The village advisor, his face twisted in a fanatical fervor, held a long, thick branch of wood in his hand. At its tip, a flickering flame danced, the firelight reflecting in his wild eyes.
"Our king has sinned against the gods, and the gods have retaliated," the advisor declared, his voice ringing with chilling conviction. "Instead of doing what is right, he still planned to further go against the gods and put the village in debt. We need no such king."
YEAHH!!!
The villagers hailed him, their voices rising in a deafening roar that rumbled through the ground beneath their feet. Elias recoiled, covering Lilith's ears, his own heart pounding in his chest. Elijah's face hardened, his fists clenching at his sides.
"From today, we'll continue the ritual," the advisor announced, his voice booming. "The first children of the chief must be offered to the gods so that they may bless our land and make it flourish once more."
The trio's eyes widened in horror.
The chief struggled against his restraints, tears streaming down his face as he watched his son's impending doom.
"Do you know how pathetic you look? Crying like a baby. Your child wouldn't be the first to be sacrificed," the advisor sneered, his voice dripping with cruelty. He kicked the chief roughly in the side, sending a jolt of pain through the already helpless man.
"It's your fault in the first place. Maybe if you hadn't let those creatures in our village, the gods wouldn't be so pissed. Those filth carry curses with them everywhere they go..." His gaze swept over Elijah, Elias, and Lilith, his eyes burning with malice.
Elijah's control snapped. His body trembled with barely contained rage. He wanted to lash out, and make him eat his words, but he remembered his father's stern warning, his words echoing in his mind: "Don't interfere with anything that happens." The conflict tore him apart inside, fueling his fury.
Lilith, her small body shaking uncontrollably, could only cry silently, her tears tracing paths down her cheeks.
"Oh gods above, hear my humble voice. Please accept this token of sacrifice and pardon our land from this curse," the advisor intoned, his voice rising in a chilling prayer. He raised the flaming branch, preparing to set the wood ablaze and burn Adrian alive.
But before he could, Lenore moved with surprising speed. He kicked the flaming branch away from the advisor's hand, sending it skittering across the ground, and landed a heavy punch on the advisor's face, the force of the blow sending the man sprawling.
Elijah and Elias's faces lit up, relief washed over them as they saw their father intervene. Without a word, they rushed to save their friend, their fear momentarily forgotten. Lenore, his face grim, quickly freed the chief from his restraints. Together, they worked to stop the guards from reaching the children, creating a chaotic diversion.
Elijah and Elias, their movements swift and desperate, freed Adrian from the pole. They started to flee the scene, trying to escape the horror, but the older kids who had always bullied them ambushed them, wielding a large, heavy tree branch. One of them swung it with vicious force, striking Elijah squarely on the face. He crashed to the ground, his nose gushing blood, his vision blurring. The bullies descended on him, kicking and punching him mercilessly, breaking his leg in the process. Another group of villagers grabbed Adrian, their grip tight and unyielding.
"Please no," Adrian pleaded, his voice cracking with terror.
"It's for the greater good of our village, Adrian. Don't run away from responsibility," one of the villagers said, his voice cold and devoid of empathy. He held Adrian tightly as another villager picked up the flaming branch and set the wood pile ablaze.
As Adrian's screams filled the air, the villagers' chants grew louder and louder, their voices rising in a terrifying chorus. They continued to beat Elijah, preventing him from escaping, their actions brutal and relentless.
Lenore, his face a mask of anguish, forcefully dragged his children and the village chief into a nearby hiding place, shielding them from the horror unfolding outside.
"He knew it'd eventually come down to this. Adrian I mean," the chief said, his voice thick with grief. His body shaking with sobs. "The villagers despised him because I couldn't let them sacrifice him when it got to my turn to do it, in the process, parents told their kids to turn away from him." he whispered, his voice breaking with each word. "He was really excited to have made new friends, he couldn't sleep"