The Destined Protector (The Chronicles of Mistar - Book 1)

One · · · Monta (.3)

It had been seven births since Tapalla's father had taken a job with Monta's pala and the Monae family's move to Gazar from Lotna.

Tapalla was now fully grown into her skin. Monta could tell she looked happier in the past birth than she had been since the first day they met, though he could tell she still missed her real home.

In the school system, Tapalla's purple skin was a sore thumb amongst the light brown and dark tanned students. To make her feel more welcomed, Monta begged the head administrator to put them in every single class together so she wouldn't feel alone.

School was out, though. The Solstice had arrived, which was considered summer on most planets, and was when the sun was out every day. It was hard to tell when night was night and when day was day. This was also when they were able to grow maron and chuatta root. Some of the snow and ice would also melt, leaving roads uncovered meaning more people coming outside.

Monta woke up to a bright ray of sun bursting through his window. It was the first day of Solstice, so he got up, put on some clothes, and raced downstairs to find his ice boots.

"Morning," his mala said lazily from the kitchen counter as she cut up some maron root.

"Morning," Monta replied taking a maron root from the cutting board and sticking it in his mouth. When he found his boots he pulled them over his new purple woolen socks, the same color as Tapalla's skin, and raced out the door.

He heard a muffled, "Goodbye," from his mala as the door closed behind him.

As Monta ran to Tapalla's house, he could see the emerald green grass sticking up through the snow. The road was now clear. This brought a smile to Monta's face like I did every year, but this year it was even more special.

Last birth, on Solstice, when Tapalla's family was gone for work on the other side Gazar, Monta had gone exploring in the Kakama Wood. In the right place at the right time, Monta got to see the first blue streaks of sky as they raced across the white clouds. It was a wonderful site, and it was the first sign that it wouldn't snow again until Winter.

Monta knocked on the Monae's front door. When they didn't answer, Monta a knocked for a second time. Monta found Meela's head peeping out the door. Her Gaza was better now, though she still held onto her Lotnan accent.

"Morning, Monta. What may I do for you?"

"Tapalla," he said without hesitating.

Meela's left eyebrow shot up with curiosity. "Why?" she asked.

Monta rubbed his forehead with the back of his hand as he said, "A long time ago when Tapalla and I first met, she told me the Lotnan's cherished sunsets. I can't give her a beautiful sunset now, but I can give her a spectacular sunrise."

Meela rubbed the bone right in between her eyes. She was still tired. "Sure. Why not. Would you like to come in why I go get her or should I say 'wake her up'."

Monta nodded his head and stepped into the Monae's house. It was warm in their living room. He could see a fire burning in the corner as a couch sat in the middle of the room's open space. Monta could tell that it was from Lotna by spotting the protruding Lotna leather underneath its coat of alpon hide. A rocking chair and sitting table made of kakama wood sat next to the table and an alpon hide sat in the middle of their living room floor as a rug. You could see the striped pattern of red on its fur that was so dark it looked like deadwood.

By the front door, Monta spotted a pile of ice boots meant for sizes twelve, ten, and nine. Shoes for Tapalla's pala, Meela, and Tapalla herself. They were on top of a mat, which was made from the wool coating of an elckon, a big meaty beast that is covered in thick wool from the planet of Ablatin.