The Kiln

Chapter 1 The Escape

Fire. It is the force that breathes life into every creature. It is the force that makes the plants grow tall. It is the force that is at the very center of our world. It is only when the Kiln turns to ash, and the embers fade, that life will cease to exist. The Lord grows weary, an old soul, desiring release from his ashen prison. Soon the light will fade, and not even the Everlasting Dragon can stop the darkness. Soon, we will be one with the Dark.

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Chapter 1

"What? Where am I? What is this place?" I wondered groggily as I awoke from what I could only imagine to be a deep slumber.

The walls were thick cement, not a window in sight, save for the grate some thirty feet above my head, but even then, it was barely enough to get any sort of sunlight to peek through the thin metallic bars. A pile of rags lay in the corner of the room, oddly human shaped. The room had to be at least seven feet long, enough for a man of my stature to lay his head, but still simulate the feeling of the walls closing in.

I turned to face the wall behind me and spotted a small, iron barred door, padlocked shut, gazing into a long hall that was dimly lit by torches lining the walls every few feet. Quietly I shuffled my way to the door and pressed my face up against the bars.

"H—hello? Anybody? Is anyone there? Somebody? Where am I?

Nothing, albeit not all surprising. This place did not exactly look like a bustling place. In fact, it looked barren and devoid of life. I went back up against the wall where I awoke and slumped down and rubbed my hands together. Cold.

"What the hell is this place?" I spoke aloud. I bore no recollection of where I might have been prior to waking, or what I was doing.

I slowly looked up and stared at the wall across from me as the light began to dim. Nightfall. I looked up to soak up what little rays I could before darkness fell.

"What is my name?"

#

I awoke again expecting myself to be somewhere else, but alas it was not the case. Same cold, dark walls with only the faintest of light peering through the top. I had taken to counting the cracks in the wall in an effort to pass the time in this cell, but usually it made it last even longer. I had no idea how long I was going to be here, or even why I was even there in the first place.

"Psst, you there."

I bolted up from my usual spot on the dark floor.

"Who's there? Show yourself?" my voice wavered as I spoke into the darkness. I could see nothing.

"Up here." The voice spoke

I looked upward to the grate far above me. A silhouette blocked out the sunlight, bearing the resemblance of a man. He opened the grate with one hand and pushed a large object down with the other. It landed with a loud thud on the cold floor, echoing throughout the hall.

"Take the key you find on him, it unlocks your door. Take the armor too, you'll need it more than he will."

"Wait, wait, what do you mean him?" I crept closer to the object. A body, clothed in leather pieces, save for the helm which appeared to be some sort of iron or steel that completely covered the face. I turned back to the figure above me.

"Are you serious? What the hell is this? What is this place? And who the hell are you?"

I could see some sort of movement which looked like a shake of the head.

"No time, you'll just have to trust me. Take the armor, unlock the door, and go, but don't run. And don't look anyone in the eye. It'll be a disaster for both of us if you do and you'll just wind up back in this cell, so if I were you, I'd have started moving already. I'll meet you soon, be careful."