Light & Dark: The Awakening of the Mageknight (19 page)

"The Eye of Darkness," Sabrina said from
above, twisting out of the hammock, landing with the grace of a cat
beside him. Suddenly, her nimble stance faltered as the Radiance
heaved beneath her, causing her to fall on Danny. She automatically
put her hands on his chest for support.

The fabric of the hammock groaned from the
stress of both bodies as Danny grabbed her at the waist. He could
feel the warmth of her breath on his face and smell the sweet scent
of her hair as her lips hovered dangerously above him.

"What should we do?" Doug asked.

Sabrina eased herself off Danny's chest,
adjusted her clothing and straightened up, as if nothing had
happened. "Go and see it, of course."

Danny nearly fell out of the hammock, the
sway of the ship and Sabrina's proximity were having a rather
negative affect on his balance.

Soon, everyone was awake, following Sabrina
down the hall, stopping often to brace themselves against a wall as
the Radiance swayed forcefully from side to side. They reached the
end of the corridor and ascended the stairs leading to the upper
decks.

Passing through the dining hall, Danny
noticed that the tables had been cleared and cleaned. He followed
Sabrina as she reached the second set of stairs and went up
them.

At the top of the staircase, Sabrina pushed
against the door, forcing it open, causing a wail of wind to sweep
past her.

Danny could taste the salt in the air as the
gust carried with it a spray of mist from the ocean.

The
Radiance
was a mess of motion as
the crew worked to follow the orders of their captain as he yelled
from the aft of the ship. However, his voice was cut off as a
jagged bolt of lightning split the sky in half, followed by a
deafening boom.

The loud noise forced Danny's eyes toward the
sky, a swirl of black clouds materialized, creating a churning wall
of darkness. Within the raging storm, thunderclaps boomed, followed
by more white shafts of lightning.

"We have to go through that?" Doug yelled
over the fury of the storm.

"We're getting closer," Chris emphasized.

Danny noticed a distinct difference between
where the storm awaited them and where the
Radiance
was now.
The waters around the ship were choppy but within the dark clouds
of the coming storm, the waves doubled, even tripled in size.

"There's no way this ship is going to last
five seconds in a storm like that!" Matt pointed out, saying what
everyone else was already thinking.

"We're all going to die!" Doug said, taking a
couple of steps back in a gesture of hopelessness. He stopped as he
bumped into something solid.

"Don't be silly!" a familiar deep voice
yelled from behind.

Danny turned to find Nicholi Ormstead, the
Navi, standing behind Doug, his face shrouded by the thick hood of
his robes. Despite the heavy sway of the ship, his stance remained
solid and confident.

"It is my job to protect you, Squire,"
placing a reassuring hand upon Doug's shoulder, "and I am quite
good at my job."

"We're getting much closer," said Matt,
wiping the speckles of water from his glasses, returning them to
his head.

"Ah, so we are," said the Navi in a calm
voice. "If you will excuse me, Squires, it is time."

Doug stepped to the side, allowing Nicholi to
pass.

Danny intuited the
feeling
of a smile;
robes concealed the Navi's features. Nicholi passed them, ascended
to his perch at the bow of the
Radiance
and sat down
cross-legged as before.

"Whatever it is he's going to do, he'd better
do it fast," said Doug, just as the billowing storm swelled up just
off the bow of the ship, sending warped bolts of lightning
crackling out on both sides.

"I think I'm going to be sick!" Alonso said.
He cupped his mouth as the
Radiance
rocked from side to
side.

The wind whipped at the Navi's white robes,
pulling the veil of the hood from his head. Upon closer
examination, Danny noticed that his eyes seemed to be closed as he
mouthed some unintelligible incantation. Just before the fury of
the storm threatened to overtake the
Radiance
, the Navi went
wide-eyed as a clear globe expanded from his cupped hands,
expanding to impossible dimensions, enveloping the ship from bow to
aft.

As if to test the strength of this new
barrier, the raging storm engulfed the
Radiance
in a swirl
of black clouds; it bombarded the ship with arcing streaks of
lighting. The jagged bolts of light deflected off the protective
sphere as the Navi navigated the ship deeper into the dark bowels
of the tempest. Just beyond the border of the Navi's aura, waves of
unimaginable size crested and crashed. However, within the globe,
the sea remained steady and calm, a sturdy sanctuary in an ocean of
madness.

"Now that was epic," said Matt, wiping the
moisture from his glasses once again.

Danny had to admit that, despite the
horrifying destructive power of it, the storm was quite
beautiful.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Sabrina asked, moving
to stand beside Danny.

"Yes, you just read my mind."

"If it weren't for the Navi's protective
spell, this ship would be crushed in a matter of seconds," Sabrina
pointed out.

"Is he alright?" Danny asked, gesturing
toward Nicholi as he sat still on his perch at the bow of the
ship.

"He is a Navi," explained Sabrina. "As I
understand it, navigating the
Radiance
through the storm
created by the Eye of Darkness requires his full attention. The
storm itself is magical in nature."

"Where's Alonso?" Chris asked.

Danny took a quick look around, noticing that
they were missing one of their group.

"He's over there," said Doug, as he pointed
to the side of the ship.

Danny found Alonso slumped over the side
rail, threatening to empty the contents of his belly into the
ocean. After a couple of quick convulsions, Alonso turned and sat
down against the railing.

"Are you okay, man?" Chris asked, he was the
first to reach Alonso.

"I don't know," grumbled Alonso.

"He is suffering from seasickness," said
Sabrina. "It's from the sway of the ship. The back and forth motion
can cause some to become queasy, even sick, hence seasickness."

