When Hephaistos foretold the galaxy of his reincarnation, another soul to wield his sword, they didn't expect to wait for a millennium. Magic users became rarer throughout generations, as the living prayed for their savior. People fantasized about what he would be like. What they hadn't expected was for their chosen one to burst out of his wedding planning appointment, lungs aflame as he gaped for air.

"Kyren!" A bearded man dressed in a navy cape chased after the boy as his long legs charged down the grand hallways. "He will be okay! Continue the meeting without us for a moment."

A petite woman peeked her opal eyes out of the doorway, concern etched on her skin. "Don, has this been happening a lot more recently?"

The lithe guardian waved her off. "Mae, you've known him forever. The kid gets in his head. Let me talk to him."

Don's steel gaze scanned down the hallways, finding his protege leaned over the rails overlooking the Solarian palace's main stairwell. His golden, spiky hair was thoroughly ruffled as pale fingers clung to the ends. Tears threatened to explode from him, anxiety eating the 21-year-old alive.

The red rims ensnared his cornea, mixed emotions flowing from his blown pupils. "I'm sorry, Don. I just got worked up." 

His guardian leaned next to him, back pressed against the golden banister. "Don't worry about it. It's kinda pointless to have us here anyway. That dickwad royal advisor won't let you get a word in."

Kyren nodded before clearing his throat. Don arched his brow at the boy. "You know, Kid, if the wedding is too much...we can tell The Elder Council to fuck off. There's nothing in the prophecy that says the Wielder has to marry the next queen of Soleil."

"Don't be ridiculous." Ky released his head from his hands. "Mae and I have been engaged for as long as I can remember."

Don opened his mouth. "I don't think that's a good reason to--"a wild look flashed through Kyren's eyes, so Don bit his tongue. "Fine, but with the recent attacks, we should at least look into a delay?"

The boy's guardian looked him over, anxiety boiling just underneath his skin. The Council is too hard on him, poor kid doesn't have control over any aspect of his life. Don shook the thought out of his head. It was not wise to question the Elder's choices.

Kyren's face turned to back to stone, a pleasant glow returning to him as his lips lazily drifted back into a confident, calm smile, disconnected from whatever mentally plagued him.  "I'll bring it up at the next meeting. Maybe they'll change their minds about training me in other branches of Magick if they see how I've much I've improved with Light."

Don trailed behind the boy, deep in thought. As they approached the Library,  goosebumps suddenly raced up Don's burly arms while the hair on his neck rose. Warning alarms were going off in his mind but he couldn't figure out where this sudden bought of apprehension came from. He looked towards his ward to see If Kyren felt weird. But if the boy did, he didn't say anything as he barged back into wedding planning.

"I've decided that as long as I'm fed some chocolate cake, I don't give a shit about what flow--"

"You see-- " A methodical female voice brought Kyren to a frozen halt; Mae, the royal guards, the advisors, all trapped within their own personal cocoon of shadows. "I've always been more of a dessert girl myself."

The duo had never seen anything like it. Shadows plumed from the woman's hands, snaking rapidly against the ceramic floors. Don whipped out his wand, shooting off incantations that only seemed to temporarily irk the shadows while the cocoons held their prey firmly. Kyren effortlessly dodged the attack, calling forth his sword from the void. It's handle materialized, weighing heavily in his hand. The sword's white light burned through the heads of her shadows as Kyren swerved expertly around them, chopping them to pieces.

"Put Mae down and leave this place." Kyren seethed, bounding towards the girl. Obsidian clouds covered her and the princess, a band of darkness wrapped tightly around the royals mouth.

"What are you going to do, huh? Sparkle me to death?" The evil woman laughed, pushing a cloud of darkness between them.

Red hazed over the Wielder's vision as he rushed the last couple yards between them. He could make out the girl's smirk from the shadows before another black wall shot up, shoving him roughly backward onto a table. Don was quick on his feet. He cut a square into the air, the various runes on his wand glowing. A portal sizzled to life beneath him as Kyren slid off the table, body plunging through reality. Don slashed wildly at the girl, tearing the space-time continuum right above her head. The cloaked woman didn't expect this as the boy clattered down on top of her.

