Darkness - Jack Montgomery (ebook offline TXT) 📗

Prologue
The Assassin crept noiselessly through the dark streets, clinging to the shadows. The few people who noticed him paid him little attention, since they were more concerned with whether he was a guard or not. Coming, to the targets house, he reviewed the plan in his head. The plan was simple enough, executing it would be just as easy. There were only two others better at killing then he: one was his brother, the other was an elf so of course she was better at everything. The Assassin crept into the house, looking for the store room where the oil was kept. He found a large barrel of the stuff in a dark corner of the room and gathering some of the oil, the Assassin put some of it into ten different water skins. He then put a fuse into each skin with the string hanging out the top. Each of these skins he deposited around the house at the different support beams, outside each room, and in the store room. Creeping upstairs, he quickly found his targets room. Ah, there they were, sleeping side by side in the bed. He quietly drew his sword, the blade glinting for an instant before he drew the blade over his victims throats spilling their blood over the white linen sheets. The Assassin then pulled out two small vials which he used to collect the blood of each of his victims. Creeping downstairs, with just a muttered word he lit the oil skins which ignited the house. The Assassin was out of the house even before the flames started growing. He watched the house burst into flames, ran towards the gate, jumped on his horse, and rode into the night. He felt accomplished for he had just killed the last remaining leader of the resistance.

Chapter 1
From the very beginning the baby elf knew she was different. When the other elf children went out for the Festival of Light, Lauren would stay insider her room where it was unnaturally dark. Her family always tried to get her to come out and play, and occasionally she did, only to run back insider her room, closing the door, plunging it into darkness. Lauren was incredibly shy and it came out most when she was around boys. One day when Lauren was in her room playing with some of the few toys that she owned, a mysterious object flew through the window shattering the glass. Lauren went over to look at the object: it was about the size of an orange, jagged edges, and it was as black as night, though it had an erie pale glow coming from it out. She bent over to pick it up, and as she touched it, she had a vision of a phoenix bursting out of a stone cage, and a blood red serpent devouring a city. As the vision faded, Lauren noticed a new feeling inside her. She lifted her hand as she felt a tingling insider her. Suddenly the room became so black that those outside thought that all of the night had gathered in one place. Lauren though could see perfectly, and even as she started getting a little scared, she thought that the darkness should leave, and it left suddenly gathering inside of her. As she looked around her room she noticed a full set of armor in one corner of her room. As she approached the armor tentatively, she noticed that next to the armor was the hilt of a sword. Lauren went over and picked up the hilt, and the instant she touched it a blade grew out of it. The blade was the size of a small pine tree and glossy black. With a thought, Lauren collapsed the sword back into the hilt. Putting on the armor, she noticed that the armor was black, with large spikes coming out of the shoulders and almost everywhere else on the armor. The armor was inlaid with sliver veins, running over each joint in the armor, so when the wearer moved, it seemed that the armor itself was alive. When all the armor was on, Lauren bent down to examine the helmet. The helmet was rather extraordinary: it was also all black, with a slit across the eyes to maximize sight, and a mane of glossy black hair coming out of the top. As she donned the helmet, Lauren new that she was very special and that she had been granted a very special power. She smiled: she was now in control of her life. No one else, just her. She could do whatever she wanted. But first, she had to get out of her.

