"What are you talking about? I was chased here by beasts!" Yunkef cried, backing up towards the bookshelf blocking the door, but Zealous moved too quickly for him, and the way was blocked.

"Precisely! You were led here, to me, by her children. I know she's touched you, we're alike! Brothers!" Zealous's smile was manic, but his eyes seemed to gain some understanding. "I can help you find your way home. Settlement 41, you long to see it again."

"How do you know about that?"

"I can hear her, our Lady, I hear her whispers. He wishes to see home again, she says." Zealous nodded, mostly to himself. "I will offer you a deal then. Help me with one thing, just one simple thing, and I will make sure you can get home again."

"How can I trust you?"

"We are brothers in the darkness, Yunkef. And in the darkness, all things are possible." Zealous smiled and offered his hand. "How about it?"

Yunkef swallowed dryly, his gaze going from Zealous's manic eyes to his outstretched hand. The door was behind the maddened warrior, and it was blocked by the bookshelf. Looking quickly around the room, Yunkef realized he had no other choice. The cave home had no other exits or windows, just walls of solid stone. Taking a deep breath, Yunkef took Zealous's hand and shook it.

"We have a deal."

"Wonderful." Zealous's smile was too wide for Yunkef's liking.

The Citadel had an alarm system similar to Yunkef's Settlement, wherein a loud bell would ring to signal the time. He couldn't hear if the bell was rung at the crow of a glowbird, but he woke up to the sound and similar routine well enough anyway. He woke in the infirmary, where Pious had allowed him to stay and sleep where she could keep an eye on him and his injuries. The bandage wraps were replaced, healing poultice reapplied, and splints adjusted. His shattered wrists were feeling better, though they were still quite sore and twinged with pain when he attempted to test his range of movement. After declaring Yunkef fit to wander, Pious left him alone to explore the Citadel again.

No word from Righteous came regarding a trade path or other method to get Yunkef to Settlement 41, so he opted to observe what else happens at the Citadel. Yunkef had not made it three houses away from Pious's infirmary when Zealous approached him and put an arm around his shoulders.

"Hello, brother." He kept his voice low as they walked. "Are you ready?"

"No." Yunkef squeaked.

"That's too bad. It will happen at the next bell, and you will be ready then, won't you? Good man." Zealous clapped Yunkef on the back and walked away, leaving the boy to sweat anxiously at the prospect of what was asked of him.

Taking another deep breath, Yunkef looked towards the shining beacon within the center of the Citadel, squinting at its terrible light, and began the walk towards the tower.

A grandly constructed building stood at the base of the tower, hidden on its other side from the market and main thoroughfare. It bore large windows adorned with stained glass depicting the walls of the Citadel and the beacon atop its tower, and the circle with rays motif that seemed to be on everything in the Citadel. People in white robes came in and out of the building, all with somber expressions and some with gifts. Attendants carrying long poles with torches at the end busied themselves around the exterior of the building, making sure that its many lanterns and torches remained lit at all times. The attendants wore bright yellow sashes across their chests, in contrast to the guards and warriors that had them around their waists. This building seemed to be purposefully out of the way and set in a place of honor at the base of the tower. Yunkef didn't see it earlier when he had a talk with Righteous. Curiosity getting the better of him, he approached the building and its high, arched doors.

Inside the building were wooden pews arranged in rows, and an ornately decorated wooden altar towards the back wall. Prominently placed on the altar, on top of finely woven mats and rugs, was a small bronze brazier with a steadily burning flame. All around the building were lanterns that banished any and all shadows, but this one flame seemed to be of immense importance.

Yunkef looked around and saw robed supplicants kneeling at the pews with their hands clasped in prayer. Feeling an awkward tension in the air, he excused himself and moved to the side walls where he would be out of the way of those coming in or leaving. He watched them for a while, not understanding the significance of the flame or the altar.

"Hello, child." A soft, kind voice said. One of the robed attendants with a yellow sash had approached him. "Are you well?"

"Um..." Yunkef shrugged and held up his bandaged hands. "As well as I could be, I guess."

"Are you lost?"

"Sort of. I'm sorry, this is my first time in the Citadel. I don't understand what's going on here."

"Ah." The attendant nodded, smiling. She was a slight woman, much shorter than Yunkef. She folded her hands daintily. "This is the Church of the Eternal Flame."

"Church?" Yunkef replied slowly. "I'm sorry, I don't understand."

