He stood at a crossroads. He turned in one direction, and found his small battalion fleeing from the spot, leaving him to the coming evil. Turning the other way he found a dark horizon, and knew that shortly beyond it lay a myriad amount of soldiers, each one branded with the stink of malice. And he lay at the crossroads.The full moon's glow appeared out of the murk of clouds above, as if to warn of coming danger. The lone warrior trembled in the frosty winter air, and let out a deep breath, then watching the mist disintegrate into the air. Sounds were beginning to flow up from beyond that dark horizon. The evil one and his war force were coming. He turned slowly and mounted his mighty black stallion, still trembling with fear and cold. He reluctantly started it at a slow pace toward the edge of the cliff that marked the path of flight. He stared down at the thing that lay at the bottom of that cliff, marveling in its wonder.A small town lay there. It was a simple town, much like any other, but he was suddenly moved by it. It lay at the bottom of the valley, made up of a few buildings and a few families. The people of the town went about their business each day, most likely in the same manner every time. Each person probably knew every other person, and everyone was everyone's neighbor. They never hurt anything, and they probably never would.And now the evil one lay only a few paces away and the poor, ignorant villagers had no idea. No, they only knew their farms and the growing seasons, and each other. And they hadn't done a thing. No, they were innocents in long a bloody war, and they did not deserve their inevitable fate.The man considered this, and was surprised to find a tear in his eye. He squinted and looked down at the town once more, finding it a work of art. The stars above appeared bright orbs of light, protecting the tiny town of innocents below. The heavens above strived to reach down to that place, to...
