1

They scoured the town trying to find the rest of their companions. But they had not paid attention to Rowdy before he left. They had no need to at the time. Now none of them really knew where to find him. It took most of an hour before they finally caught up to their friends.

There had been no change in the peak over that time. It still smoked eerily, but the rumbling had died down. They watched it carefully, every chance they got, glimpsing it between buildings and down narrow alleyways, until they came upon the Mayor and their companions, the peak still smouldering in the background.

As soon as Rith saw their faces, he knew that something must be seriously wrong. “What’s going on?” He asked them as they approached.

Elwin was shocked to find that they had no idea what was happening. Did they think this was just another earthquake? Had they not looked at the mountains?

“I think we have a grave problem!” Elwin stated to the entire group in a very serious tone.

Mayor Ashborn looked at him with a puzzled expression. “Is this about that last tremor? Did it do some unexpected damage?”

“No. It’s much worse than that. We have a much bigger problem,” Elwin pointed to a gap between two buildings that showed the peak in the background. “Do you see that mountain there?”

The group moved around so they could all get a good look at it.

Mayor Ashborn suddenly had a perplexed look on his face, like he still did not quite get what was going on. “What? Pale Peak?”

Selby, Rith and Rowdy were much swifter and they beginning to understand what had really been happening here in Domara. Their expression changed from bewildered to shocked.

“I don’t think that’s a mountain. I think it’s a volcano!” Elwin stated. His voice held an intense gravity to it as he told them exactly what he believed.

“A what?” Mayor Ashborn replied. Even though he was looking at it with his own eyes he was still not convinced. He turned to Elwin shaking his head. “No. That’s impossible! We don’t have any volcanoes around here.”

“Well Pale Peak is not so pale anymore!” Elwin was quick to point out. His severe expression was quickly turning to one of irritation.

Did it really sound that insane when they were staring right at it? He thought. Now granted, he had no experience with volcanoes as he came from the flat boring plains of Militar province, but he heard enough about them in stories. He knew that if a mountain smokes, it’s most likely a volcano.

“Elwin, I’m sure you mean well, but you’re not from here,” Mayor Ashborn was quick to reply. “This town has been here, in one form or another, for hundreds of years. There’s never been any record of a volcano in the area. It’s just a mountain range, maybe there is some other explanation for the snow melting away!”

“Yeah, you probably right, maybe a dragon melted all of the snow overnight!” Elwin said mockingly.

Then, as if the Gods had heard Mayor Ashborn’s words, it happened. It was event unlike any they had ever experience, nor would they ever experience something like it again in their lifetimes.

There was an earth-shattering sound like a thousand cannons firing together. It was so loud and forceful that the echo of it repeated off the mountain range for what seemed like an eternity. Their ears rang and the ground shook so violently that the group was nearly thrown to the ground. Buildings cracked and wooden support beams splintered. Bricks tumbled to the ground.

Elwin’s head ached from the rush of blood and adrenaline as his heart pounded fiercely. He looked up to the peak in horror and saw the whole top point of it levelled. A massive column of smoke, ash and superheated gases began rising at an insane rate.

Elwin’s mind was in a daze for only a moment before he snapped back to his senses with a sobering jolt. He took inventory of the situation.

They were in a strange town hundreds of miles for the rest of civilization. They had no way of getting immediate help. They had no wizard or real magic at their disposal. The military was very small, only a company of men and they would not be train for this situation. They were in the worst situation they could possibly be in. He looked around hoping for some sign as to what they should do next.

Everyone was frozen, transfixed by the apocalyptic event suddenly unfolding before their eyes. The column of smoke rose higher minute by minute, first one mile, than two, but when it got over five miles high it billowed outward caught by powerful high-altitude winds. It cast a forbidding shadow as it drifted overhead.

“Maybe you’re right Ashborn! Maybe it’s not a volcano!” Rowdy said giving him a sharp look.

The Mayor’s red face was horror-stricken. His mouth was open, but he could not speak. He stammered, words failing him.

