Chapter 1

Donal set his pickaxe against the stone wall and wiped the sweat from his brow.

"Think we should call it a day, Feoi?" he asked his best friend. He had to speak loudly in order to be heard through the dust mask covering his face.

Feoi dropped his pick and rested his hands on his knees, heaving. "Oh, aye. I was hoping you'd say that."

"How much ore did we get today?"

Forcing himself to walk over to their cart, Feoi looked inside and grunted. "We're about halfway."

"What? Are you sure? Let me see." Donal grabbed their lantern and held it up over the cart. They had indeed found only enough ore to fill the rusted iron box halfway, and it was mixed with plenty of rock. "That's strange. It feels like we should have found more."

"Maybe we've finally mined out all the ore in these caves," Feoi said. He was still out of breath from their day's hard work. "We've worked all day, huh?"

Donal frowned and looked for their hourglass. He found it on a rocky ledge above their heads and wiped the dirt off of it. "Aye. We're just about done."

"Oh well. That's a subject for tomorrow. Let's go back home. I'm ready for a nap."

The two dwarves put their equipment in the minecart: the picks, shovels, blankets, rope, buckets (in case of flooding), support poles, and their hourglass.
Donal hung the lantern up on a little hook so they could see a couple feet in front of the cart.

Once they were ready, they got in the handcar. Donal stood facing the cart, with Feoi facing him on the other side.

"I just realized something," Feoi muttered.

"What's that?" Donal asked.

Feoi grinned. "We're not done working for today. We still have to operate the handcar."

"Get over it."

Donal pushed off to get them started, and soon they were slowly making their way through the tunnel, pushing and pulling the arm. They listened to the dull, monotonous clanging of the metal gears, the rattling of the wheels as they brought the handcar and the cart along the track. The all too familiar sound that they heard every day.

There wasn't much space in the tunnels. Its walls were within arm's reach of the track. The dim light of the lantern was just bright enough for them to see where they were going, but not so bright that it would ruin Feoi's night vision as he scanned the walls.

He did this every time. With his back to the light, he looked for any veins of ore they might have missed, just in case. He would never tell Donal, but he was also looking out for cave monsters. Not that he had ever seen one. Feoi just didn't want to be positioned with his back exposed, unable to see the malicious creatures that could be following them.

A few times they came to splits in the track, and Donal had to press a switch to keep them on the one that lead them to their home.

"Do you think my wife will be mad at me?" Donal asked, finally breaking the silence.

"Rena? Why would she be mad?"

Donal took one hand off the handle to point at the cart of iron. "We didn't get much today. Usually we manage to fill up the whole thing, and still have plenty left for the next day. What if we can't find any more iron?"

Feoi laughed. "You worry too much."

"Do not."

"Oh, but you do. Don't worry. Keep pumping, I think we're slowing down."

Donal put his hand back on the handle. "Our ancestors have been mining here for years. I think the whole of Mount Berkoz could be out of metal. What'll we do then?"

"We'll find a way. If it makes you feel better, we could ask the other dwarves if they still have any."

"We can't take theirs!" Donal exclaimed. "Besides, we spread ourselves throughout the mountains of Norr for a reason."

Yeah, yeah. Dwarves don't get along with each other and all that." Feoi hesitated, for he forgot what he was saying earlier. Then he remembered. "I was saying, see if there's any other cave systems. Ones that are running out of iron as well."

"It would be best if we don't talk to the other dwarves," Donal said. "Period."

Feoi blinked. "Wait a minute. How long have we been pushing the handcar?"

Donal opened his mouth to speak, but realized he didn't know either. "Darn. I should've been paying attention. Let's take a break." He stepped on the brake, making the car screech as it came to a stop.

Feoi took out his crumpled map from a trouser pocket and unfolded it. "Hey, there's actually some unexplored parts. Places where we could go mine tomorrow. See, I told you-"

"Just find where we are," Donal interrupted.

Feoi stared at the map. "Let's see...I'd say we're right here. By this here pile of boulders."

He and Donal looked to their left and saw a pile of boulders where they had hit an unstable section of the tunnel.

"Good. We just went a little too far," Donal said. "Help me replace the handcar, so its behind the cart."

Feoi put his map away and the two of them dragged the handcar off the track. They had to push the minecart a little to get it through to the other side, but the tunnel there was wider and they managed to get the handcar on the other side of the cart.

Donal wiped his hands on his shirt. "Ready?"

"Aye."

They took their positions and set off once again. Several minutes later, they came to a small indent in the wall with a carved wooden door. They removed their hard hats and masks before Donal opened the door.

"We're home, honey!" he called.

Rena appeared from one of the rooms, a young boy following her. Both were smiling. "It's about time you showed up. Are you guys okay?"

Donal's wife was, like most dwarf women, gorgeous. She stood a little taller than the two men, and was skinnier. She looked a lot younger than she really was, with a soft, gentle face and long black hair absent of any gray. That day she wore a simple green sleeveless dress with blue flowers. It was her favorite, because it reminded her of the world outside of Berkoz. They didn't go outside often due to Donal's overprotectiveness of the family.

"Hello?" Rena asked, giggling.

Donal shook his head, realizing that he was staring at her. "My apologies. Yes, we're fine. Thank you. How was your day today."

Rena sighed. "It was fine. I cleaned up the house a little. Sewed the shirt you ripped yesterday."

As usual, Donal was confused. Rena said that her day was fine, but the way she talked suggested otherwise. Women were so complicated.

"Mother wants to go outside," the boy said. "She said you're only hurting us by keeping the family here."

"Oh, you know that's not true," Rena said, embarrassed.

Feoi knew where the conversation was going and acted quickly. He smiled and ruffled the boy's thick black hair. "How was your day, Orun? Did you do anything new?"

Orun shook his head. "Like I said, it would be nice if we could go outside. I always wondered what it's like out there."

"You've left the caves twice," Donal argued.

"But I don't remember. I was just a little boy! And Mom said we only went outside to get supplies, which were delivered to us. We went to the mouth of a cave and then went back in. Did get to see anything at all!"

It was Donal's turn to sigh. "You know it's dangerous out there."

"But I want to see a human!" Orun insisted. "I heard they're really big, and not all of the men have beards!"

Both Donal and Feoi stroked their giant beards selfconsciously.

"I made dinner," Rena said. "Who wants some stew?"

"And that's another thing. I want to try new food," Orun continued.

Feoi looked at the three of them, wondering why the Schmidt family was acting so strange. They never talked about going outside. They rarely argued. What made Rena and Orun think about leaving Berkoz?

They hadn't argued about it at all since he had to leave his family and their native caves of Sedobhi during a mole infestation. Maybe they didn't want to bother their guest, whom they had taken under their wing for some time. He worked for them in return for housing, and helped watch Orun at times. But mostly the Rena did that, staying home with Orun while the two men went out mining. He could already hear the yelling that would more than likely take place.

"Why don't why discuss this over dinner?" he told them. "Come on."

Donal huffed. "No. We discuss this now."

"Why?" Feoi asked.

"Because I don't want any harm to come to my family," Donal said. He looked at his family with a mix of concern and determination.

"Why would something hurt them?" Feoi asked. He looked Donal in the eyes, and thought he saw an explanation. "Is it the humans?"

Donal nodded. "Have you ever met a human?" The question was addressed to all three of them. They all shook their heads.

"I want to," Orun said.

"My father told me all about them," Donal began. "Every night when I was little. He spoke of horrible creatures. They look like us, but are more evil. And bigger. If they disagree about something, they kill each other. They've invented all sorts of weapons just to have more fun while doing it. And they're lazy. While we dwarves work hard in the mines all day, humans do whatever they want."

"Why?" Orun asked. "Why don't they have to work?"

"Because they steal to get things rather than work for them. Did I mention that humans are most disrespectful? They hate each other, and do bad things, and they've their own special words used just for cursing and wishing bad things upon each other. No conscience, I tell you, they have no conscience!"

Rena knit her eyebrows. "And who is he to talk about humans?" she asked, anger creeping into her voice.

"Pardon?"

"Your father."

"Oh. I..."

"Did he ever go outside? Did he ever see humans himself, and talk to them? Well?"

Feoi and Orun shook their heads. They couldn't do anything to stop the couple from arguing.

"Of course he was!" Donal said coldly. "Why do you fight me? I'm trying to save our skins by keeping us away from that horrid place!"

Rena glared at him, not seeing any logic or proof in her husbands argument, but not wanting to make the tension any worse.

"I rest my case," Donal said. "Now we can have our dinner. You said you made stew?"

2: Part 1-Donal , Chapter 2-Erath

Chapter 2

Along the tunnel dozens of gems glittered in all the colors of the rainbow. It was as if they were calling out to Feoi.

"Donal will be so proud," he said excitedly.

Feoi walked up to the closest one, a deep blood-red ruby. Carefully, he picked it up. It was about twice the size of his hand.

"My, don't think I'll be able to carry all of these," Feoi said to himself as he gazed over the long line of precious gems.

He continued walking forward, examining the gems that he found. They were all about the same size, and likely worth a generous amount of money. Each gem was a foot or so away from the ones in front of and behind it. The line continued as far as he could see.

It felt like hours when Feoi finally reached the end. He was carrying three giant canvas bags and two smaller ones, all filled to the brim with jewels. He thought that he'd had his surprise for the day, but what he saw at the end of the tunnel was just as shocking.

"It's time for you to start mining," Orun told him quietly.

Feoi stared at the young boy. "Orun? What the blazes are you doing here, all alone?"

Orun seemed just as confused. "What?"

"What are you doing here?"

"It's time to go mining," Orun repeated.

Feoi rubbed his eyes. Suddenly he found himself on the ground. No, he was on a bed. His bed. "What...? Where's me gems?"

"What gems?" Orun asked.

"I had five sacks full of 'em!" Feoi said. "And now they're gone!" He looked around. It didn't take him long to realize that he had dreamed of finding the treasure.

"Hey, Feoi?" Orun asked. "Why won't my dad let us go outside?"

 "You've never gone outside?"

"Well...I was only a little kid and I don't remember it. I want to see what it looks like outside."

Feoi sat up and rubbed his eyes again. "Well...what do you think it looks like outside of Berkoz?"

Orun rested his chin on his hand and his elbow on Feoi's bed. "Well...Mom always said that it's an even bigger cave than what we have. So big that no one's ever explored the whole thing, and you can't see the top. And it's made of the same rock, but they also have this soft, green kind called grass."

Feoi chuckled.

"And there's a lot of water. There's supposed to be this blue and white stuff if you look up, but I don't know what Dad meant by that. And there's a lot of animals. So many animals. And humans. I always wanted to see a human."

"Okay. Where's Donal?" Feoi asked. "You said it's time to go mining."

"Oh...ha ha. Not really."

Feoi groaned. He looked at his hourglass sitting next to him. There was still a couple of hours left before they had to get up.

"Well?" Orun asked.

"Well what?"

"Why can't we go outside?"

"Have you ever heard about Sun?" Feoi said.

"No. Aren't I one?"

Feoi sighed and shook his head. "No, this sun is spelled s-u-n, not s-o-n."

"What is it?" asked Orun. He looked up at Feoi, curiosity and eagerness in his eyes.

