23.

A heart of stone

"I really didn't think that you would fall for this trick…" Morrison's laughter echoed through the room.

Golbez raised an eyebrow, while trying to adapt to the darkness of the room he was standing in.

"Oh… How could I forget!? You need to get used to the darkness again!" Another male voice, unmistakably Mallack's one, chuckled. "Let's make some light!"

A dim light suddenly filled the cave, revealing a room not unlike the one they had been in before; laid out totally with black tiles. On a chair at the end of the room Mallack was sitting with crossed legs, his sharp eyes watching the new visitor with amusement. Next to the elegantly clothed man, Morrison was standing. Golbez had the strong feeling that this time, the Knight was not a magical apparition, but one of flesh and blood.

"So we finally can have a cozy talk…" Mallack smiled and, resting his elbows on the arms of his chair, pressed his fingertips together under his chin. "Somehow I knew that you would follow Morrison… Was it because his words made you angry? Or because you were hoping to destroy the Dark Paladins on your own? This would be a good way to redeem yourself in front of your little brother, am I right?"

"For what I did there's no compensation!" Golbez replied bitterly. "I was just taking the first chance to get my hands on you in order to kill you. You've caused enough mischief and your plans have cost way too many lives... Like--" he was interrupted by the other.

"Don't you think that it is a bit reckless to speak to me in such a fashion, standing here all alone? You could die in this very room… But you don't care, do you?" Mallack studied the long haired wizard before him.

Golbez shrugged and approached the other one; calmly, his expression unmoving. "If my life is the price for killing you, so be it. Better my death than one of the others."

"How self-sacrificial! I didn't know you were such a martyr inside. You're starting to resemble the little Paladin," Mallack chuckled, watching the other man without fear.

Golbez's eyes narrowed. "This has nothing to do with a sacrifice... It's just a reasonable thing to do."

"Reasonable? I don't want to sound insulting, but your argument lacks in logic, my dear Master Golbez. What would be reasonable about killing the one person who can relieve you from your pain?" Mallack stood up slowly.

"Now you sound very self-sacrificial. So you brought me to the Blue Planet to relieve me from my pain, is it that? How generous. What pain are you talking about?" Golbez chuckled disparagingly, though he was watching every move of the man before him attentively.

"Don't play games with me, Master Golbez. You might be able to hide your thoughts from others, but you cannot hide them from me…" Mallack's voice was low and knowingly, "The defeat of Zeromus has left you broken, without any purpose. Everything you are was created by Zemus and now, as he is gone, you don't know how to cope with your dark soul… You are like a caged animal that, as it finally gets let free, does no longer know how to survive in nature. And your powers do not only want to survive, but they want to dominate, to destroy nature. You're trying to fight against that, but with every try to escape the blackness of your heart, you plunge deeper into the abyss. As you know that's there's no hope for you reaching the "Light" as you might call it…"

Despite his efforts to keep up a mocking expression, Golbez had become strangely pale. "You know nothing of me!" He snapped.

"Oh, but I do… I know of your thoughts in the Black Crystal room: how much it hurts inside of you. How you tried to redeem yourself, to find a way to lessen the soaring pain of guilt you feel inside. And how you failed - every time! So you build a wall around yourself and try to hurt and mock others as much as you can, so that many despise you, punish you and thus, take a bit of the guilt from your shoulders… Isn't it that way, Golbez?"

"My past doings are a burden which I have to carry alone. I'm trying to keep people away from me because I don't want to hurt them..." Golbez replied coldly.

"But you do hurt them… You can't help it - to hurt others is in you! You cannot deny your black self. It's a part of you. It is your core, your heart!"

"A reason more to keep my heart closed, then! If you're trying to get me on your side, be assured that it won't work! And now I'm tired of your senseless rambling! Nuke!" Golbez stretched out his arm, a boiling hot stream emerging from his fingers, aimed directly at Mallack. The Dark Paladin watched the magic energy coming towards him without fear - before the spell could reach him, it bounced against an invisible shield around him. For the first time, Morrison showed a reaction and started to laugh quietly.

"What the hell..." For once, Golbez could not hide his astonishment.

Mallack smiled. "Surprised? Black Magic, though it is strong here in my realm, will not harm me… I'm being protected by the power of the black crystal..." He pointed to the dark breastplate, which was fastened around his upper body and blended in with his other clothing perfectly. Slowly, he approached Golbez. "Wouldn't you want such a power as well? It would not only protect you from everything, but also take the guilt away." Mallack took out a small pendant in which a little black stone was set in. "Isn't it beautiful?"

"If you try to seduce me with this silly little trinket like you did with the citizens of the Blue Planet, you will not go far. I have something which is stronger than this…" Golbez's eyes narrowed as he took out the crystal shard without removing the covers around it.

Mallack came to a halt. "Oh… The crystal shard, I suppose. You're still in the possession of it? But-- " For a moment, there was a hint of worry in the eyes of the Dark Paladin, but it was gone in an instant. "That question can wait for later. Right now, I'm more interested in what you want to do with the crystal. Maybe you wish to use it? You hesitate?"

"You know very well that I cannot use it! But it will protect me," Golbez snarled - it was not clear if he really believed in his words, or was just trying to bluff.

"Protect you? From what?" Mallack feigned ignorance, then started to grin: "Oh - now I understand! You mean protection from this little pendant here?" He waved the necklace in his hand, then threw it into a corner, carelessly. "We don't need it. Everything we need is--" he pointed at Golbez's chest, "right there."

The wizard took a step back, horror creeping into his expression. "What…what are you talking about?"