It became complete mayhem as the streets filled with citizens. Anyone within a hundred miles of Domara would have heard the explosion. Shaken to their core the people began screaming in terror, but it was nearly drowned out by the deep rumbling that the volcano was now belching forth. The ashen cloud continued to grow spreading out like a mushroom.

“Mayor! What do we do?” Elwin shouted hoping to be heard over the rumbling of the newly awakened volcano. He thought at the very least the Mayor could have an evacuation plan.

“I-I-I don’t know…” He said with a stunned look. His eyes were glazed over. He was in disbelief. The magnitude of the experience was overpowering his senses.

Elwin natural instinct was to run, further and faster than he had ever done in his life! The idea pounded throughout his mind, but he knew could not do it. Emery’s words were still there in his head.

He looked to his companions for a sign from them, but it was no use. They stared back completely silent and astounded. He was sure they had the same feelings going through their own minds.

“Look, whatever we do, we can’t linger here for long! This place is about to face oblivion and I don’t know how long we’ve got. Where can we go that’s safe?” He questioned them all.

The group thought about it for a second, but in their advanced state of shock it was hard to clear their minds.

The rumble began to subside.

Suddenly, Mayor Ashborn regained some of his wits and blurted out. “My guards! Get me the town guards! We can round up as many people as we can and get them to the river! The port, there are ships in the harbour!”

“I don’t know if that’s a good idea Ashborn. The river is going to be swollen with the runoff. Besides there won’t be enough boats,” Elwin pointed out. He had visited the waterfront one day. There was an entire harbour built with many small cargo ships coming and going. It was the easiest way the ship lumber and iron ore down river to Verant City where it could be processed. But even if the harbour had been filled with ships, they sill could not take everyone from the town. And how long would it take to load people onboard and get them out of the area? They had no idea how much time they had before the town would be devastated.

Abruptly, a sergeant and three other soldiers came running up to the Mayor, panting and panic-stricken.

“Sir! We’ve got to get out of here now or we’ll all be destroyed!” The sergeant stated after a hasty and somewhat informal salute. His words echoing what Elwin had already said.

“Sergeant we must evacuate the town immediately! We’ll use the ships in the harbour! I want you to secure every vessel you can. Now, while we have the chance!” Ashborn commanded. He was back in charge of himself again.

“Sir, the harbour may save some people, but what about everyone else? There won’t be enough ships!” Elwin questioned breaking into their conversation.

“I don’t know who you are, but Ashborn has given an order!” The sergeant yelled. He turned to his men. “You heard the Mayor! We have to secure the vessels along the waterfront. Don’t let anyone weight anchor until they have a full load of people!”

The soldiers themselves looked mortally terrified, but they had a purpose and orders. This overrode any thought of abandoning their post. It’s taught during the intense military training, that no Verantian soldier was to ever abandon their post without orders to do so. It was the most important thing to any soldier that they follow their orders no matter what danger they faced.

The sergeant and the soldier disappeared into the chaos.

“I know you feeling like doing something,” The Mayor said. “But there is nothing you can do. My guards will handle this from here. My advice is that you all flee the city as quickly as possible.”

Elwin was staring bewildered at Mayor Ashborn. More soldiers were rushing up to talk to him. They escorted the Mayor away to somewhere he was needed urgently.

Selby suddenly grabbed Elwin by the arm and pulled him aside.

“Elwin, the ridge!” He shouted in his ear.

“The what?” Elwin replied. He didn’t completely understand. What ridge? Where?

“Remember when we came over that ridge a few miles south of the city?” Selby asked him.

Elwin’s eyes grew wide. “Yes, but what are getting at?”

Selby grabbed him with both hand and forced him the focus on what he was saying. “Look, if the lava is flowing, then it will only flow down hill. If we get to the other side of that ridge, we might be safe!”

“Are you sure?” Emerson asked. He had been standing close by listening in.

“Ask Rowdy, he’s the engineer!” Selby told him.

They put the question to Rowdy. The normally quick-witted Gnome was struggling to think, but after a minute of explaining Selby’s theory, Rowdy nodded in agreement. The little Gnome explained that volcanoes were incredibly dangerous at such a close range, but the more distance they could put between themselves and the violently erupting cauldron, the better. If they could put a natural barrier between them, even better still.

