He is surrounded by corpses, the stench of death is omnipresent, everything around him is a field of death. Alone, the man raises his eyes to the sky, he would like to cry but is unable to, he would like to scream but cannot afford to, so only silence he allows himself.

Around him the dead whisper to him, remind him, yes, he is the Last Flame, and he promised them, standing he would stand, standing he would conquer, and on his shoulders, he would carry them, he remembers the promises he gave, he remembers the battles he experienced, he would like to rest, he would like to lay down his arms but he cannot because he promised. He is the Last Flame, he carries the torch that lights the darkness, he is the hope of his people and all are his people, he is the word given and his word is the law.

He is the Last Flame, and he is alone.

*

She is surrounded by the desert, the air is dry and burning, the heat stifling and the ground unstable. The woman walks, staring at the horizon, the air is still, the sunlight burns her back and blinds her, yet she walks staring at the horizon.

The desert is still, no movement moves the sand, only she moves, yes, she is the Divine Wind, she promised herself, she will never stop, nothing will stop her, and in her wake, the wind will awaken. She is the Divine Wind, she brings change, she is the freedom to move forward, and only she moves forward, it is her choice, nothing can restrain her.

She is the Divine Wind, and she is free.

*

The sound of chains resounds in the darkness, it is cold, icy, and in the silence, only the chains can be heard, in this darkness, no light can be seen, it is an abyss that swallows everything, an abyss where nothing can to live and that everyone avoids, or almost. The man observes two lights, painful for him but he cannot detach his gaze from them.

The abyss is silent, only the chains can be heard and the breathing of a silent man watching, slowly a smile spreads on his face, yes, he is the Laughing Shadow, and he looks with silent eyes at two lights in the darkness, he reaches out his hands to catch them both, pulls on those chains, in his right hand he can almost touch the flame, the last one, it tastes like hope, in his left hand he can almost feel the wind, and he swears he has the taste of freedom, he can almost touch them. He is the Laughing Shadow, at the sound of his chains the chaos awakens, in his shadow men hide, he attracts the curious and he smiles at them.

He is the Laughing Shadow, so he laughs.

***

In a dark room, a being covered in shadow sits on a throne of darkness. Before him is nothingness and then, a terrible voice resounds:

- You are mad, this is forbidden! You are breaking rules that existed before you even existed! You may have convinced the Seconds that you were doing it for their followers but I am not fooled! Stop it!

The last word spoken echoed through the void, a word of such power that where there was nothing something grew.

The being on his throne of shadow made a gesture and what had begun to grow was extinguished, nothingness reigned again.

The silence lasted.

And then the terrible voice sounded again, this time in a whisper full of rage and venom.

- You don't know what you are causing, the First Ones will react! I will react!

And then silence again. Silence and the shadowy being sitting on his throne of darkness.