1 Chapter 1 - At the stake

Surrounded by an angry crowd of villagers, Nestor was experiencing both the last and worst moment of his life.

As a monk and firm believer of the church, he could never have imagined that such a cruel fate awaited him.

'If only I could have withheld my thirst for knowledge with the teaches of the church alone, yet the secrets of nature tempted me. My inner curiosity was too much to handle, and I ended up becoming a sinner.'

Nestor's story wasn't an adventurous one, he led quite the monotonous one. He was born as an orphan in the medieval city of Florence during the first years of the sixteenth century. At the time, the devastating epidemic that afflicted the European populace from about 1314 to 1402 was about to end.

Unfortunately for him, his parents died because of it, and a few months after his birth he already remained alone. For none intended to take care of him. In such chaotic times, not even his relatives weren't kind enough to shoulder one more mouth to feed.

Luckily so, still in his state of infancy, Nestor had been welcomed through the merciful rows of the church.

Thus one of the most hard-working and pious believers of the church came to be.

Since he had memory, Nestor found himself confined inside the walls of the Shaded valley monastery. A pure soul he was, dedicating himself to studying the teachings of the bible and transcribing ancient volumes.

Moreover, in consideration of his origins, Nestor's more precious memories were those in which he helped the poor. Through the donations and taxes received by the church, he loved to reinvest such riches to help those in dire need. Not only that but the monks of the church were also known for their medical knowledge. Which even if often incorrect or driven by superstition, was still better than nothing.

Needless to say, after the great plague, many families among the commoners required assistance. Thus even the secluded monks had to open the doors of the monastery and offer their hands.

Nestor had been tasked with a rural village situated a few kilometers south of the monastery. To proselytize and help the poor if needed, with the help of the local church he planned to stay there a few days, before going back to the monastery.

However yesterday night a strange phenomenon occurred, his precious medallion started to mysteriously tremble, and the vibrations made Nestor suddenly awake.

In truth, this wasn't the first time his precious keepsake manifested such unbelievable behavior. Sometimes it emitted an ominous green light or it even moved on its own.

The silver medallion roughly depicted two knights crossing their swords over an arched gate as if acting the role of gatekeepers.

This was the only memento left behind by his mother, thus he was sentimentally attached to the antique. At first, he simply kept it closer to his chest, to remind himself that once someone held motherly love for him. Yet year after year, Nestor had attached it to a golden chain transforming it into a necklace, always carrying it around as a lucky charm.

Only after he witnessed the strange happenings that surrounded the object Nestor started to hide it in his room, rarely taking the medallion even for his most regular strolls out in the monastery's garden.

He understood that the origin of such an object could only be two, in consideration of the ways of the church. It either was a relic left behind by the Christian god or a cursed item of blasphemous origins.

Yet he couldn't report his discoveries to the abbot, as he was sure that the medallion was bound to get confiscated. Even if he held absolute loyalty to the church, Nestor wasn't ready to be separated from his only possession, the sole memento left behind by his mother.

Thus he tried to keep it a secret. Until tonight, that is.

The medallion held near his chest started to violently tremble. As he suddenly woke up and held the golden chain with his right hand, thus suspending the keepsake in mid-air.

'It's spinning! As I thought, what could the meaning behind this be...'

While thinking this, Nestor subconsciously moved the medallion near his eyes, inundating his vision with the sickly green light that now the object started to emit.

Suddenly, inside the little white church of the village, mad screams of agony reverberated through the silent walls, depicting important parts of religious history.

The mad ravage kept on, as Nestor kept shouting out everything he could. As if he was trying to liberate himself of whatever was that he saw.

A few minutes later, when everything quieted down, the local priest finally found enough strength within himself to open the little door leading inside Nestor's private room.

"Esteemed Inquisitor, the sinner is inside the room. As you have just witnessed I believe the situation is self-explanatory, the medallion must be a cursed object left by the devil."

With a grin on his face, Don Daniel excitedly made way for the tall man that was trailing behind him just a few seconds ago. The man was unusually high for the time, as he was almost two meters tall with a muscular physique. He wore a black suit decorated with religious patterns and hung a short sword on his belt.

He was already savoring the little show awaiting him tomorrow.

" I will proceed as instructed by the

bishop. Do not worry, there is no such thing as preferential treatment while dealing with sinners."

Saying so, he made gestured in annoyance to the fat priest as if telling him to scram. Even if corrupted by a cursed relic, Nestor was still a pious believer. It was sad that such a commendable character had to be disposed of, yet he was still going to execute the orders he received.

Nonetheless, he didn't approve of this Don Daniel one bit.

'I should report his evident lack of humanity to the bishop...'

Thinking so, he picked up the still unconscious Nestor, concluding the first step of his assignment.

The next day at noon, Nestor woke up as his whole body was in pain, he had yet to open his eyes when his wrists and feet were particularly hurting. As if they had been tightly tied with a rope.

The scorching sun of July kept on prickling his skin that now was starting to ache.

'What happened to me? Wasn't I sleeping inside the church... Argh!?'

As his memories started to resurge inside of his head, a spitting headache suddenly invaded his mind.

" Attention everyone! Today I have invited you, to assist this important celebration. We are united to punish the evil out of our lands! To banish them from the world of the living, to send this sinner to his place of belonging! Hell! "

Daniel's fingers trembled with excitement as the crowd of villagers attentively listened to his speech, already armed to the teeth with stones.

Just a few, that had been previously helped by Nestor, had come here simply to witness his execution.

'I have always dreamt of such a moment! The crowd, the heat, The fire! '

Nestor finally managed to recover from the pain, only to find himself hanged on a cross, over a pile of dried wood, only waiting to be lit.

Judging by the situation and his returned memories he roughly guessed what happened. Then he noticed the inquisitor standing near the pile with an already lit torch in his right hand, ready to proceed with the execution.

'They knew it! Otherwise, there is no way an inquisitor was stationed nearby. I didn't even notice him during my stay in the village.

I also doubt they chanced upon this village and accused me without trial or questioning me at all.

Th-then they must have known even before my departure!'

" God be our witness today, for we are getting rid of this heretic who disguised himself as a pious believer for years!

Sir, you can start with the execution! Our devout followers, vent your anger onto this blasphemous creature. It's because of them that the plague afflicted our world! That that famines still plague our land!

Now it's time to make them pay!"

Then the incited crowd of angry villagers shouted with joy, throwing rocks at the acclaimed source of evil. Soon after the pile of wood had been ignited, burning the poor hanged Nestor.

Yet in the chaos and pain that invaded his body, with a shocked expression, Nestor noticed the presence of his only belonging, his golden necklace sticking to his neck.