The Cursed Avenger
-Prologue-
Berkhamsted, England: 1549
Berkhamsted is a medium-sized market town located in the small Bulbourne Valley in the Chiltern Hills, dozens of miles northwest from the bouncing London. The people of Berkhamsted were modest, even if it was a marketing town and there were many newcomers who came and went as they pleased.
The past decade has been hard for the town, as the governing officials have been leading a raid against those who preform witchcraft, creating rifts between families and a loss of trust between friends. The leader of this crusade is the town's Pastor Sterling.
Today, after long years of the horrible infestation in the town, was the marking of the end of the witch hunt for Pastor Sterling and his followers. In the middle of town square, there were six women, all different ages, bound to stakes while the townspeople gathered to see their impending deaths.
A young woman stood next to the pastor, standing stiffly whilst looking on at the scene ahead with her icy blue eyes.
"Are you sure these people are guilty, Father? What if-"
The older man cut her off, "Edith. Are you doubting my judgment?"
The dark haired woman quickly turned to look at her father, eyes widening. "No, sir. I do not doubt you, please mark that."
He nodded before turning his piercing eyes to his daughter. "You must be careful, Edith. One might believe a nerve has been touched. You would not want to share their fate, hmm?"
Edith nodded to her father, understanding his threat. In these times any behavior of sympathy towards the accused meant you were accused as well. And as the daughter of the pastor, Edith knew she was being watched at all times. If she were to act out of ordinary, everyone would know.
And then she would be burned.
The councilmen walked out onto the platform, standing there with proud smiles on their faces. The people of Berkhamsted clapped proudly, and Edith couldn't keep the smile off of her face when her father walked up to join them.
The Head Councilman Thompson raised his hand, causing everyone to immediately go silent. The silence was deafening as the echo of the last clap rang through town square between the buildings. It was haunting, and the weight of the situation weighed on Edith's shoulders.
"Today is the day where we rid of the evil that has been prowling our streets! Today is the day we end the pain and suffering of the treacherous witches and all they have done to us and our humble lives! We shall end this here, now, and immediately!"
His booming voice brought cheers throughout the townspeople, who started chanting.
"Burn them! Burn them! Burn them!"
Edith looked around at the people who were starting to resemble animals, and gulped. She knew what was about to happen, but didn't agree with it. She knew half the women who were about to be murdered, and knew that they were as normal as she was.
Unfortunately her father and his followers thought differently, and the women were now subject to death.
Edith looked on as her father started to give a prayer to the women who were now struggling at the fire torches that the militia were now marching towards them.
"Please help me!" one woman cried out, tears streaming down her face.
"I am innocent!"
"God help us!"
Five of the six women were struggling on the restraints, screaming for help and crying out to God to have mercy. But there was one woman who stared into the flames with a small smile on her face. Her eyes were dark, almost black, which caused Edith to gasp.
As if she heard her gasp of shock, the woman snapped her eyes to Edith's, and frowned. The woman turned to Edith's father, and then looked back at her with recognition covering her features.
"Do any of you have last words?" Pastor Sterling asked, once he finished his prayer.
The women were either too enveloped in their own sobs to answer, or they were too busy screaming in pure bloodied terror. But the one woman with the dark eyes continued to look at Edith with a smile, and spoke, her voice sounding too dark to be human.
"I curse thee Edith Sterling for all eternity," she spoke, and everyone's eyes turned towards Edith, who suddenly couldn't feel her feet. God, help me.
A green smoke seeped from the witch's very being, and started towards the frightened Pastor's daughter. There was no escape.
"Stop this!" The pastor cried out, looking between the witch and his daughter in unmasked horror. "She is pure!"
The witch cackled, living up to her name. "I curse thee to life, for that in all your strife you will never find death, so you shall never have a final breath."
As the green smoke started to surround Edith, she faintly heard her father cry out for the witch to be burned, and the sound of the women screaming in pain, which slowly faded to nothing.
The smoke quickly dissipated, and as soon as Edith regained feeling back in her legs she collapsed to her knees, tears flowing from her eyes as she looked up at her father who wore a grim look on his face, and she realized there was nothing he could do for her now.
She was going to be burned.
Her father ordered it himself, and she was quickly tied to a stake by him, who looked to almost be scolding her for being so rash and getting herself cursed. Edith knew he felt no remorse, and that made the tears fall faster.
The pastor menacingly called for the guards to burn his daughter, and what happened next was something no one would be able to explain.
As soon as the flames scorched the young woman, she could feel the pain, she could feel the fire burning her skin, but visibly nothing happened. Her skin was as perfect as it had always been, but her clothes burned away, leaving her naked in front of the entire town.
People were gasping in shock, crying out in fear, or collapsing in a dead faint. And it wasn't because of Edith standing in front of them, bare from head to toe. It was because she was standing in front of them with her heart still beating in her chest.
And with a shred of horror, Edith knew her life was never going to be the same.