Nightblade (Darkest night)

In a dark underground cave three figures sat in a loose circle around a fourth on the ground.

Despite the absence of any light source, the figures remained strangely unbothered.

Several mystic symbols were inscribed into the caves walls, surviving even the passage of time because of their innate mystical properties.

"How long do you think he’ll be like this?"

A young woman quietly asked, gazing down at the still figure on the ground.

For a while, she was only met with silence.

"I’m not entirely sure, " a gruff voice replied, several moments later.

"The boy seems to have a strange connection with this place. Even worse, there’s some sort of interference that prevents me from peering into his mind."

Raven spared Valerius an impassive glance then turned back to the unconscious figure on the ground.

Just then the darkness parted revealing a fifth figure.

"There’s nothing we can do now," Sye murmured.

"Not without harming him, that is. Attempting to forcefully bring him back from the black mist’s influence could cripple his mind and at worst even kill him."

"What have you discovered, Sye?"

A short while back, after the group had fled from the area of the blackmist’s influence.

They had swiftly come across a vast underground cave system in one of which they’d now taken refuge.

Sye removed the dark hood covering his head, revealing a face lined with quiet exhaustion. Fine dust clung to his cloak, and faint scratches marked the leather bracers around his forearms.

He lowered himself onto a weathered stone and exhaled.

"Well, right now, all I have are more questions than answers. But of one thing I’m certain."

"...Something about the mountain has changed..."

Valerius raised an eyebrow, staring at him for a few moments then nodded for him to continue.

"Go on."

Sye nodded.

"This cave system is far larger than we originally believed. It isn’t a network of natural tunnels. They were constructed,they’re man made."

Silence settled over the chamber. Morgan remained motionless on the ground, his breathing slow and steady, seemingly oblivious to the conversation unfolding around him. Sye continued.

"The architecture repeats itself every few hundred meters. Pillars. Archways. Passageways. They’re all deliberately constructed."

He frowned slightly.

"Some sections have collapsed with age, but the craftsmanship..." He shook his head slowly. "I’ve never seen anything like it. And to think that it was right under our noses, all this time..."

He pointed toward one of the walls.

"See those grooves?"

Raven followed his finger, barely seeing anything in the thick darkness.

What she’d initially mistaken for cracks in the stone were, upon closer inspection, precise lines carved into the rock itself.

"They’re tool marks," Sye continued quietly.

"Someone built this."

Valerius glanced around the chamber, his golden eyes sweeping over the faded runes covering the walls.

"An underground city?"

Sye slowly shook his head.

"No. This is merely the foundation."

He hesitated before continuing.

"It feels as though this entire mountain was hollowed out first... then something enormous was constructed within it. Aside from the Temple above..."

Angel, who had been quietly kneeling beside Morgan, slowly lifted her head.

Her silver eyes drifted toward the ancient symbols etched into the cave walls.

"These runes, they’re older than anything I’ve ever seen."

Her voice was calm, almost distant.

"I don’t recognize the script."

Valerius frowned slightly.

"Not even a little?"

Angel shook her head.

"No. But..."

She slowly brushed her fingertips across one of the faded carvings.

"...they’re alive."

Raven’s eyes narrowed.

"What do you mean?"

Angel turned her gaze to her.

"The runes inscribed this place...they’re still alive."

Raven frowned in confusion.

"Runes? What is she talking about?"

Valerius ignored the question, looking toward Morgan’s unconscious figure.

"Any change?"

Angel gently rested two fingers against Morgan’s wrist.

His pulse remained steady.

"None."

She frowned almost imperceptibly.

"His body is here..."

Her gaze lingered on his peaceful expression.

"...but his consciousness is somewhere else entirely."

She sighed, straightening.

"That’s what worries me. I’ve encountered illusions before. But this isn’t one. The Blackmist must have transported his mind elsewhere. I’ve never seen anything quite like it..."

"One more thing," Sye muttered.

Despite not seeing his face, Raven could tell feel the solemnity in his voice.

"I wasn’t alone while scouting."

Every head turned toward him.

"I never saw anything..."

He paused, hesistating slightly.

"...but several times I could hear something moving."

Raven’s eyes narrowed.

Despite having never seen Sye unsettled before, she could tell, whatever he’d encountered had left him deeply disturbed.

"What sort of something?" Raven asked somberly.

After a while, Sye quietly spoke.

" I don’t know."

His jaw tightened.

"It never came close. It simply followed me, then disappeared at some point."

Raven felt a chill.

That admission was far more terrifying than anything they’d encountered.

Raven had witnessed the harrowing power of the Sye first hand and therefore anything that had managed to leave him this unsure was a force to be reckoned with.

The insidious ability of the enemy to remain unseen even with Sye’s inhumanly enhanced senses only served to make it even more terrifying.

