Prologue
IN THE STONE VILLAGES, the wooden hamlets and the settlements scattered across the sand—those at the mercy of the tides, where rock endures and water intrudes; others perched high, where the wind brushes pale stones of white and gray; and still others forever on the move—all, unaware of each other’s existence, witnessed beneath a silver moon and winds that chilled to the bone, a fleeting, inexplicable, invisible phenomenon.
Black-scaled birds took flight, vanishing into the distance. Brown crabs emerged from their holes and scurried back to the sea. Insects gathered in hives, nestled into crevices among the rocks, or hovered in humming flight. Across the stone continent, people slept. They dreamed. They rested. Furthermore, they drifted into a realm where no tide stirred.
At dawn, life stirred once more in the villages, hamlets, and scattered communities. Fires crackled to life. Spears were gripped by calloused hands. Dust rose on the dirt roads as footsteps filled them. A disheveled man, a mother of two, a young fisherman, a devout thinker, a fair-eyed farmer, a girl who dreamed of distant lands, a meticulous and refined woman, a man consumed by idleness—and many others—cried out, trembled, and wept.
Each had forgotten who they were—their names, their very selves. They stepped into daylight seeking answers from others, only to find that when someone addressed them, their names came distorted. Garbled syllables. Nonsensical utterances. Unnamable murmurs.
In their dreams, they had seen what was unfolding in the world. Those living in western villages, where towering waves struck even the stone and strange lights danced above the ocean, had glimpsed the coming devastation. Others, along the eastern coasts, where the tides grew more violent, had seen it only in dreams: the impending ruin.
The Unnamed had spoken—shouting, whispering, pleading, and conversing until their voices gave out.
But it was all in vain.
Days later, almost as one, the Unnamed left. They abandoned their villages, their kin, and the comfort of familiarity. They began a journey into the unknown. Toward an uncertain future. For the first time, they ventured into the heart of a continent that had once turned them away.
