The release date is quickly approaching, and I've got something special planned to get you ready! "Flowers Beneath A Starless Sky" is a prologue story written in the same style as the game's lore, and I'll be sharing a chapter here every day counting down to launch! It's a tale that will give you a little bit of extra context and insight into the world of Artahk, and leads directly into the intro you'll see when you first boot up the game.
I hope you enjoy this little tease of what's to come!
NEXT CHAPTER
I. Kindling
The world is dark and long forgotten. That is how I have always known it. Shadows linger at the edge of all horizons, and stories tell of past glory and wondrous things that once were but are no longer, and none seem to care at all for their absence.
A chill breeze scrapes my cheek as I sit alone amongst the lilies. The village sage used to take us here every now and then when we were children, to tell us tales of spirits and the old world, or teach us about the flowers and trees. I am the only one who ever comes here now, after his passing, to watch day turn to night.
The others never cared as much as I do. Nor do I think they care much for me.
My gaze is locked on the lonely moon, watching as it slips down and seems to break apart on the horizon, leaves and branches silhouetted against the glow. I close my eyes and sigh as the last sliver is swallowed by the land. When I open them again, the last of the moonlight fades and a dark ocean suffocates the sky.
Unyielding, absolute darkness envelopes everything. Silent, calm, yet filled with dread—an awful sense of being sealed within a tomb. As though the world itself were holding its breath, for fear that nothing will ever shine again.
Then, the lilies begin to open and a smile creeps onto my lips, the whole hillside igniting with a faint purple glow. I pluck one of the black-stemmed flowers and rise to take my leave.
Our sage always told stories about things called stars. He said they were lights that danced in the sky long, long ago, like little torches hung impossibly high, or fireflies that were always out of reach. No one is quite sure why they left or where they went anymore; even he couldn’t say. Perhaps it was always just a tale, but it was one of my favorites all the same.
Fireflies dance around the grave when I arrive, as if they knew where my thoughts were drifting. Bright specks of blue and white flickering around the grey stone, their dim light illuminating the spirals gouged in its surface. I lay the lily on its crown. Just as I do at the end of every week, in his memory.
I pause as an image comes to mind, of the lily as the moon and the fireflies the stars around it, then look back at the forlorn sky. I close my eyes. In that moment, I dream of the inky ocean above giving way to a glimmering sea. I dream of a world full of light. I dream that somehow, it will still be there when I open my eyes again. Wouldn’t it be a beautiful thing? For hope to be the kindling that ignites the sky?
My eyes open, and find only darkness. I sigh, but smile. My clan mother always said I dreamed enough for the both of us.
