Assassin's Revenge
Chapter 1 Burning Village (Prologue)
Burning Village
All was quiet in Iagan Village: all that could be heard was the wind blowing the grass gently as if it was breathing and the occasional hooting of an owl.
The fragile night silence was broken by a high-pitched scream. Everyone awoke with a start. People started shouting and screaming. A group of armed men had come into the village and started slaughtering the villagers mercilessly. Curiously, some children looked out of the doors or windows of their houses to see what was going on; they were terrified by what they saw and ran back into their houses, waiting, hoping it would all go away.
As the men of the village fought and resisted the invaders the women gathered all of the children and ran into the great hall. After they were in the hall the giant wooden doors were closed and bolted. Now there was no way in...or out.
After an hour of fighting all went silent. Then a voice broke the silence “Burn all the houses down to the ground”. A few minutes later a clattering sound was heard from above and a small orange light started glowing through the roof. The women started shouting things like “Get some water” and “Douse the flames”.
Soon the whole roof was alight and the walls were slowly burning, making the room unbearably hot. As the women started giving up and the children were panicking they noticed a small window big enough for a child to get though. The women gathered as many hard boxes as they could and started stacking them up against the wall for the children to climb up to get to the window.
The first child to go was given a black cloak to help blend in with the night's darkness. The child started climbing the boxes as small pieces of the roof finally started giving way and ash fluttered down like black snow. As the child reached the window and started crawling through it the doors to the hall collapsed and the invaders rushed in, bloodstained swords at the ready, and started hacking at the remaining women and children filling the hall, screaming like banshees.
The child got up and started running towards the forest. A man spotted something moving outside the hall window and went to investigate. As he got there, he spotted a small cloaked figure running through the woods and gave chase.
The child ran through the forest as if a demon were following, panting heavily from running so hard and from smoke in the hall. Tree branches and roots popped up at random places; as if they were grabbing hands trying to help the invaders catch up.
Something gripped at the child's foot and, as if in slow motion, the child fell face first into the leaf-covered ground. Behind the child, thundering footsteps grew louder and louder. The child turned around to see the man standing tall with his bloody sword raised above his head.
Through the silence of the forest a sharp scream pierced through it cutting, through trees and causing birds and animals to stir from their slumber.
All was quiet in Iagan Village: all that could be heard was the wind blowing the grass gently as if it was breathing and the occasional hooting of an owl.
The fragile night silence was broken by a high-pitched scream. Everyone awoke with a start. People started shouting and screaming. A group of armed men had come into the village and started slaughtering the villagers mercilessly. Curiously, some children looked out of the doors or windows of their houses to see what was going on; they were terrified by what they saw and ran back into their houses, waiting, hoping it would all go away.
As the men of the village fought and resisted the invaders the women gathered all of the children and ran into the great hall. After they were in the hall the giant wooden doors were closed and bolted. Now there was no way in...or out.
After an hour of fighting all went silent. Then a voice broke the silence “Burn all the houses down to the ground”. A few minutes later a clattering sound was heard from above and a small orange light started glowing through the roof. The women started shouting things like “Get some water” and “Douse the flames”.
Soon the whole roof was alight and the walls were slowly burning, making the room unbearably hot. As the women started giving up and the children were panicking they noticed a small window big enough for a child to get though. The women gathered as many hard boxes as they could and started stacking them up against the wall for the children to climb up to get to the window.
The first child to go was given a black cloak to help blend in with the night's darkness. The child started climbing the boxes as small pieces of the roof finally started giving way and ash fluttered down like black snow. As the child reached the window and started crawling through it the doors to the hall collapsed and the invaders rushed in, bloodstained swords at the ready, and started hacking at the remaining women and children filling the hall, screaming like banshees.
The child got up and started running towards the forest. A man spotted something moving outside the hall window and went to investigate. As he got there, he spotted a small cloaked figure running through the woods and gave chase.
The child ran through the forest as if a demon were following, panting heavily from running so hard and from smoke in the hall. Tree branches and roots popped up at random places; as if they were grabbing hands trying to help the invaders catch up.
Something gripped at the child's foot and, as if in slow motion, the child fell face first into the leaf-covered ground. Behind the child, thundering footsteps grew louder and louder. The child turned around to see the man standing tall with his bloody sword raised above his head.
Through the silence of the forest a sharp scream pierced through it cutting, through trees and causing birds and animals to stir from their slumber.