Convergence - Prelude to Darkness, part 1
Raindrops fell upon the empty town as a lone figure trudged along the muddy streets. The window blinds
banging back and forth from the wild wind didn't seem to ease the figure's troubled heart, dragging a large
key behind. With a flash of lightning in the distance, it revealed the figure to be a young man with silver hair.
His clothing was in rags, and his eyes seemed rather empty.
"Randolf..." the youth said. "Randolf, are you listening to me?" No one responded to his request. "I see
you have left me too." He stopped walking, staring at the muddy street beneath him. In a fit of rage, he
heaved the large key forwards and threw it onto the ground. "Everyone seems to leave me! Why?!" He
collapsed to his knees, tears blending in with the raindrops that collected on his face.
"You know you can change that," an echo whispered in his mind. He lifted his face, unsure of who was
speaking. He looked at the giant key, thinking it was talking back, but when it spoke again, it sounded
different from what he was used to. It sounded rather feminine, with an accent. "Caina, you know that you
have a splendid power. Why not use it to change what has happened?"
"What has happened? You mean...?"
"Yes," the echo said slyly. "You know you can change what happened to your beloved. You can open
dimensions and change reality as you know it..."
"With Randolf the Magic Key. I can't do that on my own." Caina looked back at the large key in front of
him, wishing that the key would respond. "I... can no longer hear his voice, or use him. He's nothing more
than a paperweight now."
"That's nonsense..." The echo was beginning to sound closer, and as he looked around, surely, he saw a
figure standing in the shadows of a building. "Randolf was a tool to channel your power. You had it all along
inside you, this... glorious power to bend reality."
"I... have?" He looked at the figure closely, trying to determine who it was. "Who are you, and how do you
know all of this about me?" The shaded figure stepped forward as another flash of lightning lit the town up. A
woman with a tanned complexion and her black hair pulled back into a bun was walking towards him, smirking
evilly.
"Call me Excella." She stepped forward, holding her hand out to help him up. Her hands were gloved with
black leather, which matched the business dress she was wearing. "My boss thinks that you and him would
work quite well together. He could help you get what you want, and you'd have nothing to lose in exchange."
Caina took her hand and stood up, tears still streaming down his face. Excella shook her head, tsking his sad
look as she pushed aside the water on his face. "What do I have to do?" He didn't know if she was telling the
truth or not, but he would do anything to bring back the one he loved. Excella grinned, walking behind him to lift
up the key and offer it to him.
"Point this at the sky and repeat the words I'll tell you. After that, your wish will come true, and you'll have
nothing more to do with us." Caina's facial expression lit up, which made Excella grin even wider. He lifted the
key towards the sky, the blade part pointing directly towards the rainclouds. Leaning in to his ear, Excella
whispered the phrase he was to repeat.
"Hear me, land, and hear me, sky,
Tis a pact spoken of only in lore.
The sky shall part, the land shall cry,
What was once shall be no more.
Break this world, and begin anew,
Fuse the boundaries that line reality.
Bring together in one what is two,
And make this wish fly free."
The land rumbled as the rain suddenly stopped. Excella backed away into the shadows as Caina stared at
the sky. The clouds began to part in a large circle, the blade of the key forming the middle marker as the sky
took on a crimson hue. The stars were no longer shown as nothing but darkness pooled forward, the crimson
light surrounding the edges.
"Hey, Excella, is this supposed to happen?" Caina asked, finally looking back for her. She was nowhere to be
seen, which started to worry him. He went to lower his hands, but his entire body seemed transfixed to the
position he was after finishing the phrase. "Excella! What's going on?!"
"You'll be the cornerstone for the new world, Caina. But don't worry, I promised you that your wish would be
fulfilled, and it will. Vinsfield will be brought back, but you won't be around to see it." Excella's voice echoed
around the scenery. "Behold, the dawn of a new world. And a new world requires someone to rule it, doesn't
it?" Her eerie laugh echoed around the town as Caina was left holding Randolf towards the darkness.
Rays of light began to pour out of the darkness. Caina was unable to do anything as the light shot across the
sky, disappearing from sight as it flew past the horizon. As the last of the lights flew out from the darkness, what
followed behind them were streaks of darkness. Clouded tails followed the black balls as they shot off into the
horizon in a similar fashion to the lights. One streak, however, floated its way down towards Caina, hovering in
front of him.
"You must be the one that opened the barrier," the darkness muttered in a deep voice. "Know that your desire
has doomed this world and others. Feel better knowing you won't see it come to that, though." The darkness
began to hover closer towards him, spreading fear over Caina's face. As much as he struggled to break free of his
form, the darkness reached and enveloped him. His vision began to fade, as did all grasp of his thoughts. His body
went numb, and he couldn't focus on reality anymore. He struggled to speak, but nothing came out. He had lost
everything, despite what Excella had said. Now, only the darkness was left.