Home / Fantasy / STRANGE MAGIC / CONFRONTATION
CONFRONTATION
Author: Jason Keith
last update2025-11-08 09:48:57

When Darren got home, he found his father sitting at the table, having lunch. He greeted him politely, “Good afternoon, Father.”

His father looked up from his meal, studying Darren’s face closely. “What’s wrong?” he asked. “You look strange. Were you in a fight?”

Darren hesitated for a moment, but before he could answer, his mother entered the room, carrying another plate of food. She stopped when she saw him.

“Darren!” she said, concerned. “What happened to you? Were you involved in a fight?”

Darren quickly shook his head. “No, Mother. Nothing like that,” he said, forcing a small smile.

His parents exchanged worried glances, but said nothing more. They sat together and ate quietly. After finishing his lunch, Darren stood up and said, “I’ll be going out for a while. I want to go hunting this afternoon.”

His father nodded slowly. “That’s good, but be careful,” he warned. “Watch your steps, and stay alert. The forest has been strange lately. Don’t go too deep.”

“I’ll be mindful,” Darren replied.

He went to his small workshop and picked up one of his old swords — a random one he had made for training. The real sword, the golden one connected to his strange power, he hid safely inside the house. He didn’t want to bring it with him.

Then he left, walking along the familiar path that led to the thick forest beyond the village. The sun was bright above, the air filled with the sound of birds and rustling leaves. When he reached the forest edge, everything seemed calm.

Darren entered the forest quietly, moving with steady, careful steps. He listened to the soft sounds of nature — the wind brushing through the trees, the calls of distant animals. Using his hunting skills, he set a few traps and soon managed to capture several small animals.

Hours passed, and the forest began to grow dim as the sun dipped lower. Darren tied the animals together with rope, ready to head home. But as he began walking back through the narrow forest path, the ground suddenly trembled beneath his feet.

The sound was deep — a rumbling from underground. Leaves shook, and birds flew wildly from the trees. Darren stopped, his eyes darting around.

“What’s happening?” he whispered, tightening his grip on his sword.

Before he could take another step, the ground burst open in front of him. Dirt and stones flew into the air, and from the deep crack beneath the earth, a massive, shadowy creature emerged. Its body was dark like smoke, its eyes glowing a faint red.

Darren staggered backward, raising his sword. “What are you?” he shouted.

The monster didn’t speak at first — it only let out a terrible roar that shook the trees. Then it moved fast, faster than he expected, and struck him with its huge arm. Darren was thrown hard against a tree, the impact echoing through the forest.

He gasped for breath, expecting pain, but strangely, he wasn’t hurt. The warmth of the magic inside him — the same mysterious energy that had burst out before — still protected him somehow.

He pushed himself up, glaring at the creature. “You picked the wrong person to attack,” he said under his breath.

Raising his hand, he focused his strength. A crack of thunder suddenly echoed from his palm, and a flash of blue light shot toward the monster. The bolt struck its chest, making it stumble back with a loud roar.

But the creature wasn’t defeated. It steadied itself and glared at Darren, growling in anger. “So, it is you,” it rumbled in a deep, rough voice. “You are the one I’ve been searching for.”

Darren froze at those words. “What do you mean?” he demanded.

The monster didn’t answer. It slammed its arm down, hitting the ground so hard that the earth shook again. Darren jumped aside just in time, but the force of the shockwave knocked him off balance. The creature grabbed him and threw him to the ground three times, each strike harder than the last.

Still, Darren refused to give up. Gritting his teeth, he rolled away, snatched his sword from the ground, and stood back up. “If it’s me you’re looking for,” he said through heavy breaths, “then you’ll regret finding me.”

He raised his sword and charged, slashing at the monster with all his strength. The blade struck the creature’s thick hide — and snapped in half.

Darren stared in disbelief as the broken pieces of metal fell to the ground. “No,” he whispered.

The monster laughed — a deep, cruel sound. It swung at him again, knocking him down, but even then, it couldn’t kill him. The strange energy in Darren’s body shielded him once more, though he could feel it weakening.

He rolled aside, his eyes darting across the forest floor for anything he could use. His sword was gone — shattered. But nearby, he saw a large stone. Desperate, he grabbed it and hurled it at the monster.

The stone struck its shoulder, making it turn with a snarl. “Is that all?” it mocked, stepping closer.

Darren didn’t answer. He bent down, grabbed another stone — smaller this time — and looked at it carefully. His eyes narrowed.

He whispered something under his breath, a word he didn’t even understand himself, and as he did, the air around him shifted.

The small stone in his hand began to glow faintly, the same golden light that once came from his sword. The monster paused, confused.

“What trick is this?” it growled.

But before it could move, Darren threw the glowing stone with all his strength. As it flew, the light around it expanded, and in an instant, the stone transformed into something enormous — a huge, burning rock that slammed into the monster’s chest with a deafening crash.

The ground shook. Dust and fire filled the air. When the smoke cleared, the monster lay motionless, half-buried in the dirt.

Darren stood still, breathing hard, his heart pounding in his chest. He could barely believe what had just happened.

But when he turned to gather the animals he had caught earlier, they were gone — scattered across the forest floor, as if something had frightened them away.

He looked back one more time. The place where the monster had fallen was now empty. The body had vanished.

