Part One:
The Twilight Swordsman
The Unfinished Prophecy Mini-Serial
Maggie Akhurst
Copyright © 2016 by Maggie Akhurst.
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Publisher’s Note: This is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are a product of the author’s imagination. Locales and public names are sometimes used for atmospheric purposes. Any resemblance to actual people, living or dead, or to businesses, companies, events, institutions, or locales is completely coincidental.
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The Unfinished Prophecy, Part One: The Twilight Swordsman/ Maggie Akhurst. -- 1st ed.
For Bronwyn –
I always promised the first one would be for you,
because you missed out the first time.
1 Cierra
Run!
That was the one thought echoing through Cierra Farrow’s mind. Something was chasing her. She didn’t even know what it was. All she knew for certain was that she was in danger.
Deep grunts from behind her spurred her on faster. The ground was rough and stony and kept tripping her up. There was no cover anywhere, not even a rock in this barren wasteland. No matter how far she ran, her surroundings didn’t change. She didn’t seem to be going anywhere.
She skidded to a halt, panicked. A huge chasm gaped before her. She choked back a heaving sob, refusing to admit defeat here. There had to be a way across. Maybe a bridge, a chair lift, a huge, magical flying bird... anything.
Her breath came in gasps as she scanned the area. She inched forward and peered over the edge. The drop spiralled away into darkness, making her feel light-headed.
She spun around as the grunts built into a deafening roar. Something huge and black was lumbering towards her. Fiery red eyes glared at her maliciously.
This thing was going to kill her.
How did I get into this mess? Cierra asked herself. What did I do? She didn’t have the time to think about it. The beast was almost upon her. It swiped at her and she lurched backwards involuntarily.
A mistake.
Too late, she remembered the sheer drop behind her. She teetered on the edge, windmilling her arms, trying desperately to regain her balance. It was useless. The ledge crumbled beneath her weight and she tumbled into the void.
She started into wakefulness, feeling as if she’d just fallen into her bed. She sat up, panting hard, a little bit disorientated. Only a dream – or rather, a nightmare.
She looked around her room, feeling the familiarity of it all calm her down. The room was sparsely furnished with very few personal items. As a foster child, there wasn’t much you could hang onto when you moved frequently. All the foster families she’d had were nice enough, but they were no substitute for the parents she’d lost.
She lay back down, breathing slowly and deeply. All her nerves were on end. She looked at the glow-in-the-dark hands of her alarm clock; two thirty in the morning. The house was quiet. She settled back into the sheets and rubbed the charm bracelet that had belonged to her mother. It usually gave her some comfort, but this time she still felt uneasy. She tried to tell herself that it was the after-effects of the nightmare, but she felt almost as if ... there was something in the room with her.
Her eyes darted around the room. Had that shadow in the corner always been there? Or the dark lump by the chest of drawers? Or the two glowing points of red light near the curtains?
She stared at the two little lights. They didn’t move. She couldn’t figure out what they were, but they weren’t doing anything. She started to calm down.
The lights blinked out of existence for a second, then back again. Cierra’s heart missed a beat.
She must be dreaming still. Those two little lights looked exactly like the eyes of the monster in her dream. Her mind tried to tell her that it was impossible, but every sense in her body told her otherwise. She stayed very still and tried not to breathe too loudly.
The lights blinked again. With a yelp, she reached for the switch to her bedside lamp.
Her hand never made it to the lamp. Something huge leapt at her, grabbing her up and throwing her against the wall. The breath was knocked from her lungs and she fell to the floor, silent, unable to draw air to make another sound.
The beast stood over her, eyes pulsating angrily. Beyond those, she could faintly make out the outline of a large, misshapen beast. She had no idea what else to call it. It certainly wasn’t human and didn’t resemble any animal she knew.
She had to be dreaming. She pinched her leg hard and winced. The eyes were still there, staring at her, daring her to make a move. Cierra felt almost hypnotised as she stared back.
They flickered away from her for a moment, distracted. A tearing noise filled the room and behind the creature, a hole in the air seemed to wrench itself open. Another shadow stepped through it and the hole resealed itself.
The monster turned away from her and focused on this newcomer. The strange new shadow was a threat to it, or at the very least, a challenger, and the beast seemed hesitant, not sure if it wanted to engage in combat with it. Cierra didn’t care who or what the shadowy figure might be, as long as it could get rid of the nightmare.
“How often must I chase after you filthy creatures?” said the new shadow with a sigh. It was definitely a male voice. Human too, which was some relief. “Isn’t it enough that you’ve taken over our world? Why do you need this one too?”
The monster growled in response and its gaze swung back to Cierra, making sure she hadn’t moved. It needn’t have worried. Her legs wouldn’t have cooperated with her brain anyway. They were quite happy to stay weak with fear.
The monster’s movement made the stranger aware of Cierra’s presence.