"It's...this...this giant fire, set in the ceiling of Erath-"

"What's that?"

"Erath is what we call the outside cave. Now don't interrupt," Feoi said. "Where was I? Oh, yes. Sun is this giant fire at the top of Erath, and it's so big, so bright, that you can see it from anywhere in the cave."

"Wooooaaahhh..." Orun murmured softly.

"It's also hot enough to burn dwarves," Feoi commented. "Like smelted ore in a furnace."

 "Wait a minute," Orun said, proud to have caught a flaw in the older dwarf's story. "You said we went outside before. How did we not burn?"

Feoi shrugged. "It was just for a minute or so. It was awfully hot, and we only went out to get supplies."

"Then how do humans survive?" Orun asked.

"They've adapted. I don't know, you'd have to ask a human."

"Then I will. I'll run away, visit the Erath, and ask a human how they survive Sun."

Feoi laughed again. "Yeah, right. Good luck finding your way out of the caves."

"I have your map," Orun said, holding up Feoi's map.

"How did you get that?" Feoi asked, angrily. "That's mine!"

He tried to grab it, but was sluggish as he had just woken up some minutes ago. Orun put the map back in his pocket.

"You're a sly one." With an effort, Feoi got out of bed. He smoothed out the blanket and looked at his friend's son. "Do you know how to use that map?"

Orun took it out and unfolded it. "Um...I know this is where we live. Right there." He pointed to the spot where Feoi and Donal had been yesterday.

"Try again," Feoi said, grinning.

"Um..." Orun squinted as he scanned the map. The two hadn't noticed when Donal woke up, staring at them with an annoyed expression on his face.

"What are you two doing?" Donal asked them.

Orun and Feoi jumped.

"Your son here is trying to escape," Feoi said, suddenly feeling annoyed as well.

Donal trudged over to his son and snatched the map from his hands. "Don't even think about it. Do you want to stay in your room all day?"

"Actually, I would rather see Erath." They stared at each other, until Orun looked down. "Sorry, Dad."

Donal took a deep breath and managed a little smile. He could never stay mad at his son. "I'm sorry, me son. Your father is just worried about how we'll continue to make a living. It seems as though Berkoz is sucked dry of all her ore. We can't trade with the elves if we don't have enough ore. That means no leather, no wood, no meat. None of the things they have in Erath."

"The elves live in Erath?" Orun asked.

Donal nodded. "Like the humans, they are used to living there. We aren't, our kind is more suited to live in these caves. Elves and humans can't live in cold, dark places like we can. And we wouldn't be able to live in hotter, drier places. That's just the way it is."

"I still want to go," Orun whispered.

Donal looked at Feoi, who frowned. "Would you like to join us when we go mining?" Donal asked. He supposed that taking Orun into the dark, damp caves would scare the boy into not wanting to go to Erath.

Orun looked up, smiling. "Would I! When can we go?"

"Well, I doubt we'd get anymore sleep, so how about right now? I'll leave a note for Rena, Feoi, you go get everything ready."

So while Donal searched for a pen and some paper, Orun and Feoi got dressed. Then they went out the door and Feoi got a helmet and mask for Orun.

"Do I have to wear that?" Orun asked.

Feoi nodded. "The helmet is so you don't get as hurt if something falls on you. The mask is so you don't breath in all the dust."

Orun tried to put on his gear. "The helmet is too big, and the mask smells."

Feoi tightened the helmet by pulling a strap on the back. "You'll get used to the smell. I wonder what's taking Donal so long." He looked around.

"I bet he's going back to bed."

"Here I am," Donal said as he came out the door.

Feoi handed him his helmet and mask. "Ready?" His voice was muffled by the mask as he had just put it on.

"Aye. Where we goin' today?"

"Where are we going, boy?" Feoi asked Orun.

Orun looked at the map. "What's all this?" he asked, pointing to the sides of the parchment where Feoi hadn't drawn anything.

"Those are restricted areas," Donal said. "We haven't been there yet."

"Why are they restricted?"

Donal humphed. "We haven't been there yet, as I said. We don't know what's over there."

"Cool! We get to go exploring!"

"We might find some iron," Feoi said. "If we haven't been there. In fact, there likely will be."

"Fine. I'm tired of arguing," Donal conceded. "But if we get eaten by giant worms, I blame you."

"I want to see a giant worm!" Orun yelled, not seeing the nervousness on Feoi's face.

The two older dwarves made sure they had everything in their cart. As Feoi lit their lantern, Donal told his son to put his dust mask on, and said that if he did he could ride in the minecart.

Donal and Feoi got on the handcar and started pumping. That familiar clanging and rattling sounded again, exciting Orun. He looked at the map and gave directions to the older dwarves, telling Feoi which switches to press when they came to split paths and often encouraging them to go faster.

"Patience, young one," Feoi told him, laughing. "We have plenty of time."

"Yeah, but if we get there soon then we have more time to look for giant worms!"

Donal looked up. "We won't be looking for anything but ore."

Orun was crestfallen. Like his mother, he didn't get to go out of the house often, and was eager to find something interesting. Mining was far from interesting.

"Whoever finds the most ore gets a surprise," Feoi said, trying to cheer him up.

"What is it?" Orun asked.

Feoi hesitated. He decided that Orun wouldn't be mining unless he knew what he was mining for.

"If you mine the most ore, we will take you to visit Erath."

"What?" Donal asked, shocked.

Feoi leaned forward so Orun couldn't hear. "Don't worry, he won't even get the slightest amount of iron. Look at his arms - the lad is weak!"

"You have a point," Donal whispered. "He could barely lift a pickaxe. He's right, Orun, if you win we'll take you to Erath!"

"Yes!" the boy cheered. "I'm so gonna beat you guys!"

They still had a long way to go until they reached the beginning of unexplored territory. All three of them were lost in thought, ignoring the screeching of the cart on the track. There were no crossroads for about a mile, and Orun didn't have to keep checking the map. He stared at the track ahead of them, occasionally shifting his position as the tools poked him. Then he saw something.

"Hey, Dad? What's that?"

Donal was awoken from his daydreaming. "Oh! Wait, what? What is it, son?"

"That. Ahead of us."

Donal glanced over Feoi's shoulder so he could see where they were heading. In front of them appeared to be some sort of sinkhole. The track gradually sloped downward, into the darkness. Donal knew that holes like that in Berkoz lead straight to lava pools.

Alarmed and speechless, Donal stopped pushing the handle of the handcar and stepped on the brake with all his might. But all it did was slow them down, as they were already going downhill. Feoi, realizing what was happening, tried leaning forward in an uphill direction. Donal leaned back.

"Dad?" Orun asked nervously. "What...what is it?"

"Orun, get out and push us uphill, quick!" Donal managed.

"Why?" Orun asked.

"Do it!"

The steepness of the track increased, and their efforts to stop the cart and the handcar were in vain. Both sped up, the minecart going down slightly faster due to its weight.

Feoi turned around and tried to grab the minecart, almost losing his grip on the handcar. His hand wavered just inches from the minecart.

Orun, understanding that doom met them at the bottom of the pit, was speechless as well. He held on to the edge of the cart for dear life, the sweat on his palms making it harder.

"No!" Donal grunted.

Orun screamed.

3: Part 1-Donal , Chapter 3-Aodel

Chapter 3

"I can't see!" Orun shrieked.

The three dwarves sat in silence, trembling, wondering why the cart had stopped but they weren't burning.

Were they dead?

"Orun? Are you okay, me son?" Donal asked, struggling to keep his voice calm. He and Feoi were closing their eyes, as they didn't know what they would see.

Orun nodded. "Yeah. But my eyes are open and I still can't see!"

Some instinct told Donal and Feoi not to open their eyes.

"I bet it's that darned Bidiaigh," Feoi muttered.

"What's that?" Orun asked, starting to feel more curious than scared.

"Oh, it's nothing much. Just this giant white lump with nothing but a single bloodshot eye. It's said to squish it's way through the less-explored tunnels, looking for little children to catch-"

"Cool!"

Feoi grinned. He knew they couldn't see him, but was glad that Orun wasn't as scared anymore. "The Bidiaigh's eye is so disgusting that if it you look at it you go blind."

"Am I blind?"

"Eh, I think it's only temporary."

"That's always good. So, what now?" Orun rubbed his eyes and looked around, but his vision was not returned to him.

They heard Donal moving about on the handcar.

"We need a mirror," he said. "Maybe we can blind the...what's it? The bad hag?"

"Bidiaigh."

"Aye. We need to get rid of her if we want to open our eyes again."

Feoi took his numb hands off the handle. "A mirror. Oh, I happen to have one in my pocket here."

"Really?"

"Nay."

Donal grunted. "That's it. I can't take this nonsense. I'm opening my eyes."

"Dad, no!" Orun insisted. "You'll be blinded!"

"And I don't care. What, do you hear any sloshing?"

Donal mentally prepared himself. He didn't want to see if the Bidiaigh was still there, but he figured he would have to sooner or later.

Before he could think on it more, he slowly opened his eyes, just a crack. And then closed them. There was some kind of bright light, and it hurt.

"Donal?" Feoi asked, wondering why they had gone silent.

"Yes?"

"You okay?"

Donal nodded. Then, remembering that they were all closing their eyes, he said, "I'm fine."

He looked down, covered his face with both hands, and opened just his right eye. It was very bright, but didn't blind him.

"Hey Feoi..."

"Yes, Donal?"

Donal winced, as he still had his eye open. "Why...how do you know what the Bidiaigh looks like?"

"Um..." Feoi tried to remember how he found out. "I don't know."

"I mean, it blinds people who look at it."

Feoi didn't respond. There was silence again.

After a few minutes, the light faded. Donal could open his eye further, but it still hurt. He growled at the burning sensation in his eyes.

"Hey Dad, are you done yet? Did you open your eyes?" Orun asked.

"Just hold on!" Donal roared.

Orun jumped at his father's sudden outburst. He was starting to get scared again. A tear ran down his pale cheek.

"Hold on," Donal muttered. He sighed heavily. "It's very bright. I can't tell if there's lava, or that's how the Bidiaigh attacks."

"I don't think so. How did it blind Orun so quickly?"

"Because of the bright light, that's how," Donal huffed. His having to open his eyes due to the light made him grumpy.

Orun kept rubbing his eyes, but still couldn't see. A few more tears sprung from his unseeing eyes.

Finally the light had dimmed enough to allow Donal to open his eye fully. He took away his hand, and then opened his left eye.

"Egads!" Donal breathed. "Do my eyes deceive me?"

"I don't know," Feoi said quietly.

Donal pinched himself. "We aren't by no lava pool. We're...in Erath!"

His words made Orun have mixed feelings. "I wish I could see."

"Don't worry, you'll get to see in no time," Feoi assured him.

Donal gaped at the emerald-colored hills, the trees that looked so sturdy but so delicate. The blue-and-white haze that covered most of Erath. He had almost forgotten what the cave looked like. It had been so long. 

"Can I look, Donal?" Feoi asked.

Donal shook his head, again forgetting that his friend couldn't see. "Do as I did. Open your eyes slowly, start with your right. Be careful."

