Strangers

The barrage of fireballs stopped as the sky opened up. Even the flame-light creatures paused their attack to see what was going on. The landscape finally revealed itself, uncovered from the gloomy darkness. It was as bare and desolate as one would assume, though even here there were signs of life.

Darkened mud, thorny plants, and many little creatures skittered around to find shelter in the shadows of anything they could. White-bark trees stood separately, each dead or dying, and each worst than the last. At the tops of each of tree was a smoldering ember, slightly smoking. All of them like candles that had been blown out.

As for the fire-like entities that dwelled at their tops, they had abandoned their resting places. Each of the fire lights burned hotter, enlivened after the sunlight gleamed through. It was a sign of freedom from the fog, and now that all the shadows were clear, it was easy to see their targets.