It was dark; even for an eye such as his. He had thought that his time hunting at night would have prepared him for whatever was waiting on the other side of the liquid looking glass, but he was mistaken. It was surprising to find things so dark in this world when only moments ago the surface of the water had glimmered with pure magick.
Kendrix reached his hands out in front of him; his fingers curling in search of some static object from which he may gain his bearings. He stumbled, but only for a second. He needed to get somewhere where he felt safe. Even if it was something as simple as a cave wall upon which he could lean. He knew that once he was able to be stationary that he would be able to get to his bag. He had spent a great deal of time gathering provisions for this journey, and was certain that something in his possession would be able to get him out of this pinch.
Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, his fingers fell upon something stone. It would have to do. With as much speed as he could muster, he fell to his bottom and pressed his back against the stone; his hands already fishing into his bag.
He vividly remembered packing the steel bound lightning on his last hunt and was sure that it would have sent these shadows scattering to the corners where they belonged, but something else in his bag caught his attention first. The Noctis Amulet, another gift to the realm from the deities, was burning hot. So hot that he was sure that he would find blisters at his fingertips. There was evil near, and judging from the heat of the amulet, it was very evil.
He shot his eyes around the room. Or cave. Or pit. He was still so uncertain of his surroundings. It was so dark. For a moment, his thoughts shot to the forest where he played had as a child; the very forest that had shown him the mirror of lake that created the gate to this place. He had spent so much of his youth bounding through the trees of this land; navigating the woods with as much ease in the still blackness of night as one would have at high noon. Then why was he having so much trouble here?
Maybe, he thought, this isn’t a normal darkness. Maybe this is something much more sinister.
Finally, his fingers fell upon the Steel Bound Lightning, and with a silent thanks to the goddess Moliira, he summoned the light. At least, he thought he had. He could have sworn that the heat from the steel lantern was still lapping at his palms, but somehow, he saw nothing. No light. No walls. Nothing. It was as if he had gone blind.
All at once, things became so clear in his mind’s eye. His instincts had warned him of the dangers within the looking glass; of something that would do him harm. Was it possible that the journey alone could cause this blindness? Was it permanent? His eyes grew wider in the dark at the thought. He depended so much on this sense, a fact that was all too clear at the moment, and was not sure how he would survive without it.
Slowly, then quite rapidly, fear set in. And where there is fear, there is panic. His hands dug into his bag again; searching for something, anything, that would help him. His fingers fell upon another divine gift. The God Naota had given the gift of his light in a crystaline snowflake to the children of Revaliir. Maybe a true holy light could peirce the veil of this blindness.
"Shine," he murmured in the dark.
The light of the stone was brilliant and almost tear inducing, but ultimately a true relief. His relief, however, was short lived. As his bearings were finally beginning to return, he saw it. A beast. Something psychic, he would guess, judging from the size of its head. It must have been caught off guard by holy light and was now stumbling around with its hands, using that term lightly, over its face.
He had to act immediately. If was truly honest with himself, he knew that he would not be able to beat something that was strong enough to blind him with thought alone in a one on one battle. He had to strike it down before it could harm him again; before it could harm anyone again. Kendrix pulled his sword and pounced; pulling on the little mysticism that he understood to increase his strength and speed. Luckily, the beast did not hear his approach and was run through before it even knew what was happening.
Kendrix stumbled back from the slain beast; falling on his rear. He was not the only thing in Revaliir that was travelling through these portals. This was a fact he would do well to remember.
