The Light in Darkness

Ch 1. The Not So Perfect Beginning

[AN] If you find some grammatical mistake and feel the urge to point it out, I am perfectly fine with those kinds of comments but please be specific. I do revise this thing before uploading so if I missed it the first time around chances are that I probably won't find it the second time.

A shout out to @OmaimaAkbar, who's been very friendly and instrumental in me getting back to this personal project.

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21 years had passed since an unnamed dark wizard claimed the Black Crystal and declared himself as Shadow Lord, and 16 years since Carlos and Aeron had their last peaceful conversation. The White City had fallen, Magi's Camp rendered uninhabitable as a whole since its ruling Crystal left the region, and Shadows Land was expanding beyond its usual. The balance between the Five Crystals was now broken so badly that strange abominations started appearing all around, especially in Shadows Land itself.

In the end it was up to Solek, the only remaining region with a stable Crystal and a strong Keeper, to stand up against the threat. King Kyle, the King of Solek Kingdom and Keeper of Red Crystal, knew this, and after much preparation he finally decided to take action.

Cali stood next to his horse, watching as others prepared for the long journey. He was the embodiment of a well-trained and a disciplined knight. Back straight, lips pressed together tight, clean short haircut, fists clenched by his side and feet spread in shoulder width. From his cloak down to his boots, not a single thing was out of place. His longsword hung on his right side, also in perfect angle. His head was the only part that visibly moved as he looked around in a perfectly neutral, if somewhat stiff, expression.

There were the twin hunters, Zen and Zach, talking between themselves with heads pressed together. They had traveled all the way down from the Great Forest, hand-picked by the chief of their village. The two looked alike, with the same dirty blonde hair that curled the same way and the same number of freckles, but other than that they dressed differently, used different types of bow, and had different hunting style. Cali did not yet have the chance to talk to them personally, but from what he could gather Zen seemed to be the brash one who relied more on his instincts while Zach was the more calculating type.

Further away stood Arcturus and Topaz, a wizard and an alchemist respectively. Arcturus looked like any average white wizard, but Topaz had a young look about him, particularly because of his bright orange hair and a backpack that was almost as big as himself. Those two Cali knew even less than the twins, despite them having come from the much closer Corona, a small town located in the south eastern parts of Solek region. All he knew was that they had volunteered, and were included because Arcturus was exceptional in shields and light magic, both of which would be very useful in their journey.

Then there was Azerynn, the healer of the group, the would-be White Crystal Keeper. She was the last Master Healer's granddaughter and a childhood friend of Cali's. The two had escaped White City together under the guidance of a relative just before it fell, and they relied on each other for comfort in this unfamiliar region.

Watching her talking animatedly to King Kyle and General Viccard whilst loading her horse, Cali's frown deepened; he had strongly disagreed on the idea of including her in the group, worried for her safety more than anything. It was likely the only time he had openly expressed opposition towards a decision made by the higher-ups. He knew that Azerynn was fully capable of defending herself, -- she had quickly become sick and tired of being treated like some fragile flower and asked Viccard to teach her sword fighting. He also knew that the only reason she was persuaded out of taking the full knight's course was because it would seriously hamper her studies as a healer. Still, Cali thought, that did not mean Azerynn had to actively seek danger now, did it?