“It’s a trap,” announced Archil and all the scouts available shared the opinion unanimously. “Very likely they left the wagons there with the prisoners still inside to lure us out. Their soldiers must be around somewhere and waiting to ambush us.”

“We checked the vicinity, nothing but sand in a radius of 500 metres. No footprints whatsoever, nor from a human or animal. As if they vanished from thin air or left long ago.”

“Should we take them with us? We can’t just leave them here.”

All the scouts contemplated their options on what to do. It was a tough decision to make. It’s an obvious trap but their mission was to save as many as they could from the clutches of the reiszer.

Should they abandon them or risk everything?

They know what will happen if they fail but simply leaving them went against their morals. A dilemma with lots of consequences.

“I can’t watch this any longer,” swore Xander and approached the scouts, slamming his hands on the conjured earth table and avowing, “It’s a trap and obviously an ambush. You didn’t find anyone because they are too far away to be scout out.”

The scouts shared a look, unable to understand Xander properly. Archil sat his eyes on Kiur, motioning him over to them as a mediator to translate for those who couldn’t speak the western languages.

“How do you know they plan to ambush us? When was the last time you were in a war?” Xander began his inquiry, not missing the chance to sound as condescending as possible.

Kiur tried to euphemize all words he possibly could.

Both scouts from Navarre and Idaris grumbled to his insolence before Jeorg started to shout. “We are in constant war you brat! Don’t you know that we have been at war with the Malkuth for the past 800 years!?”

“Not this kind of war,” Xander responded coldly, rolling his eyes. “You have been fighting a siege war for 800 years against monsters, that’s different from actual warfare.”

“Then what about the fact that your country invaded and occupied Navarre 200 years ago?” A female scout from Navarre was now shouting, fuelling the tension even further. “Do you want to say that was also not a war? How your people enslaved our dwarven and therianthrope brothers and sisters? For your information, Jeorg’s family led the resistance to free Navarre from you hellian people!”

Jeorg grumbled, not wanting this old topic of his family to be brought up.

“Close but also not,” Xander dismissed it, sweating as he was trying not to strike a nerve. He forgot how much animosity navarriens held towards his country. “Magna Hellas occupied Navarre in quick succession battles. Hellas was in decline back then and lost their grasp quickly after the revolts, you can’t call that war either as there were no battles between armies because your Sovereign submitted before it could get any worse.

“It’s not an official war between the current Hellas Kingdoms and the Reiszer Nations but there are many skirmishes and I read about them, a lot, as I grew up near the coast. Ground, naval and even aerial battles are very common, so we have a lot of records on them in our libraries. You people from the east are no strangers to fights with the magical creatures and malkuth but it’s not the same as the guerrilla tactics of the reiszer and our technology in magic.”

Asking one of the earth magic users to produce a few chess-like pieces Xander asked for he elaborated further. “There’s a detection device, it can notice movements and mana fluctuations in a wide area If it is powered via magic which it isn’t in this place, shortening the distance significantly. Did you notice how the wagons are positioned?” Xander repositioned the pieces until they formed a perfect circle. Then he pointed at the middle. “That’s where the device is located in. If someone comes in or leaves the area where the wagons are in, the device will alarm them.”

Taken aback, the Gallina politely asked. “Can’t we relocate the device? Or bring the people out and leave the wagons?”

“Definitely not,” scoffed Xander. “Its range might be short, but they will notice it and no, don’t even suggest destroying it.”

A different scout lowered her finger slowly. Retreating behind her colleagues.

“How will they attack then? We didn’t see any tracks and it’s not possible to cover them here.”

“Horses,” answered Xander and some of the scouts chuckled at this stupid remark. Rolling his eyes Xander pointed his finger on one of the black horses that pulled the wagons. “Hades Draught Horses, also called Shire. Would one of you oh so great scouts of the east lift one of their hooves?”

Irritated by his mocking confidence, one of the scouts came forth. She fell in awe standing before the tall creature. Its big nostrils, burning eyes, body covered with chitin scales for protection and fur that looked like fire on its hooves. Hesitantly she lifted the animal’s hoof and was shocked by what she found underneath it.

Or rather what she didn’t find.

“T-there are no hoofprints!”

