"Onwards. We must reach the capital by midnight." Says a soldier commanding the marching soldiers. He swings his sword forward, barking out more orders.
Marching along the well-beaten path, armor clinked and feet stomped along. With them, a large carriage was being pulled by two horses. The carriage was made of simple hardwood, essentially being a massive cage. Inside the cage was many women and children. Most of the women was clothed with scraps of their tattered clothing. But even the children's clothing was covered in smog and ash from the fires.
"Those devils. Why did they do this to us?" One old woman says lowly as she holds a few children to her, comforting as many as she can at once. The carriage rattles and bounces, but her old, wrinkled hands remains clenched in anger.
"Shh. Don't let them hear you." Another younger mother says as she holds her daughter to her chest.
"At least we get to live, some of us have lost our husbands and our homes. A few women didn't even make it out alive…" A third whispers, her face damp from crying.
Huddled in the corner was a mostly naked woman with flowing blonde-reddish hair spiraling down her back. Once a woman with a wealth of pride, she now mumbles and rocks with wide eyes. Her hair had lost it's luxurious sheen, dulling with the ash and dirt, but more that than, her womanhood seemed to have shattered. Her face was still damp from her never-ending crying, but she never turned to face the rest of the gathered women.
"It was your fault, wasn't it?" One woman says as she looks at the back of the once-prideful woman. "You're the reason we're all here, aren't you? You did something and made them come attack us!" The woman says as she crawls over and starts to beat on the other. One soldier on the outside bumps his fellow soldier and nods at the catfight.
They both grin and watch the show with evil grins as the small shreds of clothing fall away from the fight.
"Did you know that used to be the Lady of that village? I bet they think it was her who caused this." The soldier says to the other as they both chuckle darkly.
"Hey! Cut it out you!" The commanding soldier says as he bangs on the cage. The women both stop, instantly complying and returning to their spots, shaking in fear. The women look at the two with saddened silence.
In another carriage further back, two little girls desperately cling to each other. One of them had short brown hair that was somehow even darker from the dirt. And the other had short blonde-reddish hair stained from ash. They both looked like boys, their short hair and androgynous face combined with their young unisex bodies. Their boyish clothing only hides that even better.
"Wh-Where is Tiaris…" Lamb says through sniffles and stutters. Emerald contemplates silently as she holds Lamb against her.
"I... I don't know..." Emerald says out quietly. Her voice was so low it almost didn't cut through the sound of clinking armor and the old wooden wheels of the carriage. Even after enduring the denouncement of her house, she now had to suffer through this.
Emerald found herself strangely glad. It was a guilty feeling born from watching the two people that tormented her entire life suffer. But it was bittersweet because her friends were swept up into it too. Lamb and Tiaris were separated, with one of them completely missing.
Emerald silently cried as her guilt weighed heavily. Lamb looked up in disbelief, seeing the strong girl known for never batting an eye in tears. Shakily, Lamb held Emerald close, the two of them sharing an embrace of sadness.
###
Tiaris woke to the bright sun shining down on her. Its glare was intense, but she quickly realized where she was. This space was familiar to her. A fond memory from a time that will never come again.
The bluefly cave.
She tries to recall what happened, or how she ended up here. It comes back to her in a hazy blur. That night, as the fires started, father told her to run and hide with Lamb. She remembers the static face he made as his body collapsed. Then how she took Lamb with her out the back of the house.
They both ran and ran until they reached their hideout where even the village elders could never find them. They thought it was safe, but no stone was left unturned in the soldiers' wake. And just like that, they grabbed Lamb. Tiaris' fell to her knees as she remembered the next part like a dagger in her heart.
The face that Lamb made. The way the men grinned down at her. She couldn't do it. She couldn't handle the pain anymore. She turned and ran into the forest. She ran until she had reached the bluefly cave. There, she collapsed inside.
All Tiaris could see was Lamb's face, over and over and over. The look of heartbreak, of overwhelming terror. She didn't even look back, fearing they might be chasing her. But she could hear it. The tears and cries as Lamb called for her sister.
Tiaris felt something inside her shatter. As if it all held no meaning anymore. Sure, she was alive, but she was not living. She betrayed everyone she loved, left them all to die. Tiaris stood up again, clenching at her head as she started to laugh. A desperate attempt at sanity stirred her but it was quickly drowned out.
Standing in the single ray of light in the cavern of singed carapace, a magical awakening occurred. The magic that held in the air like dust from the many years of gathered blueflies, from the condensed power unleashed at the burning of their bodies. Its guilt, its fear, its insanity; all it was merged with the very essence of the girl.
The awakening of a witch.