Prologue
The slow, cold trickle of sweat ran down the left side of my face and dripped off my chin.
I could feel the hot breath of the darkness blowing on the hairs on the back of my neck. I kept forcing the dead weight of my legs to push past the tiredness and pumping them in a smooth rhythm with my arms. I gasped in shaky, small gulps of air. The Ka’mi stone bounced against my chest in rhythm to the pace that I was frantically sprinting at. The smell of musty, old water mixed with the smell of the Lord of Shadows turned the air rank. I took a quick left into another tunnel and sprinted even faster. I couldn’t see anything since I was underground and the darkness chasing after me crept along the walls, consuming everything in its path, making the tunnels turn black as night.
“ You can’t run from me” moaned the shadows pursuing me. I looked back to see a form slowly emerging out of the darkness. A figure emerged out of the shadows with a skeleton outlining the shape of his body but black gloom leaking out between the bones. He had claws that made up for fingers with black oil dripping off each claw. His head shaped into a triangular form with thick horns coming out of his head. Terror filled my soul, making my sweat run cold and my heartbeat to stop. I turn back around, my hair covering my face. I quickly pushed aside my hair, but not quickly enough to see the split in the ground. Frantically trying to slow down, I fell into the yawning gap of the floor.
“NOOOOO” bellowed the shadows, reaching out with his claws to grab me but he was to late. His powerful echo maked the walls around me tremble. I fell through the crack in the ground and my form immediately went limp, crashing into huge, thick roots that scraped against my skin, leaving behind bloody gashes. As I plummeted towards the ground, the walls started shrinking and the passage kept pushing and cramming my body into a unbreathable hole that I couldn’t get out of . The dirt and roots scraping against my stomach, arms, and legs caused an unbearable pain that rushed through my whole body. I grimaced but scraped against the roots, trying to find a leverage to grasp on to. Immediately I crashed against a wide root that I clung to. My whole figure bent against the impact causing the breath to escape my lungs. Shakily, my body used all my strength to slow the deathly decent. My chest felt the cold, sharp press of my knife that was strapped across it pierce the skin that was right above my heart. I cast my eyes around the dark, dusty walls of the gap. The walls presses into me causing me to wriggle and crushing my bones. I started to suck in air as fast as I could, my heart beat racing even faster then before. My hands pushed against the hard- packed dirt, trying to free myself an inch to move down. Finding no luck, I looked towards the ground. All I saw was pitch black. Suddenly, the walls start shaking. I glanced up to find the darkness ripping small crumbling pieces of the wall to reach me. It’s long, gleaming claws dripping with poison and its yellow eyes, filled with hunger and rage, watching my every move.
“You have nowhere to go Sya’l,” crooned the darkness as pieces of the wall started to fall on me. Eja’lcue was slowly descending to the root I clung to with my life. He wriggled into the small gap that I was in. His sharp fingers kept scraping against the stone, leaving claw marks in his wake. Some of of the walls crumbled onto me and blurred my sight from the darkness. The dirt the trapped me from moving any farther started to crumble and release its hold on me. As Eja’lcue scraped and shoved against the walls, the more the fragments of dirt collapsed. Eja’lcue swiped at me, clawing into my left arm, filling my blood stream with his poison.
“Viuzk!” I cursed in my native tongue. I had no other option but to pray to the ancestors who guided me that they would protect my life just long enough to fulfill my mission. My mouth whispered a quick prayer and released the root. I fell through the narrow gap and my body collapsed to the ground. Dust blew up around my body and I inhaled the sooty air that perforated every inch around me. Violently, I coughed the grim that was inhaled into my lungs. My legs shakily stood up and my eyes examined my body. I winced as I felt the pain in my right leg. I nearly fainted at the sight of the gleaming bone that protruded out of my pants. I had blood that turned black oozing out of the gash on my left arm and it steadily ran down and dripped off my fingers. With my good hand, I ripped the cloth of the bottom off my shirt and tied it with my teeth above the gash a tight bandage to stop the blood from coming out. Already, I could begin to feel my powers mending the external wounds of my body. After I finished with my injuries, I lit a white, beaming ball of light between my hands to guide me through the darkness to my destination.
I cast my eyes around the room that I had landed in. I was in a circular room that was veiled in darkness. The only way in was the gap that I just previously fell through and the only way out was through an arched opening that was even blacker than the room. My vision began to sway from the poison rushing through my veins. I could hear the drip drip drip of water falling from the ceiling over head and smelled the rotten water that was pooling in little puddles that littered the floor. The gap won’t hold Eja’lcue for long. Over time, his power has grown past the normality for average dark lords. He bids his time eating away my people’s power and sucking the life out of the planet I call home, Thesuia. But no more will I allow this to go on any longer. My people have for years been frightened, been threatened,been kidnapped, and been killed. I am the last official blood ruler and heir to the whole planet, Thesuia.
