After the Dark Read online

  Tunnel diggers were important parts of the colony. The three Mounds contained the last pockets of Elfin heritage. Without tunnels to connect them, the King could not rule. Without tunnels, supplies would quickly dry up. Everyone played his part for the whole, and Dax Dirk was a perfect example of this. He sent money home as often as he could, but while he was gone the younger children were Dirk’s responsibility. Sometimes Pil wondered if Dax simply wanted to get away from Dirk’s father. Surely Dirk wanted that, but with Dax gone that would never be an option.

  “There is so much to see… ‘when you look beyond the boundaries of what is known, you will find whatever it is you are looking for,’” said Pil, smiling. It was an old quote from his favorite book, Beings of Haven, a famous novel among the Elfin kind. Old as their species, it was said to have been written by the first King himself, Alfer Arrow. It told of a world beyond the dirt wall of their home. It described some of the creatures of Haven and told the history of early Elfin.

  Dirk chuckled, “I swear you could recite that whole charring book — What do you reckon is out there, though? I mean, do you think it is as dangerous as everybody says?”

  “I think it is even more dangerous,” Pil said. “I mean, if even half the stories are true, there are the Bahbeq, and the Spindles, and the Fairies. All of them looking to eat us or suck out our blood. Not to mention the things we don’t even know about. There’s a whole world of things out there that can kill us.”

  Pil looked back at Dirk to see his usual worried expression. He could tell his friend was already regretting his decision to become an Exidite. “Don’t worry so much, Dirk! There is a world of things that can kill us in here too!”

  Dirk laughed darkly. “That makes me feel better.”

  They had just passed the last building of lower town when someone rounded the corner in front of them. It was an Elfin boy with jet-black hair, slicked back. He was wearing the usual Foxfir attire, a vest of leaves and fur, and Foxfir shorts. Like everything else about the boy, his fur, and his leaves, were dyed a peculiar shade of midnight black. Just as Pil took in the boy’s dark appearance, the boy turned around and caught Pil’s eye. Even his gaze was sharp and dark.

  “Hello,” said Pil, being polite. Dirk, beside him, said nothing. It was his custom not to talk to new people unless he was being asked a question — a habit he had learned from his father. The boy said nothing but stopped and waited for them to catch up.

  “Are you here for the Exidite test?” Pil asked, slightly uncomfortably as the boy took in their appearance with an appraising eye and then glanced behind them at lower town.

  “Yes,” replied the boy slowly. “Do you live in there?” he asked, pointing to the broken-down buildings and dead street.

  Pil glanced behind him as though to see what he had meant. “Yes,” he answered somewhat defensively.

  The dark boy chuckled. “I didn’t know Exidite took people from the lower parts.” The boy’s smirk was sharp like a knife.

  Pil said nothing. Clearly, this was a kid from a richer family. He certainly wasn’t Prestige. Prestige lived only inside the Castle walls, and this boy had come from somewhere in deep Mid-town. Not to mention his clothes. While expensive, they were not the clothes of Prestige; but clearly that did not stop him looking haughtily down at them.

  “Well, good luck, then,” said the boy, turning on the spot and continuing down the street ahead of them. “I suppose you’ll need it.”

  Pil glanced at Dirk. Furious and offended, his hands were balled into fists. It wasn’t often Dirk got that dark look on his face. That boy clearly had a lot of confidence to be looking down on someone so large. Pil, on the other hand, was used to abuse. Short and skinny, he had been looked down on his whole life. With a shake of his head, he led the way back down the street.

  The boys reached the E building, as it was called, a couple of seconds after the darkly dressed Elfin kid. He hadn’t even paused to admire the building but strode in quickly as though it was his own house. Pil stopped to look up at the structure, which was large and intimidating.

  It was possibly one of the most well taken care of buildings in all Westleton — aside from the Castle, of course. It was certainly one of the largest buildings. It had two floors all made of white wood, two columns of white stone in front of black double doors, and absolutely no windows. A giant curved metal E was emblazoned above the entrance, giving the building its notorious name.

