Burn: The Last Witness (part 44)

*The deeper Burn travels into the Darkened Earth the more red flowers grow and grow. The son of the High Father is no longer at his side but Burn cares not. He is too fascinated by how the sky too has become a pleasant blue of peace as trees long forgotten now dott here and there across meadows so tranquil Burn feels as if he is in no danger at all. In fact, everything is at such peace the Ancient Axe slowly dwindles to barely anything, a slight twig Burn easily can carry, and that is when he finds his first silver platform. Etched everywhere with the markings of a language Burn is sure only a few can understand, a language he knows but only because it was always better to learn the tongue of a demon than to be surprised by what those creatures might say, Burn reads on and discovers a horrifying truth. The etchings reveal that each platform is to the honor and strength of Erus and his Devoted, to the few eternal who sprinkle the blood to keep the world at peace and blooming red. All the flowers he has passed may have changed the Darkened Earth into something quite peaceful but these many silver platforms are the reason behind why that peace exists and that reason is human sacrifice. Most of the silver has long been abandoned, yet left stained dark red, but Burn finally finds one recently used. A young woman, a great beauty, was horribly slashed and mutilated, the pain on her face showing how alive she was before the end came. Burn throws the hat of Mr. Bollus off his head and continues his walk. No longer does death seem something to celebrate, yet that doesn't mean Erus can escape the death that Burn is about to bring to him and his Devoted [AI Art]*