The members of the Salamanders, an organization affiliated with the Scarlet Order, investigated an anomaly in the Town of Wales. The town was located several miles from the City of Bastogne. Reports of phantasmic sightings had been received, prompting the guild to send Rolly Floyd and Eckart Manson as bodyguards.
The town was under a curfew that night at 2100 hours. The streets were empty, and the shops were closed. Only the members of the Salamanders, along with Rolly and Eckart, were allowed to roam the town to investigate.
During the night, strange noises, not from animals, could be heard. Two members of the Salamanders, Micah Heart, sporting a red ponytail, wearing a crimson jacket and black slacks, and Lyon Stevens, black haired man, wearing a crimson overcoat over his suit and tie, were on the scene. Micah, using her third sense, felt energies coming from the area.
“The source is coming from here…” Micah said, looking towards the river.
Lyon threw a paper talisman into the air to verify Micah’s senses. If the talisman burned, it meant the anomaly was strong. However, before Lyon could finish his chanting, the talisman grew hot, nearly burning his hand, and turned to ashes without igniting.
Seeing this, Micah realized a very powerful entity was trying to breach the veil. Lyon looked at her and said, “We should order an evacuation! This town may become a portal, and we don’t want to see the civilians turn into ghouls.”
Micah nodded and said, “We will inform the Mayor by tomorrow.”
Two days later, Mitchell woke up from the same strange dream. This time, he was falling on a white field with black holes. He noticed an area that was protruding, indicating a part of the veil weakening. When Mitchell’s body landed on the white field, his dream ended.
Catching his breath, Mitchell felt the dream was a warning. He looked outside as the sun was rising. He knew his dreams were not ordinary and meant something. Realizing he had sweated a lot, he decided to take a shower.
Vashni woke up but did not rise from his bed. He had noticed Mitchell’s strange dream through his murmurs but said nothing and closed his eyes.
Several hours later, Gary was looking for Mitchell but could not find him. Usually, at 0700 hours, Mitchell would jog with him. He gave up looking and jogged by himself instead. Other mercenaries were starting their exercises, with the first batch doing calisthenics and stretching first.
While Gary was jogging alone, Mitchell was in front of the chapel. He was not a religious man, but he found solace and peace in places of worship. He visited when he needed to sort out his mind or when something was bothering him.
Exiting the chapel, Gary found Mitchell, who looked gloomy. He decided to cheer him up and called his attention. “Hey, Mitch! You don’t usually miss our early morning jog. Afraid I will beat you again?”
Mitchell did not reply and continued on his way. Gary, seeing this, approached him and apologized, “I’m sorry Mitch, that was pretty cruel of me…”
“No, it’s okay… Gary. I just have these strange dreams,” Mitchell said.
“Don’t worry too much about them, Mitch!” Gary said. “It’s just dreams. Say, how about a sprint? Would you like to do that?”
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“Yeah, sounds like fun…” Mitchell thought and cheered himself up.
Mitchell convinced himself that it didn’t mean anything. He raced with Gary and tried to forget about his dream.
At Major Galahad’s office, Lyla was busy with paperwork. She ensured everything was properly arranged. When Major Galahad entered, he saw Lyla and was impressed with her diligence. As a reward, he thought of offering her a cup of coffee.
“Good morning, Lyla!” Major Galahad greeted her.
“Hello, sir Galahad!” Lyla stood up and greeted him in return.
“You have been working hard. Would you like a cup of coffee?” the major asked.
“I’m fine, sir. I just had one during my breakfast earlier,” Lyla replied from her desk.
As the major went to his desk, he saw a letter. Seeing this, he asked Lyla about it.
“Ah, sorry sir, I forgot to inform you,” Lyla said. “It was from the other day. A letter of request from the City of Bastogne.”
The major saw the seal of the Mayor of Bastogne on the letter and opened it. He took out the letter and read:
“To Major Galahad,
Greetings, Major! We have been attempting to contact someone who can assist us during our troubled times. The Scarlet Order of exorcists has already dispatched members of the Salamanders to the town of Wales. According to their report, they have observed that the protective veil guarding our world from the Phantasmic Phenomenon has weakened, causing us great concern. I understand that there is a department in your office that focuses on such phenomena. I am reaching out to request assistance and I am willing to provide generous compensation to resolve this issue.
Thank you! Respectfully Yours,
Abraham Gales
Mayor, City of Bastogne“
Major Galahad sighed after reading the letter. In his mind, if the Salamanders were sent to the area, his team would not be needed to solve it. Also, the thinning of the veil meant that it would be impossible to reverse it. The town might become a portal, similar to Emille Village, which had been breached.
“Are you alright, sir?” Lyla asked, noticing Major Galahad’s expression.
“It’s nothing, Lyla!” Major Galahad said and smiled.
Meanwhile, in the Town of Wales, Micah and Lyon continued to investigate the area. A block of the town was evacuated due to increased phantasmic activities. Sightings of phantasmic creatures and possessions were reported by the locals. Lyon lit a ward, a candle imbued with the power of the pure elements.
The ward was needed to prevent them from being corrupted by the phantasms and to detect any anomalies in the area. The ward’s protection was only about fifteen meters, while its detection capabilities were around fifty meters. A warm heat radiated from the candle, resembling a pure flame.
Micah and Lyon led the investigation, with Eckart and Rolly following. As they navigated inside a warehouse, they saw locals who were possessed, acting like strange beasts on all fours.
“Crawlers!” Lyon warned.
“What could these beings be? Who corrupted these people?” Eckart asked, worried.
“Those are phantasmo parasites. A normal phantasm retains a humanoid appearance. A beast-like appearance is caused by otherworldly parasites,” Micah replied.
“Which means?” Rolly asked.
“Their souls have been consumed. They are only husks of their former selves, turned beasts,” Lyon replied.
“Scary, huh!” Eckart commented, pointing his rifle at a crawler that tried to approach him.
“I believe it’s not wise to use weapons that create noise,” Lyon warned.
“Great idea, now what are you suggesting?” Rolly asked.
“Leave this to us,” Micah said, lighting her right hand with flames. “This is a sacred flame. It harms phantasmo parasites and other phantasmic beings. Keep your eyes peeled as I clear this area of their kind!”
Micah threw her flames, hitting some of the possessed people who had turned into crawlers. They screamed in agony as the phantasmo parasites burned from within. Crimson flames wrapped their bodies but did not consume them. As the crawlers' bodies stopped moving, they turned silent, and the possessed bodies became lifeless.
Rolly and Eckart were horrified. Being possessed by a phantasmo parasite was no joke. They had to be careful, or they would be turned into those ghastly beings robbed of their souls. After staying in the abandoned warehouse for too long and with the ward candle nearly out, Micah decided to end the investigation, and the party left.
Lyon looked at Rolly and said, “We will need backup! I will send a courier pigeon to headquarters. This town needs cleansing. We must prevent further possessions. If a legion possesses someone, it could open a portal, and the lives of the people here would be forfeit.”
Outside the warehouse, Micah took a cage with a courier pigeon and wrote a message to their superiors. She released the pigeon, which flew as fast as it could back to the Salamanders’ headquarters.