The Descending Darkness

by Michael Chulsky

  Kay let out a yelp and squirmed in his grasp. “Hey! Let me go!”

  Shadow looked at her. “You were following me…I don’t think you have the right to be indignant here.”

  “I wasn’t trying to follow you! I thought you were heading to the training area and I wanted to follow you there!”

  Shadow raised an eyebrow. “I see…well, this hallway doesn’t lead to the training area, just the rooms. And all the way down said hallway where you were walking is my room.”

  Kay glared. “I’m sorry, okay? So can you let me go now?”

  Shadow smirked and released his grasp. “There, happy?”

  “Thanks,” Kay replied.

  “So you were trying to get to the training area, huh?”

  “Yeah, I was.”

  “Alright. Well, I was just about to go there…so I’ll take you there.”

  Kay just looked at him for a moment and nodded. “Sure, boss. Sounds good.”

  Shadow made a motion toward the door. “You first.” He followed her with his gaze as she left the room. He wasn’t sure why he was being so secretive, but it was just a habit he couldn’t help. It wasn’t like Kay was bad or anything, she was just more walled-off than most of the others. He knew from Isaac that out of all of them, Kay had suffered loss at the youngest age. She was only seven years old when her parents were killed by demons and she had to fend for herself. In a way, she was forced to grow up to survive. A situation he knew all too well.

  Shadow swept the room with his gaze, trying to remember why he had come back in the first place but the situation with Kay caused him to forget. He sighed and followed her outside. He led the way back down the hall. Getting to the training area was a simple matter of going to the main hall, taking the stairwell up two flights, and going out onto the roof.

  It wasn’t your typical roof. The previous owners had built a large area of greenrooms on top of the house. He surrounded the area with a dome made from multi-tinted low-E glass which prevented him from being harmed by the sun’s rays. For that matter, he had done the same to the windows in his room so he wouldn’t be roasted if the curtains accidentally parted. It was on his to-do list for the rest of the windows in the house, but he hadn’t found the time. Hopefully his inaction wouldn’t come back to bite him in the ass.

  Shadow stepped out onto the roof. He gazed up at the sky and could tell the sun was out by the clouds in the air. The light and warmth were dimmed by the dome, which saddened him, because although he had never experienced what it was like to be under the sun, it was a sensation he was envious of, because it was something he knew he would never experience. That fact, coupled with the knowledge that he was the only one in the house who was limited in such a way, did very little to help him cope with his situation. But it was something he had to deal with.

  “So, we’re here – what now?” Kay asked, her voice cutting through the silence.

  “We go train with the others,” Shadow replied, trying his best to sweep the previous thoughts from his mind. He made his way over to the tall brass doors of the training room building, and as he approached, even with the doors closed, he could hear the unmistakable sound of intense training going on. He smiled. The fact that everyone was actually listening to him…it meant that despite their issues, they were capable of coming together as a team when the situation warranted it.

  Shadow pulled open the doors, and it only took one glance of the arena to wipe the smile right off his face. Because not everyone was training. Ethan, Ellie, and Ryan were hard at work, but the others were doing their own thing. He saw that Tristan and Faith were involved in a heated discussion, Tereya and Isaac were watching the others train, and Crystal was lounging out on a chair listening to her MP3 player. She was also reading a magazine, which had a large scorch mark on the cover.

  Kay looked around the room and snorted. “So this is training, huh? Sign me up.”

  Shadow threw her a nasty look and shook his head. “No, this isn’t training. But whatever it is, it’s going to stop right now.” He brought his hands together and whistled loudly. The room fell quiet.

  “Hey, Shadow,” Ellie said. “What’s up?”

  “Not much, just came up to see how training was going. I’m glad to see that some of you are going hard…while some others not so much…” Shadow trailed off but deliberately looked in the direction of those who had not been training when he arrived.

  Faith held up her hands. “Hey, don’t look at me. I was training but I had to stop because Tristan had a situation I needed to help him deal with.”

  “Tristan always has a situation,” Ryan said.

