They all returned to the castle with Marcel’s men as temporary prisoners. They were locked in the jail under the barracks and sent a special mission of men to hunt down Marcel. They planned on following up by the docks near Edegear to find out where Marcel sent the women, but the ebony army approached that night, and that morning before the sun rose, the fight began.

Kari sat atop her horse, and Greg sat next to her on his. She gripped the reins stiffly, which reflected her emotions about the battle they were about to delve into. She was not a cog in the machine; she was at the very front and in charge of leading everyone behind her. She held up her sword, and they cheered. She started to gallop towards the enemy lines. The wind was icy, and the sky blended with the land. The cold air nipped at any vulnerable skin as if it was waging its own war. Blood quickly covered the thin layer of snow. The sweat mixed with icy temperature caused any exposed hair to freeze. The inflexible pieces of Kari’s hair scraped gently against her cheek. The sky rumbled like the ground below, warning the coming icy rain. The flighty drops slipped onto Kari’s cheeks.

Shiny and crystallized. Kari’s eyelashes, a victim of the droplets, began to freeze. As they whirled their weapons past each body that approached, the air started to warm, and the ice turned into simple rain. The snow only moments before was a pure tapestry that covered the grounds. It Transformed. The sterile white covering was pounded into the ground and discolored with dirt and blood. A horrid slushy mixture coated their boots, though much better a fate than those lying in it. The wind, though not persistent, did occasionally blow. Kari’s hair was whipped back away from her face as an enemy began to charge her. She swung her sword and came down onto her shield.

Kari used leverage to shift the ebony woman’s weight and got her to fall off her horse.

The horn blew, which signaled the shift change. Robert didn’t send every soldier out at once; it was a clever strategy because that made their army look more petite, and they could get breaks when the enemy usually didn’t.

Kari launched into her second round of fighting; she felt refreshed as the cold air hit her face with a splash of icy rain flecks. She smiled. Her men rode to her sides again, and they continued the fight. The night was long and tedious, but they did not give up. Kari slipped away into the forest as all of the enemy troops within the borders were occupied. She was taking precautions so she would go unnoticed.

She only attracted one eye; Greg saw her shadowed body slip past the tree line; he fought himself back out of the front lines and followed her. Kari rode slowly so that she wouldn’t be heard. Greg entered the threshold of the forest where he saw Kari enter, but he could not see her.

He saw her climbing up a large portion of rock several moments later. The cliff the rock was part of jetted out over close to where the fight was going on.

She carefully navigated the uneven rocky surface. She climbed until she breached the cliff.

She stood above everyone and looked around.

The horizon was much clearer at her level, and the air seemed purer compared to the putrid smell of death below. Greg man began to follow her slowly and meticulously. He pulled himself inch by inch. Closer and closer to the top. She ran to the far ledge and placed her hand on her sword.

The battle was below her, enormous, powerful, and mesmerizing. She watched the men and women fight valiantly. She was fixating on one person at a time, creating the illusion of time slowing. Each motion was slow and meticulous. The battle cries muffled the cries of pain, the last actions of the honorable. She pulled herself up a bit and reached behind her chest plate. Once again, she held it. The metal, slender weapon. It was simple and almost innocent of its terrorizing ability to conduct power. She lowered her torso back to the ground. She felt a tremble, a very minute vibration from the movement of rocks. She quickly spun around in a seated position to see the man charging her with his bloody sword dancing in the midday glow.

She jumped to her feet, but before she could act beyond that, he shoved her. She flew back, just barely catching herself a few feet below. She swung with the momentum from falling and tried to pull herself back up. He did not allow her. Her body dangled from the cliff, a sight available for the eyes of most. Kari worried that they would see her weaknesses in this position, but as her comrades were drawn to the spectacle, within seconds, the man was killed via arrows, and she was able to make it back to the top. Though just as she had been helped, the enemy did use the advantage, leaving their arrow in her left arm. She could feel the arrow’s presence but nothing past that. She let her left arm dangle pressure free at her side and raised her right. Before anyone could get another shot in, she summoned a powerful stream of fire that funneled out of her wand and circled the front lines.

