Incendium: A Raging Inferno | ONC 2023

★ PROLOGUE ★

"Cum luna obumbrate

Et obscurum fit terra

Flamma resurget

Et terram hanc

In umbra et cinere terra residebit

Ad decies centena millia annorum"

★★★

(Night of the New Moon,
Goldwyn)

It was the dead of night. No light shone from the moon above, and the sky was wrapped up in clouds in different shades of black. An eery silence enveloped the barren land, as we hid behind the cemented walls of the only mansion on the outskirts of this town.

I looked back from the corner of my eye and confirmed that Dominic had his sword drawn. My right hand tightened on my slender dagger-like sword. Although it seemed to be quite an elegant and frail thing, nothing about its cutting edge was frail or delicate.

The sword was most suited for its owner, me.

Without a second's hesitation, I came out of my hiding spot behind the wall and slammed my boot into the wooden doors. The force of my kick caused the doors to open, and one part of it broke into two immediately.

I entered fearlessly, my eyes frantically searching for my culprit. I gestured to Dominic behind me to go left, while I turned toward my right. The mansion was huge and had a medium-sized indoor garden. I cut through the outgrown plants and quickened my pace. There were four doors to the right, and I was sure I'd find my target somewhere in these rooms.

Even though I was sure they were hiding here, the absolute quietude was unusual. How could they utter not a single noise on such a quiet night?

I slammed open the first door, but there was nobody in there. Puzzled, I broke open the other three doors but found not a single soul inside. I went inside the last room and inspected the contents closely.

Although this mansion had been abandoned a long time ago according to the villagers of Goldwyn, I found traces of life. A candle was half lit on the wooden window ledge, its wax still dripping down. On the stone floor, were fresh mud footprints, as if someone had walked inside just five minutes ago.

Just then, my senses alerted me. The God-forsaken scent that we had tracked all the way here, made its way back to me. I had been so focused on finding the Demon that I forgot I couldn't even smell them anymore. But now that I could smell them, too close and too pungent for my liking, I realized my mistake.

'They had known I would come for them all along,' I deduced as I crinkled my nose from that obnoxious odor of the demon blood.

I felt their presence in the room before I saw them. Creeping up behind me slowly, they thought I couldn't feel them. The air stopped and waited palpably for the fire to explode. They got closer until their scent got directly into my nose, making my eyes water.

I looked down at the broken piece of mirror that reflected my face. It wasn't one I was fond of, or which would make me want to stand in front of a mirror all day long. My watery eyes traced the 2-inch long scar along my damaged right eye, and I remembered my mission once again.

Closing my eyes to get rid of the excess water from them, I reopened and spun at the speed of light, flinging my slender sword at the enemy. The Demon was startled and took a few steps back, but unfortunately, he was absolutely fine.