The Flash

No matter how much Sloane tried to keep her on a schedule, her daughter danced to the beat of her own drum. There was something timeless about the scene of a parent waiting on their child. It was a dance that Sloane Reinhart struggled with daily. Nearly every morning her daughter seemed to be in a rush to get ready to leave the house. Her daughter, Gwyneth, was not a morning person. She never had been.

Sloane tapped her foot as she stood in the kitchen.

“Gwyn! It’s time to go. What are you doing?” Sloane yelled across the house for the second time. Ten-year-olds… 

With a sigh, she leaned down on the island and focused on the living room tv. She grabbed the remote and flipped through various news channels before settling on one. The current segment featured two anchors as they discussed the first successful orbital launch of the rocket named Starship.

The blasé attitude of the Italian news anchors belied the significance the vehicle would have on spaceflight, at least according to her. The fact that it could potentially take the first humans to another planet?

That was important.

She had always enjoyed hearing about the progress of that company and its goal of putting humans on Mars. While Sloane’s focus was more on things within the world than outside of it, she had always imagined what it would be like to step foot on another planet for the first time. 

It was just a thought–a passing dream of a woman who had once lived for adventure. She’d had her fun and adventures traveling the world and seeing new things in her early twenties but that life was behind her. Now, at thirty-four, Sloane experienced those adventurous feelings within the pages of a good novel.

Still, as her daughter’s footsteps finally pounded down the hall, she considered that maybe the adventure she craved had just taken on a new phase.

Dismissing her reverie, Sloane looked at the clock as she waited for her daughter to appear. They had to leave soon in order to get Gwyn to her scuola, then Sloane had to rush to drive into Milan to get to work.

I don’t even have time to stop for a cappuccino, now.

She sighed.

Her patience had nearly worn thin just as Gwyn rushed into the kitchen–sliding across the hardwood floor in her socks. She wore some black pants and a grey jacket, looking as if she were ready to go hiking.

Well, if she had shoes on that is…

It was only early autumn, the gelato shops hadn’t even closed for the season yet.

“Gwyneth Reinhart, you are taking far too long this morning,” Sloane said, exasperated.

“I’m putting my boots on!” Gwyn protested.

“I told you to get your shoes on ten minutes ago. What were you doing?”

“I had to put my socks on, Mom.” Gwyn rolled her eyes.

“Ugh,” she mumbled quietly.

And there’s the eye roll. This girl.

“Well, we need to go if you want to go to the café before school.”

“I know, Mom,” she said while Sloane hurried her daughter out of the house. 

“Don’t forget, tonight we have to—”

 “I know…” Gwyn interrupted, cutting her off with exasperation before she could finish. Sloane closed her eyes and took a deep breath.  

“Gwyneth…” she began but stopped after opening her eyes and seeing her daughter standing there ready. “Ugh, fine. Let’s go,” she said.

Sloane collected her things as her daughter hefted her brightly colored backpack–a rainbow checkerboard patterned thing that she had begged and pleaded for–onto her shoulder and together they walked to the door. Sloane looked around one last time before leaving, certain that she was forgetting something.

“Mom, you forgot the watch,” Gwyn reminded her.

Sloane let out an exaggerated groan. “Oh, yeah! Thanks, Gwynnie!”

“Of course, Mom. You’re welcome. Let’s go!”

Sloane went and grabbed the case that held one of the prototypes for a revolutionary smartwatch she had a key part in designing. Her team was nearing a crucial point in the last stages of its development and, currently, it was all hands on deck. She and several of her engineers had begun wearing them outside of the campus for real-world usability tests. Even though it was not that fashionable yet, she enjoyed it. The usability and software were far more important to her job than the experimental looks of an incomplete product still in development.

That wouldn’t be a concern for long because the release candidate model was scheduled to be built soon in preparation for mass production. Life would get much easier for her after the team reached that point.

For the time being, Sloane was just so busy, but it wouldn’t be much longer until everything was calm again. She just had to keep at it and not let the stress get to her. Perhaps things weren’t as bad as they seemed–Sloane just needed to ensure that the stress didn’t affect her relationship with Gwyn.

