I’m sitting in front of a partially played game of chess. My white king stands before a destroyed black pseudo queen. “Congratulations, little Shadow, you have won the battle,” says the voice I’ve been hearing in my dreams. Its golden body shimmers into existence on the other side of the table.
“I know you. You’re Anima.”
Her golden facade melts away, pouring off her like the liquefied metal. I shield my eyes as a blinding white light shines through, making the temperature here spike. She’s like a flame. As the light fades and the temperature becomes comfortable, I begin to make out her features. Her slender face is lit up by a soft, motherly smile that calms my soul. She’s beautiful. Her fair skin is flawless, her hair a shimmering silver, and her eyes are imperial gold. “I’m honored you remember me,” she says with a bow.
“I have all of Kross’s memories. They’re distant, but there. Not to mention the hints you were dropping.” She laughs. “Tell me, why have you done all of this? Why have you put me through all of this?”
She fixes her silken gold and white robes, then waves her hand over the board. The rest of the pieces appear in their designated positions. “Kyle, the only thing I did was help you along and push you in the direction fate was going to take you in time. It’s just that I needed you to get there a little faster.”
“Why me?”
“Because you are The Shadow now.” What is that supposed to mean? She chuckles. “And today, you have won the battle.” The light coming from her dims as her face grows grim. “But I am sad to say that the war has just begun. Now rest, you’ve earned it.”
“Wait, please. I still have questions.”
She puts her hand up, and my voice stops working. “Another time, Shadow.”
I’m blasted with a blinding flash of light.
I wake up coughing, face-down on a bed of grass. My entire being aches. With what little strength I can muster, I roll over onto my back. The morning sky is bright and blue. Birds fly overhead, singing the most beautiful song. This is a dream. I take a deep breath. The air is fresh and kind of sweet, like flowers in bloom. This seems like the most normal dream I’ve had in a long time. I’m not going to waste it.
As I lay here, the ground rumbles underneath me. Thunder? A gust of wind comes through, so strong that it nearly lifts me off the grass. The sky grows dark as storm clouds appear overhead, shifting and swirling as if they are alive. I try to stand, but a torrent of wind bears down on me, pinning me to the ground.
“Let’s have some fun, shall we?” says a calm voice from the sky.
Thunder shakes the earth as the clouds surge with lightning—red lightning. In slow-motion, the lightning strikes, zipping from left to right, then directly at me. I try to move, but the wind bears down harder. The lightning slams into my chest. My muscles stiffen, throb, and ache as the electricity surges through me. As fast as it hit, the lightning recedes, leaving me smoking and burned. I gasp, trying to suck in air, but my lungs are on fire.
“Oh goody, he still lives,” says a woman with excitement. “I would love to have him. Think of all the things I could do to him.” The wind lets up. I roll over and start to crawl to anywhere besides here. “Look at him try to run. How cute.”
The sky lights up with flashes of red. Lightning strikes me again…and again…and again; all the while, she moans with pleasure at every hit. Finally, the strikes stop, and I crumple on the grass.
She laughs hysterically. “I like him.”
There’s a growl that shakes me more than the thunder. “How pathetic. We should just kill him now and be done with it,” snaps a man. The air becomes charged, and my hair stands on end. I look in horror over my shoulder at the lightning within the clouds building right over me. I try to move, but my body won’t respond. Everything goes red as every inch of my body is electrified and seared by white-hot pain. Then, I black out.
When I wake, sand pours onto the ground, piling in front of me. The sand rises, forming into a humanoid shape. “We can’t have you passing out yet. The fun is just beginning,” the thing says through a yawn. “Boo!”
There’s a red flash. I writhe in pain.
The three laugh as the clouds rumble—I’m sure gearing up for another bout.
“No, I think that is enough fun for now,” says a new voice, quiet but menacing.
At his words, the others grow silent. A hand grasps my arm and flips me onto my back. Through my hazy vision, I see that the clouds have dissipated. The sky is no longer blue, but orange, and the sun is black. I can’t feel my body, but I know I’m not okay. The smell of burning flesh is strong in my nose. How am I alive still?
Someone steps over me. I can’t make out his face, but he looks down at me with the most frightening crimson eyes. “I bet you’re asking yourself: Why is this happening to me? How am I still alive? What’s going to happen to me next? Well, be relieved to know that nothing further will happen to you. Unlike my compatriots, I am here to congratulate you on your victory against the Messenger. It was quite a show.” There’s thunder-like applause from all around, and I tense, preparing for more lightning. He chuckles. “I would also like to give you an honorable mention for your attempt to stop the summoning.” There’s more applause.
“Attempt?!” I rasp out.
“Oh yes, and it was a good attempt too. You nearly succeeded, but all of your pain and suffering was for naught.”
