Quest for the Spark, also called Quest for the Spark: Book One is the first book in the Bone: Legacy series of prose novels written by Tom Sniegoski.
Something evil has poisoned the Dreaming and is now invading the Walking World. As the darkness spreads, the people of the Valley - even Queen Thorn - are caught grip of nightmares, and it's up to one boy to save them all.
Twelve-year-old Tom Elm has spent his life turnip farming, but he's always felt destined for something greater. When his family falls into a dangerous sleep, Tom, along with Rodrick the racoon, teams up with three lost explorers from Boneville, Percival Bone and his nephew and niece. Together with a Veni Yan warrior, a mysterious shape-shifting woman, and the two stupid Rat Creatures, this mistmatched group sets out on a quest to find the lost pieces of the Spark. Without its vanquishing light, Tom's family - and the entire Valley - might never wake up.
Plotline[]
The story starts out with Queen Thorn who was last seen the Queen of Atheia. But Thorn was first seen in the book lying in bed unable to wake up, Gram'ma Ben then takes Prissy to see the Veni Cari at Old Man's Cave for guidance. Then the story continues with Tom when he is having a nightmare and then wakes up to his friend Roderick, the racoon in book 5 Rock Jaw, master of the Eastern Border. It first reveals then Tom's family had taken Roderick sometime later after Roderick's meeting with the bones. Tom is showen to have fake dreams of becoming a royal guard for the queen, and real nightmares where his savour is the stone around his neck he found while turnip farming. While turnip farming in the fields Tom notices a weird shift in the forest that makes the shadows come alive. Then it shows the Bone's of the stories, Percival, a professor with a skyship, Abbey, a little bratty but still smart girl, and Barclay, a nice boy but is always angry at his sister for bringing the "being born first" thing. In their beginning the bones have returned with Bartleby and told amazing stories in which Barclay's and Abbey's mother and father set out to find the mysterious place called the valley. They have not returned ever since it Percival has intended it to be a rescue mission (also adventure to his pleasure.) He planned to leave the children their but a huge tornado comes in and rips through everything, Percival had no choice but he launches with both bone children. He tries to escape the tornado but he soon finds himself out of control. Next the story moves to Randolf Clearmeadow, a Veni-Cari priest who had lost his family in the Night's of Lightning. When he recieves a vision that the dreaminng is calling to him the bartender calls him crazy and locks him up in the jail. NNext comes the Bone book's beloved stew/quiche loving rat creatures now named Stinky and Smelly (blue: stinky, brown:smelly) Stinky and Smelly are inside their cave while Stinky is complainning that they saw a squirrel carcass first Smelly finally catches on to the fact his plans are nothing but trouble and doesn't listen. The situation is they saw a delicious squirrel carcass and their new king, Agak, stole it from them. Whether he was aware or not is unknown, but Stinky convinces Smelly to come with him to get by saying Squirrel quiche. When they go in they see the king using it as a pillow and they put their brains together to make a plan that almost couldn't go wrong. Almost. While Smelly tickles Agak's nose in his sleep Stinky will attempt to grab it while he lets go. The plan worked, if Stinky had focused more on teamwork then the reward.Once Agak lets go of the squirel he finds a perfect substitute, Smelly! Once Stinky gets the squirrel he is about to eat it but his friend still in the king's embrace yells and wakes up the king. He demands to know why they were there in the first place. Smelly started off with they heard suspicious noises (Agak's snoring) and thought it might have been a bear. And they said there were at least 20 bears in the cave and they chased them off. Stinky said quote "It's a good thing we were in the neighborhood." Even suprisingly they still could have suceeded with their plan if they told him the bears took the squirrel if Stinky hadn't waved it around in the air in plain sight. Next Tom is up at night making his next sword and he plays a pretend adventure of the queens guard. Rodreick asks who they are fightning and Tom's reply was the Hairy men. Roderick reclines then Tom feels guilty because he made another reminder of his past. He then changes it to goblins and then Tom's mother comes in and makes them go to bed, which Tom isn't eager to. In his dream Tom meets Lorimar for the first time who warns him abut the dangers of the Nacht (german for night). Then he wakes up a little too early but thinks he can shake off the dream in the fields but when he goes into the fields Lorimar reappears. Next Percival wakes up on his ship, The Queen of the Sky, which Barclay managed to