Centum Malediction

Chapter 2-6

Tuesday, September 21st. 2010

A large plume of dark smoke covered the sky above the forest, cutting off all sunlight. It was unlike anything Michael had ever seen. Even Lom was impressed by the symbol of sheer destruction the fire cast in the sky. Any doubts Lom had about magic being behind this were cast away by the sheer intensity of the flames.

They drove down the only open road to the forest. Lom had to show his driver's license as ID in order to get through a makeshift gate set up by the police. Once they saw who he was, they let him through without worry. Lom was grateful when they didn't even ask about Michael. He always had a hard time coming up with excuses on the spot. He was a horrible liar in general. Something his dad told him would be useful in the future, especially when dealing with women.

Lom didn't have much experience with women at all. He had never had a girlfriend, and his mother had died when he was in elementary school. Not a day went by that he and his dad didn't miss his mom. The conditions of her death had always been mysterious. She simply fell asleep one day and never woke up. The doctors claimed something happened in her brain, and that there was nothing they could have done, but Lom's father still blamed himself.

Lom withdrew from his classmates after her death, deciding to focus entirely on the future. Just like his dad, he too focused on helping others by becoming a fireman, so they wouldn't have to suffer from losing someone. Still, no matter how hard Lom and his father worked, Lom's mother would never be brought back to them.

"We're almost to the encampment," Lom said.

"Encampment?" Michael asked.

"Yes, during extended fights with wildfires they set up a camp where firefighters can rest. Judging by the size of these fires, even if we were to stop the source, it would still take days until the rest of the fire is dealt with," Lom explained. He was still distracted by the thought of his mother, and more importantly by the existence of magic. If there really were a hundred spells, then perhaps there would be one to bring her back. He kept this thought to himself, but silently decided that he would assist Michael even after this spell was dealt with, providing they both survived, of course.

Michael had spent the trip to the forest filling Lom in on everything he knew about the hundredth warrior and the spells he had unleashed. It was much easier to explain now that Lom was actually listening. Lom asked questions, when appropriate, and began to understand both Michael's previous actions and his desperation to save Chelsea. He even felt a new found respect for Michael, given how he had risked his life to save the city.

Lom pulled his pickup to the forest's edge. Michael had been to the forest once before when he was younger, but it looked so different now. The first thing he noticed were lines of fire trucks parked along the road they were driving on. The trucks varied in size and shape. There were more than the typical red fire trucks everyone thought of. Some of the trucks looked almost like armored tanks with fire hoses. It was clear they were built less with style in mind and more for efficiency.

Near the trucks was a large group of people. Firefighters, all dressed in yellow jackets with yellow hard hats, moved around an encampment. It was unlike anything Michael had ever seen before. Food was given out from what looked almost like a food truck. There were a variety of makeshift shelters like tents for firefighters to rest in. The firefighters were people of all different ages and sizes. There was one thing they all shared: exhaustion. They had probably been fighting the fires for hours at a time. Lom parked his truck near the others. The people there must have recognized it, as they didn't even flinch at the sight of it.