The Scheme of All Things: Part I

4

Luthe spoke the words and a small spark ignited under his feet that grew into roaring flames with an unusual silver hue. The flames seemed to swirl thickly around the sorcerer's legs with the tips licking at the top of his knees. There was no heat from the flames in fact it felt as if someone was playfully flicking his legs with a towel. As the flames materialized, they swirled around as if caught in a whirlwind and Luthe was slowly lifted from the ground. He repeated the spell and the flames jumped and entwined around his arms like flaming snakes until the tips tickled his palms. The magical fire lifted him straight up into the air, hovering just below the ominous grey clouds that dominated the sky around his home. He forced his arms flat to his sides and began to fly straight ahead, moving his head to the left or right to change direction. He said "O'et" and the smoke, which was invisible to anyone looking, encircled him and made him nearly invisible against the sky, save but a faint outline and wavering heat lines from the magical flames. For all intent and purposes, he could not be seen.

He flew over the great savage army that had descended on the Igre village. From here, the once great Village of Igre was a sea of fire and smoke. He was close enough to see individual people and he could see the Igre soldiers surrounded and dieing. Except for a few berserk warriors, they were completely vanquished by the enemy. Even the dead were blotted out by the enormity of the invader's army.

Luthe needed to find Astrier and the boy but first he flew over the center of the horde. There on a chariot made of human bones blackened by soot was the enemy's commander. To those following him he appeared as a large, dark skinned man, bald with intricate tattoos across the back of his skull and neck. He was adorned with a bronze and iron plate of armor smeared with blood and a cloak made of some dire beast flapping behind him in the wind; his thick meaty hands held an enormous glaive that he pumped in the air to urge on the rabid throngs of soldiers, his arms sparkled with bands of gold and silver.

Luthe flew in closer to see the leader's eyes but suddenly the man's head snapped and he stared straight back at Luthe. The sorcerer's vision was enchanted and he could see into the other realms, through the disguises worn by demons and fiends- the horde's commander was no man. His head was indeed bald like his magical visage, but where the tattoos were etched was actually a trail of spiny horns that formed a diamond like pattern on the back of it's head, it's eyes, now locked on the sorcerer, were entirely black and pupiless, its mouth was open and through the thin lips and impossible rows of needle-like, teeth several tongues flicked in and out, a brackish ooze dripped from its maw. The rest of the creature was more or less humanoid with a scorpion like tail wagging behind it. It looked at Luthe and spoke:

"You are too late sorcerer."

He saw the flash as a bolt of white light emerged from the demon's hand- Luthe was only fast enough to dodge the full force of it. Thunder cracked in his ear as he fell to the ground, the lightening breaking his concentration and burning a slash across his stomach. As he fell, he twisted his fingers in a circular like motion and before hitting the ground and assumed the form of a raven and swooped gracefully across the gravel speckled ground below him, and then shot up into the air into the darkening clouds above them. This was no time to tangle with a demon; he needed to find the boy before the demon or his minions did.