  The E building was situated directly in the center of Mid-town. The wooden houses and shops around it seemed to center on this one spot. Pil had forgotten just how large it really was. Living in lower town, it was rare to see a building even a fourth of its size.

  “Hey, boys!”

  Pil turned to see Felicity. She was striding confidently down the street towards them, a gentle smile playing on her lips. It was the first time Pil had seen her wearing anything but usual Elfin attire, and it took him a moment to place her.

  She was wearing a low-cut vest made of orange Foxfir and a matching pair of shorts.

  “Er — hi,” he managed, meekly blushing — she did look quite nice.

  Dirk had a confused look on his face as he took her in. “Where’d you get all that from, Fel?”

  Felicity blushed. “I’ve always had it, Dirk.”

  “Never seen you wear it,” Dirk replied, looking at Pil. Pil laughed. She had even attempted to do her hair; it was brighter purple today and brushed through. The whole effect was all very proper, very not Felicity.

  “Don’t laugh!” she said, blushing still more brightly. “Today’s the day, isn’t it? I can’t afford any bad impressions.”

  Pil smiled. “Are you ready to go in, then, Fel?”

  Felicity looked up at the building that loomed over all of them. Her face seemed scared and uncertain for a moment, and then she met his eyes and nodded. Pil took a deep breath and led the way into the building.

  It was surprisingly bright inside. There were roughly twenty Elfin boys milling uncertainly about the large room. They were all shooting nervous glances, occasionally towards a black door that sat against the far wall. Pil found the boy dressed in all black almost immediately. He was standing underneath one of the many bright orange lights, looking up at the ceiling, seemingly unconcerned. Pil saw Dirk glance towards the boy and frown menacingly.

  “Let’s stand over there,” suggested Pil, leading the way to the other side of the blank white room.

  In the corner, standing as though he were trying to blend in with the woodwork, was a meek-looking boy with sandy brown hair. He was glancing more often than anyone else towards the black door and looked fully out of place.

  “Hello,” said Pil, leaning against the wall next to him.

  “Hi there,” said the boy with a quiet smile, glancing nervously around at them all.

  "I'm Pil, and this is Dirk and Felicity," said Pil, gesturing to each of them.

  “I’m Sandy, Sandy Shackles,” said Sandy, moving over to give them room.

  “Hi,” said the boy, attempting another smile and waving over at Felicity and Dirk. Felicity waved and smiled invitingly, and Dirk gave the boy a nervous nod.

  “Are you from this mound?” asked Pil, not recognizing the boy.

  “Yeah, my mum and I live in Mid-town. Been here my whole life — Dad’s a Builder.” Sandy looked down at his folded arms. “I’m not much for strength, yah know… so I — I thought I’d give this a try.”

  Pil knew what Sandy meant. While the boy was taller than him, he didn’t look particularly any larger, and he certainly didn’t look like he could build a house.

  “You’re from Mid-town? You must have seen this place a lot, then. It’s pretty intimidating, isn’t it?” said Pil, looking around the room.

  “Yeah, it is a bit,” said Sandy, looking about. “Never seen the inside, though; don’t reckon many have.”

  “You must have seen the Exidite, though?” asked Dirk. “What are they like?”

  “Well… I m
ean, not much,” said Sandy thoughtfully. “They don’t come running about the town — mostly, they just stay holed up in here, I suppose. And they only leave at night, anyway… I have seen Harlem Havok, though,” said Sandy, now looking excited. “He came out to the Castle last spring. It was an amazing day, that was…”

  “What was he like?” asked Pil, never having seen the Exidite hero himself.

  “Tall,” said Sandy unhelpfully. “And handsome, got a strong jaw, yah know, and a scar across one eye. Couldn’t see much more than that.”

  “You think the rumors about him are true?” asked Felicity curiously.

  “Oh, I reckon so,” said Sandy, nodding knowingly. “I mean, if any Elfin has reached Enlightenment, it’s him, that’s for sure.”