“I agree with Selby,” Rowdy said nodding. “The waterfront is suicide. Our best chance for survival is the southern ridge!”

“How long do we have?” Elwin asked.

Rowdy shrugged. “No one can predict these kinds of things. I have no idea. The sooner we leave the better!”

“Alright here’s the plan, Anna, I want you and Rith to go to the camp and pack up everything we own as quickly as possible and get ready to move out. Rowdy I want you to go with them,” They all stared at Elwin blankly. He growled in frustration at them. “We are sworn to protect Rowdy and that’s what we’ll do! Go now! We have no time to argue!”

The three turned and fled, heading for the town’s southern gates.

Elwin turned to the remained of the group. “I know this sounds a bit mazy, but I’m staying as long as possible to convince as many people to go south as I can, before it’s too late. I can’t let people die here knowing there is a safer way. I’m not asking anyone else to do the same. You can all join the other three if you wish.”

Myra-Lynn stared him straight in the eyes and spoke first. “I’m not leaving your side!”

Elwin knew that she meant it, not that he was surprised. Myra had seemed like someone always willing to help in times of danger and trouble. He could not make her leave even if he tried. He nodded to her.

He looked to Emerson and Selby. They both stared back at him intensely.

“I will help you in anyway I can!” Emerson said.

“Aye!” Selby added nodding.

“Alright, the fastest way to move is with horses. With all of this chaos, do you think you two could liberate a few for us?” Elwin asked giving them knowing glances.

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“Aye!” Selby nodded with a grim smirk. He tugged Emerson by the cloak sleeve and they both ran off in the direction of a nearby stable.

Elwin was left alone staring at Myra who was staring back at him. Together Myra and Elwin began ordering people they meet to go south of the city to the ridge, but in the chaos, only a few people could hear them.

2

Within minutes of Elwin giving them their orders, the sky began to rain down small chunks of stone upon them. Some were even the size of fists, but the occasional piece was much larger. As Rith, Anna and Rowdy ran through the streets, they could hear the deafening sound of the stones pounding the clay tile roofs of nearby houses shattering them to pieces. Soon the streets were littered with these stones.

It felt like they were being beaten as the stones came down. To make matters worse, the ash cloud had spread out so much and was so thick that it was now blocking out the noonday sun. Darkness descended all around as if it were the dead of night again.

To add to the terror, violent lightning began striking the volcano’s ash column highlighting the towns destruction in a series of brilliant flashes. In the darkness between the lightning strikes, the red-hot lava could be seen slowing working its way down the mountainside.

The streets, litter with stones, were becoming a hazard. Suddenly Rowdy tripped and shouted out to the others. They stopped to help him to his feet.

A boulder the size of a small house smashed a building a dozen yards away, but they saw it clearly. They all stared in shock at the sight.

They kept moving. They had to. It would cost them their lives if they made a wrong step! They all knew it.

The massive boulder had tossed dead bodies everywhere about the streets and the people, pelted by larger and larger stones, began to get knocked down and crushed.

“We have to keep moving!” Rith commanded as he and Anna dragged the little Gnome along, practically carrying him as they ran. They tried to dodge the larger stones as best they could. They turned a corner and ran down a broad street.

A fist size stone caught Anna right in the shoulder throwing her face first to the ground. She cried out as her nose was bloodied, she began to weep uncontrollably as she struggled to her feet.

“Damn the Gods!” Rowdy shouted as he looked behind them.

Rith looked back in time to see what the Gnome had just cursed. A boulder the size of a house was bearing down on them as it tumbled and bounced down the street. Its shadow spread across them.

It happened so suddenly that Rith felt like he was swooning. It was like he was pulled inside himself. He didn’t know how he did it, but he was sure that he was doing it. It was a strange yet familiar trip as he collapsed in on his own mind, plunging down into darkness, into the abyss that separated the dimensions of this world and the next. Suddenly he could see the black pearl he had seen only once a few weeks before. It was pulsing like a heart with a deep blood red glow. With his mind he reached out and touched it. It was pure instinct, a natural reaction.

