Throne of Steam

And then, billows of black smoke came like a tide, tearing through the air and snaping in conjunction with the flames below.

So this is how it all ends for me, huh?

The sound of wood snapping merged with the cacophony of different noises amidst the fire.

I'm not the protagonist of this tale, am I?

"I don't want to die..."

The hellish fire engulfed the dark human figure, burning not only the surroundings and his clothes, but he could feel it baptizing his very soul.

But he didn't scream once throughout this punishment.

And then, the burned wooden floor right below his feet snapped, and the abyss swallowed his body whole.

...

Eventually, the chirping of birds and bright sunlight washed away all the worries from that fateful night, and only then had the church patrol arrived on the scene.

"Looks like another one became a victim of the stars."

A middle-aged man spoke, passing his hand through his long grayish beard, and on his chest could be seen the symbol of the Eternal Judge, a golden-winged rose with its thorns forming a crown. He wore a black leather vest with brown gloves, the details in silver melded with the clothes, a clear indicator of his status.

"Lord Lurmon, should we recover the body and give him a proper burial? That's the least we can do."

A young blond-haired man voiced his opinion. His looks could be considered above average when compared to the other man from the north, his thin nose spoke of his origins as a man from beyond the Four Calamity Seas, all the way to the south.

"And now thou art trying to teach me how to do my job?"

"I-I wouldn't dare..."

The boy retreated a couple of steps, making sure to keep his head low and looked directly at his muddy boots.

"... I'm only expressing my unexperienced opinion, sir. How could I compare to you?"

"Good! Start then digging lad, as I want to be back to the diocese before noon!"

...

Am I not dead?

Garett recovered consciousness while buried in the rubble. His whole body sending him strong pain signals. The only thing he got to be his company being the all-encompassing darkness slowly etching ever more closely.

Huh, guess I could be the protagonist of this era after all!

He then started trying to feel his body, his hands, feet, and even his little friend down there.

Nothing.

Only then realizing that he couldn't even open his own eyes! As if he was in a suspended animation state, he couldn't control even a single finger of his!

Maybe I'm just asleep! Yes, Everything should be just a dream, there was never a fire in the first place! The sage's books said something about a paralysis...sleep paralysis! Yes, that should be it, I've just moved from a dream to another!

But no matter how much he tried, he couldn't control and focus his will. As if he became a marionette, his body not being his anymore to control.

Shit.

And then, his thoughts started to fail him as well, fleeing from his grasp like the time that would never come back. A state of chaos engulfing every fiber of reasoning he had, making it impossible to remember his thoughts of a second ago.

I guess it's not a dream, huh? I didn't die on that fire but... maybe the internal damage was too much? Am I already dead?

Plop.

Suddenly, a single drop of some liquid fell onto his mouth, snatching him back from his reverie and giving him the chance to etch his will onto the walls of reality once more. Mustering all his fleeting strength, he finally could open his eyes when the second drop fell.

Is this the underworld?

His eyes couldn't adjust to the pitch-black darkness of the abyss where he found himself. From all sides, the things that he could see where just a few wooden pillars that fell with him and some stalagmites protruding from the floor, piercing the air menacingly and announcing how his end would've been had he fell on top of it.

It shouldn't be, I can imagine the hell being a lot funnier than this.

It took a very long time for his eyes to adjust and see more than just a couple of feet ahead. A corridor stands stretching infinitely to the left, the shadows making it impossible to see the end; The engravings on the wall dated to a time where men were more than just fuel to the gods' desires.

Ruins from the Age of Carnage? How could something like that be right underneath my house!?

He could tell some of the engravings on the wall, studying the end of the Age of Carnage was one of the main requirements to understand the actual situation of the continent. And even if he only knew some of the basics of the subject, it was sufficient to recognize the most common engravings.

The strange liquid kept dropping onto his mouth, and slowly but surely, he could feel his strength coming back to him. He had no way of knowing how much time passed between the earlier incident and the present time, even if he was sure it wasn't too long ago.

This thing, I'm a hundred percent sure this is not water!

Not that it matters as it saved me, maybe I should find out what this thing is.

After an unknown amount of time, he finally got control of his body back, and even if with some problems, forced himself to stand with the support of the wall.

"I almost died twice today. Please tell me my bad luck is over. I was finally supposed to be the protagonist of my own life! Everything was going so well."

He couldn't help but lampoon after thinking about everything that happened to him in such a short amount of time.

"First I finally got accepted into the College of Irmwrynn, found a ten-pound note while going back home, and so I decided to congratulate myself, used that note to buy a sumptuous dinner, and... "

He froze. He couldn't remember anything after that, after thinking about it, he didn't even know which day it was today or how much time had passed since then. The only thing that he had vividly imprinted into his memory later were the scarlet flames engulfing him, and he didn't even seem surprised or worried as far as he could remember.

Hell! I didn't even scream! What's wrong with me!? I should at least have left the house if I was in a fire!

"Calm down. Calm down. Calm down! I'm sure there's a very reasonable explanation for everything that's happening!"

Wait! Was that even My house? Where am I? I can't understand a thing!

After thinking of searching his pockets for clues of what happened to him, he finally noticed his attire. A stylish black tuxedo with silver cufflinks and expensive leather shoes, an engraved chain was firmly attached to his pocket, and inside of it was an old pocket-watch, its engravings being exactly the same as those on those walls of the corridor in front of him.

I guess it's not a coincidence then... Wait, more importantly! Where the hell did I get the money for these clothes!? I'm not used to wearing this kind of thing!

