Dawn of Night Chapter Nine: Soulful Phoenix

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As the guards in the room bustled about, Johanna sucked in cold, calming breaths. *Calm down Johanna. You need to keep your head if you want to make it through this! Pulling her pickaxe off her back, she ran out with the other guards.* What she saw horrified her, and she could feel tears of shock taking over.

The majestic trees around the city, as well as the houses and jungle plank bridges of the city, were all burning as hungry flames consumed them. All around, citizens panicked and desperately tried to douse the flames with water buckets. Most couldn’t, however, because of the new arrivals to the city. All around, Johanna watched as white eyed Undead poured into the city like a tsunami. Their moaning and rattling drowned out the roaring of the fire and the stench of rotten flesh made Johanna’s nose sting and her eyes water. Behind the Undead, the black robed Necromancers used wither skulls and sheer willpower to direct the Undead to attack anyone in their way. Anger flowed through her, and she was about to run straight at the enemy. A strong hand stopped her, pulling her around. His eyes shining with concern, Kaybeth shook his head at her. “I know you want revenge. But Daneil wouldn’t want you to get killed.” His face became clouded by fury as he gazed at the invaders. “Leave this to the guards.”

Before her brother could stop her, Johanna pulled away and ran straight towards the city center. Tears flowed down her face as she ran through the sweltering heat and was forced to listen to the screams of the innocent. Eventually, she reached her destination, and was stunned to see what had happened to it. Once, it was a massive stained glass dome that, when in contact with light, gave such a blissful beauty to its surroundings. But in the cruel night, the flames had melted it to nothing. Only a few blocks, all red, floated in the air. Looking through them, the moon in the sky looked almost blood red. Everywhere else, flames danced around the circular jungle plank floor. In the air, embers swirled like little fireflies.

Shuffling footsteps and groaning brought Johanna back to the present. Whirling to face a zombie that had snuck up on her, Johanna swung her pickaxe at its stomach. The impact of the weapon crumpled the zombie into two, sending it flying into the nearby fence railing. She cringed as some zombie slime sprayed onto her, but smiled as she realized that she had won her first fight. However, the victory was short-lived. Johanna backed away from the zombie, revulsion driving her back. *What in the world?!* Around the fallen zombie, blue energy swirled, mending its festered form. *But…It died! It couldn’t come back!* As she backed away, she tripped on a stick and fell. The zombie rose and staggered toward her. With her heart pounding in her ears, Johanna scooted backwards as much as she could. Then, with no warning, the zombie halted in its tracks. Confused, her eyes caught a reflection in one of the glass blocks. *The Dark King!*

Johanna scrambled to her feet and gave a perfect death glare to the figure behind her. Behind his withered mask, the Dark King chuckled. In the darkness, his soul blue eyes and the ribcage part of his costume glowed with a soft light, though the light was too weak to illuminate like a torch. It gave him an almost ghostly look. The Dark King tilted his head as he studied the Felina in front of him. His voice was soft, around a medium pitch for a human male. *If he is a human.* “Interesting,” he mused, “So this is the Felina who has given us so much trouble. You seem like hardly enough to stop us.” Coming out of her wonder, Johanna snarled in response. “I know everything I need to, your majesty.” Her last word was spat out with as much contempt as possible. By the way his glowing eyes shifted, the Dark King was smiling underneath his mask. “I take it you learned my name when you spied on me during my talk with that Ardoni?” She sputtered as her mind reeled from his reveal. “S-Spy?” The Dark King shook his head as he chuckled. “Did you think I didn’t notice your presence then?” Johanna marveled at the being in front of her, then frowned.

“But then, why didn’t you stop me,” She challenged, “Didn’t you figure I would warn the city?” The Dark King smiled once more. “I didn’t stop you because I knew you would be too late to warn them in time.” The Dark King frowned at the snarl she let out. “You monstrous snake!” He shook his head, clearly puzzled by her hostility. That didn’t stop her, though. “You cowardly murderer! You couldn’t even do your dirty work yourself, you had to have your henchmen do it for you.” She continued with a taunt aimed at the death of her boyfriend. “Can’t your consciousness take death.” Pretending to be thoughtful, Johanna scratched her chin. “Oh, wait. You don’t have one! I wonder why that is.” The Dark King looked so stunned, she was tempted to laugh. At least, she was until he beat her to it. “Such powerful condemnation, such dark accusations,” He spread his hands out, palms up in a gesture meant to calm her down. It merely made her rage burn brighter. “I take it this is about that guard that was protecting you?” When she nodded, he returned the nod. “I am truly sorry about what happened. I never meant to hurt anyone in those mines.” He sighed at the doubtful look she was casting at him. “I know this is not what you want to think, but I am not responsible for that expedition.” Johanna spat at him. “Then why did you attack the mines?!” *Let’s see you answer that!* “Johanna, that was not meant to be an attack. I told Asher to scout out the mines for a way to the city garrison. I specifically told him not to attack anyone or get involved in any fighting. I didn’t want anyone knowing of our return.” Chills traveled down Johanna’s spine as the Dark King's gentle tone became a growl. “And I made sure he paid dearly for that mistake. He will bother either of us no longer.” With that, he threw down a mask in front of her. Horror overtook her as she saw the hard look in the King’s eyes. *He actually killed his own member!* “So how do you justify the killing of innocent people and the burning of their city, or the murder of your own servant?”

