A Land Of Fire (Book 12) by Morgan Rice

him. Some of them were luminescent
fish, and as they landed they emitted a soft glow, lighting up the whale’s
belly. Thor could finally see in here, no longer in utter blackness.
    A part of him wished he was. Thor looked
up and was repulsed by the inner lining of the whale’s belly, skin hanging off
of it in pieces, remnants of dead fish and insects clinging to it, and on its
floor. Strange valves opened and closed, muscles and intestines contracted and
expanded, emitting bad odors, and Thor took it all in in wonder.
    Thor leaned his head back against the stomach
wall and breathed deeply, exhausted; his wounds were still killing him, and he
felt as if he’d come to the depths of his life. He sensed there was no way out
of here; he had finally come to the end.
    Thor closed his eyes and shook his head.
    Why, God? Why am I being tested like
this?
    Thor lay there for a very long time in
the darkness, and finally he heard an answer. It was a small voice, inside his
head.
    Because you are a great warrior. The
greatest warriors are always tested the most.
    “But have I not already proven myself?” Thor
asked aloud.
    Each time you prove yourself, you will
be tested again. Each time, the tests will become greater. The more you
struggle, the greater person you can become. Each test is not a difficulty—it
is a precious opportunity. Be thankful for it. The more you suffer, the more
thankful you must be.
    Thor leaned his head back, exhausted,
slipping away to the blackness, feeling his life force ebb, and he tried to be
grateful. It was hard, so hard. He felt as if he’d already lived many
lifetimes, and he was deeply exhausted.
    There came another gushing sound, and
Thor looked up and saw more water rush down into the belly of the whale, and
yet more fish, along with other strange sea animals. This whale’s appetite
obviously was insatiable.
    With each gush of water, Thor felt the
water level rising, felt it rise from his ankles to his knees as he lay along
the side of the wall. There came still another gush of water, and the level
rose again, now up to his thighs. Thor knew that if he did not get out of here soon,
he would drown in this awful place.
    Drained from his wounds, Thor could barely
keep his eyes open. If he were destined to die here, he realized, then so be
it. For now, there was nothing more he could do than allow his heavy eyes to
close, allow himself to be carried away by sweet sleep.
    Thor’s eyes opened and closed as he
moved in and out of consciousness for he did not know how long. He saw flashes,
memories, perhaps glimpses of the future. He saw Mycoples’s face, then Ralibar’s.
He saw himself flying on Mycoples, under a perfect clear sky, Mycoples happier
than he’d ever seen her. He saw them both criss-crossing each other, flying
beside each other, both of them young and healthy and happy. He could feel how
much they loved him.
    Thor looked down into Mycoples’s face.
    “I’m sorry that I let you down,” he
said.
    You’ve never let me down, Thorgrin. You
gave me a chance to truly live.
    Thor blinked and found himself standing
in the skywalk, in the Land of the Druids. But this time, he was not facing his
mother’s castle, but facing the mainland, walking away from the castle,
his back to it. His mother, he sensed, was somewhere behind him, and yet as
much as he wanted to, he was unable to look back.
    “Go, Thorgrin,” came her voice. “It is
time for you to walk. Alone. It is time for you to leave this place, to venture
out into the world. Only out in the world, on an unknown path, will you become
a great warrior.”
    Thor took one step down the skywalk,
then the next. Step by step, he walked alone, away from the castle, from the
cliff, feeling his mother’s presence behind him but unable to turn back. He did
not know where the path would take him, but he knew he was meant to be on it.
    Thor blinked and found himself standing on
a foreign shore with bright yellow sand, a million small stones