Sloane took the watch out of its charging case and fastened it onto her wrist. She glanced at her daughter, who smiled at her, then shut the door. Yes, everything was alright.

  

✦     ✦     ✦

 

Sloane waited outside Gwyn’s school at the end of the day. Work had gone surprisingly well, and she managed to ensure a lot of tasks were completed. She was excited that she was able to leave and spend the evening with her daughter, instead of having to drop her off with the nanny before heading back. 

Her mind drifted back to work as she waited for school to be released. Their new hardware required a radical redesign of the OS to make full use of the increased capabilities enabled by a revolutionary breakthrough in her team’s custom chipset architecture. A painstaking process that required her hardware team to be on hand to work out any issues that arose during the software team’s tests and integration.

Before the redesign, it had been years since she last dealt with any system coding, so thankfully she didn't have to worry about that. Luckily, they were still on track for release the following year. They just needed to work out how to mass-produce the new chip design with the manufacturer they contracted. It would require some improvements in their nanometer lithography process, but the factory had assured them that it could be done.

She sighed.

It’s only going to cost us millions of investment funding.

Sloane looked up at the school as she heard the unmistakable sound of a hundred kids streaming out, chatting and laughing, and excited to be free from their classrooms. She walked toward the gated entrance as she saw her daughter walking across the courtyard, and waved once Gwyn noticed her. 

“Hey, Gwynnie! Are you ready to go?”

“Yup! Gelato?”

“You know what? Sure, let’s get some.”

Looking over Gwyn’s outfit, she asked, “So, why’d you end up getting all dressed up today? I didn’t see anything about your class going on a hike.”

"I knew we'd be out and about today. Wanted to make sure I'd be okay walking."

"So, you just knew we'd be walking to get gelato and I wouldn’t have to go back to work?"

"Yup!"

With a laugh, Sloane took her daughter’s backpack and put it in the car before heading towards the local gelateria, a little more than a block away.

Gwyn reached over and grabbed Sloane’s hand as they started to walk. 

Sloane smiled down at her and with a squeeze of her hand, she asked, “So, how was your day?”

“It was okay. I got hurt again, and Ms. Alberta asked why I’m always getting hurt so much. I told her that it’s just my life.”

Sloane laughed. “She really put you on blast, didn’t she?”

“Yeah, it was my knee this time. I fell kicking the soccer ball away from the boys. They were being mean.”

“I’m sorry, sweetie. You okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fine. I just played with my friends after.”

They continued to talk about Gwyn’s day as they walked and crossed the bridge over the canal that surrounded the town’s center. Sloane glanced up and gasped as she did a double take of the blues, purples, and reds mixing in the afternoon sky. Gwyn immediately looked up as well.

Gwyn squealed lightly and brought her other hand to her chest. She started tugging at Sloane. “Mom! That’s so pretty! What is it?”

“That looks like an aurora, sweetie. It’s really weird, isn’t it?”

“Yeah, but it’s cool! Look. Everyone’s looking at it.”

Sloane looked around and noticed crowds of people also staring and pointing up at the sky. She grabbed Gwyn’s hand and pulled her close. A loud burst of noise resounded everywhere, almost as if a jet had broken the sound barrier above them.

Sloane became concerned. Her head whipped around, trying to ascertain what was happening. People nearby, startled by the seeming sonic boom, screamed. Children stopped midplay and stared upward while couples held each other. One older woman smacked a younger man and pointed toward a young child who was starting to move away. The man rushed to grab and picked them up before returning to the woman. 

Sloane gripped her daughter’s hand tighter. “Gwyn, stay close.”

“What’s wrong, Mom?”

Sloane tensed, looking around trying to figure out what was going on. She saw panicked looks on everyone around them. Her heart raced as she pulled her daughter close, looking around for any other sign of danger. “I don’t know, sweetie. Just stay close to me.”

Gwyn quickly shoved closer to her just as the sky suddenly flashed blue.

“Mom!” 

“Gwyneth! St—”

Sloane was blinded by the flash and was hit by a huge gust of wind.  She felt Gwyn jerk her hand away in fear as she screamed. Sloane reached where she thought her daughter was, but then suddenly felt as if she were falling. Her last thought was of Gwyneth as everything turned black.