The attendant looked at him patiently and nodded. "Are you from a Settlement?"

"Yes, Settlement 41. I understand it's very far from here."

"I believe it is. This is a church, a place of worship. Here we pray, repent, and hold mass to worship and honor the Eternal Flame, that it may banish the darkness that surrounds us, the darkness within us, and that it may be the beacon that guides us through our lives."

"I see..." Yunkef looked over to the small brazier and the flame it holds. "Is that the Eternal Flame? That brazier on the table?"

"That? Oh, no, no." she smiled. "It is only a small part of the Flame, more of a representation than anything. The true Eternal Flame is unknowable, a being lost to the void of time. We honor the Eternal Flame in other ways, such as by having the great beacon of the Citadel burning constantly, as eternal as we mere mortals can make it."

"If that isn't the Eternal Flame, and the beacon isn't it either, then..." Yunkef's brow furrowed in thought. "What is it then?"

The attendant looked all too happy to explain. She gestured towards the wall of the church and the murals painted on it. They depicted the circle with rays high above what seemed to be a vast farm with fields of tall stalks that bear a golden elongated fruit. "According to the scattered records from the old world, the Eternal Flame was a sphere that traveled high above. It banished the darkness with its light so that the people could see their land for miles around. Plants flourished and grew strong under its light and the harvest was bountiful." she sighed wistfully. "Unfortunately the Eternal Flame was lost to us as the old world crumbled. But we have faith that one day, it will return to us. Then the darkness that plagues the world will be banished once and for all!"

Yunkef took in every detail of the church's mural. The circle with rays motif must be their depiction of the Eternal Flame then, he mused, and the people of the Citadel incorporate it into everything from the maps, the pottery, and textiles in the market, and emblazoned on the lanterns. "So people come here to pray for the Eternal Flame to return?"

"Yes, to meditate upon its light, and to speak to the priests regarding what troubles them. So that their spirit may rest easier."

Yunkef thought about it for a moment. "May I speak to one of the priests?"

"Oh?" The attendant looked at him. "Your spirit is troubled and you seek guidance?"

"Yes, something like that." Yunkef squinted back at the altar and its brazier. The beacon tower - the Citadel's stand-in for the Eternal Flame, was just beyond the back wall. "I have quite a lot of troubles."

"I understand. Please follow me, I will bring a priest to you shortly."

Yunkef followed the attendant through the church, past the pews of robed people who muttered their prayers to the flame. He was led towards a section of the church that jutted out from the side wall, and was lined with covered booths. The booths had a section dividing two seating areas, and the attendant instructed Yunkef to sit on one side. After he did so, she covered the seating section with a cloth. There was yet another lantern within the booth, and it hung too closely to Yunkef's face for comfort. He kept his eyes screwed as closed as he could till he heard the sound of footsteps outside, and the creak of someone sitting in the seating area opposite him.

"Yes, my child?" An old, gravelly voice said, coming through the mesh separation screen between the two seating areas. The man on the other side wheezed. "I was told you requested guidance from a Priest of the Eternal Flame? Tell me your concerns, child, that your spirit would be guided to the light."

"Yes, um... Thank you." Yunkef said slowly, trying to figure out where to start. From the top would be as good a place to start as any. "I'm from a Settlement very far away. Righteous told me himself, and no traveling merchants pass that way, it’s too far."

The priest behind the screen hemmed and hawed as Yunkef spoke.

"I got chased here by beasts and am the only survivor of my Settlement's hunting party. And this is all so strange to me. The lanterns and how bright it is...it hurts my eyes."

"Ah yes, this is because you have yet to be brought towards the resplendent light of the Eternal Flame. Your eyes will adjust to the burning of the light just as your heart is cleansed with the fires of the Eternal Flame." the priest nodded sagely.

"Oh, can you please explain a few things to me about the Eternal Flame?" Yunkef asked. "I had not heard about it before I came to the Citadel, you see, and I'm still learning."

"Ah, yes, go ahead and ask the questions your heart burns to know the answers to, child! It is always my pleasure to spread the teachings of the Church to those who would lend an open ear."

"Thank you, sir." Yunkef paused to gather his thoughts. "The attendant I met outside said that the fire on the altar is not the Eternal Flame?"

"Yes, that is correct. The Eternal Flame is lost to us as it was when the old world fell. But with our unending faith, we believe that it will return to us in time and banish the accursed darkness that plagues our world and keeps its people apart, easy prey for its horrible roaming creatures. The flame upon the Church's altar is a representation of that which we long for."

