The origins of The Hell Flame PT.2

The ash plumbed from our tiny wooden huts. The flame was mesmerizing. We all just stood on the top of the hill staring at the rising flames, the destruction of our homes, the end of our lives. The larger kid was the first to run down as he did. My brother dropped to the floor and broke down into flames. I reassured him that I would find our mum and that our dad was stronger than anyone. That was the first lie I would ever tell. I ran through the town frantically. My mother would be working in the shop at this time of day. I ran through my smoldering home hoping, praying, pleading that by some miracle the shop would be fine. That I'd run through the door to hear the small bell ring and everything would be fine again. I scrambled through the stone streets tripping over plant pots and outdoor furniture or doors that had fallen off burning buildings, just telling myself that she would be fine, telling myself that our shop would be fine. I turned the last bend until I arrived at the shop. I turned that faithful corner with hope covering my face, tears streaming down my face as I saw the pile of ash that was where our shop had once stood and inside the wreckage was a man. He was tall and muscular. He stood in a crater with a cigarette lit in his mouth. He was standing on top of a corpse that had the same clothes and hair tie as my mother. For a second I just collapsed, fear ran through my body and then denial. It couldn't be her! She couldn't be dead! It was impossible. The man stared at me. There was no emotion in his eyes. I remember that stare like it was yesterday, that stare. I remember the next moments clearly too, the moments that changed the direction of my life for ever. he said so clearly "Hey kid you survived that? Huh maybe you're the reason Surty wanted this village? Well he said no survivors but I'm in a generous mood so if you can knock me over I'll let you live how bout that? Hahahaha" at that moment my dad came bursting through with his famous lightning slash where he jumped forward and cut in one fluid motion so fast that he looked like a streak of lightning. He jumped forward shouting something like this is for my wife or family. I don't quite remember to be completely honest because I was fixated on the man in front of me, the only man I'd ever wanted to kill. I saw as he stuck out one finger that shattered my fathers blade my dad dropped to the floor and crawled away. He crawled away. His son was stang=ding in front of someone dangerous and he crawled away. In that moment I knew the man I had always looked up to was weak, that my world was just a tiny dot on a map and that my sheltered little bubble had popped, in a matter of a few seconds my world was shattered and I was exposed to an entirely new level of power. I looked at my father as he crawled away from his own child and I watched as his head rolled along the street as his body slumped to the ground. The man turned back to me slightly irritated and in an instant he was right in front of me squatting down, his face in my face, so close I could almost taste his cigarette. I scrambled to move myself away. All that was on my mind was to run and I turned my head but all I could see was the faces of my friends. My brother and the quieter girl… Ellie I remember her name now it was Ellie it's been so long since i heard those words ha ha ha hahahahaha finally I remember her. But all I could see was them dead and my father pathetically crawling away. I stood up and faced the man and mustered all my strength into a punch and walloped him in the face with everything I had. My arm shattered. The pain was so great I could hardly breathe. My lungs wanted to explode but I wouldn't let him see my pain. I bit the inside of my mouth to stop myself from screaming. The man stared at me intently and then burst out laughing. He fell to the ground holding his sides. "Hahahahahahahaha oh oh oh my unholy lord that's a good one i haven't heard one like that in a while ahahahahahahahahahaha didn't you see me shatter that lame guy's sword with one finger and you thought you could punch me aaaah thats funny as hell man. Well I guess you knocked me over although not quite what i had in mind i think I'll leave but you get stronger. Gather all the strength you can by any means necessary and find me in say twenty years huh this vessel shouldn't have expired by then Im the first lieutenant of the demon lord so come to his castle and i'm sure you'll find me hopefully you can entertain me more then." The man jumped away, cracking the ground as he left jumping high into the sky. I sat there as it rained. I buried my parents and bandaged up my arm. My friends tried to talk to me I didn't say a thing that's one of the few things I regret. I didn't tell my brother how my father died. I let him believe he died a hero defending me. Then the night after the funeral i took one of the still intact swords from the village armoury and a cloak from the winter store shed. And set off to do exactly as the man had suggested. I decided that day that I would become the strongest human ever and that I would kill that man and the demon king for what they had done to me. That he would rue the day he let me live and curse the fates that he hadn't killed me then.