In a flash of limbs, Kyren battled for dominance, desperate to gain control. His large limbs locked tightly around her surprisingly petite frame. With blind rage, he brought his sword above his head, swiftly plunging downward. This was it, the moment he imagined for his entire life. He was going to prove that he could do this, that he was worthy of being the next Wielder. As his sword of light crashed downward, he felt at ease, knowing that he had saved Mae and would please the Council.

Except, that didn't happen.

A loud clang echoed throughout the palace as a sword of shadows rose to protect its own wielder. Shock chilled Kyren to the bone, dowsing his rage like a monsoon against a dwindling campfire. Orbs of light and dark burst from the opposed weapons, blocking the duelers' vision. Quickly, the assailant propelled her knees upward, rolling herself out from underneath him. She threw his body, her shadows flinging him into the opulent curtains behind them.

"FIGHT ME, YOU COWARD!" Kyren's voice echoed around the corners of the spacious library. Don shot a look of concern at the boy, deciding he would bring up controlling his emotions later. 

"You're her, aren't you?" Don asked, slowly reaching into his cloak for a helpful potion. "Malena's lapdog, the harbinger of death--"

Kyren's eyes widened, understanding flooded the sharp features of his face. "You're the Dark Apprentice."

The Elders had always written off the tales of this girl as rumors. According to these tales, the Dark Apprentice has been helping the soul eaters, commanding Malena's demon army with the use of her own lethal power. Nobody, not even Malena--the self-proclaimed queen of the lost dimension-- could control shadows. Kyren hoped to learn eventually as his powers grew, but the Elders forbade him from even trying. Natural shadow manifestation... that's supposed to be a mark of evil.

Kyren knew right then what his destiny looked like. It was his job, as the Wielder, to eviscerate her from the universe in the name of the light dimension.

"Look, the longer this takes, the worse it's going to get." Her voice was steady and emotionless. The same voice thousands heard moments before their souls were pulverized to dust.

"Is that a threat?" Don's fingers finally grazed the edge of his bottle of tracker venom.

"No." A thunderous eruption rattled the palace to its core. "It's the truth, Malena has already sent the Soulless to speed this up."

Screeching sirens filled the corridors, instructing servants to give their lives in order to protect the royals at all costs. The Palace was in total disarray as waves of demons overwhelmed the staff and the visiting dignitaries, their bloodcurdling screams refused to be drowned out by the library's heavy doors. 

The Apprentice used this distraction to her advantage, pulling a small talisman from her robes. "To the Dark, I am bound. Take me to where my heart is found."

A portal manifested behind her cloak, the shadows slinking backward into bright swirling colors. Mae was drug backward into the portal, her chances of being rescued decreasing rapidly. The Apprentice's shadows rescinded into her, causing a wave of obsidian fog to mask the scene as Kyren haphazardously lunged towards Mae. Don threw his venom directly at the commotion, too far away to reach them on time.

What happened next went by so quick, no one truly understood what happened. Kyren felt a soft hand envelop his own, a stinging sensation ripped them apart as a vial exploded against their entwined hands. His palm reached desperately forward one last time, only to find nothing for his fingers to cling to.

Just like a vanishing act, the girls were gone. The apprentice and all her shadows disappeared, a hollow hush fell over the ravaged palace as its inhabitants tried to process what just happened.

Tears thrashed against the confines of the Wielder's eyes, spilling over without consent. Too many emotions overwhelmed him, a stony look glazing over his chiseled face, only able to process one thought.

He failed.

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Woooo. It's been a while. I've been doing Hella editing but I'm really happy with how the new POV is turning up. there's going to be a lot of changes so get excited for what's to come. Drop a comment and don't forget to like and follow for Wielders updates!

XOXO

Clo