Worlds Begin

  Heir to the Firstborn, Volume 0.5

  Elizabeth Schechter

  Published by Elizabeth Schechter, 2019.

  Worlds Begin: The Heir to the Firstborn Creation Myth

  Copyright © 2019 Elizabeth Schechter

  All rights reserved, including the right to reproduce this book, or portion thereof, in any form.

  This is a work of fiction. Any references to historical events, real people, or real locales are used fictitiously. Other names, characters, places, and incidents are the product of the author’s imagination, and any resemblance to actual events or locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.

  Published by Ravens Wing Books

  Editor: Michael Schechter

  Cover design by GetCovers

  Ravens Wing Books

  Table of Contents

  Title Page

  Copyright Page

  Worlds Begin (Heir to the Firstborn, #0.5)

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  Also By Elizabeth Schechter

  About the Author

  Worlds begin. Worlds end. Worlds begin again. So it is with worlds.

  The world Adavar began, lush and green and alive, and the Maiden Goddess was pleased. She walked the face of the new world, studying creation. She sang with the birds, swam with the great water cats and the dolphins. She ran with the deer and the great, gray wolves. She explored the caves beneath the mountains, and watched the heart of the world burn, delighting in the antics of the tiny fire mice. Then she returned to the surface, and realized that that throughout all of this new creation, there was no one like her. There was no one to sing with the birds, or swim with the water cats. No one to run with the deer, or watch the fires at the heart of the world. She was alone. There was no one to share her world with her.

  The Maiden pondered this as she lay in the soft meadows, and passed into sleep. In her sleep, she dreamed of her love for this new world, and her desire for someone to share it. And such was the power of that dream, and of her desire, that the world responded.

  “Wake,” the world called. “Wake and come to the high places, hidden between the sea and the stars, and there you shall find what you seek.”

  The Maiden woke, and heeding the call of the world that she loved, she searched for the high places hidden between the sea and the stars. For ten months she searched, and her belly swelled like the silver moon. Finally, she found the hidden fields, and as she reached her destination, the waters of her womb burst, flowing down the mountain to the sea. And in the hidden fields, the Maiden bore the Firstborn, the Eldest daughter. Maiden no longer, the Mother rejoiced in the life that her love for the world had created. She named the child Axia, in honor of the world that sired her.

  The Mother and her daughter lived in peace for many years, until one morning Axia went to her mother and said, “I have dreamed of people who are like us, but who are not like us. People of air and of water, of the earth and of the fire. They live in the cliffs over the sea, and in the sea, and in the caves overlooking the sea, and all along the ocean’s shore. We must go and find them.”

  The Mother was confused, and told her daughter that there were no such people. But Axia insisted, and the two left their home, and went down the mountains toward the sea. And there, they found people. Not many, but people, where there had been none before. There were people of the air, who sang with the birds and who flew through the air on great feathered wings. There were people of the water, with long tails and gills, who swam with the dolphins and the water cats and who changed to walk like men on the land. There were people of fire, who harnessed those fires in forges and turned the gifts of the earth into wondrous creations. And there were people of the earth, who brought forth food from the land, and who had healing in their hands. They greeted the Mother and Axia with great joy, calling Axia “Firstborn” and “Oldest Sister.” The Mother looked at these people, these living embodiments of her dreams, and asked, “Where have you all come from?”

  It was Adavar who answered her. The world rumbled and spoke, “These are our second-born children. I have created them from your dreams, and from the waters of your womb, to populate the world. From them shall be born all the races of men.”

  The Mother and Axia tarried among the people, spending time with each of the tribes. And in each tribe, there was one who became close to Axia, and who chose to leave their people and follow where Axia went. From the Fire tribe came Nerris, who courted Axia by crafting roses made from silver and gold. From the Air tribe came Liara, who taught Axia to call birds to her hand, and who sang to rival nightingales. From the Earth tribe came Mika, merry and laughing. Last, from the Water tribe came Abin, quiet and thoughtful, and ever at Axia’s side.

  And so they lived. The tribes looked to Axia and the Mother for guidance, and to those of their own number who counseled Axia so that they might have a voice. And the Mother was pleased to see how her children had grown, and returned to the hidden places between the sea and the stars.

  Years passed, and a small group came seeking the Mother. At their front was a young woman, quiet and thoughtful, and with Axia’s sparkling eyes. The Mother welcomed them, and asked their purpose.

  “I am the Firstborn of the Firstborn,” she said to the Mother. “My name is Alaine, and my mother has sent me to you, so that you may never know loneliness.”

  A temple grew, in the fields where a Mother had once raised a daughter, and the place came to be known as the Mother’s Womb. Over time, it became traditional for the heirs of the Firstborn to come to the Temple, to find which of them would be chosen to lead their people when their time came. And it also became tradition for the heir to choose their companions, one each from each of the tribes, as Axia did at the beginning.

  Worlds begin. Worlds end. Worlds begin again. So it is with worlds.

  The world begins.

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  Also by Elizabeth Schechter

  Heir to the Firstborn

  Worlds Begin

  Written in Water

  Forged in Fire

  Bones of Earth

  Wings of Air

  Visions in Smoke

  Children of Dreams

  Valley of Shadows

  Rebel Mage

  Counsel of the Wicked

  Haven's Fall

  Where Home Lies

  Rebel Mage: The Complete Series

  Swords of Charlemagne

  Hidden Things

  The Lady and the Sword

  Ashes and Light

  Table of Stone

  Swords of Charlemagne: The Complete Series

  Standalone

  The Rape of Persephone

  Fools Rush In

  Her Captive

  To Market

  Infernal Machine

  Chains of Light

  The Chronicles of John Zebedee

  Snowbound

  Watch for more at Elizabeth Schechter’s site.

  About the Author

  Elizabeth Schechter has been called one of the top erotica and alternative sexuality writers in the world. Her writing credits include the award-winning steampunk erotic romance House of Sable Locks, the Celtic fantasy Princes of Air, and 2021 VIVIAN finalist Written in Water.

  She was born in New York at some point in the past. She is officially old enough to know better, but refuses to grow up. She lives in Central Florida with her husband and son.

  Elizabeth can be found online at http://elizabethschechterwrites.com, or on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/Elizabeth.A.Schechter. You can also find her on Patreon, at https://www.patreon.com/EASchechter.

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  Elizabeth Schechter, Worlds Begin

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