1

Sitting and listening to the squeals of Children running in the field Farmer Hurch had given over to the recreation of those in his care, Silo yearned to return to his own childhood. A time not far distant. To be carefree. To be able to live with the manual labour which filled his daily life. “Off with you Sym. I’m wantin’ none of your antics today.” ’s legs and walked off, only to come back and repeat the cycle, always walking in the same direction. When that had no effect he clawed at Silo’s leg and then ran off. Silo followed, his intention being to teach the irritating cat a lesson once and for all, Symudiad, for that was the tom cat’s name, was forever plaguing both Silo and his fellow labourers. Running after the cat Silo just caught occasional glimpses of his tail.

He was jolted out of his reverie by the feeling of a warm body near his ankle, he twitched his leg, hoping it would shoo the ginger cat away.

Today however the cat was insistent, he repeatedly wound himself around Silo

Then he heard a scream.

A voice he recognised. The voice of his wife, Caesara.

It came from the direction Symudiad had been trying to get him to go. He picked up his speed thoughts of the cat gone. Running into the yard Silo felt the heat and heard the crackle and bangs before he glanced up to see the flames picking up speed as they engulfed the farmhouse where his wife worked as a maid.

He could see her, hanging out of a window on the third floor of the house. As he raced towards the house a screech hit his ears. Suddenly he himself felt very dizzy, as though he were falling, he closed his eyes for a second. On the insides if his eyelids he saw the building he had known his entire life. A large and sprawling timber construction which was only a single storey in some places but reached as many as five at others. The place where he had grown up and which he now called home. The thing that struck him most was that he didn’t envision it as he had just seen it, swallowed by fire, but as it had always been, in it’s entirety and completely flame-free.

Silo doubled over and retched. There was a cool breeze blowing onto his face, from the direction of the house. That doesn’t make sense he thought. He looked up once more and what he saw was the most bewildering thing he had ever seen, even more bewildering than the cow who should have died whilst calving last year, or the crop which had grown perfectly this summer despite the drought which was killing both people and plants for miles around.

The house was no longer on fire.

“Silo!” Caesara screeched, “get me out of this damned cursed house.”

He walked up to the building, still reeling from what he had witnessed, although he was not sure he had. You caused it. That wasn’t his own voice, what was it doing in his head?! Walking in through the trade entrance to the large stone kitchen Silo said to Mrs Hurch, “Sorry Missus. I think my wife needs a break. We’ll both be knockin’ off early.”

She simply nodded and watched as his huge body sauntered up her stairs, and returned moments later with his wife slung over his shoulder. She appeared to have fainted as he walked out of the house and down the lane to the single room cottage they called home. It was not a large room, and it was mostly filled by the bed pushed against the far wall. There was a single window trimmed prettily with a floral curtain above the sink, next to the door. A dresser held all their cutlery, crockery, treasures and clothes and the single piece of furniture taking up the remaining floor space was a small but heavy wooden table.

Silo laid Caesara onto the patchwork quilt which covered their bed and shook her slightly. “Wife, I need you to wake up.”

Caesara stirred. Her eyes opened and she said with venom “Gods above only know how much I hate you sometimes. Knockin’ me out and carryin’ me out o’ there like some raider takin’ his won wife.”

“I’m sorry but I had to. It’s important.”

“What’s that important. They’ll be talking about it for months. There’ll be slander.” Caesara was a very beautiful woman thought Silo. Her hair was curly and blonde, shoulder length, her eyes were a unique shade of violet and freckles spotted her cheeks. “Once you put the fire out there was nothing’more to worry about.”

“What’re you talking about Caesara. I din’t put the fire out. I imagined the house without fire and then there was no fire. But I din’t put it out.”

“You mean like in the stories?”

“Yeah”

“The ones ‘bout the Gods”

“Yeah”

“You’re a God.”

“No! I Can't Be!”

Thud Thud Thud. “Answer the door m’love. We’ll talk later.”

Silo walked to the door slowly.

Thud.

A feeling of dread in the base of his stomach.

Thud.

He reached for the door and opened it. A hand was raised ready to thump the door. The hand was large and covered in scars, concentrated around the knuckle area. Attached to the hand was an equally large arm which displayed oversized muscles, even through the white shirt the man was wearing. His chest was equally muscle bound, so much so that his head appeared to sit directly on his shoulders. His nose was crooked, and his mouth which leered from the centre of an overgrown beard was missing more than one of it’s front teeth. The mans overgrown head of hair was also in need of maintenance.

“Mr Elvina”, the mouth leered in a grating voice which did nothing more than fill Silo with terror.