  “Shut up, Ryan.” Shadow sighed. “What happened, Faith?”

  Faith returned his sigh with one of her own. “Well, we were working in pairs – Tristan and I were training against Crystal and Ethan, and Crystal got mad because when she deflected one of Tristan’s fireballs, it rebounded and scorched one of her magazines.”

  “And then?”

  “And then she flew off the handle,” Ellie said. “She pretty much started calling Tristan names and he came back at her and then there was screaming…it was a scene.”

  “And because of that, I thought it was best to leave Crystal to her own devices,” Ethan said apologetically.

  Shadow growled into his open palms. “We can’t have Crystal flipping out every other moment. Is she not aware that we’re fighting a war? This is serious.”

  “I know,” Ethan replied. “I know Crystal can be a bit headstrong sometimes…but I’m working on it. I promise. It’s just hard for her to adjust to living with others. But she’ll come around. I know her.”

  “Well she’d better come around quick,” Kay said. “Because some of us don’t want to die because of her diva behavior.”

  Crystal looked up and noticed that all eyes were on her. She pulled one of her headphones away from her ear. “What’s going on? Are you guys talking about me or something?”

  “Well–”

  Shadow held up a hand. “Tristan, I’m sure whatever you were about to say was going to be the opposite of helpful, so allow me.” He gave Crystal a hard look. “Earlier, you spoke about the mission and how you didn’t want me to get us all killed, and now I come up here and see you sitting there with your MP3 player, reading magazines and not training. So it looks like you’re the problem here.”

  Crystal put her hands on her hips. “Excuse me?”

  “You heard me. If you expect to survive, you’ve got to work hard and not let petty distractions get in the way of training. Because the only thing that’ll kill us is the lack of focus some of you have been exhibiting.”

  “But Tristan–”

  Shadow brought his hand up again. “I don’t want to hear any excuses or arguments. I need you guys focused less on beating each other up and more focused on beating up evil. Do I make myself clear?”

  Crystal opened her mouth and then closed it. She looked at the ground. “Okay, Shadow.”

  Ethan beamed. “That’s very mature of you. I’m very proud, Crystal.”

  “Shadow did a real magic trick,” Ryan remarked. “He shut Crystal up!”

  Shadow opened his mouth to tell Ryan to shut up, but before he could respond, a loud beep from his communicator interrupted him. He took it out of his pocket and glanced at it with a frown on his face. “What the….”

  “What?” Crystal asked quietly.

  “Nobody can communicate on these devices except one of us…and we’re all here.” He hit the answer button. “Yeah?”

  “Shadow…go to the place where dragons rest.”

  Shadow’s eyes widened. The voice was female. It didn’t belong to anyone in the base, but it was definitely familiar to him. “It’s her…it’s the seer!” The communicator beeped again.

  “The king of dragons will slumber, its treasure left unguarded. And evil will come to claim it.” The communicator went dark.

  “Is it just me, or did your communicator become possessed?” Ryan as
ked.

  “Not possessed,” Shadow replied, “but someone definitely used it to give me a message.”

  “But what did that message mean?” Tristan asked.

  “We’re supposed to go to the place where dragons rest. I’ve heard of a place like that…but I cannot remember the name….”

  “Draconia Isle,” Ethan replied.

  “Draconia Isle?”

  Ethan nodded. “Yes, Ryan, Draconia Isle. I’ve studied many legends in my time, and one specifically speaks of an island ruled by dragons. A powerful artifact was given to the king of dragons to protect. The King of Dragons sleeps but once every thousand years. It appears as though our enemy is using this opportunity to steal the artifact.”

  “What is the artifact? And what does it do?” Kay inquired.

  “It’s the Dragon’s Eye,” Shadow replied. He didn’t even have to think about it. As soon as Ethan reminded him of the island’s name and the legend, everything came back to him. “As for what it does, that doesn’t matter. The only thing that matters is we need to prevent the forces of darkness from grabbing hold of it. The last time a mortal got his hands on it, the results were disastrous.”

