The sound of the alarm bells was a piercing symphony of panic, echoing through all of District Fire like a deadly song. The heartbeat of the city quickened. Everywhere, people ran indoors, searching for shelter, hoping that the tragedy of ten years ago would not repeat itself. Eli’s gaze hardened, and there was only one thought in his mind: Zack! I have to find him!

  Eli ran, gasping and determined, towards the WDF building. He dodged crowds rushing past him in blind panic, their faces twisted with fear. Chaos reigned. When he finally reached the WDF building, he looked up in disbelief at the imposing wall. There was no glow, no heat, no crackling roar. The fire was not lit. Why isn’t the fire on? he thought, his worry turning into a cold, ominous feeling.

  The same panic howling through the streets of District Fire was also present at the top of the wall. Zack, standing at the edge, watched as Gina flew down like a white phantom, disappearing into the darkness below. The realisation struck him like a hammer. She was going to draw the demons away. She was sacrificing herself for the people. Filled with a mix of admiration and terror, he screamed her name. “GINA!!!”

  Right behind him appeared Ronny. A sickening, devilish grin played around the man’s lips, his eyes gleaming unnaturally in the moonlight. Zack had no time to react. He felt a hard blow to his back. A kick. He was shoved forwards and fell over the edge, straight into the darkness.

  A black blur shot rapidly over the wall. Ronny, startled by the unexpected movement, turned around, but the blur was already gone. He had no idea where it had come from or where it had gone—or if there had been anything there at all. He dismissed it. At that moment, Commander William stormed up the stairs, two figures in gleaming armour at his heels.

  William’s face was taut and unreadable. His eyes were fixed on Ronny. “Ronny! What is the status?” he demanded, his voice deep and commanding.

  “I rang the bell,” Ronny replied quickly, his grin vanishing, replaced by a show of concern. “Gina, reckless as ever, went into the darkness to draw the demons away. But that new boy, Zack Miller, went after her!”

  William’s expression shifted to frustration. “We need to retrieve him! Unfortunately, I’ve sent Benny on a mission…” He gestured to the two figures behind him. “This is Rico, Vice-Captain of the Royal Guard, and Celia, a member of the Royal Guard. They came to warn us about possible sabotage of the wall by someone from within the Royal Guard. They are on our side!”

  The young woman, Celia, stepped forward, her gaze focused. “Vice-Captain, may I?”

  Rico gave a short nod, and in the blink of an eye, Celia vanished over the edge of the wall into the darkness below. Ronny stared after her, his face a mask of disbelief.

  Rico looked at William. “She is my best student, William. She will bring your people back safely. For now, we must get the fire lit!”

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  William gave Rico a brief nod. “Alright, Rico. I’m trusting you. You and I will hold back the demons with my soldiers.” He turned to Ronny, his voice booming over the panic. “Ronny! Go to the control room and activate the Hellfire Wall manually!”

  Zack landed hard in the mud, but the fall itself was not what paralysed him. He got to his feet, his body completely unharmed, but his heart was pounding in his throat. He stood alone, on the wrong side of the wall, surrounded by darkness. The faint moonlight was his only guide in the hell he had tried to avoid for so long.

  Once his eyes adjusted to the darkness, he swallowed hard. Everywhere he looked lay human bones, white and macabre in the moonlight. Hundreds—perhaps thousands—scattered across the ground like silent witnesses to a tragic past. Further ahead, he spotted fresh footprints in the sand. He recognised their shape, and the realisation that they belonged to Gina was enough to make his heart race. Should I call out to her? he wondered, his voice caught in his throat. But wouldn’t that draw the demons to me? He already knew the answer.

  Among the bones, he noticed something lying in the dirt: an old, rusted sword. He picked it up; the metal felt icy cold and unnaturally heavy in his hands. He decided to follow the footprints—the only trail that gave him hope. He was tense, fully alert. Every sound, every rustle of a branch set his nerves on edge. But each time, it was only the wind howling through the trees.

  After a few hundred metres, Zack reached the edge of a forest. There, in the shadows beneath the trees, the footprints vanished. He heard a rustling sound. Zack froze, holding his breath. The branches parted, and from the undergrowth stepped a dark, malevolent entity. It was pitch black, with round, glowing red eyes that pierced the darkness. A low, distorted growl rumbled from its throat as it advanced towards Zack with slow, unnatural movements.

  Zack knew what he had to do. He raised the rusted sword above his head and swung it with all his strength at the demon’s neck. The blade cut through the air with a grinding hiss, but only sank halfway into the neck before getting stuck. It had no effect. The demon growled louder and continued to advance. Zack’s nerves and adrenaline took over. He staggered backwards and fell into the mud. The sword was still lodged in the demon, which was now closing in. He could only watch as the monster approached him. Is this the end? he thought.

  The dark shape was less than half a metre away from Zack. Its red eyes burned, its claws ready to tear him apart—until a flash of steel sliced through the air. Someone appeared suddenly in front of him. A sword plunged into the demon’s heart again and again. The demon, stunned and defeated, collapsed to the ground and dissolved into a cloud of pitch-black smoke.

  Zack, his breath catching in his chest, saw the back of his saviour and recognised the silhouette instantly. Long black hair reaching down to her lower back, a sleek, agile build. It was the young woman he had seen earlier that day in the WDF courtyard. He might not have seen her clearly then, but his body had not forgotten her.

  She turned around. Her face was calm, but her eyes—dark and deep—glittered with adrenaline. She was a beautiful woman around Zack’s age, yet her posture radiated the unshakable resolve of a seasoned warrior. She held out her hand and helped him to his feet. “Celia,” she said. “Brave of you to go after Gina, but what’s the point if you can’t even fight?”

  Zack felt a storm of emotions. He was relieved to be alive, but at the same time deeply humiliated. Brave? he thought bitterly. I didn’t choose to go—I was pushed… And not able to fight? I can fight just fine, I just don’t have a proper weapon…

  They looked back and saw the wall erupt into flames in an instant. A bright, blazing glow lit up the night, but it also brought the shadows of the surrounding trees to life.

  “Tsk… we can’t go back now,” Celia said calmly. “We’ll have to wait until sunrise.”

  Her words hit Zack like cold water. The whole night out here, on this side of the wall? The thought made his stomach tighten. Yet at the same time, he felt a small sense of relief. He was no longer alone.

  He straightened his back. “I’m Zack Miller,” he said. “And if I have a proper weapon, I’m not so useless!”

  Celia smiled faintly and drew a dagger from her sheath. “Here, take my spare,” she said. “But you do know the neck isn’t how you kill them, right? You need to pierce the heart or the brain five times to finish them.”

  Zack looked up in astonishment. He had never heard this before, and his frustration shifted into awe. He accepted the dagger with determination. This was the answer he had been searching for all this time. Together, with Celia at his side, they walked into the dark forest.

  Celia glanced at Zack. “Let’s find Gina. The bigger our group, the better our chances of survival.”

  What would YOU have done in Zack’s place?