The North Star

The Creature

The North Star or 'the girl with firey hair' only appears only in dreams as a beautiful woman with hair akin to a celestial blaze. Always appears as the most beautiful possible form to the spacer meeting her.

The Tale

[Soggy journal entry found in the jungles of Saksar] “On old Earth, it is said that she appeared as the first star in the night sky. Some claimed the star was named the North Star and, in ancient times, it helped sailors navigate on their journeys. It brought hope and guidance to those who were lost and saw it upon the sky.

My nana tells a different story though. She spoke to me of a fearsome being that struck at the hearts of young men. She asked me, "Des, did you ever dream of the girl with the fiery hair?" and I nodded. "Be wary of her and count how many times you see her."

I often think about that, because my Nana told me that if you dream of the girl with the fiery hair seven times, then you are lost. First, she comes to you in your dreams, a creature of unparalleled beauty that beckons you to follow her, but stays always out of reach. She rides on the starry sky and you feel a kinship to her that is all-encompassing. And when you wake, the feeling persists and remains with you for days. It makes you want to find her. But you cannot. And then, you are filled with wanderlust and you go searching, wandering, getting lost and losing more than just your way. You travel the lands and when the lands are exhausted, you travel the stars and you travel the galaxies.

And you cannot find her. And your heart slowly withers for she consumes your soul, feeding on the shadow of every step you take in your futile quest. What do you find though are others like you. You see them in cantinas, you see them on the road, you see them camped up on lonely peaks, staring up at the sky, their eyes hollow and their skin pale. When you ask them about the girl with the fiery hair, they know of what you speak and they nod sadly, recognizing a lost brother. And then they turn their eyes back to the stars, enjoying the quiet of the night before their next journey.

Nobody knows what she wants and why she only shows herself to young men. Nobody has found her yet but she is most definitely real, otherwise, why would we all dream of the same thing? The answers are there… somewhere, among the stars.

Sadly, I must stop writing this entry now, for I must go to sleep. I have a long road ahead of me tomorrow. I have been everywhere in the galaxy and, last night, I dreamt of her for the sixth time.”