I hesitantly stepped through the arched opening and glanced occasionally backwards to check that the darkness wasn’t behind me. After walking straight through the opening with walls surrounding me, I came upon an opening that contained three tunnels leading in opposite directions. There was one going north, one going east, and one going west. All three are dark, but the farthest right one smells like rotten food that has spoiled in a storage unit for too long, while the middle one was leaking darkness. Tendrils of night would detach and beckoned me to go in to the oozing tunnel of darkness.The farthest left one smells like the planet’s most abundant flower, Vighaleweescue. I knew right there that my ancestors’ tomb was in the right tunnel due to the over flooding feeling of calm, and happiness, and old memories of the past.
Invisible hands pulled my soul towards the entrance of the sweet smelling tunnel. Towards the end of the passageway, I could see the blue glow that was leading me towards the tomb. I closed my hands, ending the ball of light that led me here. Out of nowhere the walls trembled and behind me in the direction I just came from was a bellow that told me that I either hurried or I would be ripped to pieces in several seconds. I limped towards the glowing light that grew with each passing step.
Each step towards the light that would be the determination of whether Thesuia would outlast the buildup of death and power that will devour every living thing in sight or give in to Eja’lcue’s desire to destroy this world of ours. Each step brings unbearable pain that contorts my face in pain, terror, but most importantly determination to finish what was started a millennium ago by my ancestors. I finally reach the end of the passage that opens up into a bright, blinding chamber. I raise my hand to block the bright, blue light from my eyes. Slowly, I blink and my vision comes back to me. I survey the room cautiously. Spaced out evenly are the everlasting torches that burn as long as the ancestors’ spirits are in the tomb. In the whole back wall is filled top to bottom with shelves that contain books and books of our history and how this world came to be. In the center of the room, there is a pentagram of the Ka’mi symbol of our people. In front of the pentagram is a granite table where stories that sacrifices, the Syaleuzgh pairing, and the Via’lcue tecue ceremonies for the ancestors’ passings. The floors are made of dark glass that reflects the image of anyone’s true self, the walls are made of marble that stings anything it touches because of how cold the room is. My quick breaths come out in small clouds. In the left wall there is an opening that leads to rooms for specific purposes. With every second that passes Eja’lcue thunders down the passages, smelling my scent that leads to where I am.
I turn around and see the border of light that stops any darkness from crossing over the line. I reach for the knife that is strapped across from my chest and slice my palm open. I grunt and clench my fist together to draw blood. Once there’s enough blood in my palm, I dip my fingers in the cut, grimace, and trace the pentagram of Ka’mi. Then I trace a over the border of the line in the doorway a symbol that breaks the barrier of light and dark. The symbol is a circle with wavy lines the loop together and criss cross over other loops. I step back and began the enchantment that will capture the darkness in the stone that hangs around my neck.
“Oaleghej Eja’lcue lkuisy teolksy eyepcue viale esteescue!” I repeated this over and over. I didn’t stop, even when I could see the two yellow orbs, or the talons covered in poison. He slowly stepped towards the blinding light. Hissing, he stepped across the border of the of light and darkness into the pentagram of my blood.
“Oaleghej Eja’lcue lkuisy teolksy eyepcue viale esteescue!” Eja’lcue mimicked me. Suddenly, the red of my blood turned bright white, burning away the blood, turning into dried flakes, and, eventually burning it away. The Lord of Darkness screamed, struggling to get out of the trap I had set out for him. The blood from the open cut drips down my fingers and hits the pentagram causing a sizzling noise to emanate. I stare into the eyes of my ancestors’ enemy. One of yellow evilness, the other of green innocence. He grins at me with fangs with the sharpest, yellow points. He flicks his red, pointed tongue over his grimy teeth.
“Oaleghej Eja’lcue lkuisy teolksy eyepcue viale esteescue!” I shout at him. With every chant that I shout, the stone between my breasts grows warmer and the light that’s inside the jewel grows brighter. The Lord struggles against his invisible chains that binds him in place. I sway on my feet, my vision blurring. The Lord chuckles, but then starts shrieking as the enchantment begins to take its toll on Eja’lcue’s body. The glow on the pentagram shines and blinds me from seeing anything. I take a step backwards with my hand rising to protect from the onslaught. I fall to my knees, growing to weak to hold up the body that is slowly decaying from inside out because of the poison in my veins. I fall sideways, but before I was welcomed into the sweet embrace of our ancestors, the last thing my eyes beheld was the empty pentagram that stopped glowing but left permanent burn marks into the ground, the Lord vanishing into the cold stone that was hanging around my neck.
