Darkness Within

by Carli Castle

  Jaleil, Caleb’s second counselor, took his seat by Caleb and nodded at Lucas in greeting. He was an older man with dark skin and dark eyes. He was funny and had a nice disposition most of the time. Lucas really liked him. He appreciated a good attitude in people. Too bad he didn’t see Jaleil outside of the council, but he had a family, so it wasn’t like he had a lot of time outside of work.

  “Good morning everyone,” Caleb said over the low chatter. “I am sure everyone knows at this point what happened yesterday.”

  There were nods and murmurs. Lucas didn’t dare look up, mostly because he didn’t want to seem like he needed people’s pity. The focus needed to be on Lana and her family, not him.

  “We still don’t have any leads,” Caleb continued, answering the silent question of who’d done it. “I had a talk with a forensic practitioner and there is no reason to believe it was done by an animal because of the markings on the body.”

  “What is the official cause of death,” Princess Harper asked, her brow furrowed deeply.

  Caleb looked at her and took a deep breath, looking disturbed.

  “The official reason of death was extreme blood loss.” Caleb paused, took a breath, and looked at everyone. Lucas braced himself, because he knew there was a lot more to it.

  But it wasn’t Caleb who spoke next. It was David Asher, Crown Prince of Cionaodh. He was a Phoenix, a race of people who were able to be reborn from their ashes. Lucas had heard it was quite painful to be reborn and wondered if Prince David, or Ash, as he liked his friends to call him, had done it at all.

  He was tall, taller than everyone else in the room, lean, and muscled, and had dark blond hair. Being from Cionaodh meant he was an excellent martial artist, since hand to hand combat was embedded into Phoenix genetic makeup. Lucas was highly jealous of that. Ash’s most interesting feature were his eyes, which shifted color depending on his mood. Right then they were dark.

  “What kind of injury was it, Caleb,” Ash asked. His voice was clear and deep, carrying all around the quiet room.

  Caleb looked straight at Ash, then looked down.

  “It was a wound to the chest.” Caleb swallowed. “Smooth, with no jagged edges, and her heart was gone.”

  “What?” Lucas didn’t know why his voice was so loud. Everyone else was quietly stunned.

  “That doesn’t make sense,” Prince Olon, the dark elf from Dhara, said in a deep baritone.

  He had almost completely black skin, blue eyes, and long, red hair. He was tall and thin with long, pointy ears poking through his hair, which was held back at the nape of his neck. He had a delicate, golden headpiece with an intricate design resting against his high forehead, right above his straight brows. He was the youngest brother of the King of Dhara. “I understand Lucas found her?”

  Lucas looked at the man and nodded.

  “I’m sorry you had to endure that,” Prince Olon said and Prince Noren, who was sitting a few chairs down from him, scoffed. Olon regarded him mildly. “You have something in your throat?”

  “It’s not like he’s related to the girl,” Prince Noren said in a stiff voice.

  “Maybe I just have a little more empathy for a human being finding something so traumatic on his way to work, Aldalinde.” The way Prince Olon said Prince Noren’s last name sounded so condescending Lucas wanted to cringe and sink into his chair.

  “You dare mention my family name with your dirty mouth, dark elf,” Noren spat.

  Caleb lifted his hand, shutting his eyes tight. “Gentlemen, please. Today is not the day,” he said, not raising his voice. They were used to the arguments between Prince Noren and Prince Olon, and it was normally quite entertaining, but today was not the day. This was not the meeting for it.

  Prince Noren glared at Caleb, and he glared right back.

  It was just too bad the two elven races couldn’t start getting along. Lucas imagined it would make a world of difference during meetings without those two spitting racial slurs at each other. Or, mostly Prince Noren throwing them at Prince Olon, and the latter one snarling some insult. It was entertaining and sad all at the same time.

  “Is there something you would like to tell me, Prince Noren,” Caleb asked. Prince Noren was breathing heavily, nostrils flaring, his eyes piercing Caleb.

