‘This is an urgent matter.’ He knew all too well how important this was to them. Normally, he would have been able to manage this with very little exposure to the general populace. Unfortunately, that was no longer possible as it had already spread out too far to be controlled. He could try to clean things up, but that was not what he was supposed to do. That would be something for the diplomats to handle, unsavory work anyway.

It was more than two days after the incident, but it could have been worse had he been on assignment. He sat outside the village between some crops growing keeping out of sight. The fields around the village were fortunate for him to avoid being seen around until he wished it. The sun was rising again bringing morning and he had not a moment of sleep yet. He watched from the west fields of the village monitoring the developments on the Kithur border.

‘This is an urgent matter.’ The day before he was summoned before the council for an emergency briefing. He had been enjoying a day off from his work after returning from a two month long investigation into Kithur. It had been taxing on him, but it was valuable intelligence that the military needed in the war effort. Ever since Kithur had muscled their way into the Urth region to the north it had been difficult to plan an offensive. So many of the resources were pressed to stop the invasion from the north. The Kithur forces had gotten lucky finding some powerful magic users that pushed their forces through. Jumin had been left on the defensive too long.

Wihnem wondered what this briefing was that he was called to that required him immediately. It was late in the evening and he had been enjoying himself a deep bottle of Eliuqin Wine, a fine year it was. Now it was going to waste opened and barely a glass empty. However, duty came first, while enjoying the luxuries of pretending to be nobility was something that could wait.

His status as a noble was long lost, as was his connection to his family and name. It was taken from him when he was young, too young to realize the importance of it. Now all he could do was enjoy the moments of not being a tool for his military. However, they were passing thoughts of fancy that were not something that he afforded himself. His name was what they gave to him.

He stood before council, a darkened room in the late hours with only candles dancing eerie shadows across the wrinkled faces of the members. Wihnem was standing straight and rigid before them waiting for his orders. It was likely that he would be departing after they were finished with him not wanting to waste any time. The men were serious tonight and what they had to say could not be taken lightly. “Wihnem Nal Bironi reporting as ordered. What is your command?”

“Eight hours ago a patrol unit stationed in the Illarium Region witnessed a display of overwhelming destructive power in the village of Ithure. What originally was believed to be a lightning storm has now been confirmed to be the cause of magic. The attack nearly destroyed the entire village and a full report on the destruction has not been received yet. However, due to this act it has heightened the military in Kithur. Seventeen hours ago border patrols reported a large Kithur force marching towards the village.

“The King has ordered deployment of a full unit to the village. However, he is cautious to move in as no one knows who caused the attack. Your mission is to travel to Ithure immediately and discover the source of the attack. If it is a Kithur prelude to invasion eliminate the threat if possible. If it is wild user recently awakened capture them immediately. We can’t allow someone that powerful walking freely through our kindom.”

“And if they resist capture?”

‘Kill them.’ The Kithur forces had not crossed into their territory just yet, but it was only a matter of time before it happened. He knew that Jumin could not support a war on two fronts, but he figured that the same was for Kithur as well. More than likely neither of them wanted this, but the display was giving them itchy hands. However, it was unlikely that he would be able to do anything to resolve the problem himself. He had a different job to do here.

Since the morning was arriving the village would be awake now and he could learn what happened. He had arrived in the late hours from traveling for the entire day. It gave him the time to watch and understand the surrounding area. It was just a simple village, but one that was on the border of the two kingdoms. This made it more difficult since both Jumin and Kithur laid claim to the land frequently. If this had happened further into the kingdom the stress would be lessened. Though the fear of magic would still be persistent.

The town he passed through to reach Ithure had been talking about it. He had been able to easily pick up the rumors from passing through. Everyone was in fear of being attacked next, but none of them knew who it was that caused it. Left to the unknown they were wildly spreading fantasies around that were blowing it out of proportion. It would not be long before they would need to do something to ease the public’s mind on the recent attack. Wihnem was rather amazed how quickly one magic user had thrown the entire region into chaos, but perhaps amazed would be not accurate. He was hardly surprised and had seen it happen before, but it still astonishing how easily the unknown placed people into fear. Almost as though they were enjoying being in fear and sought it out.

