Shadow of the Fire

Augustis 8, 210t

Isaac overturned the bottle of ale over his mouth, making sure that he would drink even the last drop of alcohol before putting it down on the countertop together with the three other empty bottles. The intoxicated guards sang a birthday song to their fellow guardsman as they drank their drinks and laughed. Isaac was having a grand time, until he had to leave the barracks and go on his night shift.

The streets of Cloudtop had always been so peaceful, ever since the kingdom’s lordship had passed on to Herod Alexandre. Cloudtop now had the lowest crime rate out of all the other cities, for Herod Alexandre had the harshest treatment to criminals. He used fear to instill discipline in his people, and it worked perfectly.

As Isaac passed by the cemetery, he saw that its black metal gates were wide open. Since it was unusual for the residents to visit the dead this late past midnight, he entered to inspect for any disturbances. As he walked on, a faint light from a distance grew brighter, making the scene ahead much more visible. Before approaching the two silhouettes, Isaac stopped by a nearby grave to first observe.

“Have you found anything?” a girl’s voice asked.

“Are you sure it would be here?” another voice asked, one familiar to Isaac’s ears.

They were two young adults, one man and the other a woman. Isaac recognized the man as Jack Scarlet, an old friend of his, while the woman looked to be his younger sister, Jennifer Scarlet. The two looked down as they threw out so many questions addressed to an ‘uncle’. Apparently, they were with their father’s eldest brother, Benjamin Scarlet, although Isaac could not spot him anywhere.

A frail cry was heard above the voices of the two siblings, which put the guard on his toes. He watched as the two backed up, and before them stood up an old man, their uncle Benjamin. It turned out that Benjamin had been digging inside a ditch in front of them, which explained why Isaac couldn’t see him earlier. Realizing the he could’ve been looking at a case of grave robbery; the guard took action and halted the three.

“You three, stop right there!” he commanded as he shone his torchlight in front of their faces. “What’s that you robbed from that grave?” he asked, noticing the dirt-covered book in Benjamin’s hand.

“Isaac, my friend, this is not what you think,” Jack said, stepping in between the guard and his uncle. “This is no grave robbery.”

“Did you not get that book from that grave there?”

“We did,” Benjamin interrupted, stepping forward from behind his nephew. “My good sir, if you only read this book, you will excuse this heinous act of ours.”

Isaac grabbed the dirty book from the man’s hand and opened it to the first page. “The book of truth,” he read aloud. “What foolishness is this?” he asked, skimming through the next two pages. “I’m afraid you three will have to come with me.”

“Please, my friend! Don’t do this,” Jack pleaded. “We will return everything to the way it was,”

“No,” Benjamin interrupted. “We cannot bury this book back underneath the earth. This is the truth, and the truth must be heard.”

“But uncle,”

“I suggest you two save your energy,” Isaac said, cutting off Jack’s statement. “The court will be in hearing tomorrow morning, so you three will spend the night in the castle. Worry not, my friends, for you will not be sleeping in rat-infested cells. You are still not yet guilty criminals.”

Isaac Lore accompanied the three relatives to the Cloudtop castle and locked each of them inside their own rooms in the dungeon. The guard returned to the barracks with the old man’s book, skipping out on his night’s shift so he could be present at the court hearing in the morning. He stayed in the dining hall to read by himself under the light of a single candle, for the others guards were either already fast asleep or out on their own shifts. Strangely, as Isaac read on, the passages and the stories in the book got to him and struck him very deeply. He wasn’t sure if it was due to the alcohol in his system, but everything he read gave him such a strong feeling of belief. The fictional stories, the fables, the legends and the visions of the future all felt so real, as if the book really did contain the truth. Isaac could not stop himself from reading, and so he did not sleep; rather he read on and ate until the sun rose up and it was time for him to fetch his prisoners.

Benjamin, Jack and Jennifer stood before the lord’s empty throne at the court hall. Beside them stood Isaac, who still held the book in his hand. Aside from the castle guards and court advisors, there were also residents who wished to watch and defendants awaiting their own trials.

The whole court hall was hushed when Lord Herod arrived and sat on his throne. “Guard,” Herod called on Isaac in his powerful voice. “Explain.”

Isaac bowed his head and walked forward to the foot of the throne. “My lord, I found these three digging in the graveyard past midnight last night.”

“What did these thieves steal?” he asked.

Isaac held up the book in his hand. “This, my lord.” The guard walked up the steps of the platform to hand over the dark green book to Herod, and then walked back down.

Herod sat back and began to read the book. “The house of Scarlet is of high nobility. Why is it so that you would go violate my laws to steal a mere book?”

“It is no ordinary book,” Benjamin spoke up. “Please, my lord, read the book. It holds the truth, and the truth must be let known to the people.”

The lord asked the guard if he had read the book, to which he answered positively. He asked him about the things he read and his reactions to them, and whether or not he believed in the god he read about.

Herod continued to read, not speaking a single word for more than twenty minutes. The next time he looked up, he said nothing more than an order to free the Scarlet family and to postpone all court hearings until Saturday morning.