“I see what you’re up to. Terrorising some poor young girl. You really shouldn’t have done that.” His voice took on a dark tint of anger.
In the dimness of the room, Cierra could just make out the stranger’s hand moving to his hip. Something hissed and she tensed up until she realised that it was the shadow drawing a sword. The monster growled a warning. The shadow chuckled wickedly.
“Was that a threat? Scary stuff.” He swung his sword around casually as he continued to speak. “I’m not an unreasonable man. I’ll give you a choice. Leave now, without harming the girl, and I won’t follow you for a good couple of minutes. Otherwise...” The sword came to a sudden stop, glinting ominously in the faint light from the window. It pointed directly at the monster’s centre. “Otherwise, it’s goodbye nightmare.”
The monster reared away from the razor-sharp blade. It kept an eye on the swordsman, before glancing quickly at Cierra. It seemed to be weighing its options.
With startling speed, the creature leapt at Cierra and grabbed her in a rough hold, claws at her throat. A frightened gasp escaped her. The monster snarled at the swordsman; the me
aning was clear. One more move and the girl gets it.
The swordsman seemed mildly surprised. “So that’s the way it going to be then. Well, you’ve brought this upon yourself.”
He started to swing his sword around in a complicated pattern. It whirred through the air, blurring into a continuous gleam in the darkness. Cierra winced. The monster’s grip tightened as it tried to concentrate on the deadly blade. She struggled to pull air into her constricted throat.
The swordsman lunged, swinging his sword. The beast managed to avoid the worst of the blow, but the blade sunk deep into its forearm. It howled in rage and held Cierra even tighter, cutting off her air supply completely. She struggled to get out of its grasp. Sharp pain seared through her neck as a claw punctured the tender skin.
The sword cut through the air again. The monster went to block it, but the swordsman feinted and came from a different angle. The monster had no chance. The blade bit into its leg. The monster was furious now, growling ferociously. Its grip on Cierra didn’t loosen for a second. She could feel herself slipping into unconsciousness as her lungs screamed for air.
The swordsman came again and through the fog clouding her mind, Cierra saw the sword aimed straight at her. At least this death would be quicker than strangulation.
She underestimated the skill of the stranger. The sword passed her harmlessly, plunging instead into the heart of the monster. The stranglehold was instantly released and she gasped for air, stumbling away from the creature. Her rescuer caught her and held her steady. Behind her, she heard the beast flailing around, screaming in rage and pain. She felt the swordsman do something with his sword and a deafening silence fell. She didn’t turn around.
The swordsman held her for a minute until she felt steady enough to stand alone. She moved back a step, glancing quickly at the monster. Strangely, it had started to disintegrate into a fine black mist and in a matter of seconds there was nothing left.
The man studied her. “Are you okay?”
She nodded. Then shook her head. Then shrugged. “I’m not sure. I’m alive, so I guess that’s a start.” She fought to keep the quaver out of her voice, but only half succeeded.
The shock was slowly starting to come over her and she wobbled over to her bed and sat down. She flicked the switch on her lamp and the room was bathed in a soft, comforting glow. She glanced back at her saviour.
He didn’t look that much older than her fifteen years – around sixteen or seventeen perhaps. She had expected someone with that kind of skill with a sword to be much older. Swords were definitely not very common these days. He was wearing a black uniform of some kind, with a light blue cape draped over his shoulders. It was fastened at his throat with a clasp inscribed with a ‘P’.
His hair was definitely his most interesting feature. It was a curious light grey, almost silver, but without looking old. Darker greys streaked through it and it was longer than most boys wore their hair.
She took a steadying breath. “What was that thing? How did it follow me out of my nightmare? Am I still dreaming?”
The swordsman stared at her, puzzled. “Follow you? You must have been dreaming about something else. That monster was real and it came from my world. Maybe you subconsciously sensed it and it translated into your nightmare?”
A twinge accompanied by throbbing in her neck reminded her of the claw wound. She gingerly touched the spot, her fingers coming away slick with blood.
The swordsman hurried over, muttering what sounded like a curse under his breath. “I didn’t mean for it to harm you. Sorry.” He inspected the wound, wiping away the blood with a tissue from the box on the bedside table. After a moment, he stepped away. “Only a scratch. Most of the bleeding has already stopped. You’ll live.”
“Who are you?”
He smiled wryly. “No one to worry about. Go back to sleep now. By the time you wake up tomorrow, this will all simply be a part of your nightmare.” He turned away. “Sweet dreams, Cierra.”
She blinked. “How...?”
The swordsman pulled a pocket watch from under his cloak. He flipped it open and fiddled briefly with something inside. Another rend in the air appeared and he walked through it without a backward glance.
“Wait!” Without thinking it through, she jumped off the bed and through the tear just as it was closing.
