Holocaust

            Azrael grimaced when he saw the holocaust.  As much as he liked to pretend he was impervious to emotion, even this cursory examination struck a chord.  The entire hamlet had been demolished.  Bodies were strewn among the shattered building.  It was entirely feasible that goblins had done this.  They were almost the quintessence of evil – no act was beneath a goblin.
            Azrael's interest in scrutinizing the wreckage more loosely was already tepid, but Nire had sent him out as a scout.  That was enough of an impetus to make him squelch his aversion to the carnage and walk forward.  He did not want to put his traveling companions in jeopardy, if something other than goblins had done this.  For a moment, his mind retrogressed nostalgically to a time before there was The Band.  It had just been him, Nire, and Jander, traveling the open road at night.  Those were the days!
            Azrael paused to meticulously examine a pair of tracks in the dirt, in the middle of a ring of blood.  Nire often extolled his adroitness at being able to discern tracks out of nothing.  These were definitely goblin.
            Nire watched Azrael from afar, glad to see that he wasn't totally cold-hearted.  She could see that his belligerent attitude was gone for now, as he turned around and saw her.  She walked amicably toward her friend.
            "Well, Az?  What is it?  What pervert did this?"  Nire felt anything but benevolent to whatever could do something like this.  Her voice betrayed her amicable face.
            "Goblins."  His eyes spoke of rage.  "Those little f—"
            "Don't say it!"  Nire interrupted him quickly.  "No swearing! This is a paper to be passed in at school!"
            Azrael sighed.  "You ruin all the fun."
            "Yes, I do."  Nire closed her eyes and cast out her senses, searching for any living being.  There was none, besides Azrael.  Then she tried for anything undead.  Nothing.  She mentally called the rest of her companions to come and join her and Azrael.  She tried to keep up her stoic façade, but her duplicitous eyes betrayed her as tears welled in them.  "I swear, I'm going to hunt down those b—"
            "No swearing!" Azrael reminded her quickly.
            "I am going to hunt down whomever and whatever did this…"

*Fin*