Shine of Darkness

I listened attentively to the footsteps that were coming down to my sanctuary. I waited paying attention to whether they were the angry stomping footsteps of my father or the cautious quiet steps of my friend, Drake. My mind was in a whirlwind of thoughts as my bony fingers clutched the book of Necromancy closely to my chest. My opaque blue eyes darted to the door as I huddled as far into the corner as I could. My mind racing as I struggled desperately to find out who it was.

I nearly jumped with fear when there was a quiet knock to the door, signaling it was Drake. I let out the breath I had unintentionally held, relief coursing through my veins. He carefully opened the door, poking his head in. His brown eyes, taking in my frail body, turned cold with rage and protectiveness. He closed the door behind him and whispered in a hushed tone, “Laia? Are you ok?”

I gave him a dark look, hissing sarcastically, “Oh I’m just DANDY! My dad is a freaking follower of the holier than thou Arthur of Janenia! I’m just peachy!”

My fingers gently stroked the spine of the book. My eyes distant as I remembered a particular memory. Time seemed to freeze as I was trapped into the past. I glanced around and saw my father entering the cellar with a look of rage and disgust. I cringed as I once again watched what would soon be the worst day of my ten year old life.

I laid, once again, huddled in the far left corner of the cellar, my matted hair full of dirt, staining it black...no longer did I remember what color it truly was. My eyes were distant, dull, the luster they once held stolen away by the years of agony and despair. My fingers curled around my elbows, my arms wrapped tightly around my knees. As my father entered with another man, my face turned pale, my mask I fumbled to keep up. I steeled myself for the pain, knowing that whoever was associated with my father wasn’t likely to be nice ever.

The two were talking quietly to each other, glancing over at me once and awhile. I studied the man before me, my curiosity taking hold. He had brown hair, neatly cut. He wore a silk blue robe with the symbol of the Light Lord on the back. When he looked at me, I glanced down, just barely seeing his cold green eyes.

The man looked at me and asked my father, “Have you placed the Xyra on her?”

My father chuckled so darkly, it sent shivers up my spine, “I wanted to wait until you came, just to make the experience more entertaining.”

Laughing the man turned and walked to me, slowly, I cringed trying to escape. My fingers curled around my elbows, knowing that I had no strength to fight. Tears filled my eyes as I tried to stop him as he grabbed my arms roughly, screaming as my arm cracked, breaking.

I watched with terror as the two men laughed at my pain, the man had pulled out a knife pinning me against the cold floor. I felt my blood run cold as I felt the blade cut my skin, I felt a surge of terror as something inside snapped open, a rush of darkness engulfed me, with a scream of fear, I saw a dark figure grab the man, yanking him away, destroying whatever they had been trying to do. The dark figure come close to me and I scampered back to my corner, fear overwhelming me.

The figure I noticed was a skeleton, badly made yes, but a skeleton nonetheless. It paused, looking at me curiously, before a soft, female voice whispered in my ears, “It’s here to serve you.”

I jumped, startled, letting out a small cry of pain, as blood flowed down my back, the skeleton moved forward and sat down in front of me, guarding. It stared at my father who was now red with rage. He glared at me, a look that promised pain later, as he turned on his heel, his head held high, storming out of the cellar, the man following him like a dog on a leash.

My fingers curled around my elbows as I took my same position. My hands wrapped around my knees, that were drawn up to my chest, my eyes, peering over my knees, at the skeleton, my curiosity taking over I asked, my voice weak and rough, “What are you?”

It glanced at me, unable to speak, before waving its hands, a black fog appeared in the air. It twisted and snaked itself into a black and silver book, titled, The Book of Necromancy By Darksilver Angemon.

I clutched the book in my hands, suddenly able to read the runes on the book, so unlike English, which I couldn’t read or write. Trembling I opened it and began to read, the skeleton standing guard still. Its red eyes full of concern and worry.

