/A.N./ Good to see you all again! I have a big surprise at the end. Thank you for all of then continued support over the years. Read on!

It started with a bird. A bird with wings of flame and eyes like burning embers. I had never seen one like it. The creature hovered above a branch just a few strides away. Its piercing gaze seemed to pull me towards itself. I felt my body gravitating closer.

Closer.

The flames melded into my skin, seeping through my tissue. My mouth opened to scream.

The bird shot from its position and flew up through the trees. My body stayed where I had sat on a large branch; but my eyes, my mind's eye, stayed tethered to the flame. I saw what the creature saw.

The I saw the blur of forest, blue of sky hurling towards us. And then we soared. My vision stabilized as the bird glided over land. It was immediately obvious this was not the same region as my home. Not a familiar tree or landmark in sight. Instead, forest opened to flatlands, then mountains, and then…

Armies in black armor covered the ground below. Even from high above I could hear the thud of their marching, the clank of their armor, the roar of their guttural battle cry.

The bird flew past the heads of the soldiers and straight towards a mountain. The only one of its kind in sight. At its feet stood another army of many colors of armor, as if they were never designed to be one. My eyes were not keen enough to see more than the shapes and colors of those down below.

I could, however, make out one thing. The colorful army was backed against the mountain, and they would soon be swallowed by the ocean of black soldiers.

We shot closer to the mountain. The bird did not slow down. We would be crushed to dust. Still, it would not slow down.

Will I die if this creature did?

I have shown you what may come to pass.

A deep voice permeated my mind. The form of the bird changed. Now I saw it as if from the outside looking on. What was flaming feathers became gold fur, a beak molded into a snout, wings turned into the muscled legs and paws of a great cat.

In the blink of an eye, the flaming bird became a lion. It turned its head to me, eyes just as piercing and mane as bright as the sun.

When foreigners come in my name, summon the council. Arrange what they ask. Be the bridge that will break apart the darkness.

We did not slow no matter how close the rocky surface came.

I asked, who are you?

His eyes bore into my very soul.

I am…

Grey stone crashed through my vision. Light became black.

I opened my eyes and jerked awake. Humid air burst in and out of my lungs. Sitting up on my mat, I ran my slightly wrinkled hands through my black hair, mind racing. I am? I am who?

I knew it was not simply a dream. Granted, I had never experienced anything like it. But I was the high priest of the Marenkai, I knew first hand that the supernatural existed. This dream was a message. The question is what it meant.

And what will I do about it?

/A.N./ Above is a sneak peak of what is to come. This story has been apart of my life through some of the biggest events of my life, from which I've grown. I have put an extraordinary amount of thought and love into it. Now that I'm in a whole new place in life, writing my own original fiction, and have progressed immensely in my skill in the art of storytelling, I decided I would rewrite East to West. I have been working on this for a while, and think its time to finally tell you all!

All of the reviews, favs, and follows, even after completing of this work, has meant a lot to me. Prepare to reconnect with all of your beloved characters, be wrapped up in an improved storyline with twists and turns and new angles. This new rewritten version will be published as an entirely new story, with the same title but with "second edition" in the title. Mondays will be posting day, once a week. I'm planning on having the first chapter up either next week or the week after. Every review will be replied to in the following chapter. I hope to see everyone there and would love to hear from you!

Love and blessings from Aslan,

N.T.N.