Chapter 24 – Crystalline Sparks in Shadowy Eyes

  Li Continent was a dynamic land of water and impossibility. Waterfalls fell from all directions all over the continent—and off of it.

  Yana stood on a high shelf made of crystal and dark stone. She looked out over the landscape with narrowed eyes, pursing her lips as she struggled to see through the brilliance surrounding her. Prism light danced around them as sprays of water caused halos of soft light, ensuring shadows were a thing of legend on Li.

  DD stood next to her, understanding that her low soul depth limited her sight. She shifted her vision to his, and her blurred perspective was instantly cleared. The sting was gone; she could now see almost as well as she could with her own eyes in deep shadow.

  The continent was worse than she had originally thought. She sucked her teeth in annoyance and frustration. The waterfalls fell in all directions, even upward. Even through DD’s eyes, she could tell this was not just water; it was a mix of water and light. The water fell into pools, and the light that cascaded along with it refracted off the crystal and other falls, bouncing back up into the air.

  She frowned, watching the scene as Starlight’s map to the next artifact burned in her mental vision. She sighed and turned her mind to DD. Her annoyance grew as he flinched back.

  “You are a Marked Demon. I do not have all of my memory, but I know what that means. You are now of the void.”

  ‘Mistress.’

  The one word scraped through her mind like a wooden spatula across a plastic bowl. She would have to get used to it again.

  ‘I was born of the void.’

  She scoffed. “That makes it worse. Take us to our destination, DD,” she said without emotion. It was not a request, but a command, and still the huge demon hesitated.

  Alisha frowned, looking at him from Yana’s shoulder. Was it really this difficult, or was it terrifying? She looked out over Li and understood her Mistress’s dilemma. It would be difficult to bring shadow to this land. The light was not only pervasive, it was consuming. She watched twitching shadows in pools seem to dissolve like salt in warm water.

  If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

  Light dominated here.

  DD took a ragged breath that sounded like dust and rubble sliding down a hill. He closed his eyes, took hold of his familiar tie to his Mistress, and they stepped into the void.

  [Void Step]

  The shift was jarring. It was only because of Yana’s soul depth that she and Alisha were not ripped to shreds. Neither one of them spoke—speaking in an unknown void could mean death. Yana wrapped sorcerer wardings around the three and waited for DD to step again.

  She listened to her and Alisha’s breathing. DD had stopped breathing, and she knew they had been there too long.

  ‘DD!’

  The Marked Demon jumped as her voice, her command, drove through his soul. He took a deep intake of void air and again grabbed the familiar tie with a strong mental grip. They stepped.

  This time he did not pause, taking six [Void Steps] in a row. With each step, the transition became less tortuous. They appeared back on Li under a small fall that was more light than water. Even looking through DD’s eyes, Yana’s eyes were stinging, burning, and watering. The small fall was brilliant and powerful.

  The black diamond on her ring flashed with dark light, and a vast black dome rose around them. As soon as it formed, she grimaced as the light of the falls outside began attacking the created shadow. She felt her power draining. Just as she moved to the next phase of her plan, she heard the sarcastic sucking of teeth in her mind. Almawa sighed.

  “Are you truly this weak? Your forehead is already sweating and you just started. Your new mission is to reach a soul depth of Blessed Soul within twenty days. For every day that you are late, you will be punished. If you fail, your system will be reset, because evidently you are not ready to do what needs to be done and you need a better foundation.”

  There was a pause as Yana stood in shock, her mouth hanging wide. Almawa sighed again.

  “There will be rewards to be announced later.”

  Yana shook her head and decided to forget the latest indignation. Her Diamond Shadow Case opened, and shadows flooded out from her Dune Domain, pouring down in a huge funnel into the ground at their feet.

  A huge fountain of brilliant light erupted up into the dome. Several facets of her ring went clear almost immediately. Mag emerged from her soul and began [Shadow Refill].

  The funnel of shadows returned to her Diamond Shadow Case, and Yana took a deep breath. She looked to Mag, and the little Shadow Spark instantly dove into the breach created by the shadow funnel. The entire time, the falls of Li continued attacking the shadow dome.

  Suddenly, she felt everything stop. Shortly after, Mag rose from the depths, carrying a crystal. Inside were three large, brilliant, and pristine drops. Mag moved over Yana’s head as the Starguide Tears twirled before them. Yana sent the tears through Starlight’s portal. She could feel the shadows of Li Continent rejoice.

  They were now free to be, and she was finally helping the Starlight Church.