With a jolt, Rith was back in the real world, the massive stone closing in just a few yards away. Out of impulse he pulled up his arm defensively. The boulder bounced, as if striking an invisible wall. It veered off to the left and completely destroyed the house next to them shattering into thousands of pieces. Even the shards of the house reflected away from the three of them as if impacting the same protective shield.

Anna and Rowdy were in astonishment, but Rith still had his wits about him. He grabbed both of them in a stern grip. He did not know if they understood what they had just witnessed. He could not really believe it himself, but he was pretty sure he had just saved all of their lives.

“Come on! Move!” He shouted shaking off the thought.

They got up and began to run again. The southern gates were within sight.

3

Emerson and Selby had no problem finding a couple of horses. But most of the animals were panic-stricken and fought hard against their reigns. Any horses that managed to break free from the stable bolted to the south, as far from the volcano as possible.

Smart horses! Selby thought. We must be crazy then!

Eventually they found a pair of well-trained horses that were still calm enough to ride.

Emerson came from a large family with a large farm which had horses. He was an accomplished rider, trained from a young age. He sat easy in the saddle.

Selby came from a middle-class family. He had his own horse back home. For him riding was second nature.

The two men began to look for a cart or wagon that would be suitable for transport. They made their way down to the waterfront to see what was going on there.

The scene was confusion. Thousands of people were gathering along the shores, but there were simply not enough boats for them all. Most ships were open barges offering little protection to those on board.

As one ship pulled away, they watched dozens of people from the crowd still trying to get on and falling into the water. Mothers were handing babies to strangers in hopes of saving their lives at the very least. Fights broke out among people trying to get on the next boat to leave. Steel glinted as people fought violently over who got saved, if it could be called that.

The river itself was very high, swollen from the snow that had run off the awakened volcano, just as Elwin had predicted. It was very muddy and murky. Several people had fallen into the river and never emerged.

“This is a nightmare!” Selby shouted to Emerson over the commotion.

Just then the stones began falling in some surreal mockery of rainfall. The terrified people were bombarded. Some were knocked off the docks into the raging river or just knocked out from a blow to the head.

“So many people are going to die here!’ Emerson said grimly shaking his head.

“Let make sure we don’t join them!” Selby said. “We’re not going to save anyone here! Let’s get to the camp while we can!”

Emerson spurred his horse and the two of them rode through the streets shouting out to anyone who would listen. “Don’t to go to the river! Head south!” Some people seemed to nod in agreement. He hoped they heeded their advice.

As their horses galloped down a narrow alleyway, suddenly the way was blocked by a group of three soldiers also on horseback.

“Hey, you two!” The one soldier shouted to them.

Selby pulled up to a stop, Emerson tight behind him. “We have to get out of here!” He shouted back to the soldiers.

“Do those horses belong to you, strangers?” The soldier demanded. Their armor clanged from the rocks hitting them.

Selby and Emerson were stunned.

“Are you mazy!” Selby exclaimed.

“You took them from the barracks didn’t you!” The soldier drew his sword defiantly.

“He’s completely cracked!” Emerson hissed to Selby.

Stones were still raining down, but snowflakes made of ash had mixed in. All the horses were getting nervous. They looked for another way, but they could not turn the horses around, the alley was too narrow.

“This is death if we stay here!” Selby shouted trying to think of away out of the situation. “We must leave!”

“You’re not going anywhere!” The soldier said. Selby was sure he had completely lost his mind.

Then unexpectedly, an immense boulder bounced before them with incredible speed smashing into the soldiers. It swept them aside like rag dolls and completely pulverised the three men and their horses.

Selby and Emerson were astounded. They could not even begin to comprehend what they had just witnessed. They just sat in their saddles, mouths agape.

As soon as Selby could think again, he shouted. “Let’s get to camp before we’re killed!”

They kicked the horses into a gallop and tore off down the alley.

4

“The south ridge is the safest place! Don’t listen to the guards, the river is flooding!” Elwin shouted to a group of people, but he did not know if they would heed his warning.

