Chapter 26 A Dark Connection

It was a dream… I could feel my body float in the darkness, unaware of its surroundings. Cold had crept up all over my skin, my muscles too frozen to even shiver; my body, unresponsive. My mind suggested that I was dead, but not entirely. With my eyes crammed shut, I could feel the weight of my eyelids, unable to open.

I tried, countless times, to open my eyes, only to be faced with another set of closed eyelids. It was an endless loop where I'd already attempted to open my eyes a hundred thousand times. Had this been a dream, I'd be awake by now… yet I floated still.

Was this a greater power that had taken hold? A couple hundred loops earlier, I could still remember something. My memories faded with every loop. Now I wasn't even sure who I was. Inside my mind, all I could scavenge for was a blank canvas, with no tools to draw in it.

Something did appear for a second, like a shadow, slithering across the white. It vanished as quickly as it had appeared. Had this been part of my memory? I could not tell anymore.

.

"Merylin…" The tall, buffed up man stood at the far end of the lounge, his head almost touching the ceiling. His skin was pitch black all over, like a shadow. A black flame rested over his bald head like a crown.

"How… d-do you know me?" Meryl whispered with quivering lips, her fingers curled tightly around the ax.

"My daughter. I have come for you," he said in his deep, heavy voice.

"D-daughter? I'm sorry, you're m-mistaken…" she was shaking her head furiously. Fear coiled around her throat, making it hard for her to make out the words.

"You are Dixon's sister, are you not?"

"You know Dixon? A-are you one of his shadows l-like that D-d-damon guy?" Recognitions sparked in her eyes for a second, only to be drowned by the following head shake from the man.

"I am his father. King Darke of the shadow realm!" His voice echoed through the entire apartment. Meryl's shoulders jerked up, startled by the sudden raise of voice.

"D-Dixon's not… my brother. We're f-family f-f-friends… but I do see him as a b-brother."

"Did you never wonder… why you always dream of darkness?"

Meryl's eyes widened as they stared back into the king's radiant, golden eyes.

"Why you're able to breathe this miasma that would kill any normal person in an instant…" he continued. "The shadows have chosen you, just as they chose him. If he were to suddenly.... die… you would be the next heir to the shadow realm."

"Die? Wh-why would he die?" Her heart raced all of a sudden, gripping the ax in both her hands now. To which, the shadow king flashed a wicked smile.

"Because I killed him…"

The color drained from Meryl's face as the words sank in.

"What…?" she mouthed, not able to muster a voice.

"He disobeyed the king. Thought he could rebel against me. I put him right where he belonged." There wasn't a single shred of emotion as he said that. "Now, I believe you are much more sensible than him. You will do as I ask."

Meryl just stared at him helplessly, body trembling so badly that the ax almost slipped out of her hands. The king covered the distance with long strides, holding out a hand towards her.

"Come… we have work to do," he said, oblivious to how terrified she looked.

He watched her mouth something at him. He frowned, unable to understand her response.

"Br..ng h.. ba..…" she murmured.

"Speak louder!" he snapped, annoyed.

"Bring him back!" she roared out the words, steadily rising to her feet, raising her ax.

"Aaah!" she yelled as the ax came down. The blade made contact with the king's chest with a crack. She stood there, breathing wide eyed. A metal thud echoed behind her as the broken blade fell to the floor, leaving only the wooden stick in her hands. There wasn't even a dent in the king's body as he stood, unhinged by the attack.

He laughed out loud with amusement. Meryl threw the stick at him, slipping past with haste and headed towards the exit door of the apartment.

"Don't think for a second that you can run from the king," he warned.

Meryl's feet skidded to a halt as she stared up at the hundreds of shadows emerging out of the walls to block her path. They crept towards her, crawling at her feet.

"Dixon… where are you…" she murmured anxiously.

"I told you, I killed him. He's de-"

"He's not dead! He wouldn't die so easily. You're lying!" Meryl snapped, backing into a corner. The king's nostrils flared.

"You dare… call the shadow king a liar!" He growled.

Meryl gulped, regretting letting her mouth run like that. The shadows lunged at her, pinning her to the floor. She screamed, trying desperately to shield her face from being scratched. They blended into her skin, turning it black in small patches despite her resistance. One eye turned completely black, while the other blinked around in bewilderment.

"No! Get off!" she screamed. All of a sudden, a burning sensation took hold of her face. Her hands went up to cover it in a panicky motion. Her eyeballs pulled back.

She opened her eyes to a scorching flame dancing around her vision. The brightness blinded her. She clawed at her eyes from outside.

"I said get off me!" she screamed and the shadows jumped back.

"Impossible…" she heard the shadow king mutter. She frowned in utter confusion, pulling herself to sit up. Everything was tinted red. She rubbed her eyes that still scorched behind the sockets. Her own breath felt almost a hundred degrees hotter. The shadows hissed at her from afar.

"Cowards! Do not retreat!" the king shouted out. Their heads bobbed towards him, and then back at her.

Almost hesitantly, one jumped at her face. Meryl swiped it with her arm. As her skin made contact, the shadow screeched aloud. Part of its body turned red as it dissipated into the air. It jumped back, holding a partly burned off arm.

"I said, do not retreat! She is only a weakling!"

A second wave of shadows lunged at her, blending into her skin. She screamed out as many of them burned away to dust. It didn't matter though. There were so many that they eventually took over. Her skin turned pitch black like a shadow. The red tint disappeared from her vision as she looked around, gasping for breath.

"You will now stay in the realm of shadows until the crowning." She heard the king's voice echo in the distance as she stared down at her shadow hands.

