A few days later we arrived at Desvulp, where we were greeted by the citizens all wanting to get a sight of the princess. The four of us, took strong positions to make sure they did not get too close. Zerda were very much like their animal cousins, the fennec fox, with their big ears and sandy coloured fur. There were also other desert loving Animalia here, but the Zerda clearly outnumbered them, perhaps they were here to seek shelter from the attacks in the desert we’d already heard about.

Those gladded in armour of silver and fine fabrics, stepped forward. “I am glad you arrived safely, please follow me, the elder is waiting for you.”

“We brought the supplies you requested,” informed Tigra.

“Bring them with us,” he acknowledged and began walking towards the heart of the city.

The city was comprised of houses made from condensed sand, the roads laid out with flowering cactus, trees and colourful bushes, this place was filled with more life than I expected. The main source for this life was the fountain at the heart of the city, large in size, made from white stone, carved with images of Fang’s battles here and how he brought forth water for them.

I soon realised that a percentage of the buildings had heavy damage to them, almost like something big had climbed all over it, a giant scorpion perhaps. Scorlax had been plaguing them, I just needed to wait for him to show himself and end the terror he was causing these Animalia, but the Zerda seemed less terrified of their attackers than those of Dagan.

The elder was waiting outside a grand building, painted in vibrant colours, with a tall tower a beacon within the city.

“Welcome, your highness.” The elder came forward, reaching out his hands to take Tigra’s.

“It is a pleasure to finally meet you Elder Audun.” She bowed her head slightly in respect.

“I apologise the king could not meet you, he is busy with other affairs, but I thank thee on his behalf for coming at such short notice, to honour our city with your presence.”

“That is quite alright, but I need to see him before I leave, I wanted to rebuild our connections, not just with my father, but with me as future queen.” Tigra spoke with confidence and a radiance that demanded respect. This was a side of Tigra I hadn’t really seen before, she may have not wanted to be queen, but she still understood her responsibility to the Animalia of Cathopia and those of the surrounding land.

“We are just happy we were finally able to get into contact with Cathopia,” he smiled wearily. “Please come in.” He held on to one of Tigra’s hands and we headed inside the building.

The room was long with a finely decorated carpet down the middle, benches lining both sides, this was most probably where the citizens came together. I glanced around, noticing cracks in the walls, perhaps even a shelter.

“I am sorry, that I could not have come sooner,” began Tigra.

“No need to worry your highness, you are here now,” he responded. “As you saw by our small city, we have been hit by hard times against the Scorpiones and scorpions which grow more aggressive each day, some bigger than others, such a strange change in them.”

“Please relax. I am determined to deal with the situation. I bring my Guardians, finest warriors of all Cathopia, one who is a warrior of Fang,” informed Tigra. “We will help repair some of the damages and whatever else you need, including the dealing of your attack problems.”

“Again, thank you, your highness.” He took a step back and bowed. “This world will be in great hands with you as our future queen.” She blushed at his comment. “I will now show you to your rooms.”

We left the building to another, not too far from the fountain, could see it from the windows. The place had a huge open lobby area, with a fancy staircase you’d mainly see in mansions, even had golden carpet going up, centred, going along all the corridors. The walls covered in art of animals and sacred animals, even Animalia portraits and stands with ceramics placed on top, from vases to big jugs.

The rooms were spacious, with large beds, the double rooms had them on opposite sides of the room, with a large decorative carpet in the middle, and colourful furniture placed upon it. The large open window allowed a fair breeze to enter the room, cooling it down from the increasing temperatures outside. The single rooms were just as well decorated. This place felt like it was built for the higher classes.

Tigra had already chosen her room, quickly broadcasting that I would be staying in there with her. “Fang will stay in my room.”

“What?” They were all shocked, just as I was.

“There are two beds, it only makes sense that my Guardian captain stay in there too,” she said, as if it made complete sense, but no one seemed to argue with her decision. “Plus, I want my Guardian’s close if there is an attack.”

“Of course, your highness.” I bowed obediently, pushing down what emotions I had against it, couldn’t go against her orders as was the curse of being a Guardian, I wasn’t allowed to say no. “Anything you command.”

