All Chapters of Stranger Shore: Chapter 1 - Chapter 4

In a realm untrod by human feet, somewhere far beyond the clouds and deep within the earth, three women sat around a glass-topped table and determined the fate of nations. Their forms were uncertain, constantly changing such that, in this second, one's skin seemed bone-white and then it was clay-red, or another's hair was long and sleek for a moment just to be a dark cloud of coils in the next, or the third's eyes changed from icy blue to amber-gold in a blink- but though their forms changed, their essence never altered and was as real and as infinite as the star-strewn sky or the tumultuous sea.By each were piles of gemstones: mossy heaps of small emeralds like water-smoothed pebbles, glittering pools of tear-drop sapphires that ranged from aquamarine to indigo, and heavy blood-red rubies the size of a raven's egg. Yet somehow the plain dice spread around the table, carved from bone and wood and stone, seemed weightier, more valuable, than the sparkling jewels.

La-di-da! Iris jumped from rock to mound to rock as she made her way to the town. It was a beautiful day, the deep green of the trees vibrant against the bright blue sky. A slight breeze tugged at her long hair and seemed to fill up her chest, until she was light as air and giddy with the warm sunlight glowing against her skin. Iris enjoyed the rare moment of levity and bubbling energy before slowing down to a sedate pace as she turned a hill and caught sight of the town's sloping roofs. A Candlemaiden should walk with grace and gravity: Mother Hall's words, not Iris's. She wasn't quite sure what it meant to walk with gravity, but she figured walking slowly and steadily was a good bet. "Morning, Candlemaiden Iris," said a town elder, with a perfunctory bow of the head. "Shall I ring the bell for you?"Iris doubted that Lani had the strength in her bony arms, and besides, ringing the bell was her favorite part. "I shall handle it myself, Elder Lanica," Iri