As Feoi gradually managed to adjust his vision, Donal looked around, being careful not to look at the blazing sun. The tunnel they were passing through led straight to an opening in the mountains, taking them to the much greater cave that was Erath. The rail kept going. It went forward for several yards before wrapping around a hill and disappearing. On either side was a wooden fence.

"Is it beautiful?" Orun wondered out loud.

Feoi looked around, hand over his eyes. "Depends on how you look at it."

"So there's no Bidiaigh?"

"Nope."

Donal took one last look at the landscape and turned to Feoi. The sun seemed to share her brightness with Feoi's fiery red hair, making it shine as well. Orun's black hair looked even darker. Donal wondered how that worked. "I think it's about time we got going."

"No!" Orun blurted. "Tell me what it looks like. We might never get to go here again."

Donal sighed. "There's nothing here that I haven't told you about."

Orun shook his head. "No. I want you to tell me what humans look like. Go find one."

Donal raised his bushy eyebrows at that, not sure what to say. Feoi looked at him and grinned.

"It's the least you could do for him."

"What are you talking about?" Donal demanded, even more surprised.

"He's blind, and scared. Come on. I'll take him back to the house, you go find a settlement."

"And what if the humans attack me?"

Feoi grinned and took out a small leather roll with a T-shaped metal piece at the end. "Here."

"What's that?"

"A dagger. Made it myself. If you're under attack, you can defend yourself with this. Oh, and here's some paper to describe what the humans look like." He gave Donal the things.

The other dwarf looked at the dagger and the paper with worry. He had never met a human, and the mere thought of it made him want to hide in his cave. Go back home. But he knew that it would make his son happy. He clipped the dagger onto his belt and stuffed the paper in his pocket.

"Fine. You two go back. Will you be able to get the cart back up that slope?"

Feoi looked back, and Orun looked where he thought the cart was. "Sure I can," Feoi said. "Good luck."

"Thanks. I'll need it."

Donal swallowed and started walking along the track without another word. He didn't look back, for if he did he thought he would change his mind. Instead he set his eyes on the ground, humming an old mining tune. He assumed that if he kept following the track he would wind up somewhere.

"This place really is rather pretty," he said to himself. He had looked up once the entrance to Berkoz was out of sight. The soft green grass was plentiful, the hills covered with it. He could make out the peaks of the snow-topped mountains of Norr looking behind him. To his sides, beyond the fences, pools of water were fairly common, the light of the sun reflecting off of their dark blue surfaces. Donal made sure to not keep his eyes on them for too long.

And there were many animals as well. The same animals that he had seen last time, and more. Birds blabbered excitedly in their squeaky voices, those peculiarly long mouths moving up and down rapidly. Squirrels ran along the sides of trees, gigantic tails trailing behind them, as if to tell the birds to shut up. How they could climb like that Donal didn't know. He also saw fluffy rabbits, probably made out of that white stuff in the sky. They hopped about, only stopping to pick something out of the grass and nibble on it. Occasionally just their ears were visible. It seemed to Donal as though everything in Erath had some sort of feature that was overly long: the birds' mouths, the squirrels' tails, and the rabbits' ears. He wondered what the humans' long feature was. He knew that elves had long ears, like the rabbits. Maybe humans were the same.

As he smelled the flowers, took in the sights, heard the animals talking to each other, and felt the cool breeze ruffling his hair, Donal was surprised that he actually enjoyed being here. The white part of the sky seemed to take away some of the sun's brightness as it floated in between her and the ground. Erath was definitely a prettier cave than Berkoz, or probably any other cave. He was in the cave that every other cave lead to, the very center of the world.

Whatever gave Donal the idea to look up toward the top of Erath, he did not know, but what he saw made him do a double take. Was the sun supposed to be so low in the sky? First she was just about centered, but then she seemed to be falling. He couldn't see the fall, but Sun was at a different position in the sky, closer to the horizon. As time passed, she got closer and closer.

"Oh..." Donal muttered. He knew that without the sun, he wouldn't burn, but he also knew that it was what made the place so beautiful. The sun gave everything color. And if the giant ball of fire fell, he figured that there would be mass destruction.

He had to warn someone.

Without hesitation, Donal quickened his pace. He ran along the track, breathing heavily. His short legs were built more for endurance than for speed. He tried as hard as he could, but wasn't able to make it. The sun fell, how far away he didn't know. But it fell, taking the light with it.

Donal fell to his knees in shock. What a coincidence. The one time he came to Erath and actually enjoyed the sun, it went away. He wondered how many elves were hurt.

How long he knelt there he didn't know, but after a while he looked up again. The sun was in the sky again. Only this time it was white, and not so bright that everything was colorful - the land looked darker - but he could still see without a lantern. The blue-and-white fog that the elves called Sky wasn't there anymore, revealing Erath's inky black ceiling and lots of smaller Suns, which were also white.

While Donal was looking up he failed to notice a faint yellow light in the distance, despite its being more visible due to the darkness. It wasn't until more came that he noticed. They were all in a cluster, ahead of him and to the left.

Not for the first time, Donal wondered whether all this was real. In the other two times he's been there, he had only been out for a few minutes.

He got up and stumbled to the lights. He had to cross the tall grass to get to them. Then he saw the source of the light.

There was an odd cluster of white boxes with red tops that were slightly too big and hung over the sides, which had holes covered up by glass. The light was coming from those holes, as if the boxes were some kind of giant lantern.

Panic set in. Donal realized where he was - in a human camp. If these were their lanterns, how big were the humans themselves? And when would they return?

Donal tightened his belt and ran to the nearest lantern. He saw that it had a door-like structure, but bigger. He opened it and ran inside.

 "Excuse me!" someone said. "Who do you think you are?"

Donal blinked. Inside the lantern was a room. It was fairly simple, with a thick red rug, some shelves, and a bed. There were more doors to the opposite walls. There was also a bed. The person on it came out.

"I'm sorry. Are you an elf?" Donal asked. He saw that the person in the bed was too small to be a human, about his size. He couldn't see any ears because of the stranger's curly blond hair.

"What!" He glared at Donal. "Why would I be an elf?"

"What are you doing here?"

"This is my home! Why else...get out!"

Donal looked around. "Your bedroom is in the front of your house?"

"That's the back door! Just...agh! Get OUT!"

Another stranger came from one of the doors. "Honey, what is it - oh. Hello."

"Eh...hullo."

The second stranger, a woman, stared at Donal. "You aren't a tax collector, are you?" she asked, a hint of hostility in her voice.

Donal shook her head. "No, ma'am. I'm just lost."

"Well, could you please get lost in somebody else's house?"

Donal examined the woman. She was quite tall, taller than the man in the bed.

The woman cocked her head. "Why aren't you gone? Talk to me in the morning." She left.

"You heard her. Get out!" the stranger in the bed shouted. He threw a pillow at Donal.

"Fine! I'm getting out!" Donal said, confused. Why were there elves in a human lantern?

He walked away and sat down behind a bush that was big enough to conceal him, trying to piece together what was happening. He couldn't figure it out, so he fell asleep.

When Donal woke up, he was confused for a second. Where was he? Why?

It didn't take him long to realize that he was in Erath. It hadn't been a dream. But the sun was still back. What?

"Get yourself together, Donal. What happened last night?"

The dwarf sat down. He closed his eyes and counted to three, taking deep breaths. His thoughts started to become clearer.

Yes, he went inside a human's lantern and found a couple elves inside. All three of them were tired, and the encounter was rather strange. But the lady had asked him to visit her again in the morning.

He got up and dusted himself off. He decided to visit the woman. And did.

"Yes?" she asked as she answered the door. The other door, for something had told Donal not to use the one he had opened last night.

"I believe I accidentally broke into your house last night," Donal said. "And you wanted to talk to me."

The lady rolled her eyes. "I'll talk. What do you got?"

"Um..." Donal figured she meant for him to pay her, so he reached into his pack and pulled out a gold bar.

"Good enough," the lady muttered. She snatched it from his hand. "Follow me."

Donal, missing his ingot dearly, followed her into what looked like a kitchen. There was a round wooden table the color of milk chocolate. The ground was made of a lighter wood, and there were shelves full of food. A larder stood in the corner, and Donal saw a door leading to another room.

"What do you want?" the lady asked as they sat down.

"Well, first of all I would like to know why you're living in a lantern-"

"My name is Elena. I do not live in a lantern."

Donal noticed something. Elena was tall, much taller than an elf. And she didn't have pointed ears. Did that mean...

"Are you a human?" Donal asked.

Elena gave him a dirty look. "Of course I'm human! What else would I be?"

Donal bit his lip. Somehow he ended up talking to a human. She wasn't nearly as bad as he expected, but obviously wasn't so friendly.

"You have eight more minutes," Elena said.

Yes, sorry. I was just...wondering..."

"Are you a dwarf?"

"Yes. How did you know?"

"You're shorter than my son. Do you have more gold?"

"No. We're rather poor, you see. There isn't very much ore left-"

Elena leaned forward. "You broke into my house. Did you think I wouldn't charge you for that?"

Avoiding the temptation to take out Feoi's dagger, Donal looked down. "How much do you want?"

"How much do you have?"

Well that was rather rude. "I don't know. How do you humans measure gold?"

"I want two thirds of it. By tomorrow."

"Two thirds?"

"You heard me. I would get going if I were you."

"But-"

"Go! Get out of my house. Again!" the woman screamed, standing up.

Surely Donal had never moved so fast as when he fled from the human. He didn't know what kind of magic they had, and didn't want to push it. He didn't want to know how Elena would track him down if she didn't get her gold.

4: Part 2-Dhom Kichu , Chapter 1-The People

Chapter 1

Violet sat on the porch with a bowl of ice cream on her lap. Chocolate ice cream, with sprinkles. Her favorite.

She was just about to eat it when she sensed a disturbance in the air.

"What are you doing?" Lily asked.

Violet hurriedly covered the bowl with her hands and glared at her little sister. "Why do you care?"

"That's a nice bowl of ice cream you've got there. Chocolate?"

"No."

Lily stood on her tippy-toes and tried to examine the contents of the bowl. "I just want to see what's inside. Why won't you let me see?"

"Because you'll eat it!" Violet yelled. "You always eat my food!"

"Mom, Violet's being a meanie!" Lily shouted, even louder.

The two sisters scrabbled at each other, arguing over who should get the ice cream. Violet pretended to have authority over Lily, being two years older, and Lily asked her why she wanted to yell at a poor innocent girl like herself.

"What are you two doing?" their mother asked, stepping out the door with a tired look on her face. She looked down on her two daughters with annoyance.

"Violet won't share her ice cream!" Lily informed her. "And I'm so. Hot. Out here." She used her best acting skills to pretend that she was indeed hot.

"It's my ice cream!" Violet argued. "Why should I give it to her? It's mine!"

The woman, whose name was Rose, banged her head against the door. "Violet, give your sister the ice cream and let me do my gardening." She returned to her backyard without another word.

Lily grinning wickedly. "See? I told you. I said you have to give me it!" She took the bowl from a very angry but not surprised Violet.

"But...she meant share! We have to share it!"

Lily scampered away, giggling.

