The Burnt Town of Vul

When he arrives the town is half burnt to a crisp, he heads down the main street and towards his home, which is surprisingly currently in the beginning stages of being rebuilt,

"Hello," he yells out, "Lierin, are you there?" there is a moment of silence before a voice replies,

"Raymonde is that you?" Lierin appears from the front door with dirt covering most of her face, "I didn't think I would see you again," she says walking over to him and giving him a hug, "How have you been?" she asks him to pull away from the hug,

"I'm well, but enough about me how have you been?" he asks walking around her and towards his house, "Are you the only one here?"

"I have been well also, and yes I am the only one here," she replies kicking at the ground, "if it weren't for you I'd be dead alongside everyone," she says while pointing out the hundreds of graves, "I gave most of them a proper burial," Raymonde turns to see the graveyard,

"You did all of this?" he asks while beginning to head towards the graves, "you gave them all burials?"

"Yes, well I did all the people that mattered to the town first," she replies walking up behind Raymonde putting a hand on his shoulder, "the mayor and the town officials were buried first," she continues, "then the women and children,"

"So is this everyone from the town?" he asks turning to face her, "did anyone else make it?" he says beginning to raise his voice, his eyes begin to flicker red,

"No this isn't everyone," she replies while she staggers back to the view of inflamed red in his eyes, "the ones who were lucky enough to survive the slaughter left and headed north," she walks over to a block of wood, pick it up and heads to the house, "anyways," she voices while leaning the block of wood up against his home, "what made you come back?" she asks him to sound intrigued,

"I came here looking for, well you," he replies scratching at the back of his neck, "I know it sounds strange, but I came here for you,"

"Raymonde?" Katrina says behind him, "where are you. Oh there you are," she says running up to him, she grips his hand, "and who might this lovely lady be?" she asks them both, Lierin looking stunned,

"Katrina this is Lierin, Lierin this is Katrina," Raymonde voices, "I saved her life just a little over a month ago," he says while gesturing to the carnage throughout the town, "this all happened because of me," Katrina looks at him confused, "if I weren't here none of this would've happened,"

"It couldn't have been your fault? Right?" Lierin asks him, "why is it your fault?" she looks at him with glean,

"I never told you how I lost my eye, did I?" he asks Lierin, she nervously shakes her head, "alright, looks like I'm going to tell you now,"

He begins with the battle were thousands of people lost their lives, then how he got captured, "it took me two years to be able to escape from that hell hole," he says, everyone now gathered around him to hear this, "I spent six to eight months on the run out in the wilderness, that's about the time I stumbled upon this place," he states everyone looking astonished, "anyways long story short, the people after me,"

"The Order of the Crimson Ring," Lierin adds, Raymonde nods, she looks to be having a hard time,

"Yes, they are still after me," he says Lierin takes a step back, "and that is why the town was burnt to cinders," he says, as soon as he finishes talking six figures, darkened by the setting sun, start to approach from behind them,

"What a lovely story," the noticeably bigger of the six voices, "the Order will happily take you back now," the six of them draw their weapons, the smaller five begin to wield a short-sword each, and the bigger one supports a larger than life great-sword, "It's simple really," the great-sword wielder continues, "you come willingly, or you will be left to deal with dire consequences," he begins to approach, resting his sword on his behemoth sized shoulder,

"I will never go with you!" Raymonde screams, while Llorva, Lorxan, and Katrina are preparing for battle, "Lierin," he begins, "you have to leave, NOW!" without hesitation she turned in the opposite direction and headed for the town hall,

"After her," the behemoth says, "and if she struggles to put an end to her," two of the other five figures, seemingly smaller in complexion, start to run in the direction Lierin ran off in,

"Katrina?" Raymonde begins, "would you mind getting serious for this one?" he says but before he could look over to her he felt the heat of a hundred suns touch his back, he turns to see Katrina fully engulfed in blue flames, the skin on her arms now transparent blue, her two swords ignite into flames, her hair becoming bright blue,

"Already onto it," she replies, her voice echoes throughout the town, and in an instant, a blue fireball is released from her grasp and explodes directly in front of the two figures running after Lierin, they get incinerated instantly, "it is done," she tells Raymonde,

"Good, now for the last, well one," he says as three of the other figure turn on their heel, drop their weapons, and run in the direction they came from, the behemoth looking concerned about his well-being,

"Hey, look, I am so very sorry," he begins to say, but before he could talk anymore a dagger made from flames is plunged into his heart, burning his clothes and skin on impact, he collapses to the ground, the flame dagger extinguishes,

"Katrina," Raymonde begins, "Katrina I need you to calm down," he continues to walk towards her raising his hands, "Katrina, I need you to come back to me," he lays his hand upon hers, her skin is hot to the touch, "Katrina remember the promise I made you," her eyes go wide,

"Katrina I promise myself to you. No matter what, you will always be in my heart. I love you."

"That's it, come back to me," Katrina's flames begin to die down, her skin becoming slightly colder in his hand, her arms start to revert to their natural colour, "there you are," he says to Katrina, her grey eyes focus upon Raymonde, she rushes into his arms hugging him, he embraces her as well.

