Chapter Two

Jumping in through a high window near the ceiling, Alicia fell swiftly onto the living room carpet, legs tucked underneath her as she landed in a feline-like position. She removed her hood as she stood onto her feet and pulled the elastic band from her hair, light-violet locks pooling over her shoulders and nearly reaching the middle of her back. With a flick of her index finger, a golden bolt of lightning flashed from the tip of her digit and flew through the air, hitting the ceiling fan with a loud, electric shock. Power surged through the unit, its wings beginning to turn and the connected lightbulbs flashing on.

Alicia took in her familiar surroundings, her once dark apartment now illuminated with bright light. Though her space was a bit larger than most others, the interior looked like any average apartment; the living room sat near the middle of the space, an open kitchen was located near the far corner, and the rest of the interior was made of doors that led to two bedrooms, a small bedroom, and a large office. The place had once been a home for two. But, now, Alicia lived alone in a solitude she was far too used to.

With a low sigh, she removed her black jacket, expecting a group of stolen wallets to fall out. But, then, she remembered she'd lost them when she was attacked. "Great…" she whispered as she dropped the empty article of clothing on the floor and slumped onto her grey couch, legs hanging off the arm rest and arms crossed under her head. She stared blankly at the ceiling, her mind wandering. Though she should have been angry at herself for losing her money, oddly, that wasn't what occupied her mind.

Her thoughts drifted to her attacker from earlier that night, the stone creature with black stripes covering its body. She hadn't noticed before - probably because she was too busy trying to keep herself unharmed - but, looking back at it now, the streaks did seem vaguely familiar, with the way they wrapped around the creature's body and made some sort of sign on its chest. She tried to focus on the mental image, paying close attention to the sign. It was a bit difficult to make out, but the mark did look a bit like…

Alicia grabbed the amulet hanging around her neck and lifted it to her face, observing it as the piece of steel glinted in the light. The amulet had a circular form, letters from her native language carved in gold surrounding the edges while a black, backward "S" shaped symbol lay in the middle of the jewel. The ends of the symbol were pointed outward, sharp like talons, and two thin dots sat within it, one in each loop. She slowly traced her thumb over the small emblem, recalling its meaning.

"Evil, Shadow, and Sin...the symbol of Darkness…"

Alicia's voice was barely above a whisper, solemn and grim, as if the words that fell from her lips were a wretched curse and would bring death upon her if spoken too loudly. Remembering the monster once again, she compared her amulet to the creature's mark, seeing a slight resemblance between the two. A shiver ran down her spine and fear pooled at the pit of her gut. "It couldn't be...could it…?"

Alicia shook her head, ridding herself of her thoughts. "No…" she told herself, "No, that isn't possible. They can't reach this place, can't come anywhere near here...I'm just being foolish…" She then remember the monsters powers; how the black lines on it had turned a bloody red and its body had pulsed with dark energy. That energy was frighteningly similar to the power she possessed, power that has haunted her all of her life. She sat up, her stomach churning, and gripped her amulet in a tight hold. "I am being foolish...right…?"

Resting her palm against her forehead in irritation, she sighed shakily. Her mind hurt, her body was tired, and her nerves were racing. She needed sleep.

Getting up from the couch and grabbing a water bottle from the fridge, she trudged to her bedroom, shedding the rest of her clothing and leaving them to litter the carpet floor. She downed half of her water before setting it aside and collapsed onto her bed, not even bothering to get under the sheets. She tried to make herself forget her fear, forget about the stone monster and the symbol on its chest. But no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't bury the feeling that something terrible was about to happen, something she'd feared and tried to prevent all of her life.
Right before slumber claimed her, at the very back of her mind, she prayed to her ancestors that her suspicions were wrong.

A tall, black statue of a dragon stood in the middle of a dark cave, surrounded by green, steaming waterfalls and small candles that faintly illuminated the walls of the chamber. A figure cloaked in shadow carrying a tall staff approached the statue, his wings flapping elegantly behind him, marred with tears and cuts from war. He kneeled before the great sculpture, its eyes staring down at him with ferocity and malevolence.

"Minaror has found the purple dragon, my lord," he whispered, the emerald encased in the staff shining brightly and creating a vision of a stone man with black marks attacking a young woman before his eyes. "Soon enough, he will capture her and bring her here. Then, when the Eternal Night arrives, she will fulfill her purpose, and this world will be under your iron rule."

The crystal eyes on the dragon statue began to glow and a deep, calm voice emanated from the sculpture. "Very good, Gaul. You have served me well by sending the warrior spirit to fetch the girl."

A pleased smile stretched across the darian's scarred face at his master's kind words. "Thank you, my lord. I only strive to please you."

"And please me, you have. However, there is the possibility that Minaror will fail, and-"

"I assure you my lord, that he will not fail! Minaror was one of your most powerful warriors and is even more powerful, now! It is very unlikely that he could be defeated."

A long moment had passed without any words from the statue. Gaul gripped his staff tightly and his body went stiff, afraid that he may have upset his master with his outburst. He calmed himself, however, when he finally did hear his master's voice and his words were not those of scorn.

"While what you say may be true, you forget that the purple dragon also wields great power. She was born with my essence after all. If Minaror were to make a certain…'mistake,' it could mean his demise. We must take precautionary measures, just in case such a mistake were to be made."

Gaul raised his head to look at the great sculpture's eyes, his own green, crystal eye gleaming with power. "What did you have in mind, Master?" The darian heard a low hum, as if his master were in deep thought.

"I want you to send one more soul to the human world," the statue said, finally, "a simple spirit will do. It's task is to retrieve a special book and bring it here to me."

Gaul scrunched his eyebrows in confusion at his master's request. "May I ask what is so 'special' about this book?"

"Well...let's just say that I would like to reconnect with my son."

Though he didn't quite understand his meaning, Gaul knew from experience not to question his master any further. With a bow, he stood onto his feet. "Very well, my lord. I shall do what you've asked." With that, the statue's eyes dimmed out, returning to their normal shade of green, and the cave went quiet, the only sound coming from the candles' flames as they flicked back and forth.

Gaul raised his head, observing the statue of his master one last time, before spreading his dragon wings and running out of the entrance. He flew out into the harsh, cold air and circled the great mountain, making it's way to its peak. As the dark king hovered above the great rock, one thought occupied his mind.
The Dark Master would soon rise again. And when that happened, Gaul would finally have his revenge on the ones that betrayed him, on those caused him and his kind endless pain.

An evil, vindictive smile rose on Gaul's face as he dropped into the great well at the mountain's peak, where the souls of the black-hearted resided.