The fire rose higher and higher. The enemy pushed forward, and her men and women retreated. She tried to separate them. She looked at the troops still filing in. Like a horrid incinerator, she demolished the back enemy lines. The troops shrunk to a more manageable size. She could have quickly sent a terrible firestorm, but it could not be controlled. Her options were to let the fight wear on or destroy everyone. She knelt down, staring at everyone below her. She could end all the suffering, and all the enemy could be destroyed, but she then thought about the future. What if there are more battles, more attacks. She continued to watch them. She seemed to have been forgotten.

“Kari,” a voice shouted. She sat up quickly. “Hello? She called. Greg jumped onto the platform and ran to her. Are you alright? He asked. I have an arrow in my arm but other than that.” She said. He told her to lie down, and he cut the arrow, so the body was still in her arm, but it didn’t stick out further than her skin. “That’s much lighter.” She said,

Greg carried her down the mountain and then placed her on his horse. "We are going to loop around the back way so we can return to the castle safely." "Why the castle?" she asked. "I have to go back into the fray." she said, pointing at the battlefield. Greg smiled to himself. "Kari you are injured; at least let me bind it properly." She agreed. They reached the back patio and hopped in through the back door. Jeplin was resting on the couch by the fire when he saw Greg carrying Kari in the room. "what's wrong?" He asked. He jumped up. "Nothing horrible," she said. "She got shot Greg retorted.

Greg carried her to the couch and laid her down. Greg authoritatively ripped her shirt sleeve, giving them better access to where the arrow was. Jeplin fetched Thim, and he ging Roy used forceps to pull the arrow out. Kari gritted her teeth and screamed. Greg grabbed her hand and held her. His grip was very tight, and it relaxed her. Jeplin leaned over and poured water over the wound. He placed his hands on her and wiped the water around, then wrapped her arm. She didn’t look while he worked on it because she knew it would haunt her. “Looks good,” Jeplin said. She looked down and saw it was clean and bandages. “Wow, that was easy.” She said I’m going to eat, then head back to the battle. She shook her arm. “Wow, it feels great?” She said Jeplin got up and fetched her a cup of tea. She thanked him, and he winked at her and then left.

“I’ll have someone bring you food,” Greg said. “I’ll be back in a moment.”

The bag she usually carried around was sitting on the table. She opened it up and noticed the journal was there.

o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o

Tikki and I walked out of the store after buying a journal, this journal. I wasn’t sure how chronicling my year would go; I haven’t done much of anything exciting. I figured I would start with my first time leading men into battle, then go from there.

The following day after breakfast, Tikki showed me how to dress for the heat. She borrowed a basic tunic and light pants from her brother and gave them to me. The tunic was like a long-sleeved dress that reached down to my knees; it was very delicate and allowed maximum movement. It was straightforward and didn’t have any embellishments. The other piece of clothing was a pair of white pants. They were stretchy and thin and contoured my legs. The final touch was the scarf I bought earlier. I was not sure about the logic behind covering skin to keep cool, but it turned out I was wrong.

We ventured out into the streets. The sun was unhindered, and oddly I felt slightly cooler in my new clothes. Tikki and I talked until she suggested a location she wanted to show me. She told me it wasn’t much further from the city, but it would take a bit without a horse. I offered mine, and we left. She sat behind me and held on very tightly. She never mentioned it, but I was sure she hadn’t been on a horse before.

Tikki led me to a hidden paradise off the beaten path that only locals knew. It was an oasis hidden in a random thicket of trees. It was a bit of a trek to get there, too, so it wasn’t typically occupied by many people. Not many locals had horses; they only housed visitors’ horses, and the heat was too fierce to keep horses safely all year long.

We passed through the dense wall of trees, and I was stunned by the view. The trees held in a vast microcosm, and in the middle was a large lake. Tikki took off her scarf and shoes and jumped in the water. I sat under a tree at the bank while she swam.

The oasis was free from the pure pain of the direct sunlight. The temperature was still high, but the shade made a huge difference. “Come on in.” She said you’re so silly to be sitting in the heat when there is nice cool water.” I looked over. She was smiling excitedly, and it was apparent I had to give in.

