The Dark Dancer

“Are you sure this is the right place, Dresvale?” Jane demanded, casting a wary eye at the decaying tangle of vines. 

“You have to see beyond what your eyes are telling you,” I confirmed, and snapped my fingers. “Ostendere!”

A cobalt rune burned in the air in front of me, and a shockwave radiated outwards. The greenery flickered, before vanishing. In its place was a monumental castle constructed from maroon bricks.

We glanced at each other, before plodding forward toward the ancient, wooden door. The door was shriveled up, and it felt like a boulder. I tentatively knocked. 

The door swung open, and a regal woman dressed in a red gown greeted us. She had glittering brown eyes, platinum-blond hair, peach skin, and a glare that pierced through me. “Asnis must be even more desperate than I thought he was,” she grumbled and stepped aside to let us through. 

Jane and I were both sorcerers at South Kingdom, the realm that specialized in Runic Magic, spells cast from runes. South Kingdom was currently at war with East Kingdom and West Kingdom, which specialized in Elemental Magic, the magic contained in water, fire, air, and earth, and Enchantment Magic, magic that specialized in the manipulation of the mind and body, respectively. King Asnis had commanded us to seek an alliance with North Kingdom, which specialized in Necromancy, because we were the most powerful sorcerers in South Kingdom. Queen Emereld ruled over North Kingdom. 

“King Asnis wishes to form a North-South alliance,” Jane announced monotonously as we sat down on a leather couch stitched from red gold. 

“Yes, I know,” Queen Emereld interrupted. “The question is, do you know why the East, West, and South Kingdoms are currently at war?”

Jane and I exchanged anxious glances. If she wanted, Queen Emereld could conjure up the Bellatores Inmortuae, the Undead Warriors, and order them to slaughter us instantly. That was one of the reasons why South Kingdom wanted the alliance. 

Queen Emereld arched an eyebrow, beckoning us to respond. “Not really,” I admitted. 

“Figures,” Queen Emerled spat, and she conjured up a glass of wine before she proceeded. “Eons ago, the four kingdoms–North, South, East, and West–were unified into one giant realm known as Kingdom Supreme. One day, though, an incredibly powerful sorcerer destroyed the bond between the four kingdoms.”

“How?” I interrupted. 

Queen Emereld’s brown eyes sliced through mine. “The sorcerer was able to master a unique type of magic called Dark Magic.”

Jane sucked in a cold breath. “Asnis claimed that Dark Magic is fake.”

“Well, Asnis claims a lot of things, doesn’t he?” Emereld countered. “I’m telling you the truth. Dark Magic allows the user to wield the force of darkness itself. Darkness is omnipresent, so those who conduct Dark Magic can do anything they want darkness to do.”

“No one can do such a thing,” I argued. 

Emereld’s laughter was darker than a storm. “There is one sorcerer on this planet that can wield darkness. No one knows who the sorcerer is, or how the sorcerer came to be, but the sorcerer is known as the Dark Dancer.

“The Dark Dancer caused Kingdom Supreme to fall. Afterward, most sorcerers were fooled by their leaders into thinking that the Dark Dancer never existed. The Dark Dancer completely vanished after the collapse–until last week.”

“The war started last week,” I recalled. 

“It did,” Emereld agreed, “because King Henry of West Kingdom found a sword constructed purely from shadows last week in the Griselan Grottos, close to the North-West boundary. Right now, there are a lot of unanswered questions–like how and why the Dark Dancer is choosing to reappear right now. But the East, West, and South Kingdoms are all blaming each other for the current predicament. And thus the inter-kingdom warfare we are experiencing.”

Jane narrowed her golden eyes. “King Asnis announced that the war had started because of a territorial dispute along the Cheisenheim Mountain Range. Are you saying that’s erroneous?”

“All three kingdoms want their hands on the Dark Dancer first so that they can achieve supremacy. I have opted for North Kingdom to stay out of this fray because I’d rather not be destroyed by the unknown effects of Dark Magic.”

We mulled over the groundbreaking words that Queen Emereld had proclaimed.

“If she’s telling the truth–”

“It’s not a matter of whether I’m telling the truth or not,” Emereld interrupted me. “Cast one of your runes if you want to.”

Jane snapped her fingers and whispered, “Veritas!”

Another cobalt blue rune burned in the air in front of us, yet it lingered for a few seconds in front of Emereld before vanishing. 

“You’re telling the truth,” Jane whispered, with such reluctance that she looked like she had sucked on a rotten apple. 

My heart plunged downwards. 

“My point is,” Emereld resumed, “I am opposed to forming an alliance with South Kingdom and involving myself in this ridiculous battle. I have nothing to gain.”

King Asnis’s words to us rang in my head. Do whatever it takes to secure the alliance with Queen Emereld and her Necromancy. 

“What do you need?” I demanded. 

