The Dawn of Darkness

Winnrey was bored. She was banned to her room as punishment for her latest escapades. To pass the time she eavesdropped on everyone. The air venting system was great for heating and cooling but also a great way for sound to travel. She heard her siblings scream in delight as they played in the garden. Servants bustled around the palace. The king and queen talked to many subjects as they signed papers and other boring stuff. At noon, Winnrey heard a knock at the door. Her parents hurried to the door. It could only be Uncle George. He was a wizard and a favorite of the children’s. Winnrey loved to hear him tell stories and show off his magic.

"Ah, Richard. It seems like you aren’t not getting any older!” he said joyfully, “And, Annabelle, still as lovely as usually.” Annabelle giggled.

“Where are your wonderful children?!!” A stampede of children came trampling down the stairs and from outside. They had all been waiting for this day impatiently. Right before their very eyes, he made four golden birds appear out of thin air. The children laughed with joy. They each got a bird.

“Now, would you help me bring my luggage up?” he asked. Winnrey picked up a suitcase causing a slip of paper to float to the ground. She quickly slipped it into her pocket. During dinner, Winnrey stared off into space, lost in her thoughts about yesterday. The only thing that caught her attention was when her uncle talked about the experiment he lost. It was a metal box that could detect magic and awaken it. Nobody at the table had seen it.

“Well, if you do, tell me. It’s really important that it doesn’t get in the wrong hands” He warned. Winnrey thought she should ask the prisoner about the box and bring stuff to clean his wounds. Dinner continued with talk of business in Omasei, the capital of Terra.

Zeek sat against the wall, eyes closed. Incarceration isn’t so bad when it came to food and shelter, he thought. Light footsteps resonated down the small prison hallway. He knew exactly who it was.

“What do you want, princess?” He said coldly, struggling to hide his fatigue.

“I just wanted to help you. I mean, it’s my fault you are down here,” her voice quiet. Her lovely doe brown eyes grew wide with hurt. Zeek looked up sharply.

“Don’t need no help.” He muttered seeing that she wasn’t joking. She sat in front of the bars.

“What about your wounds?” The fact that she was right grated on his nerves.

“I don’t need help from you, princess.”

“Stop calling me princess!!! I hate that! My name is Winnrey.” Her anger almost surprised Zeek. An uncomfortable silence hung over the room. Zeek glared at her.

“Sorry, I’ll stop yelling. What is your name?” Winnrey dragged her fingers in the dirt. Zeek mumbled his name.
Sheesh! What is her problem, thought Zeek. Happily, she gamboled to her feet and pulled a key from her pocket.

“My name is Ditto!” piped the albino lizard. The cell door swung open and Winnrey grabbed a pile of boiled rags and a bottle of salve.

“Nice to meet you, Ditto! Zeek let me see your wounds,” she ordered all business-like, “I need to clean them and stop the infection.”

No, I don’t have to!” he said defiantly.

“Don’t be ridiculous! You’ll die if she doesn’t help!” rebuked Ditto. Fuming, Zeek silently peeled off the bloody strips of his shirt, oozing with blood.

“Now will you tell me what caused this? It looks like you have pieces of something embedded into your skin!”

“Fine. We found a magical box.”

“Actually, it fell from the sky and it blew us up,” said Ditto indifferently. No big deal. Zeek flinched as her salve burned his wounds. She finished wrapping the bandages tightly around his chest and back.

So much for that experiment. No on can use it now.

“You don’t seem to have a disease and your wounds aren’t rotting, why are they green?” asked Winnrey curiously as she got up.

“I don’t know!” said Zeek a hint of fear dripped into his voice. Winnrey’s father called for her.

“I found this in my uncle’s bag. I don’t know what it means. It looks like a message.” Winnrey said quickly. She handed him a slip of paper, locked the cell door, and off. She left him in dark, cold, wet cell. The darkness shifted almost as bright as daylight in Zeek’s eyes. He told this to Ditto. Something strange was happening to him.

Winnrey awakened to the sound of her name. Ditto’s white, scaly, face waited for her reaction. She stifled a scream.

“You have to see this! Something’s happened to Zeek!” he said, jumping around.

“Where is he? What happened?”

“No, I’m right here.” His voice came from right next to here. She squinted at the space next to her and saw absolutely nothing. She looked harder and saw Zeek’s faint outline.

“Zeek!” she almost yelled, “What happened to you?”

His skin started to get its color back.

“Winn, this is so cool!” he whispered, “Somehow I can do magic!” His teeth grew into fangs, distorting his face into a predator. Wow, that is sooo cool, but he called me Winn. Why? Winnrey thoughts crowded in her brain to be the first one heard

“Wow!” She said excitedly. There was a knock at the door.

“Winnrey? Who are you talking to?” asked Stephen timidly.

“No one, Stephen.” Zeek faded. “I’m just talking to myself.”

“Oh, okay,” he said, uncertain, “Well, hurry up. Breakfast is ready.” Winnrey ran to the door.

“Winn, wait! Your parents are in danger!” Too late. She didn’t hear him. Zeek sighed and disappeared.

Zeek positioned himself, invisible of course, near the king while Ditto watched over the queen from above. A guard came running in and yelled that the prisoner escaped. Stephen and King Richard ran down to the cell only to find the breakfast that Winnrey dropped. While they checked, Uncle George tried to set the queen on fire. Ditto sneezed and she turned towards the wizard.

“God Bless you.” She said, “George, dear, could you save your magic until after the meal?” He stopped his attempts for a while. King Richard and Prince Stephen came back.

“Were there any traces?” asked Edward.

“No, nothing at all.” replied the King tiredly. ”We’ll tell the troops to keep a look out and notify the people.”