Light & Dark: The Awakening of the Mageknight by Daniel Fife Read Free Book Online

dragons?"
    Danny looked down in confusion. The question
left him dumbstruck. He did believe in dragons—now more than ever;
he had seen one with his own eyes. However, he wondered if she
would think he was odd or dumb if he answered her truthfully. This
day was beyond amazing, Danny didn't want to ruin it by sounding
stupid.
    "Well?" said Sabrina softly.
    Her musical voice yanked him from his trance.
Danny gazed up at her.
    "Yes, I believe in dragons."
    Sabrina's mouth parted in a slight smile that
quickly vanished as she hunkered down, her facial expression
turning serious. "Do you believe in the Dark?"
    Again, the question stirred memories of the
night before, the dark creature with red eyes had haunted his
nightmares. "What do you mean?"
    Sabrina leaned down farther, "True darkness,
a malevolent force whose only goal is to destroy all life as we
know it."
    The statement, so bold and imposing, caused
Danny to shudder. He'd seen just such determination in the gaze of
the dark creature the night before. "Why are you asking me
this?"
    The sky rumbled as if answering Danny's
question. The once-white clouds turned dark, blotching out the
comforting amber rays of the setting sun. The gloomy clouds began
to swirl, producing a wind tunnel.
    "What's happening?" Danny asked. A jagged
bolt of lightning jutted out from within the whirling storm,
perhaps a warning.
    Before Sabrina could answer Danny's question,
something shadowy and sinister fell from within the tempest,
leaving a trail of billowing black smoke through the sky. Landing
soundlessly on the ground, the dark smolder swelled outward in a
wave.
    Peering into the ominous haze, Danny came out
from under the bars of the jungle gym. Taking two bars at a time,
Sabrina climbed down and stood beside him.
    The wind picked up, its strong breeze
dissipated the murky mist, revealing a slender silhouette beneath.
Thin red eyes flashed within the gloom as the creature took a
silent step forward. The thing smiled, revealing a wicked array of
sharp, silvery teeth.
    Danny's breath caught in his chest. He knew
this creature. It looked exactly like the monster he had seen the
night before. However, this time there was no dragon to protect
him. "Get behind me!" Danny yelled, pushing Sabrina behind him with
his right hand, while he stepped in front of her.
    In the distance, the shadowed creature
stalked beyond the veil of black smoke. Its hands twitched with
anticipation as a set of razor-sharp fingernails extended to the
length of daggers.
    "No, you get behind me!" Sabrina
yelled, her voice lost its melodic timbre, it turned deep and
throaty. Stepping beside him, she pressed her left palm to his
chest, she pushed him backward with a sudden surge of strength that
Danny would've never thought her capable of.
    Danny landed roughly on his rump ten feet
behind her. However, before he could comment, his eyes were drawn
to Sabrina, her body began to glow.
    Taking on the characteristics of the sun
itself, Sabrina emanated a brilliant amber light. A pair of
beautiful wings sprouted from her back. Her arms and legs extended
to impossible lengths, bulging with masses of lithe muscle. Her
neck stretched and a nimble tail blossomed from the base of her
back. Rosy red scales completed the transformation.
    Danny looked at the fully-formed dragon that
stood where Sabrina had been only an instant before.
    "It was you," he said after stepping back to
what he thought would be a safe distance. "You're… you're the
dragon," jabbing his finger in her general direction.
    The dragon angled its snake-like neck in
Danny's direction and eyed him, unblinking. Sabrina's soft brown
eyes, now larger, with a slit pupil like that of a lizard,
narrowed, as if in warning.
    Seeing its chance, the dark creature took two
quick lunges forward and bounded into the air.
    "Look out!" Danny yelled, seeing the
creature's movements in his peripheral vision, pointing.
    Lightning-fast, the dragon swiveled its head.
Letting out a low,