[quote]The sound of her teeth grinding echoed in her head as Aslynn slowly stood back up; a small spark of pain from her hands as they began to sting, a cut on her left hand feeding blood down the lantern's wire handle filling the runes and smearing against the glass.

Closing her eyes, she let out a long shaky breath before focusing on an image of the Sun. Imaging it's hot scorching rays slithering out over the barren stones, flooding the area with a blinding light, the warmth of the light becoming more and more unbearable the longer one stood under it. Her eyes shut quickly, instinctively as the small light exploded growing rapidly light shooting out in every direction, blinding and unwavering. [/quote]

Sunlight blinded the forest for the first time in centuries. Its warm glow pierced the shadows throughout the island, flashed on the treetops, reflected on the mountain. Beasts screeched and scattered, and the toothed trees shrank from the light.

The Kith pursuing them shut their eyes and shouted in pain; their dark-accustomed eyes burned, and they collapsed with confused shrieks as Aslynn and Cod fled up the mountain path.

The little boy, too, screwed his eyes shut and stumbled after Aslynn, completely relying on her to guide him in his blindness. Even after the light had dissipated and the stars shone again, all Cod could see was a bright afterimage. His armor clanked and he huffed each breath of night air, casting his eyes over his shoulder even though he could see nothing.

[b]"Are they gone?"[/b] he gasped, not at all questioning the fact that Aslynn had just summoned sunlight at will. He'd heard the legends of the sun-children -- each more fantastical than the last -- and to his young mind it was only natural that Aslynn had such wondrous power.

The path led them between scraggled trees and angled boulders; it was well-traveled and grooved by the occasional cart, which afforded the two a clear uphill run by the violet light of the lantern. The Kith did not pursue them -- if they had recovered their eyesight, they no longer had any desire to repeat the offense.

Footsteps and shouts echoed ahead. The light of a lamp and a bluish electric glow highlighted the silhouettes of the trees.

[b]"Cod!"[/b] a female voice called in the distance. Other voices, barely audible, spoke among themselves. [i]"Do you think he was caught in that blast? "Is anyone going to the lake? Peck's gryphon came back without him." "Peck can take care of himself, the kid's out here on his own." "What the shit is happening?"[/i] [b]"Cod! Goddammit!"[/b]

The wind was picking up; the trees swayed and clouds gathered suddenly overhead. Soon enough and without warning, the stormy winds whistled in the branches and howled across the mountain. Cod shielded his face with an arm against the wind, and struggled to keep up with Aslynn.

The blood on the Lantern seeped into the runes etched on the iron casing; the runes glimmered faintly, and the iron began to decay.

[hr]

[quote]She closed her eyes. "I promised myself that I wouldn't let anyone die if I could help it." Then an idea popped in her head, if the White Lantern could let her fly, perhaps she could make other things fly. She peeked around the tree and looked at the dirt before the Witch she reached out to the dirt with the power of both eggs and called for it to fly into the Witch's face to blind her. If this succeeded, then she would save Peck.[/quote]

The Witch had just regained control of the tree, and the branches turned their sharp points on Anise, just when a spray of dirt and sand flung up into the Witch's face. She stumbled and rubbed furiously at her eyes, and the tree froze in its movements, waiting for a command.

At the same moment, Reus darted onto the deck, his great paws pounding the wood. He scooped up Peck in his jaws and doubled back toward the shore, trailing blood from the injuries inflicted by the gryphon. Peck screamed in terror, petrified of moving in case the giant wolf might decide to chomp down.

And then, sunlight.

A bright warm light flashed throughout the forest, grayed the sky and blotted out the stars. Reus stopped to stare upward, and the Witch momentarily forgot Anise to look out toward the source of the curious light -- but then it was gone, and darkness fell again. The stars glimmered; the moon was setting.

The violet Lantern was climbing the mountain.

The Witch raised a hand toward Anise. The sight of sunlight was all she needed to solidify her resolve. She summoned her power once again, and the wind began to blow and swirl. Clouds gathered overhead, spinning faster and faster as the wind picked up; leaves ripped off the trees and the tree's branches flung violently in the whirlwind.