His voice became gentle and his face a mask of calm as he responded. “After what he did? I couldn’t let such an evil act go unpunished. If I merely let him to his own devices, Asher would kill even more innocents. As for the city, not all the people are innocent. Some of those guards are those who killed my kin during the Second Great War and who resist me now.” Johanna gasped in shock. “But they’re just doing their job!” The Dark King shrugged with indifference. “They could have chosen to lay their weapons down. Instead of fighting to the death, they could have surrendered. But they didn’t. They chose to die. It’s not my fault that they are imbeciles.” Johanna bristled at the insult. *Daniel was not an imbecile!* She kept her voice steady as she spoke. “But you are choosing to attack them. Some of these people are just citizens, and they have nowhere else to call home!” He sighed in exasperation. “I can’t stop all of my men from doing certain things, though I will still punish and discourage them when I can. And besides, I cannot defeat Felden if its cities remain strong and powerful. That is where the kingdom gets its strength from! And if they have nowhere to go, they should blame the government for choosing the Necromancers as enemies. None of this would have happened if Felden had left us alone.” Johanna shook as she struggled to argue. *I can actually understand the reason he’s saying this. And can I truly blame him for something his men did, especially when he didn’t want this and made sure to punish the killer? Am I judging him unfairly?* “With all this destruction, you’re still a monster.” The Dark King laughed at her, looking at her with such empathy that it made her stomach sick. “Do you really believe I’m a monster because of what I’ve done, or because you want me to be?” Johanna stumbled back as though she had been punched in the gut. The Dark King continued, pressing his advantage. “Just because I’m a Necromancer, I’m supposed to be evil? Because I’m trying to protect my people, lead them to a better future? After the scorn we received, the only way to truly live in the sun would be to get rid of the government that seeks to destroy us because of the mistakes our leader made. But I suppose we can’t learn from our mistakes because we’re monsters like our zombies, right?” He shrugged as he pulled out his wither spine staff.

Johanna’s head spun as she struggled to maintain her hostility towards her opponent. *But it is true. They can’t live a full life because of the biased nature of our society.* Johanna put her hands to her head as she struggled to decide. *Sure, he’s destroying this place, but what choice does he have? If he doesn’t attack, Felden will and they’ll destroy him if they’re not weakened. And after how he punished Asher, I can’t imagine that he would let the others get away with murder. Plus, what his men do doesn’t dictate his character. Maybe I just think he’s evil because I want him to be so that I can condemn all his kind.* As she battled the doubt, she could feel another voice trying to take over. Looking into the eyes of the wither staff, she could feel her willpower fading as her mind withered. The voice whispered into her mind, weakening her defenses. *Your soul should be set free, unburdened. Let go and give up. You’ll no longer have any worries, no regrets. Isn’t that what you want?*

Before she mentally cumbled, she felt a new presence nearby. All of a sudden, the link between her and the staff shattered. With surprise, Johanna looked at the Dark King, who was now pinned underneath her brother’s body. Shaking the fog out of her head, she pulled her brother up. She froze as she heard a moan behind *her. The zombie!* Fast as a flash, Kaybeth stabbed it between the eyes with his sword. Frantically, he began to pull her towards the fence railing. Behind them, the Dark King got up, rubbing his face groggily. Noticing their movement, the Dark King reached an arm out in Johanna’s direction. “Wait,” he whispered, “Come back!” With shaky legs, he advanced on them. Then, before she could think, Kaybeth pulled Johanna over the railing, and together they began to fall.

As they fell, Johanna screamed in terror. As much as she wished she could say she came to terms with her situation, in reality, her mind was stuck on repeat. *I can’t die today! I’m too young to die! I DON'T WANNA DIE!* It felt like an eternity before they landed. Luckily, they landed on the edge of the Panda Lake. Since the lake edge was shallow, Kaybeth didn’t have to swim, though he did know how. Together, both he and Johanna wadded to shore. Once they were on solid ground again, they both ran towards the burning city. Johanna was surprised when they reached the ladders leading to the city, as it was now packed with soldiers. A mixture of Humans and Felinas all stood tensely, all on the lookout for any undead attempting to come through the mines. In the center stood Lucan and Nika. All of the guards held leads in their hands, each lead being attached to a horse. As soon as Lucan spotted them, he nodded, his eyes blazing with hatred. The soldiers all climbed up on their horses. Only one was left, Lucan holding the extra. Kaybeth sprang onto the horse. With a reassuring smile, he held out a hand to help Johanna up.

