by C. J. Krüger
The sky is completely black, save for a diamond ring of light around the moon. Tendrils of Light snake out from the ring and grab at Kargon. They lift the body, and I watch in awe as the Abyssal is transformed. A bright light envelops Kargon like a cocoon. His body floats peacefully in the air and I can feel the corruption slowly dissipating until it disappears entirely.
When the light fades away and reveals Kargon, the demon is gone, replaced by his true form. He looks the same as Diarmuid, except his hair is golden and his expression far more serious.
“Evron,” a pair of voices says aloud. “We shall have mercy on you, Our son. Darkness will no longer reign in your heart.”
I watch as his body is lifted into the sky and as the eclipse passes, Evron vanishes. My knees give out from under me and I fall to the earth and weep. Even after all he has done, They still brought him to Their Hall. The love I feel emanating from Them is overwhelming and leaves me a complete mess in the dirt.
A hand is on my shoulder and I look up to see Grandfather standing there. “Well done,” he says, his voice choked with grief. “Evron was many things in life, but I’m glad he died as my brother.”
“I think he wanted to die,” I say softly. “I think that deep within his heart he was conflicted about who he was and wanted me to set him free.”
“That’s a nice thought,” Diarmuid replies. “Come on. The others are waiting for you down below and I should restore Bal-Mora.”
Nodding, I stand and take a deep, painful breath. “Will you help me down? I think I have a few broken ribs.”
“It would be an honor,” he replies and supports me under my shoulder.
I feel a faint surge of his will and then we are in some cave. Before I have a chance to process where I am, I feel arms thrown around me and I am tackled to the ground.
“I was worried about you!” Ayda exclaims and begins to kiss me.
“Ribs,” I grunt. “Broken.”
“Oh!” She chuckles and pats me gently. “Well, they’re already broken,” she murmurs and kisses me again.
I kiss her back, allowing the pain to fade away. The kiss only lasts a moment before we regain our composure and Ayda helps me back up. There is a rumbling sound and we look out from the cave. Atop the bluffs overlooking the valley, we see Bal-Mora restored back in its rightful place.
“That’s amazing,” I say softly. “I can’t believe Grandfather is back. Not to mention the city.”
Ayda nods. “I nearly cried in the middle of battle when he showed up,” she admits. “Azhrav and Athreine, too.”
“Where are they, anyway?” I ask, looking around the cave.
“In the valley, still,” she says. “Diarmuid told me to wait here for you.”
“I guess he’s giving us a chance to be alone,” I say, chuckling. “He has always been thoughtful that way.”
“We should let the others know we’re all right,” she suggests. “Today was a huge victory, Duncan. We destroyed that whole army.”
“Evron, too,” I tell her.
Ayda nods. “Good,” she says spitefully. “He was a monster.”
“He pleaded for mercy in the end,” I say softly. “They reached down from the eclipse and took his body back to the Halls of Light.”
She furrows her brows. “Sometimes, I can’t believe the kind of love They are capable of.”
I nod in agreement. “That’s why it’s so important to share it with everyone. It makes me realize something.”
“What?” she asks curiously.
“The relationship between darkness and light is similar between hot and cold. Cold doesn’t really exist… it’s just a lack of heat. And darkness can only grow if there is a lack of light. As long as we push forward and as long as we believe and shine brightly, the Darkness can never win.”
“That’s a rather cheerful way of looking at it,” Ayda admits and rests her head on my shoulder. “What now, Duncan? With Evron gone and this army destroyed, what now?”
“Do you remember what I told you about those possessed people who attacked me in Arteria?” I say, stroking her back with my fingers.
She nods. “You mean the ones sent by the Mistress of Nightmares? How do you plan on stopping her?”
“I don’t know right now,” I admit. “All of the other demons we’ve encountered have been brutal and combative. This one is subtle and manipulative. We just have to keep vigilant and make sure her influence doesn’t grow.”
Chapter Seventeen
Cheers and laughter echo through the large tavern. Men, Dwarves, and Elves celebrate their victory as one over the demonic hordes. The dragons have left us, going back to the Voidlands, which is almost a shame. I would have liked to speak with them to try and forge a more permanent alliance.
Ayda is sitting with my mother and father and Diarmuid. Of course, Grandfather is having an excellent time, seemingly oblivious to the fact that we all thought he was dead.
“Duncan, old boy,” Azhrav calls out to me. “Why so glum?”
I frown and look at the table. “I really thought he was dead.”