Queen Emereld tilted her head back to study me. “Such bravery coming off of someone so young. I need something very powerful for my kingdom. If you obtain it for me before nightfall, I’ll offer you an alliance with South Kingdom.”

Jane tensed next to me. “What is it you request?”

Emereld smirked. “I need the sword that was found in West Kingdom. Right now, it is being guarded by the most powerful Enchanters in West Kingdom. I will escort some of my best Bellatores Inmortuae to go with you.”

“You won’t be coming with us?” I pressed. 

Emereld barked out a laugh. “Trespassing into another Kingdom is a recipe for war. Get me that sword, now.”

She snapped her fingers, and the air in front of her solidified into translucent skeletons. They bowed in front of their queen, who had now risen to her feet. “Escort the sorcerers to West Kingdom.”

***

West Kingdom was a frozen wonderland, with vibrant ice castles protruding into an azure sky that released blue snowflakes. Twinkling lights glittered in the distance, illuminating every home. The sorcerers had thought to meticulously craft walkways constructed of pure ice that spanned over 

The skeletons dissolved upon contact with the ground, leaving us stranded in the middle of hostile territory. Although I couldn’t make out any sorcerers, my ears periodically pulsed with my light-speed heartbeat. 

“The sword is stored in West Castle,” Jane announced after consulting a rune. “Let’s go.”

“Don’t you think it’s a bit unnerving that she’s requesting the sword?” I whispered as we started down the sidewalks towards a particularly ornamented castle. 

Jane glanced around the frozen streets. “Yes, but we don’t have much of a choice. Our Kingdom is losing the war, and we need Queen Emereld’s help. Speaking of which, we’re here.”

The entrance to the West Castle was a blue door guarded by two sorcerers. They both narrowed their eyes at us. 

“You’re not from West Kingdom,” the one on the left noted. 

“We’re not,” Jane agreed, and unleashed a torrent of runes that tossed them fifty kilometers away and burnt a hole into the entrance. “Come on!”

West Kingdom sorcerers steamed from all directions, resembling ants marching toward a spilled cupcake. With a snap of my fingers, the Somnus rune burned into existence, casting the entire castle to sleep. 

“Save your greatest tricks for later,” Jane warned as she consulted another rune to navigate us. “I suspect that King Henry is saving his greatest defences.”

The rune led us through meandering hallways that forked through gargantuan rooms, many of which contained battle plans etched into ice. Some rooms were a dormitory for the sorcerers living at West Castle, most of whom were already asleep in their bare beds when I cast the rune. 

I nearly crashed into Jane when she halted in front of a pair of glowing doors. “We’re here.”

My hands turned clammy, and every gust of wind felt like an Arctic slap across my cheeks. The answer to all of our problems lay in front of us. 

“Here goes nothing,” I whispered and steadied my vibrating fingers. “Da aditum!”

A cobalt rune flashed onto the doors, before disintegrating most of the doorway. 

The concealed room was rectangular, with a humongous, aquamarine carpet spanning the length of the room. At the end of the room lay a throne constructed of glittering ice, with an array of sorcerers stationed around it, who all appeared immune to the sleep spell I cast. 

The good news was that I could immediately see the sword, a slender, amorphous collection of mist and shadows. The bad news was that King Henry was currently holding it. 

Everyone in the throne room stared at us as we entered the throne room. 

King Henry narrowed his glowing violet eyes at us, before thundering, “Give me one reason why I should spare your lives.”

Rather than answering, Jane prepared to snap her fingers. “Give me one reason why I should spare yours.”

“Not a good move,” I whispered as every sorcerer surrounding the throne conjured up cyan balls of light. 

“You dare make threats in West Kingdom, puny South Kingdom sorcerer?” King Henry hissed.

Jane narrowed her eyes. “To make this easier for everyone, I encourage you to hand over what you have in your hands right now.”

King Henry smirked as he stood up from his throne. The sword glinted under the cyan balls of light. “I think it’s time for you to leave.”

Before I could process anything, the sorcerer standing directly to the right of King Henry blasted Jane, forcing her to her knees. Her pupils became glazed, and she turned pale. 

King Henry’s eyes bore into mine. “Crawl back to South Kingdom, sorcerer.”

He shot another ball of light at me, but it harmlessly bounced off of the air in front of me. 

“That’s the Scutum rune,” I informed the gaping crowd and snapped my fingers again. “Perdere!”

The rune detonated in front of the throne, producing a humongous shockwave that blasted the gargoyles and the sorcerers every which way. In the ensuing explosion, Jane’s eyes focused again. 

“Come on!” I exclaimed, dashing towards the throne. 

I dodged several balls of light released by the sorcerers and soon found myself in front of the throne. The sword, however, was nowhere to be found. 

“Dresvale!” Jane shrieked. 