As they made all the ruckus, Rose just sighed and went back to planting the tomatoes. No one knew how hard she had to work as the town gardener. She insisted that they call her that because farmers were dirty and smelly, but she realized that the name change didn't affect her working conditions. She had to get down on her knees, in the dirt. She had to place seeds in the ground, turn the ground into mud, and repeatedly check up on the seeds until they grew into the plants. Sometimes there was too much sun, or too much rain, or those filthy critters ate the seeds when she wasn't looking.

It didn't help that she had two annoying children that always fought and called her name for the littlest things. "Mom, I need this!" "Mom, I need that!" Wouldn't they ever just leave her alone, at least for a few seconds?

She finished tending to her gardening and stood up, dusting herself off. She was about to walk into the house when she heard someone call her name.

"Rose! Come here!"

Rose looked up and saw her friend Elena gesturing for her to come. She rolled her eyes and walked over.

"What?"

"Do you know anything about Dwarves?" Elena asked, looking back toward her house.

Rose folded her arms and shook her head, her annoyance growing. "Why would I?" she asked. Her tone suggested that she thought Elena was stupid, but she wasn't fazed.

"One of them tried to rob me last night, and almost kidnapped my son-"

"You should be more careful."

"I know!" Elena snapped. "I can't watch my back 24/7. Just be lucky he didn't go into your house."

"Aw, you poor thing. Scared of a little dwarf," Rose mocked, cackling. "He looks so harmless. What could he possibly do?"

"He - wait. How do you know what he looks like?"

Rose scowled. "I'm not stupid. Look behind you."

Elena first thought that it was a trick, but curiosity gave in and she looked back. There he was, the dwarf she saw yesterday.

"If it isn't the little runt!" Elena called, leaving Rose and walking over to Donal. "Where's my gold?"

Donal stopped walking and looked up. The humans scared him to death, but he didn't show it. Instead he gestured to a large sack that he was pulling behind him. "I couldn't get any-"

"Oh?" Elena put her hands on her hips, lips curled. "Guess we're gonna have to do something about that."

Donal gulped. "Here."

He grabbed the sack and brought it in between them. He positioned it so that it was vertical, and pulled.

"Ew! That's not gold. It's just a piece of rock!"

"Oh?" Donal looked at the gold substitute he had brought. "A piece of rock" was a poor description. It was really a small statue, about five feet tall, made mostly of dark gray Berkoz stone, tiny veins of lighter gray running throughout. At the joints was a dark brown clay. The stature was of very basic shape, with no clothes, hair, or facial features.

Several people had come out of their houses to see what Elena was getting herself so worked up about. They all looked at Donal and the strange statue with derision.

"Why does that kid have a beard?" a little boy asked.

"That's not a kid. He's a dwarf," the boy's father replied. "Notice how ugly he is?"

The kid stared at Donal, still not quite understanding.

"I don't have any more gold," Donal stated. "Instead I bring you this."

"Liar!" Elena shouted. "What would we do with that anyway?"

Donal took out seven gems, one for every color of the rainbow. They were all about the size of a coin, round and smooth. "This is not a piece of rock. It is a golem. I will now summon him."

Some of the humans walked away, not caring, but the rest watched with distrust while Donal placed the gems on the golem. There was one for each hand and foot, one on the chest, and two where the eyes would be. They stuck to the stone like little magnets, making it look slightly less useless.

"So...what do I do with it?" Elena asked.

Donal looked up at her again. "Whatever you want. It is summoned."

"I guess you expect me to thank you."

"That would be nice," Donal replied nervously.

Elena rubbed her chin pensively, suddenly realizing that the dwarf was afraid of her. "Hmmm. I asked for gold. This is not gold."

"Oh, yes. Well, you see, I don't have much gold. We're a bit low on ore...you see..." Donal started to back away.

"You filthy cheater!" Elena grabbed him. "Give me my gold. You owe me."

"I - I - do you know how much that golem is worth?"

"I don't care about the stupid gems. I want gold!" Before Donal could react, Elena pushed him to the ground and spit on him.

The crowd stared at her, surprised. They thought that she was acting childish. Not because she pushed the dwarf, but because she pushed Donal. They weren't aware of the fact that they would have done the same thing.

Donal get up, eyes wide and full of anger. He brushed himself off and straightened his clothes. Before he knew it the knife was in his hand. "So, you want to fight, eh? I said I don't have much gold. And why should I pay you in the first place? I stumbled upon your house." He glared at Elena. "Know what? I'm sick of you humans. You think you're so important because you're bigger. I'M NOT LEAVING THIS TOWN BEFORE SLAYING ALL OF YOU!"

The people watching screamed and ran away, not knowing whether Donal could use magic - indeed he could summon a golem. They tripped over each other, leaving behind their too-slow friends and family members. They didn't know where to hide. They didn't know if they could. At first they doubted that he was anything special, but something scared the heck out of them.

Donal raised his knife hand, preparing to strike Elena. The slightly curved steel blade seemed sharper to Elena, all too eager to draw her blood and take her life. She watched the knife in horror, not knowing how to react.

The knife was inches from her heart when it stopped in mid-air. It was harder to tell who was more surprised, Donal or Elena.

"Please. There shall not be any blood spilt on this day, nor fear of our neighbors who really mean no harm."

The two stood there. They were all alone near the town center. Who could have spoken other than...the golem.

Elena turned to the stone man, wondering if she was still alive. Yes. It had just saved her.

"Donal, thou art dismissed," the golem said. How he could speak was a mystery to Elena. His voice was gentle but friendly, and he spoke in an Irish brogue. He looked at Donal and Elena with expectant blue and indigo eyes.

Donal nodded, glad that his plan was working. It looked like he didn't have to kill anyone. All he could say was farewell before running back to Berkoz. He didn't want to utter anything that would ruin what he had in mind.

A part of Elena considered thanking the golem for saving her life, but she didn't want to look silly. It was just a talking statue, and didn't have feelings. She looked at it. "What do you do?"

The golem didn't have a mouth or a nose, so its face was expressionless. "Whatever you want me to do."

"I want you to go away. I don't need you or want you. You're just a pile of rock and too dirty to take into the house." Elena looked him in the eyes, or actually the gems that were supposed to be eyes. She would take them if she didn't think they were cursed.

The golem nodded. "Your wish is my command. I shall leave you." With that he left.

"Good riddance," Elena muttered as she walked back into her house, slamming the door. Her son would have too many questions, and the thought of sitting there answering them made her grumpy.

The golem stared at the door for a little while, wondering why the lady didn't like him. If she didn't, then maybe nobody would. He would have no purpose in life, just an ugly talking statue.

He walked around, examining the houses. He saw several signs naming the streets. Other signs named the shops. The town must have been called Aodel, for many of the stores were named after it. But nobody was around. Where was everybody?

The golem eventually found a couple of children playing in the streets. They looked young, one having slightly more years than the other. The littler one was carrying a round yellow bowl. He decided to approach them and see if they would accept his as their servant.

"Mom said!" Lily yelled, trying to re-capture the bowl.

Violet spun around, using her height as an advantage and holding the bowl up high so that Lily couldn't reach it. "But it's mine! And Dad didn't have a say in it!"

"But I'm just a little girl!" Lily argued.

"So am I!"

Lily opened her mouth to make a retort, but was interrupted by the sound of stone against stone. She looked back.

"Look Violet! It's a walking statue!"

"I'm not falling for it, you little brat!" Violet hissed. She looked at the ice cream. Unfortunately for her, they had been arguing for so long that it had melted, looking more like thick brown milk than ice cream. She threw the bowl at the ground. It smashed into bits of clay shards, the melted ice cream running all over the place.

"Why would you do that?" Lily screamed. "I mean it! There's a guy over there and he's little and made of rock!"

Violet looked up. Her little sister wasn't lying. There actually was a statue, and it was walking over to them.

"Greetings," the golem said, bowing. "I am of thy service."

"What'd we do?" Violet asked. "Lily, did you enter some kind of contest?"

"No. Did you?"

Violet contemplated possible choices of action and what she reasoned would be the end results. She was a quick thinker. "Do you have a name?"

"Yeah, it's Lily," Lily said, confused. She wondered why her sister was so weird. "What...?"

"I was talking to the guy."

"Oh."

The golem looked at himself. "My creator did not name me. Such is thy choosing."

"Good thing I'm here, or you would have no idea what he's talking about," Violet told Lily. She turned to the golem. "What do you want your name to be?"

"As I have said, it is thy choosing. I have no say on the matter."

The two girls looked at each other, wondering what they could possibly name him.

"On the count of three," Lily proposed.

Violet nodded. "One...two...three."

"Dhom."

"Kichu."

Lily frowned. "What kind of name is that?"

"What?" Violet asked defensively. "It's cute. At least it doesn't sound like 'dumb.'"

"You sound like dumb!" Lily yelled, upset that her sister didn't like Dhom.

Violet sighed. "How about we combine them. Dhom Kichu."

"Fine."

Dhom Kichu nodded. "Sounds perfect."

5: Part 2-Dhom Kichu , Chapter 2-The Woman

Chapter 2

"Get that hideous...thing out of here!"

Rose stood in the doorway, shaking her head in frustration. "I'm not letting another child in my house."

"But Dad didn't have a say in the matter," Violet argued. "Shouldn't he get to-"

"No! He isn't here right now. I am in charge."

Lily looked at Dhom Kichu and then at her mother with her best begging eyes. "Come on, Mom. He has a pretty voice. Listen. Show her, Dhom."

Dhom Kichu scratched his head. "What?"

"See, Mom?" Lily asked, starting to jump up and down. "Come on, please? Please? Pleeeaasse? Please?"

Rose frowned at them, considering. "What did you say his name is? Pikachu?"

"It's Kichu," Violet replied.

Lily shook her head. "No. It's Dhom Kichu," she corrected. "Get it right."

"Who are you to tell me that?" Violet asked hotly, fists clenched.

Rose sighed. "Dhom, do you know how anything about gardening?"

"Dhom Kichu, Mom," Violet interrupted.

"I apologize, Mrs. Rose. I do not know much of anything, for I was created just earlier today. You could teach me though."

Rose started. "How do you know my name?"

"I heard you talking to yourself just before we arrived."

The town gardener raised her eyebrows at his words. She looked around, glancing at her daughters. "You heard nothing."

"I heard nothing," Dhom repeated, nodding slowly.

Rose grabbed his arm and pulled him inside, Lily and Violet following with wide grins on their faces.

"Go back to the garden, Dhom," Rose commanded. "I'll meet you there in a second. Girls, come with me to the kitchen. We have to make lunch."

Dhom Kichu looked around. The house seemed small, but that was only because of the small rooms and hallways. There were a lot of those and it would be easy to get lost. He walked around, unconscious of the dirt that he got on the carpet.

He opened a door only to find that it lead to another hallway. They all did. It was like a maze, with each door leading to a hallway rather than a room.

He heard footsteps behind him and turned around. Rose was walking toward him with a blank expression.

"Here, take this," she said, stuffing a sheet of paper into his hands. "You'll need it."

 "Thank you." Dhom Kichu smoothed out the paper and looked at it as Rose walked away. It was a map, color-coded with lines marking different hallways. He noticed that he was standing on a white rug, and found the white line on the map. Near the end, a door lead to a green hallway, and then to a blue one with a door that opened to the garden.

