Where Purpose Lies (Temporary Title) - Guest Post by the Hermit Crab

Alrighty all, I'd like you to meet my younger brother, the Hermit Crab (or at least that is his name on here). He is a lover of Christian fiction and a Lego fanatic. Recently he has become interested in writing, and is presently writing a fantasy book called Where Purpose Lies. I immediately saw talent and encouraged him to do a guest post on here, so here it is! This is just a small clip from his awesome story, but he would love some feedback. Enjoy!



Ezra stood beside the king’s throne thinking of his family. He really did desire to spend more time with them. Unfortunately, to do that, he must give up his job and only source of money. His family would be forced to move into the village and he would have to find a less time consuming job. If only being a body guard didn’t require so much time. As of late, his work hours had doubled due to the king’s erratic behavior. The queen needed people she could trust to keep an eye on him.

King Abdon sat on his throne, once again tossing and turning due to his troublesome dreams. Many were beginning to give up hope of the king’s recovery. No one, not even the queen, bothered to wake him from his troublesome slumbers. It seemed that in wakefulness and in sleep, the king would see some dark shadow that no one else could. The queen no longer bothered to have him brought into his bedchamber. He was heavy, and refused to budge from where he sat.

“The shadow is growing. It is nearly upon me,” a low trembling voice spoke from the throne. Startled, Ezra turned to see the king’s pale face staring past him toward a vacant corner of the room. Abdon spoke once more, his voice rising in agitation, “The shadow will overtake you all. Flee, lest you become one with the terror!” The king sprung from his chair and raced for the door opposite the throne. Shocked at the king’s sudden movements, Ezra had no time to grab the king. The other guard, standing on the opposite side of the throne, seemed just as stunned. Ezra made eye contact with him, and they both took off after the king.
   
The king reached the door far ahead of them but did not make it any farther. Two more guards opened the door from outside and blocked the king’s path. Abdon didn’t notice them and ran straight into their arms, nearly knocking both guards of their feet. The guards, struggling to keep him in check, dragged him back toward the throne.

Ezra and his fellow guard hurried over to assist the other two. Even with four, king Abdon was hard to restrain. As they brought him forward a door behind the throne opened and the queen stepped out, still in her nightgown.

Shouting in order to be heard over the king’s shrieking, the queen spoke, “What has happened? Will this torturous sickness never quit plaguing my husband?” The queen hurried forward and spoke again, attempting to calm her husband, “Abdon, try and concentrate on my voice. You are in your throne room; you simply had a nightmare, no darkness dwell within these walls.”

“No! You lie, the darkness is here, and it is upon us!” The king one again began to thrash about and nearly threw off all four guards. His screaming became so loud, that Ezra was sure the whole village would wake.

The queen, looking very tired, once again attempted to calm him, “If the darkness is here then why can we not see it?” The king unexpectedly fell quiet and still. Then, slowly, he lifted his hand and pointed toward a corner in the room.

Ezra groaned inwardly, “Great, another one of the king’s hallucinations, how much longer can this night possibly last.” The queen let out a gasp. Ezra looked up to see here face turning ghostly white. Beginning to feel slightly nervous, he turned to face the corner that the king had pointed out with his trembling hand.

A black mist rose out of the cracks between the stones in the floor. Metal scraped on wood. One of the guards had drawn his sword. Ezra watched him with wide eyes. What could he be thinking? Could a sword put an end to the strange happenings of this night?

King Abdon grabbed the guard’s sword arm. “You mustn’t play games with the darkness.” The king spoke in a mysterious tone that filled Ezra with a newfound terror. The guard ignored the king’s command and made his way to the corner of the room. He knelt down and plunged his sword into the gap that spewed forth the mist. Prying with one arm and groping for a loose stone with the other the guard removed one stone from the floor. Dropping his sword, the guard reached into the empty cavity from which the stone came, he brought forth a black orb that seemed to radiate the mist.

By now the room had fallen deathly still. The mist radiating out of the black orb seemed to flow into the guard holding it. For a moment it seemed that all was back to normal. The guard stood up and turned toward them, still holding the orb. Ezra made eye contact and was horrified by what he saw. Two more black orbs replaced what once had been perfectly normal eyes. They had become pits of darkness that defied all light. The mist once again appeared, this time radiating from the guard’s eyes. It drifted through the air heading for a single man. The king stood transfixed just like everyone else in the room, and did not move as the mist drifted closer.

Some urging from a place deep within Ezra urged him to do something. With great effort, he broke from his stupor and took his stand in front of the king. He noticed for the first time, that many other guards had poured into the room. All stood transfixed. Yet one among these seemed out of place. A brown haired lad of about sixteen years of age stood in the center, it was Othniel. Knowing that this may very well be his last chance to love his son, Ezra locked eyes and opened his mouth to speak. No words came. His world faded to black and he knew no more.