Wihnem entered the village looking across at the destruction leaving him in awe. It was not often that he saw the effects of magic laid out across the land, let alone in a village. He had seen a few battlefields in their aftermath the similarities were startling. There were still a few dead bodies lying around some bloodied others burned severely from the heat of the lightning. The path of destruction was obvious as well as the manner. He knelt down near one of the impact craters examining the ground.

Before he was able to sit around too long he was interrupted by one of the villagers. The man’s face was dirty as were his clothes, no doubt long hours burying and cleaning up from the disaster. Wihnem stood up hefting his pack back into position. “Good morrow.”

“Ill winds blow, hardly good. What do you need stranger?”

“I meant no offense. I’m just a traveler forced south from the fighting in Urth. What happened here if I may ask?”

“A cursed day two nights ago when the gods turned their backs on us. And left us like this.”

“The gods did this to your village?”

“If only it were the gods it’d be easier to swallow, but no the devil’s cursed hand twisted one of our own. They did this. I suggest you leave now stranger; war is coming here soon. It’ll be the end of us all.”

Wihnem knew that he could not convince the man otherwise from his belief. But he was far from finished looking into this. There was still more that he needed from them before he could call his investigation complete here and move on to tracking. “Your village has suffered a great tragedy. If I may I wish to give you another hand.”

“Why would you want to help us?”

“Two more hands. I’ve nowhere to be.” He gave the man his sincerest expression and waited in the silence. The man turned away walking back from where he had come. He motioned then with his arm to Wihnem inviting him further into the village. It was the chance that he needed and took it without hesitation. Wihnem followed the villager in through the rumble catching the glances of others as he passed by them. There were the equal stares of suspicion and curiosity. They wandered why he was in their village and if he was just the next stage in their cursed fate. He tried not to stare back at them taking in the view, the devastation that left all of them homeless. It was as though the war had come through to them to spend a day to familiarize them with the sorrow before disappearing without a trace.

The man left him with someone that he could help. The villager, the man, was removing the wreckage of his house from the foundation. It was near the center of the village where it seemed that the attack was the strongest. There was little left of the man’s house other than small pieces of lumber whose use could only be for stoking a fire. Wihnem helped the man for an hour remaining quiet while listening to the man. He was a talkative individual speaking freely about everything, though he refrained from approaching the night of the incident.

As he had been hauling the bits of the man’s house around he noticed a large crater of what could unmistakably be the center of the strike. Though it was much larger than he was expecting. The pattern of the attacks and the rumors told him that there were numerous strikes, which made it even odder. It was unusual for more than one strike from an individual and the size was beyond anything that he had seen before. He was difficult to think that it was possible if he had not been standing there himself.

“I would stay away, stranger,” the man said as Wihnem stepped out of line towards the crater.

“What happened over there?”

“That ground is cursed tainted by the one that defies nature.”

Wihnem leaned against one of the longer pieces of wood that he carried staring at the crater. The man knelt down tossing a piece of wood over into the pile looking away. “It happened there? What was it?”

“It was a horrific sight. He was only further angered and for his rage he destroyed everything. Lightning rained from the sky. He turned it on his own right there. It was the largest of them and remained through all of the strikes as those all his anger was focused there.”

“Who was he?”

“Nobody, he’s a demon with no heart. He killed the ones he loved without mercy. He’s a monster.”

“What happened to him?”

“We locked him up in the crop house until its decided what will become of him.”

“Has he done anything more?”

“No, he’s been silent ever since.”

“Well I’ve held us too long.”

“Aye.”

Wihnem returned to work with the man clearing out the house. After he was finished he went to the next person helping them. He spent the day gathering pieces from as many as he could trying to get the picture. Some were less than willing to part with the information, but he had enough of an idea of what happened now. He had to sift through all of the bogus bits he received that had been distorted by fear, even exaggerated. It was all too commonplace for him, so he made it a general policy for himself to take the least over the top sounding and build up. There was typically less distance to travel then. However, he was having mixed thoughts about who was the real magic user.

