No Smoke Without Fire

"That is not something you can decide!"

Shouted Eileen as she started running towards the spinning coin. She was sure she wouldn't become the next village chief regardless of the result, but she played along, thinking that this was nothing more than a fun game. 

Little did she know that Vidra already knew something she didn't. The fact that the elders wanted him to become the next village chief didn't escape his observation. Vidra was sharp, unlike most of his age. He often had moments where his cunning nature took a grip even on the rather intelligent adults of Inaka. 

However, he didn't plan to accept fate so easily; his dream to wander around the world would be over once he became the next village chief. This coin toss was his first step towards avoiding the inevitable. He was sure that the elders would object regardless of whatever bet had happened between the two of them.

What they wouldn't expect, however, were Eileen's parents. They wanted Eileen to become the next village chief. They were also part of the elderly who decided that Vidra should become the village chief, solely because the majority of the elders voted for him. 

Of course, Vidra's parents didn't want him to take over the position so quickly either. However, they needed allies if they wanted to reverse the almost unanimous decision.

...

A few seconds after the coin toss, the coin flew into a huge, thick canopy. Forcing Eileen to halt and wait for the coin to start falling. Once the coin appeared under the canopy, Eileen quickly turned her head and shouted:

"IT WILL LAND ON HEAD."

The coin landed as Eileen predicted, and she became the winner of the bet. This marked Vidra's first-ever loss in his gambling journey. The fact that Vidra lost against Eileen and the contents of the bet itself would spread across the village of Inaka like a never-before-seen wildfire. 

"Congrats, Eileen, I never thought I would lose against you."

Vidra said with a smile on his face while Eileen looked at him with a smug grin.

"I'm awesome, aren't I, Vidra?"

"Yes, yes. Eileen, you're as awesome as I!"

Eileen didn't know that this first win would become one of the many "coincidences" that would propel her to overtake Vidra as the successor. Vidra knew exactly what the superstitious elderly needed. He was about to turn Eileen into a miracle child, while the original slowly faded into obscurity.

His plan would take years to complete, but the roles would be completely reversed by the end. The sleepy Runo slowly caught up to Eileen and Vidra. His nose twitched as he approached them.

"What is this smoke? It comes from the village."

"You're right, but we are so far away. This fire must be huge for us to smell the smoke even from this distance. Let's go."

Eileen and Runo nodded, and the trio took off towards the source of the fire. It took them more than half an hour to see the first signs of the spreading wildfire. Such fires in Inaka were the rarest of the rare, as the mages of the village took special care to make sure that the forest surrounding Inaka never caught fire.

"Something is not right. We are still not close to the village, yet the forest is burning even here. It spreads too fast."

Noted Vidra, as they advanced towards the unusual fire. He made sure to remain as neutral and calm as possible, but deep down, he knew. This fire was not an accident. It was a planned attack. There was no way the villagers would let a fire spread this far and this aggressively.

"Do you think our parents are okay? What do we do if we can't stop the fire?"

"Your parents must be fine. Remember? Your mother is a traveler. She told us about dragons and how she survived that encounter. A fire of this scale is probably nothing to her."

Vidra reassured Eileen and Runo, but his facade cracked soon as they neared the village. Screams could be heard in the distance. Panic, rage, wails of despair. Whatever happened, one thing was for sure. The village was in chaos. 

Reality settled inside Vidra as they reached the gate of the village. The fire was enormous. Stopping it was not an option anymore. Whatever happened inside was a disaster that kids of their age should not witness, not if they wanted to live a happy life in the future.

"E-eileen, Runo. Should we play a game?"

Vidra tried to control the situation to the best of his abilities. However, it was too late. His voice cracked, and despair clawed into him, and when it happened, Eileen and Runo took off towards hell, into a world that they should have never witnessed.

Vidra was just a child. A mere flick of dust in a world of infinity. It didn't matter how intelligent, adroit, and genius he was. In some situations, living beings can't do anything. Helplessness was perhaps the cruelest part of life.

Left alone, in a situation where nothing was certain and the course of events was unclear. Vidra's tears started flowing, for the first time in his life. He was truly worried about his situation. 

He slowly walked towards the burning hell that was once a village so peaceful that humans beyond the Great Forest often described it in fairy tales. Now, all that remained was the despair, the burned trees, and the memories. 

The memories of laughter, happiness, and the idyllic life that they lived, experienced together. As a race with a lifespan high enough to witness the rise and fall of civilizations. Their moment has come. 

Vidra ran towards the source of the screams. Hoping to find his parents. The two people he wanted to see the most. Amidst the burning houses, Vidra searched for sounds, yet the chaos that engulfed everything made him stop for a moment. A moment is enough for a lifetime.

He looked around and took in everything to the tiniest of details. The bloody swords, wielded by monsters with round ears. The perpetrators who ruined everything. The conquerors often described in the books of Inaka. 

"Humans."