Three more shadowy figures appear around me, all of them gazing upon me with fierce looks. Their eyes are filled with similar anticipation, but each possess something distinctly menacing about them.
“We, the Generals and I, walk among you here on New Birth once again. Our time is nigh, and we shall rule.” He snaps his fingers, and the others vanish into the darkness. He crouches down, still looking me straight in the eyes. For an instant, I’m sucked into him. I see nothing, but I feel rage, pain, longing, and unimaginable power. I come back to myself, terrified. He stands, amusement dancing in his eyes. “I thought you were just some random kid.” He slams his foot onto my chest, winding me. “To think you would be reincarnated and we would meet again, Kross,” he says with a slight growl as he grinds his heel deep into my chest. “It is quite delightful,” he bares down harder, “how fate works. But I shall leave you for now. I’m sure our paths will cross again. Farewell, Kyle. Oh, and sweet dreams.” He and the weight of his foot vanish.
The second he disappears, everything returns to normal. The sky becomes blue, and the sun regains its yellow hue. The feeling returns to my body, and the smell of burning flesh dissipates. I sit up, still aching like when I first woke up here. With a few deep breaths, I get to my feet and stand there for a second, trying to wrap my head around what just happened. Was it real, or is this a nightmare? The ground trembles, and my eyes shoot up to the sky. Not thunder this time. The ground heaves, and nine stone pillars jut up, encircling me. Bound to them is everyone I care for: the girls, my sisters, and the Kirs. I focus on Valene. She is so badly beaten that she can barely keep her head up. She looks at me, and our eyes meet.
“Hero?”
I take one step toward her, and all the pillars ignite in a blaze of black flames. Everyone screams in piercing agony. I run toward Valene, but my feet sink deep into the ground. I pull and strain and claw at the dirt, but it’s no use. I’m stuck.
One by one, the screams die out, until only the crackling of the fire remains. I fall to all fours, grip the soft dirt, and heave everything in my stomach onto the ground. My eyes sting with tears.
“Everyone. They’re all gone.”
Hard, blackened hands take my face and lift my head up. Terror strikes me as I gaze into the bright, smoldering eyes of the flame-ravaged Valene.
“Hero. You let me burn!”
I SNAP awake, sit up, and scream, drenched in a cold sweat. Mayra appears in front of me, her eyes bloodshot.
“Kyle, it’s okay. You’re home, little brother. You’re safe.”
I take her arms, squeeze her tight. “Mayra. I’m sorry. I couldn’t avenge—”
She puts her hand over my mouth. “It’s all right, Kyle, just lie back and relax. You’re not completely healed yet.” She eases me back down. My head hits the pillow, and the world goes dark again.
I OPEN my eyes to the enchanted ceiling of my room at the Kir’s. Outside is the evening sky, drenched in the glow of the setting sun. I turn to see Valene sitting in the chair at my bedside, knocked out, with her head on my bed. Her arms and hands are wrapped in bandages, while her face is covered in multicolored Band-Aids. I lie back and stare upward, unsure if I’m ready to come back to reality. Minutes pass before Valene stirs, pops up, and notices I’m awake.
“Hey, how are you feeling?” she asks, taking my hand.
“Tired.” I try and sit up, but can’t manage it. “How long have I been out?”
“Three weeks.”
“Wow. And everything’s okay?”
“Right as rain, Hero.”
“Good.”
We sit there silently for a second. I stare at her as she rubs her arms. “Are you okay?”
She smiles. “I’m fine. I just started getting the feeling back in my arms, that’s all.”
“Valene, why didn’t you create armor? His bone shards wouldn’t have had any effect on you.”
“It’s difficult for me to create armor and maintain it. I lack the patience for it. I make up for it in speed and strength, turning my offense into a defense. Besides, I’m fine. Enough about me. How did you survive his attack? Where did all of that power come from?”
“In the last moments, before I died, I took energy from blood on the ground and healed myself.”
“What?” Her eyes widen. “Kyle, that’s unnatural. It’s not unheard of to force your body to heal through energy manipulation, but not to that extent. Kyle, you made that energy you. That’s unheard of…incredible. You are an energy demon in its truest form.”
“What does that mean? Aren’t you one?”
“Most of us can manipulate, channel, move, and see all kinds energy. Not become it or make it you.”
“Wow.” That’s hard to wrap my mind around.
She places her hand on my chest. “Yeah, wow.”
That’s when something the Messenger said pops into my mind. “You know what else was pretty crazy? The Messenger calling me your betrothed.”
Her face turns pink. “Oh, so you caught that?”
“Yeah, right before you punched him in the face. What’s that all about?”
