A Dark Light

The cabin in the woods had been abandoned for years, but one night, a candle burned in the window. The flickering light looked out of place, surrounded by the inky blackness of the night sky, yet it persisted. Its job was simple; act as a beacon in the dark and attract any wayward traveler—beast or human. The owner of the flame had no real preference, however, humans presented more of a challenge. He liked a challenge, but it made no actual difference. Beast or human would meet the same end. Death for them, sustenance for his master and leftover scraps for him.

In the time before, it was different. He was a mighty warrior-prince. His realm stretched from the fire mountains to the roiling sea. After his enemies were defeated, all that was left for him to do was rule and enjoy. Peace, or at least his version of it, lasted for several centuries.

The Master came from deep in the bowels of the earth, spewing fire and leaving destruction in his wake. Every subject, loyal to the prince or not, was slain and devoured. The utter devastation of his realm and the subsequent death of his subjects left him with a choice: serve or die. Even though he despised The Master, he chose life.

The former prince not only served The Master, he learned from him. Once The Master was fed, he would sleep. Depending on the quality and quantity of the meal, his slumber would range from several days to several years. During these respites, the prince experimented with his own fire and the darkness that surrounded it. He learned much about controlling fire by watching his lord. The former prince learned how to control darkness on his own.

The light in the window of the abandoned cabin showed how well he had mastered both elements. In order to attract his prey, the enslaved prince needed a light, but not any light would do. A glaring light would create a sense of fear or apprehension in his quarry. This hunt required a soft, enticing glow. The light needed to instill a feeling of both warmth and curiosity. He created the desired effect by muting his flame with a thin cloak of darkness. Next, he thickened the darkness the further away from the cabin it got. The blackness made the dim light even more intriguing. All he needed to do now was wait for his prey.

The first person to pass the cabin was an elderly man with his dog. In the sixty years he had been living next to the woods, the old man had never seen any sign of life in or around the old cabin. He was more curious than afraid as he approached the cabin. His dog emitted a low guttural growl, and the hair on his back stood erect. He refused to move any closer, no matter how much the old man coaxed, cajoled, and finally commanded. The man should have remembered that animals sense danger much faster than humans, but he didn’t. The old man entered the cabin door, never to be seen again. His dog lay down on all fours twenty feet from the cabin and whimpered softly. One old man wasn’t much of a prize, but it was better than nothing.

Once again, the enslaved prince sat back and waited. It wasn’t long before his next potential visitors came by. Mother and daughter always took the path that wound its way past the cabin on their way back from the town center.

“Mother, I’ve never seen a light in that cabin before, have you?”

“No, I haven’t, and isn’t that Mr. Jackson’s dog, Walter? We need to see what’s going on. The poor old man might be hurt.”

The two women climbed to the top of the hill where the cabin sat in a clearing. They went to knock on the door, but it was already open. The interior was coal black except for the small candle emitting an eerily subdued light. Mother and daughter stepped into the cabin and the door immediately slammed shut behind them, causing the young girl to grasp her mother’s hand.

“Welcome ladies! I’m sure my master will be most pleased to meet you,” came a voice from out of the darkness. “He has just awoken and should be here shortly.”

The ground behind the cabin rumbled and shook, attempting to contain the uncontainable. Flames shot through the rented earth as a being composed of fire and lava emerged from the hole.

“I’m ravenous, my slave. What have you brought me to eat?”

Before the enslaved prince could reply, the woman and her daughter stepped from the shadows.

“Hello cousin, it’s been a long time. Who gave you permission to come to my planet?”

“Ah, Mariah. I need no one’s permission. I go where I want and take what I please.”

“You’ve always had an over-inflated ego, Hephaestus. It’s time for you to leave before you’re snuffed.”

Hephaestus reached back to throw a lance of fire at her, but he was too slow. She encircled him with a powerful wind that contained the flame and lifted him from the ground. As he rose high into the sky, Mariah unleashed a typhoon of rain that turned his lava body into slag. Finally, she let his brittle body fall back to the ground. The impact shattered Hephaestus into a thousand pieces.

Mariah turned to her daughter, “It’s time to go. I have much to share with you and yes, you can bring the dog.”

The two women walked back down the path, leaving the enslaved prince behind, still cloaked in the deepest of darkness. For the first time in many lifetimes, he had no master. He was no longer enslaved, but he was still a prince. The question was, prince of what?

The inky blackness that surrounded him was his answer. He was what went bump in the night. The shadow that sent chills up the spine. He was the creature that ate the flesh and drank the blood of his victims. He was The Prince of Darkness!