On and on he walked, alone. He had cried enough tears so that nothing protruded from his eyes except small flies and bugs that found their way into his eye in the humid air. He rubbed his eyes viciously as bugs and pollen drifted through the dirty air. He had grown tired of being alone with his thoughts, and so he journeyed onward trying to think of anything but what was weighing him down. His legs were stiff as a board and were close to cramping as he rounded the bend of the road towards the temple. It was a long, lonely walk—and especially since his horse had been taken from him in return for payment for food quite a way back now. His eyes lit up, although they were red and puffy, as he approached his destination. Suddenly the pests and flies weren’t a thought in his mind anymore. Up ahead loomed the great temple, which sat eerily quiet amidst a cove of trees off to the side of the road. A sign that addressed the temple’s existence had been slanted sideways and gave off an impression of abandonment.

Yet, it was his new home, a brotherhood. It felt foreign to Egalo. He wandered through the temple. Small lights illuminated his path through the high ceiling palace. His mouth hung open in awe as he admired the murals, paintings, and artwork throughout the halls that depicted various heroic acts that had gone down in the past thanks to those who served within the order. Paintings of bright blue light emerging from the hands of incredible magicians who fought armies of men thrice the size dominated the walls. He wondered if it was dramatized or if that’s really what it looked like to be a sworn magician. The illuminated path flickered out which left Egalo standing just outside two massive, red twin oak doors. He looked around; the Great Hall was empty.

For a moment he wondered if anyone would be inside. It seemed so serene and empty, but when he opened the doors to the great temple room, fear shuttered through him so fiercely he almost fell to the floor. Light-headed and dizzy, he remained on his feet and took in the scene in front of him.

Clearly some sort of skirmish took place here. The room was smoldering hot, and smoke rose from various parts of the floor that had been smashed. The floor had clearly once been a polish marble surface. The thought that he could be in danger crossed his mind, whatever had gone down appeared recent.

Egalo jumped out of his skin when a bony hand came down on his shoulder from behind him. He turned to face whoever had just scared the life out of him. The face was covered below a cloak and a hood that covered all but his mouth. Lips that had been severely scarred and scratched moved slowly but at first nothing came out. Egalo brushed his bush of fluffy brown hair back and furrowed his brows.

“Are you one of the sworn magicians of the realm?” His voice trembled as he spoke.

The response was a low, condescending laugh. “I don’t think there is such thing anymore, little boy.”

His voice was somehow slightly soothing, alleviating his worry of danger for the time. Egalo took a swallow and steadied himself. “So, you’re not a part of the Magi Order then?”

The stranger still did not remove his hood, his high leg boots shuffled slightly on the smolder floor.

“Do you see anything orderly about this place? I see ashes and a burnt temple.” His voice was cold this time.

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“Look, I don’t know anything about magic or supernatural power, but I know I was sent here to meet someone. Could you point me in the right direction…?”

The cloaked figure stood there in his crimson red cloak with his hands behind his back. Egalo was back to feeling uneasy about the mysterious figure. It was clear something had gone awry here, and he could in the very presence of the man responsible.

Egalo felt uncomfortable as the cloaked figure stood there, he was unsure whether he was being stared at or not because he couldn’t see his eyes. He started backing away, he dared not turn his back.

“How much do you know, boy?”

Egalo was calm to hide his frustration at being called a boy.

“All I know is that I received the calling, and then I followed the lights to get here but I can’t remember how I got here.”

“You tell me nothing. How about I’ll tell you something. Most people who come through here are looking for one thing. And you’re not going to find it here.” The man flung his hood back to reveal a fairly normal face except for the scarred lips and a hard, narrow face. He stood tall with strong shoulders and a narrow frame.

Egalo felt uneasy. He looked around; a couple tables were turned over. There were a few spots where shards of glass sat around. The two opposite sides of the large room had banisters and stairwells that winded up either side and met at the top.

“If you’re looking for the Magi Knights Order, you won’t find them here. Look around you, this place is deserted.”

Egalo narrowed his eyes and fought back fear, “Well then what are you doing here? Are you a Magi Knight?”

“I will not entertain your questions now; I must go on as I was before you interrupted me. Either leave this place or I will have to take care of you.” His voice had seemed to grow deeper as he left Egalo with that last remark. He then exited the room and Egalo was all alone. He looked up toward the high ceiling where the pointy top of the temple would be. The ceiling was cracked like an eggshell.

Why had the Magi Knights supposedly awaited his arrival, only for them to just be gone? He brushed the thoughts aside and realized he’d better make up his mind on what to do, he’d rather not face the red cloak man in combat. He’d never fought anyone before—at least never with the intent to kill.

He was about to exit the way he had arrived, but something caught his eye upstairs. A glowing light was illuminating a room. He could see a faint trace of light through the crack of the doorway up ahead. Part of him knew he should get out of there, the temple had clearly been deserted since he had received the calling, and he had been clearly warned against hanging around.

He had made his way inside the room. It was one of two rooms upstairs that appeared to be council rooms. A long table was inside with around fifteen chairs seated around. Some of the chairs had shields hung around the back of the seat. Others lay on the ground smashed in half or battered badly. Something had clearly happened here, however aside from the damaged shields, the rest of the room seemed fairly intact. Whatever had caught his eye was gone now, his eyes searched the room, but he did not find such a glowing item. He brushed his floppy hair back and heaved a sigh. Now what? He couldn’t help his curiosity. It was weighing on him that he should be leaving, but to go where? He did not know the area at all, being so far from home.

He remembered the words of the man downstairs, but he was probably already tending to more important things, surely. He paused when he heard voices coming from downstairs. He glanced down and made out a couple pairs of boots with darker cloaks concealing the legs standing in the middle of the marbled floor. The red cloak was also seen, but he was standing too far away to get a view of above waist level unless he moved closer. He was about to move towards the doorway cautiously but before he could take a step his heart jumped out of his chest. A large, bulky figure entered the doorway with a hunched back and beady yellow eyes. “You should have left when you could have.”