The Knight Lights

The First to Fall

The Kingdom of Thalia lay beneath a crimson sunset; night was on the horizon and the kingdom was burning. The last bastion of hope, the Castle of Camelopardalis spired into the sky, a beacon as its forces attempted to fight the endless tides of darkness covering the land. Inside the castle, the Queen Nambra held her son Teodiace in her arms. His hair was dark brown- almost black, and his eyes were the brightest of green. Nambra coddled her baby, before her sister Nathalia came into the room, voice stricken with unease.

"Nambra, the gates are overrun, the time to act is now. We must flee!" She urged her sister to move, but the other woman shook her head.

"No, I cannot abandon our people to the darkness. Take Teodiace- take him to safety. Take him to Earth and shield him. If we manage to find a foothold, we will send word. You must go Nathalia. I love you both." Nambra handed over her son to her sister, who nodded reluctantly.

"Please Nambra, protect yourself... Teo cannot live without his mother and father." Nathalia raised her hand, summoning a tear between dimensions, a rippling array of color and light stretching the boundaries between universes, just large enough for her to go through. With one last look at her older sister, she hurried through the portal, into the morning streets of Earth's New York City. Meanwhile, Queen Nambra and her husband King Virion stood in defiance against the Darkness, but the Kingdom of Thalia, and its entire dimension, fell to the darkness. With the last of their combined power, they bound the darkness to their realm, preventing it from sending large forces to Earth. For now, the Heir to the powers of Thalia and the bloodline of Camelopardalis was safe.

Sixteen years later...

Theodore sat at his desk, papers strewn about with notebooks and textbooks open alongside them. He sighed heavily as he completed his last problem, and started cleaning up his desk and putting his homework and supplies back into his pristine black leather backpack, the sunset's last rays spilling in from the window in front of his desk. Just then there was a knock at the door.

"Come in!" Theodore called, checking his appearance in the full-length mirror in the corner. Theodore Kitchener was a rather handsome seventeen-year-old with medium brown hair and amber brown eyes. He was slender with broad, strong shoulders, and an average body, but his height had stubbornly stopped at five foot six inches. He was rather short compared to some of the other boys at his school, and it was a bit of a sore point for him. Natalie opened the door and smiled at him.

"It's getting late Teddy, you need to get some rest." She crossed the room, coming to stand by him, arms crossed in sternness.

"Hey Natty, yeah, I had a ton of homework to do. Mr. Klein can be such a pain. He gives us so much homework- I finished it though. I'll head to bed after I brush my teeth. I'm exhausted anyway." Theodore sighed tiredly, smiling at her. She nodded and ruffled his brown hair, giving him a caring hug.

"I'm so proud of you. I've taken care of you since you were little, and you do such a good job. Your mom and dad are proud of you too." Natalie smiled, letting him go. Theodore rolled his eyes and moved to sit on his bed.

"Yeah right. Dad is always too busy with work to pay any attention to me. Mom is just as unavailable. We both know that you are more my parent then they are." Theodore shrugged, making Natalie sigh in response.

"They try their best Teddy; I know it's hard but they do love you. You know I care for you too. Now go brush your teeth and head to bed. Do I need to tell you a bed time story to help you sleep?" Natalie teased and Theodore chuckled, shaking his head with amusement while heading to his private bathroom.

"I'm seventeen Natty. I don't need your stories about the Knights of Light to help me get to sleep." He insisted as he prepared his toothbrush with toothpaste and some cold water. Natalie came to the doorway, leaning against the doorframe.