found the next day two villages away. Then came the other voices. Voices of people she knows and people who she knows in her heart of hearts to be her parents. They sometime say assuring things. Other times ...Carra gets a chill. While lost in her thoughts, she hears something to her left. Her hunting skills took over quietly; she sneaks over to the sound. She sees a young girl, early in her term, crying. Carra's heart sinks. She approaches the girl thinking it can't be it's too soon. The girl looks up and says help me I need help. �My baby is in trouble.� �How do you know this?� Carra asks. The girl lifts her blouse to reveal TAG showing in the soft skin of her belly. �Do you know what this means?� the girl asks. �It means it's time to leave this town.� Carra tells the girl to collect all her belongings and to wear comfortable walking boots; then to meet her and her companion at the temple. As the girls leaves Carra hears in a wickedly laughter you think this is the end it is only the beginning...the beginning of your destiny in this game called tag. �Go to hell brother� she says. Always surrounding her always with her tag tag tag. �Girl why do you curse me so?� The mage drifts from the shadows to be by his sister�s side. �Whom were you talking to? You need to lie down child, this journey has weaken you.� �I am fine brother�, she scorns. �I must wait for the girl, she is coming with us.� �Girl? Carra you are loosing your mind, there is no one here. You must have been dreaming. Now lie down, it will be dark soon and we must travel in the shadow of night if we plan to make it to the temple by dawn.� Always in the shadows, all this mystery, damn it Ezekiel, tell me what is to be? Tell me what has happened to us? What is our destiny? Tell me.� The young mage stares silently at Carra with his dark life less eyes. They start to soften with colors of the ocean, sky and wind swirling about as he speaks. It is time Carra, the voice softly whispers in her ear. Ezekiel rises, seemingly drifting on a cloud. He conjures up a mystical light to reveal their location. It is a ruin of sorts with strange pictorial carvings on the wall. Carra sees a figure carved into the stone and is riveted with fear. It is a young child lying on an alter, a mage standing above him, blood stains the stone on which the child lays. The word TAG emblazoned on the child�s chest. �Carra this is our destiny�� Carra jumps up and runs over to the wall. Lovingly she caresses the pictures. A memory comes flooding back, a memory of a woman looking down at her with tears in her eyes. Her mother? A memory of being put in a basket and a long journey, never seeing that face again. But never a memory of a brother, a twin brother. She whips around, grabbing her sword and placing it up to his throat. �Ezekiel, who the hell are you? And no lies this time!!! I have no memory of you my TWIN in my heart. Where did you come from? And why are we on this quest? I want to hear it from you not what I think my heart says. Who am I? (She hears laughter in her head) May the heavens help me.� She sits down the sobs tearing out her throat. �Why me?� she whispers, then a thought. �Does my mother know about this?� �Yes,� he replies, �she has always known. She tried to spare you the ache you have to face.� �Well, I want to see her but first I want to know the history behind this tag� Carra says. Before Carra Could even finish her thought she found herself standing next to the child at the alter, Ezekiel standing over the child chanting with blood stained hands. �See for yourself Carra, look out to your people. This my child is what we came from.� Thousands of people stand there and watch in terror as a black luminous force hung overhead as the Mage performed this sacrifice. Mothers screamed in terror while each first-born child was marked with the words TAG. This all to try to save the village from whatever dark forces controlled the Mountain. Carra looked down to the river and saw women running with children in hand collapsing with fear at the rivers edge. Sending their children down the river hoping to save there lives, not knowing that this mark will follow them forever. She glances to see a small boy standing at the bank, He seems to just stand there, emotionless, not quite touching the ground with his feet as he watches this carnage. �That was I, watching all this knowing I was the only one that had the knowledge of what was truly going on. Knowing that you would never escape this. Our mother was the concubine of the Dark Mage, hence he seeks you out, you carry his first true blood child.� �But why TAG?� Carra asks. �For that child we will have to travel to the beginning when Mages ruled the lands, when dragons lived among us as friends.� As Ezekiel drove a dagger through the child�s chest Carra Screams in horror and as soon as the words TAG disappeared from the child�s chest the sky changed Clear Blue, people�s faces bleed together, the world was changing, they were now at the beginning. Everything seemed so familiar yet foreign to Carra. She remembered the temple to one of the lesser gods, the bakery, and that sweet face. The woman looked no more than 18 cycles old. There was something else though; there was a worried aura about her. Then Carra noticed the bleak cloud hanging over the temple. And the fact the woman was heading toward it. Everywhere the woman was greeted with smiles and heart felt greetings. Carra noticed that kids had pet baby dragons, a concept foreign to anyone in her realm. Ezekiel asked Carra "Do you recognize the woman?" " Is that not our mother?� replied Carra. "No, this is her mother's mother many times back. This is where the troubles began. Women weren't allowed to study the wizardry of the times; our great ancestor sold herself and her first children to Kied the God of Magic. You never read the histories I have, so you do not know that every first born of the next generation is a girl and every girl has had the next generation of the chosen one. Kied promised our ancestor that one generation will be different, one will be marked the sign. That sign of the Tag, and you are that chosen one." " How was it I came to be the chosen TAG carrier and why are you marked also dear brother?" �My girl watch, much can be learned by observation.� The lady walked solemnly towards the Temple. Meandering through the crowded market streets, past the Ivory Houses of Government to the edge of town. Through the forest of misery up towards the gates of the temple. She stands there, staring at the gates her eyes glazed over, pale with fear. The Heavy fortress gates open slowly; a slow burst of wind bristles at the back of her neck and rustles the fallen leaves at her feat. She belabors up the hill to the foot of the temple. She stands, awaiting permission to enter. A ominous voice calls out �Timian, come it is time.