You may have read my shortened version of A Time for Peace, but wait until you read the real story of the demons and humans of medieval France. Enter into the Peace series to find this tragic tale of love and war.

Time for Peace chapter 3 - The Child

"Hey you! Stop!" Three men were chasing after a teenage boy, one with wide, glittering eyes. In the boy's mouth was a piece of bread, the rest of the baguette was in his hand. The boy was fast, much faster than the bakers. Jumping a fence, Louis ran into the woods just outside the village.

When he got a good deal of distance from the village, he sat down on a rock to rest, tearing apart the bread with his teeth. Out of breath, he started laughing. "Man, those guys are stupid. I stole the baguette from right under their noses and they didn't notice until I was already out the door." Laughing one more time, he sighed, running a hand through his red-orange hair. Around his neck hung a chain that held a small locket. In the locket was a picture of his mother, who had been killed in a demon raid when he was only three years old. Managing to escape with two other people, Louis was on his own ever since.

"Crap," he cursed as he heard the sound of dogs barking. The village had gotten serious. He didn't blame them. What with the war going on, people needed all the money they could get so that they could buy more weapons from blacksmiths. But Louis wasn't about to pay up. He was saving his money to get himself a sword of his own. He wanted to kill the demon that had killed his mother. The memory was burned into his mind, especially the face of the monster that had done it, even though the boy had only been three at the time.

He jumped up from the rock and took off running again. He had managed to finish the bread, but outrunning the dogs would be hard. But if he could get them off his trail... That's it! There was a narrow river just up ahead. He would cross it, getting rid of the scent. He also knew that these particular dogs couldn't swim. Louis had seen the villagers trying to teach them, but they were afraid of the water. Which was lucky for the boy.

As he reached the water's edge, he ran out as far as he could go before lowering himself into the chilly waters and swimming to the other side. When he reached the opposite bank, he sat on the rocks that jutted out over the water and laughed as the dogs stopped at the edge, barking over at the boy. Sticking his tounge out at the furious villagers, Louis jumped up and took off running again.