Sentria: The Knight Prince (Book 1)

Chapter Twenty-Four: Shadows

The traveling merchant was thankful for the recovery of his pet. Tears welled up in his eyes and he was nearly beyond words. To show us his appreciation, he gave us a bundled tent for our trouble that can be folded as small as a medium-sized bag and we continued our journey.

It took half the day to make it to the Ancient Road that led to the Winding Forest. We stopped by a creek further down and I washed myself and my clothes to get rid of the mud I was covered in thanks to Roscoe. I gave Brio the time to snack on grass and Eldwyn lightly laughed at my misfortune. I jokingly glared at him and he muffled his laughs in an effort to spare me at least some indignity. I took off my new armor and hung my gray tunic over a tree branch to dry and we sat on a nearby hill eating our bread. The hill overlooked the trembling trees and the rocks that jutted out from the creek like crooked teeth. Beauty in its simplest form.

"It shouldn't be long now," said Eldwyn, "less than a day."

I nodded and said, "Once we get to the entrance of the Winding Forest, we'll rest, then continue on to arrive in the morning."

"That's a good idea." Eldwyn smiled and nibbled his bread.

"Does your village have powerful magic weaponry we can use?" I asked.

"No, we avoid violence when we can. We are peaceful."

"Then what will your master have to offer us? How do we defeat the Oblivion Witch if we don't have powerful weapons?"

"He has knowledge," said Eldwyn, as if that was all it took to defeat such a wicked foe.

I stared at him, stunned. "The Oblivion Witch has the power to manifest a tower overnight that reaches into the sky. Words won't be enough to thwart her."

"It's like a painting."

"What?" I turned to Eldwyn, raising an eyebrow.

"This view. The greens, the browns, the blues, and golds. It's so beautiful like a painting. It's almost unreal." His eyes glistened with such hope, as if there was no darkness in the world, only good, and it made me want to see the world in the same way.

"Yes, it is."

Once my clothes were dry enough, we traveled further down the road. Dusk would come hours later and the sun cast the greenish-gold nature in a deep shade of red, a harsher hue that heralded the coming darkness.

We came to a wooden bridge over a small stream that looked old and familiar somehow, like a forgotten dream only remembered years after you've had it. It was the entrance to the Winding Forest and while I was relieved, it felt anti-climactic.  I expected some pearled gate with high arches and relics to greet us singing songs of merriment, but there was only a trail into a green forest like any other forest.

"Don't be fooled," said Eldwyn. "It is no ordinary forest. The winds shift and it changes its shape."

The Ancient Road led to the bridge and as we crossed it, the hairs on my neck stood on end, as if my body knew something before my mind did. Brio stopped without my order and I looked down at him. "Brio, go," I said. He didn't respond. "Brio, go!" He wouldn't obey. I dismounted to correct the matter, but as I reached for his neck, a blade as black as night cut the space in front of me. I jumped back and looked at the assailant. I had to blink many times before I could believe what my eyes saw. It was...a shadow in the form of a man. A creature made of pure darkness. It was unnatural like a hole had been ripped in reality. I took out my sword and swiped at it, nervously, pushing it back. Brio snapped out of his trance and neighed in fear, standing on his hind legs and threw Eldwyn off of him.

"Aah!" yelled Eldwyn as he fell on the wooden bridge. I wanted to run to his side, but I needed to take care of this shadow daemon first.

"Away!" I said, swiping again. My form was lacking. This shadow creature was terrifying, but I I couldn't let it overtake me. It felt unholy. A dark energy emanated off of him like a cruel heat that infected the mind and distorted the world around us. It needed to die and I needed to kill it.

It sliced its black blade down at me with both of its hands. I reached behind my back and used my shield to block it and when it connected it repelled him back with a blast of blue energy. The seller must have been right, this shield was enchanted. I moved closer to it and from behind my shield, I slashed at its arm and it cut through it like light through mist. I slashed again at its head and it did much of the same. I was affecting it, but it kept materializing back to its vile form. The shadow daemon backed up and shot a ball of shadow at me from its free hand. The shield absorbed the blast but the force of it still threw me back. The blue energy must only affect physical attacks. I knew that I wasn't going to win this way and I needed to find another approach.

The shadow daemon took slow steps toward me, as if it was relishing a meal before a kill, and I moved backward in a seated position keeping my eyes on it in case it struck again. I pushed myself up to my feet, keeping my shield in front of me, and said:

"Danos! Danos! Hear my prayer! Save me from this great despair. Let fire rain and cleanse the land, and cast out evil with steady hand!"

The shadow daemon shrieked and looked up at the sky as if it was pleading for mercy. I leaped forward, striking a devastating blow where its' hearts should have been, and it dispersed like vapor. I looked around in all directions, making sure it was gone, then I ran to Eldwyn's side.

"Eldwyn! Are you fine?" I asked, holding his head gently in my hand.

He blinked a few times and said, "Did you defeat it?"

"I think so," I said. "You're safe."

"That song was beautiful."

"It was a prayer...it gave me courage when I needed it."

"It did more than that. There is power in words and the shadow daemon couldn't resist it. Goodness won."

I looked out of the corner of my eye and saw an orange wood fox staring at me from the other side of the bridge. It was still and it felt like it was staring straight into my soul, as if it knew what was to come.