  In all the years Lucas had known Caleb, since he was seven years old, he had never seen him back down from confrontation. He was not afraid to say whatever was on his mind.

  Prince Noren finally looked away.

  “Maybe it was a Shadow,” Daniel Anderson suggested after brief silence.

  Daniel was a human sorcerer, meaning he was born with full magical powers to sleeper, or non-magical parents. He lived in the sleeper realm and represented all human sorcerers in the council. He was a quiet guy most times, and had an intelligent aura about him. He always spoke quietly and his words always seemed to make sense, no matter how crazy it seemed. He wasn’t extremely tall, maybe around Lucas’ height, maybe an inch shorter. He had dark hair that he kept short, and he was always very well groomed, though he dressed in a relaxed manner, usually in jeans and t-shirts. Lucas didn’t know a whole lot about Daniel’s life, because he was so private about his life in the sleeper realm.

  A reluctant laugh went through the room.

  If Lucas recalled correctly, and he was almost positive he did, Shadows were nothing but a myth, according to Esmeraldan history. He would have to read all of it again, because it was a subject not many people touched, since it was uncomfortable for some, and stupid to others.

  Very few claimed it as true and the ones that did were usually ridiculed for it.

  Most of it consisted of the story of four witch goddesses. One went rogue, killed two of her sisters to take their powers. The last sister brought her in front of the highest council and she was banished.

  The legend told that the banished sister became a dark entity that would possess the bodies of others to obtain powers that were taken from her.

  It was crazy in Lucas’s opinion to imply that Shadows would be roaming the earth to kill people, ripping out their hearts, where their powers resided, to claim their powers.

  The way Lana had been killed fit, however, and it made him uneasy.

  “That’s insane,” Aali sneered, echoing the same words going through Lucas’s head.

  “How so,” Princess Harper inquired and blushed a sweet shade of pink when all eyes turned to her. “I just mean that those stories were supposed to be history, and Demetria’s words a prophecy.”

  “Oh dear,” Aali murmured, rolling his eyes.

  “Are you actually saying you believe those stories about fallen goddesses and shadows,” Prince Noren asked her, looking incredulous.

  “I don’t see why they’re so crazy,” Princess Harper said, her voice shaking a little.

  “That’s just crazy.” Prince Noren chuckled.

  “Is that a way to talk to the lady,” Prince Olon snapped and Prince Noren flushed nearly as dark as Harper had. She was looking down at her lap.

  “Maybe mind your own business,” Prince Noren replied angrily at Prince Olon, though he wouldn’t look at Harper.

  “I think it fits,” Princess Harper finished, her voice a lot lower now, like she was ashamed of speaking up. Lucas felt horribly for her.

  “With all due respect, Princess Harper, those things were written over two decades ago, and nothing has ever happened. According to it, Esmeralda should be full of those shadows by now,” Jaleil input, his voice calm.

  “I’m with Princess Harper on this one,” Daniel said. He stood, seemingly unable to remain sitting any longer. “I don’t believe they were just spooky stories historians decided to add to their writings. How does that make any sense?”

  “How do you think what you’re saying right now makes any sense,” Aali barked.

  “How do you explain Lana Juren’s soul not coming back?” Daniel threw up his hands, glaring at Aali.

  “What would that have anything to do with the
stories,” Prince Noren asked Daniel. “There is nothing in them that suggest souls wouldn’t be able to return if murdered by one of those creatures.”

  There was a silence with that declaration. It was true. It was weird Lana’s soul was quiet, and nothing in any of the magic books Lucas had ever read suggested of any reason why that would happen.

  “We’re not here to talk about who believes what,” Caleb said as he stood. “Right now, we have no clue of who or what could have done this, and we need to find out before we can make any decisions or reach a conclusion. As the council, that is our main task from this day forward.”

  Lucas caught Caleb’s eyes, made a gesture with his hands, as if asking him quietly what the deal was, but Caleb looked away without acknowledging it. He was obviously not going to fill Lucas in.