 

✦     ✦     ✦

 

Innsbruck was a beautiful city nestled within the Inn Valley of western Austria. Ownership of the region had recently passed to the Hapsburgs and early thoughts indicated that they were very interested in seeing the city and Austria itself prosper. It was for this reason that Sir Friedrich von Boden sat on his horse as he rode down the cobbled streets of the idyllic heart of Tirol.

So much was changing in the region. In fact, the city had been made the capital of all Tirol with the Tirolean court recently moved from Meran to Innsbruck. No matter what happened, Friedrich hoped to settle him and his wife here. 

After many discussions with his wife on the matter, the von Bodens sought to ride the wave of change. For his part, Friedrich had managed to avoid the nastiness of the recent rebellion instigated by Prince-Bishop Alexander of Trent.

Now, because of the relative peace and with the new silver mining in the area, Friedrich hoped the prosperity of the region would indeed rise.

One thing that may cause issues, however, was that the duke had poor health as of late, and there were talks that his son was preparing to take over. Hopefully, the man would be just as much of a benefactor to the region as his father was before him.

All that was to say, Friedrich had hopes for the future.

He and his wife lived in the nearby town of Hall, and the pull of the city called to them. Indeed, he hoped that moving here would give them the opportunity to start a family. As a ritter, or knight, he would have ample opportunity to increase his fortunes.

That goal was why he was here.

He pulled his horse to a halt outside of one of the small inns within the city and handed it to one of the stable boys. As the boy was walking away, he stopped and dropped his horse’s reins.

“He! Boy!” Friedrich called out. He moved to grab his horse and scold the boy but then he noticed everyone nearby had their gaze turned upward.

He stopped and looked up.

The sky was a swirling river of greenish-blue. As quickly as it came, it changed. A mixture of yellows and reds joined the other colors. It was beautiful; a tapestry of colors that moved and danced to no pattern that he could discern. 

His eyes went wide as the colors grew even more vivid. 

Suddenly, a loud burst sounded. Loud and powerful like he imagined of a volcano. Screams filled the air as those around him cowered in fear.

His mind wandered to his wife. Who would be busy at their home.

I wonder if Ka–

His vision turned white as the sky flashed. He instinctively jerked just as a sudden rush of air blew into him. Friedrich’s head started spinning. Unable to keep his balance, he felt himself reaching out as he started to fall.

The ground rushed up at him and he cried out as he crashed into it.

The impact forced all of the breath out of his chest. He gasped for air and tried looking around but his blurred vision failed him.

Friedrich panicked.

Katherine–

His vision went black.

 

✦     ✦     ✦

 

The high elf merchant, Onas Fenren, relaxed as his wagon rolled down the dirt road as they traveled to the next stop in their route. The day was clear, and the scent of grass and trees sat in the air. They had not been on the road long since their previous stop. A nice breeze blew through to solidify the day as a good one. It would not take them long to arrive at the next stop in their journey. A village where they would deliver some goods the headman had requested through one of Onas’s other employees.

He reviewed his ledger and inventory list as they traveled. He preferred to keep himself busy, but sitting inside the wagon could be such a bore. Luckily he did not have to worry about driving as he sat on the front bench with one of his three guards. The other two he employed rode horses along either side of them. At least here he could converse or just listen to his guards talk.

The horse on Onas’s left moved forward a bit as the rider looked over at the rest of them. “Boss, how much longer until we reach Larton?” asked the sun elf guard with a bit of mirth.

Not this again…

Onas shook his head as he smiled. Their overall route passed through six villages, three towns, and–finally–back to his home city of Strathmore. The town of Larton would be the last stop before returning home.

He couldn’t wait to get back and be with his family. His wife and children were managing the storefront they maintained. This annual route was merely tradition at this point and not something that actually had a noticeable effect on his family’s business. That said, he would not complain when he was able to both stock and sell any surplus he made from his travels.

Plus, making connections and meeting new people was always a worthwhile investment.

The trip this time had been quite lucrative so far, and he was interested in reinvesting some of the profits in upgrades to his company’s caravans.

He glanced back at the guard who had asked the question.

