Book One: Onnu and Pannu

Crossing Day

Crossing Day was nigh, Tandy was right about that.
   But she was also right about Onnu laying another clutch of little kin eggs. The Tribulations were still happening on Erdewaz, and people were still witnessing the Beast and its minions. She had to do her job, no matter how recently she'd laid eggs.

   Onnu asked Pannu to go to their old Hold before Charon's Pass.
   "What? Why?"
   "Aw, don't look at me like that, it's not personal. I just... I get this feeling we need a dragon in as many places as possible tomorrow. I don't know why."
   Tandy, hovering nearby, asked "Crossing Day?"
   Onnu nodded. "I think so."
   Pannu's earflaps hung half mast, but he agreed.
   "Look, I don't mean now, just before Charon, 'kay?"
   He wasn't exactly pleased, but knowing that it was important dragon business eased any sting he might have felt. He waited until the last minute, but made it to the other Hold in enough time to avoid triggering their feeding response.
   Sure enough, the day after she laid fifty more eggs, Crossing Day lit her eyes.
   It also lit the eyes of every dragon on the Fortnight Worlds.

   Raj, in one of the Holds on the world Trey had made Crossing to, saw their dragon stiffen, eyes glowing white. He'd never seen Mara's eyes glow at all, being a mild-tempered dragoness, so it was a shock.
   "Mm? What's..? Why... does it feel like... thousands of thoughts are running through my head?"
   Mara's face didn't twist or frown, but he imagined it should have. Instead, her face was blank, passive. It frightened him.
   "What do you mean 'they are'? How--?"
   There was a pause, with vague grumbling noises humming in the back of his dragon's throat.
   "Every dragon? Like, every dragon on Tupino, or every dragon in the Fortnight Worlds?"
   Another pause. The kin of his Hold began murmuring among themselves. Not many knew that Tupino was the name of the most populated planet in the system, but he did, as her dragonkith. Was this some sort of... broadcast from there?
   "Uhhhhh hi? I guess this is a thing we're doing on Crossing Day, this time. Every time? You want me to talk to every dragon in the worlds, every year? What do I say?"
   The crowd grew louder.
   "It's been three years since Crossing. Three is a biblical number, I think? So we're adding another duty to dragons now, which is to minister to their kin. Your kin? Can they hear me? Oh, everyone can hear me right now? Well dude, if I'd known that, I'd have been more formal!"
   The voice cleared their throat, but his dragoness did not. The sound came from her throat, but it didn't move air that way.
   "We've had three years on the Fortnight Worlds, to learn and grow as people. But in doing so, we have begun to drift from our original purpose. We've forgotten much of Erdewaz, but that has included its lessons, along with the trials.
   "It would seem that there is only so much that transmogrification can do, to purify the soul. We were to be better. Better than we were on Erdewaz; better than those left behind. This new world, with its challenges and treasures, was to be our reward for being faithful on Erdewaz. Some, it seems, have rested on their laurels a bit too long. 
   "The recent incident on Tupino was but one example of such laxity. Some of the kin have grown lazy, or indulgent. Some have turned toward thoughts and behaviors that were purged from them at Crossing.
   "Crossing Day is, therefore, to be a day of remembrance. A day to commit to being the purest, truest form of kin you can be. A day to turn thine eyes toward God, and away from sins like sloth and gossip.
   "Ah, it seems that gossip isn't a well-known sin. I'm guessing that thought came from the City?"
   The crowd erupted. Some laughed, others looked uncomfortable. Still more shouted things he couldn't hear.
   "Oi! I wasn't done yet!"
   The babbling died down.
   "As I said, Crossing Day is to be more than a holiday. More than feasts, or trade. It is a day to remember why we are here. If you know one of the kin who have hatched from... Okay, it sounds weird, but any egg I've laid that's not a dragon. Those kin have seen what the rest of you avoided on Crossing Day. Horrors we will never know, because we believed in God. I'm not saying He'd send you back to Erdewaz if you strayed too far, but I also don't know what He will do. I'd like to continue not knowing, if you don't mind!
   "Nothing is the same on the Fortnight Worlds, and yet, that one thing remains unchanged: our faith is vital to our survival. Now, I'm not saying we need to erect churches or anything, but we do need to find ways to observe said faith. Once we have time measurements, you can set aside a day to commune. Maybe you can perform charitable acts, or sing, or... I don't know! Find what works for you, and do that." The voice was momentarily irritated.
   "My hope is that next Crossing Day, I won't have to chide you, or remind you of the basics. I hope that we can, in the future, use our time on this day to spread knowledge, or wisdom, from world to world. We have instant communication across multiple worlds, so let's use it to our advantage, yeah? Okay. I'm gonna try to sign off now, if the Big Guy doesn't have any more business to address?"
   Mara paused for a moment or three. "Okay, I think that's it. Until next year, be good and do good. Ta ta for now."
   The green dragon drooped for a moment, free to gasp for the air she felt she needed.
   "That was... weird," she said in her normal speaking voice.
   "You're telling me?" several kin shouted.