  “Now that you have been informed of it, I ask that you inform your islands of what happened. I’m sure most have probably heard of it through the vine, but they need to hear it from the source. Also, no talk of Shadows and Goddesses for the time being. This meeting is adjourned.”

  Prince Noren was the first one up and out of the room. Lucas remained behind as everyone trailed out. Princess Harper nodded once when she passed him and he nodded back in response.

  He looked back at Caleb and wished he could read his mind. Did Caleb believe in the prophecy, or was he on the other side of the fence? Either way, Lucas would have to read everything he could find on it. There was no way around that for him.

  Caleb sighed. “I’m going to have to go see King Patrick again.”

  “What for?” Lucas stood when Caleb did.

  “To talk to him about Daniel’s suggestion.”

  “So you actually believe his claim could have a basis in truth?” Lucas stopped and so did Caleb. “Darkness and Shadows like the stories mom used to tell us.”

  “I don’t know what to think at this point,” Caleb said. “As I said before, we can’t assume that’s what’s happening here, but we also can’t assume otherwise. We have to find out the facts.”

  Lucas didn’t say anything else. All he wanted to do was start investigating and learning more about the whole thing.

  “All right, I guess I get to go back and answer letters for the rest of the day. Goodie.”

  They stopped at the front doors.

  “Why don’t you take the day off,” Caleb suggested.

  “Are you kidding?”

  “Am I ever?”

  “Good point.”

  Caleb cocked his head. “Maybe you can go catch up with Elle.”

  “Would you stop it already,” Lucas snapped, annoyed that he kept being teased for talking with a girl. What were they, seven?

  “Elle?” Callie was standing behind them. “Who’s Elle?”

  Lucas’s heart gave a great lurch as he and Caleb turned to look at Callie. She looked confused, with her small smile frozen on her face.

  “Um…” Lucas’s tongue became too big for his mouth. Why else couldn’t he say anything? Caleb elbowed him on the rib, making it more impossible for him to talk.

  “Elle is just this super available girl my dear brother just met recently.” Caleb smiled, slapping Lucas’s back, and Lucas pinched him under the arm. Caleb made a noise of pain, but Lucas didn’t even look at him.

  “Oh. Okay, then.” Callie’s smile slipped off her face. “Have a nice day,” she said and went back to her desk and sat. Her face was a little pink, and she did not look up again, burying her face in the countless letters on her desk.

  Caleb threw him a sideways glance and lifted a brow.

  Lucas wanted to apologize to Callie, though he didn’t really know why. He didn’t owe her anything.

  Maybe it’s because you led her on by flirting for months, and now that she asked you out, you’re not interested, he told himself. He felt like such a jerk as he followed Caleb out and down the front stairs.

  “Now you don’t have to turn her down.” Caleb turned to him.

  “That was not the way to do that.” Lucas wanted to punch him. “You should have stayed out of it.”

  “Hey, I was just trying to help you out,” Caleb said.

  “I do not need you to help me out with my love life.”

  “You mean the lack of it, right?”

  “Well, we can’t all be you, now can we,” Lucas said and Caleb’s eye twitched. It was the telltale sign that he had struck a nerve. “You do not see me getting into your personal business with Princess Harper. Stay out of mine.”

  “There is nothing going on with her,” Caleb said.

  “Oh, please, and that little thing earlier was just nothing?” Lucas scoffed. “I’ll pretend I believe you.”

  “There is nothing going on,” Caleb insisted.

  “Okay, go to the palace, Caleb, I have things to do.”

  “All right, fine. I’m sorry about the Callie thing,” Caleb said as he started to walk away.

  Lucas turned to him.

  “If mom would have witnessed that, she would have hosed you down with ice water and then spanked your ass with rubber. And I don’t mean the Callie thing.”

  “Look, Harper and I have an understanding.”

  “Whatever you say. I’m going home to read,” he called as he began to walk again. “Be careful at the palace, others might be able to sense the sexual tension between you two.”

  “All right, I’m leaving,” Caleb called after him and Lucas stopped and turned to him.

