The Vengeance. UNEDITED

The general entered through the small doorway followed by two men carrying their weapons at the ready. The general was forced to keep his head low in the small home. He towered over the short man in front of him who held a relatively small blade in his hand. He held onto it firmly and had it pointed at the general and his two soldiers. Behind the man stood a woman who looked frightened with tears rolling down her face.

                “That’s a beautiful woman you have there.” The general’s voice was rough and considerably deep. “How about you drop that weapon of yours and we have a nice friendly chat.”

                The small man shook his head slowly. “There are no words for the atrocities you have committed here.”

                “Atrocity is the word you have chosen for it, so there must be at least one.” The general chuckled. “I’ll be quite honest with you; I’m bored of killing your people. I came here thinking this village was the home of ‘legendary’ warriors. Instead I find myself and my men running rampant, slaughtering your men like sheep. I haven’t seen one man worthy of the title warrior, let alone legendary. So being that you’re the supposed leader I’ve come with an offer.”

                “The only offer I’ll accept is your head on a stake, and your army gone forever.” The light from the small fire to the right of them was glimmering in his eyes.

                “Oh come now, I haven’t killed that many people. There’s still at least half of the village still intact.” The two men laughed quietly behind the general, and he smiled. “So here’s an offer you might consider. You and I have a nice little battle outside for your whole village to watch. If you win, my army will leave and you can have my head. If I win, I get whatever the fuck I want. Like that girl there, I could use my own personal little slut on my travels.”  The general licked his lips and glanced at her.

                “I’d rather die!” The woman spoke with a determination. Though she looked scared her voice did not betray her.               

                “That can be arranged.” The general winked at her, followed by a devilish smile.

                “I decline your offer, but I’ll still have your head!” The short man swung his blade at the general, just catching the side of his cheekbone. The blade cut across the left side of his face across his brow and onto his forehead above his nose. The general tried to back out of the way but was still hit and knocked back. The two soldiers with him intervened immediately and started to repeatedly slice and stab the man.

                The general raised his hand to his face and cursed. “Kill them all and burn the village! That man just sealed its fate!” He walked through the small doorway into the middle of the village yelling at the top of his lungs. “KILL THEM ALL! BURN IT! BURN THE VILLAGE TO THE GROUND!”

                The roar of approval of his men was overwhelming. The general found himself smiling as his second in command brought him his horse.

                “Are you alright sir?” The young man asked.

                “That’s a dumb fucking question Dave. When did you get so soft?” The general laughed as he climbed onto his horse.  

                “Just courtesy sir. Here, take this.” Dave offered him a rag which the general accepted.

                “There are times I almost regret trying to be a father.” The general wrapped the rag tightly around the left side of his head to cover his wound. “We’re soldiers Dave, courtesy doesn’t come with the profession.”            

                “You’re right. So when did killing women and children ‘come with the profession?’”

                The general sighed. “It’s not the most honourable deed, no.”

                “There’s no honour in the slaughter of defenseless people father, you taught me that. When did that change?”

                The general kicked and the horse started to move, Dave followed suit.

                “I don’t recall teaching you that.” He grunted and Dave laughed.              

                “You didn’t, some asshole in town started muttering it after I screamed out ‘for honour!’ and then proceeded to behead some fat guy.”

                The general laughed and then interrupted himself and reached for his wound. “You had me going there; I really thought you’d gone soft.”

                Dave chuckled. “I think I am. I’ve grown bored of killing; it feels like it’s an unending deed.

                The general and Dave had reached the top of the nearby hill and watched from afar as the small village began to burn. They could see the soldiers running through the streets with bloodied blades. The town began to burn and the fires began to rise and join together in one extremely large flame.

                “Phew, I can feel the heat up here. I almost feel bad for the men.” Dave wiped the sweat from his forehead.

                “Well, they should be joining us soon. Then we came go home for a while. The invasion of Armeda is finished, and so is this village. I miss your mother’s cooking anyways.” They both smiled and Dave nodded in agreement.

                But down in the village something stirred. In the home of the man who earlier was struck down and murdered in front of his love, a child began to crawl. There lay his mother and father in a pool of their now mixed blood. The house was on fire and the heat was overwhelming, but the child couldn’t feel it. He crawled slowly towards their bodies from underneath the small table he had been hiding under. He was five years old, just old enough to understand what was happening. When he reached his mother he began to try and roll her over. She was face down in the dirt floor; her pants had been ripped off when the two soldiers raped her in front of the boy who was hiding. But now he was on his hands and knees beside his mother’s body, and he began to cry. At first it was just whimpering, but his crying was slowly becoming louder.

                Back on the hill the General and his son watched as the town burned. The flames were blowing in the wind and it almost looked beautiful. But suddenly a quiet whimper was on the wind.

                “Dave, do you hear that?”

                Dave looked around him. “Uh, hear what sir?”

                The general shook his head. “Oh, I could have sworn I heard a child… crying.”

                In the home the child began to scream. The pain of what lay before him was overwhelming. He didn’t understand it what he was feeling. He remembered the large man’s face, and the hatred was formed. Above him the flames slowly started to flow through the air around him. It swirled around slowly through the air almost like a calm tornado. Though he was young his mind was working stages ahead now. He wanted to see that man again; he wanted to cause the man pain. Suddenly the boy stood up and let out a loud roar. The flames around him burst outwards, and the house around him exploded. The flames continued outwards destroying all the homes around him. The soldiers still inside the village were incinerated immediately.

                On the hill, father and son watched in horror as the village exploded in front of them. The horses reared in fear and both men fell off their respective beasts. They didn’t hear the screams of men; instead they heard a roar of agony. The flames burst from the center home, the home the general remembered well. The explosion was so bright it nearly blinded the general, but his vision returned slowly. When he looked back at the village, all he could see was a towering dome of flames rapidly flowing around the center. In the center of the flames there stood a boy. The boy’s eyes were blood red, and he was looking right at the general.

                It was at this moment the general forgot everything he had ever believed in. It was at this moment he felt true fear. The general who conquered the known world for himself, who had slain monsters the size of trees, who repeatedly walked through small villages raping and pillaging with no remorse; he finally knew what true fear was.

                “Father, what just happened?” Dave spoke quickly and frantically while reaching for his head. The horses began to gallop away at full speed.

                The general didn’t answer at first; he was almost entranced by the boy.

                “Father! Are you alright?” Dave reached over and put a hand on the general’s shoulder.

                He continued to stare at the boy down in the village, and the boy let out one final roar. The flames began to grow outwards again at massive speed. Dave saw it just in time.

                “Father, look out!” He grabbed his father by his armor and pulled him back from the hills edge.

                The flames blew by and into the sky. When the general got up again and looked back down into the village, he couldn’t see the boy anymore. Small flames licked the countryside but the majority of the fire was gone.

                Dave pulled himself up and looked over the hill as well.

                “What’s going on? What just happened?”

                “They must have set up some kind of trap, maybe something that really blows up…” The generals voice faint. “We should leave now.”        

                “But the men…”

                “They’re all dead Dave, we’re leaving.”

                Dave watched as his father stood up and took one final glance down at where the village once was before turning away and never looking back.