A cold wind swept through the trees, and Darren felt a strange chill run down his spine. He didn’t know if the creature was truly gone — or if it was still watching him from somewhere unseen.

Without another word, he turned and ran toward home, the last light of evening fading behind him.

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    The forest was silent again after the battle, but the trader did not feel the silence — he carried it with him. Every step he took was heavy, and every breath he released seemed to cool the air around him. His clothes were torn from Darren’s magical blasts, and traces of burned fabric still clung to his sleeves. Despite this, there was a small, crooked smile on his face — the smile of someone who had already gotten what he wanted.Clutched firmly in his hand was the glowing sword he had stolen from Darren.The yellow glow shimmered like a captured sun trapped within steel. He admired it for a moment, running his thumb along the cold surface. “A boy like you,” he murmured, as if speaking to the sword, “should never have held this kind of power.”The trader walked deeper into the forest until he reached a hidden wooden shed, old and covered with moss, nearly invisible unless someone already knew it was there. He pushed the door open, and the wooden hinges creaked. Inside, it was dim — s

  • THE TRADER'S RETURN

    The forest was silent except for the faint rustle of leaves stirred by the night wind. The trader—his real name still unknown to everyone—walked through the narrow path with calm, steady steps. He carried Darren’s glowing sword in his left hand, the blade wrapped in a dark cloth to stop its light from drawing attention. Yet even with the cloth, a faint pulse of yellow radiated through the fabric, leaking like contained fire.He smirked to himself.“This boy,” he muttered. “So foolish. So untrained. And yet… this sword chose him.”He stopped beneath a tall tree, placing his palm against its rough bark. A dark symbol appeared briefly—something carved there long ago, the mark of his secret dealings. As the symbol glowed, a hidden wooden door silently opened at the foot of the tree, revealing a small underground room.He stepped inside.It was dim and damp, lit only by a single lantern hanging from the ceiling. This was the trader’s hideout—nothing luxurious, but everything inside had pur

  • THE QUIET STORM RISING

    The morning sun crept slowly over the horizon, casting pale streaks of gold across the distant ocean where Darren had washed up. The waves were calm now, no longer raging or tossing his unconscious body from one current to another. Instead, they rose and fell gently, as if trying to soothe the bruised and battered figure lying on the sand. Darren’s breathing was shallow, his body still aching deeply from the fierce battle he had fought the previous night. Though his eyelids were closed, his face carried the marks of exhaustion, fear, and defeat. His clothes were torn, drenched, and stained with traces of river mud and seawater. Even in his unconscious state, small twitches in his fingers showed that his body had not fully recovered from the magical energy he had forced himself to unleash in desperation.Around him, the early morning breeze rustled through the palm leaves and the scattered shrubs dotting the shoreline. The silence was calming, broken only by distant calls of seabirds c

  • THE MYSTERIOUS GIRL BY THE SHORE

    The morning sun stretched slowly across the horizon, casting a pale golden light over the distant shoreline where Darren lay unmoving. The waves rolled in and out around him, nudging his body gently as though trying to wake him. The sky above him was a faded blue, still recovering from the darkness of dawn, and the tide had already left small trails of foam near his arms and legs. Darren’s breathing was shallow, almost undetectable, and his skin was still damp from the long journey the river and ocean had forced him through.For several minutes, the shore remained quiet, disturbed only by the soft rhythm of the waves. Then, faint footsteps began approaching from the left side of the beach—slow, careful steps, almost hesitant. The footsteps belonged to a young girl, no older than Darren, who had come to the beach early that morning to gather shells near the rocks. She wore a long, faded blue dress that fluttered lightly in the sea breeze, and her long hair was tied behind her back in a

  • THE SHORE OF SILENCE

    Darren lay motionless on the lonely stretch of sand where the ocean had pushed him onto the shore. His body was half-buried under the cold, wet layer of sand washed over him by the last high tide. Waves rolled in and out gently, as if they were trying to nudge him awake. The morning sun was just beginning to rise, sending thin rays of pale gold across the sky. The wind was cool, brushing over his soaked clothes and leaving him shivering even in his unconscious state. The wide shore was quiet, with only the whispers of the wind and the cries of distant seabirds echoing across the open space.His lips were pale, his face drained of all color except for faint bruises marking his jaw and cheek from the beating he had suffered. His hands were limp by his sides, fingers twitching slightly whenever a wave touched them. He had no sword, no strength, and no idea where he was. The river had dragged him mercilessly, the ocean had tossed him around like a lost leaf, and the shore had finally clai

  • THE SEARCH CONTINUES

    The afternoon sun cast a warm glow across the compound as Darren stepped outside quietly, stretching his muscles after hours of deliberate practice and mental preparation. His body still felt heavy from the previous night’s encounter, but he could sense that his strength was slowly returning. The soreness in his arms and legs had dulled slightly, and although the bruises were still present, they no longer throbbed as sharply as before. His breathing was steady, and a calm determination settled within him.The forest, with its rustling leaves and distant bird calls, felt different today—not in a frightening way, but in a way that reminded him of responsibility. It was silent in a deeper sense, as though the trees themselves were aware of what he had faced and were watching him quietly. Darren took slow steps across the compound, allowing the familiar surroundings to ground him. The smell of the earth, the warmth of the air, and the steady rhythm of nature soothed his mind.Inside the h

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