Many people were ignoring him or in too much shock to understand. The situation was dire. Stones had been raining down. First, they were small pebbles and then some were like fists. Elwin spotted some on the ground the size of a cat. Now a few larger ones were coming down. It chilled him to the bone when he saw a boulder smash a large stone house to pieces.

They were near the town square when they came across a brutal scene. A woman lay across the street in front of them. Her head was completely crushed beneath a rock bigger than a horse, but the rest of her body was still exposed. Blood was splatter all over her clothing. From her arms they could hear wailing.

“Oh, by Lothica! There’s a baby still alive!” Myra cried. She reached down and found a small baby wrapped tightly in a soft blanket. By some miracle the baby was alive and unharmed.

“We have to move Myra,” Elwin stated.

“I’m bringing the baby!” Myra cried. She picked up the child in her arms and held it close. Her eyes were filled with tears.

“We’ve done all we can here. We have to get to camp!” Elwin said. The stones were still coming down sporadically, but they were the size of pebbles, gritty like sand and large flakes of cooled ash began to fill the air.

They ran down the street heading for the southern gates. They came to a major intersection. They stopped to catch their breath. It was dark from the massive cloud covering the whole town and miles beyond already. It had been maybe an hour since the mountain blew its top, but it felt like forever.

Between lightning flashes, Elwin spotted a pair of children huddled inside a nearby doorway.

They heard shouting coming from down the street. They looked up to see Selby and Emerson galloping right towards them. The two men pulled the horses up to stop.

The ash snow was over a foot thick on the ground already and great clouds billowed up where the horses stepped.

“These were the best horses we could find!” Selby shouted over the din.

“We went down to the waterfront, but it’s a disaster! People are killing each other down there!” Emerson added.

“We’ve done our best. Some people have listened to us. I hope we have saved the smart ones at least,” Elwin stated.

“We’re going to join the others,” Selby stated. “Its too dangerous now. We’ve got to get out of here!”

“Good!” Elwin shouted in agreement. “Take Myra with you. She found a baby. I want you to take them both to safety.”

Myra was shocked to hear this from him. She turned to face Elwin. “I’m not leaving without you!” She was wiping away fresh tears while holding the baby in the other arm.

Elwin grabbed both of her shoulders tightly and looked her in the eye. He could not help it. He was crying too. He said to her. “Take the baby to safety Myra-Lynn! I see some other people who need my help!”

Elwin was not asking, he was commanding. Without warning he plucked the baby from her arms. Myra was stunned. She screamed when Selby grabbed her from above and hoisted her onto his own horse. Elwin quickly handed the baby up to her. “I’ll follow as soon as I can! I promise, I will see all of you again!”

“Elwin no!” She screamed at him, but the two horses galloped off down the street and around the corner. Myra stared back at Elwin until they disappeared from sight.

He ran over to the doorway he had glimpsed earlier and peered inside.

“Don’t be afraid!” He called out. He saw a mother with two small children. They were dressed poorly and were filthy. They huddled together in a corner.

“Where’s your husband?” He asked.

The woman shook her head. “Dead,” She stated.

“You have to leave now. This town is about to be destroyed!” He tried to reason with her.

The woman trembled. “If we go out there, we’ll be killed!” She screamed.

“What choice do you have? If you run south, you might be killed. You stay here and you will be dead for sure!” Elwin explained. He knelt to her level.

She was crying uncontrollably and holding both children tight against her. “I’m scared!”

“It’s alright! I’ll be with you the whole time. Just give me the smallest, you take my hand and hold the other one!” He took the smallest child into his arms. The young boy instinctively grabbed hold around his neck and would not let go. The other child grabbed the woman tightly around her own neck. Elwin grabbed the woman’s hand firmly and pulled her up to her feet.

“The large stones have stopped falling, but watch your step out there,” He said to her. Without waiting for her to reply, he pulled her forcefully out in the open street. Using their bodies, they shielded the children from any stray stone still falling from the sky.

5

“By Cuthbert! What is taking them so long?” Rowdy cursed. His face was contorted in concern. He did not want to say anything further, like maybe they were already dead.

