RED HORIZON (Heliocite Saga #1)

𝕋𝕎𝕆

"Mentor Elijah's coming back!"

The shouting of children and excited footfall made Seri look up from her studies. Naomi, her caretaker, looked up too. She had to lift a hand to shield her eyes from the sunlight that gleamed through the courtyard. Above the alcove, a group of students was ducking and diving beneath the linens that had been hung up to dry that afternoon, racing to the window.

Seri's face burst into a smile, and she looked at Naomi with pleading eyes. She knew better than to rush off without getting permission first. Naomi pressed her lips together in a thin line of annoyance, but she couldn't say no to that face.

"Alright." She sighed, holding a hand out for the book. Seri let out a giddy giggle, tossed it into her caretaker's waiting hand, and scampered to the weathered ladder that would take her to the second floor.

She wondered if Mentor Elijah had brought anything back with him this time. When Mentor Juda came back from a colony last month, he had brought metal jacks and taught all of the students how to play. He said it was the miner kids' favorite game. Seri had been captivated and played for hours. But for some reason Mentor Elijah really didn't like the Miner Colonies. So he probably hadn't brought anything back at all.

Once she reached the overlook, she dashed to the circular bay window which was already crowded with students. Finding an opening, she wiggled her way into the throng, crawling up to the glass.

Mentor Elijah's dunerider was riding into view, kicking up a sandstorm behind it. As he drove closer, it became clear that he wasn't alone. The students clamored in excitement.

"Who is that with him?"

"I don't know, I've never seen him in the sanctuary."

"He looks like a miner."

Seri's heart raced. A miner? What was Mentor Elijah doing with a miner kid? 

"He's pulling into the entry yard!"

The students scattered, disappearing down the maze of hallways. Seri stayed in the window and moved closer, pressing her nose to the warm glass to try and see better down below. Mentor Elijah had parked and was pulling his things out of the dunerider. The boy was still sitting inside, taking in his surroundings with an unreadable expression. 

His wavy hair was long and tangled and looked like it hadn't been washed in a year. The same could be said for the ratty clothes that hung from his thin body. Something about him struck Seri, something she couldn't quite pinpoint. It was like a shadow was cast over him, even though it was still light out. Seri felt a deep pang in her chest as if someone had taken hold of her heart and was squeezing it as tight as they could. 

When the boy finally got out and followed Mentor Elijah under the archways, Seri watched until they disappeared, then jumped down from the windowsill.

☼          ☼         ☼

Azariah's heart pounded in his chest, but he refused to let even a hint of weakness show.  There had been a moment, when the sprawling sandstone towers of the Heli Sanctuaries had risen over the dunes, that he had desperately wanted to jump ship and take his chances in the desert. He told himself he had been impulsive. Things would have been fine back home. He had hidden away enough silver to keep himself fed and to get supplies when he needed them. A couple more years and he would have been old enough to work in the mines. But now he was countless miles away with no idea how to get back.

He had no choice. He had to make this work.

The Heli man-- Elijah-- walked ahead with the comfort and ease of a man at home. Azariah reluctantly followed behind with eyes squinting against the sunlight, unused to his surroundings being so bright.