The Fire
You keep walking toward the light, even though you are growing tired. You can now see that the light comes from a fire, dancing mysteriously in the darkness. What a fire is doing in this dimness, you cannot discern.
After walking for some time, you turn around to see if the woman is still there, out of curiosity. There is no one there. An empty blackness is the only thing that you see where the woman used to stand. The treasure, interestingly enough, has disappeared as well. You turn back to face the fire.
The walk is tedious and your legs grow weary, but the light is getting brighter, and the burning flames draw you in.
Out of the pitch black emerges a cloaked figure. This one is clad in all black, obscuring his identity even further. You barely have time to collect your thoughts when he reveals a sharp steel blade.
You jump backward, your instincts luckily kicking in at the last second, as your thought that this figure is merely another ghost is interrupted by a wide arcing swing of the man's blade that nicks your face. You touch your cheek with your fingers where he pared you. You feel a cut and trickles of blood.
"Who the hell are you!" you shout as you back away.
The assassin circles you silently with no emotion in his eyes. He does not reply.
"What do you want?" you ask again.
"Your life," he answers tersely.
He takes a jab step toward you. You instinctively hop backward. He maintains the distance, continuing to close in on you as you step backward to match his strides.
"Why do you want my life?" you ask.
"I am a thief. A thief of life," he says. "I take others' lives so that I may live." He continues walking toward you.
The tension mounts as he advances on you. You must act. Surrender is not an option.
After walking for some time, you turn around to see if the woman is still there, out of curiosity. There is no one there. An empty blackness is the only thing that you see where the woman used to stand. The treasure, interestingly enough, has disappeared as well. You turn back to face the fire.
The walk is tedious and your legs grow weary, but the light is getting brighter, and the burning flames draw you in.
Out of the pitch black emerges a cloaked figure. This one is clad in all black, obscuring his identity even further. You barely have time to collect your thoughts when he reveals a sharp steel blade.
You jump backward, your instincts luckily kicking in at the last second, as your thought that this figure is merely another ghost is interrupted by a wide arcing swing of the man's blade that nicks your face. You touch your cheek with your fingers where he pared you. You feel a cut and trickles of blood.
"Who the hell are you!" you shout as you back away.
The assassin circles you silently with no emotion in his eyes. He does not reply.
"What do you want?" you ask again.
"Your life," he answers tersely.
He takes a jab step toward you. You instinctively hop backward. He maintains the distance, continuing to close in on you as you step backward to match his strides.
"Why do you want my life?" you ask.
"I am a thief. A thief of life," he says. "I take others' lives so that I may live." He continues walking toward you.
The tension mounts as he advances on you. You must act. Surrender is not an option.