"Huddle Close" by Emma-Jane C. Smith

“Huddle close.”

“Why?”

“We need to start the sequence.”

“Are you sure it will work?”

“Cannot be sure, but I hope it does.”

“We all hope it does.”

“Huddle close.”

“There are too many of us.”

“We won’t fit.”

“We must.”

“This is the only way.”

“Try.”

“Huddle close.”

A light flashed blindingly in the sky, then another, another. It hurt her eyes to watch but she knew she must. She had to know. She had to know if it had worked.

Finally everything stopped, silence descended over the small grassy plain. She sat alone, and for a moment a smile touched her lips. One last burst of lightening flashed, and struck her forehead. She lay now in the deep soft grass, sleeping. Her naked body caressed by the breeze as it meandered its way across the dark landscape.

It wasn’t until the first rays of dawn crept over the horizon that she stirred. She opened her eyes wide and watched the clouds drift, arching slowly across the blanket sky. A swishing noise alerted her and she sat up. Someone was making their way through the long grass. She stood and moved towards the sound, her unshod feet savouring the gentle softness of the grass.

A man stood there; he was old and wrinkled but gave her a toothy smile as she approached.

“I was wondering when I’d see you,” he told her and passed her a bundle of clothes. “I think it worked.

“What is my name?” she asked.

“Lorna. Today it is Lorna. And what is mine?”

“Marcus. Today it is Marcus.”

The old man helped her up onto the back of her horse which stood nearby. Lorna’s mare was the same colour as Marcus’ grey stallion. They were the exact shade between pure white, and darkest black. They clucked at the horses and took off with unparalleled speed. Both travelled fast, faster than anyone would realise if they saw them on their journey. The sun followed them in the sky as they trekked westward, for it was unable to move without them.

“The war is brewing,” she said, feeling the turbulence start to creep into her body.

“I know. We don’t have much time.”

“We’ll have but a moment when the time is right.”

“Let us pray that we will be able to help stop this war.”

“Indeed, if we fail there will be nothing left. Not even we, the Time Makers, will exist.”

“Huddle close.”

“Not long now.”

“We cannot wait until the time is right.”

“Pay attention.”

“Huddle close.”

“Will it work?”

“Yes, it must.”

“For all Time’s sake, it must.”

“Huddle close.”

As the years progressed she grew older while he grew younger. Finally the time was right; they had arrived at the same age. As it was hoped the destiny of the world would be fulfilled and the war would be stopped. The magick current which ran through the belly of the world and through the air that was breathed, twisted it way through the couple, destined for the greatest of things.

He knelt down next to her and brushed his lips against hers. He loved to see the smile lines around the edges of her mouth, and the soft dimples in her cheeks when she smiled.

She woke and let her warm gaze drift over him. His hair was winged with grey streaks at his temples. His chin was stubbled, but his eyes were bright and sparkling. They were the only things that never changed about him. They were what she loved most.

“What is my name?” she asked.

“Beauty,” he replied, “What is mine?”

“Yadid… it means beloved.”

They smiled at each other and then he lay down beside her, remembering what special creations they were. He had been there at her birth, as a very old man, just as she would be at his. He grew younger with the years while she grew older. Now they had reached the same age, both of them were half a century old. And that night, when their ages were identical down to the last, briefest of moments, they would conceive.

A child would be made within Beauty’s womb. A child that would save the world from war.

“How long until the time is right?” she asked.

“At midnight,” he replied, placing another kiss on her lips.

“I hope our child is all that we hope for. The war is raging. It is hotter than the sun, people are dying…” she shivered.

Yadid put his arms around her, comforting the only thing that made his life wonderful.

At midnight the two Time Makers became one in a glow of passion and love. Their endless yearning for one another sent the world spinning. Their own destinies had become complete.

The Time Worshipers were gathered as they did every night. A single circular window above them sent a shaft of moonlight down to bathe them in its power. They had gathered for countless years hoping to stave off their world’s seemingly inevitable demise. And in their greatest of attempts they had created two beings, and these special creatures had become the Time Makers.

As decreed by the reason for their existence, the couple traversed the land. They added days, creating extra time for the Time Worshipers to work within. But the Time Makers could not do their duty alone. The power of the moon and the magicks of the group sustained unique couple’s power. The incantation and wielding of magick held the world together just a little longer…

“Huddle close.”

“We are trying.”

“Huddle closer.”

“We can’t get to you.”

“There is a problem.”

“What do we do?”

“Try harder.”

“Huddle closer.”

“It’s nearly time.”

“Huddle closer.”

They screamed in unison.

There was a blinding flash of light and the wail of a newborn babe. She lay naked on the soft grassy plain, she held her perfect son to her breast. She knew what he was and what he would become. He surpassed his parents’ powers, and was created to stop the war. He did not have the same burden as his parents. He did not have to travel to move the sun by day. He was a babe for whom all time was his dominion.

No longer did the coven of Time Worshipers stand in the room, which was lit only by the moon. Out of the babe’s eyes shone the knowledge and experiences of the ages. The final weave of magick completed.

A cool breeze lifted and, as it travelled over the land, it began to caress the waves of long grass.

“Huddle close, little one,” she told him, “I will warm you and you will feed at my breast until you are old enough to fulfil your destiny. You, my son, will traverse time and stop the war before it ever existed.”