put into autopilot. Then he looks over the side and sees the valley and is astonished beyond himself and searches for the first sign of adventure on the ground below. Next it returns to Randolf in his cell dreaming about his dead family, then it moves back to the rats being chased by Agak and his men. Next Lorimar reveals Tom and Roderick's hidden profecy to reunit the spark pieces. At first Tom is confuesd and doesn't wish to take the quest, he takes his necklace, gives it to Lorimar and takes off running to his house. At his house he finds his family unable to wake up. Soon he realizes Lorimar told the truth and Lorimar came back to him. After talking with Lorimar some dead animal corpses come back to life halfway and persuade him to not take the quest. However Tom touches it and the dead animals are dead once again. A great flash is shone and all the members of the Spark's quest could see it. Even Randolf who didn't ,but it is a possibility the flash awoke him from his dream. After he awoke the constables woke up different. Percival saw the flash and sped towards it on his ship where they met Tom, Roderick, and Lorimar. Tom informs them of the Nacht and his plan to submerge the whole world with darkness. Soon they agree to help him and Tom. Soon Tom realizes they need Randolf's help and go to Trumble to break his free. Lorimar falls apart then reappears on the ship ready to travel. As they fly they are spotted by Stinky, Smelly, and Fredrick. After Stinky sees the bones on the "sky wagon" a plan forms in Stinky's mind which means trouble. He plots to capture the bones and offer them to their king in return get out of the punishment (or in Stinky's mind, keep Fredrick.) On the ship Percival takes Suizie( a bunderbass and the first gun to appear in bone) and leaves Roderick, Barclay, and Abbey on the ship. While on the ship Barclay and Abbey get into a fight about who could fly the ship better and make it rise. Stinky and Smelly see this and jump on to the anchor which is suspended above the ground for a few miles (yikes). In the jail the constables unlock the cage and fight Randolf. outside Percival knocks by kicking the door down. He uses Suzie making a hole in the roof, which makes the men release Randolf. However Percival only had enough ammo for one blast. Lorimar grows a tree which grows through the hole in the roof. Percival, Tom, and Randolf climb the tree. Lorimar crumples to pieces again. While on the ship Abbey and Barclay learn how to piolet the ship by stop fighting for 5 seconds. Roderick looks from the deck of the ship he saw Percival, Tom, and Randolf and thought of them as someone else. Then he thought it was Tom and yelled the news to Barclay and Abbey and soon felt the need to eat. He remebered Barclay promise him crackers earlier but he never got them. He then decided to eat a patoto which was the power source of the Queen. As Abbey catches him eating the patoto he is startled and it falls over board and hits the head of one of the rat creatures. Roderick sees them and his past catches up to him. Abbey then sees them and screams. While on the ground the constables set fire to the building which blinds Tom, Percival, and Randolf. Onboard the queen Barclay sees the rat creatures and they decide to start chucking patotoes at them. Then Lorimar appears on a patoto which Abbey throws at them, she bites on and they both fall off. They fall right in the midst of the constables. Now that the anchor is clear Tom, Percival, and Randolf climb on but fall on to a tree which Lorimar grew for them. Now onboard the Queen Tom realizes they are missing two members. He tells that they need the two rat creatures for the quest. Roderick becomes emotional and scurries to the bowels of the ship. Tom persuades Percival and they go to find them. Stinky and Smelly are now running from the constables and head into the forest where they encounter king Agak and 10 of his best warriors. Stinky hands Fredrick to Smelly and says "Maybe if they think you were resbonsible for the whole thing, the king will go easy on me." In anger Smelly raises Fredrick about to kill Stinky with it until Tom comes to the rescue. He offers them rescue then they agree. After they agree the constable and Agak join forces to capture the bones and the rats. Onboard the ship Barclay informs the rat creatures of their job and gives them names (Stinky and Smelly). Inside the ship Tom approaches Roderick and trys to reconnect their friendship, Roderick sets the term they are best friends "Only if the rat creatures don't eat us in our sleep". On the deck the spark glows and so does fredrick, after a disection it revals apart of the spark and Tom thinks this is one reason the rat creatures were important. When he connects the pieces their next destination it toward the bee hives in the south. The book ends when Gram' ma Ben succumbs to the Nacths reach and falls asleep where she sees the Nacht's true form. Next Book out Feburary 1.