Chapter One

Meet Kayzik Royse, 18 year old Fjerdan Shadow Summoner. Yikes.

The room is dark, but darkness doesn't scare me. It never has. What's always scared me is the things that hide in it, the evil creatures, the demons, and the human monsters.

I'm laying on the cot they so kindly provided for me, staring into the pitch black. In a way, it's comforting. Everything is dark before the light touches it. Darkness is the natural state of the world.

A draft goes through the room, as one of the doors in the only hallway leading to my room is opened, probably someone bringing me my food. I'm on my feet in an instant, not yet trusting this strange land and the strange people. The overhead light flickers on as the last door opens, illuminating my room.

Actually, calling it a room is putting it nicely. It's more of a... tiny isolated dungeon cell. I blink against the bright light, checking the surroundings yet again.

My hard cot and single thin blanket are up against one wall, a privy in the corner, and a table and chair in the other one. The bed spans the length of the wall, opposite the door. In the doorframe is a servant, shaking in his boots. Nevermind the fact that he's about twenty years older than me, and there's a brute with a nasty scar across his face behind him, dressed in a red kefta with black stitching, who looks as if he'd kill me just for spite, no, this man is scared of me, as if I'm the Darkling reincarnate.

Never mind that I'm an 18 year old Fjerdan girl, my tiny scrap of shadow control puts me beyond any trust, apparently. Because the most likely thing for me to do next is to try to take over the Ravkan government, and then the entire continent with shadow creatures, because someone I've never met or known did it, why wouldn't I, right? This whole thing is enough to make me want to pull all of my hair out.

Instead, I smile at them and lean against the wall.

"Hello there," I say in Ravkan. "I've been wanting some company."

The Heartrender glares more intensely at me, which I didn't realize was possible. "There'll be no company for one of the Darkling's spies."

I roll my eyes. "The Darkling is dead. I didn't ask for this curse. It's not my fault."

"Tell that to someone who cares, Ms. Darkling. Let's go," he says to his companion.

The servant nervously steps inside of the room to put a plate of food on my table, then backs out quickly. He slips past the Heartrender as the man in red closes and locks the door to my room. The light flickers out and I lay back down on my bed. I listen to the sound of their receding footsteps and slamming doors and they make their way out. I fiddle with my hair, combing my fingers through it and rebraiding it. My long ice-blonde hair snakes out from the right side my head, shaved on the left side, goes over my right shoulder, falling past my hips.

They gave me a change of clothes, leggings, boots, and a blouse, which I opted for over my heavy old clothing, which was unsalvageable from the fire. Plus, it was too warm. I press the heels of my hands into my eyes, trying to suppress the bad memories. I slip through the darkness and eat the plain oatmeal, already cold. I drink the bad-tasting water as quickly as possible, and grab a piece of bread, gulping it down as quickly as I can. Eating isn't one of my favorite activities.

I use the privy and slide back into the bed, pulling the thin blanket over me and try to fall asleep. Instead, I lie awake for Djel knows how long, and when I finally do fall asleep, it's riddled with monsters and creatures from stories long forgotten.

Author's Note

Oops, forgot to finish that last sentence XD. I also edited a bit of the rest of it.