Johanna was about to take it, until she realized with fear that not everyone she cared about was there. “Wait, what about mother, or sis? Where are they? We have to find them?!” Hysteria began to set in, and Johanna searched around frantically. Trying to sooth the young Felina, Lucan cleared his throat and explained. “The other guards have been put in charge of evacuation. We’ll meet with them at Fort Zuka.” Johanna shook her head. “I have to find them.” Lucan muttered to himself unhappily, before nodding to a guard. Immediately, the guard disembarked his horse and stepped behind Johanna, preventing any chance of escape. Johanna shook with fury as she realized what was happening. “Why are you stopping me from finding them? Do you want them to die?!” Lucan shook his head, his face pale at the suggestion. “No, we don’t want them to die, but ou are too important to risk. You know them better than we do, so we need your intel to reach the government ears.” Johanna refused to listen and turned to run, when her brother leaped from his horse and restrained her. Grim faced, other guards came down and tied her with leads. Screaming with frustration, Johanna lashed out the whole time. *Why don’t they understand?! I’ve already lost too much to the Necromancers! I can’t lose anyone else!* Howling, she was forced onto a horse. With that, everyone got back on. Kaybeth, who now sat in front on the horse, whispered to his sister. “I know you don’t want to lose anyone else, and neither do I. But I can’t save them since I don’t know where to find them. But I can save you. Please don’t let me fail in this.” Still, Johanna begged to go back.

For hours, the small party traveled through the vibrant jungle. Johanna barely noticed. With tears streaming down her face, she couldn’t help but think the worst. *What if a zombie killed them? I know the Dark King said that he told his men not to kill innocent people. Or at least, he punishes them for it, so I assume he tells them not to do it. But he can’t keep tabs on all his men at once, or all his undead!* Numb to the sights outside, time passed before Johanna’s eyes. After what seemed like a moment, she found herself outside Fort Zuka. All members of the party dismounted and marched in formation behind Nika. Johanna glumly shuffled beside her brother.

Fort Zuka was massive, a head taller than the tall jungle trees and was made of a wall with four watchtowers, plus the inside for training and troop housing. The whole place was made of a mixture of torches for light, as well as stone, cobblestone, and stone bricks. There was only one entrance, an arch with its opening blocked by a fence gate. Once they had reached it, the gate opened upwards using a hidden redstone mechanism.

Johanna, however, barely noticed. Sensing her retreat from the world, Kaybeth went to one of the troop quarters and declared it her new resting place. With one last worried glance and a note, Kaybeth went out the door, leaving Johanna alone. The room was small, with a bed and a hanging lantern. The only other thing was a chest beside the bed. As she read the note, her heart broke. *Mother made it, but not Tulip.* Johanna cried the whole night away. *I knew I should have gone back!*

The next morning, Kaybeth cautiously entered the room. Clearing his throat, he looked down at his shuffling feet in shame. “I’m so sorry,” his voice cracked, “I should have gone back, but I wanted to keep you safe. I’m a failure. I couldn’t do my job when I was truly needed.” Johanna stopped crying and sprang at her brother. Kaybeth flinched, expecting to be hit. Instead, Johanna wrapped him up in a fierce hug. “No, Kaybeth, no. It wasn’t your fault. You were doing what you were supposed to do, keep me safe. Even if you had gone back, there would have been too many. You couldn’t have done anything.” Kaybeth smiled weakly as she pulled away. It wasn’t much, but now there was no longer any hostility between them.

Kaybeth then smacked his head. “I forgot. The government officials want to hear what you know about the Necromancers. I was supposed to bring you to them.” Johanna nodded and took her brother’s hand. Together, they stepped outside, and were surprised by what met them. Apparently, the officials had gotten tired of waiting and had come to her door.

With unrelenting intensity, they grilled her on everything she knew about the Necromancers. She told about how she had discovered the Necromancers in the mine attack as well as how she had followed them to their secret base. The head official, an old Felina with green ears and glasses nodded. “We will need you to lead us to the base, but not quite yet. First you must rest and recover from what has happened. Until then, we must prepare to move against the Necromancers.” The officials turned and left, but Lucan, who had come with them, stayed. With guilt written all over his face, he took a deep breath and spoke. “Johanna, I’m sorry. We should have listened to you, but we refused. Now it has cost us much, as well as having cost you even more.” He would have said more, but she stopped him. “Don’t worry about it,” Johanna shrugged, “I would have done the same.” Unconvinced, Lucan nonetheless nodded and headed off.

The rest of the day, Johanna wrote in her journal while laying on her bed. She couldn’t stop thinking about the Dark King and his words. In secret, she felt guilty for agreeing with him. She still wanted revenge against the others, but she couldn’t help but admire his courage for stepping out of the shadows. Suddenly, a knock on the door snapped her out of her daydreams. When she opened it, a red runed Ardoni nodded to her. Johanna nodded back and gave the news. “It’s happening, Tigress. Felden is declaring war on the Necromancers.” Tigress nodded back. “I’ll make sure to get some help from my own sources.” With that, Tigress left, and Johanna went back to her bed. She smiled as the fell asleep. *Tomorrow, it’ll be time to start the greatest adventure of all. Daniel would be so jealous.* Then, the dreams took over and Johanna fell asleep under the shining night stars.

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