Alonso covered his mouth with his hand in
light of her comment. Once the threat had passed, he said, "Don't
say that again."

"…What, you mean seasick?" Sabrina asked with
an apparent curiosity.

Alonso shook his head from side to side.

"Are you talking about swaying back and
forth?"

Alonso's eyes went wide as he cupped his hand
around his mouth. This time, he couldn't calm his stomach. He stood
up, turned back toward the rail and retched over the side of the
ship.

Matt was the first one to snicker, causing
the mirth to spread, everyone burst into laughter.

Alonso turned around and slumped back against
the handrail. He was too exhausted to argue or put up a fight. "I
hate you guys," he grumbled.

back to top

he storm subsided as the
Radiance
passed into the pale glow of the mild moonlight, leaving swirling
black clouds in her wake. The protective shield surrounding the
ship waned for a brief moment before blinking out of existence.

Danny watched the fury of the storm rage on
behind them, erupting in flashes of unseen lightning and booms of
distant thunder.

"Look at that, man," said Chris next to
him.

Danny turned and followed his friend's gaze.
An island of solid white rock with high cliffs that soared well
beyond the reach of the crashing waves lay before them. Their eyes
were attracted to two landmarks, one on the eastern side and one on
the western side. An enormous castle complete with two brilliant
white spires stood far above the waterline on the eastern shore. On
the opposite side of the island, a huge white dome, surrounded by
smaller white brick buildings dominated a large tract of land.
However, the most stunning eye-grabbing phenomenon was the surging
storm; it encircled the island like the eye of a great hurricane.
Above, the sky was clear and cloudless, revealing an assortment of
distant stars. The tempest created by the Eye of Darkness fumed
with a dangerous fury only a few miles out; it was kept at bay by
some unknown force.

Before Danny could finish taking everything
in, his eyes diverted to Nicholi Ormstead. The weary Navi lifted
from his perch. He climbed back onto the deck, legs unsteady and
descended a couple of steps, almost falling. Danny shot forward,
offering a helping hand; Chris and Sabrina did the same, moving to
the opposite side of the Navi.

"Thank you, Squires. Navigating that storm
has a tendency to take a lot out of me."

"Are you alright?" Danny asked.

After a moment to get his bearings, the
wizard's smile widened as he eased the pressure of his weight back
on his legs. "Nothing a long nap won't cure," he said, standing
solidly on his own two feet again. "You are nearly there my young
squires. You would do well to worry about your upcoming training
and less about my wellbeing."

"Any advice?" Danny asked, taking two steps
back, giving the Navi his space.

"I am no warrior, Squire Firoth, but I have
witnessed some of the schooling you will take part in and it is not
for the faint of heart. The trials for a Knight of the Light are
difficult and taxing. If I could tell you anything worthwhile, it
would be to stay focused and do your best."

"Thank you, Nicholi," said Danny
appreciatively.

"No, my young squire, thank you. I look
forward to hearing about you and your friends and how you
fare."

"As will I," said Danny with a grin.

Returning the smile, Nicholi Ormstead
gathered his robes about him. "If you will excuse me, I am in
desperate need of a nap."

"Of course," said Danny, moving out of the
Navi's way. Chris and Sabrina did the same.

Nicholi crossed the deck and went below.

"Sabrina, there you are!" yelled someone from
behind.

Danny turned to find Rogen approaching at a
brisk walk, his long blond hair fluttering out behind him. "Great,"
muttered Danny under his breath.

"Where have you been?" Rogen asked, directing
his question toward Sabrina. He stopped in front of her, ignoring
Danny as well as everyone else.

"We ate and then we took a nap," said
Sabrina, indicating that she wasn't the only one who would be
participating in the conversation.

"Oh," said Rogen in a flat tone, looking
around, seemingly noticing the others for the first time.
Shrugging, he continued, ignoring everyone but Sabrina. "I can't
wait to find out which army I have been assigned to, hopefully
it’ll be Dragon Army. Captain Vyce looks stronger than ever. I'm
sure he's going to win the Chalice of Light again this year."

"Yes, we had a run-in with him recently,"
said Sabrina, looking over at Alonso, who had recovered from his
seasickness.

"I don't like that guy," said Alonso.

"Like him or not, Captain Vyce is one of the
strongest squires in the school, perhaps even stronger than some of
the full-fledged knights on the island."

"But he's only a third-year, right?" Danny
asked. "How could he be so strong at such a young age?"

"That's just it," said Rogen, turning toward
Danny, "if he's this strong now, wait until he gets older. He might
even become King of the Light."

"…King?" Danny questioned.

"Don't you newbs know anything?" scolded
Rogen.

"They are not Lightborn," said Sabrina in
Danny's defense.

"Ah, I see, that explains it," said
Rogen.

"What do you mean we aren't
Lightborn
?" Doug asked, his voice showing his annoyance at
the possible insult.

"It should not be taken offensively,"
explained Sabrina. "Lightborn simply refers to those that are the
offspring of Knights of the Light. Rogen's father is Sir Gallad
Gilder, a Knight of the Light, making him a Lightborn. My father is
also a Knight of the Light, thus I am Lightborn as well. However,
since none of your parents were ever participants in the Order of
the Light, you are not considered Lightborn."

"I understand," Doug conceded, but he didn't
like the designation.

"And who's this King of the Light?" Danny
asked, targeting his question at Sabrina.

"The king is the head of the Order of Light,"
said Rogen in Sabrina's stead, an act that caused Sabrina to scowl
at him. Rogen continued without noticing. "The King of the Light is
the supreme commander, charged with protecting the Eye of Darkness
at all costs. He never leaves the island and it is said that he is
the most powerful of all knights."