Prologue
Even in a world ruled by a spell of darkness, you may still find Light.
Äiti made her way slowly around the giant room, dusting the ancient bookcase and humming a gentle lullaby to her unborn child. She was cautious as she sweeped her feather across the thick books that were bound to be centuries old. She knew that Mörker had dozens, possibly hundreds, of dark enchantments cast across the room.
There was one shelf that never needed dusting. It was empty, or at least appeared to be. Äiti assumed Mörker had placed a protection spell around the shelf and Äiti knew better than to attempt at touching it.
She was in the process of walking by the strange shelf when she suddenly felt a sharp pain near her stomach. It caught her by such surprise that she doubled over and reached out one hand for something to support herself. The first thing her fingers touched was the wooden enchanted book shelf.
The stabbing pain disappeared just as quickly as it came. Äiti gasped and backed away as soon as she realized where her hand had been. Moments after she moved away from the bookcase it began to shift, change. Äiti watched in amazement as the shelf turned into a small podium. Upon it sat what looked like a stack of papers of different sizes, colors and textures all bound together by a leather covers and spine.
A book perhaps. Äiti thought as she cautiously approached the podium. She wasn’t sure why but Äiti felt drawn to the book and without thinking reached out to touch it. The instant Äiti’s skin made contact with the leather a spark the size of a daisy flew out of the cover and floated up in front of Äiti’s face. She peered at it curiously before the small spark began to expand in size and become brighter and brighter. Soon enough it was the size of a horse and was blindingly bright. Äiti had been about to turn her head away from the spark when an image appeared in the light that instantly had Äiti’s attention.
It was her holding a tiny baby. In the vision she looked down at the babe with loving eyes and kissed her forehead.
As Äiti watched this picture unfolding before her she quickly understood that this was a vision of her and her soon-to-be born child. What she saw next however stunned her far beyond words could possibly explain. The baby turned toward the real Äiti. She gasped.
Her child had blue eyes. Nobody in the entire kingdom of Asaran had blue eyes.
She picked up the mystical book from the shelf and flipped through the pages until her eyes fell on the words ‘blue eyes’. She began reading the worn page.
In a kingdom ruled by darkness, only The Light can defeat the ruler Mörker. The Light will be a girl with blue eyes, the only blue in the kingdom. The Light shall be brought into the world on the anniversary of the City of Ballaí. When The Light comes of age she shall have the power to vanquish Mörker with the help of this book. The tuar.
Äiti ran a hand affectionately across her large stomach. This was the fabled tuar, the book written by the founders of the kingdom of Asaran. This book was told to held the secrets of the future and truths of the past. It had been predicted that Mörker would gain control of the kingdom and indeed he had through much bloodshed and suffering. Mörker had held the throne for the last 100 years and was a tyrant. Many had tried to kill him and all of them had died a painful death in the process.
Äiti grew fearful to the thought that her daughter was the legendary Light. For centuries it had been passed down from grandmother to grandchild, priest to community, teacher to student. The tale of The Light and the happiness she would bring to the kingdom, ridding evil forever.
Äiti’s daughter was the Light. What did this mean? Would she be the one to finally defeat Mörker? What if she failed? Äiti did not want her daughter to die. She did not want her daughter to be forced into this. If Mörker knew that Äiti carried The Light, The Savior then he would surely kill her and all her friends and family.
In a fleeting moment of determination Äiti grabbed the tuar and carefully tucked it away in her bag of cleaning supplies. She swiftly left the room, silently thankful that Mörker was away today. She went straight to the kitchen and found her husband.
“I think it is time we returned home for today.” Äiti said quietly to her beloved. Vaprus inclined his head to one side slightly, silently questioning his wife for the reason why. Äiti need only place a hand on her belly for him to understand.
They walked out of the castle without trouble. They had after all completed today’s assigned works. Äiti thought about what the prophecy had said. Her daughter was to be born on the anniversary of the City of Ballaí, the capital of Asaran. The city where Äiti and Vaprus lived together and had planned raise their family. Äiti realized this would not be possible. She had stolen the tuar and Mörker would be after them as soon as he realized who and why the tuar was stolen.
On their walk home, Äiti quietly explained toVaprus what she had seen and read.
“You carry The Light? My beautiful wife is carrying the legendary Light?” Vaprus exclaimed in amazement.
“Quiet love! Someone will hear you.” Äiti whispered sternly while glancing around at the few people who populated the cobbled street.
The couple returned home and quietly went about their day. They knew that tomorrow was when their daughter would arrive at the latest. In fact it was that evening when the soon-to-be mother’s water broke and the contractions started. Vaprus quickly called a midwife.
Perhaps it was only coincidence but the baby was born just as the sun peeked over the horizon, streaming into the bedroom with warmth.
Äiti looked down at her beautiful baby’s blue eyes. Moments after the baby had been born, Vaprus had dismissed the midwife to make sure she did not see the baby’s eyes.
“What do we name her? Knowing who she will be, what she will do...a simple name certainly doesn’t seem suiting.” Vaprus said as he sat down on the bed beside Äiti and his tiny daughter.
