Adventures of the Lightborn Squad

Chapter 7: Lightborn's Blessing

Princess Silvanna refused to believe that the Prince Dyrroth could possibly be anything but a demonic manifestation of evil.

And yet, the moment she laid eyes on him across the battlefield, she knew.

This was no undead puppet. This was her beloved younger brother, Prince Aurrelius. Her brother... alive but in a demon body.

And showing almost no signs of recognition towards her. Instead, the demons regrouped, circling her knights.

Next to her, the five knights who had transformed before her eyes were also regrouping. The Seed of Light had chosen those deemed worthy to protect the Moniyan Empire. The Chevaliers.

"For Moniyan!" she cried, raising her lance. "Attack!"

Almost as one unit, they fell into battle stance, slashing down the many demons that sought to destroy the Moniyan Empire.

"Pitiful," Dyrroth sneered. "Prepare to die!" he yelled as he charged forward to strike. Silvanna was thrown backwards as Tigreal shoved forwards with his shield to absorb the impact, protecting the Princess. She paused.

There was a strange magic that hung in the air. She could sense it. It came from the red crystal on Dyrroth's chest.

She gazed at this crystal, wondering. That red crystal used to hang on a chain necklace and was a royal heirloom, passed down from generation to generation of every male family member. The crystal had been bestowed to Young Prince Aurellius on his first birthday.

But her senses were telling her now that there was something strange, something unusual about this crystal now. She summoned her magic that flowed through her veins and concentrated.

Yes... she could sense that the red crystal contained some kind of dark magic. It sensed... hate. Fear. Anger. Residing inside her brother.

Was this what the Shadow Abyss was using to control him?

She knew what she had to do.

She moved forward, so that only she and Dyrroth were now circling each other.

No hesitation.

She lunged at him, piercing the red crystal that hung over his heart. It shattered into a million pieces.

A chasm opened from the ground the moment the crystal shattered. Dyrroth stumbled backwards, thrown from the impact, and fell, one hand grabbing a ledge, his legs dangling down towards the chasm.

Silvanna gasped as she reached for her brother's hand, even if it meant abandoning her lance. She managed to grab his hand, ignoring the sharp pain shooting up her left side.

His face, the mutilated purple face with red glowing slits for eyes was gone. Instead, the face she saw was young, and honest, open and scared.

"S...sister?" he whispered.

Despite the pain, her heart soared. Her brother has returned.

No.

She watched in horror as the red crystal she had broken with her lance floated in the air, and reformed before their very eyes. Now it was repaired and settled back perfectly on Dyrroth's chest again, as though it had never been broken.

No.

But slowly, Silvanna could see her brother's face twist back into the horrific demon that had burst through the doors of the Imperial Sanctuary. His left hand swung at her, red claws coming up to scratch her face, and she was forced to let go.