The Lightning Caller Part 1

Johsina sat on the high ledge watching her storm grow in the distance, feeling a deep, comforting connection to it. She called it to her, feeding it with her need. It obeyed in earnest, growing darker by the minute as it devoured the dying day. Vicious lightning lashed out at the desert plain, pulling at it, dragging its swelling mass of blackness ever closer to its mother. It was still a long way off, but Johsina could feel the rumble of its desperation in the ground beneath her.

Far below her, on the hot, dry plain she saw the army approaching- a black, writhing disease that consumed the land. She knew they would come, but she had no idea there would be so many. All those men coming for her . . .

The wind picked up, cool and fresh in the hot desert air, carrying the whispered promises of her fate. The Storm Diamond, hung from a chain around her neck, purred against her chest. Her silk ceremonial robe softly caressed her flesh, causing goose bumps to rise on her arms and legs. It comforted her. With what she was about to do, it helped calm her nerves. All of her senses reached out to the elements around her, pulling the energy in close. The warm arms of the power she called forth wrapped her in a loving embrace.
She watched the dark mass of soldiers ooze across her land and thought of how her destiny had unfolded . . .


She was five years old when she first felt the call of the Lightning Tree. It was a special day, so the memory always stuck with her. She could recall exactly what she was wearing, what her mother was wearing, and she could even recall the amazing aromas being carried by the soft desert breeze. Her hand was sweaty in her mother's grip as she ran along, trying to keep up. It was the Day of Roses, and the entire town was alive with excitement. In the village of Ancohra, nothing was more exciting than the bloom of a desert rose, and the Day of Roses meant The Garden would soon be full of big, beautiful white blooms. It was an event only Ronoh, the gardener, had seen before. The Day of Roses hadn't occurred in more than six hundred years.

Johsina was more excited than anybody. She was, after all, named after the roses that were expected to bloom. She had learned in school that the bloom signaled the beginning of a yearlong celebration. She couldn't imagine a celebration lasting so long, but she couldn't wait for the many events she knew were being planned. Her mother told her there would be lots of sweets made from the pedals that would fall from the roses, and that sounded best of all!

"Slow down, Mommy!" Her little feet could barely keep up with her mother's long strides.

"We are almost there, Jo." Her mother didn't look down at her. "Just keep up."

As she continued to struggle, Johsina felt something inside her. It wasn't in a single place in her body, like her stomach or chest, but rather everywhere all at once. I was a soft, rhythmic vibration. . At first it was faint, but it caused her to miss a step. As she started to fall, her mother pulled up on her little hand and lifted her into the air, setting her back down in stride.

The humming in her body intensified little by little as they worked their way towards The Garden. It felt good and scary at the same time. When they made the last turn onto the road that lead straight to The Garden, there was a hard thump in her chest. It made her let go of her mother's hand and stop in the middle of the road. Everything around her went out of focus and she could only hear her body humming in a slow rhythm. That rhythm started to make sense to her. It was speaking to her, and she could suddenly understand what it was saying.

The roses will bloom at the touch of the chosen.

It wasn't words, so much as thought. She simply knew what it was saying, and it scared her to her core. As the feeling grew throughout her body, however, her fear turned into joy. Her body was singing a beautiful song only she could hear. She wanted to dance along, but as quickly as it had started, it began to fade, and she was left with a sense of longing. Her mother grabbed her hand and everything came back into focus, bright and loud all at once.

"Come on, Johsina!" her mother snapped as she turned to continue down the road.

Her body followed, but Johsina's mind was frozen in place. She could only think of the feeling that had now all but faded. She wanted it back! It was the best feeling she had ever had, and she felt sad that it was gone. Her feet were light on the dirt road as her mother led her through the gathering crowd. She heard none of the noise around her, and felt only the tears drying on her cheeks.

When they reached the garden, Johsina saw immediately why everybody in the village was so excited. The great big glass tree was surrounded by beautiful green plants, each with countless fat buds ready to bloom into beautiful, white roses. Sunlight shining through the glass surface of the tree cast bright little rainbows all over everything in the garden. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.

"They certainly should have bloomed by now," she heard someone nearby say. "They seem to be waiting for something."

The chosen.

Johsina let go of her mother's hand and walked up to one of the plants. As she reached up to touch one of the buds, a rainbow fell across the back of her hand. She felt it there like the touch of a gentle finger. Her body hummed softly at the touch, urging her onward. A movement in the distance drew her gaze up from the rainbow. She saw Ronoh standing there, watching her with interest. His brow pulled down over his eyes, but it wasn't an angry look. It was concern.

The rainbow pushed at the back of her hand, pulling her attention back to where it belonged. Her fingers reached for a bud and she thought she saw the bud reach for her fingers in kind. Everything around her faded away again as she watched her fingers close around the delicate bud. It nestled sweetly in her fingers like a kitten to its mother. It felt alive.

The vibration in her body suddenly began to sing again, but this time it sang to the bud in her hand. It was a song of sadness and hope dancing in a storm. It was both haunting and exciting at the same time. Johsina felt swept up in it. Her soul was spinning and jumping around in a crazy dance to it.

The bud in her hand began to shake. She felt it growing and the music inside her grew with it. She opened her fingers and the bud sprang up, reaching for the rainbows cast by the Lightning tree. The musical vibration inside her reached an even more intense level, urging the bud to let go of its fear, begging it to come into the light. Johsina held her breath in anticipation.

With an audible sigh, every bud in the garden opened up, spreading out into huge, pure white Johsine. The once green garden turned into a white field awash in tiny rainbows. For the first time in centuries, the desert rose of Ancohra was in full bloom.

It was the smell that brought Johsina out of her daze. The world came into focus around her and she felt as if she had just been sucked out of a dream. People all around her were clapping. Children were running around cheering. All Johsina could think about was the smell. She closed her eyes and inhaled deeply, letting the sweet air fill her. The joy she felt in that moment would stay with her for a very long time.

She opened her eyes. Colors were brighter. Laughter sounded sweeter. The sun was a warm caress against her skin. The world around her would never feel the same again.

When she turned to look for her mother, she saw Rohno under the tree, still looking at her. It would be a long time before she learned the reason for the tears in his eyes.

Check back soon for Part 2!