"I'm talking about power, greater than the black crystal! You see, we used to tell our followers that the black stones are a product of ancient times and hail from the Blue Planet, but in reality, it is more likely that a Lunarian created them, created them by powers only the Lunarian elders possess and Zeromus was one of them. You frown? You probably think that I should detest the stone then, as I told my followers that I hate the Lunarians, but you possibly can guess that I don't really care about the origin of the stone. You can't be picky when it comes to power. And I need to draw my powers from the stone. However, you," real admiration and fascination lit up in Mallack's eyes, "you posses the strength in yourself - you got infused with the dark forces through the power Zeromus gave you and because you're a Lunarian you can acquire magic in a different form than I can... What I would give to be in your shoes. Power to shape every thought, every creature in the world after your wishes! The power to do everything you want!"

"You're lying! My power has nothing to do with your cursed stones..." Golbez thundered, his dark eyes sparkling furiously.

"Does it?" Mallack's tone hardened, "look into yourself, Golbez! Feel your heart… Feel your soul! This heavy, black lump - this black stone which is the core of your being!"

Golbez eyes grew wide, an inner struggle in him visible: "No… That is not true!"

"Why do you think the moon changed its orbit? We told you that we had brought you to the Blue Planet, but that is only half of the truth. I cast the transport spell, but what really drew you here was the black stone. Since I excavated it, it has been calling for you - calling for your core, as you're both part of a greater force. Don't you understand? The heritage of incredible might was given to me and you to use to our liking! Even more so, the might is not merely in you, but you are the might! This is why you can't fight against your inner being, this is the reason why your powers will stay forever - they can't be destroyed by normal means. Like the black crystal…"

Golbez backed away: "If the black stone and my core are really that alike, one can put a stop to my powers." He tore the layer of cloth from the crystal in his hand, revealing the faintly shining shard.

"You're right," Mallack smiled cruelly, "but the power of the Crystal would destroy you in the process, as well... Even now it is blocking your real powers. Can't you feel it? Can't you feel the crystal shard resonating to your core, trying to destroy it?"

"No…" Golbez slowly closed his hands around the crystal in his hand, "It is only a crystal shard... It can destroy nothing without proper use - I have seen it. And I cannot use it..."

"It does not matter. The crystal acts on its own…" Mallack pointed towards the object. Suddenly, Golbez's face was twisted with agony and the man fell down to his knees with a cry of pain.

"What...what was that...this light?!" he panted. "What damn spell did you use?"

"That was not a spell, my dear Master Golbez…" Mallack smiled sweetly. "It is the crystal draining away your life-force. Throw it away so that the pain may stop!"

Golbez shook his head, grabbing the crystal even tighter and the pain soaring through his bones grew stronger and seemed to tear him apart. "That...can't be! I've…touched it…before! You're trying to trick me…. You know that it's...it's the only way to defeat you!" he brought forth between clenched teeth.

"The only thing which tricked you is the crystal! Your former contacts with it were not long enough for it to show its real powers. It has been feeding on you the whole time now while you were carrying it. It will defeat you! Throw away the crystal, renounce yourself from the false moral restraints others used to tie you up! You may have suffered under Zeromus, but why not use his powers now to free yourself - to live life the way you want to?" 

Mallack approached Golbez, looking down on him, sympathetically. "Look what the crystal is doing to you… Bringing you down on your knees, enslaving you. It will not help you - it will betray you...like your father did…"

Golbez's gaze shot up, the pain in his face now mixed with incredible rage.

"I've told you that I've read your thoughts, Golbez… I know that your father abandoned you - he probably suspected that the power of the crystal would never be with you. You may think that the crystal is a symbol of good, but it isn't - it follows the will of its creator just like the black stone. But for that it needs people which are easy to manipulate, which are weak. But you're like me, Golbez... We're strong and as such to no use of the Lunarians. That's why the power of the crystal is not with us. We are enemies to the other Lunarians. That's also why your father did nothing to protect you from Zeromus, from having you fight against your own brother. He possibly hoped, like the other Lunarian Elders, that you would just drop into your doom. And now, the crystal will finish what its creators failed to do and destroy you!"

"I...do not know...why my father abandoned me… But… I do know that I'd rather die…than fall into the arms of darkness again!" Golbez gasped.

"Then so be it," Mallack nodded. "But your decision does not only seal your fate, but the one of your friends as well. The crystal has not much power left in it and your powers are strong... If it destroys you, it will break and your friends will no longer be able to destroy the black stone - unless they find another crystal, which is very unlikely, as I will not admit that they leave these mines alive. And you know that they are no match for our powers." He nodded towards Morrison, who was watching the whole scene, his expression unmoving. Mallack laughed: "With you dead, your brother will plunge into desperation even more. In the Crystal room I saw that he still suffers under his dark past… I will show him what true darkness and true suffering means!"

"You fiend! I will not let this happen!" Golbez bit his lip, trying to get up, but he slumped back to the floor at once.

"You want to fight? Then use your powers! Throw this crystal away and give in to your dark heritage! Smash me with all your hate! You can do it!" Mallack shouted, an eerie look in his wide open eyes.

"I'll kill you!" With a sudden motion, Golbez threw the crystal on the floor - the pain inside of him subsided at once, though he felt that there was still some force nagging on him from the inside, some kind of great power. He closed his eyes and focused on it, trying to gather as much strength as he could manage.

"I'll kill you!" he hissed again as he felt a giant amount of power building up in him. It felt like something was giving him strength, was feeding his magic, and it was too late for him to stop now - in fact he didn't want to stop it anymore.

As a black, fearful wave of immeasurable strength filled every vein in Golbez's body, he heard Mallack whispering in awe:

"Yes... Now you've finally come to us. The power has come to the master..."

A soaring pain shot through Golbez's whole being -- the dark magic started to tear at his innards, at his thoughts in a much more terrible way than the crystal before. The pain was unbearable, every second felt like an eternity - then, suddenly, there was only merciful blackness…