The First King
Chapter 35

"What is that?"

The question was just a whisper, yet the words seemed to echo through the air. Everyone stood still, their eyes filled with panic. Before them stood a blanket that shrouded the land in darkness. It stretched from the clouds in the sky all the way down to the grass on the ground. Nothing could be seen inside the black wall. There was no light, no trees or animals. And the volcano, which should have been only a few miles away, was nowhere in sight. All there was, all that could be seen, was darkness.

Konrad took a hesitant step forward, reaching out his hand to the shadows. As his fingers inched forward, he expected them to hit a wall, but to his surprise, they went through. The air felt cold and heavy on his skin. He rotated his hand, watching as the darkness swirled around him like a fog.

"What is this?" He questioned again as he looked at Jude.

"I don't know," the witch answered as his mouth went dry. "I've never seen anything like this before."

Konrad turned back to the wall, his mind racing with thoughts. Though it was bright and sunny where they stood, it was not so on the other side of the black clouds. For all he knew, vampires could be lurking in the darkness.

"We should send some wolves to run around the perimeter," Prew suggested from behind him. "We need to know if this... darkness... extends all the way around Thresnora."

"Good idea," he replied as he looked at Callum. "Send your fastest wolves, but ensure they stay within range of mind link. I don't want to risk them being ambushed and unable to reach out for help."

Silence followed Konrad's words. There was no agreement, no argument, no movement or questions. After a few seconds of not hearing a response, he turned around. Callum was staring at him, his face white and dripping with sweat. Never before had Konrad seen a man so afraid, so fearful of what lay before him.

"I'll send my people," Alder stated, breaking the silence. "I'll send out two groups of eight. Every two miles, one wolf will stop, ensuring that we keep the chain of mind links open. This should hopefully allow for us to circle all the way around this… thing."

"Then do it," Konrad agreed as he turned his attention to the Alpha. "Thank you."

As Alder and several of his men ran off, Prew stepped forward. Though her feet were hesitant, her curiosity got the better of her. She wanted to touch this black wall, to feel the darkness in her hands. But as she got closer, Konrad placed an arm in her way, blocking her path.

"It isn't safe," he stated firmly. His hand gripped her shoulder, turning her so she faced away from the darkness.

"If this wraps all the way around the volcano, we are going to need to go through it," Jude commented as he looked across the wall.

"And do what? Walk to our deaths? We can't even see into it!"

"Sunlight can't go through, but what about fire?" Prew questioned as she furrowed her brows. Reaching over her shoulder, she pulled an arrow from her quiver and offered it to Jude. "Have one of your witches light this."

With a nod, Jude took the arrow and hurried off. After a few minutes, he returned with two men in gray robes.

"These men are the only ones who have fire magic," he stated as he ushered the guys forward.

"Just two?" Konrad questioned with a frown.

"We do not get many witches blessed by Inti in our coven," Jude explained. "Since that magic is considered elemental, they tend to gravitate toward the Earthen Circle."

"Two is better than none," Prew replied as she looked over the men. One of them held her arrow, with the jasper lit in flames. "How long does the fire last?"

"This particular spell can last for several minutes," one of the men answered as he ran a hand over the fire. As he looked up at the Queen, he offered her the arrow. "It prevents the wood from burning and the gem from being damaged. But, any fire that we create without the use of an incantation can last for as long as the thing it burns on."

Prew took the arrow and eyed the fire curiously. She attempted to touch it, just as the witch had done, but it was hot. How could something that didn't burn the wood of her arrow hurt her fingers?

"Fire doesn't hurt the two of us," the second man chuckled as he saw her face scrunch up.

"No, I assumed that. It's that the fire isn't damaging my arrow, and yet it could burn me."

"That's the incantation. Certain words can alter the way our magic behaves. In this case, we keep the fire from damaging the arrow, but that's it. Should the fire touch anything else, like clothes or wood, it will spread."

"Shoot it into the darkness," Konrad instructed as he reached around Prew, unhooking her bow from the quiver. Even though her shoulder had healed, he still worried over her. She frowned at him, snatching away her weapon. With a grumble, she nocked the arrow, aimed for the black wall, and let it loose.

The flaming arrow flew, piercing the thick, heavy fog. As it landed on the ground, the fire remained lit. Though it landed nearly fifty feet away, it could still be seen, but it did not illuminate much of the area around it. Prew scowled as she turned to Konrad.

"What now?" She questioned.

"We gather torches," he replied with furrowed brows. "Have more arrows lit up, ready to shoot to lead the way."

"Are you seriously going to have us go into that? Into the darkness?" Callum questioned, his voice laced with fear and anger.

"I know what lies before us is daunting and frightening," Konrad stated as he stepped forward. He glanced at the faces around him, at the people who were there to fight by his side. But they were scared, fearful of what was to come. "And I'm not going to lie to you, I'm afraid, too. But do you know what scares me the most? It's the thought that this darkness will spread. It will crawl its way to your homes, to your families! I don't want that. I want it to stop now! But I shall not ask you to go in there alone. Today, I will be the first to step into the shadows, and I shall be the one to lead the way. From this moment until my last, I shall be a protector, a shield, and a sword, not just for everyone back home, but for you!"

