What Lies Beyond the Smoky Mountains

Walk along the journey with Sanyo to discover what really lies beyond those smoky mountains...

It's a pleasant read, yet intense, and draws you into the shoes of characters, their drama - truly a great story well told. 'What Lies Beyond the Smoky Mountains,' invites readers to forget their day to day for a moment, and wonder into another fascinating world and be captivated by a riveting narrative and drama of life.

Great story! a truly inspiring read, highly recommend!

Emily R.

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A man on his deathbed, reveals to his twenty-two year old son a life-altering secret: that his true father is a powerful king in a faraway land. Now the boy must journey through peril and confront hardship to uncover his destiny, leaving love behind to find the truth—and himself.

So, what's it about?

What lies beyond the Smoky Mountains

Story Intro

In a quiet village tucked deep within the untouched wilds of Nomady-land, a man lay dying. The hut was simple—wooden walls, thatched roof, the scent of earth and time heavy in the air—but it was home. It was where Sanyo had grown up. Where he had laughed, cried, learned to walk, to speak, to dream. And now, it was where he was watching his father—his whole world—fade away.

Sirus, the only parent Sanyo had ever known, lay weak beneath a thin blanket. His breath came in shallow, labored whispers. His skin was pale, eyes sunken but still burning with something—urgency, maybe guilt. Or maybe just love, tangled with everything he had never said.

Sanyo sat at his side, clutching his father’s hand, not ready. Not ready to say goodbye. Not ready for a world without him.

“Father,” he said softly, his voice cracking. “I’m here.”

Sirus turned his head, slow and trembling, his lips parting with effort.

“Sanyo,” he rasped. “There’s something… I must tell you. Before I go.”

Sanyo leaned in, his heart hammering in his chest.

“You… you’re not my son...not my son by blood,” Sirus said, the words landing like thunder in the stillness. “You were taken… as a baby. Your true father is Makunga...King Makunga… ruler of the lands beyond the Smoky Mountains.”

The world tilted.

Sanyo blinked. Tried to understand. Tried to breathe.

Nah.

No, this couldn’t be real. His father—this man—had been everything. His compass, his protector, his family. The very foundation of his life.

“I… what?” he whispered, his voice barely audible. “What are you saying?”

“I had to save you,” Sirus said, tears pooling in the corners of his eyes. “You and your mother Xara… were in danger. I did what I had to do.”

The silence in the hut was unbearable. The kind that presses on your chest, that fills your ears like a scream.

Sanyo pulled away slightly, running a hand through his hair, as if trying to tear away the confusion clouding his thoughts. His mouth opened, then closed again. He looked around the room for something solid, something familiar—but nothing felt real anymore.

Everything had changed.

“But why now?” Sanyo choked out. “Why tell me this now?”

“Because… it’s time,” Sirus whispered, barely holding on. “You must go, Sanyo. You must go beyond the Smoky Mountains. Your destiny… is there. You were born for more than this village. You were born a prince.”

Sanyo’s heart clenched. Not for the crown he’d never known—but for the man in front of him. The man who had given up everything to raise him. The man who had sacrificed and suffered in silence. His father—by choice, if not by blood.

“I can’t leave you,” Sanyo said, his voice thick with tears. “Not now. Not like this.”

“You must,” Sirus said, barely audible now. “You must promise me… you’ll go. Find your truth. Live your purpose.”

And as those words left his lips, his chest slowly stilled.

Sirus was gone.

Sanyo froze, numb. His fingers tightened around the now-lifeless hand, unwilling to let go. Hot tears streamed down his face, unrestrained. It wasn’t supposed to end like this. Not with so many questions. Not with so much left unsaid.

He sat there for what felt like hours, staring at the still form of the man who had shaped him. His mind drifted to Eva—her laughter, her warmth. The way her presence had begun to fill in the quiet spaces of his life. And to the people of the village, who had been his world.

How could he leave all of that behind?

But the promise… the promise was sacred.

With a trembling voice, Sanyo whispered through his tears:

“I promise, Father. I will go.”

And in that moment, something inside him shifted. A fire flickered to life within the sorrow. The road ahead was unknown, terrifying. But he would walk it.

For the truth. For his father. For himself.

What Lies Beyond the Smoky Mountains