Sky: The Truth Untold (III)

IV: Dark Indentity

"ELI! IT'S BAD, REALLY BAD! I WAS JUST WONDERING WITH SKYE AND OUT OF NOWHERE SHE JUST DISAPPEARED AND- I NEED YOUR HELP!"

Penny came rushing back to their home, afraid. She had searched for Skye everywhere since the moment she wandered in another direction. She felt guilty for losing her. She didn't know where she was or the problems she could have stumbled upon on her way. She needed Eli to help her, but he never replied back. She was desperate, and she was angry as well.

"Eli! Where the hell are you!? This is not a joke! Come here alrea-"

She looked at the floor and saw something interesting. She didn't want it to be what it was, but there was no other explanation for it. Eli's cape was there, lying on the floor along with a note.

If you see this and I have not returned, that must mean I'm training. Meet me at the Forsaken Shrine if you want, but don't be afraid with what you see.

She was intrigued. She had never heard Eli mention something about "training", nor he had used such formal words in a piece of paper before. He was always a goofy guy, and seeing this was a bit unexpected. She picked the paper up and lifted the cape as well, and she took them with her to the Shrine.

As she flew through the abandoned place, she thought about what this could mean. It could all be a joke, considering how playful Eli is the entire time. But at the same time, he had always been a nice guy. There was no need for him to prank her girlfriend that way.
She moved carefully, remembering that there was an evil beast among this place. However, there was no signal of it being nearby. She got a bit confident, but she still took her precautions.

She reached the shrine, but there was nothing. Her theory about this being a joke started to intensify, but then the thought vanished away. She was not in the mood for a prank right now. She was still worried about Skye. So, hoping that this was legit, she flew around the darkened place.

She shouted his name from time to time, awaiting for a response or some sort of call. There was none, but she stayed persistent.

"Eli! You told me to be here! What is this all about?"

The only response was silence. She started to freak out, so much that the darkness inside her wanted to unleash itself. The Light protected her, but nobody knew for how much time it would do so. She felt this, and it made her worry a little.

"E-Eli! Please, answer me! I'm not ok! Skye isn't ok! I need your help!"

After crying for help, she finally heard something. It was not what she expected, but at least it meant she wasn't alone. She approached the noise, still trying to contain the darkness inside her. She felt a little weak as time passed by, but she could handle that and even more. After the things Demille had made her go through, feeling weak was as if they tickled her.
As she approached the noise, she felt an eerie aura appear as well. She was a little afraid, but it had to mean something. There was a boulder on the path, and she thought that Eli could be behind it. She stealthily got close to it, and suddenly jumped to the other side to surprise his beloved. However, there was nothing there.

"What? ELI! Come out from wherever you are already!"

She screamed louder than before, and that might have been a mistake. She heard a humongous growl come from behind her, and the dark aura she had felt intensified as well. When she turned around, it was there. The dark beast was staring right at her. Its eyes turned red as usual, and it started rushing to devour her. She knew it wasn't Hex; he would have never done something like that. She tried flying away, but the beast was faster than her. She flew so fast she ended up crashing into a pillar. She tried to crawl and hide, but it was too late. She closed her eyes and screamed for the last time, knowing that this was the end...

...but it wasn't.

The beast got flown away by an unkown force. She opened her eyes and tried to find an explanation. And as she did, she discovered it.

There was a guy standing in front of her. He wore a black cape and a dark mask with an orange line in it. His eyes glowed orange as well, so much it even looked like fire. He held a familiar knife with his hand, and Penny gasped as soon as she noticed this.

"Wait... ELI!?"

He looked at her and got a bit closer. He took the mask off, and the scar in his face said it all.

"What is this all about!? Why do you have that cape? And that mask?"

"I'll explain it all. Just let me finish what I left incomplete..."

He flew with a tremendous force that Penny had never seen. He rushed into the beast and started attacking it with the knife. The beast wasn't quick enough to defend itself, and it growled in pain. Eli landed the final blow, and the beast slowly fell to the ground and crumbled apart like dust.

"You did not just- No, no you di-" Penny was speechless. "WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT!? ARE YOU OK!?"

"Yep! Nothing to worry about." He said as he took the black cape off and wore the one Penny brought for her. "Now, I think there's some explaining I have to do."

He held her hand and took her to a safer place. They both sat down, hugged each other and started talking.

"Ever since Demille came and attacked us, I felt weak. I felt useless. I felt like, if he were to return, I'd actually die. I didn't want that to happen... I don't want him to hurt you again."

"And that brings us to...?"

"Oh, right. This." He looked at the mask and the cape, and even smiled as he did. "I've been training to learn how to control the darkness inside me and use it to my favor. I even prepared my outfit for it! It's been a tough ride, getting hit by those dark monsters time and time again. I didn't want to tell you anything because I didn't want for you to worry about me. But now that I've truly learned this skill, I think it's about time I told you."

He took a deep breath and held it in for some time. He closed his eyes and did something Penny couldn't understand. When he opened them again, they were blue as they always had been. He was a child of Light once again.
Penny looked at him and somehow felt peace. It truly was him, the brave, handsome and lovely guy that had helped her escape from her dark days and suffering. She even blushed thinking about it, and the feeling of darkness trying to escape faded away.

"If that dark bastard wants to come back, he'll be done for good. If he tries to hurt me, you or Skye, I'll defeat him for sure!"

"Actually, speaking of Skye..." Penny remembered, and so the explanation began.