A gasp left the mouth of the scouts and the other escapees who were listening intently. Only Cylia was not impressed by it since she grew up near horses as a slave and knew about it.

“This is just one of the horses in the west used for scouting and ambushes. There are also types who can fly and run-on water but tend to stay near coasts. It’s very likely the reiszer set this up and planned to come at us the moment we set off the alarm. Knowing you won’t leave them behind because they know you and they will use your softness,” Xander paused. grumbling. “Like Hellas did to conquer Navarre.”

“You can’t be serious,” Jeorg pulled on his beard nervously “Is there no way to go around it? Surely there must be something.”

“Not that I know about. It’s either abandoning the prisoners or being prepared to fight off the ambush. Since we are at a clear disadvantage it’s not in our favour to fight.”

“Are you suggesting we should leave them behind to the mercy of the reiszer?”

“Y-” Kiur placed a hand on Xander’s shoulder, followed by Cylia. Suggesting that he stopped talking.

“I know what you want to suggest but don’t say it,” Kiur motioned to Xander to look at the faces of them all. Angry scouts and distraught escapees. Xander swallowed his words, unable to suggest an alternative.

“You are right,” Archil entered the discussion as he had been silent all this time, listening to Xander’s words intently. “We might have an advantage in the desert but not in this small place with our numbers against theirs.”

“You can’t suggest leaving them behind, can you?” The scouts protested vehemently hearing the reluctance of Archil to save them. “We cannot leave without them.”

“We won't,” Archil answered firmly as the captain of their group. “We have the priority to bring back as many as we can and we will, but we won’t risk the lives of those already with us. Split the groups and head south-east, we will catch up on you when we succeed.”

And that was the ultimate plan of Kiur’s brother. Archil would lead the rescue mission with a handful of scouts while everyone else would continue their way to Navarre.

It was the most sensible plan. Trying to save as many as possible but it didn’t sit right for Kiur. “Go home little brother, be safe, I will see you when everything is done.”

It didn’t sit right with him at all.

“I’m surprised that you intend to stay,” commented Cylia when she found out Xander supported the plan and volunteered. “I took you for someone who would do everything to get out of danger no matter what.”

“You are not wrong,” admitted Xander, not in the mood for jokes or banter. “They asked me to stay in case they encountered something unpredictable. Navarriens asking a Wizard from Hellas for support. If I told this in the academy, they wouldn’t believe it but I guess it’s true what they say about easterners, all soft-hearted idiots.”

“They really are, not like us but I like that. Good luck, get home safely” Cylia bumped her fist at Xander’s chest who coughed from the hit but returned the gesture though on her shoulder.

“I hope to never see you again, but good luck to you too,” his eyes then turned to Kiur who was watching his brother going away, their goodbye a short one without Kiur saying a single word. “Hey buddy, it hasn’t been long but thank you for sticking with me.”

A blank stare followed Kiur as Xander bumped his fist on Kiur’s shoulder and waved his goodbye. It might be the last time Kiur would interact with Xander, but he couldn’t bring himself to utter a single word.

Nothing, there was simply nothing for him to say and Xander was gone.

He felt like his emotions were shut off and his body moved on autopilot. Their caravan departed further and further from their spot, Kiur’s eyes would sometimes look back and he would start to feel conflicted.

“I don’t want to leave things unresolved, I have so much to say,” Kiur suddenly witnessed his vision contorted. There it was again, his shadow right in front of him and becoming the frontwoman of the scene.

Kiur saw the outlines of another shadow, standing before his own delusion but she was moving away while his delusion remained still. Unmoving and filled with frustration his delusion clutched the dark outlines of her clothes.

An array of emotions transmitted into Kiur’s heart, making him relieve what his delusion felt at that moment. It felt like a premonition but also a past vision, Kiur couldn’t tell.

He observed how two other familiar figures appeared and placed a gentle yet firm hand on his delusion’s shoulder as she wept. “No, I can’t do this.”

The world stopped turning for Kiur, his eyes locked on the back of the young teenager who was barely older than him. She was sharing his emotions with him but there was one emotion he didn’t feel for a long time. Rather, he never saw it in his delusion before.

It was the sense of confidence and determination as she brushed off the hands of the adults that held her in place, running to reach someone before this person was gone.

The vision ended and all Kiur could see was where he needed to run at as well.

