When I woke up, I found myself alone in my room. The afternoon sunlight shined through my open window, the curtains dancing gently in the breeze, filling my room with a sweet scent.
I stayed under the covers, afraid to move as my heart thundered against my chest. My vision blurred as Austin's wails echoed in my ears. My body felt heavy, unable to move as the past repeated itself in my mind. I watched time and time again as Austin became a Crusader, a General of Destiny for Phantonix.
I felt the rage burn through me like an open flame. Phantonix had manipulated that young girl to try to kill the young man she loved, because she thought he would be used for evil. As it turned out, Phantonix had been right. He twisted Austin's mind to sway him to give into the darkness, to exact his revenge, and to calm his fury. I remembered looking into his eyes as Lily's death convinced him to join Destiny.
The King of Light will fall at my hand, and Destiny will rule Creation! You cannot stop me, Danny Elikai. Creation will be mine! Phantonix's words echoed in my body.
I touched my chest as the idea of the King of Light burned in my heart. I believed in him, and I barely knew anything about him. I believed in him, because it felt as natural as breathing. I thought of everything that had happened over the past several months, and I understood. I could feel the truth blazing in my heart.
The words of Sun echoed in my mind, I am a General of Light, a General to the King of Free Will.
"Is it possible that I can choose to be in the light? That I am not destined to an eternity of misery in the darkness?" My words sent waves of emotion through my body, and I didn't even bother to hold back the tears. "That's why the King of Light didn't interfere."
He did interfere, Danny, the still small voice said in my heart. Austin chose to believe in the anger and pain of his tragedy, and from that he chose Destiny. He will not be the only one who will choose Destiny.
"The King could have fought harder for Austin!" I yelled back at the voice.
It wouldn't have mattered, Danny. Austin was always going to choose Destiny. That was what he truly believed was best for Creation, even before the death of Lily, the still small voice said, more patient than ever.
"I don't believe that. I believe he could have saved Austin, if he had been there," I said.
The King of Light was there. He was with Austin until the end, the still small voice said.
"I didn't see him! I was the only one there with Austin."
Trust me Danny, the King of Light was there, even if you couldn't see him, the voice said in a gentle, kind voice.
"Who is the King of Light?" I asked and my words echoed in the empty room. I felt something heavy appear in my hand, and its warmth spread through me. I raised my hand to my face and found the locket. I looked at it, and I understood.
"You belong to the King, don't you?" I asked it, and it pulsed in my hand. "Will you finally open for me?" The minute I said the words, I knew it wouldn't open just yet.
Only when the King of Light is ready to return, the voice said again. I tried to focus on it, to recognize who that voice belonged to, but the more I tried, the harder it was to focus.
"Who are you?" I said to the voice.
I am a friend, Danny, it answered me.
"Do you know the King of Light?"
Yes. I have been friends with him since the beginning. I miss him, that still small voice answered, and I could feel the emotion pulsing from inside the locket.
YOU ARE READING
The Memoirs of Elikai: The Children of the Solstice
Teen FictionDanny Elikai is a teenage boy who has just lost his family in a horrific car accident, which he mysteriously survived. He finds himself in a swirling depression in the mystical city of Grenoff as disturbing events begin to unfold. He learns of an an...
