Left Behind

Chapter Two

Disclaimer: The Dark is Rising Sequence and all its characters belong to Susan Cooper, and I would never take credit for her wonderful work. This plot does belong to me, though.

Will was never quite sure afterwards whether what had happened was a dream or not. But that didn't really matter, did it?

"Will. Wake up, Will," a familiar voice said urgently.

Will opened his eyes, and saw Merriman bending over him.

"Merriman! "

Merriman gave a sort of half-smile then said, "It has been a long time, Will the Watcher. But I have an urgent message to bring you. I trust you've met Anika Santiago." It was more of a statement than a question.
Immediately Will sobered. "Yes. She confuses me, Merriman. I sense the Dark in her, but I sense the Light, too. It is not like Bran, who was neither. She…she is both."
Merriman nodded. "That is because her father was from the Light, and her mother from the Dark."

Will gawked at him, speechless, and Merriman gazed back at him. Finally he said incredulously, "But…how? And if that is so, shouldn't I have sensed the same thing in her sister, Katherine?"

 Merriman gave a sort of tired sigh, and replied, "To this day we do not know. But what we do know is that her siblings were born when the High Magic was not yet awakened, and the Dark had not begun to rise, and so they were able to find a way to erase the powers of Anika's siblings.

"And sooner or later, Anika will have to choose between the Light and the Dark, between becoming an Old One and one of the Dark. For two such opposite forces cannot exist in one body for long. Sooner or later it will break her mind.

And should she choose to become one of the Dark, then even the High Magic will be broken, for by the command of the Light when we cut the blossom from the tree, none of the Dark should exist. And then the Dark will return, the Rider and all the Masters of the Dark, and all its following. And the Dark will come rising, once again.

"And all those of the Light will be forced to return, too. But if she were to choose the Light…then nothing will happen. She would simply become another Watcher, like you. So you see now, Will, why her parents took the powers of her older siblings. There would have been great peril for them, as there is for her now.

But when she was born, Will, her parents had not been expecting her. She was born too near the next Rising, and too near to the birth of the last and youngest of the Old Ones, who would play a vital part in keeping the Dark from rising. The High Magic discovered her and her existence. It was too late for her parents to take her powers."
Will nodded gravely, absorbing all these things that were being said to him.

"So," he said slowly, "someone has to tell her all this."
Merriman nodded. "And teach her to control her powers, at least till she decides. Dark and Light are a dangerous and powerful combination. We are not even certain what she is truly capable of. She will be a danger to herself and to those around her, Old One or human."
"I feel like a minesweeper," Will said ruefully.

Merriman gave a nervous sort of laugh. "In a way, you are. You must take care not to influence her towards becoming one of the Light, for her decision must be her own. Nor must you leave her alone, and simply let her go to the Dark."

Will laid his head on his hand and closed his eyes.

Merriman laid his hand on the boy's shoulder sympathetically and said, "I know. It is a difficult task, and I wish I could be here to help you. But I believe in you, Will. We all do."
Will looked up and smiled. "Well, I've no choice, have I? I will just have to do my best."

                                                            *          *          *

"Anika. Anika Santiago."
Anika opened her eyes, and saw a man standing before her bed. He wore a black cloak, and his face, with its red hair and piercing blue eyes, seemed to have a sort of faint glow about them in the dark.

She noticed he was holding something…her eyes followed his arm, and she saw that he was holding the reins of a huge black horse. A completely black horse, with no markings of any kind. None that she could see, anyway.

She felt a chill run up her spine…it was half frightening, half thrilling.

"Who are you?" she asked the man. "And what are you doing here?"

The man gave a sort of half-smile.

"I am the Rider," he replied. "And I have come to call you…call you to your true destiny."

"My destiny?"

"Your destiny as one of the Dark. You were born, Anika, to bring us back. And then we will rise again." In the beginning, his voice was calm. But then, as he went on, she could feel the excitement, the anticipation in his voice. "And this time, none will stop us, not even the Light. For all their things of power, they will be powerless to stop us."

Anika smiled. His words thrilled her, filled her with a strange sort of delight. It was so that she giggled.

The Rider smiled back, and held out his hand. "Come, Anika. Come with us, become one of us, as you were meant to, and your powers will increase a thousand fold. Once you have gained control of them, you will become a Lord of the Dark. A Lady, rather. And," he added, "You will finally be with your mother again. She will be so pleased."

Anika lifted her hand…her fingers were no more than a centimeter from his now…when suddenly, something in her rejected it all, and she drew back quickly. No! No! No! something silently screamed. You do not belong with them, you do not belong with them at all…

She pressed herself against the headboard, not out of fear but out of repulsion.

Still the Rider held out his hand. "Come, Anika," he repeated.

Anika gave no answer.

"It is them, isn't it. The Light." It was a statement, not a question.

Still Anika said nothing.

"They're holding you back," the Rider said, his voice rising in fury. "I will return, Anika. Until then, do not forget where you truly belong."
He disappeared, and the next thing Anika knew she was back in bed.

She sat up, and realized she was out of breath. She wiped the drops of sweat from her forehead, and glanced at the clock. Good, it was 6:30 am. She wouldn't have to get back to sleep again…

She laid her head her knees. What had that been about? She wanted very much to dismiss it as a dream, but deep down, some part of her knew that it was very real. The strange thing was, she wasn't really afraid. It would have been like being afraid of her sister…she was somewhat of the same kind as the Rider, really…and of this Light he mentioned.

Argh! She screamed inwardly. What am I thinking? Maybe I should have myself exorcised... Wait a minute, what was that bit about my mom?