I spun and found King Henry barreling down upon me with the sword brandished. I hurled a fragment of the throne at his head, yet he effortlessly batted it with the sword. 

“Perdere!” I shrieked again, but the rune flickered away after King Henry hissed a command under his breath. 

“South Kingdom will fall in the war,” King Henry gloated. He swung his sword at my neck. 

Rather than decapitating me, though, the sword merely passed through my skin. I felt a cold breeze against my skin as the blade flew out of the king’s hands and clattered to the floor. 

King Henry gaped at the fallen sword. “How–”

“Perdere!” Jane interrupted. 

The rune detonated onto King Henry, blasting him into orbit. 

“What happened?” Jane whispered as I picked up the sword. 

“I don’t know,” I admitted. 

The sword felt like swirling ice under my sweating palms, and it was periodically pulsing. 

“Let’s head back,” Jane suggested. “It’s almost nightfall.”

***

After trekking through frozen landscapes for three hours, we finally arrived at the southern bank of the Gleiz River, which bordered the North and West Kingdoms. There were no sorcerers on patrol on either side, as North Kingdom hadn’t officially entered the war, yet we still blended in with the shadows as well as possible. 

“How are we to get across?” I demanded. 

The Gleiz River was renowned across the world for its dangerously rapid currents and its incredible depth. The water was about the same shade as coal and smelt about as nice as a wet dog. The northern bank of the river dipped beyond the horizon. 

“We hail the Boat,” Jane replied, rolling her eyes.

“The Boat?” I repeated as Jane hummed a spell. 

An instant later, a boat materialized out of nowhere and doused us both with the inky water. The river tasted like a wet dog as well. 

“The Boat is a construct that early sorcerers used to traverse between the North and West Kingdoms,” Jane explained didactically as the boat started towards the northern bank. “Oh, you may want to hold on to the handrails.”

The Boat lurched forward so quickly that it skipped across the Gleiz. Every bounce was an electric jolt to my aching form. My vision blurred with the hypersonic winds. 

“There’s something written on the sword,” Jane noted, tracing her finger along a rune engraved in the hilt. 

“Power,” I translated. 

Jane locked eyes with me. “If the Dark Dancer gets the sword–”

“We all die,” I finished. “I know the drill.”

Jane shook her head. “No. There’s something different about the sword. None of the Kingdoms have ever encountered Dark Magic after the collapse of Kingdom Supreme, Dresvale. We don’t know how powerful the Dark Dancer truly is, or what Dark Magic can do.”

“I’m betting Queen Emereld has a few ideas,” I countered. 

The Boat began to slow in front of the northern bank of the Gleiz River, allowing me to differentiate the individual wave crests. There was a lone dock constructed onto Gleiz River, which was where the Boat automatically parked. 

“How powerful do you think North Kingdom is going to become if this sword falls into her hands?” Jane whispered as we stepped onto the dock. 

“Very powerful, I assure you,” a voice replied. 

Skeleton's arms pinioned me, letting the sword clatter onto the dock. Despite her thrashes, Jane was thrust to the ground by skeletons. 

“Bellatores Inmortuae?” I gasped. 

“Yes,” Queen Emereld agreed, retrieving the fallen sword. “The Bellatores Inmortuae are truly wonderful creatures, aren’t they?”

“We upheld our end of the deal,” Jane growled. “It is time for you to uphold yours.”

“Ah, the alliance with South Kingdom,” Emereld sneered. “I assume you want me to fight alongside you against your rival Kingdoms? Well, I have many more important things in mind.”

She muttered an incantation, and the sword began to solidify. 

“It’s time I reveal the truth about who I am,” Emereld whispered and fixed her brown eyes upon me. “I owe you my deepest gratitude, Dresvale, and Jane. After my sword landed in King Henry’s hands, I thought that my dreams of a revolutionary future were over.”

“Your sword,” Jane and I repeated simultaneously. 

A cold shiver traveled down my spine. “That means…”

“Yes,” Emereld interrupted with a crocodile smile. “I am the Dark Dancer.”

Emereld snapped her fingers, and a black crown embroidered with golden runes appeared on her head. Her red gown morphed into a glittering black dress. 

“The Sword of Eternity can slice through anything and anyone except for one sorcerer,” Emereld didactically boomed. “In ancient prophecies, the sorcerer is known as the Chosen One, who can withstand the darkest incantations of the Dark Dancer. For eons, I have spent my days seeking the Chosen One. And here you are, Dresvale. Immune to the blows of the Sword of Eternity.”

Emereld clenched her hands, and the skeletons tightened their hold to suffocating magnitudes. 

“How about a bargain, Dresvale?” Emereld grinned. “I’ll spare Jane the pains of Dark Magic and send her home to South Kingdom safely if you help me.”

The world began to spin rapidly, and my face turned green. 

Emereld stroked her sword. “So, what is it going to be?”