“You have your warriors well trained,” commented the elder.

“The king and queen, only seek out the best Guardians to guard me,” she responded. “I would like to start work on helping your fine city.”

“I understand, this way.” He led the way again, back outside where Tigra rushed to hand out the supplies we had brought, some of the Zerda looked to be in poor condition, more likely those homed in the poorer parts of the city.

I watched as Tigra happily interacted with each one, smiling with a light so bright. I took a deep breath, I held such admiration for her, this was where she shined the most.

“Anything you want us to do?” asked Zack.

“Go take a nap, we’ll be taking turns to guard Tigra, I want everyone present if something happens,” I responded.

“Fang.” Tigra glanced back at me.

“Yes, your highness.” I stepped forward.

“I want you to join Link and go to this child’s home, to repair damage done there,” ordered Tigra.

“Of course.” I had thought that the hard work would have begun tomorrow after we had got some rest, but obviously Tigra did not want to wait a single second of helping the Zerda. “Link, with me, Dash keep an eye on her highness.” They simply nodded to my orders, and I followed the Zerda child to their home on the outer skirts of the city.

It didn’t take a lot to realise how the systems of the city worked, the more privilege lived within the centre, further away from the dangerous and rough conditions of the desert. These were the ones subjected to the attacks more than the others.

The house was terribly damaged, with holes in the ceiling, covered over with cloth, the walls crumbling to the touch.

“This is far worse than I thought,” admitted Link. “How are we supposed to repair this.”

“We’ll figure it out, perhaps I can use Mila to condense the sand into bricks.” I began to think about it, any solution I came up with, wouldn’t work unless I could get the structure of their homes repaired.

“No master you need mud, water and straw to be able to repair the walls with a strong finish,” mentioned Mila.

“Do you know how to do this?” I asked.

“Master and I worked hard to build the first buildings hear, after the fountain was constructed,” informed Mila.

“Now where am I going to get mud in a desert?” I wondered.

“The fields have mud,” mentioned the young Zerda.

“Can you show us?” asked Link. She nodded and headed off.

With the young Zerda’s help, we were able to gather all the materials we needed to make the bricks. I allowed Mila to guide my hand in creating the bricks I needed, the shape, consistency and construction was quite tricky at first. Apparently, you usually used a mould, then allowed them to dry, but with Mila I could condense the mixture into the shape and then used Raziel’s heat to dry them, obviously not too fast, didn’t want them to break.

After a few hours I had everything I needed and we began to fill in all the holes and damage, again this process Mila guided me and by the end of the hot day I had finished repairing their home. I was exhausted, using my talisman power with such control, was harder than releasing it in bursts of power.

“Thank you, so much.” The young girl cheered as the rest of her family returned home, as they had been out working in the fields, they too cheered, even cried. “Thank you.”

“It was no problem,” I smiled, bowing and then I looked around, there were many homes like this one. I would most likely be back at it again tomorrow.

Link and I headed back to our rooms, it was dark, and the others had already settled down for the night. Dash had taken Zacks place on guard duty.

I entered my room, spotting a sleeping Tigra in her bed, what the heck was she thinking, it was hard enough to keep this secret from the others, even harder sharing the same room. As quietly as I could, I went over to my bed, which was far bigger than the one back home in Cathopia. I felt a ping of anger, this luxury should be shared with everyone, especially those on the edge, where their homes had been destroyed.

I laid down thinking about it, there had to be something else going on here. The Animalia held no fear of their attackers, unlike those of Dagan and there was something about the elder I did not like. Just as I thought more about it. I’d fallen asleep.

I had twisted and turned in the night, the echoes of my nightmares, trying to creep in. No, not again, I didn’t want to watch it anymore. I could see my units faces, could hear the attacks rushing through the air, then a scent wafted up my nose.

I opened my eyes to feel the embrace of another. I looked down to see Tigra, snuggled up closely, her arms wrapped around me. I remembered what Zack had told me on the way here, how she came to me during the night to chase away my nightmares.

“Tigra.” I embraced her tightly if anything I would live for her. I closed my eyes and drifted off back to sleep.