Chapter 2
That was ten years ago though. Lauren was now twenty, still considered a child among her own people, when here, outside the Woods, she was considered a woman. To many humans, Lauren looked like any other woman who lived in the castle. Those that saw her thought her so beautiful that she deserved to be queen. Her long black hair, her catlike eyes and reflexes, and her strangely pale skin had seduced many a man. Each man though soon found himself lying in the street with his purse gone, and the lady nowhere to be found. Lauren enjoyed the attention, and would often walk through the market in her favorite dress, just to see the jealous looks the woman gave her, and the lustful looks the men gave her. That is all the men save one. When she would walk through the market, or through the streets, there was always one man who would look at her under his tan cloak. When she saw this man she was struck with the feeling that she knew him. One day when she was traveling the streets, she felt a presence behind her. As she looked behind her, she saw the man exit into a side street. Curious, she followed him into the alley. As she entered the alley, she noticed that no one was in there. As Lauren started to turn around, she brushed up against someone. Looking to whoever she bumped into, she was startled to see the man that had been following her. As she started to fall back, the man caught her arm. "I'm sorry my lady. I didn't mean to startle you" the man said, as he helped her to her feet. His voice was deep, but not so deep as to make him sound gravely. Suddenly, the man stooped down and picked something off the ground. "Here, I believe this belongs to you." The man had his hand out, and in his hand he was holding something. As Lauren looked down at his hand, she saw that what he was holding was her sword hilt. Careful as not to activate it, she grasped the hilt out of his gloved hand. "Thank you sir. Would it be too much to ask the name of the man who has helped me?" Lauren asked with a hint of an edge, for she did not know this man. The man frowned before he answered, saying, "My name is Jack. And if, I might ask, what is your name?" Jack said staring at Lauren. Those eyes. Lauren could almost feel his eyes searching through her mind. His eyes were a dark brown, though it seemed that they shown, much like a wolves in the fading light. Lauren answered, slightly off guard, "Um, my name is Lauren." "Well Lauren, the light is fading, and the city at night is no place for a lady. We had best be on our way." Jack said as he turned around to exit the alley. "Hold on," Lauren said as she grasped his arm to stop him. "How do you know where I live? For all you know, I could live in the palace or in the outskirts." At this, Jack just turned around and smiled under dark hood of his. Lauren almost ran right then, but something inside of her told her that if she did her secret would be uncovered, and she would be forced to flee again. “Well then, uh, lead the way.” Lauren said somewhat apprehensively. Jack turned around and exited the street, Lauren following closely behind him. As they started to walk down the street towards Laurens house, they didn’t notice the two men behind them following them. When they reached Laurens house, which was actually not very far, there were five, big, burly men leaning against the house. Each of the men was clad in leather straps, which crossed to form an X, knee length leather pants, and each had a large two handed sword strapped onto his waist. Jack and Lauren stopped dead in their tracks. Lauren herd Jack whisper, “Berserkers.” Lauren looked at Jack, then back at the berserkers. One of the berserkers stepped forward and looked at Jack and Lauren. Suddenly he smiled and started laughing. The berserker looked at Jack and said, in a calm almost joyful voice, “Well Richard didn’t expect to see you here. In fact, you would be the last person that I would expect to be walking a lady home. Well then you did say that you had changed, but I really didn’t believe you.” Lauren suddenly turned towards Jack. This man was an ex berserker? How was that possible? And why had the berserker called him Richard? Jack just stood there staring at the berserker, silent, until he said in a very flat voice, “Well Aldron, you should have believed me. You also should have believed me when I said that if ever saw you again, I would kill you.” Lauren looked back at the berserker. The berserker suddenly made a motion with his hand and Lauren felt two sets of strong, sweaty hands grab her arms. Before Lauren could react, Jack spun around and nocked the hands off of Lauren. Lauren stumbled to the ground and looked behind her, just as Jack drew two short swords and faced the two berserkers who had grabbed her. The berserkers were probably twice the size of Jack, but he didn’t back down. These berserkers, unlike the others, were armed with large broad swords, and metal helmets. Both berserkers raised their swords to strike down Jack. Lauren looked away, for in her human form, she could not stand the sight of blood. She heard someone grunt, then a noise that sounded like someone snipping a tightly stretched cord, and two other grunts. After a little bit, when Lauren looked up, she saw Jack standing with two short swords in his hands, and the berserkers on the ground unconsciousness, a small pool of blood beneath them. “Is that all you got Aldron?” As Lauren looked at Jack she noticed that his hood had fallen off. Now that she was able to get a good look at him she was surprised: his skin was the color the color of sand, he had a scar