“The trade city of Rosvero has grown several times over the years, but the main layout remained the same; 4 main streets radiating away from the Black Fortress, with numerous lesser streets encircling it. Somewhat more recent, and slimmer streets have also been constructed on midpoints of a compass bearing. The design, viewed from above, looks circles overlaying a compass.”

-A brief history of trade cities

People all around me tensed, ready for another rolling motion to hit.

Nothing happened.

I staggered to the edge of East Street, one of the arteries of the city. The Black Fortress loomed above me, casting ominous shadows that fell short just of the intersection. The source of light came from a circle that surrounded the western section, the section that contained the original structure from generations back. I tried to remember the chapter about the Fortress, from A Concise History of Rosvero. Having wasted precious time on that pathetic excuse of a mental endeavor, I moved closer to the origins of both the quakes and the light.

Upon reaching my destination, I was not enlightened in the least. The excitement at the prospect of gaining new knowledge was rapidly diminishing, and an overall sense of danger blanket any thought of exploring further. Upon reaching the western side, I began retreating to my apartment, located near the west gate. With my amazing observational skills I noted that the light possessed a colour and viscosity almost like molten gold.

Turning onto the street in front of my home, I hit what felt like a brick wall.

Stunned, I had only just begun to notice the faint barrier of light before it increased several times in intensity. Looking into the light was now akin to looking into the sun on a cloudless day; bright, golden, and guaranteed to give you a headache. Somewhere along this alarming sequence of events the temperature also began to rise, and the air was now shimmering in the heat. If I didn’t know better I’d have said that the city-wide heating system was malfunctioning again.

I turned to the problem at hand. It appears that “we”, by which I mean several startled birds and I, are the only ones affected on the street. Others, all with undoubtedly much more common sense than I, had been waiting in the side streets, where there was much less danger of being hit by falling structures several floors high.

They now crowded at the mouths of alleys and roads, astounded, watching me like one would a fly in a jar. Needless to say, I did not appreciate that feeling.

Pounding on the barrier proved fruitless, and after several runs up and down the street I finally concluded that everything leading away was inaccessible, or blocked. Turning to the nearest crowd, I gestured wildly for someone to bring a ladder. 2 young men returned moments later, carrying a painter’s ladder. Leaning it against the barrier proved that there was not a height limit to to light. Attempts to throw a rope over, and to pour water onto the light, proved the same result.

It was at this time I came up with a ‘bright’ idea.

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“A mirror!” I shouted, or rather I would’ve had not my throat been so parched from the heat. Clearing my throat I tried again, more successfully this time.

My words echoed off the light, until I felt like they were being amplified a hundred times. Wincing, I noted that the people in the alleys could not hear what I was saying, nor I, them.

And thus began a game of miming, where each time I gestured they would bring something different, to which I would shake my head at. At last, a well wishing person strode out of a shop, holding a mirror. The temperature by now was baking.

Unfortunately, the mirror redirected the light straight at my face. A last minute observation probably saved my life; instead of having my head cut in half, I lost the majority of my hair. Looking back at the alley, I could see that the mirror’s effect. The light closed as soon as it passed the mirror, and it appears that mirror was diverting only some of the light.

The sharp crack of the mirror cursing was deafening in the echoey confines of the street.

Thunder rolled far off in the distance.

Stalking back to the fortress, I could see discarded military equipment everywhere, and it showed signs of a hastily ordered withdraw.

Shields, swords, bows littered the ground. At one point, there was even half a pot of soup lying unattended among the wreckage. Seeing nothing of use, I started to walk back to where I was, determined to find a way to get out of my predicament. Having been proven that the barrier was nigh indestructible with the available tools that I had, I began of thinking of ways of avoiding it. This train of thought was rapidly derailed when I walked into a solid object, still several hundred metres away from where I was.

I looked up. The barrier of light now formed a circle, with the fortress as its centre, and me caught like a fly within a trap.

“Damn. Damn damn damn damn damn. What is this shit?” I shouted into space. Surprisingly, the space does not appear to be echoing anymore, which I suppose is a good thing or else I would have lost all my sense of hearing.

“Damn it!” I punched the barrier. It had hurt. A lot. "This damned thing!"

A dry chuckle, devoid of mirth, sounded behind me. "More like that this thing has damned you."

I whirled around. A man laid on the ground, partially buried by rubble. A narrow face, high cheeks, and black hair, which is unusual in this part of the world all served to make him look exotic and stern. His albino skin only further highlighted his most striking feature; his eye. It was completely black, as though it absorbed light from around it. The uniform darkness was only marred by a piercing red iris, with no pupil. Overall, my first impression of him was that he was a demon, recently risen out of the abyss.

It was only then I noticed the angry red marks of fetters around his wrist.

Eyes widening, I backed away quickly, stumbling loose pieces of debris.

"Don't run, its not like I could hurt you in my condition," the demon called out, "breaking out really took a lot of my energy. Besides, was I a demon, you would be dead already."

So, not a demon then, but definitely not human. No human could have caused that huge explosion that tore the fortress apart. Even the Collegium of Magnus couldn't do what was done.

"So, do you want to hear a story, seeing that you're trapped in here with me and you already tried to find a way out, which there is none that I now of in case you were wondering." He coughed, and then gestured with his one free hand at a pile of debris next to him.

"I suppose so, its not like I have more pressing matter to attend to," I said as I sat down heavily on the pile that he had indicated, "Sure, I'll hear it."

Balancing on the wobbling pile, I listened as he started speaking.

"Once, there was a mercenary, just a boy really, that had traveled out of his little corner of the world, and found out just really how big the world was..."