The castle was falling apart.

You could see it from a mile away, the towering spires crumbling, the trees around the looming structure nothing but ash. The building was scorched from the top to the bottom, and I knew, whatever happened had to rival a nightmare.

My wings flare as I land, the rest of my squadron doing the same. “Split into two groups,” I order, “You,” I point to Carlisle, my most trusted soldier, “Take the left annexes, I’ll take the right.” They split, and I’m already making my way in.

I had no idea if there were survivors, I had no idea how long ago this place had burned to the ground, all I knew was whoever was here would have wished they’d gone too. I knew very little about the sorcerer who lived here before. I knew he was a terrible person, collecting… Oddities. But that was all we knew. All the king knew, all the rest of the world knew.

The inside of the castle was just as charred as the outside, the rocks stained a terrible black, ash from where furniture–or people–were before the fire sat mostly undisturbed, the only sign of the living being small, mouse-like footprints on the cobbled floor. “The dungeons!” Someone calls, and my head is whipped up.

I nod, “It’s a good start, nice work.” I unsheath my sword, and someone fumbles with a lantern. The passage is illuminated almost instantly, and the rows upon rows of cells stretched out for all we could see.

I stepped forward. They were all empty, some with singed corpses, some with just bones. But in the distance, I could hear one set of breathing. Steady inhales, and shaking exhales. “Someone’s here.” I whisper, “Find them.”

I rush down the corridor, and at the very end of the hall, a woman sat curled up in the corner. She was pale from lack of sunlight, and I could almost see some of her ribs. Something about the girl was hauntingly gorgeous. But most importantly, her hand.

One was burned from her fingertips to her neck, the skin was rough, the scars of her burns long healed. She looked horrified, and her cell was warmer.