If anyone were to see him right now, they'd see a formally dressed man shouting and kicking the air in a dark and humid cave. The scene was really amusing.

Whatever! I'm going to think about this when I get out of this damn hole!

Steeling himself, he made way to the dark corridor. Just when he was about to step past a candle holder, it suddenly lit and illuminated the damp environment.

"A-AH!"

The hairs on his back suddenly stood on end, and his breathing stagnated. His brains emulated a thousand situations were a candle could have lit by itself, and none seemed plausible! Actually, he couldn't think of any situation at all!

"Happy days, happy times, happy kitties, happy me..."

The only explanation I can think of is ghosts! Is this place haunted!? I mean, it's an old ruin of the Age of Carnage, for all I can tell, it could be a crypt of some old royal family! I can't stay here for even a minute longer!

Deciding to run down the corridor and hope for the best, he closed his eyes and ran with all the limited energy he could muster. As much as that strange liquid helped him recover some of his stamina, he certainly wasn't in his best condition.

The walls started to widen as he traversed the corridor, architected in a way as if made for giants to pass-through, and eventually, the candles were substituted by long and narrow torches made out of hollow iron, it's insides filled with some kind of combusting gas.

After running for some time, and with every torch in its way mysteriously being lit right when he passed through it, he finally arrived at an open door at the end of the corridor. The door was huge, with flowery figures and hard-to-understand paintings, some seemed like angels, others, like demons. The material didn't seem like wood but more like some kind of very resistant steel.

It seems like it was made to hold off an entire army!

Looking beyond the door and unto the dimly lit room, a mostly empty room could be seen. Giant pillars of stone protruded from the ground and stretched all the way up to the darkness above, cracks intertwining, and giving off the feeling of ancientness. It seemed as if a single shake could wreck the entire place apart.

Gulp. This seems even older than the Age of Carnage! What is this place?

In the middle of the vastness of the room, a single stone table stood giving off majestic energies. More like an old altar, the only thing that was on top of it was an old thick and dusty book. Its cover was fully black, and there was only a silver engraving on it, a single hourglass with a snake enshrouding it and biting its own tail.

I-I think I've seen this symbol before somewhere, but... I can't remember, there's only empty space in my memories. There's only one thing I'm certain, and it is that it was a major symbol during the Age of Carnage!

He slowly and fearfully approached the altar, and as he got closer, he could feel as if the book was summoning, sweetly whispering on his ears words that he couldn't understand.

"Lord... Alisa... Nimrais..."

When he finally got close enough, he realized there was a single feather beside the book, it seemed as if it was recently removed from some mythical animal; giving off energies that inundated his mind as if waiting for someone to hurriedly use it on the book.

"Name... Blood..."

The whispering changed as if giving a simple instruction for one to follow.

"My... My blood? Writing with my Blood!?"

Does this thing thinks I'm stupid!? Who'd be the idiot to follow the commands of a weird book in an old ruin!?

"Blood... Ritual... Lord... Nimrais..."

"Hell no, I just want to get out of here! Would you please point it out for me?"

"..."

F**k, now I'm talking to books! Looks like I really am stupid!

"Blood..."

"... Well if you're not going to tell me, I'm finding the way out on my on!"

Just as he was preparing to turn around and look for another way out, a single flash of light suddenly lit the corridor from whence he came. And as if the very sun was following him, it crashed through the giant doors setting the room ablaze.

BOOOOM

The great stone pillars shook, the cracks multiplying by the shock and great stone pieces starting to fall from the unseen ceiling.

...

"Finished digging already lad?"

The boy then excitedly ran in reverence as he got closer to the executor. As if waiting to be praised.

"Yes, milord. I found a very deep cave beneath the foundation of the house! I suspect the citizen fell there!"

"A cave?" The executor raised his eyebrows and pushed the boy out of his way, hurriedly starting to analyze the cave. Suddenly he magically shook his hands and a single, round ball of light formed in the air, after shaking his hands again he sent the ball down the cave and only then seeing it in detail. "A ruin from the Age of Carnage? Huh, these places are nests for mutants, the poor guy ho fell is as good as dead right now."

"Milord, you couldn't be thinking of destroying the ruins, right? It has huge historical implications and the poor fellow could-"

Paying no mind to the young man, the Executor inserted his hands on the insides of his vests, took out a thin paper charm and held it in front of his face.

"Oh merciful Lord, I beg your blessing to purify all the impurities on this land!"

A giant ball of light started to form in the cave while the charm started turning into ashes. After a while, the ball of light was so huge that it covered the entirety of the underground area.

"Ember!"

The ball of light started moving, purifying everything in its way; inching ever more close to the ends of the ruins.

...

This is the second time I'm almost died burned to a crisp today! He couldn't help but think with his lips twitching.

"BLOOD... RITUAL... LORD!"

The invisible pleas from the book started to become wails and screams. The giant stone pieces continued to fall on his sides and the oxygen was slowly being consumed by the fire.

Crap! Is my luck that poor!?

In the middle of the difficult situation, the book once more changed its wording! As if knowing what he desired the more at that exact moment and extending a slim ray of hope!

"Blood... Exit! ... Ritual!"

My only choice is trusting a weird book!? Whatever! Here goes nothing!

"Exit!? Why didn't you say so before?!"

He ran to the book and grabbed the pen beside it, he noticed that, weirdly, the altar was intact even after all of the things that transpired!

"You want my name, right?"

He then forcefully cut his finger on the sharp edges of the altar, and used the little drops of blood do write his name!

Garett.

And at that time, everything changed.