An excerpt from the novel I am writing....

Prologue

New Life

 An icy draft fingers its way down my body causing flesh to erupt in hundreds of tiny bumps like that on a plucked bird, while an equally cold shiver runs up my spine. Inexplicably exhausted, I have to force one grit-filled eye open only to have it temporarily blinded by an intense light blazing overhead. It takes a minute of blinking both eyes to adjust to the glare and when my vision clears I’m instantly overcome by shock. There, standing on either side of me, are several hulking figures. Each behemoth is garbed in a solid white uniform and an odd cloth helmet. Faces, behind masks of the same stark white as their clothing, expose eyes that appear filled with curiosity. All those eyes are fixated on me, but I don’t sense any hostility in them, just extreme curiosity.
         One of the larger giants extends a massive, glove-clad hand and grasps me by both ankles. I’m lifted as if weighing no more than an owl’s feather and hang there, unceremoniously, upside down. Before I have a chance to understand and prepare for what is coming, the beast gives my buttocks a sharp smack.
         Shocked by the sting of the slap, I cry out in protest, more at the giant’s audacity to strike me, than at any real pain.   

A new thought seizes my mind…I am unclothed! Where are my armor and smallclothes? By the Light, what is going on here?

          My thoughts scream in confusion, my mind befuddled by these odd beings and the unfamiliar surroundings.

Where, in the name of Lugh, am I?

             From this elevated vantage point, I twist my head from side to side, wriggling in an attempt to break free. I take note that the only color in this immaculate room is mine. Droplets of bright red blood splatter to the floor beneath me. I do not sense any physical injuries, other than the one that was just inflicted, and that was only an affront to my dignity rather than my flesh.
       There is movement. I am being carried and then placed into a container of warm water and several hands scrub vigorously removing all vestiges of the recent battle’s gore. Afterwards, they use a clean towel to pat me dry in a rough, but efficient manner, followed by wrapping my body tightly inside a blanket.  

Why are they binding me like a mummy when I am still alive? At least I am fairly certain I still live, thank Lugh’s Light!

       I am picked up again, but this time more gently and find myself in the arms of a smaller, silver-haired titan. I realize that this being must be female, by the soft curves of her cheek and chin. I can sense a kindness in her, as well as the curiosity. That draws me to conclude that the other one, the one that slapped me, must be a male in this biped species. 

The giantess carries me across the room to a supine form and says, “You have a baby girl, Marianne. Have you chosen a name for her?”

Baby girl? What? No, they cannot possibly be talking about me! Can they?

The one called Marianne is lying on a narrow bed, a white blanket draped over her body. She responds, her voice soft and tranquil, “Ariana, she is to be called Ariana”.

Ariana? Is that my name? Why can I not remember?

I am placed into Marianne’s outstretched arms and the warmth of her body surrounds me. I breathe in and her essence fills my nose with the scent of the gardenias that grow at home, yet I can’t remember where home is. As I search her face, hoping for a sign of recognition, I fall under her spell, ensorcelled by her creamy radiance. Staring up into her lovely violet eyes, I am overcome by a sudden, inexplicable, yet intense love for this gargantuan being called Marianne.

How very odd!

It becomes immediately evident that my appearance does not cast the same magic upon Marianne. 

Marianne gazes down at the swaddled bundle, this new me that’s now nestled into her arms, and her eyes widen in a look of confused horror, while her head begins to shake back and forth in denial. She gasps, “No…No…NO! This can’t be happening!” 

Frantically, she shoves me back into the arms of the other female and begins to weep. 

I, instantly overcome by the grief of separation, match her sobs with a heart-rending wail of my own. I plead with my eyes for her to take me back, but to no avail. Marianne squeezes her own eyes shut as if to block out her view of me, and then turns her head away. I can no longer see her face. I am bereft and am unable to fathom the reason why.

With a concerted effort, I force my own gaze away from Marianne and look up at the giantess that is now holding me securely. I detect pity radiating from those liquid brown eyes under the stiff white cap. The dress is the same shade of bright white as the cap and I have to marvel at these beings penchant for white. I am carefully placed into a clear container set on wheels and rolled out of the colorless room into a much larger area. 

In this new room, I begin to hear strange noises emanating from several containers similar to the one I am lying in. They must be from foreign lands, because I cannot make sense out of any of the words being spoken. 

What other life forms have these giants captured? 

The silver-haired female seems to have selected a spot to situate my plasticized prison as we are no longer moving. She looks down at me and runs one very large finger across my cheek, more gently that I would think possible for someone so large. I hear her make a little throaty sound and notice that her eyes appear to be glistening and wonder at this. She turns abruptly away and strides out the door without looking back.

I am alone…isolated. Before I allow fear to swallow reason, I begin a visual reconnaissance of my surroundings. There are windows spanning the length of one wall, the smell is clean, yet there emanates an odor of medicines, and I decide I have been moved to an observation room in some kind of healing facility. 

Out of the corner of my eye, I detect movement and turn my head in that direction. My attention is captured by an extraordinarily beautiful and distinctly male entity. He is standing a short distance away from where I have been left. His manner of dress is quite different from the giants in the smaller room, but a sudden flutter of excitement runs through me. I know I have seen clothing like this before!

Then, before I can put a name to his attire, or remember where or when I have seen a uniform such as his, the memory is lost. For reasons I cannot explain and for the second time in a brief span of moments, I feel a sense of tremendous loss.

But….He is looking directly at me.

I gaze back into his large intense eyes, drawn in by their feline-tilt and luminous aquamarine color. His dark hair is worn long and held neatly back with a beaded leather strap and at each end of the strap is a multi-hued feather. The color in the center of each feather matches his eyes perfectly.

As he continues to stare intently into my eyes, his body begins to glow with a pale red aura that surrounds him, radiating outward. His lips part to reveal radiant white teeth, while the corners of his mouth turn up into a smile. He approaches more closely until he is right beside my container and looks directly down at me, his smile widening.

Inside my head, words I do understand are spoken, “Welcome to Earth, Ariana. I am Trâethan. I have been assigned to monitor your life case.”

I do not recognize Trâethan, have no clue what a life case might be, or how he would know who I am. I attempt to speak to him, but what flows incoherently from my mouth is a mewling cacophony.

Oh no, it is the same kind of sounds that I hear coming from the other plastic boxes!

Trâethan smiles knowingly, as if he has read my thoughts and says, “Get some rest now, Tiny One. You will be fine; you just have to be patient. May your Lùxsin burn bright and the Light always guide your path!”

He bends down and I feel his lips brush against my forehead as he places a gentle kiss there. The sensation causes a warm tingling to run all the way through my body, which immediately prompts a smile to stretch across my face.

He steps back from me slowly, rising back up to his considerable height, and all the while his bemused eyes never leave mine. With a shake of his head, as if to clear his own thoughts, he turns his back to me

…..and soundlessly vanishes.

NO! Please come back!

I am alone, except for the murmurings and sighs coming from the other creatures that I can’t see.

I lie there, encased within a plastic box, left to contemplate my circumstances. I can’t divine a single rational explanation and conclude that I have suffered a head injury, caused during the last battle, and am now, completely delusional.

What battle?

I cannot seem to remember anything prior to the moment I first opened my eyes in the sterile white room. 

What has happened to me? This has to be some kind of nightmare and I shall wake soon.

As the minutes tick by, a dense fog creeps in, clouding my vision. I succumb to debilitative fatigue, slipping blindly into the mists of oblivion...