*****

Morgan slowly opened his eyes.

Except...they weren’t his.

For a brief moment, confusion washed over him.

Instead, he found himself standing beneath a sky overflowing with stars.

Morgan stood silently behind the marble podium, gazing out over the sea of faces before him.

The grand plaza stretched farther than the eye could see.

Thousands upon thousands of citizens filled every street, every balcony and every rooftop overlooking the square.

Crystal lanterns drifted lazily through the night sky while silver banners bearing the royal crest fluttered in the mountain breeze.

For a brief moment...silence descended upon the crowd.

Then—Morgan slowly stepped forward. Cheers erupted instantly.

"Prince Modric!"

"Long live the Prince!"

"Our future king!"

The deafening roar washed over him like a tidal wave.

He waited patiently until the voices gradually subsided.

Only then did he smile.

"My people..."

His voice felt foreign to him and yet, it carried effortlessly across the vast plaza.

"I must admit..."

A hint of amusement entered his expression.

"...every year you somehow find a way to make this celebration even grander than the last."

Warm laughter rippled through the crowd.

Morgan continued.

"When I was a child, I believed tonight existed solely for the music... the feasts... and the endless sweets that somehow disappeared before I could claim my fair share."

More laughter followed.

"I later discovered my father had instructed the royal kitchens to hide them from me."

Even the palace guards struggled to suppress their smiles.

Morgan chuckled softly before his expression gradually became more solemn.

"But as I’ve grown older..."

"I’ve come to understand what this night truly represents."

His golden eyes swept across the countless faces before him.

"The Day of Covenant is not a celebration of kings."

"It is not a celebration of princes."

"It is not even a celebration of our great Houses."

He slowly shook his head.

"It is a celebration of us."

"Of every craftsman who shapes stone into beauty."

"Every farmer whose hands feed a nation."

"Every scholar who preserves the wisdom of those who came before us."

"Every soldier who stands watch while the rest of us sleep peacefully."

His voice grew firmer.

"A kingdom is not built upon marble."

"It is not built upon gold."

"It is built upon people."

Thunderous applause swept through the plaza.

Morgan waited once more.

"When the day comes that I inherit my father’s crown..."

His gaze lifted toward the towering palace behind him before returning to the crowd.

"I do not ask for blind loyalty. I ask only this."

"If ever I fail to uphold the ideals upon which Elaris stands...hold me accountable."

A stunned silence settled over the square.

"I am not above the law."

"I am not above my people."

"The crown does not exist to command."

"It exists to serve."

The silence lasted only a heartbeat.

Then the city erupted.

The cheers were louder than before. Many citizens wiped tears from their eyes. Others simply stood proudly with hands over their hearts.

Morgan raised one hand, and the crowd gradually quieted again.

"My father often reminds me that peace is not something we inherit. It is something we choose. Every day. In every decision. In every kindness. In every sacrifice."

He smiled warmly.

"So tonight...Celebrate."

"Laugh."

"Spend time with your families. Treasure those beside you. For they..."

He paused, an odd feeling stirring deep within his chest.

"...are the greatest treasure this kingdom will ever possess."

The words escaped his lips before he fully understood why they felt so heavy.

A strange melancholy settled over him.

As though somewhere deep within Prince Modric’s soul...he already knew...

The cheers returned once more, echoing across the mountains surrounding Elaris.

Morgan smiled and raised a hand in acknowledgment.

Far above the celebration...one star quietly disappeared from the night sky.

A gentle mountain breeze tugged at the white ceremonial robes draped over his shoulders, carrying with it the distant sounds of laughter, music, and celebration.

The brilliant city of Elaris stretched beneath him, its countless lanterns shimmering like a sea of fallen stars.

Morgan blinked. Then frowned, his eyes narrowing then widening.

"...Right."

This was a memory. Of whatever this place truly was or had been...

He lowered his gaze to his hands. They were soft, slender, unscarred. They were not his own.

And yet somehow...they felt familiar.

A strange sensation lingered at the edge of his consciousness. It was becoming harder to distinguish where Morgan ended...

...and where Prince Modric began.

Names drifted effortlessly into his mind.

Faces he had never met. Roads he had never walked. Conversations he had never spoken.

Yet every one of them felt as natural as breathing.

It was no longer as though he were watching someone else’s life. He was living it.

The realization sent a chill through him.

Somewhere, buried beneath the flood of inherited memories, Morgan clung desperately to a single thought.

"Don’t forget who you are," A deep voice said, resounding through his mind.

Morgan shuddered imperceptibly, gritting his teeth.

"Don’t forget...don’t forget...don’t forget..."

The festivities continued long into the night.

Music drifted through the streets of Elaris as dancers twirled beneath floating crystal lanterns, their colorful robes painting graceful arcs through the warm summer air.