They had been packing up everything they owned and piled it all together. In the intense panic, they even borrowed a few things that did not belong to them. The camp had been stripped as other citizens had done the same. The pony was packed, well rested and ready to go.

Hundreds of people were heading south. Some out of instinct, some because they had heard it would be safer. Many had already passed them by. Some people with horses and carts offer them a ride, but they refused. They did not want to abandon their friends.

The camp was a few hundred yards south of the walled town and just out of range of most of the large stones. Still there was much debris raining down on them. Ash, sand and hail-sized stones littered the ground. They could see from the ash on the ground that it ended about a mile south. The ridge was just out of range of the volcanic fury.

“My brother is still in there! We have to do something. He could be dying!” Rith was beside himself with worry and doubt.

In the distance, they could see that the lava flow had reached the bottom of the volcano. Lightning continued to strike repeatedly, lighting up the whole mountain range with every flash.

Suddenly, they could see two horses galloping towards them. The one was towing a cart behind it. As the horses reared to a halt, they could see that it was Emerson and Selby that rode them. Selby had Myra on the back of his horse. Rith noticed that Emerson had no one on the back of his.

“Where’s my brother?” Rith demanded.

“He’s coming!” Emerson assured him.

Rith gave him a stern look.

“I would not have left him, if I did not believe him,” Emerson reassured him.

“Myra found a baby,” Selby stated.

“I’ll take it!” Anna said stepping forward took the child in her arms.

Myra and Selby dismounted.

“Why is my brother not with you?” Rith questioned the three of them.

“Aye, how long has he been like this?” Selby said to Anna completely ignoring Rith’s questioning gaze.

“The entire time!” Anna replied wearily.

Rith was annoyed at being ignored like that, but Selby spoke to him. “Your bother is fine. He assured me that he was following us close behind. He just wanted to save a few more people before we leave.”

Rith nodded and felt a little better, but he was still very edgy. He paced about not knowing what he should do with himself.

“Look, we liberated this cart here. We can throw all of our gear in it, plus anything else we might need, food, supplies… Whatever!” Emerson said.

“Keep this baby safe!” Myra said to Anna. “I’m going to get all the supplies I can from the hospital tent.”

“I will, but hurry please, swift as the Gods!” Anna said. Her eyes were swollen with tears.

Myra left to find what she could.

It took only a few minutes to load the cart, but there was still no sign of Elwin. Myra returned with her arms loaded with good and several backpacks so full she could hardly lift them. Emerson helped her load everything into the cart.

People from Domara were still heading out of the town, but far fewer now. It was obvious that thousands of people were not going to make it.

Unexpectedly, there was another violent earthquake as the side of the volcano partially collapsed. The massive ash column buckled. The superheated ash and gases began rolling down the side towards the town. It took only a few minutes as the wave of debris moved at hundreds of miles an hour.

The town was obliterated as the wave swept over the north walls destroying them. Anything made of wood exploded into flames, buildings were bashed to pieces. The wave wheeled east down towards the river incinerating everything in its path.

“We have to get out of here!” Rowdy said in a terrified trembling voice.

Rith turned on him and said coldly. “My brother would never abandon you!”

Then as if by a miracle, they saw Elwin and a strange woman emerge from the snowing ash and into their camp. They were covered in soot and grey ash which streaked their hair and faces. It was truly a surreal sight. They looked more like ghosts than humans.

The woman next to him looked like she could barely stand she shivered so violently. The child in her arms had a look of terror.

The group ran to them and grabbed the children and helped the woman to walk.

“We found a cart!” Emerson said to Elwin.

“Good! Load it! We leave now!” Elwin commanded.

“Already loaded!” Emerson proclaimed.

“Put everyone on it! We push to ridge! We don’t look back, understand?” Elwin was not in the mood to smile. It was an order, not to be questioned.

They instantly obeyed.

Selby led the horses onto the road south. Elwin and Emerson rode together. The pony trotted along next to them. Everyone else rode in the cart.

Behind them Domara blazed so brightly that it lit up the sky. The smell of sulphur, death and charred flesh permeated the air.

None of them looked back.

Not once.