Dutifully, Aaron uncorked one of the bags, filled the two buckets with water, and placed them before the oxen. The massive animals drank greedily, and Aaron smiled as he watched them.

"Sometimes I think you take better care of those animals than you do yourself," Tatiana chided him. There was a definite hint of mischief in her eyes as she peered out from beneath her sunbonnet. She was tall, pretty, and possessed endless amounts of curly red hair. Her hands and shoes were far beyond filthy. Two years her senior, Aaron loved to tease her about being his little sister. But Tatiana was quickly growing into womanhood, and he knew that he wouldn't be able to get away with that sort of thing much longer.

He gave her a mock-condescending look and pointed at her hands.

"And just how many boys will want to come and call on you with paws like that, Miss Filthy?" he shot back. "You look like you live in a pig pen! If the boys at school could see you now, you'd end up an old maid forever!" He watched Tatiana's mouth pucker up.

"That's enough, you two," their mother began. Then she stopped. At the expression on her face, they all turned back toward the field-and that was when they saw the huge shadow.

Dark and ominous, the shadow grew until it covered all of the ground around them. Then came an earsplitting noise-a great screech combined with an intensely deep howl that chilled them. Aaron put his hands over his ears, but it did little to help to muffle the noise. Looking up, he saw the source of the shadow: an enormous ball of golden light. His jaw dropped in wonder. Then, to his horror, it veered in midair and headed straight at his family.

Aaron's first instinct was to save the oxen, and he turned to unbuckle their harnesses so they could run without the awkward mass of the plow behind them. The golden orb was so close that Aaron could feel its blazing heat at his back.

As he unfastened the first of the buckles, Darius' strong hands came down on his own. Bewildered and frightened, he looked up into his father's eyes.