Before I start, some of you might have noticed that this is partially a repost of a previously existing story. That was also written by me, but I can no longer access that account, so I've redone this under a different name. The first two chapters are almost exactly the same, and the third chapter is new. I hope you enjoy.
Fighting Demons
Chapter 1: A Just War
This is done through the eyes of an anonymous Karsite soldier, before and after the Firestorm at the end of 'Brightly Burning'. I'm just doing my portrayal of what I think a normal Karsite would think fighting a war he knows little about, but basing everything on faith and fear. This is my first attempt at writing, so any and all feedback is appreciated. I am rating this for safety, there will be character death in this story and I do not think a child should read such things, but there will be no gore and all violence will be implied and not explicit. Any reviews or criticism is welcome. If you all think it's any good, I'll write the part about after the battle.
Word count: 716
Sometimes, I wonder what we are fighting for, what we really want out of this war. I know it's wrong to doubt them, I know I should just accept that our cause is just, but still I find myself questioning, yearning for a truth I can never reach. They say that our enemy is evil, that their powers are evil, but I wonder, can someone truly be born evil? I've seen the Fires of Purification and though I know they are Vkandis' will, I still feel fear. Maybe the Son of the Sun decided that being feared is better than being among the Demon-lovers.
The Priest-Mages are the Voices of Vkandis and they shall lead us to glory, but still I fear them. They are protecting us from the Demon-Riders of Valdemar, but I do not feel safe. This is, perhaps an inappropriate time to be thinking such thoughts, marching towards a war against Valdemar. I am a member of Vkandis' Holy Army and I should not be thinking like a heretic. I know that I am not perfect, but I shall not follow in the footsteps of the Great Traitor, who abandoned Vkandis when he discovered his own witch-powers. We shall be facing him today, now that he too is a Demon-Rider.
I hope they know that we shall avenge this betrayal; indeed our Dark Servants have already unleashed their fury upon the Demon-lovers. For the past few days, they have been using their Holy power against the very people that Vkandis has condemned. I have heard tales of them; we lock the doors at night in case the fury of the Dark Servants is unleashed upon us. I hope we do not face the Demon-Rider who used his witch-powers to kill our Dark Servants. Would it be heresy to be relieved that I no longer must fear the night? We have been sleeping easier since then, though our fear of the Demon-Riders has increased.
I feel that I shouldn't be here, I am a mere farmer embroiled in a war I do not understand. I know what my father would say; he would say that I think too much. He thought that my incessant reading had rotted my mind for, as he would say, "What use would a farmer have for words?" However, I persisted and now I rue the day I did, for that, I am sure, is the root of my dissentious thoughts.
We're marching still, to a pass where we shall fight the Demon-lovers and with the blessing of Vkandis, we shall surely prevail. They're on the other side of this hill, I know; just a bit further and I can see what we will soon face. I'll satisfy my curiosity while marching towards possible death, a morbid thought, I know. I hope the gold-garbed men in front of me do not know my thought for though Vkandis may be forgiving, his servants are not. Ah, another thought that stinks of sacrilege.
I can see them now, the ones we'll be fighting soon. They don't look that different from a distance; just soldiers preparing for a battle, just men waiting for death. They don't seem evil, but they must be, after all they believe in the Demon-Horses, those they call Companions. I can see a Demon-Rider now, dressed in that unmistakable white. He doesn't seem to be that evil; he looks to be an ordinary man, but maybe I cannot tell, maybe I must be closer to see his evil.
Valdemar is a country headed by Demon-Riders, that is all I know. They are evil and they must be stopped. The Priests of Vkandis will lead us into vanquishing this great evil and I will be in the ranks of the just. The Demon-Horses must be evil and their riders equally so for how can a good person have such unnatural powers? I'm doing it again, questioning what I shouldn't, but I cannot seem to help it. I've been told countless times that I think too much, that I question when I should believe. I am a Karsite and proud to be, I know we will prevail because we must. Ironic, that this is my last thought before the pass, and it seems the entire world, erupts in flames.