"What about the beacon? When I first heard about the Eternal Flame, I thought that the beacon might be it because it never goes out."

"Ah, the beacon is likewise a representation of the Eternal Flame, you see. It guides those souls lost in the darkness, and banishes the void and the dangers that lurk within it."

Yunkef fell silent for a moment. He wrung his hands and tried to keep down the lump in his throat. "What happens if the Citadel loses the beacon? What happens if it goes out?"

The priest let out such a scandalized gasp that Yunkef flinched when he heard it, and immediately regretted asking the question. “I’m sorry, I’m just curious. It is such a prominent feature of the Citadel, and I wonder, on a purely theoretical basis, what would happen if it was gone.”

"The beacon? Gone?" The priest spluttered in indignation. "The beacon must never be allowed to go out! Never! Without the beacon, the Citadel itself will collapse into chaos! The smaller lanterns that we have, no matter how many of them there are, will never be enough to keep the darkness at bay! Utter destruction will befall the Citadel, its citizens will be thrown into a panic!" Yunkef could hear the spittle flying from the priest's lips. "The light that guides those of the Citadel, as well as travelers from faraway, must never be extinguished! In honor of the Eternal Flame, the beacon of the Citadel must be eternal as well!"

Yunkef winced at the priest's tirade but risked asking one last question. "If the beacon falls, what will happen with the beasts?"

The priest fell silent at the thought. When he spoke again, his voice was a shaky whisper. "The beasts may very well descend upon the Citadel, charging through the gates and slaughtering our guards. They fear the righteous fury of the Eternal Flame, and the beacon's brilliant light keeps them at bay. Without it... I shudder to think of the carnage the beasts could wreak if that were to happen, boy. Best not to ponder it at all, and turn your heart instead to the Eternal Light. The Light is Eternal, it burns brightly to guide our weary souls out of the wretched darkness."

Yunkef fell silent too. The thought of the many-limbed beasts, loping on their strangely long, disjointed legs, scaling the tall stone walls of the Citadel, or charging straight through the thick heavy doors had Yunkef shuddering as if cold. He tried to keep it from his mind. "Thank you, sir. I hope the beacon won't fall."

The priest laughed, finally finding something he could laugh at. "Thankfully, that will not happen! The beacon tower is the most secure of the Citadel's various constructions. It cannot possibly be taken down, not by siege or by beasts."

Yunkef nodded along grimly. The beacon tower will withstand siege and beasts without a doubt, but he doubted it could stand against guile and sabotage.

Yunkef thanked the priest for his time and left the booth. More people had been filing into the Church, taking up seats in the rows of pews and quietly speaking among themselves. By the altar, another priest and several attendants were preparing ritual artifacts and other equipment for a ritual. Excusing himself, Yunkef quickly and quietly kept to the side wall and left the Church to their mass.

As he emerged from the building, he made eye contact with a man with long dark hair and a horrible scar across his face. Zealous stared at him unblinking, and Yunkef balked. The darkness-touched warrior approached Yunkef quickly, putting an arm around his shoulders and leading him away from the Church.

"So you've seen the Church of the Eternal Flame, have you?" Zealous asked in a low voice. Yunkef could only nod nervously. "They are wrong, you know. Those priests and attendants, they spew nonsense to fools all too eager to believe in lies. There is no Eternal Flame, there never has been and there never will be."

Yunkef chanced a glance at Zealous. "What do you mean?"

Zealous looked back at him, madness shining in his eyes. "There is no eternally burning light, boy. There is only the darkness of our lady and her children that skitter through the void."

The scarred warrior grabbed Yunkef by both shoulders and turned him so that he face the tower. He pointed up at the beacon where it stood as the highest point in the entire Citadel complex. The light from it was so bright that Yunkef had to screw his eyes shut. "We will bring down that tower of lies, boy, and introduce them all to our wonderful lady. Get ready."

Zealous's breath was hot and rancid on Yunkef's nape, and suddenly the weight of his hands on Yunkef's shoulders was gone. Opening his eyes, Zealous had left, and while Yunkef felt relieved that he was gone, the warrior's absence left behind a sinking feeling of terrible dread for what was to come.