  Pil chuckled. “I don’t know about all that. I mean, I know Elfin Prestige in the past were recorded to have powers, but I think that’s all gone now.”

  “Not to mention you must be in the light of day to reach Enlightenment,” Dirk added. “I don’t think any Elfin who are still alive have seen the light outside, even Harlem.”

  Pil nodded his approval and Felicity rolled her eyes. She had always been keen on the idea of Enlightenment, the moment an Elfin is given magic powers brought on by a near-death experience. Even though there have only been seven known Elfin Prestige to have pulled it off, she had argued that it should still genetically be possible.

  “You never know,” said Felicity simply.

  Sandy smiled at Felicity, then froze as he looked at her. “Wait a moment…” said Sandy, coming to a realization, “I know you —” with a loud bang the black door burst open, interrupting Sandy mid-sentence.

  The room went instantly still as they looked around to see who had thrown it open. A large Elfin man stood framed in the doorway, wearing circular glasses and staring intently at a black clipboard. He had grey shaggy hair and dark emotionless eyes set into a lined and weathered face. This was a real Exidite. It was immediately apparent on his face, even without his Exidite dress — a black Foxfir vest with a large curved E emblazoned on it and matching black shorts.

  “Your applications have all been received and processed,” said the man, without looking up from the clipboard. “I will call your name. You will respond with a simple ‘here.’”

  He spoke slowly and quietly, but everyone seemed to hear him just the same. It was clear from his expression that this was not an Elfin to be crossed.

  “Able Adkins.” The man began listing off names in alphabetical order. After about five choruses of “here,” Pil heard the man call “Brixton Bells” to which the only boy in all black — the boy they had met earlier — replied with a snide and quiet “Here.”

  So, that’s his name, thought Pil. Brixton Bells. It wasn’t familiar, and it certainly wasn’t a Prestige family name.

  Soon after Brixton, Dirk’s name was called, and he gave a shaky but loud “H-here.” But even Dirk’s bark of a voice didn’t warrant a glance from the stern Elfin man. It wasn’t until he had said “Felicity Falon” that he glanced quickly over his clipboard.

  To be fair, everyone in the room turned to look at Felicity as she squeaked out a very nervous “Here.” Even Brixton gave her an appraising look. Pil knew exactly why they were all so interested in her. Still, he wished she hadn’t drawn attention to herself so early in the tests.

  Trying to ignore all the curious looks, Felicity glanced down at her feet and the man went on, finally calling out “Pil Persins” to which Pil replied with a quick but determined “Here.”

  When the Exidite man had finished listing off names, he, at last, put the clipboard down and looked around at the room, taking them all in with a dead stare. His dark-grey eyes mirrored the seriousness of his dark-grey hair and his lined but sturdy face.

  “Now all of you are presumably here to take the yearly Exidite exam. I am forced to warn you all that this will not be easy. Many of you will not pass. We need to weed out those who will likely put themselves, or others, in harm’s way. The Exidite job is essential… but it is dangerous — very dangerous. There are things out there that many of you could not begin to comprehend. Believe me when I say death is a very real possibility. Signing up to become an Exidite, you sign your life away; this is your last chance to turn back. Leave if you are not prepared to give your life for others. There will be no judgment; but after this moment, your safety is not guaranteed.”

  There was dead silence after this proclamation; many of the boys shifted uncomfortably or looked around nervously, but surprisingly nobody left. The man waited a moment and then nodded and moved aside, gesturing to the open door behind him, which was radiating darkness.

  “Move forward into the next room and you will be briefed on the first test. You need to complete three of the four tests to become an Exidite trainee or an Entri. But be warned, no one to date has ever passed the last test, so proceed with caution.”

  With that, the man stood aside and let them file past him into the dark room. Pil, Felicity, Dirk, and Sandy were the last to enter. As they did, a great wave of heat rolled over them. They pushed their way forward through the mass of boys to see what lay ahead.