  “How are we getting to this island?” Tristan asked. “Islands are typically surrounded by miles of water on each side. So it’s not like we can just walk to it.”

  “Typically?” Ryan scoffed. “Try always. Islands are always surrounded by water.”

  “We will be taking my jet,” Shadow said. “Let’s head to the flight bay; we don’t have a moment to lose.”

  During the flight, Shadow was caught up in his thoughts trying to think of ways to boost morale before their first big mission. It was difficult enough to get them all on the same wavelength on a normal day. He couldn’t imagine how they’d handle a high-stress situation like a fight, or how they’d be able to coordinate with each other. This was where months of training would have come in handy, but unfortunately they only had a few dozen hours or so. Not much to boast about at all.

  He decided that the best course of action would be just to talk to the others and see how they were holding up. If any of them were nervous or unsure, it was best to deal with it now, rather than in the middle of a fight where it would cause them to lose their lives. He placed the jet on autopilot and left the cabin. As he walked down the aisle, he saw that everyone except Tereya and Ellie were taking a nap.

  “Hey, Shadow,” Ellie said, beckoning him over.

  Shadow made his way over to her. “Hey, what’s up?”

  “Well, have you looked outside lately?”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Look at the sky. It’s acting all weird. It’s like what happened that night when we first met. Remember?”

  Shadow moved over to the next window, leaning over a now-awake and very annoyed Crystal. The sky flashed red and his body tensed up in surprise. “The second sign,” he whispered, his voice flat. He didn’t want to worry them, but this was definitely something to be feared. He was told to watch out for three signs, and this was the second.

  Ellie just stared at him. “What’s that mean?

  “I was told by the seer that there would be three signs in the sky before we’d face the great evil. I can’t believe I forgot…but in all the excitement of finding you guys and dealing with everything it completely slipped my mind.”

  “And that was the second one?” Ryan asked, yawning and rubbing his eyes. “Isn’t the fact that more of these signs are popping up a bad thing?”

  “It is, but it also isn’t. It’s a bad thing that the signs are progressing, but the fact that this is only the second sign we’re witnessing means–”

  “That we still have time,” Ethan finished for him. “Which means there’s more time to train and further prepare ourselves. Correct?”

  Shadow nodded. “Exactly.”

  “Ahh, well, that’s a good thing then,” Ryan said absentmindedly, as he closed his eyes once more and resumed his rest.

  Ellie looked over at Ryan and smirked. “Someone’s tired.” She turned her attention back toward Shadow and gave him a light nudge. “What about you? Gonna get some rest in?”

  “Yeah,” Shadow said. “And no, I’m fine…the sun has gone down, and I’m at my best.”

  “Really?”

  “Mhm. I could be dead tired, but as soon as the sun sets, I get a burst of energy. It probably has something to do with the whole being part-vampire thing.”

  “It’s certainly handy,” Ethan said.

  “Well, I guess there is a bright side to being cursed, then,” Shadow replied.

  Ethan held up his hands in surrender. “My apologies. I meant nothing by it.”

  “No, it's fine. I know you didn't. It just doesn't ease the bitterness up any. I hate being half-vampire; not really the life I would have chosen for myself, you know?”

  “What's wrong with being practically immortal and having enhanced senses, in addition to super speed and strength? Most would sell their soul for a fraction of the power you have.”

  “Well, I can’t go outside without bursting into flames, which means that I'll never be able to feel the sun on my face. Also, relationships. I can’t date someone…they’ll age and eventually die, and I'll be like this forever. It’s not something I want for myself or anyone else.”

  Ellie’s eyes went wide. It had occurred to her before, what his being half-vampire meant, but the pain of hearing him say it aloud was almost like being stabbed. And she had no idea why.

  “You truly are a romantic,” Ethan said.

  “Maybe I was, once. But I’ve long since given up on good things happening in my future. Love just isn’t for someone like me. The union that brought me into this world is testament to that.”

  “You should never give up on love, Shadow,” Ethan said. “Love is more important than anything in this world.”