“We shall name her Lys. It is who she is after all.” Äiti said quietly looking into her daughter’s eyes. They were such a deep, reflecting blue it seemed almost unnatural. Though it was true, there was nothing normal about this child.
“Do you realize we cannot stay? We will have to run. To keep her safe from Mörker.” Vaprus said sadly. He loved his city of Ballaí. Nothing would make him leave except the safety of his family.
Äiti nodded, still never looking away from her daughter. Finally she tore her eyes away from her babe and looked at her husband.
“Let us begin packing.” She said.
“No, you rest in bed my love. I shall take care of it.” Vaprus said while planting a small kiss on his wife’s lips.
Vaprus went around the house, packing a bag for he and his wife and a separate bag according to the instructions of Äiti. Vaprus placed the tuar in infant Lys’s bag.
It was late afternoon when the family exited their little cottage for what would be the last time. To someone walking by, it would appear the threesome were off for a picnic outing.
On the way toward the exit of the city, Äiti and Vaprus stopped by their friend’s home. Frois and Duret had been friends with Äiti and Vaprus since late childhood. They had met and married because of Äiti and Vaprus.
When Äiti and Vaprus stopped and announced to their closest friends that they were leaving Ballaí to save their daughter, Frois and Duret protested. They spent over an hour arguing.
Little did they know during this time that Mörker had returned home to the castle early to refer to the tuar for a spell. He was shocked to find that the book was no longer there and quickly grew angry. He sent guards out to search the city after performing a locating spell, telling Mörker where the person who had stolen the tuar was, but not the actual tuar as it was so magically powerful.
Back at Duret and Frois’s cottage, Vaprus and Äiti were preparing to leave. Their friends had given up arguing with them as they could see their decision could not be changed.
Äiti sighed and stood up, about to reach for baby Lys when she sensed guards rushing towards the house. Äiti instantly understood what was happening and quickly set into action. She grabbed Lys’s bag and hid it under the stairs. This was why she had packed a separate bag. In case they were separated or captured.
“Do not exit Vaprus! There are guards surrounding the house! They have come for us!” Äiti informed her husband. She then turned to her friends.
“Froid, Duret. I want you to take care of Lys like she is your own daughter in case we do not return. Hope and pray that Mörker will have pity, but do not count on it.” She told her friends as they stood shocked in one place. After kissing each on the cheek she gave her daughter a final hug.
Vaprus grabbed their bag and took his beautiful wife’s hand. They shared one last kiss before Vaprus opened the door and walked out with Äiti protected behind him. Immediately they were surround by guards and thrown into large brown body bags before being dragged to the castle.
The next thing Äiti was aware of was being pulled out of the body bag and placed into a kneeling position before Mörker’s throne. Several hours must have passed because it was night time outside the windows above the throne. Äiti looked over to her right to find in her horror the body of her husband. He was pale and pasty and was looking blankly into nowhere.
“No!” Äiti screamed and she crawled over to the cold body of her soul mate. She pulled his head into her lap and let a few tears fall. On his clothes was dried blood, everywhere. Äiti heard the guards muttering how Vaprus had struggled and fought so much on the journey back to the castle that they had had to kill him so he would stop.
“Doesn’t matter anyway, Master only wanted to see the mother.” One guard whispered behind her.
That is when Mörker entered the room. The air turned chilly and Äiti could see her breath. Mörker did not even spare her a glance before he flicked his fingers and the guards moved her back into kneeling position before dragging off Vaprus’s body to be thrown to the fish.
Mörker got straight down to business.
“Yesterday afternoon, you discovered and stole the tuar from my personal library. How you were able to discover it confuses me as it was protected by several enchantments, but that is not the point. It also seems that you were pregnant yesterday with the fabled Light. Where is the child?”
“I killed her, Master. I snapped her neck and threw her body in the river.I do not anyone challenging the power of my Master.” Äiti lied smoothly to Mörker with a blank expression, revealing no emotion. Servants to the Master were supposed to be loyal, even if it meant killing your own child. She hoped that he would buy her story and let her free. Mörker frowned down at the woman before him. He didn’t know what to believe. Wouldn’t a mother lie for her child? However none of his guards had found the child.
Äiti watched Mörker’s expression change from uncertainty to determination from where she was still kneeling before his throne. She knew he had decided her fate. A small smile appeared on her lips. She knew she had done all she could for her daughter and that Mörker was now reacting out of frustration.
“I don’t believe you.” Mörker spat at Äiti, though she could see in his eyes that he did believe her. Mörker was very good at lying, but Äiti was even better. She knew he lied to her, that he believed every word. He wanted to believe that The Light was dead.
Äiti knew the sword was coming before she saw it and so she gave Mörker a final smile and silently called to her daughter in her mind.
I love you Lys. I believe in you. Know there was no other way. I die for you knowing you will revenge my death by vanquishing him. Goodbye my dear.
In a cottage on the other side of Ballaí Lys held a tiny palm against her heart as she heard the message her mother sent her.
Mörker plunged the sword into Äiti’s heart.