There was a hush that fell over the crowd. They looked nervously at those around them, but none dared to move, and none dared to speak. Konrad let out a sigh, feeling defeated as he looked to the ground. How could he expect others to go into the unknown when he himself was scared to the point that his hands were trembling? After a few tense seconds, Prew stepped up, taking a shaking hand in hers.

"I will go with you into the darkness. I'll be your protector, your sword, and your shield," she declared with a small smile.

"We will also go with you!" Jude added as he took Sofia's hand in his.

"We will be your protector!" Another called out.

"Your shield!"

"I will be your sword!"

The shouts kept coming, and slowly, the faces of the crowd turned to excitement. With the wave of energy that surged through the crowd, everyone began to scatter. Every available torch was grabbed, and thick branches were broken from nearby trees. Anything that could hold a fire and light the way was brought to the front lines. As the last of the torches were gathered and passed out, Alder returned with his wolves.

"Alder! Great timing!" Konrad called out as the Alpha approached. "We just finished gathering supplies. Did your men see a hole anywhere in this thing?"

"No," Alder scowled. "This darkness wraps all the way around the volcano like a bubble. My men who went East ran across Julius' group. They are just as frightened as we are."

"Did any of your wolves stay with him?" Konrad inquired.

"No," Alder replied quickly. "I feel more comfortable having all of my people with me. It's not that I don't trust Julius; I don't tru-"

"I get it; there's no need to explain," Konrad interrupted as he placed a hand on the Alpha's shoulder. "I'll send some of my men to him."

"What are we doing?" Alder questioned curiously as a few of Konrad's men shifted and headed East.

"We are going to push, the thing we have planned to do since the beginning. But I want Julius and his army to stay put. If something goes wrong while we are in the darkness, he could potentially come in and help. Assuming the dark witches aren't standing just on the edge of the walls, watching us, Julius may give us an element of surprise."

"Everyone is ready to go," Prew interjected as she approached the men with a lit torch. Konrad reached over, taking it from her hands.

"The rest of you shift; I'm going to stay in human form for as long as I can," Konrad stated as he turned to face the wall of clouds and smoke. His eyes scanned the darkness, looking at it from the ground all the way into the sky. He could not help but shudder at the thought of walking into it. But then he froze, tensing up when Prew touched his back. After taking a moment to compose himself, he turned to face her. "Shoot off the arrows."

Prew nodded her head as she grabbed an arrow from her quiver. One of the fire witches stepped forward, lighting it for her. As she nocked the arrow, she whistled, signaling for all the other archers to shoot. From all around the black wall, fire arrows went through the darkness, disrupting the shadows and low-hanging fog. Some went straight, landing only twenty to thirty feet away, while others arched their shots, their arrows going 100 feet or further. Though the fires did not give out much light, they helped to create a waypoint in the darkness. Meanwhile, the arrows that were shot straight forward were intended to pierce any man who may have been hidden, watching from the shadows.

Konrad stood there, looking at the flickering fires. From what he could tell, no one was standing there watching them. But that did not mean that there weren't witches lurking about. With a heavy sigh, he took the first tentative step into the darkness. Once he was fully engulfed by the shadows, it was as if his vision went away. He could not make out anything other than a flicker of light in the distance.

"It's so dark," Prew remarked as she stepped up behind him.

"Stay quiet," Konrad whispered. "We do not know what is creeping about."

Prew nodded her head as she raised her bow. Another fire arrow was nocked, aimed, and ready to be let loose at a moment's notice. The volcano was a few miles away, but in the darkness, it felt as though it was further than that. Each step, each breath, was carefully calculated. After reaching the fire arrows, more would be shot off. Over and over, the process was repeated. It felt as if hours had passed, but it seemed as if they made no progress.

"We're lost," Prew mumbled under her breath.

"How can we be lost if we keep following the arrows?" Konrad countered as he glanced to his left. He could not see her face, but he could see the fire on the end of the bow.

"For all we know, they could be manipulating our shots, and we are going in circles."

Konrad growled as he came to a stop. On the ground was the last set of arrows that they had shot off. What if they were lost? What could they realistically do? They could attempt to turn back, but the first sets of fire arrows had long since been extinguished. And yet, one question had plagued his mind this whole time. Why had they not been attacked yet? With them being in the darkness, the dark witches and vampires would have the upper hand. Why let them keep walking?

"It's time to shoot off the next set of arrows," he asserted as he furrowed his brows. Everything felt off—felt wrong. But they were so deep into it. It was too late to do anything else now.

His eyes looked up, watching as the fire went flying through the air. He followed their trajectory until they landed on the ground. But something was different. For hours, the fires had shown nothing, but now, things were standing near the light. Things? No. It was dozens, if not hundreds of people, standing in the darkness, facing them. Konrad's breath got caught in his chest as he looked around. He could not see any faces, only feet and the ends of cloaks. They needed more light, more fire to illuminate the threat before them.

"Shoot more arrows!"

Song time! “Darkness Before Dawn” by Caleb Hyles is such a good song to set the tone for the upcoming fight!!