In Zealous's ramblings, he didn't really give instructions to Yunkef on what to do. If anything, he never told Yunkef of his plans, or what the boy's part might be. Even if he had given Yunkef a concrete set of instructions, Yunkef was resolute in his decision to not do it. Looking around the Citadel and at all the people leading interesting yet normal lives within the brightly lit fortress down, Yunkef found them to be just like the people at his own Settlement. They just wanted to live as best as they could in the darkened world, finding hope and faith with their Eternal Flame, and even providing shelter for wayward travelers like himself. As Yunkef watched more people stream into the Church of Eternal Flame as if summoned by the ringing of its bell, he knew that he would be devastated if anything happened to the people here. Righteous, though gruff and uptight with regards to the rules, had welcomed him despite the circumstances. And Pious had nursed him back to health!

Thinking about Pious, Yunkef looked down at his hands. They were still in their splints and bandaged tightly, but when Yunkef wiggled his fingers and tested his wrists, he felt nothing. No pain, no discomfort; it was as if his hands were never broken. He started to pick at the splints to remove them.

"Hey, boy!" one of the guards standing by the entrance to the main beacon tower called to him. Before Yunkef could answer, the guard was already walking over. She had a look of concern on her face. "Are you alright?"

"Yes? Why wouldn’t I be?" Yunkef said slowly.

"I saw your hands, they look bad. Do you need to go to the infirmary again? Are they bothering you?"

"Oh, the opposite actually. I think..." Yunkef slowly held up his hands. "I think they're healed? I just need some help getting the splints off."

"All good now are they?" The guard smiled, sitting beside Yunkef. She leaned her spear down on the bench. "Give them here. No pain?"

"No, none at all! Pious's methods are amazing! I could have sworn they were completely broken."

"Really? I always knew Pious has always been specializing in health and has always been our best healer, bar none, but to be able to heal shattered hands so quickly?" The guard chuckled in disbelief. "Never could go wrong with her."

“Yeah…” Yunkef trailed off, staring at his hand. The guard continued to carefully unwrap his bandages, and the guard’s words rung uneasily in his mind. There was no pain, and they were completely broken just the last waking cycle. When he ran screaming into the cave wall, they hung uselessly from the wrist and stung with pain that brought tears to his eyes whenever he moved. And yet now, there was absolutely nothing? Not even the most skilled healer should be able to heal an injury that grave that quickly.

“There! All done. Try moving your hands.” The guard smiled, satisfied with how this stranger’s injury was looking.

“It’s like nothing happened.” Yunkef held up his hands in awe, opening and closing his fists, wiggling his fingers, and rotating his wrists. “This is amazing!” he said, though inwardly he doubted.

“Well, it looks like everything is alright now.” The guard picked up her spear again. “Whatever happened to give you that injury, try not to let it happen again, alright?”

“Yes, alright.” Yunkef smiled, looking up at the guard. Behind the guard’s head, up in the tower, one of the guards stationed at the window of the tower was yanked violently back and disappeared. “Huh?”

“Hmm? Do you have a question?” The guard saw Yunkef’s puzzled look.

The boy stared into the space behind the guard’s head, and saw another guard, now higher up the tower, likewise yanked back out of sight. “Um… No, I’m alright. I think.”

“If you’re sure about that, I’ll head back to my post.” The guard smiled. “While you’re here, you might as well attend mass at the Church. It should be starting around now.”

Yunkef nodded, briefly looking away from the tower windows to wave at the helpful guard as she returned to her post. The guard suspected nothing at all, even as her comrades were being quietly and quickly taken out of commission just behind her.

By the time it happened a third time, near the top of the tower, Yunkef was on his feet and looking up. The look on his face alarmed the female guard. “Hey! Are you alright?” she asked.

“The beacon!” Yunkef cried, pointing up to the top of the tower.

The beacon’s light had started to flicker. What was once a strong, steady glow of flame was now dancing unsurely in its great brazier. The mirrors that had been set around the brazier to angle and spread the flame’s light were smashed, one by one, with a resounding crash and the tinkle of falling glass. A loud, harsh hiss was heard from the top of the tower, as a stream of thick steam started to rise from it.

The light was beginning to fade.

The guard screamed and raised the alarm. All around Yunkef, shouts erupted and people were thrown into a frenzy of activity. The guards stationed at the walls abandoned their posts to rush towards the tower. Righteous, who was patrolling around another part of the Citadel, charged towards the beacon tower with his blade at the ready. The churchgoers attending the mass filed out, murmuring in confusion and concern until they saw the dimming light all around them.