  Shadow took in Ethan’s words, but they were little consolation to the pain that stained his heart. How could love be the most important thing when it only caused pain? His mother loving his father is what killed her. He had loved his foster parents, and they were murdered. He shook his head. Love just meant losing people you cared about. It was a distraction he couldn’t afford. “I appreciate your words, but it doesn’t matter. Nothing is more important than what we’re doing right now. We've got to stop this evil…or Earth, as we know it, is done for.”

  Ethan gave him a knowing look and put a hand on his shoulder. “I can sense that you wish to be left alone. I will comply with your wishes.” He left Shadow's side and sat down in the vacant window seat by Crystal.

  Shadow walked over to the empty row adjacent to Ethan and sat in the second seat. He was still a bit wound up by the conversation he just had. And he couldn’t afford the luxury of being wound up when there was a battle ahead of him. Fighting was something he was familiar with and could focus on in order to drown out the mental noise.

  “Hey…. Shadow?” Crystal called.

  Shadow closed his eyes and tried his best to not release the sigh that was threatening to release itself. “Yeah, Crystal?”

  Crystal turned over in her seat so that she was completely facing in his direction. “Listen, I…uh, I’m sorry about earlier. Okay? I was being a brat, and you don’t need to deal with that.”

  Shadow blinked. “Is this really Crystal, or do we have a doppelganger in our midst?”

  “Do you accept my apology?”

  “Oh, yeah, sorry. I zoned out for a moment. Of course I accept your apology, Crystal. I hope you don’t think for a moment that I don’t understand the position you are all in. I’m scared myself. But I promise I’ll do my best for you all as your leader.”

  Crystal nodded and smiled. “I know you will.” She just stared at him for a breath or two, and then her composure cooled down, and she flicked her hair. “That being said, don’t think this means that I’ll just be fine with whatever. For one, I refuse to live in subpar living conditions. We need faster Internet and better snack
s–”

  “Hear, hear,” Ryan said.

  “–and it wouldn’t kill you to add more natural lighting.”

  “Actually, it would,” Ethan pointed out.

  Crystal rolled her eyes. “Oh right, the vampire thing. Oh, well, he’ll figure something out. It’s so dark in that house, it’s like we’re living in a TV show from the 90s!”

  Ethan gave Shadow an apologetic grin. “Alright, Crystal…that’s enough complaints for today. How about you rest until we get there, hmm?”

  Ellie got up and sat in the empty seat next to Shadow, who was still staring dumbfounded at Crystal. “You look like you could use some help.”

  “I think Crystal is the one who could use some help,” Shadow said. “Of the psychological variety.”

  Ellie laughed. “I don’t think it’s psychological. I think it’s just who she is. Besides, you shouldn’t take it so personal, you’ll give yourself an ulcer. Though it is kinda cute how you get so worked up.”

  Shadow sighed and dismissed her attempt at justifying Crystal’s behavior. “Don’t go making excuses for her. She could be less…frustrating if she wanted to.”

  “Maybe,” Ellie said. “But don’t worry too much about it. She’ll come around on her own time. Until then, leave it alone and get some rest. We have a big night ahead of us.” She leaned back in her seat and rested her head on his shoulder.

  Shadow’s eyes widened. He was confused by what was happening. He never had someone fall asleep on him before, and he didn’t know how to react. He couldn’t help but enjoy the smell of her hair. It was vaguely floral and reminded him of freshly-picked oranges. He knew he couldn’t stay there forever, because he would have to land the jet when they approached their destination…but he would cherish every moment until then.

  “Ahoy, Captain, I think we’re here,” Ryan declared about twenty minutes later. He nudged Shadow.

  Shadow’s eyes jolted open. As soon as he became aware of where he was and remembered what he was doing, he realized he had fallen asleep. Sure enough, Ryan was correct. The jet’s system would sound an alert when the destination was near so that if the person piloting it left it on autopilot, they’d know to return for landing. It certainly came in handy. He turned to Ryan. “Thanks for waking me. I didn’t realize I had fallen asleep. I guess I was more tired than I thought.”