[hr]

[quote]A hand casually fell to the staff in her lap while the other found the gryphon's head again. "And for the record," she said, idly turning her gaze to the gryphon, "I happen to have an expert rat catcher with me, so I think I'll nap as long as I please." Her head cocked to the side a bit. "What's keeping them off you?"[/quote]

The gryphon purred and nuzzled against Artemis' hand, hopeful again for all of her attention.

The man in the tree flashed a grin. [b]"They know better,"[/b] he answered cryptically. He swung a leg under him, and he watched her with a thoughtful smile.

The sky suddenly turned gray with streaks of warm light, lit up by the reflections of an explosion of sunlight at the base of the mountain. The dead trees flashed in yellow silhouette, and the stars disappeared for a moment.

The man in the tree hopped to his feet, standing atop the bough to see as far as he could in the direction of the explosion -- but the light soon faded, and all was as dark as it had been, now that the moon was setting. Still, he watched for a moment longer, hopeful that whatever it was might repeat itself.

[b]"Was that sunlight?"[/b] he asked Artemis -- an honest question, and he knew she had the answer. He laughed quietly. [b]"I haven't seen that in --"[/b]

A gust of wind suddenly threatened to toss him out of the tree, but he clung to a branch just in time to keep his balance. Stormy clouds were gathering at an alarming rate, and the wind grew stronger and harsher across the barren waste; ash flung and swirled in the air, and the dead trees swayed and snapped while the wind howled.

The gryphon croaked in alarm, squinting in the wind, its feathers billowing, and it crouched against Artemis for safety.

The man-in-the-tree hopped down, an arm raised against the ashes flinging in the wind, and he walked barefoot across the burned ground while his clothes whipped around him. He walked past Artemis and the gryphon, keeping a fair distance so as not to alarm them, and he continued down a rocky incline, disappearing from view. He continued into the wide mouth of a cave in the side of the hill, where he took shelter from the whipping winds out of fear that it might rain.

Above, the clouds swirled and gathered over the lake; a tornado was brewing.

[hr]

[quote]The boy was filled to the brim with exhilaration, unaware of the tension and strain this euphoria caused on his body as a result of it being tied to the tree in such a restraining manner. Every inch of Arin's body that wasn't touched by the campfires light began to glow an eerie, ominous red.

"I GIVE MY SOUL TO THE LORD OF SHADOW."[/quote]

The pirates all scrambled to their feet, weapons instantly in their hands, and the flickering light of the campfire highlighted their uncertain and alarmed expressions. They couldn't see the Lord of Shadow, who stood on the dark side of the tree and whispered to Arin with a gleeful grin.

[i]Take it easy, don't spend it all at once. The darkness is your cloak, and the dead are yours to command. Reach out to living souls and fill them with fear and despair.[/i]

The power of the Lord of Shadow was subtle, hidden, and far more dangerous than it seemed. The pirates were well aware of this.

[b]"Get rid of him!"[/b] their leader commanded with an undertone of fear. Immediately an axe flashed in the hand of his comrade and swept neatly toward Arin's throat, to separate his head from his shoulders with one clean chop.

Arin's vision cleared in the darkness as the Lord of Shadow's power finished taking hold; he could see clearer in the darkness than in the light of the fire -- and in the darkness he saw the flickering shapes of the souls of the dead. They floated and staticked and flashed among the trees, invisible to the pirates, their actions chained to Arin's command.

Suddenly the sky brightened, gray and streaked with sunlight, and the pirate's axe stopped as he stumbled back and stared upward, slack-jawed at the loss of the stars.

[b]"What the hell?!"[/b]

The forest was illuminated, the trees silhouetted in bright yellow, and the Lord of Shadow retreated in anger; the souls of the dead paused in their approach, confused and flickering. For this moment, Arin's newfound power was diminished and weak, and his eyes burned in the light.

But then the sky darkened again, and the sunlight was gone. The power of the Lord of Shadow filled Arin again with new strength, while the pirates still blinked up at the sky.

A strong wind swirled in the branches, clouds gathered and the trees began to sway and creak. Soon the roaring wind would ravage the campfire and diminish its light, and the Shadow's power would rise.