Into the dark

Hold your fire!

The captain feared fear would make his men run out of ammo.

Ignite your arrows and fire at the walls, we need some light in here.

The soldiers dipped their arrows in an oil vat, then set them aflame and fired. A hail of fiery arrows flew in all directions hitting walls, pillars, doors and floors, painting a partial picture of the city. The soldiers charged into a small warehouse expecting an ambush, but they found nobody. The captain ordered two platoons to set up an outpost while the others held guard. Meanwhile he left the city under the mountain to speak to the general,

Sir, we are ready to move but we need more light. It’s pitch black in there and my men are exposed. I need a company to place explosives above the mountain. I will tell them where to place them.

The soldiers placed the explosives where the captain said. The explosions created large holes in the ceiling of the immense city, shedding some light on it. The northern soldiers inside cheered as they watched the great rocks falling from the sky into the middle of the city, destroying entire houses. Fearing archers could still be waiting inside the buildings, one infantry company after another charged into the city to clear every corner.

A whole regiment spent the next few hours conducting the thorough search. The problem was the large number of houses and their many hiding places, which had to be cleared one by one. In the end, they didn’t find a single soul. Only the occasional little girl’s giggle coming from all directions. When the houses in the upper levels had been cleared, they moved on to the buildings below.

All the houses, shops and workshops were empty and most tools were gone. The only place left to check was a great hall locked behind a thick reinforced door. The lieutenant colonel, who was in charge of the whole battalion, ordered his soldiers to take position in front of the door and sent one of the captains back to report to the general.

Sir, every building is clear except for a great hall.

The general smiled, sipped tea from a golden cup and asked,

Is there only one, strong door, to enter it?

Yes, but—

Perfect. I’ll go there myself to make sure we capture those cowards alive. The whole kingdom is counting on us.

Sir, with all due respect, I strongly believe you shouldn’t go in there. What if they capture you? You have too much information about—The captain stopped for a moment, doubting whether he should speak his mind or remain silent—I fear this could be an elaborate trap. Please let us deal with them.

The general laughed. He didn’t like a subordinate brazen enough to give him advice.

Most certainly not! As the highest-ranking officer here, I will personally capture those demons for the king. Do you think I’m willing to let you steal this victory from me?

The captain bowed down and spoke in a repentant tone,

Of course not, sir. I’m so sorry, sir, please forgive me. You can enter the city, the men are waiting for your orders.

The captain decided then and there not to come back to that city. Madmen follow madmen, and he was perfectly sane. The general entered the mountain and marched down the great staircase that led to the city. Shortly after reaching the lower floor he reached the great hall’s locked door, where he knocked and said,

This is the general of the 4th southern division. In the name of the Greater man and His Divine Law we have come here to arrest the demons. Surrender them and we will spare your lives.

His words were met with silence. After a minute the general spoke again,

Fine, have it your way. You and your children will die unless you come out at once. The northern king’s mercy can’t be insulted or forced to wait!

Once more his threats were answered with silence. He turned to face his officers,

How should we proceed?

One of the captains said,

Sir, there has to be an air conduct somewhere, leading outside, to allow that many people to breathe. We could smoke them out.

The general shook his head,

It would take days, even weeks to find it. We don’t have that much time.

We can just break in, sir. Their forces will be weak and starving by now.

The general agreed and announced,

We enter the hall now! The heathens’ gold and women will be ours tonight!

The soldiers brought all the explosives they had left to the door. The army watched the blast from a safe distance, occupying the streets and parks of the city. The violent explosion created a thick cloud of dust.

Charge!

The soldiers ran to the hall. The gate had fallen, and they easily passed through. They waved and slashed with their swords through the storm of dust inside, but nobody was there. After the dust settled, one of the captains shouted,

The room is empty, sir. There’s no one here!

Other captains confirmed it. The general felt his heart skip a beat. A wave of heat ran through his whole body. He said, first to himself and then to others:

It’s a trap, retreat. Retreat!

When they attempted to fall back to the entrance of the cave, they heard the laughter of the little girl once again. This time it was a piercing laughter that made the soldiers fall to their knees, covering their ears as they tried in vain to stop it. The light that came from the hole in the city’s ceiling disappeared. One by one, every single source of light was put out, leaving the soldiers once again in utter darkness. The general shouted,

Quick, light your torches!

Despite their efforts, the torches and lanterns remained cold. The troops joined shields forming circles with archers and officers in the middle. Then they heard a bubbling noise. Molten iron slowly crawled toward them like a faceless monster engulfing the ground. It descended from the great staircase that led to the entrance, the only way out of the lower part of the city.

The only alternative was through the buildings on the centre of the city. The men that went there disappeared screaming, convincing the rest of the regiment that it was a bad idea. The general shouted,

Stand in formation and retreat to the hall!

The remaining companies entered the hall and waited for the enemy to attack them. A column of molten iron poured down on the entrance and began creeping inside, forcing them to retreat further into the hall.

The soldiers understood that not all of them would survive. They knew some of them had to die to make room, so they started pushing each other into the fire. Brothers in arms fought each other for their lives. When the survivors thought they were safe, standing next to the wall farthest from the entrance, they finally found the air conduit, hidden in plain sight in the middle of the hall.

The general watched with horror a new column of fire descend through the conduit. He fell on his knees, closed his eyes and prayed.

Fire engulfed them all.