As he walked through the white hall, Dhom took in his surroundings. What he hoped to be his permanent home.

The walls were white stone. It looked like granite, given the black spots here and there. Dhom wondered why they built their houses out of it, wishing they hadn't because it felt terribly awkward being in a room made out of stone just like him. Comparable to humans living in a house of flesh. The doors were oak. Tall, narrow, and with rounded tops. They were made of dark wood, contrasting with the light walls.

Upon closer examination Dhom noticed that everything was flawless. There were no scratches on the walls, no stains on the thick green carpets that looked like grass. The candles set in wall sconces were all lit of equal height. The windows were clear, free of any smudges.

Dhom looked at the map again. He was right by the door to the green room. He found it and after a while made his way to the garden.

"What took you so long?" Rose asked as he arrived. She was standing over her garden looking as cross as usual.

"Sorry, madam. I will get faster in time." Dhom looked down at his heavy little legs, which he assumed were slower than those of a human.

"You better. Come here." She beckoned him over. "I have the girls preparing sandwiches and salad. It should keep them off my back while I teach you about gardening. You don't eat, do you?"

Dhom thought about it. "Well...I would assume so. You see,-"

"Good. I told them not to make you anything. They probably will anyway, but I doubt it. They've learned not to waste food."

"Very well..."

Rose knelt down. "See this? It's called dirt.  Write this down if you have to."

Dhom looked at his hands. The fingers didn't bend that well, and he could open doors but holding things were hard and he couldn't write. Not that he knew how in the first place. But why wouldn't he know what dirt is? He wondered for a moment whether the humans could actually see him.

"And this is called a hole. You put things in it," Rose continued. She pointed to a hole that she had made. "Particularly seeds. Do you know what seeds are?"

"Indeed," Dhom said.

"I doubt it. These are seeds. You can tell them apart from everything else because they are kept in this little bag." She held up a small brown bag.

The littles are crazy, the tall one thinks I am stupid, Dhom thought. Donal did give me some information. Hm...maybe I should be more loyal to my mistresses and they will not act so strange.

"Are you paying attention?" Rose asked.

Dhom nodded.

"What else? Oh, yes. The- Ah!"

Rose stared at the fat white rabbit and it stared back at her with its beady red eyes. Around it were the corpses of the plants that Rose had planted just yesterday. The rabbit continued to chew.

"Get out of here!" Rose shouted, backing away and holding her dress up. She started to sweat. "Pest! Get out of here!"

The rabbit kept staring and chewing.

"Get....ahhh!" Rose jumped onto a stool, almost knocking it over. "Dhom, do something!"

The light reflected off of Dhom's eyes when he looked at the rabbit, as if he was blinking. He walked over to the tiny little animal and stroked it. "You shouldn't be here, little one," Dhom whispered. He picked it up. It was still staring and chewing, only it had shifted its gaze to Dhom.

"Don't touch it! It might have rabies!" Rose shrieked as the rabbit looked at her again.

"Ofteu," Dhom told the rabbit. "Jast tu aef muir?"

"What does that mean?" Rose asked. "You better be saying a spell to make that rabbit go away!"

The rabbit spit out the leaf it had in his mouth and Dhom lifted him to hear what he had to say.

"Very well..." Dhom muttered. "Jaes?"

The rabbit whispered in Dhom's non-existent ear again. "Sotora, Dhom. Ofteu." He hopped off and ran past the fence.

Rose stared at the golem, confused. "What...your spell didn't work. You didn't kill the rabbit."

"You are correct in that I didn't kill the rabbit," Dhom replied. He felt strange talking to Rose is such a way, but felt as though it had to be said. "You are wrong in thinking that it was a spell."

"What?"

"Allow me to be more clear. I am unable to kill, so I spoke to him in Rusdkotl, the only language we both speak."

Rose was still confused, but realized that it was evident and looked at her crops/garden. She didn't care what the golem and the rabbit had said. "That's all very well, but we're too late. If you hadn't taken so long getting here, we could have caught that rabbit before it ate my cabbage."

Dhom got up and looked at the cabbages, seeing that he wasn't as successful as he thought. Among the whole garden, not just the lettuce, only two corn plants had been spared. The flowers that weren't eaten were trampled on. "I'm sorry, Rose."

"That's Mrs. Rose to you! Now I have to replant everything before Monday next week. Still, there probably won't be any vegetables. No fruit. No flowers. I won't be able to make any money, and we won't get to eat. We'll have to sell the house!"

"I..." Dhom looked around . He was smart enough to know that talking to the plants wouldn't re-grow them. But he had to do something.

He knelt down again and held the remnants of a cabbage. The drooping plant would have broken if he were any less gentle.

Then Dhom noticed something. His left hand was glowing. He turned it over. The green gem was the source of the light, shining more brilliantly than the others.

Dhom put his hand over the gem. It made the edge of his hand glow bright green. What was happening?

"What's happening?" Rose asked. "I thought you can't cast spells. Did you lie to me?"

"Not ones that can kill-"

The plant started to glow as well, and then the others. In several seconds all the plants were glowing, like the gem on Dhom's hand. They shifted. The plant that he had touched whipped around, somehow not breaking itself. The tiny leaves flickered. As the two watched, the plant regrew the bitten-off leaves, and soon it was back to normal. Just as it was before the rabbit had gotten to it.

Rose looked over the plants, feeling both awe and anger. "Why didn't you tell me you could do that? You said you didn't know anything about gardening."

I did not know that I could do that. I don't quite know the extent of my powers, as I was not told them by my creator." Dhom looked down, embarrassed.

Rose humphed. "Something tells me to not believe you. I won't punish you though if you try to be a better servant in the future."

"You have my word," Dhom replied.

6: Part 2-Dhom Kichu , Chapter 3-The Man

Chapter 3

Over the next few days Dhom learned that the younger humans, called kids by the older ones, were generally more pleasant. They might not have been as understanding as their parents, but saw things only they could. Unlike Rose, Violet and Lily were grateful for Dhom's general goodness. They smiled and said hello to him every morning. The three of them played together in the giant backyard, and while there were some arguments they got along well. Dhom almost felt like a human.

Intrigued by what he was learning, Dhom wanted to find out more.

"So you humans grow over time?" he asked one day. They were taking a walk through the town, getting some fresh air.

Lily and Violet giggled.

"Yeah," Lily replied. She was standing on Dhom's right, holding his hand.

"Some grow a lot, and others not so much," Violet added from the left.

"Fascinating."

"Hey Dhom, who's your favorite?" Lily asked, glancing at Violet.

"It's Dhom Kichu," her sister said. She still thought that Dhom was a stupid name, and was determined to have everybody use his last name as well. She looked at Dhom. Yup, definitely a Kichu.

"Well?" Lily asked expectantly.

Violet smirked. "I think she has a crush on you, Dhom."

"Do not!" Lily yelled. Her face became red very quickly. "You take that back, young lady!"

"I like you both the same," Dhom said. He almost added that he didn't like anybody else, but thought that such was unnecessary. Or very nice.

The girls looked away, embarrassed. They didn't talk for a while. It was Dhom who broke the silence.

"Is Aodel a large town?" he asked, looking around.

"I've never seen another one," Violet said. "We've never left here."

"How come?"

Violet shrugged. "My mom said it's too dangerous. There's really weird and creepy monsters outside."

Dhom remembered Donal, the dwarf who created him. Did they think of each other as monsters? It seemed so, the way he had seen them act. Donal hadn't given him any knowledge on the subject. Since the encounter between Donal and Elena almost lead to death, Dhom decided not to ask Violet about it.

"Do you know if there are other towns?" he questioned.

"I don't know." The girl was quiet. She looked at Lily, who refused to look at them. Instead the younger girl's eyes were glued to the people walking about, parasols protecting their faces from the sun, noses stuck up, clothes impeccable. Stupid snobs, she liked to call them. Her synonym for adults.

Violet took her eyes away from her sister and looked at Dhom. "Is it just me, or are you talking different?"

What do you mean?" Dhom asked. He hoped that he wasn't being a bad servant.

"You're talking less like an adult and more like one of us."

"I hope you don't lose your accent," Lily said, unable to resist joining the conversation once more.

Dhom laughed. "Don't worry, I won't. Why do you humans sound different?"

"We have all different kinds of voices," Violet said. "I guess it depends on the way you talk, but also where you're from." She remembered her mom talking about it one day, when she was trying to explain to her daughter why some people sound different.

"Dhom, are you really not a human?" Lily asked. She looked around. "You look a lot like us. I mean, if it weren't for your hard gray skin."

"Donal - the one who made me - called me a golem. I'm not sure whether that's a type of human, or something entirely different. Or both."

Lily and Violet laughed.

"I mean it. You guys are very diverse. All human, but very different."

"What does that mean?" Lily asked.

"It means you are different. Especially looking at you and the taller ones" Again he had to catch himself. He almost started talking about how he liked them more than their mother.

"You're telling me!" someone shouted.

They jumped in surprise. On the side of the road, to their left, was a man. Unlike the others, he wore dirty black and brown rags. His dark brown hair was long and messy. He had a stubbly chin, and it looked like he hadn't had a bath in weeks. Or a good meal, for the man was terribly thin. He scowled at the golem and his human friends.

"Dhom, we should go," Violet whispered. "We don't want to mess with him."

"What," the man grumbled. "I can hear you."

"Dhom," Violet urged.

Dhom looked at the two, not fully understanding what was happening. "Do you two know each other?"

"Ha!" The man crossed his arms and grinned an ugly grin. "Be one heck of a nightmare if I did."

Violet went around Dhom and held Lily, peeking from around the golem. She stared at the thief, shaking. She hoped that it would dawn upon Dhom that the man wanted to hurt them.

"What's your name?" Dhom asked.

The thief let out a short bark of laughter. It held no humor, only scorn. "I go by many different names. You pompous, wealthy scum can call me Lagro."

Lily gasped. "He thinks we're stupid snobs, doesn't he Violet?"

Lagro stepped forward, grinning. "Violet, eh? What, do you think you're a flower? I hate flowers."

"What do you want?" Violet screamed.

"I want your money, what else!" Lagro snapped. "Now give it to me!"

Finally Dhom realized what the man was. He placed himself defensively between Lagro and the girls. "Why would you take something from two helpless little girls? Do you realize what you are doing?"

"Of course I do. And what are you supposed to be? Some kind of talking statue?"

"I'm a golem," Dhom replied. He clenched his fists. "You haven't explained why you would steal from us."

"You obviously aren't too bright, so I think the girl will explain," Lagro said.

Violet looked at Dhom. "He's a bad man. He doesn't care about other people. He doesn't care about us."

"Wrong!" Lagro took out a dagger that was hidden in one of his boots. "I need the money to survive! Not everybody has rich parents that set up their life for them. Of course, you wouldn't know that."

Violet closed her eyes and covered her ears, Lily doing the same. They didn't want to fall for any trick Lagro had for them.

Dhom stepped forward and reached for the dagger. "If you want to hurt them, then you have to go through me instead."

Lagro knit his eyebrows and slashed at Dhom with the rusted dagger.

Lily and Violet gasped.

