This is a story I wrote a while back, exploring the history and backstory of the Starforce Saga universe. In a world (You thought that in a deep voice, didn't you.) where exohumans have been around as long as humans, history would have played out in subtly different ways. This one explores the milieu of the Salem Witch Trials. Set in Colonial Massachusetts, it gave me an opportunity to explore a different style of voice, inspired and guided by the writings of Nathaniel Hawthorne.
Witch!
By
Richard L. Wright
As I drifted in that not-quite-awake state, I knew I’d had
the dream again. It had become a recurring theme in recent months - the one
where I soar through the air, conversing with the owls and nighthawks that hunt
by the pale moon. Again, they’d chastised me, calling me clumsy and slow. “Wingless girl-child! Graceless groundling! Stay where you belong!” The
mockingbirds were particularly cruel.
A chill ran through me, cold air seeping through my thin
nightshift. I pinched my eyes shut, unwilling to acknowledge being awake.
Wakefulness would start the day, and I did not enjoy my days much of late. I
reached down to pull up the blanket I must have thrown off. I groped blindly
for it, but it did not come to hand. Reluctantly, I opened my eyes.
Imagine my surprise to find I was not in my bed, nor had I
rolled off onto the floor. No, I was decidedly not in my bedchamber at all. I
was, in fact, in a tree. My puzzlement quickly turned to panic, and I wrapped
my arms and legs around the broad oak branch where I found myself.
“My stars!” I cried.
