A Dark Descent

The Sunrise

 Alex woke up on soft ground for the first time. He looked down and he was in his blue blanket with the thousand stars. He looked over and saw the window with the red blanket sat next to it. He then looked ahead and saw a black stone glowing in front of him. The glow grew out and a young man appeared. He was a lizard and looked older than all the other kids, but not over 30 like the parents.

21-ish Alex thought.

"Hello there." The man said.

"Hi, you must be the older brother." Alex said,

The man nodded. "How are the others?"

"Here, they're all safe now." Alex took the bag next to him and put the stones in front.

"Thank you so much." He said and laid his hands on the stones.

Alex looked out the window.

"Where did the moon go?" He asked.

"It went dormant." The man replied. "And all the other monsters have disappeared back into the underworld."

"You mean, the well?"

"Yes, I guess you could say that." The man looked out the window too. "It's only one of ten openings. To the underworld."

Alex walked to the mirror.

"Hey, what about the stone with the slit in it?"

"It was destroyed along with everything else that the underworld created." He looked deeper into the woods. "Or should I say, everything the underlord created."

"Underlord?"

"Or puppet master is what we sometimes call him or her."

"You mean the thing that turned you into a monster?"

"Not just that, but killed my family in the first place."

"Thats horrible." Alex felt his gut wrench. "Is it also the one that took my mother?"

"Probably." The man said. "We don't know who or why it's doing this to people." They both paused to contemplate. "When I was alive, 100 years ago I think, I heard a story from an elder who talked about an evil spirit lurking in the underworld that feasted on innocent people in all different manners. In different realities, different times."

"Before now?"

"Before now, after now, during now." The man said. "It's always happened."

"Why hasn't it stopped."

"Because the hero didn't save the day, however they were supposed to do it."

"But, I saved everyone, does that mean it's over?"

"I hope so."

The both looked down in dread and hope.

"How did the woman know about these stories."

"She was told to them by spirits from the river. Those who had failed in stopping evil. Some were boys, some were girls. They all were different, but still strongly connected. A mixture of innocence and evil. The more of them that came, the more they got better at being good."

Alex smiled.

"So, since you were the last one, does that mean they're back?"

"Yes, your mother and friends are perfectly fine."

"What day is it?"

"The day before everything started."

They both smiled and the spirit disappeared leaving a black stone in the pile. Alex picked up his sword and back with the stones only in the bag. He walked downstairs and saw his mother sleeping on the couch. He dropped his bag and sword and hugged her softly, laying next to her on the couch, never going to let go ever again. A tear rolled down his fur as his smile nearly reached the stars.