The little boy with the dark blue eyes stretches his small body out to full length on the black rock, settling into his usual position. He gazes up at the stars, firey constellations circling in his mind as he mentally leaps from star to star in preparation for the Great Chase. Reflected lights play across the deep blue of his eyes. He knows what to do; he has been here before. He remains as though in a trance, staring into the darkness above. The deep blue of the sky begins to seep downwards towards him, forming two long dark tubes, like reverse tornadoes. He continues to pull the sky into himself, his watery eyes the channel through which the stars, planets, moons, comets and even the rich deep blue of the sky travel, until they are met with his soul, which enfolds and holds them, gently rolling them into new shapes and forms. The world is wrapped in a velvet blanket of blackness. Smoke might be curling upwards from chimneys, but it cannot be seen. Lights beam from windows like powerful beacons, their brightness enhanced thousandfold by the strange darkness. Cats find themselves running into invisible walls as they chase frightened mice into the night. The humans who roam at night freeze in their tracks in fear that they have suddenly become blind. After a time they attempt to fumble along, suddenly seeing the night as a strange and dangerous beast compared to their original perspective of wondrous beauty. The creatures of the night can smell the fear of the humans and their pets. They sit in wait for the moment. They know it is coming near. They are patient. It will come. The boy with the deep blue eyes lies prone on his black rock as though dead; not a muscle twitches; no breath escapes from his small body. A strange aura surrounds him though and it is plain that something powerful is occurring. A mosquito buzzes too near and momentarily explodes into a small burst of blue flame, dissolved instantly into non-existence. A great light begins to ooze from the widened pores of the child. It circles around his form, dancing a strange but somehow familiar dance, culminating in a massive ball above his body. It hovers there for a few moments, almost as though contemplating what to do next. Then, through the darkness it shoots to the the city below, a brilliant flash of light which is almost unnoticed because it disappears so quickly. It leaves every adult, every child, every domestic pet in a state of blindness. One thousand years have passed since the last Great Chase; it is time. The creatures of the night rise together and begin to converge. A mass of birds, sea creatures, bats, wild cats, wolves, bears, dingoes, reptiles, elephants - breeds of creature that no human has even catalogued appear at the edge of the city in a huge congregation of silent threat. The blackness covers their tracks; its velvet caress dulls the sounds of their movement. Once they have all arrived and the last creature has been counted by the owl, they begin to work their way methodically through the city. Each creature knows where to go; knows what to do. They each enter the address allocated to them and quietly remove the frightened children. The animals are gentle, so the children go with them willingly, quietly; their parents are left unaware. They are taken to the top of a mountain outside the city, where they are left, each child holding the hand of another. There is a black rock in the middle of the group, with a young boy lying prone upon it. The children can feel an energy emanating from the boy, but they are not aware that he is there as their blindness has not yet lifted. They simply remain seated, aware of their safety within the aura. The animals head back down to the city. The preparations are complete. Now the time has come for the Great Chase. They are no longer quiet; their excitement takes over and they rush through the city, dragging the humans and their pets from their once safe abodes. As the chased run in panic, screaming silent screams, they feel small beaks piercing their skin, strong, sharp teeth sinking into their legs, low threatening growls right behind them. The blackness enfolds the sounds of each human such that each is alone in their terror. They scream, but they cannot be heard. The only sounds able to be heard are from the animals. What a terrible aural deception! Growls, squawks, roars - all manner of animal sounds merge together to form a cacophony of terror for each of the chased. A man trips and falls head first in to the mouth of a lion. His head is torn from his shoulders; a mess of blood spreads across the satisfied face of the lion. The man's body momentarily attempts to stand; staggers and falls sideways to the ground, blood spurting wildly from the top of his shoulders, to form a pool of redness from which the rats lap thirstily. The lion moves on to another of the chased, ripping a leg from its socket. Then to another, removing an arm. An elephant plays a giant version of hop scotch, leaping from one crushed victim to another. The birds pull together as a group and attack the chased, removing eyeballs, painfully piercing eardrums with their sharp beaks, pulling hair from stinging scalps with their feet. One of the chased feels a wetness below her neck, reaches up and realises her carotid artery has been pierced. She faints to the ground and is left by the birds to bleed to death. A pack of hungry wolves pounce eagerly upon her and soon there is nothing left to bleed. A hawk swoops and captures a small dog, crushing the bones of the animal with it's powerful claws, then releasing it to fall a great distance to the ground, where the small body explodes into a large pile of blood and pieces of flesh, defying the original size of the dog. The Great Chase is on and it will continue until all of the chased are dead. The creatures of the night have each waited patiently for this day; the instructions have been passed down from the generations above for many years and they know it is an honour to be a part of such a great celebration. They are aware of the reasons for sparing the children - there must be future generations of humans to survive through for the next Great Chase - it was written that way and thus it must be. Each of the chased is run down and killed. Each experiences terror and pain; each spends their last minutes completely alone. The Chase has been conducted as it was written. It has been a very successful night. There is one last task before it is over. The creatures of the night set to work clearing away the mangled, murdered bodies, removing them to the cave on the other side of the mountain. Once this task is complete, they return to their posts and begin the wait again. As it was written. Up on the mountain, the young boy begins to release the sky. Flashes of light and colour shoot from his eyes and form pinpoints miles above him once more. Finally, the dark blanket of blue removes itself from his body and spreads across the heavens, like a pool of dark blue blood, seeping into every corner. He is left alone with his deep blue eyes and fifteen thousand children. The breath returns to his body; the blood begins to flow through his veins again. He rises from his rock and glances around at the children. They all appear to be in some kind of trance, sitting quietly with their eyes closed, holding hands with one another. He takes the free hand of one of the children, a small girl with blonde curly hair, wearing pink and white pyjamas. Her eyelids fly open and the boy is met with a pair of bright green eyes, filled with innocence and love. He smiles gently at her. He knows he has chosen well. One by one the children all open their eyes and gaze upon the boy with wonder. He smiles at their innocent faces. A procession begins, several thousand children following the green eyed girl back to the city, leaving the boy with the deep blue eyes behind. They pick their way over rocks and through prickly bushes, each helping one another. No words are spoken. No questions are asked, despite their lack of understanding. They know only that they must continue on and rebuild. The boy returns to his rock and waits.