I go into my bedroom, making a mental note of the things I need to bring. The number one thing on my list is my Bloodied Obsidian Bayonets. Theon suggests we call them BOB for short but Strider and I voted no on that. We decided to call them Glints instead. We decided on that name because it takes all our enemies’ darkness away and they turn into dust. When the light hits just right, the dust twinkles.

I wish we knew some other way to help the victims who have fallen into Darkness’ path. The only way we know right now is to kill them. Scientists in the royal lab are trying to figure out a cure but have not succeeded yet. Darkness is spreading so fast that I hired three times as many scientists so they can work non-stop. There has to be a cure. I need to save my kingdom.

My brothers and I can only make two bayonets every month. We carve the bayonets out of obsidian and then we bring them into the temple. The marble of the temple was carved out in, contrast to the obsidian that we lay down in front of us. We then had to grab the Zealous Blade and cut our palms forming a pool of blood in the middle of our hands. The Zealous Blade is the sword our mother used to fight Darkness with when his rage started. Because we were half-light, we had enough magic in our blood to make the bayonets balance every month. We had to make sure three drops of blood hit the bayonets otherwise the magic wouldn’t work. After the blood dripped on the bayonets, the magic turned them into Glints.

I look around my room and gather all of the Glints I can grab. I call Abbot in the room and ask her to get General Velreos. As I wait for him, I pack some essentials and clothing. I decided to bring six Glints with me. Not too much that it would be noticeable but not too little that we could run out of weapons.

General Velreos knocks on my wooden door and I verbally let him in.

“You wanted to see me, Your Highness?” Velreos asks.

I hand him the extra Glints that I will not be taking with me. “I know only the Magnificent are allowed to wield these, but as someone who is part of the Magnificent, and also your queen, I will give these to you. Hand them out only to the soldiers you trust the most. Don’t let anyone else get a hand on these. Make sure to track every single one because if they get in the wrong hands then our whole kingdom could turn into chaos. I am trusting you with these.”

The Magnificents are royalty. They are the only ones aware that Light and Darkness truly exist and that they are not legends. Magnificents are the only ones with permission to wield Glints because the weapons are so powerful. They can choose whom they tell the truth and those people have to swear to secrecy. If the truth of Light and Darkness came out then the world would panic even more and chaos would ensue. We can barely handle the chaos going on with people thinking it is just a story.

Velreos’s eyes widen. “Your Highness, I will not disappoint you. I promise if the kingdom shall fall then I too shall fall with it. I will protect this kingdom with my life.” His green eyes are glassier than I have ever seen and it almost looks like he would miss me.

I walk over to him and hug him. Something I have never done but something that felt so right. He and his family were the ones who taught me and my brothers how to fight. The generations of men took over the fatherly role when Darkness became unbalanced. It feels like I owe him this hug.

His brown beard is scratchy on my scalp but I don’t pay attention once I feel his arms wrap around my shoulders.

“I know you won’t disappoint me Jaelon Velreos. I trust you with the kingdom. You have been one of the best people in my life. Thank you for everything you have done to prepare my brothers and me for this awful war.”

This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

“You’re talking like you won’t be coming back.”

I let go of him and meet his eyes. I feel the sting of tears forming in my eyes. I rarely get emotional in front of anyone but Velreos makes me feel comfortable to be vulnerable in front of him. The silence I give him is so loud and clear. I fear we won’t make it out of this alive.

“Don’t think like that, Your Highness. You will come back. You and your brothers are very strong. You can control Darkness and restore everything to the way it was. I have trained you well. If you fail that means I have failed you and you know I never fail.”

I give a slight chuckle at the fact. Indeed, he never has failed me but there is always time for firsts.

I shake my head to rattle the thoughts out. To save my kingdom and the world, I need to go into this with hope. Hope that we can control Darkness. Hope that we can balance everything again. Hope that my people can live peacefully once again.

We both head out of my bedroom and towards the courtyard. In every kingdom, there is a big patch of land that is covered in gravel. It is where the portals connect. The eight-foot stone walls surrounding the land mass are to protect everything surrounding the portal. Winds are so strong that anything within fifteen feet of the portal would get sucked into it.

Strider and Theon are already there. All three of us only packed what could fit in a sack.

“Our spies have alerted The Magnificents of Chopver that you will be arriving. Is there anything else I can do for you before you depart, Your Highness?” Velreos says.

I turn towards him and smile. I shake my head and give him one final mental goodbye. He nods in response and goes behind the stone wall that divides the courtyard from the outside world.

My brothers and I walk up to the bull’s eye rock in the middle of the courtyard. The rock is up to my stomach and has a slit in the middle of it. I pull out the Glint from the sheath on my left hip. My brothers put their hands over mine. We have to all touch the same blade to go to the same place. Pushing down together, we insert the Glint into the slit of the bull’s eye rock.

“Ego praecipio tibi aperire,” I command.

As soon as the glint is in the bull’s eye, the wooshing sound of the portal grows louder and louder. The red, sideways, swirl makes a thunderous roar as it forms. The wind is almost powerful enough to suck everything in it.

Loose strands of hair fall out of the braided crown and into my face. Then my brothers and I give a silent nod to one another and step towards the portal. The burning in my lungs is nothing compared to the stretching of my limbs. Every time I go through the portal it feels like my joints are about to dislocate and that I am no longer powerful. Going through the portal, it feels like my powers are gone for a split second. It’s the only time I feel truly vulnerable.

The portal spits us out at an alarming pace. I never truly am ready to land on my feet but I stick the landing most of the time. The burning in my lungs no longer burns but feel like I am breathing underwater. That is the worst part about going through the portal. My joints don’t feel like they are going to pop out of their sockets but I know they will be sore for the next couple of hours.

I flick my index finger to create a tiny spark. The spark turns into a flame almost instantly. Knowing my power is still there always gives me relief. I know the portal doesn’t take away our powers but I feel so vulnerable during the transportation. I have to always double-check.

When we walk out of the stone walls in Chopver’s courtyard, we are greeted by a tall woman with tan skin. Her black hair flows down near her knees. The red roses in her hair are placed beautifully and I immediately recognize her.

“Queen Amelia Eusebia, it has been such a long time since we have last seen each other,” I say. I bow as a sign of respect.

“Queen Orien Windslow, I was so glad to hear you have decided to come here. We weren’t going to last much longer if you decided you didn’t want to show up.” Amelia replies. Bowing in return.

“Where is your king?” I ask.

Amelia looked down at her feet. I see a shiny tear drip down from her nose.

“He has turned, Orien. My husband has turned to Darkness and he has lost all control.”