Prologue — Year 175 R.C.

  ?(The Red Culling)

  ?"All fear the monsters that lurk outside... but are they truly more terrifying than the ones within?"

  — Commander Augustus, Pyrelord of the Order of the Emberlight Vow

  ?Rain falls like sorrow, but to only calm the grieving Earth under the sky. A village now burns... the screams of pain and fear, mixed with the brutal laughter not of humankind, can be heard.

  ?The hill stands in silence, cloaked in the cloudy night sky... it is a witness to the village’s present horror. The trees stand still, but shudder due to the terror they feel.

  ?Suddenly, the hill opens an eye—a fireball gazing down. The eye then widens; the fireball spreads as if like wildfire. But this is fire wielded... by men in red and gold armor: the Knights of the Order of the Emberlight Vow.

  ?Their shields and flags bear the symbol of their faction: a sword plunged into a burning flame, visible brighter than the flames in their hands. They are here to save the men and women from the evil, with the flames in both their hands and their hearts.

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  ?The entire Seven Legions stand with their hearts and souls ablaze. The Captain and Second-in-Command before them step aside, fists clenched onto their chests and their heads low for Commander Augustus, Pyrelord of the Order of the Emberlight Vow, as he stands before all.

  ?His eyes are fixed on the burning village, his ears listening to the rampage and brutality. His armor glows brighter than all the fire around him.

  ?Augustus closes his eyes. His words come out as a whisper, yet sharp:

  "Let their bodies be purged from their sins, before their souls go to Hell".

  ?The Captain bows in acknowledgment. The Seven Legions march forward, steel and fire in hand. The Orcs glance up as they see fire, alive and marching toward them. The Orcs charge, but fall down one by one as arrows pierce their bodies.

  ?The Knights and Pikemen slash and pierce at the enemy. The Orcs fall down, unable to fight back. The Commander looks upon them, his form radiating more than the fire around him. The Seven Legions move in, clashing and burning the Orcs.

  ?The Knights tend to the injured while some carry the dead away—both human and Orc. The Commander walks down, beside him the Captain and the Second-in-Command. The three are surrounded in a box formation with four of the third-rank Knights of the Emberlight faction, known as the Knights of Ember.

  ?The Captain stays back, but the Second-in-Command, Aurelius, follows his Lord with the Knights around them.