The Seven Frog Brothers, a story in 9 parts,Fenwick, the Dreamer

More about The Seven Frog Brothers, a story in 9 parts,Fenwick, the Dreamer

The air rushed as Aeloria, the skyfish, glided through the clouds. Her metallic fins cut through the wind like sails, while Fenwick, the Dreamer, sat on her back, raising the small telescope to his eyes. His brothers would follow the call of the pond along established paths, through forests, swamps, or valleys. But he flew. Fenwick had always been the one who looked up, not at the ground. Even as a tadpole, he had spent hours gazing at the sky reflected in the water, wondering if there might be a second realm up there. "Perhaps," he had murmured, "we ourselves are merely the dreams of stars." Now, many moons later, Aeloria carried him through those very dreams. Below them, the world lay shrouded in mist, rivers glittered like silver veins, forests like emerald-green carpets. Above them stretched a sea of stars. Fenwick sighed, but it was a happy sigh. "Where to, my friend?" he asked softly. Aeloria snorted, and small sparks sprayed from her fins, scattering like fireflies in the wind. Fenwick laughed softly. He knew she knew the way, even if he himself had no plan. Islands of light appeared in the distance—floating cliffs, crisscrossed with crystals, glowing in the moonlight. Aeloria headed toward them. Fenwick tightened his hold and lowered the spyglass. "Perhaps the pool isn't just down below," he murmured. "Perhaps it's reflected up here too." They landed on one of the cliffs. Figures stood there, translucent like mist, their bodies sparkling in the starlight. "Traveler," spoke a voice that sang more than spoke, "what are you doing up here?" Fenwick bowed. "I'm looking for the source. The pool from which my brothers and I come." The figure inclined its head. "And do you think it's only on the ground?" Fenwick remained silent, for he didn't know the answer. Instead, he looked up at the sky. There, the stars shone like a thousand eyes.