  3

  Endurance and Speed

  It was the largest room Pill had ever seen. The only light came from four lanes of firey hot coals. These were about a foot wide and set into the floor, stretching far off into the distance. The ends of the tracks were lost in a sea of smoke — the room seemed to go on forever. Standing in front of the fire was a tall, handsome, and strong-looking Elfin. He had white hair that was shaved on the sides and slicked back in the middle, and a white scar going through his left eye, from eyebrow to cheekbone. His face was set like stone, serious and hard.

  “Hello,” he boomed at them all. “My name is Harlem. I am the Captain of the Exidite. I will oversee your first test.”

  The boys looked around at each other with raised eyes. The famous Harlem already — the King’s very own son and heir to the throne. Harlem looked even more impressive than the stories told. Next to Pil, Sandy was practically jumping up to get a better look at him, and he wasn’t the only one.

  “Many of you have heard about what it is to be an Exidite, but the truth is even more unbelievable than anything you have been told. The Exidite stand by the Elfin code: Live for the whole, or die alone. This is what we do. We provide the food and necessary resources for all the Elfin mounds. We do what no one else can: we run headfirst out into a world filled with creatures whose sole purpose is to see us become extinct, not for ourselves but for the benefit of others. It is not easy, and it is not safe. Therefore, neither are our tests…”

  Harlem gestured behind him. "This is the first test of endurance and speed. Behind me are four rows of hot coals. We will have five groups of four. You are to race over the coals to the end of the track. If you fall off, you are disqualified. If you purposefully jump off to save your feet, you are disqualified. Only the top three runners per group will be qualified to move on to the next task.” He looked at them all with a stern expression. Many of the boys looked frightened. Even Pil was a little unnerved at the length of the tracks. “Any questions?”

  There were none. This was what it meant to be an Exidite. This is what it meant to carry the weight of every Elfin in the mound on your shoulders. They had all known deep down it would not be easy. Even Sandy’s face was set in a timid but determined expression.

  “This is near 277 paces,” Felicity whispered to Pil.

  Pil nodded grimly. It was just lucky Elfin feet were unusually thick.

  “Good,” Harlem continued. “I will call out the four to race, chosen at random. This is as much a test of speed as it is of endurance. You do not need to be the fastest Elfin to survive; you only need to be the most determined. Once you have made it to the end of the track, please move into the next room, and on to the next task.”

  Harlem walked over to the side to allow them access to the tracks. “Cullen, Sandy, Truman, Pil. Please step forwar
d.”

  Pil gave a start and glanced over at Sandy, who stared back, eyes open wide. They moved to the front, pushing through the group, and took their places next to each other in front of the hot coal tracks. Two other Elfin boys moved through the crowd as well and took their places. Cullen and Truman were tall for their age, within an inch of each other. They clearly had the advantage when it came to their stride. One of the boys caught sight of Pil and Sandy and smirked confidently.

  Pil got into a running stance and glared at the track in front of him — it seemed to extend for miles. He could feel the heat on his face now, harsh and oppressive. Next to him, Sandy got ready too.

  “On the count of three, you will begin. If you start early you are disqualified… Ready? One… Two… Three!”

  They took off. Immediately Pil felt his feet sizzle and felt a flare of intense pain. He took a deep breath of hot air and inhaled only smoke. Pil glanced through the wave of heat to see Sandy. He wasn’t doing well. He was jogging and sweating profusely. Pil looked to the other side. The other two boys were about even with him, struggling, but managing a good pace. Pil concentrated on his breathing, attempting to block out the pain that came with each step. His eyes were beginning to blur in the haze of smoke, but he stared straight ahead at the track. He couldn’t afford to fall off the small bed of fire.

  Though it had only been seconds, it felt like they had been running for hours. The strain of not jumping off the track grew worse with every step. Pil had not looked to either side again. He looked only at the tracks ahead of him, attempting unsuccessfully to block out the pain. Though his eyes were now dried up and stung, it was nothing compared to the pain in his feet. With every breath and every step, he could smell a fresh wave of burnt flesh. His feet no longer felt like feet at all, but stumps of flaming hot pain instead.