She landed slightly off-balance on the other side of the gaping hole. She managed to keep from falling by grabbing hold of the swordsman’s shoulder.
The sight that greeted her made her forget everything else. A strange sort of constant twilight hung over everything. It was like it was night time, but with no moon or stars. The shadows seemed very dark and threatening, almost alive. Looming shapes in the gloom that were impossible to identify sent shivers up her spine. She involuntarily tightened her grip on the young man’s shoulder.
“What do you think you’re doing?” he demanded.
“Steadying myself,” she replied, letting go of him.
“No, I meant what do you think you’re doing by coming through the Dusk Passage?”
“You mean that rip in the air? I was following you, of course,” she retorted. “I would have thought that much was obvious.”
He gave an exasperated sigh. “You can’t be here. It’s not allowed.”
Cierra put her hands on hips. “Let me get this straight. You can come to my world, but if I want to come to yours, there’s a problem?”
“I was saving your life,” he pointed out.
“So? Maybe I’ll save yours.”
The swordsman rolled his eyes. “Unlikely.”
She ignored him. “Besides, I have questions that need answering.”
He raised a cynical eyebrow. “Oh, really? Such as?”
“Such as how do you know my name? You said my name back there,” she accused, pointing a finger back in the general direction where the Dusk Passage had been.
“It was written above the school photo of you in your room.”
“That’s it?” She’d been hoping for something more... exciting. “What’s your name?”
“Dru.”
She waited for him to elaborate. When he didn’t, she tried again. “Who are you, really?”
“No one. If that’s all, I’ll take you back now.”
“No!” she replied immediately. “I don’t want to go ba– I mean, I have more questions!”
He waited.
“Uh... what was that thing back there? Why was it attacking me? How did it escape from my nightmare?”
He sighed. “I’ve told you already, that monster didn’t come from your nightmare. It was just a coincidence that it happened to attack you at that time. Or as I suggested earlier, you may have sensed the danger subconsciously.”
“What was it then?”
He considered her for a moment, then shrugged, as if deciding that there was no harm in telling her. “They are called Darkness creatures. They’re everywhere in my world. The most common ones are Darkness wolves, but the thing that attacked you was a fair bit bigger than the average wolf. Probably a merging of several creatures.” He paused. “Any more questions, or can I take you back now?”
She was spared having to answer by a muted beep. Dru exclaimed in annoyance and pulled the pocket watch from his cloak. He flipped it open and read something inside, then glared at her. “Now you’ve really gotten us in trouble. Hold onto me.”
“Why? Are you going to make me go back?” she asked, warily.
Dru didn’t bother answering. He grabbed hold of her arm and opened a new Dusk Passage. For a moment, she resisted his tugging, thinking he was taking her back home, but the scenery on the other side was unfamiliar. He stepped through, dragging her with him.
The other side was very similar to the place they had just left. The same twilight hung over everything. The only difference was that this place looked more populated. It was definitely a town, maybe even a city, but everything was quiet. No shops or stalls were open and the windows of most houses wer
e nailed shut. The buildings themselves had been carved out of the rock surrounding them, with wooden doors and window shutters. They towered over her and Dru, with few gaps between the dwellings. Everything seemed crammed together and the road they stood on was narrow. She couldn’t see very far in any direction with the houses crowding in around them. Whoever had created the town had obviously wanted to save themselves the time and effort required to chip away at unyielding stone.
As she gazed around at the odd houses, the occasional person scurried by, keeping their heads down, giving the two travellers a wide berth. Their clothes were drab and grey, almost making the people blend into their surroundings completely.
Cierra felt uncomfortable, realising she was standing there in her purple-and-green striped pyjamas. She stood out like an exotic, strangely coloured flower amongst all the grey stone. She wished she’d brought a dressing gown or jacket to cover them. She crossed her arms instead.
“Where are we?” she asked in a whisper. She felt compelled to keep her voice down. It was so quiet, anything louder than a whisper would sound like a shout. The whole town would hear it.
“This is the border town between this Kingdom and the rest of the land. The Council is set up here to try and prevent the Darkness from spreading to other Kingdoms.” He pointed upwards and ahead of them. “That building there is where we’re headed: the Council Chambers.”
Cierra took a small step to her left and gazed up through a small gap between the rooves of the nearby buildings in the direction Dru had indicated. High above them was a building much larger than those she’d already seen. It was built from the same sort of dark grey stone as the others and had two round towers on either side of it. Full-length windows were obviously designed to let in lots of sunlight, if there had been any to let in. It loomed over the town, as if watching everything that was going on. An uneasy air of menace seemed to emanate from it and Cierra shuddered. She could vaguely make out a wrought iron fence cutting it off from the rest of the town. It didn’t seem like visitors were welcome.
Part One - The Twilight Swordsman (The Unfinished Prophecy Book 1) Page 1