A Light in the Darkness Book: The Moonlight Murderer

Chapter One: The Ember

In those days Bastion was a world divided between twilight and night. The only light which existed extended from the three moons and dim sun. Though conditions were harsh, humanity managed to thrive on the continent of Cedora. Their continued existence was in no small part thanks to a number within their midst bestowed with power over fire. These select few created an order, the Flame Weavers, to carry the hope's light for humanity in a dark world. In the north of Cedora, lay the Cevarian Empire, at its heart the great, stone walled city of Aldus. Events were unfolding there which change the fate of many and eventually ripple across the entire planet.

A light breeze flowed through the streets, as a youth in a brown robe waited, diligently, by a lantern post. The street he stood on was dark cobblestone and it was quite crowded at the time. People walked back and forth as they browsed various stalls and shops of all different sizes and colors. The sky was already darkening, and the sun was barely visible through the haze. The youth, fifteen-year-old boy named Drake was waiting for his superior Festus to arrive. His brown robe marked him as an Ember or acolyte within the order of Flame Weavers. He was tall for his age with short brown hair and bright blue eyes. He had a disinterested expression on his face. Drake had been assigned to work under Festus to aid in a research project which the ambitious elder hoped would improve his standing. However, the assignment turned out to be far more a hassle than expected. It had been months since his arrival in the capital and navigation through the city was still a bit a tedious. Festus offered little guidance but eventually he was able to find the best path to Market Street.

He had come from a small village, so the big city was a new experience for him. There was so much noise, and the human activity buzzing around was often overwhelming. He was assigned to Festus shortly after he had arrived here to finish his training. His mentor was an older, balding man with silver wispy sideburns, who was slightly overweight and often had a frown on his face. Festus was not an overly harsh supervisor, but Drake had the feeling his master considered him a bit an inconvenience. Still, he tried to be useful when he could, even if his main tasks ended were fetching books or watching over lanterns. He didn't feel much motivation to do the work his superior assigned him.

Truthfully, he wasn't even sure what the end goal of this project was. His main concern had been passing his Initiation Test and becoming a full Order member, but he'd been bogged down in doing all these tasks for Festus. Today for instance, he was told to wait on this corner for his teacher to arrive. There were a few lanterns nearby, tall metal polls, with fixtures hanging from them designed to hold small lights. Yes, Drake had a good idea what he'd have to do tonight. He didn't look forward to it.

It was getting to be evening time and the dim daytime glow had weakened. His superior was running late. Drake rolled his eyes, as this was not the first such occurrence. Festus tended to take his time doing things and not simply because he was old. Drake suspected, he did it on purpose. This was in part due to the aged man's almost unnatural ability to catch him when he slacked off. Even when he thought he was safely out of sight or earshot, the minute he started to shirk his duties, there was Festus, ready to lecture him. Despite the wait, he enjoyed having a moment of respite before having to get on with his work for the night.

Taking a breath, he took in Ash Mountain's majesty. It was one of many marvelous sights he'd seen since arriving in Aldus. It's towering stone peak stood sentinel over the city's northern side. The Sanctuary carved into the mountainside was their Order's headquarters which extended deep into its depths. The temple's great stone edifice defined the peak which faced the city. Above the mountain's western side Drake could make out the red moon Deimos, still giving off a dull glow as it began to recede. While he gazed into the distance, a voice broke his trance.