“Kiur, you will be left behind if you stay here.”

“I know,” Kiur turned around to Cylia with tears of confidence in his eyes. “But this is something I need to do.”

Bolting away as well, Kiur ran down the dunes. Clumsily he was losing his balance as he swayed back and forth in his sprint before beginning to glide his way down the path, moving forward like his delusion did.

Using the shawl around his body Kiur wiped away the tears that were flowing just a minute earlier. He was running to the place where the action was unfolding but stopped when a sandstorm rose.

Archil had formed a protective dome by using his gale and the sand around him. Kiur heard a strange form of singing in the sky and drawing closer. Projectiles came crashing down and exploding on the rotating dome of sand and wind.

“Watch out!” Kiur was tackled to the ground by Cylia jumped at him with ricocheted projectiles whizzing past their heads

Sand was erupting left and right. Exploding and covering them deeply in sand and gravel from where the missiles blasted through. “What was that?” yelled Kiur against the ringing in his ears.

“Atgeir: Hewing Magic Strikes,” answered Cylia, wiping the sand off from her face and ears. “I’ve only heard about them but have never seen one up close. My mother told me when you hear singing in the sky then you drop and cover your head, waiting out the worst.”

Just as she said they heard another singing like sound coming. They covered their heads with another strike exploding much closer to the position of the scouts. Next came the thundering of hooves filling the air. Reiszer forces were drawing closer and closer, rumbling and shaking the earth to its very core with their violent advance.

Pressing their bodies harder on the ground the two of them tried to conceal themselves but couldn’t help but shake when the neighing and shouting drew closer.

Cylia tried to hold Kiur’s body in place, but she was shaking from fear. When Kiur saw his brother create three sets of sandstorms he feared what would happen next, so he held on to Cylia tighter.

“Hold on to me closer,” said Kiur, waiting as Archil combined all three storms into one massive cyclone towering above the desert. The soldiers stopped in their tracks as they saw the heavens descending upon them, swallowing them whole.

Kiur and Cylia got caught in the blast and got thrown through the sky only to land in proximity of the scouts.

“What was this madness?” they heard Xander’s clear shouting. “Not even some of the most advanced mages in our academy can perform magic of this magnitude and speed without a chant!”

“That’s the difference between wizards from Hellas and mages from the East,” one of the scouts laughed before getting reprimanded by Archil.

“It’s not over yet, take your position and-” Archil stopped mid-sentence when Xander tripped over Cylia’s sand covered body and revealed her and Kiur to the rest.

“What are you doing here!” yelled Xander, pointing his finger at Cylia who kicked his shin for stepping on her by accident.

“I came back because I didn’t want to leave on this note. I want to help here and-”

“Kiur you idiot!” Archil was shouting, his voice hissing like that of an animal as he interrupted his brother. “Do you have any idea of what you two returned to? You have no control over your own magic and should head back home where it is safe-”

Protesting about his protective brother Kiur pushed him back. Surprising anyone who witnessed Archil’s display of magic a moment ago how one could act like that towards him. “I don’t care about being safe! I will not be leaving on such a bad note with you or the rest. I will stay and help!”

“Stop being selfish and go back as long as the caravan is still nearby!”

“I don’t care, I will be selfish, you can’t stop me!”

“Kiur, you,” Archil held back a guttural growl as he towered over Kiur. He never saw his brother so defying, so rebellious. It irritated him but dismissed it upon noticing the tingle in the air.

His ears pointed out of his hair and his instincts kicked in from an encroaching danger. It came from the wall of dust where his attack wiped out the reiszer cavalry but that was a miscalculation.

The dust cloud parted as a flashing crimson crescent cut its way towards them. Aimed at Kiur and the rest. Archil drew his sword to block it. The blade’s steel was too weak to handle the force and shattered on impact and cut into Archil’s shoulder.

With a loud cry he was flung back into one of the dunes, bleeding profoundly from his wound.

“Brother!” Kiur yelled after Archil, trying to run towards him but stopped because of the sheer intensity that pressured the air around them.

Coming from the dust cloud they heard the voice of a woman, speaking with a cold and calculated bloodlust they never witnessed before. “Reiszer, emerge and attack,” she announced with open arms before more than two dozen more reiszer emerged from below Kiur and the scouts. Surrounding their targets from every direction.