She takes a big breath, expelling the sudden nervous energy about her. “Kyle, you know about our fathers, right? How they were brothers in every sense of the word but by blood?” I nod. “Well, they wanted that tie to be a legit one, so a pact was forged. It was decided that if a male and a female were born into our families around the same time, then the two of them would be betrothed, to unite the Kir and Ross families together forever.”
“This is what your dad suggested you be the one to tell me, isn’t it?” She nods her head. “So let me get this straight. If a boy and a girl are born into our families, they become betrothed? Meaning Serena and Jason are expected to marry as well?”
“Not anymore. When you were born a human, the duty fell to us,” she explains.
“Why?”
“As a human, you were going to reach my age faster than Jason was going to come of age.”
“And you were okay with that?”
She hesitates for a second. “I would do anything for my family, but no, not at first. It’s the reason I left you, back when I was posing as Felicia. When your parents died, that’s when Father told me, and I freaked out. Serena, Mayra, and I were already sisters. I didn’t get why I should I have to marry you. No offense. Then, when I saw you at the rally, I saw the kind, strong man you grew up to be. I felt a real connection to you—not out of obligation, but a real attraction. I still do.” We sit in silence while I ruminate on this new development. “Well?” she prompts.
“Well what?”
“Well, what do you say? Don’t leave me in the dark.” I can hear the nervousness in her voice.
I think about it for a few more seconds. “First, I want to thank you for not laying this on me earlier. I don’t think we would be where we are now. Second, I—I think I’m in.” She begins to tear up and smiles, squeezing my hand and kissing it. “But I would like to get to know you better before we make that final decision.”
“Oh, of course. Why do you think you’re my boyfriend? I’m not ready to call you my fiancé yet.” She laughs.
“Cool. So, now that we’ve talked about the future, how about three weeks ago? What happened back at the water plant? Why didn’t your dad and his crew come through like planned?”
“Do you remember that roar we heard? Come to find out the Messenger had sent Heavy—Connor—to intercept them with some undead monster. The team killed it easily, and Father took care of Connor. He presented Mayra with his heart a while ago and an apology for teaching you that spell.”
“Did she take it?”
“Yeah, but not before punching him out.”
“Good. I’m sure their relationship will be a bit strained though. She and I will probably be on rocky ground for a while too.”
“Are you kidding me? She’s been here by your side since we were brought back. The only reason she’s not here now is because Father came to see you.” She changes the subject. “So, can we talk about why the Messenger was calling you the Betrayer?”
I look at my own bandaged hands. “It’s a long story.”
“You and I aren’t going anywhere anytime soon. Let’s hear it.”
With a sigh, I go right into it. I tell her about my dreams of the war, my encounters with Ben, Shadow, and Anima. The storm. The fact that I may be Shadow’s –Kross’s– reincarnation as mentioned by the being in my dream, which I’m sure was Beal. I leave out the part about watching her and everyone else burn. I didn’t want to worry her further, but I also don’t want to think about it myself.
“By the Creator, I’m sorry. I didn’t know you went through so much.” She leans over and hugs me.
“Valene, do you think we failed?”
She leans back. “That spell bomb was of the highest tier of magic my father could find. It should have worked.” I can hear the doubt in her voice, but she looks at me and smiles. She gently touches my face. “Don’t worry, Hero. I’ll tell father to keep a lookout for anything weird, but I’m sure we didn’t fail. It was only a nightmare.”
“I hope you’re right.”
“Me too. How about we get some food in you and take your mind off the matter?”
My stomach growls. “Sure, that would be great.” She smiles, giving me a kiss on the cheek, and then leaves for the kitchen.
I focus a bit of energy into my arms and push myself up, resting against headboard of my bed. I zone out, staring at the door to my room. The smell of burning flesh crosses my nose, and I see smoke bellow in from underneath the door. I close my eyes, trying not to think about it.
The door opens. “Hey, Hero, got food for—what’s the matter?”
I open my eyes and only then notice the tears streaming down my face and the fear momentarily paralyzing me. Wiping away the tears, I smile. “It’s nothing. Come on, let’s eat.”
Over and over, his words play in my head as we eat: We, the Generals, walk among you here on New Birth once again. I feel myself freak out a little every time. I look to Valene for reassurance. Her golden eyes light up, and she rubs my leg.
“It’ll be fine, Hero. Everything will be all right.” Her face suddenly ignites in flames, causing me to jump. “Kyle?” she asks, gripping my leg.
I sit there, watching in dread as her skin blackens and cracks, while her eyes become pockets of bright, smoldering embers—just like in my nightmare. With a trembling breath, I shake my head and smile back at her, assuring her that everything is fine. She lies down on the bed, staring at me with her burning eyes. I lie back and close my eyes, hoping the sight of her in flames is gone when I open them again.
It’ll be fine, Hero. Everything will be all right.