Morgan slammed the wooden door shut, anger still burning from the man's words, words she couldn't stop hearing, no matter how hard she tried. She reached for the torch she had dropped when entering the place she now regretted visiting.
She had tried so hard to avoid Landon's questions. Why couldn't he remember his dreams? Why did the nightmares keep returning? What were the doors he saw inside the beast's eyes? She had no answers, and she didn't want to face them.
Landon touched the folded drawing inside his pocket, hurrying after Morgan through the dark tunnel. "Mother, please… I need to know. Can you answer me?"
Morgan stopped at the end of the tunnel and breathed sharply. She turned to him and held out her hand. Landon took it instantly.
"You can't understand right now," she whispered, her voice trembling. "And you shouldn't. I won't let danger come to you, Landon." The flames from her torch flickered wildly, pouring shadows across his confused expression. She turned away, refusing to say more.
They stepped outside into the endless pitch-black sky. No sun. No rain. Just darkness, forever.
They ran. Everyone was running, flames in their hands lighting a path home. Breathless and desperate, they pushed their legs harder.
"Mother, wait!" Landon gasped. "I… I think I stepped on something. Something alive!"
Morgan glanced back, still running. "Something alive?" She couldn't stop. Not now. The threat behind them was growing louder.
"Mother! Please!" Landon yanked his hand free. Morgan skidded to a stop and turned back, only to find him on the ground, writhing in pain.
"Landon!" she screamed, rushing to him. People shoved past without a care, too panicked to notice anything around them. Morgan dragged Landon up with shaking arms.
Growls echoed behind them. Closer. Closer.
"They're coming! Run! Don't look back!" Someone shouted from the darkness.
Morgan's heart beat painfully as she lifted Landon's arm over her shoulder. His leg was injured, making every step difficult.
"Mother… please," he cried. "I hurt it. It's out there alone. It will die if we leave it."
"We can't stop! Can't you hear the monsters?" Morgan shouted. "We have to survive first!"
"Please…" Landon's voice cracked, tears falling.
Morgan stopped. The hurt in his eyes was too much.
"…Fine." She turned with him.
Landon limped back through the red sand, scanning every grain. Something tugged at his instincts, urging him onward.
There. A tiny creature. Still. Hurt.
A horrible-looking toad lay motionless on the ground.
Landon scooped it into his hands, relief softening his pain. "I found it," he whispered.
Morgan stood with a hand on her hip, exhausted but relieved. The boy smiled for the first time that night. She checked the darkness, praying the monsters would not find them before they made it home.
The charms around her neck faintly glowed, Gwen's charm. The charm she had pressed into Morgan's hand the day she died protecting her baby. The future of Petra will be disastrous, Gwen had warned. This charm will protect him… for a while.
Morgan blinked away the memory and pulled Landon close.
They ran again, struggling, but soon the dim light of their home appeared ahead.
Later…
Morgan placed a bucket of warm water in front of Landon. She dipped a towel inside and cleaned the scrape on his knee.
"I'm surprised you risked yourself for a creepy animal," she muttered. Her eyes flicked to the unmoving toad lying on a cloth beside him.
"Just like your mother," she added without thinking.
Landon froze, and so did she.
Morgan forced a smile, hiding her panic. "I mean… I'm a good woman, right?" She brushed more ointment onto his skin. "Please don't ever put yourself in danger again."
Her chest ached with memories of Gwen. Of the king. Of death. If only she had warned her friend sooner…
"You'll be alright," she said softly, helping Landon into bed. She kissed his forehead and set the towel aside to dry near the fire.
But fear crawled back into her thoughts. The seer's voice echoed:
"Pluto will find Eirlys and destroy him. He is already searching."
No. It couldn't be true.
Landon couldn't be the savior of Petra. He was just a boy. Her boy.
Morgan lay in her bed praying he would sleep without nightmares. Exhaustion pulled her under.
Landon stared at the toad lying beside him. At first he jumped, but then remembered, it was his fault the creature was here.
"Don't worry," he whispered. "You're safe with me."
The toad croaked, eyes cold and knowing.
"Are you hungry?" Landon whispered. He didn't want to wake Morgan. She mumbled something in her sleep.
The toad hopped into his palm. Something about the boy unsettled it… but it stayed.
Landon stroked its head gently. "It's lonely out here. I get it." His voice softened. "You're the only one I can call a friend, you know."
He remembered being seven. The bullying. The cruel question: Do you even have a father?
He never asked again after seeing his mother's expression.
"So, Friend, do you accept?" he asked.
The toad licked his cheek.
Landon giggled. "Deal."
He stood up quietly. "Let's find you something to eat. And maybe… I'll tell you why I can't sleep."
The creature let him lead.
———
Langford stared at the door Morgan slammed shut. His heart raced.
The truth was real.
Eirlys lived.
The divine creature, reborn as a boy. The savior of Petra. The only one who had ever defeated the Dark Knight. The one who bound him in the Prison of Shadows.
But the boy didn't know any of it.
And that terrified Langford more than anything.
He grabbed the ancient spellbook, the last remaining piece of the lost Book of Prophecy, stuffing it into his old satchel.
If Landon learned his powers, took his rightful place as Petra's true ruler, he could save everyone.
Langford straightened his back. He would protect the divine one. He would guide him.
Even if it cost him his life.
Prophecy would not be denied.
The Prison of Shadows
The Dark Knight moved just like a nightmare through the ruins, an unholy fire burning in his eyes. Darkness curled away beneath his boots, fearing even the monster who walked within it.
His armor devoured every trace of light. The only sign he was real was the sound of his slow, deadly breathing.
He was not hope. He was the end.
Impatient rage twisted inside him. The divine creature still existed. Alive. Delaying his return.
Soon, he promised. He would break free.
He would kill.
He would destroy.
He would rule.
His sword slashed through the shadows, waiting for the day they opened the way for his escape.
The day light would finally fall.