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    The Shimmering Prayer of Sûkiurâq
    The Shimmering Prayer of Sûkiurâq
    The Shimmering Prayer of Sûkiurâq
    Ebook86 pages1 hour

    The Shimmering Prayer of Sûkiurâq

    By S.L. Dove Cooper

    ()

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    About this ebook

    A deliciously queer magical person story in a secondary world with floating cities and airships, perfect for fans of She-Ra and Steven Universe

     

    All thaes life, Oibe Ekêmai has wanted to become a lêqnaemi, a travelling dancer skilled at nudging the world's magic into making everyone's lives a little easier. Thae has trained years for their chance at theFestival of Paths,where new apprentices will be chosen.

     

    But the lêqnaemi have secrets they only reveal to those chosen to join their ranks and Oibe Ekêmai and thaes new friends soon find themselves thrust into an age-old conflict. With almost no preparation and certainly no training, their group will have to face the horrors all lêqnaemi have sworn to face and triumph, or the entire world may be lost to darkness forever.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherThe Kraken Collective
    Release dateJun 1, 2019
    ISBN9781393368410
    The Shimmering Prayer of Sûkiurâq

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      Book preview

      The Shimmering Prayer of Sûkiurâq - S.L. Dove Cooper

      The Shimmering Prayer of Sûkiurâq by S.L. Dove CooperThe Shimmering Prayer of Sûkiurâq by S.L. Dove Cooper

      To everyone who has ever felt their love couldn’t save the world,

      Your love can save the world.

      Your love is enough just as it is.

      Table of Contents

      Content Notes

      The Shimmering Prayer of Sûkiurâq

      Acknowledgements

      About the Author

      Thank you for reading!

      The Shimmering Prayer of Sûkiurâq

      Oibe Ekêmai stomped on the ground to get some warmth into thaes legs and feet. All thae accomplished was a reminder of how badly thaes muscles ached from the forty-minute hike that had taken thae from thaes home to this tiny, overcrowded, canopied courtyard. It always looked so different during the Festival of Paths. Gone were the market stalls and gone was the sky. Gone was the sense of space and the cloudnose statue that spouted water in summer. Gone was the ever-present sheen of golden sand and the collection of grime on walls infrequently washed. The whole area had been scrubbed and cleared for the selection process.

      Half of the courtyard was currently taken up by a single tent. It wasn’t much to look at, grey cloth that would have blended into walls behind it if it hadn’t been for the thick ropes keeping it upright and the braziers stood in front of the closed entrance. Beside it stood two much smaller tents that stored the ribbons the hopefuls would use to show their skills. The rest of the square was for the selection process with a small area cordoned off for family and friends that had come to watch.

      All around, several dozen other hopefuls were shifting and murmuring to one another in low voices. Pre-dawn, the only light came from the festival lanterns strung up along the canopy. Oibe Ekêmai’s fur-lined coat barely kept the cold out and, despite the protest from thaes muscles, thae was trying to stay active for both warmth and flexibility. Thae didn’t want to be stiff when it was thaes time to dance. When it was thaes time to prove that thae had the skill and aptitude to become a lêqnaemi as thae had always dreamed of. To see so much of the world and to protect everyone, not just the livestock thaes family raised… I should have had a back-up plan, thae thought. Goddesses, what if I need a back-up plan? There was no way thae would go back to the farm after the festival, but thae had no idea what else thae could do besides dance. Outwit livestock six times out of twelve?

      Nerves had kept thae awake all night, sending worries reeling through thaes head as quick and slippery as goats. Thae had planned everything thae would do down to the last detail, but what if it wasn’t enough? Oibe Ekêmai wasn’t the only hopeful. Thae hadn’t expected to be, but it felt like this year there were more than the times thae had sneaked away to watch the hopefuls practice and dance when thae was too young to join them. What if thae couldn’t stand out amidst so many? Feeling the fear slither closer, Oibe Ekêmai shifted on thaes feet, pushing thaes fists deep into the pockets of thaes coat for warmth. Thae couldn’t remember a time when thae hadn’t dreamed of joining the lêqnaemi. Thae couldn’t imagine what thae would do with thaes life if that dream was shattered today. It won’t, thae told thaeself. It can’t.

      When thae spotted two familiar faces, thaes eyebrows shot up. What are they doing here? Emar’s ruddy, northern hair would stand out anywhere and of course Aelei Miseu was with him. The two were inseparable nowadays. Emar was sensibly dressed for the cold, but Aelei Miseu had apparently decided it was still summer. He was stalking through the gathered crowd bare-chested and bare-footed, his black hair tied back. He had to be freezing, but even those who knew him well would have to be close to see how much effort it took to hide the shivering. It was almost enough to resent Emar because Aelei Miseu certainly still took Oibe Ekêmai’s breath away.

      The two were clearly looking for thae, though, and so thae made thaes way over to them carefully. Grimacing at the protest of thaes body, Oibe Ekêmai wove through the throng gathered in the square. Thae had lost count of how often thae had slipped and almost fallen on a treacherous piece of ice on the way to the Festival of Paths and thae wasn’t about to do so now. Thae’d been too careful. Thae would have only this year to start the path to thaes dreams and thae would not fail. I’m going to slip and break my neck when it’s my turn, aren’t I? thae wondered, but before thae could chase the thought, thaes friends were close enough to speak.

      Good morning, Emar said, though the words were somewhat muffled by a thick, woollen scarf wrapped around his face.

      Good luck, Aelei Miseu added, distracting Oibe Ekêmai from politeness. The shivers that ran up thaes spine had nothing to do with the cold and everything with Aelei Miseu’s deep, husky voice. It was a pity they hadn’t been able to work out their different desires in a relationship, but at least they had remained friends. He looked distinctly out of place, all strength and solidity, and he was trying to pretend he wasn’t rubbing warmth into his arm.

      Oibe Ekêmai huffed exasperatedly, but touched Aelei Miseu’s arm briefly with a soft smile. Thank you. You should get going to the naequaunau’s tent. You’ll catch a cold before you get there. Like Oibe Ekêmai, Aelei Miseu had always dreamed of the path he’d wanted to take in adulthood. The blacksmith’s younger son, Aelei Miseu had had plenty of opportunity to build up his strength at least and Oibe Ekêmai had no doubt that he would make his future the way that he wanted to.

      At Oibe Ekêmai’s words, Aelei Miseu only shook his head with a low chuckle. However prominent the goosebumps were on his skin, he would ignore them. Emar threaded his arm through his partner’s and leaned his body against Aelei Miseu. It couldn’t help as much as a warm, soft blanket, but it was something. Aelei Miseu always caught at least one cold in the winter.

      I tried to talk him out of it, Emar said, serious as

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