There was a scratch on Dhom's arm, but the dagger shattered upon contact with the thick stone. Lagro gulped.

"Um...I've got to go now."

"No." Dhom grabbed his arm and with his right prepared to strike Lagro in the head. He raised his hand, hoping to knock Lagro out.

But then he remembered something.

His hand lowered. He looked at the thief, and at the girls. All three were confused by his hesitation.

"Why can't you make money through working?" Dhom asked.

"Who would hire me?" Lagro asked, more sad than angry. He looked down. "I wanted to make enough money for my parents. They're sick, you see, and...they can't..."

Dhom's feet started glowing. The yellow and orange gems grew brighter, just like the green one in the garden. Lagro was glowing as well.

"What...what are you doing to me?" Lagro asked nervously. He looked at his glowing arms. He was starting to wish he had never threatened him.

Lily risked a look to see for herself. She took in the shining feet and the filthy man reflecting the light. "Dhom?"

"I don't know!" Dhom replied. He stamped the ground, trying to get his feet  to stop. They only glowed brighter. Then they stopped. And everyone gasped. That is, except for Lagro.

"What is it?" he asked. He realized they were looking at him. He looked down and gasped as well.

Instead of his previous rags, he was wearing proper clothes: a clean white shirt, trousers, and a cloak. He actually had shoes on his feet. He felt his face, and found that he was clean-shaven and his hair was shorter.

He felt his new clothes and found that in his left pocket was a coin purse. Full of money. The dagger that lay in pieces on the ground was now a rose.

"Oh...Master Dhom! I do not deserve such treatment. I am forever in your debt! Please, forgive me..."

Dhom and the girls were just as surprised as he was. They looked at each other, Dhom a little embarrassed and the girls amazed.

"It's called charity," Dhom told Lagro. "May you and your family be in peace."

He didn't know if he said that right. It came from his heart. He looked away taking Lily and Violet with him.

"Wow! You didn't tell us you're magic!" Lily exclaimed.

"Yeah," Violet agreed. "You were amazing back there!"

"I think you're overdoing it," Dhom said. "I don't know what I can do. I didn't do that on purpose."

Lily hugged him. "It doesn't matter. You're the best golem ever."

7: Part 2-Dhom Kichu , Chapter 4-The Girl

Chapter 4

It was Lily who noticed.

She, Violet, and Dhom were playing hide-and-seek in the park that stood at the center of Aodel.

It was Lily's turn to hide. She told them to go hide somewhere, and began counting down from 30 with a big grin on her face. She knew she would win.

"Thirty! Twenty-nine! Twenty-eight!" she called, covering her eyes. She tried listening for any noise that would give away the location of Dhom's hiding spot.

Not knowing how long 30 seconds was, Dhom figured he had to hurry. He looked around. There was a small community garden in the far corner, separated by a knee-high brown fence. The metal gate was open, moving slightly in the breeze. That's how Dhom noticed it first.

But there wasn't anything there. No bushy plants to hide behind, no plant pots or plant food. No tools, no shed. Rose had made a habit of raiding the garden so that the others would have to get all their plants from her.

Hmm...if only there were some bushes.

Dhom looked around some more. There were plenty bushes, lined up against the edge of the park. But they were too close to the fence. There were some trees too, but there were too skinny. Where had Violet gone?

"Nineteen! Eighteen!"

Dhom looked at Lily and sighed. The park was large - a few acres at least. He kept looking, wondering if he could find something obvious. Then there it was. Not too far away, a pile of rocks the color of a thundercloud. The same color as him. They were probably left there for the children to play on, but Dhom could tell that they were too sharp to be safe. The thought made him remember how much he hated the humans and their apathetic ways. Except Violet and Lily, he hastily amended. They were different.

"Ten! Nine!"

Dhom bolted for the rock cluster as fast as he could. He fit well among the stones, blending in nicely. He turned away with his back to Lily.

"One and three quarters! One and a half! One and one quarter! Okay, here I come!"

Lily spun around, already knowing where Violet was hiding. She skipped over to the bench sitting by the pond. At first glance, she wouldn't have thought there to be anything wrong with a strange bundle laying on the bench. Lily knew, however, that Violet always hid under it.

"Hmmm, I wonder where Violet is!" Lily exclaimed loudly.

The bundle was silent.

"What will happen if I look inside?" she asked. "Let's see!"

Violet watched as she ripped away the blanket and found a pile of rocks inside. Lily stared at the rocks. Realizing that Violet had tricked her, she pouted and stamped her foot. 

"Hey! That's not fair! You can't trick me like that!"

She went about the park, kicking bushes and throwing stones. Through the frenzy, she failed to notice Violet hiding in the branch of an oak tree, a few feet above her sister. Violet couldn't help giggling.

"Violet!" Lily looked up and saw her. Her light blue eyes suddenly started to get watery. "Why would you do that?"

Violet jumped off, landing with a grunt. "I'm sorry, Lily. You can't blame me for trying to win. You still have the chance to to find Dhom."

Lily noticed that she didn't say Kichu. That made her a little happier. She rubbed her eyes. "Dhom, I'm gonna find you! Watch out!"

The two girls looked around the park, looking for their friend. It was starting to get dark, but they knew that their mother wouldn't mind. In fact, she would be happier if they stayed longer. They knew that Rose found their company stressful.

"Dhom!" Lily shouted.

This time she listened for a slight noise, one resulting from Dhom's response to her calling his name. She was rewarded, as a faint shudder came from behind the pile of rocks tucked away in on corner of the park.

"Dhom, I found you!" Lily called. "I should have known you'd try hiding there!"

She walked up to the rocks and picked out that was Dhom. She helped him get up.

"Wow, you're pretty good at this game!" Dhom said.

Lily smiled. "Thank you! Why is your hand black?"

"What?"

"That...dot on your hand. It's black. Is it supposed to be like that?"

Bewildered, Dhom looked at his left hand. That's strange, he thought. Wasn't my gem green?

The gem that Donal had placed on his left hand, which used to be green, was now ink-black.

Lily looked at Dhom. "And your feet are like that to. It's...kind of ugly."

Dhom looked at his feet. The jewels that he had used for Rose's garden and Lagro's clothes had changed color.

Violet found them and ran over. "Lily, you found him!"

"Violet, come here!" Lily said, nervousness creeping into her voice. "Something's wrong with Dhom!"

"No, no, nothing's wrong," Dhom assured her. He didn't want to worry the poor girl. But he was also slightly happy. Lily's concern reminded him that he wasn't hated by everybody.

Violet frowned and looked Dhom over. "What is it, Dhom? What happened?"

"Nothing, really. The gems on my left hand and legs turned black, that's all. Probably got something on them."

"What if someone took away your pretty diamonds and replaced them with those?" Lily asked.

Dhom laughed. He couldn't help it, for the thought of wearing diamonds amused him. He knew that Donal was too poor to afford it.

But what Lily said reminded him of something else his creator had ingrained into his artificial memory. Something about the gems, and taking away something. It was something important, but everything was vague. Whatever it was, he knew that they weren't supposed to turn black.

Violet put her hand on Dhom's shoulder. "Maybe we should go visit Donald," she suggested. "That guy who made you."

"Donal? There's no 'd.' And he doesn't like humans."

"He's not human?" the girls asked somewhat simultaneously. "What is he?" Violet asked.

"A dwarf," Dhom said. "Have I told you before?"

"Come on, Dhom. It's for your own good," Violet urged.

Dhom shook his head. "We can think about it. If anything I could go alone-"

"I want to see a dwarf," Lily argued. "That would be awesome. They're so tiny and cute!"

"Lily, this is serious!" Violet scolded. "Come on, let's go home."

They walked away from the park, having the same thought on their mind but differing measures of worry. They sped up as they realized that they should arrive before night time came and it would be too dark to see anything.

What Lily and Violet saw when they got to their house made both of them a thousand times anxious.

There was a man walking up the porch to their front door. He was dressed in a long dark robe that trailed behind him and sleeves that widened from the shoulder to the hand, large enough to cover the man's hands. The robe also had a hood to cover his face. While they couldn't see the face, they knew it was also concealed by a mask with an eerily emotionless face.

The man approaching their house was the Death Crier.

Lily and Violet had heard stories about him. It was said that the Death Crier meant someone had died. They didn't know whether he was the one who made them die, but just to be safe, they hid behind a bush and peeked from gaps in the branches.

"Hear, ye, hear ye!" he shouted. His voice was muffled but strong, and carried through the mask and to the three behind the bush. The silver bell he rang was just as bone chilling.

A pause. The door was opened by Rose, who seemed more irritated than afraid.

"What do you want?"

The Death Crier put away his bell and tucked his arms into his massive sleeves. "May I come in?"

No! Don't do it! Violet thought. She covered her mouth with sweaty hands to prevent herself from screaming.

Do it! Lily hoped, wanting to see what the man would do.

"No," Rose replied.

Violet sighed with relief.

"I bear bad news," the Death Crier said.

Rose rolled her eyes. "Can we just get this over with?"

"As you know, many of Aodel's men left the town on an expedition last year. They wanted to find out more about the world, see if there are people like us. See if we aren't the only humans of the land. About 56 men, young and old, said farewell to their families. These men wanted to make a difference in the world. They wanted to make the most important discovery we have ever known. They were supposed to return two weeks ago, "

Rose impatiently gestured for him to continue.

"One of them was your husband. We can only assume that he, like the others, has died. I am sorry for your loss, and will join you in sorrow."

The annoyance on Rose's face went away. She stared at the Death Crier, disbelief in her eyes. "What?"

"I'm sorry," he said quietly.

Not Rose, nor her daughters who remained hidden, noticed as the Death Crier left, his grim black clothes flowed behind him like a second shadow. Following him as he followed death.

"Mom!" Lily called out. She ran out from her hiding place and to her mother. The two walked into the house slowly. Violet remained behind the bush. She couldn't get up. She just couldn't.

"Violet?" Dhom asked.

Violet shook her head and turned away. She didn't want Dhom to see her cry.

The golem knew better than to talk to her, so he just sat their with her. Together they mourned for her father, Violet sobbing and Dhom doing his best to sob as well. They sat there until the sun fell behind the horizon and everything was dark. The moon and the stars stood, watching over them. Violet wondered if one of those stars was her dad.

"I'm sorry," she said finally.

"He must have been a very amazing man," Dhom said.

Violet sniffed and nodded. She sat a little closer to Dhom. He let her rest her head on his shoulder.

He was," Violet said. "He was the best dad ever. Whenever Mom yelled, he defended us. He tucked us in at night, told us stories. I don't think he ever got mad at me."

She sniffed again, and looked up at the sky.

"And he was always there when I needed him. I...I remember this one time...Violet and I were running home one day. We went to the park. It was dark and I couldn't see...I accidentally tripped on a skunk."

Violet looked at Dhom. He looked back at her.

"I think you can guess what happened. I stunk for weeks. Mom wouldn't let me in the house. I kept asking her, and she kept telling me to stay outside. The worst part was that Lily didn't even stick up for me. She just laughed. They said I couldn't have any dinner. So I stayed in front of the house. Then my dad came out. He pitched me a tent and set up a little fire.