  “Be safe,” he yelled, knowing Caleb would pick up on the double entendre.

  “I’m not listening to you.” Caleb was starting to become annoyed now and Lucas saw that as a victory.

  “Cold showers work wonders,” Lucas called back as Caleb teleported away. He started walking toward the forest, deciding to put the conversation aside, but smiling because he’d gotten to Caleb. It was a good day when Lucas was able to rile his older brother, since that did not happen often at all.

  He teleported home, deciding that it wasn’t going to be just any day off from work. He was going to do what he did best, which was reading and trying to figure things out. And maybe write Elle a letter or two.

  Chapter Five

  As Lucas went to do his investigations, Caleb, trying not to be too annoyed at him, teleported to the palace for the second time that week. On a normal week, he would probably visit once, sometimes none at all.

  Why? There was only one answer to that: Princess Harper Dahl.

  That day wasn’t the good day he’d desperately wanted it to be after the happenings of the previous one. He hadn’t had much hope for it to begin with, but this was just awful. He had no idea what to do, and he hated feeling that way. It was especially hard when people were looking to him for answers.

  In moments when he felt like that, he began to question everything, from the High Priests’ decision to let King Patrick choose him as president of the council to where he was supposed to go from there. It was his job to know what to do, where to go, who to talk to.

  Now, someone had been murdered and he was stumped.

  He chose to announce himself to the two knights that guarded the entrance of the palace, though he had clearance to teleport straight to the front door. Maybe he just needed some time to prepare for the conversation with King Patrick, and for the possibility of seeing Harper in the palace, as well.

  He thought of King Patrick, the man that had put so much faith in him the man, other than his father, that had mentored him, given him the chance to prove himself to those that didn’t think he would ever get anywhere in life, because he was an orphan, because he was born from a race that hated mixing itself with anyone outside of their own. Whether he was half-dark elf or half-light elf, he had no idea, his human half was the only thing he knew for sure, mostly because of his ears. While normal elves’ ears were long and pointed, Caleb’s looked a lot more human with a tiny point at the ends.

  And yet, despite being, quite obviously, an elf, he wasn’t accepted in neither Dhara nor Meira,
least of all Meira, with their ridiculous hang ups about their people mating with other races. Most of the people didn’t care, but with Kings that lived for hundreds of years, those things didn’t really change. So Caleb was nothing more than the abomination they all wanted to avoid, someone that was neither here nor there. A half breed, like he’d heard for as long as he could remember.

  The two guards at the gate identified him by checking his golden tattoo and allowed him to go up to the front doors.

  At least King Patrick thought he was doing a great job and Caleb appreciated the man’s faith in him, even at that moment, when he felt so helpless and useless.

  Caleb had met King Patrick when he’d still lived at the orphanage. He had been six years old and had just gotten in a fight with another boy who had called him a half breed, something that had been a giant insult to him at that time in his life, before he was able to control himself and his emotions. He’d been called that many times since then, but the first time it happened he’d bloodied the other boy. Word went around that he’d loosened some teeth, but he wasn’t sure that was true. And King Patrick had been understanding, had talked to him about it, made him feel like a person for the first time in his life.

  Soon after that, he’d met Lucas. It was one day when Caleb had escaped the orphanage to walk around town, something he didn’t get to do often. Lucas had been walking home from school, when a group of boys started shoving him around. The boys were a lot bigger than Lucas, who had been scrawny and small. Caleb remembered vividly how he’d felt when he’s seen the older boys bothering Lucas. He’d gone straight up to the boys and fought them off Lucas, receiving many punches and kicks, his skin turning black and blue. After, Lucas had taken him home, where his mother took care of Caleb by cleaning him up, and his father had healed him. It was the day his life was changed, because shortly after, the Ferrins had taken him in as one of their own, giving him all the things parents are supposed to give their children—a roof over his head, food on the table, chores, an education. They taught him what it was like to have a family, with brothers that teased him, a mother that chastised when he deserved it, and a father that taught what it was to be a man.