Azhrav chuckles. “To be frank with you, I’m not surprised he isn’t,” he says. “It seems right somehow that nothing can really kill the Old Man.”
“Hey!” Diarmuid shouts. “Who’s calling me old?”
“Me, you pile of dirt,” Azhrav says challengingly. “In fact, you’re older than most dirt is.”
“So are you,” Diarmuid replies. “So where do you get off calling me old?”
“Because you’re the oldest,” Azhrav replies. “It’s really very simple.”
Diarmuid rolls his eyes and then looks at me. “Are you all right?” he asks softly.
I nod and approach the table, sitting down next to Ayda. I take her hand into mine and give her a kiss on the cheek. She smiles at me and leans her head on my shoulder.
“I was just wondering where you were,” I say to Grandfather. “I mean, if you weren’t dead.”
“Here and there,” he replies and shrugs his shoulders. “I’d really rather not talk about it, Duncan. I have lots of beer to drink and retirement to plan for.”
“Retirement?” I ask in surprise. “But—”
“You’re the King now,” he says, a sly smile playing on his lips. “You have my fancy sword and everything. I’m just going to become a lazy old fart and play chess now.”
“I…” the idea seems so ludicrous that I can’t help but laugh. “You play chess for the rest of time? Don’t be ridiculous.”
He laughs with me. “I’m sure I’ll work something out,” he replies. “Anyway, I wanted to talk to you about something.”
I nod and feel Ayda falling asleep in my arms. “What?” I ask, wrapping her up tightly.
“When you killed our wayward brother,” he says, glancing at Azhrav, “You sent quite a shock through the world. Evron was powerful and evil… but not pure evil. Maybe nothing is purely evil except the Void itself, but that’s a debate for another time.”
“Get to the point, Old Man,” Azhrav says, his eyes reflecting worry. “Are you talking about Madushka?”
Diarmuid nods. “I’ve been following her movements for some time now. She’s very, very close to undoing creation.”
“Excuse me?” I ask, my eyes wide. “What does that mean, exactly?”
“I thought I made it very clear,” Diarmuid replies. “Ever since she turned on us, she’s been trying to find a way to bring the Void into a physical form. She’s responsible for Markus going insane.”
My father’s eyes are filled with sorrow and he looks away. Diarmuid frowns and pats him on the back.
“In any case, what I’m trying to say is that she’s close to succeeding this time,” Diarmuid carries on. “I think she’s taking a page out of your book, Duncan. The scribes… you see, they could do just as much harm as good.”
“How?”
“If she corrupts them and gets to them first, and she spreads the worship of the Void across Argurion—nice
change of name, by the way—the Void will be able to take physical form.”
I furrow my brows and grit my teeth. “We can’t let that happen,” I say firmly.
Diarmuid nods. “No,” he agrees. “Luckily for you, there is someone who can find the scribes with ease.”
“You?” I ask hopefully.
“I’m retired, remember?” he says with mock annoyance. “I’m talking about the Nardkin your wife found.”
“The what?” I ask in confusion. “You mean Grank?”
He nods. “The Nardkin are like spiritual bloodhounds. That’s why the Void went out of its way to corrupt them.”
“Hmm,” I say, trying to process what he’s saying to me. “Where do they come from?”
“A world very far away from this one,” is Diarmuid’s reply. “But where they come from is irrelevant. The point is, he can lead you to the scribes. If you can get him over his fear, that is… a fear which I think is justified.”
“I agree with that,” I say softly. “All right… so we have our new task,” I say, feeling better about the situation. The worst is knowing that you need to do something but not having any idea what that something is—at least now I know. “I should get started right away.”
Diarmuid reaches across the table and puts his hand on my shoulder. “No,” he says firmly. “Tonight you’re getting drunk with your grandfather.”
I hope you enjoyed Believe, Book Two of the Champion of Light! Writing this series so far has been a great privilege. Every step of the way, my characters surprise me and I’m so glad to be able to share them with all of you.
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— C.J. Krüger
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Thank you for reading Believe! If you liked it, please remember to leave a review. Also, Remember, Book Three, is available for pre-order on Amazon Kindle!
Table of Contents
Contents
Copyright
Foreword
Chapter One
Chapter Two
Chapter Three
Chapter Four
Chapter Five
Chapter Six
Chapter Seven
Chapter Eight
Chapter Nine
Chapter Ten
Chapter Eleven
Chapter Twelve
Chapter Thirteen
Chapter Fourteen
Chapter Fifteen
Chapter Sixteen
Chapter Seventeen
Links
Book Three on Pre-order