The Embers Book II: Rise Of A King

Chapter One: Retribution

Chapter One: Retribution

 

Horror gripped his eyes as within the darkness he found himself stood upon a mountain of ash with bleached white bones protruding from beneath the surface, all of them reflecting the moons gaze above. What truly gripped him was the sight of the mountain shifting as if a tremor rippled through it, and the trembling ash broke apart and out emerged three pairs of pale white hands. Two were thin and the third much thicker and broader belonging to a man, from beneath they crawled, all three figures ghostly white and caked from head to foot in blood. He recognized them immediately and his heart froze in his chest, his breathing slowed to the point he feared that he may have died from fright.

Maria, Gregory and Maria Roth all stood to full height, ghastly wounds marred their throats from where they had been cut which had begun to fester and ooze a light green liquid. Taylor felt as if his skin and muscle felt as if they had turned to marble, hard and unresponsively to his desperate pleas to flee. Their eyes met his, they were hollow and empty of any life or joy as they fixed him with their deathly stares and that was when they spoke simultaneously.

 

“Why did you let us die, Taylor? Why didn’t you save us?” They asked, their voices melded into one becoming hollow drone that sent chills down to his bones and into his soul.

“I..I..I tried, I just wasn’t strong enough, I should’ve taken you to safety but I thought you would be safe. I’m so sorry!” He cried out, his voice barely holding together as he felt himself stumble back from them as they began to shuffle their feet through the blackened ash.

“You let us die. You let us die. You let us die” Their voices rang out, repeating the same four words like a mindless drone which dug into his skull. 

 

Taylor stumbled back as they advanced upon him, their stares still fixed into his own bright blue eyes. He took a few more hurried frightened steps until a bone broke out from the ash behind him and caught behind his ankle causing him to lose balance. As he fell he saw that he was at the edge of the mountain but wasn’t sure he had gotten so far, he looked back as he fell into the darkness below which was filled with black and red flames. His family stood at the mountains edge as he descended below, their gazes still fixed and remained hollow and unforgiving. The flames consumed him, they were like thousands of searing hot tongues licking over the entirety of his flesh until all was blackened and he lost consciousness from the pain that screamed from his lungs.

 

Taylor sat up, his head whirling and spinning as consciousness finally took hold and pulled him from his dreams. It had been the same dream that had occurred every night since he left Lavernock Point. The lack of sleep over the last six months had begun to wear him down, and he wished for nothing more than the dreams to cease. He kicked off the brown blanket that had once been white but had darkened due to not being washed for several months. Several holes marked its surface giving it a disgusting dilapidated look, in truth he didn't need the warmth but it just felt normal. The mattress beneath wasn't much better in terms of condition but it was just passable as comfortable.

The hut he resided in was made of rickety corrugated metal and was marked with large patches of rust and the place stunk heavily of mould amongst other ungodly scents. It was small, having enough room for a large bucket for a toilet and the mattress he slept upon, he turned to the mirror that hung by a nail protruding from the metal wall. He looked into the mirror and the nineteen year old man who looked back at him was nothing short of broken. His bright sky blue eyes blazed beneath the mess of knotted dark brown hair which fell just over his eyes and were the only thing that remained distinctive about him.