"When I asked him if the smell was bothering him, he just smiled and said it didn't matter. That at least it gave us some alone time together. We got to toast marshmallows and sing songs together. He got out his guitar and we sang a few songs. It..."

Violet started to sob again. The memories of her father hurt. They burned and stabbed her. The thought that he was forever out of her life was unbearable.

She buried her head in her face and Dhom wrapped an arm around her in comfort. They couldn't see the soft purple glow coming from Dhom's hand. They didn't register the similar light coming from several feet away.

"Violet?"

Violet looked up. At first she thought it was Dhom. Then she thought it was some kind of sick trick.

"Dad?"

The lustrous purple figure smiled. Just as Violet remembered - the same tall stature, muscular frame, the close-cropped blond hair. He hadn't lost the twinkling blue eyes. His clothes were torn and burned, but it was obvious that all he felt was joy.

"Hello, honey."

Violet jumped up and tried to touch him, but her hand passed right though him. She looked up at him, her eyes wet. She didn't know whether to be happy or sad.

"What happened, Dad?" she asked, her voice cracking.

He smiled sadly and kneeled down to look her in the eyes. "Your mother told you that I went on an expedition with a lot of the other men. We wanted to find out whether there's other villages like Aodel. Anything of importance outside of our world."

"And what did you find?"

"I'm not sure what it was. We were walking for weeks. Months. There were occasional animals to hunt and trees that gave us plenty of fruit. But we didn't find much. Then something strange happened. The further we walked eastward, the more dead everything looked. Soon there was no grass or trees or flowers. Just mountains, and rocks. And sand. Lots of sand. The ground was completely covered with sand. There were these strange green things sticking out of the ground. They had these little hairs sticking out of them. And it was very hot."

Violet nodded. She didn't want to ask how her father had died. She didn't want the details. He had no intentions of telling her.

"I'm going to miss you," she whispered.

Her dad placed a hand on her shoulder and looked her in the eye. "I don't want you to cry for me, Violet. Try not to. I will always be watching over you. Don't cry."

Violet nodded again. She didn't know how she would go without crying, but she would try. For her dad. "Okay."

"Goodbye, my love. Remember, I will never leave you."

Violet couldn't speak anymore. She tried once more to hug him, and fell to her knees. But she didn't cry. She watched as her father disappeared. Where he had stood a small patch of violets sprouted from the ground, glowing purple like he was.

"Love you, Dad," Violet murmured. She didn't say bye because she knew that he was still there.

8: Part 2-Dhom Kichu , Chapter 5-The Boy

Chapter 5

"He won't be very happy," she said doubtfully.

Dhom frowned. Or, at least he tried to. Unfortunately he didn't have a mouth. "Why does he hate humans so much?"

Rena shrugged. "He says that his father told him stories when he was little. He's rather suspicious of things he doesn't understand."

"I left them at the village. I knew that they wouldn't like it here in the caves. They're the ones who told me to come here, I didn't bring them."

"Oh. I better ask him first." The dwarf closed the door.

Dhom could hear footsteps from the other side. He wondered what was going on.

Violet had insisted that he go to Donal to ask why the gems on his hands and legs were all black. Dhom agreed because of all that she had been through. But he didn't remember much about his creator. All he knew was that he was a dwarf. He also knew how to get to his house in the cave system called Berkoz.

The foot steps came again. The door was opened.

"You! What are you doing here?" Donal asked.

Dhom looked down. It wasn't to make eye contact with him - the two were about the same height. The golem didn't want to make eye contact.

"Well?" Donal asked. "How's it going at the town?"

"It's...fine," Dhom managed.

A voice came from inside the house.

"Why don't you come on in?" Donal asked.

He let Dhom into his little house. The stone walls reminded Dhom of Rose's house, though it made him feel even stranger because Donal's was made of the same dark gray stone as him.

They sat down on some simple wooden chairs they got from the elves.

"So. What reason do you have for coming here, golem?" Donal repeated.

Dhom collected his thoughts. He didn't know how to put it. "I met two little girls and their mother," he began.

Donal nodded. "Good. Anybody else?"

"Well...yes. I mean no. They aren't very nice."

"What do they do?" Donal asked. He leaned forward, looking into Dhom's eyes. "Are they magic? Do they have some kind of evil plot?"

"No."

"Oh."

"They are rather greedy though," Dhom said. "Except for the girls I met."

He waited for Donal to yell at him for befriending two humans. He figured it wasn't supposed to happen, ever since the talk with Donal's wife. But there was no yelling.

"So you haven't befriended anybody else?" Donal inquired. He frowned. "Do they...look up to you? Admire you?"

Dhom snorted. "No. Except, like I said, the young ones are really nice. Besides them, though...no, those people are really selfish. They don't thank me for the things I do for them. Or, if they do, I think they are trying to trick me somehow. The girls are the only ones I can trust."

"So...they don't trust you?"

"Like I said- I mean, no. They don't. Why?"

Donal leaned back and his frown deepened. He rested his chin on his hand, closed his eyes, and grumbled for a minute.

"Honey? Are all right?" Rena asked.

Donal looked up. "I think so."

"Is there anything I can do for you?" Dhom asked. "Did I do something wrong?"

"My plan isn't working. I don't know what to do with you."

Dhom didn't know what that meant, but it couldn't be good. He was about to say something when a door opened.

"Dad, I still can't see!"

If Donal hadn't been frustrated before, he was then. He looked at Orun, feeling a mix of worry and irritation. "Has Feoi been giving you medicine?"

"Yes. It's not working. Why can't I see, Dad?"

Dhom watched as the boy's parents went up to him and gave him words of encouragement. They told him not to worry, that he would be fine soon. But there was doubt in their voices and he picked it up easily.

"What happened?" Dhom asked.

Donal and Rena looked at each other, biting their lips.

"Who's that?" Orun asked.

"Just a friend," Donal said. "Don't worry about it."

"Is he a leprechaun?" Orun asked. He stepped forward, unseeing eyes darting around the room.

Rena sighed. "He's a golem, dear. And he was about to leave."

 Dhom was glad that he wouldn't receive punishment from Donal, but for some reason he didn't want to leave. Upon a few quick seconds of thought, he realized there were two. What would he do back home? The humans of Aodel would just be cruel to him, and he wouldn't be able to watch over Lily and Violet. The second reason: he obviously interested the boy. Why didn't the dwarves want them to talk?

"What's your name?" Orun asked the wall.

Dhom knew that he was talking to him.

"They call me Dhom Kichu," he replied.

Donal's eyebrows shot up. "They named you?"

"I like that name," Orun said. He had a smile on his face. "Can you stay, Dhom?"

Dhom nodded, forgetting that Orun couldn't see him. "Yes. I can stay."

Donal shot him a warning look. Rena knew that he wanted Dhom out, but not why. Orun laughed.

"Where are you from? Did you come from these caves? Are you from outside? What do you look like?"

Dhom was happy to see that someone else was actually interested in him. Orun obviously wasn't a human.

"Orun, why don't you take Dhom to your room? Your father and I need to talk for a little while."

"Okay!" Orun walked backwards and opened his door, holding it open for Dhom. They walked in.

The room was small but cozy. There was an unmade bed in the corner, dark wood with a dirty white pillow and a red-and-yellow striped blanket. A dresser stood next to the bed, with a mirror and multiple drawers. A few chests lay about, all but one so full of articles that they couldn't be opened. Most of them seemed to contain toys or games. Things meant for entertainment.

Orun sighed and flopped down on his bed.

"What's the matter?" Dhom asked.

Orun shook his head. "Sorry if you think I'm weird. I have to act all jumpy and stupid, or my parents think I'm being grumpy or something like that. Then they get all mad at me and start yelling. Yeah, I don't know."

Dhom looked again at the chests full of toys. He noticed that they were covered in dust. "Why would they care?"

"I don't know. I guess they think I'll bring them down. We don't really get to go anywhere, and I have to spend all my time in this room. Just these stupid toys to keep me company."

"Do you not like your family?" Dhom asked, feeling sad.

Orun sat up, eyes open wide. "No! I mean...they're just being weird. Something about not having enough metal. They won't tell me much about it."

"So...you were just joking about being all excited and all that?"

The dwarven boy laid back down again. "Yeah. It's pretty embarrassing."

Dhom's shoulders slumped. He was hoping that Orun was interested in him.

"Were you lying about being blind?" Dhom asked.

"I wish," Orun said. "I took the little boy thing too far. My dad and his friend took me mining, and we accidentally wound up in Erath."

"What's that?"

"It's what we call the outside world," Orun replied. "I suddenly couldn't see. We thought it was a Bidiaigh, but once Feoi started started talking about it I could tell that he was just trying to make me feel better. Some stupid monster that's supposed to look like a giant blob and blind people it looks at. It's probably because of the sun. I think they said something about it blinding you if you look straight at it."

Dhom sat on the bed next to him. "I'm sorry. It must be pretty hard, everybody thinking you're some annoying little fool."

"You have no idea," Orun said. He clenched his fists. "So, who are you? Why are you here?"

Dhom glowed inside. "Me? Oh. Well, I was made by your dad to serve the humans in Aodel."

"Really?"

Dhom nodded. "I don't know why. I heard he hates them..." he looked at Orun.

The boy laughed darkly. "That's an understatement. I bet he has some sort of horrible plot. Something to get back at the humans for something they did to my grandpa."

"What was that?"

"I don't know. You'd have to ask my dad. Not that he'd answer you."

"Do you know anything about the subject?" Dhom asked. "About humans and their towns, I mean."

Orun hesitated. He looked at where he thought Dhom was. "No. Feoi won't talk about it."

"Who is this Feoi? Is he a golem like me?"

"No. Another dwarf, from another cave called Sedobhi. He lives with us now. Like my parents, he thinks I'm an idiot. Not too bad, I guess. But he won't tell me anything about 'big kid' business."

"How old are you, Orun?" Dhom asked.

"I don't know. My parents won't tell me. They probably think I'll forget. Why?"

Dhom shrugged. "Just wondering."

Then an idea came to him.

"How much do you want to get your vision back?" Dhom asked Orun.

Orun sat up. "Anything!"

"What would you say...if I could do that for you?"

"Could you?" Orun said excitedly. Only this time the emotion was real. "That would be great! How?"

Dhom got up. He didn't really know if he could do it, but he really wanted to do something for the poor lad. He looked down on Orun, thinking. "I...um...have to...you have to sit facing me."

Orun turned so that he was sitting with his legs dangling off the side of the bed. He looked at Dhom expectantly.

Dhom took a few deep breaths. He tried to think about what triggered his powers before.

At the garden, his sense of failure to serve Rose properly. Looking back on it, Dhom wondered why he had been so servile.

When he had given the poor man, Lagro, clothes and money. He had felt as though he deserved it. Dhom later wondered if he did.

Then, when he had summoned the spirit of Violet's dad to comfort her. There was no doubt that Violet needed that, and Dhom didn't regret doing so at all. He loved Violet (as a friend), and wanted to do something nice for her.

Did Dhom feel as though he needed to serve Orun? No. Not really. He wanted to do good, as always, but "serve" was a strong word.

Did Orun deserve sight? Well, didn't everyone?

Did Dhom love Orun? No comment necessary.