� She enters the temple; a long narrow corridor reveals itself to her. As she walks each torch upon the wall is lit. She comes to a vast room at the end of the path. In the center is a Book resting as if it was alive on a table. A mystical light surrounds the book as if it was producing it itself. She approaches the table cautiously. � This my child is what you have asked for. The magic of a thousand Magi. Now all you have to consent is to be my libertine. You, your children after you and their children after them, each first born female will carry my legacy. One estranged occasion a child will be born with the exact opposite in tact. Tag will be written in their skin, this child will carry my successor. This is your sacrifice.� Timian grabs the book and dashes out of the temple, down the corridor she flees. Running all the way back thru town she ends up at her home. Shutting the door behind her she slumps to the floor, sobbing. �What have I done?� She looks up at the wall written in blood reads T A G. Carra stands there astonished and goes to ask her brother what next, the room starts to fade, time melds into the floor and she turns to see another woman, familiar in mind giving birth to a child. She screams in terror as she sees the words emblazoned on the child�s chest� Chest, but the mark is on my arm Carra wonders quizzingly. I have never had that despicable mark on my chest. She hears the familiar menacing laughter again. You wonder how child? Why not ask why you don't remember the mark? Time swirls again to the child at the age of half a cycle, to the memory of the temple sacrifice, Ezekiel had shown her earlier. The child lay on the table but something was there she hadn't seen before the second child being prepared for sacrifice. Everyone was in a state of confusion. All around her she heard how? How can it be? TWO?? How can TWO children be born with the mark? It wasn't possible or were the prophecies true? One of the two would bring about the glorious return of Kied, The other their doom, but which was which? Carra finally released that one of the children was a boy. And a woman was crying out no not my only son. As the knife was about to plunge into the child's heart a group of warriors burst in. One of the warriors yelled out" NO NOT THE BOY!!!" He then charged the temple priest. The priest threw the knight against the wall with a wave of his hand. " You insignificant fool! You think you can win against the great Kied?" The knight named Blane screamed out "In the name of Sarren I will defeat you!" From his boot he pulled out a dagger and threw it for the priests chest.... Time stood still again in front of Cara�s eyes. �She sister it was me on the alter, they thought I would be the one to save them from Kied. The rest of the children were being marked and slain in hopes that Kied would not know which child was his. The peasants were wrong; Kied always knew who his bloodline was. In a split second the action of the temple came back to life. The dagger flung from the hands of Blane ripped through the priest gown. In the confusion of the quarrel a lady switches the boy with another, falsely marked with TAG on the chest. The woman runs to the riverbanks with boy in hand and another in carry. Cara glances to see the small boy now standing at the bank, He seems to just stand there, emotionless, not quite touching the ground with his feet as he watches this carnage. Cara turns to see the priest drive Blane's dagger through the child�s chest. The knights all stop in horror as they feel they have failed their king. As the priest chants to Kied little is known that the true savor from Kied has been rescued but the force to succeed is still out there as well. �So brother am I the force of evil to carry on Kied�s biding?� � There is more of this story Cara, we shall watch our childhood days.� As the child floats down the river in her bark basket, mothers cry at the site that the dark cloud still hangs low over the mountain tops, still puzzled that this sacrifice did not save the village from Kied. A woman named Clara finds the basket and takes the child in. Clara feels this is the answer to her prayers for a child for she is barren. Weeks pass and Clara loves the child she named Carra as her own. At the towns autumn celebration there is much rejoicing. The crops have not failed. After many months of dying crops and people wondering how they shall survive the winter months ahead, they took a miraculous turn in the last few weeks and prospered to yield a great return past anyone�s expectations. As the people celebrate with light hearts and heavy laughter, there starts a low rumbling. Knights burst into the town. They are just checking women with babies Clara tries to run. A knight on a horse stops in front of her. "Let me see the child" Clara tries to flee. The knight yells out "Stop that woman" Clara finds herself surrounded by knights. They take Carra from her hands. I found her the knight yells. They leave taking the baby with them. The town is left in devastation that the dark knights have come. That night as Clara is crying over the empty cradle there is a knock on her door. It is the old witch that lives on the edge of town. No one has seen her leave her ramshackle home in ages. The witch says to Clara," As I read my bones tonight this was foretold. The darkness sweeps to take evil away, but beware it will return and then we are all doomed" The witch leaves as Clara shouts out "I don't understand. Please tell me what you mean." As she watches the woman leave she hears crying. The crying of a child. She turns to see a battered knight carrying Carra and another child of the same age. "Please help me," the knight says. As Clara takes the babies the knight collapses at Clara�s feet. The knight awakens in a bed in a warm house. He tries to sit up. The pain stops him and he falls back in bed. "That is what you get for trying to get up with all your injuries. It will be months before you can move again,� Clara states. " The children?" the knight inquires. "Sleeping wonderfully Thank you for returning my child, I was empty without her." The knight replied" My name is Blane and you may want to hear my story before you thank me" He tells her the whole story of the children what they stand for and their destinies. He then asks her to raise the two children as siblings. The last thing the knight hears as the pain over comes him is "I will care for the children"
