Mogtober 2022

Day 8: Inferno

Ezra Squall, now the grown-up Wundersmith, was in the woods near Ulf, in Great Wolfacre. He didn't often get the chance to practice his Wundrous Arts nowadays, what with President Wintersee always looking over his shoulder. Even now, he glanced behind him, half-expecting to see his latest shadow.

But no, he'd left the man napping on the couch. A little sedative, nothing dangerous. He was just being paranoid.

He started by calling wunder, as always. "Little crowling, little crowling, with button-black eyes..."

Already the wunder was gathering, a little faster with every note. Ezra cast it about the clearing, making a beautiful string of fairy lights that only he could see.

Nocturne.

Next, he placed a candle in the center of the clearing. He closed his eyes, and focused on the tiny flame, deep in his stomach. He called it up, and a thin, practiced stream of fire slipped from his lips, which he immediately directed toward the candle.

"AHA!"

A portly man who was very clearly NOT napping on Ezra's couch jumped out from behind a tree.

Ezra panicked, spinning towards the man.

But he forgot to extinguish the flames.

A tree lit up like a roman candle.

Then the one next to it. And another. And another.

The entire forest was on fire by the time Ezra managed to escape. The other man had, too, but Ezra was sure that soon, he would be found and blamed for the incident. But until then, he was worried. There was another Wundersmith in Great Wolfacre, a little girl named Morrigan Crow. She wasn't very old, just about ten, but she had been born on Eventide and was, therefore, considered cursed. She would likely be blamed for this incident until the police caught the second man.

Ah, well.

He supposed it was none of his business.