Guardians of the Light

by R L Delaney

  Abbot Hofniel walked over to the bejeweled box, and opened it by pushing on a button that was attached to a spring. Inside the box stood a small flask, containing a colorless liquid.

  He carefully pulled it out and solemnly held it in his hands. "This Elixir…," he said, while his voice choked with emotion, "… is the dew of heaven. This liquid is able to do anything. It can stop wars, it can heal the sick, it can raise the dead… it can do anything." He closed his eyes for a moment as he inhaled the scent that was lingering in the cave. When he opened them again he said with shining eyes, "This Elixir is, simply put, the Spirit of the living God."

  Justin's mouth fell open. "H-How does one get the dew of Heaven?"

  "It's been handed down to us throughout the centuries. We guard it with our lives."

  Amy respectfully bowed her head, almost as if she didn't dare look at something so precious.

  "Yes, Amy," Abbot Hofniel continued as he saw how Amy reacted, "… this Elixir is so precious and so priceless that if the world knew of its existence, they would wage terrible wars in order to get their hands on it. And yet…" he gave them a wry smile, "… it will never do anything for anybody who is not right with the King of Heaven. If godless people were to use the Elixir, nothing would happen. It would be like dishwater. Completely useless."

  "How-How does it work?" Justin asked. "I-I mean… what does it have to do with us?"

  The Abbot smiled. "I'll anoint you with it. Both of you. And then, you will be like the warrior monks of the Order of the Guardians of the sacred Tome."

  Justin hardly dared to say anything, but he had to ask. "Just like that?"

  The Abbot thought for a moment. "Just like that. The power is not in you. It is a gift, except…"

  "Except what?"

  "Only faith in the King of Heaven can activate it. Will you give your heart in service to the King of Heaven, Justin Ames?"

  Justin, surprised the Abbot even knew his last name, blushed. "I-I… eh… How do I do that?"

  "You just ask Him. You surrender. It's that simple."

  Justin could hardly believe the words he had just heard. "But, I can't. I mean, I want to… but I am no good. I don't deserve such a thing as the anointing with the Elixir. I am nothing… I am just a selfish, proud little school boy."

  The Abbot gave him a gentle smile. "You are, Justin. But the King of Heaven loves you nevertheless and He wants to anoint you with the Elixir."

  Justin stared at Amy, and Amy stared at Justin.

  Amy was the first to react. She sank to her knees, bowed her head and whispered barely audible, "I want to Mr. Abbot… I surrender my life."

  For a moment Justin stared at Amy. The way the light of the torch illuminated her hair she almost looked like an angel. He knew she was right, and without fully realizing what he did, he sank down on his knees next to Amy, and said. "Me too. Here I am. I surrender."

  After Harrison had begun to run, out of the corner of his eye he saw the black Chevrolet Impala drive up.

  Where had he seen that car before?

  While he was running, the realization dawned that it was Richard Sternfoot’s car. He remembered seeing that car, crashed against the truck of Joe Mills.

  Sternfoot had arrived…that meant he had to run even faster. He did not care that his lungs were just about to burst and his breathing now came in unusually high gasps, producing a sound he had never before heard coming from his own body.

  Without caring where he ran he stormed forward, street in and street out until he suddenly crashed into something. No, it was into somebody. The impact caused him to roll over on the ground. He heard the Shadow Walker outfit rip while he landed with his legs in a mud puddle. The person he had crashed into let out a surprised grunt and lay sprawled out over Harrison's body.

  With one swift move of his hand, Harrison tore the wretched hood off his head, and stared wide-eyed at the person he had crashed into. He gasped.

  There on the street, looking confused and dazed, lay the strange weirdo he had met before. The one with the long hair and his warning sign on the broomstick, the one he was supposed to arrest. The bearded hippie crawled up and pointed with a trembling finger at Harrison while stammering, "The dark one is coming. Save your children for they will be the first ones to go. The dark one is coming… I can feel it in my bones."

  Then the man turned, grabbed his crumpled warning sign and ran away as fast as he could.

  While Harrison stared after the disappearing figure he shook his head and whispered, "He's right. The dark one is coming. I can feel it not only in my bones… I can feel it all over."

  To be continued…

  Thank you so much for reading, The Shadow Walkers is a four book serial that follows the heightening quest of Justin, Amy and uncle Harry. Get ready for the next instalment, Down The Rabbit Hole…

  Other Books in this series…

  BOOK 1: Shadow Walkers