Drake winced, his eyes sad, in turn making me feel guilty as I bowed my head and whispered, “Sorry Drake, its just I can’t help feeling like I deserve being locked down here...after all what use is a child of the royal Janenia family if she’s nothing but dark?”

Drake grabbed my arm, hissing, his voice sharp and dangerous, “Who cares Laia!!! You’re an intelligent and powerful child of the only Royalty in our world. Who cares that you’re dark because I DON’T!”

I smiled shakily, struggling with all my strength to lift my hand, trembling to touch his. My hand shook as I fought to keep going, the minute I touched his hand I jerked mine back in pure fear, remembering the pain that would follow when I touched my father. Drake just looked at me patiently, waiting for my terror to subside.

Trembling, I took his hand as he gently squeezed my mine, whispering comforting, “I know of someone who will take you Laia. He is the Runes Master of the BlackTears Academy.”

I looked at him, whispering, “What if he doesn’t like me? What if he thinks I’m a demon too?” Tears filled my eyes and I fought to keep the mask in place, feeling it crack as my darkest nightmares began to surface. My eyes flashed with despair as I wrapped my hands around my knees, as I buried my face in them. I laid there huddled, the mere comfort of it seemed to calm me, as Drake gently stroked my matted dirty hair whispering, “I’m sure he’ll love you Laia, you’re beautiful, sides he’s just outside the door, having gotten the truth from your father. He has your mother as well, the two of them are friends.”

Trembling I nodded, allowing Drake to pick me up, knowing I would not be able to walk all the way across the room as weak as I was. As we got closer, my fear grew, my heart began to speed up until I screamed, terror finally shattering the mask I held on to like a lifeline. At once, out of nowhere, 2 skeletons appeared, grabbing me from Drake, supporting me in their arms, I realized once again, I had done a bad thing. Tears filled my eyes as Drake simply opened the door, allowing the skeletons to take me, his silent acceptance of my fears, allowed me to see that he truly cared.

I saw my mother standing there, looking worn out but the elegance in her movements, still portrayed her power and heiritage. Her blue eyes pierced my own, giving me a sense of comfort as she pulled me to her, as I vanished the skeletons. My eyes flickered back to normal, as I rested my head against her chest, feeling completely drained. Completely unable to keep the mask up and I felt every part of me start to shiver, my uneasiness of being out of my safe environment sending me into a panic.

A hand gently touch my back, causing me to scream in terror, flashes of memories flashed before my eyes, memories of my father’s fist hit me over. Tears spilled down my face as a voice gently spoke, “Hush child, I won’t allow him to touch you. Please don’t cry.”

I trembled as my mother gently began to move, the man and Drake following behind us. I buried my face in her neck wanting nothing more than to disappear, the fear clutched at me, making it hard to breathe.

We had just managed to make it to the grounds when my father came out of the house, his eyes furious. The man immediately got in his way, ordering us to keep going, I watched with terror feared eyes as the strange man’s eyes turned the same shade as mine, as as dark energy encompassed the ground, raising many zombie like creatures. In front of us stood a large gate, glowing a silver, and I realized the destination, the northern part of Janenia, where the weather was significantly different, completely contrasting our warmth with a bitter cold. Their red eyes focused on my father, holding him back as the man turned, grabbing my mother’s and Drake’s hand pulling them as we vanished into the night, becoming truly free for the first time. When they came out from the portal they came to another part of a different area, covered in ice and snow. In front of them stood a magnificent castle, protected by many wards.

The castle was beautiful with icicles that were hanging down from the roof and under the window seal. We were gazing up at the icicles that was glistening bright light from the sun that was rising up in the sky. We noticed a crystal chandler in the window. Around the castle, off to the west stood towering mountains, covered in snow and pine trees. To the east stood a large gate, closed off from the castle. My mind struggled to get adjusted to this, when finally giving up, I surrendered to a deep, uneasy sleep.