Untitled - Prologue

Prologue

         A young boy lay amongst the burning remains of a city that not moments before had still stood in glory, its cobblestone streets barely visible beneath the once white stone of the buildings around them. His eyes opened slowly, revealing to him only hazy surroundings. What had happened? He turned his empty gaze to what little he could see beyond the smoke that turned the sky black and his eyes widened, his heart clenching, engulfing itself, until the hole left behind had consumed all other pain in his body. The broken and bloodied forms of the ones he had taken as his family lay not far off. He desperately willed his body to move, but even from where he lay, he could tell they were all dead. Not even the presence of their spirits remained, fleeing in fear and crossing over into nothingness to escape whatever god of death had caused this.

         A sharp crack jarred his mind back to the reality that he was still alive, and instinct forced him to his feet and out of the remnants of the house seconds before it crumpled in on itself. Outside, he collapsed to his knees, buffeted by the shock wave of the succumbed ruins. Hot tears streamed down his dirt-stained face as he stared around at the chaos that had once been his home. Bodies lay strewn everywhere throughout the charred black stone that had made up the city and the sheer scale of death filled him with more fear than he had ever experienced, even more so than the savage beast within him created. Not a single Aura haloed the bodies in his sight, and beyond his sight he could feel no life. Except a sole massive Aura pulsating from the cliffs just beyond the dead city, one larger than even the Wraith in him gave.

         Anger swelled in the boy suddenly and he felt his heart rate soar, causing blood to roar in his ears. He held his head in his hands, scarcely keeping himself from screaming as a massive pair of jet black, feathered wings sprouted from his back. His features were changing against will and he could barely keep the mask that would seal away his free-will from forming. Then uncontrollable rage propelled him forward, a blade almost as large as himself forming in his right hand. His legs carried him, faster and faster, toward the source of the massive Aura, though his own conscience told him to run away and preserve his life. But he had to know what sort of being could do this to a whole city.

         His target came into sight and another bit of his tamed mind gave in to the merciless Wraith within him. A lone figure stood gazing out over the destruction he had created, unnerved by this small boy that gave his whole heart to revenge for the lives lost. But the boy did not care, and he would not care even if his life ended if it meant that he could see the face of the one who murdered those whom he had called his family. Swinging his blade, the boy sprung at the man, ready to deal whatever damage he could. Not a foot away from his target, his blade met with an invisible barrier, as though a steel wall blocked his path. The pure impact of it sent waves of pain through his arms and into his shoulders, and he was tossed aside like a doll, his blade burying itself deep in the ground.

         The boy forced himself back to his feet, his rage blinding him to reason. How could someone do this and not feel any remorse when even his Wraith, a bringer of death, sought revenge?

         A pair of eyes like molten gold turned to face him, the cold truth of something no one could even begin to fathom gleaming in their depths. Then a heartless, fanged smile spread across the man’s face, a grin that was far from reflecting in the golden pools of his eyes, and the boy felt his heart stop, his blood turning to ice. His rage dwindled rapidly, replaced by the same fear as before. Why hadn’t he just run? He had no chance against a being that may as well have been a god.

         Suddenly, flames as gold as that being’s eyes filled the boy’s vision. The roar of fire filled his ears. Every sense was aware of these flames, telling him he was being burned alive. He tried to escape his fate by grasping at the energy he had left in him to create what little magic he knew, but nothing came and nothing worked. The flames licked hungrily at his skin and pain beyond anything he had felt in his short life seared his weakening body. Surrounding him was that Aura, ever present in his agony though he could not see the murderer. Finally, he could bear no more and his scream escaped him. Again, he could feel himself changing and, amidst the pure anguish, he used whatever was left in him to keep his Wraith at bay. Even if it cost his life, he would not allow the bloodthirsty creature into the world.

         The boy could not tell how much time passed before his will broke and he fell to his knees, unable to scream any more. The illusion faded back to the scene of the ruins of the city, but his eyes could not take the horror in. He was ready to give in, die with the fate that had been laid out before him.

         Then, a voice, a single unforgettable voice broke through the iron barrier of his mind, hissing, “Go on, live.” The boy’s conscience had long deserted him, but something allowed trailing senses to take in everything about the man’s voice, giving the boy a reason to continue to live on with his few words. “Live and seek out revenge against the one who destroyed everything you are, Time Thief,” he continued, naming the boy for what he was. Abruptly, the Aura vanished and the boy collapsed, his world turning black long before he hit the ground.

~~~~~

         Stories always depict a torrent of rain after a fire, killing it to prevent more death… But after that fire, the rain never came and the flames swept on, leaving nothing but destruction in their wake.


"Aro" (golden eyed man) and any mention of "Chaos" © Copyright by Torie Rondot. Permission to use character given by her.
All other characters and settings © Copyright by me.