All of a sudden, the ground trembled below, shifting from place. Her head snapped towards the door, in time to watch it peel away in front of her. White threads shot through the space around her. She heard the king mutter something with displeasure as the walls began to peel off. The white lines rose up to form a box around them, through which she could see a thick black smoke clinging to the edges from outside.

"I finally found you…" a familiar voice with a distant tone rang in Meryl's ears. Iris appeared into the cube as a white passageway opened and closed behind her.

"I don't think we can wait till the crowning," the shadow king uttered, taking careful steps towards Iris. "Merylin, grab as much energy as you can. For the future of the shadow realm!"

"Wait what?" Meryl blurted. Almost obediently her body moved on its own to stand in between the king and Iris. She felt stiff all of a sudden, as if no longer in control. She gaped at the little girl, trying to find her inside those distant blue eyes.

.

Cheryl crouched down on one knee in front of the blue eyed Catter. With a hand outstretched towards it, she carefully leaned forward.

"Please… show me where Dixon is…" she whispered.

To which the Catter opened its mouth wide, stretching out larger than the size of its own body. Cheryl found herself pointing her finger towards a massive hole that had formed in front of her. An enormous force of wind blew her way, almost pushing her back a few inches. She covered her face protectively, staring deep into the abyss. Ricky grabbed her arm, pulling her aside. He was shaking his head, saying something. Nothing could be heard over the sound of the roaring wind.

She pulled her arm away, giving him a determined look. Ricky's eyes disagreed with desperation. He moved forward but sparks emitted out of her. Before he could grab her arm again, she slipped right between his fingers, dashing straight into the darkness. Ricky faltered, feeling the pressure from his wound rise as he attempted to chase after her. The Catter's mouth came to a close right in his face. He blinked, flabbergasted.

"No no let her out!" he cried out, reaching for the Catter but it just hissed at him and backed away.

He punched the ground with as much force as he could muster, feeling a slight crack in his knuckle.

"Damn it…" he cursed.

.

It was too dark to see anything but the sparks around her body gave off enough light for her to follow. She could feel rubble beneath her feet as she walked barefoot. The ground was flat but cracked all over. There was no tree or house or anything that would symbolize life. It was a barren land with not so much as even water in sight. The air was thick and dry, the kind that made it hard to breathe a little.

She wasn't sure how much time had passed but it already felt like she had been walking for hours, yet the landscape did not change. The darkness continued on for what seemed like forever. At least it felt like a long time, yet a single drop of sweat that should have evaporated a long time ago, still remained on the side of her forehead.

Cheryl stopped to take a breath. She looked around cautiously. A feeling of uneasiness washed over her like she was being watched.

She chose to remain silent, as to not provoke the predator. With slow and steady steps, she marched forward once more. This time she felt it move as the ground rumbled beneath her feet ever so slightly. Cheryl fastened her pace.

It was not until she bumped into a wall that she realized exactly how massive the thing was. At first she felt with her hands the rugged, moving surface. Her eyes widened as the thing hissed at her like a snake, slowly surrounding her with its body curving up.

Cheryl's heart began to race as the giant rock quickly closed in. With haste, she grabbed the bumps on its body and pulled herself up, just in time. There was a thud as the snake's body crushed against its own skin. Feigning ignorance, Cheryl climbed aboard the creature, balancing herself on the moving rocks with her bare feet. She could feel them stinging into her flesh.

All of a sudden, the creature stopped. Cheryl felt a subtle gust of wind onto the back of her neck. She whirled around with a startled gasp, looking up. A pair of large white eyes glowered at her from up close, floating in the darkness.

"Huh…" she murmured as the thing breathed into her face, blowing her hair back. Almost immediately she regretted not having thought this through. A tiny voice at the back of her head screamed at her. She took a step back. From the corner of her eye, she saw something silver glint past her, followed by a thud as it hit the snake. It's head instantly moved to the side.

"What're you doing standing there?" It was the voice of a little boy from somewhere nearby. Cheryl looked around, confused. Seconds later, tiny hands grabbed hold of her wrist and pulled her in the opposite direction.

"Let's go!" said the little boy, leading her away from the snake. She could feel the bumpy surface below her as they traveled along its tail, leading to a short jump back to the ground. The boy guided her behind a giant rock. With his back against it, he breathed out in relief.

"That was a close one…" he whispered, and then to Cheryl, "Are you crazy, lady? That snake could've eaten you if I hadn't distracted it with my shadow."

Cheryl's eyes widened as she kneeled down beside the boy to match his eye level, "Dixon?" she whispered.

"How do you know my name?" young Dixon replied. "Who are you?"

"It's me! Cheryl!" she insisted.

"I don't know you, lady so how do you know me?"

Cheryl sighed, sinking down to sit with her back leaned against the rock. The drop of sweat finally dripped down the side of her forehead.

"Do you live all by yourself here?"

"Yeah, it's just me and my parents. We live not too far from here."

To which Cheryl sat up straight, alert all of a sudden.

"Your parents? I thought they disappeared… How old are you?"

"I'm eleven but I'll turn twelve in a few months. Then I'll be old enough to go to work with my dad."

"Work? What kind of work?" A frown appeared on Cheryl's face.

"To mine. My dad's a miner. He works at the pit near Darkwood."

Recognition sparked in her eyes as she grabbed young Dixon's shoulders and gave them a slight shake.

"Take me there. I'm sure that's where I'll find who I'm looking for."

All of a sudden, young Dixon seemed distracted as he looked away at something far off into the distance. Cheryl was caught off guard by the sudden screech that followed.

"Uh oh… I think the snake just ate my shadow…"

Cheryl watched, tilting her head from behind the rock to see the set of large yellow eyes now glaring in their direction.