Most of the villagers had the belief that it was the son of the Rhiemiu family who had declared himself a magic user to the entire village. When making such a declaration it would scare people easily into believe anything so long as it resembled the truth in some part. But he was not convinced from the strikes that he had seen. If the man truly were the one, he would have escaped after being captured so long, even if he had been drained. His magic would have come back in two days time. Wihnem had to consider the possibility that the son was the one and he could just be unable to control. It was definitely likely, but there was a couple that conflicted with the others. An elderly couple had mentioned to him about the family’s daughter, who everyone believed to be dead at the hands of the son. But they told him that they saw her leaving the village alive still. And while they were not certain, they thought they had seen her at the center of everything. Wihnem felt more strongly about the daughter being one that did it all. All of the pieces lined up more evenly if it was she and not the son. However, he knew that there was only one away to know for sure which was correct. He had to visit the son.

Wihnem waited until the village became quiet in the evening and gone to sleep. He had left the village as though he was moving on his way further south. They all saw him off grateful for the help that he provided them. Wihnem continued south for some time until night fell deeper and his figure faded from sight. He changed his course back to the village to the fields where he had been told the son was being held. The field provided him cover as he snuck into the village’s limits once more.

Once the moon was beyond its peak and falling on itself Wihnem approached the worn house. There were large doors on the front with a heavy board across iron braces. It was usually made to kept people out of it and animals, but it served the same purpose as holding someone in just as well. There were a few windows in the house that would be clear escape routes if it were not for the height one would fall from. Wihnem made his way to the door placing his hands over the heavy wood board. It was far larger than him and more than he could hope to lift on his own. A quick pull was enough for him to confirm it.

Wihnem rubbed his back as he looked around the ground for what he needed. There was plenty of debris around from the village making his search difficult and simple. Most of the scraps were too short or weak, but he eventually found what he needed. He took a few long boards of wood and propped them against the barred door’s heavy wood lock. Once set in place he used leverage to lift the board enough that it came free, barely. One door was free opening both now and he entered the darkened room.

The moonlight cracked through the window painting its pattern across the wood floor. The floor creaked under Wihnem’s firm step awaking the shadowed individual of ill fame. Rhiemiu’s son dared not to enter the light and reveal himself allowing only the reflection of pale eyes across a mudded face to be shown. As Wihnem stepped closer he smelled the familiar metallic odor wafting through his nose, blood. The stench was left to mill around unable to escape creating a thick fog of ill omen for the less stoic. “Son of Rhiemiu, I bid you greetings on this night.”

“A voice…unfamiliar to me. You aren’t the villagers. Who are you stranger?” The man remained firm in his cloaked position away from Wihnem. As Wihnem furthered his approach the man did not budge not caring it seemed.

“Son of Rhiemiu, I’ve come to see you.”

“I’m no one’s son nor is that my name.”

“Then what shall I call you?”

“I do not deserve a name or title.”

“I wish to speak with you.” Wihnem stopped his approach just before the moonlight leaving him darkened. The dust filled beam of light drew their line between the two. ‘This is close enough. I only need a moment.’

“What is it that you came to speak to one like me about?”

“I’m a traveler on a journey and found your village. My curiosity lead me to you to seek the truth.” He did not hold out his words as he would have liked for he feared it would be too suspicious. The son was observant and seemed to have some intelligence as well.

“Strange curiosity for a traveler. Do you make it your priority to know other’s business?”

“I mean no offense, but I’m a curious man. And I heard the tale of the tragedy.” Wihnem knew that he did not have much time with him to be idly speaking. ‘Just a little bit more…’ He kept himself still while he continued his test. “I had to see the man that caused it.”

“That’s some curiosity to make you break in here.”

‘Just as I thought. Not him, no reaction at all.’ Wihnem turned away pretending that his curiosity was sated. “Well I’ve no more words for someone ill mannered.” He walked out of the storage house making it to just outside before the son stopped him, speaking up.

“Wait, stranger. Why are you really here?”

“Curiosity, as I said.”

“That is not the only reason.”

“Very well…the door is not locked. The air is quite enjoyable right now.”

“I’ve no interest in that anymore one who has no family, the last to live to atone in small pitiful penance.”

“If that is your wish, but I hear that a young woman was seen leaving the village that night. She can’t be found they say.” Wihnem walked away from the building allowing himself to disappear into the fog of the night. He had what he came for now and would have to go on the hunt for the woman. The son was not the magic user, if he had been he would have sense it, the latent attraction of their opposite element. There was no pull at all; the man was no magic user.

“Eris…” Gurin said weakly beginning to move.