Dhom cursed mentally. That was only one out of three. And the gems had used themselves. Now he had to use them on his own free will, in order to grant Orun his vision. Could he do it?

*   *   *

Donal, who had been eavesdropping on their conversation the whole time, realized what Dhom was trying to do. He opened the door.

"Dhom! Don't do it!"

Dhom looked up, but his eyes were already glowing. They stood out against his dark ash-colored skin. They lit up the dim room.

"Don't! Control your powers!" Donal urged.

Orun looked back at his father, a terrorized look on his face. "Why would you say that? He's giving me back my vision!"

He started to glow as well. His eyes glowed blue and indigo like Dhom's as he looked back at his new friend.

Donal stared, wondering how it came to be. He had only just realized that Donal shouldn't be using his powers.

The glowing stopped in Dhom's eyes. They dulled, and the color was completely drained from his eyes. All that was left was black. Orun only glowed brighter and brighter, until the light was almost blinding. There was a flash, and the light was gone.

"Son?" Donal asked.

Orun looked back again. The glowing had stopped, but the color was still in his irises. His left eye was blue, the other indigo.

"I can see again. Dhom...that was amazing. Thanks."

Dhom was staggering. The magic had drained him, causing him to lose his balance. He glanced at Orun.

"Of course. It was the least I could do."

"No!" Donal ran in and grabbed Dhom. "Use up your last gem and you die!"

9: Part 2-Dhom Kichu , Chapter 6-The Golem

Chapter 6

Dhom trudged back to Rose's house. It was in the middle of the night.

He was returning to Aodel with knowledge. Donal had told him that the gems were what gave him life. If he used up the last one, the red one set on his chest, he would be what he started out as. A statue. Without life.

As he kept walking, following the railroad track that lead to the town, he didn't know what to feel. part of him was mad at Donal for being his creator. Why did he even have to exist? It wasn't like anybody needed him.

Except for the girls. The girls. Dhom felt bad for them. He was gradually wearing down his life force. He needed to stay alive. For Lily and Violet.

Then there were those villagers. They were the ones that made him use his magic in the first place. They were to blame.

Or were they? They didn't necessarily make Dhom use his magic. It just happened. All on its own.

He wondered why the ones on his feet and head were used up two at a time. If he had just used one foot for Lagro and just one for Orun, he would have three left instead of one. One little ruby, the only thing that sustained him.

If he could have relived the past, would Dhom have tried to stop the magic? Maybe run away, get himself as far as possible? The question wasn't as easy for him to answer as he wanted it to be. Yes, he felt the need to help Lily and Violet survive in the town of horrible people. That would be easier with more gems on him. But those people needed help. Rose needed her crops, Lagro needed to support his parents, and Orun needed to see. Or did they?

Dhom looked ahead. The village was visible, not too far away. He could see the large houses lit by plenty of lanterns. A couple dogs barked, and owls called. Other than that Aodel was silent.

He walked up the the house that he knew was Rose's, the one with the patch of violets to the left. He was about to go around to the backyard when he heard crying from inside.

"Hello?"

"Go away!"

Dhom had opened the door and gone inside. It was dark, none of the lights lit. He could barely make out the figure seated on the floor, leaning against the wall. Weeping.

"Lady Rose? What are you doing?" Dhom asked.

Rose turned away, and the sobs stopped. "You did this," she muttered. The sadness was starting to be replaced with anger.

At first Dhom was struck be a feeling of guilt. But then he remembered that she was probably talking about her husband.

"Look, I didn't touch him."

Rose got up, still leaning against the wall for support. She looked at Dhom. "How dare you call my daughter a he?" Rose seethed.

They obviously weren't on the same page, but it didn't take long to understand that Rose wasn't crying for her husband. She was crying for one of her daughters.

"You poisoned her! She was fine until you got here!" Rose continued. "Why? Why did you do it? What could possibly be your motive for killing her?"

Dhom noticed that he was slowly backing away and stopped himself. "Since when did you care about your children? Since when did anybody in this town care about anybody else?"

"Oh, so this was some kind of...sick TEST? You think you're so much better than we are because you have a liking for two girls, and aren't driven crazy by their constant complaining and craziness? Is that was this is?"

"You still haven't answered my question. When did you start loving your daughters? Every time I see you three together you're fighting. Every time. I never saw you hug, or say that you love each other."

"I have my reasons and they are none of your business. Now get out of my house, you...you beast!" Rose grabbed a plant pot and threw it at Dhom.

It couldn't have been a worse hit.

The small pot hit the window to Dhom's left, shattering it and getting dirt everywhere.

"Who's sick?" Dhom asked.

Rose was about to make a bitter reply, but paused. "Lily."

"You just found out tonight?"

"When will it take her?" Rose asked.

Dhom looked in the direction of Lily's room. "Can I see her?"

Rose was about to throw something else but had a better idea.

"Go ahead. See what you've done to her. See what kind of monster you are." She crossed her arms. Not to show emotion, but to make show that the hammer was still hidden under her dress.

Dhom forced himself to lumber down the the bloodred hall that connected to Lily's room. He was filled with worry of what he would see, but knew that he should go talk to her.

He knocked on the door.

"Come in," Lily croaked.

Dhom stepped inside.

The floor was covered with medicine books to diagnose the poison. There were bottles lining the tables, and a glass of water at Lily's bedside dresser. She was laying on the bed, on her side, staring straight at Dhom with blood-shot eyes. Her hair and face were drenched with sweat, her blankets thrown on the floor. The glass of water was empty, and Dhom could see that there were many more lying on the floor.

"I knew you'd come," Lily said with effort.

Dhom knelt down beside her. "How long?"

Lily coughed, turning away from Dhom as she did so. She looked back at him. "I don't know. I was asleep, and woke up feeling really horrible. My mom said you poisoned me, but I don't believe her."

"Where's Violet?"

"Mom told her to go upstairs. I think she didn't want her to see me like this."

"How did she know you're poisoned?" Dhom asked, starting to feel accusing.

Lily coughed again. Dhom winced, for it sounded like someone was strangling her. The thought made him sad.

"She's a gardener. she knows a lot about plants...including the poisonous ones," Lily said. Her voice was getting quieter and raspier the more she spoke.

Dhom bowed his head. He thought of all the experiences he had shared with Lily. They only made him sadder. He knew what he had to do.

"Lily, listen. I only have one more gem left that hasn't turned black. I plan to use it to cure you."

Lily nodded. She felt too weak to talk.

"I want you to know that...once I use it, all seven will be black. After that I...won't be around."

Lily looked at him questioningly. She wondered what that meant. Dhom...wouldn't be around? Where would he be? She assumed that he would just have to get more gems. Ones that looked prettier.

But she did Dhom look so hesitant?

A red light turned on in her head. It came to her. What Dhom had in mind.

She grabbed a bell from the dresser and rang it. Rang as hard as she could, hard enough to break it.

"Violet!" she called. "Come here!"

Dhom flinched. Oh no.

Violet bolted down the stairs, past her startled mother, and ran into Lily's room. "Lily? What...why..."

"Dhom wants to kill himself!" Lily wailed. "Stop him!"

Violet looked at Dhom, her eyes wide. She didn't know what to say.

"Your sister is sick, and if I don't use my last gem to heal her, she'll die. Either way...one of us won't wake up in the morning."

"No!" Lily cried. She started coughing again. This time she couldn't stop, her throat strained from the effort of all her speech.

Violet gazed at the scene before her with disbelief. It didn't take a genius to comprehend what was happening. She could tell that her sister was sick. Dhom would die upon using the last gem he had. The ruby shined in the candlelight, which was getting dimmer and dimmer as the fire was starting to go out.

Dhom could see the worry on his friends' faces. "Even if I don't do this, I will die sooner or later. I can't survive in such a hateful world as this."

His ruby started to glow.

"No! I'm not worth it!" Lily said between coughs. "You...taught me...so much. You have...to do the same...for the others. Stop, or I will." She took out a knife that was lying on the bed and held it near her neck.

"Lily!" Violet fell to her knees. It took all her willpower to not pass out. She was more desperate than surprised. "Where did you get that?"

The knife took in the glow from the ruby, reflecting its red light. The ruby kept glowing, and the knife got closer to Lily's throat. It was wobbling.

The glowing stopped.

Lily and Violet thought that Dhom had stopped the spell. Then the golem fell backward, his head inched from Violet. She could see the dull black gem that used to be his heart.

The light from the candle went out.

There was silence in the room. It was a soft, sorrowful silence. One that crushed the two girls and stripped them of their innocence. They waited for the groaning of Dhom's stone body getting up from the ground. It never came.

10: Epilogue

Dear Diary,

I don't know how long it's been since Dhom was gone and we wanted to leave home. Quite a while. I'm sixteen now, Orun and Violet are eighteen. We ran away because we've had enough of our people.

I haven't mentioned Orun here yet, have I? He's a dwarf Violet and I met the other day. The son of Dhom's creator. I think Violet likes him, and thinks he's really cool and smart. He left his cave because he wanted to see Dhom. Apparently he helped him when he visited the dwarves that one night.

We all feel sad about making Dhom loose his gems. But I think I feel a thousand times worse, because I was the one he died for.

Every day I remember all that he did for us. I don't think I've ever been truly happy until the day we met him. Then I remember the day he...left us. The pain I feel is comparable to being stabbed in the heart. Over and over.

I know that, if he was still alive, he would want us to leave Aodel. It wasn't until this morning that we finally managed. We snuck out of house last night with a lot of my mom's gold. I said that we should go over and meet the guy who made Dhom. I thought that he could revive him somehow. It was easy to find the way, because we could see Dhom's footprints in the dirt. They were preserved somehow, probably because Dhom was magic.

Unfortunately the dwarf couldn't fix Dhom. We couldn't stay in the caves for very long. It was too cold and dusty, and it was almost dawn. It did inspire Orun though. He managed to grab an old minecart and handcar and some supplies, and met us outside. So, yeah. Here we are now.

Violet and Orun are driving the cart so I can write from in the cart. Don't worry, we'll switch later. I won't be mean to them.

I'm sorry. I just stained the page. I can't stop crying for Dhom though. I don't care if they see me, Dhom didn't deserve to die. He was such an amazing person. Yes, he might have been a golem really. But he was a person on the inside.

I'll talk to you later. Bye.

Lily

 

*  *  *

 

They had stopped for a break. Orun tipped up his wide-brimmed hat to look at the girl sitting in the minecart, writing in a book. Lily, she said her name was.

He had found out that his dad's plan was to get all the villagers to admire Dhom and look up to him, but then have him use up his gems doing nice things for them. The Aodelians were supposed to realize that they were wrong to be so greedy upon seeing that it costed Dhom's life. Then they were supposed to change their ways.

Unfortunately, the world isn't perfect. Dhom, who unlike Dhom was nice to the people of Aodel, only caught the hearts of Lily and Violet. Yet he still died. The people of Aodel were still corrupt.

Orun supposed that there would always be bad people.

The dwarf got up from the log he was sitting on and approached the two damp-cheeked girls. He looked them in the eyes and smiled.

"Come on, guys. Forget Aodel. We'll start anew and find another village, one with real people. The spirits of Dhom and your dad, Dan DeLion, will guide us. Come on! We can do it!"