Phantom Lantern Novels & Stories

“I guess turning back isn’t an option anymore.” Dante shot him a sideways glance. “Were you planning to?” “I was considering it.” “Liar.” “I was considering considering it.” Despite the tension, a few guardians chuckled. The laughter was brief. It disappeared the moment the hallway lit itself. One by one, ancient lanterns suspended high above them awakened without flame. Instead of fire, each lantern contained a floating sphere of silver light that pulsed gently like a heartbeat. The enormous corridor stretched endlessly into the distance. Its ceiling was so high that it disappeared into darkness.

"What… what was that? Why would it do that?" Levy’s gaze never left mine. He slowly walked over to the fallen lantern, which had now dimmed to a soft, pulsating glow. He bent down, and with a casual, almost reverent motion, placed his hand on the body of the lantern, not the lid. Instantly, the light softened, steadying into a gentle, golden radiance. He picked it up effortlessly, as if it weighed nothing. "This lantern, Darren," he said, his voice calm, almost educational, as he held the now placid, glowing artifact. "It recognizes its true wielder. It responds to them, and only them. It can be… quite volatile if someone attempts to activate it improperly."

Domi handed the artifact back to Abbie. "Press it, nothing will happen. Well, nothing bad. Promise." She hesitated a second but did. Then a bright light came out of the front part of the unknown object. "It's called a lantern. And I would have given to you only the knife, the lantern, and the matches, but since R is overprotective... If you can walk and run comfortably, then it's ok." "What's up with this guy, helping now? I can't understand him. Maybe Myron talked some sense into him? Yet, he's still a petulant unmannered idiot.