"Light, come forth and protect us!"
The crystal at the head of her staff began to glow, and they were bathed in an intense, bright light. The man who was chasing them stopped then, and stood about ten yards away.
"Your light may hide the dark, my dear, but the shadows linger still." Though the bright light shone directly in his eyes, he didn't blink. Didn't even squint. The Darkener, they called him. He wore a long, black, billowy cloak, such that the only other visible part of him was his head. He was pale, with wide, black eyes. His hair was medium length and shaggy, and of course, jet black. "My master will have you all, one way or another."
Shansy was out of breath from running. "Perhaps, you foul creature, but if he has me, he might get a bit more than he means to." With her staff still held aloft, she used her free hand to draw a sword from the sheath hanging from her belt. Over her heavy-knit priestess' robe, she wore a thin tabard that hung down below her knees. Her hair was long and straight, a pale, dusty brown. The two sides of her hair at the front were tied back in thick braids that met and hung down at the back of her head.
The Darkener's blank expression did not change at the sight of her blade. "If you wish to give yourself to The Darkness, my lady, there are easier ways." His voice was not unpleasant. It might have even been a bit friendly, were it not so hollow.
"He's right, Sister..." Rory shivered as he clutched his staff close to his body. "You saw what he did to the others...we cannot hope to defeat him!" His hair was shaved close to his head, and he wore a plain, brown hooded robe with a thick rope belt. He was training to be a Priest of the Light, and though practiced at the enlightened arts, he was not accustomed to combat at all.
Shansy knew he was right, but she was tired of running. "Prayer and faith keep us strong, young one, but there comes a time when the strength must be used for the good of the Light." She lowered her stance, and as she drew her sword backward, it started to glow. "Burn in the infinite Light, fiend!" She lunged towards the dark figure in front of them.
The Darkener didn't move a muscle as the priestess surged toward him. Shansy let loose a battle cry as she drove the sword into his chest. But something was wrong, after her blade passed through the cloth of his cloak, there was no sound, no resistance. As ever, his expression was unchanged. He simply looked down at her with the dark, abyssal eyes. Then, he moved his arms and opened his cloak, to reveal...darkness. Where his body should have been, there was simply a pitch black void. Even the blinding light coming from Shansy's staff could do nothing to illuminate it.
Shansy stumbled back, incredulous. She stood now a full five yards back from The Darkener. Then, he reached his arms forward, and his cloak seemed to stretch out like thick, clothy tendrils. Shansy stood frozen as the dark cloak wrapped around behind her on both sides. She dropped her sword. The Darkener then spun around, his cloak fluttering as it went around in the unnaturally large circle. When he'd spun around to stand back facing Rory, his cloak was back to normal size, and Shansy was gone. It seemed she'd vanished without a sound.
Rory continued to shiver, even harder now. He wasn't quite sure what he had just seen. "Where...where is she?"
"In The Darkness, my friend. You may join her, if you like." His dark eyes bored into Rory, and he tilted his head slightly.
Suddenly, Rory managed to summon a bout of bravery. "No...no she's not gone. She'll fight. She'll use the Light to find her way out and punish you for everything you've done!"
The Darkener cracked a thin, sly smile. "Aha...silly child." He started slowly walking towards Rory. "The Light will never defeat The Darkness. Light is bright indeed, but it comes from a source. It requires sustenance. Darkness simply is. It is eternal. It is beautiful. And one may know not only darkness of the eyes. There is also darkness of the ears, of the mind. Darkness of the heart. And darkness one spreads to others, does it not? The creeping shadow...it cannot be stopped."
Rory started walking backwards to keep the dark figure at a distance. His staff was still shining, though not as brightly as Shansy's had. "You're wrong, fiend. The Light spreads between us as well. It is sustained by the goodness within us. You will never douse that flame!" He turned to the side to start moving faster.
"If you are so sure of your precious Light, why don't you come show its power to me?" He began to lift his arms to open his cloak once again.
"No, no!" Was all Rory managed. He turned and ran as fast as he could, holding his staff in front of him to light the way.
"Very well." The Darkener remained where he was. "Run for now, my friend. The Darkness is patient."
Rory looked back as he ran, and saw the pale face fade away into the dark.
END
So I guess this story was kind of inspired by the Lord of Light from A Game of Thrones, which I am in the middle of reading right now. But I thought that darkness would be a much cooler god than light, for the reasons that The Darkener talks about towards the end of the story. Also I did realize part way through writing that the Alliance in Warcraft also worship the Light, and actually call it that. Whatever. WHATEVER. No original ideas anymore, eh.
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