The guard had a hint of a smirk on his face as if he knew exactly what he was doing. There was a rugged look about him, one that hinted that this was a person who was used to a fight. Which he undoubtedly was. He had close-braided, dark brown hair, and his dark skin, which was common amongst the sun elves, was contrasted by his bright yellow-orange eyes.

A recent addition to his merchant company, the guard had the enviable ability to switch between humor and calm professionalism when required. The man himself was well worth the additional expense. The presence of additional guards also helped deter any would-be bandits.

Taenya Shavyre, Onas’s head guard, leaned forward on her saddle so that she could see the guard on the opposite side of the wagon. She did not look amused.

“Raafe, do you insist upon asking so many times? You know it’s a week. Same as five hours ago when you asked. You should pay more attention to your surroundings. We’ll be reaching Hilshen village soon, where we’ll be staying for the night. Watch for any bandits,” she stated with an exasperated tone.

Taenya had been working for Onas for eight years now and at twenty-nine, was well used to the route the merchant traveled, and its dangers. The woman sat atop her horse with a steel gaze set to her hazel-green eyes, constantly scanning the distance for any threats. Her blonde hair which normally fell to her shoulder blades was pulled up into a bun that complemented her face. Her race, the telv, looked similar to Onas’s, the high elves, and the only differences were the shorter points on their ears and softer jawlines. The telv people were native to the continent on which they resided–Ikios–unlike the Loreni which consisted of the high, sun, and moon elves.

“Oh, come on boss, give him a break,” Keston, the high elf guard, interjected from the wagon’s driving bench. “You know he’s always been a bit bad with his numbers. We've all seen him need to use his fingers to add. Actually, come to think of it, that might go for you too, boss. Obviously, it’s not quite a week if five hours have passed.”

The man was clearly not thinking very hard for his weak attempt at getting a jab in on her as well.

Onas looked at his guards and smiled as they continued bickering.

During his annual route, he sold various odds and ends, basically anything of sufficient resale value. Sometimes, he simply sold anything in need by the people on the route. It always paid to make positive connections, even if the profit margins were smaller in trades meant to build relations.

Right now, he had various goods from the previous towns and villages he thought would sell well in Strathmore. He was also delivering a shipment of swords ordered for Larton’s town guard by the local baron. The baron, who was actually a valued partner and friend, was working to grow his guard. This meant that they needed to supplement the meager stock of supplies that their few blacksmiths were capable of producing.

It seemed they were wary of the recent actions of the nearby Duchy of Edimiss. This, he thought, was a bit of a knee-jerk reaction that might even further encourage the Duchy. In fact, he would probably end up telling his friend to go petition the duke of their duchy, rather than focus on it himself. However, as it didn't really affect him directly, he wasn’t going to argue against making good coin. Even if it was a friend. I’ll give him advice, but he did already commit to the purchase.

He started thinking about what he would do when he got home as they followed the road toward Larton at a steady pace.

Onas glanced up as something caught his eye. The formerly clear sky was now filling up with a shimmering wave of light.

It looked like the sky lights seen around the coastal regions to the northeast. They weren’t common this time of year, during the day… or even in this region. It was a beautiful sight though, especially the way they hung in front of the sister moons. It seems the Family is smiling down on me. This is surely a boon. Perhaps he would be able to use this to his advantage in Hilshen.

He turned to say something to Keston when he was pulled from his thoughts by Taenya as she called for a halt of the wagon.

“Onas, look at the sky. Perhaps we should stop here for a bit?” She hesitated slightly before continuing, “I have a bad feeling about this, boss.” Taenya’s voice held a hint of concern as her gaze focused on what lay above them.

“It’s just some sky lights, Taenya,” Onas said. However, as he glanced up again, he noticed the sky was starting to turn an unnatural shade of blue as the lights grew in size. Soon, the lights obscured the Sister Moons that shared the sky with their Father, the sun, who should have been lovingly gazing down at the Mother from their celestial home. Instead, the sky was growing dark.

“Actually, Taenya, you may be right. Let’s take a second and rest. Maybe—”

There was a bright blue flash in the sky, and Onas, in surprise, almost toppled from his seat. He opened his mouth to speak just as everything turned black.