Morning rises on the town of Vul, Raymonde seemingly the last one to wake, he sits up from the ground reaches towards the ground, he looks and there is nothing there,

"Weird," he says to himself, "I thought I had left my shirt there," he stands from the floor and walks out the door, he is greeted with the sun, temporarily blinding him as his eyes adjust to the light, he raises his hand over his eyes to block out the sun, there he sees Lierin and Llorva staring at him intently,

"Scram," Katrina orders the both of them, they leave with a look of disappointment, Katrina watches them leave before she turns towards Raymonde, "how was your sleep?" she asks him while linking his arm with hers, they walk down the main road,

"Enjoyable," he replies placing his hand on hers, "to say the least," Katrina looks at him with interest,

"What do you mean 'to say the least'?" she asks him while turning in front of him to block his path, "what do you mean?"

"I mean that is was as enjoyable as sleeping on the floor would be," he replies, running his fingers through her hair, "anyway, what was all that about," he asks her as he kisses her head, "about Lierin and Llorva?"

"Haven't you noticed?" she asks him, "they interested in you," she says still leading him down the road, "but what I don't understand is why they are so persistent for you to notice," she wraps her arms around him and before Raymonde could do the same Katrina rushes back with his swords in her grasp,

"Katrina?" he asks, "what are you doing?" he says while approaching her lowering the swords and returning them into his possession, "right. Now that, that's out of the way, where is my shirt?" Katrina starts to chuckle, "What? What is so amusing," his eyes flicking up and down her body, before Katrina could even think of an answer she is lifted off the ground and over Raymonde's shoulder,

"We can't do this here Raymonde," Katrina murmurs, her feet touch solid ground, "but I know a place where we can," she says as she leads him down the main road and into the town's hall.

Four hours pass by before Raymonde and Katrina exit from the town hall, as they exit the building the sun is at its highest blinding them both, Katrina responds naturally by raising her hand into the sky and raising her middle finger,

"Screw you, dad," she yells into the sky, Lierin and Llorva look back with a dazed look on their faces, "what's up with you guys?" she asks, she begins walking over to them when they collapse to the ground unconscious, she runs then slides across the ground over towards them in a kneel, "are you guys okay?" she doesn't get a response, Raymonde is looking around frantically,

"Do they have darts in their necks?" he yells across to Katrina, he glares over to her she nods, grabs hold of her neck, and collapses, "Katrina!" he yells his eyes going deep red, "come out here and face me you cowards," swords in hand, he sees movement in the corner of his eye, and in a heartbeat, his sword is spiralling in the air towards an unknown figure in black, the sword plunges deep into the chest of the figure, killing him instantly,

"Well, well, well," someone voices behind him, "looks like we have the right one fellas," the voice continues, Raymonde turns to see four figures in red and black, all but one point crossbows towards him, "looks like you went right for the bait," says the female in the middle, Raymonde recognises her,

"I know you," he voices, "you are the one I let live that day on the boat," his eyes completely coloured red,

"Yes I am," she continues, "looks like you should have killed me, didn't think you'd be in this predicament did you?" she asks him to smile ear to ear, "boys," she says to the men at her side, "grab the Elf and the blonde one," Raymonde looks at her with concern,

"Look you don't have to do this," he says as the men grab Katrina and Lierin, "I'll do anything you want just don't hurt them," he drops to his knees his eyes reverting to their natural colour, "I'll do anything,"

"Anything," she responds, "even kill one of them," Raymonde's eyes go wide, and his pupils reduce half their size,

"Anything but that," tears begin to form in his eyes, he grabs a fistful of dirt, "anything but that!" blood begins to drip out of his eyes,

"Well it looks like you are in quite the predicament," she responds with a sinister smile on her face, "either you kill one or I kill both, it's up to you," she tosses a dagger in front of him, "make your choice. And make it soon before they wake," she says holding their heads up by their hair, "and if you try and kill me, everyone in this town will die," Raymonde takes the dagger in hand and approaches them,

"Lierin," he says under his breath, "I'm… sorry," he takes the dagger and slices Lierin's throat from ear to ear, he lets out a cry of despair as Lierin hits the ground with blood pouring out of her neck, she lays on the ground unmoving, tears of red begin to pour out of his eyes, "how dare you," he mumbles under his breath,

"How dare I?" she responds, "you are the one who killed her," she lets out a low laugh, Raymonde grabs a fistful of dirt, he looks up towards the female, his eyes coloured red and enraged, and in the blink of the eye he grabs the dagger and tosses it towards one of her guards, it plunges deep in their neck, they fall to the ground lifelessly,

"I am going to kill all of you!" he screams in Elvish, "you are all going to pay for that!" he stands, and pulls his daggers from his belt then plunges them into the other two guards necks, they both fall lifelessly to the ground, he draws his short-sword, it begins to glow red, "I told you, you were going to pay for that," he takes one swipe at the female, her smile fades as blood begins to drip from her neck, her head slides off her body hitting the ground, the body falls soon after, Raymonde falls to his knees and holds the lifeless body of Lierin in his arms, "I am sorry," he starts, "you will always be in my heart," tears begin to form in his eyes, "I swear to the gods' if I ever have a daughter I'm naming her after you," he kisses her forehead, "rest easy."