I took off my veil, shoes, and shirt and joined her. The water was cold, a delightful surprise. Tikki typically had something covering her face, so I got to look at her face up close. Her skin was dark, and her eyes were a beautiful shade of green.

I leaped out and plunged back into the water to splash her. Tikki screamed. When I returned to the surface, she laughed.

Two other children walking by heard her scream and ran over to see if everything was alright. “Hello? One said, entering the dance circle of trees. Hello? I answered. The two people appeared.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” one Nobi said. “I heard a scream and wanted to make sure everyone was fine.”. Tikki smiled. “That is very nice of you; want to join us? “they smiled and nodded.

Tikki and I got to know them, they were around the same age as us. Jesp was seventeen years old, and they had dark bluish-purple hair. Tikki realized she had seen them before. She didn't recognize them at first because they had changed their hair. They usually had light blonde hair, but they used something to dye it blue. "How did you get that color?" Tikki articulated, pointing at Jesps hair. They smiled. "blueberries and flour, then I covered my hair in it and put a scarf around my head for a day to protect it, then I washed it out." "Wow," Tikki said. "That is so innovative. Too bad my hair is so dark, or I would try that as soon as we got back home." "I figured I'm already the odd one out because of my blonde hair; I might as well make it more interesting." They laughed. The other person was a girl named Caroline. She had dark hair and dark eyes. She seemed to be the sort of person that preferred to listen rather than talk, so she left Jeep drone on and on while she smiled and listened.

They swam and ate, then swam for a bit more before they decided to part ways. They said goodbye to Caroline and Jesp and walked in different directions. The heat was more tolerable after a day in an icy cold pool of water. George didn't understand why. He expected the heat to be even more insufferable than before after feeling what being cold felt like again, but it felt relaxed. George usually went to his bedroom for the night pretty early, but that night he didn't. He sat in the main common area of the inn and wrote in his book. He was so focused on his thoughts that he didn't notice any people entering and leaving the room. He sat by the door as the sun completely set. He was always told never to venture into a desert at night. That night he was very curious to see what it was like in a desert at night. It was his writing topic for the day. He wanted to know what really went on at night in a desert. He opened the front door and realized that it was a bit cooler. It wasn't by much, but it was still noticeable. He decided to sit on the porch.

o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o o

Kari was interrupted when Greg returned. They ate together. When they finished, they returned to the fight.

Greg’s eyes were commanding, but he was kind; he was intimidating when he held a sword, but she knew she could trust him. He was an honorable knight. They raced back into the battle until night fell when the enemy began to retreat.

Cheers broke out across the land. The men and women found themselves collapsing wherever they could. The relief and exhaustion of battle was overwhelming. By the middle of the night, many had joined together to help the injured and gather food. The celebration began with the first spark of flame that made the ceremonial pyre.

Kari went straight to the bathhouse in the catacombs. The water was always hot because it was funneled from a hot spring in the mountain and there was a large fire always burning in the center of the vent system. She slipped off all but her undergarments and eased herself into the soothing water.

She shimmed down, so all of her body below her neck was covered by the water. She laid back, and the door opened before she could fall asleep. She sat up and saw it was Greg, Jeplin, Robert, and a few other soldiers. She was relieved that half of them were also women. They all sat around the inside perimeter. She had hoped Greg would sit near her, but one of the women did. She could help that she desired to be physically close to him. Despite the inconvenience, she spent a lot of time talking to three women with who she seemed to get along well.

Most of them did stay long, so about an hour later, the group began to leave, everyone except Greg. He seemed to have fallen asleep. She wasn’t sure whether to wake him or not. She wandered over to him. She hoped the waves she made waking over would startle him, but they didn’t. She got closer and whispered his name. She gently placed her hand on his cheek. Greg positioned his hand on hers as he awoke. “I was just making sure you were alright.” He smiled. He removed his hand from hers. Some of her hair was dangling in front of her face, and he raised his hand and gently swept it towards her ears. They both felt something between them, Kari wanted to kiss him, but she didn’t want to be forward. She walked to his side and sat on the bench next to him.

He started to talk, and they both turned to look at eachother. Their faces were an inch apart. They couldn’t stop themselves, and their lips met.