The Generation of Peace
“Chase!” Lucifer called, his voice echoing eerily in the shadowy forest. “Are you sure we’re headed the right way?”
“Yes, according to my hunter’s sense, we have to cross this two-mile wide forest, and then traverse the Mountains of the Fire Demons to get to the Ancient City.” Chase replied. He had long developed that 6th sense that helps him navigate the unknown.
Mountains of the Fire Demons? Lucifer thought. Wait, I think I remember a story about those monsters.
Ten years ago, a seven-year-old Lucifer had been taking a walk with a Founder around the periphery of the New City. “O Venerable Founder, what lies beyond the borders of the New City?” little Lucifer had asked.
“There is a vast forest inhabited by all kinds of monsters. There are wolves with gleaming one-foot-long teeth, hawks larger than two men combined, and constricting pythons whose strength could crack a redwood’s trunk in half.” The Founder described the monsters with such energy that the air around him and little Lucifer had practically vibrated.
“But the scariest, biggest, and most vicious of them all lives in the mountains beyond the forest. Those monsters are called the Fire Demons. They breathe, shoot, and live in fire. Even their skin is made of fire. One touch from them can make a puny human like us disintegrate into a pile of ash,” the Founder trembled as if he were actually standing face-to-face with a Fire Demon.
“Then, the demons would slurp up the ash like this,” the Founder made a loud sucking noise and licked his lips satisfyingly. Little Lucifer shivered, imagining huge, drooling lips closing on his ashes. “These Fire Demons are the most powerful beings in the world — any army, no matter the size, would be decimated within a matter of minutes. However, the demons do have a weakness–water of a large magnitude. A puddle would have no impact, but a lake would cause the Fire Demons to transform into a mound of ash themselves. You will find, on the very top of that heap of ash, a treasure. That treasure could be anything you would like to have — jewels, swords, gold — anything! These creatures are the only ones in this world to possess magic. All you have to do is eat some of the demon’s ashes, think your wish in your mind, and it will come true.”
“Wow!” little Lucifer burst out excitedly. “How do you know all this, Founder?”
“One of the greatest heroes of all time, Iceius, had battled these Fire Demons two hundred years ago. He killed one of them by luck — heavy rain fell on the demon and it crumbled into ash. Iceius found a bronze sword in the monster’s ashes and brought it back to his home — the Ancient City — to show off his victory,” the Founder explained.
“I want to fight a Fire Demon when I grow up!” little Lucifer giggled, wielding a fallen oak branch like Iceius unsheathing his bronze sword.
Ten years later, seventeen-year-old Lucifer sighed, “Well, I guess I’ll finally find out what it feels like to fight one of those demons soon.”
“We should get going now — we only packed five days worth of food! If we don’t reach the Ancient City within that time, we will never find out why the Rebels attacked us!” Chase reminded him.
They trekked through the towering redwood trees for the next hour. The hairs on Lucifer’s arm started to stand up. Feeling watched, Lucifer tugged on Chase’s sleeve and whispered, “Is it just me, or do you feel we are being watched?”
“Yeah, by some hungry predator, I bet!” Chase drew out his bow and notched an arrow.
“Raaaaoowwwl!” A tiny, puppy-like creature bounded out of the bushes.
“Ahhhh!” Lucifer and Chase screamed. “It’s a wolf!”
“Hold on,” Chase said. “That’s just a wolf cub!”
“Awww, what a cute little cub you are!” Lucifer turned the baby wolf on his back and started giving him belly rubs.
“Lucifer!” Chase almost shrieked. “There are twenty yellow eyes staring at us in those trees! They must be the pack!”
“And an angry one, too!” Lucifer gulped, his heart catching in his throat.
“Run!” they both yelled, and took off — dashing for their lives.
