The Seven Seals: Dragon Crusade
Chapter 20: Southernlands

To everyone’s shock, Rossiel had agreed to accompany the Seals. And her statement was so out of the blue and so respectfully placed, it was quite surprising considering what her last state of mind was. No one knew exactly what had gone through her head for her to make that decision. But she was finally going with them, and that was all that mattered.

After replaceing the direction in which the next Seal was, Earidon concluded that this next Seal wouldn’t be anywhere in Ivsaar and that if there was one it would’ve been brought to their attention. The Althrist stone pointed down, south of Ami Asari. Earidon could only assume that the sixth Seal was across the sea and in the land of Simakia. They decided upon going with what their instincts told them and visiting the docks of Londport. And if the stone wasn’t still pointing to the south, then they would double back.

Several days passed as they traveled on horseback down to the southlands, and still the stone continued to point in the same direction. It was as they expected; the Seals would have to set sail for the sea. It was about the end of summer, and every tree, plant and creature was at its fullest in the forest. The land grew jagged and sharp with its rising and falling land formations, but still held the same strength of life. Amidst the tall jutting rocks were pieces of farmland here and there. They arrived at Londport just in time to see the town in its best of health. The scent of the sea wafted through the streets and left a salty taste in their mouths. The group’s anticipation grew ever more, but there was an odd feeling of alienation when it came to the sight of those rolling waves…something about the endless horizon….

Earidon led the group down a long straight of dock. Ships large and small riddled the docks here and there with elves at work taking cargo off some of them or place some on board. The clouds blocked out the sun every now and then as strong winds blasted against their faces.

“Its so beautiful,” Laela gawked, staring out at the blue mass. “I can’t believe I get to see it for the first time.”

“Yeah, me too,” Travis replied and took in a deep breath. “I could just stare all day…”

“Yes, well you’re going to start hating it once we set sail.” Kirith eyed the two of them.

Travis cocked an eyebrow. “And what make’s you say that?”

“Think about it, we’ll probably be out there for more than just a couple of days. You’ll be thankful once we get to dry land again.”

Travis snorted. “Way to bum down on the party,” he said and flicked Kirith’s forehead.

Kirith flinched and rubbed his forehead, glaring at Travis for a moment.

Kate shrugged. “I’m sure it won’t be that bad, right? At least we won’t be going through goblin infested ruins.”

“She has a point,” came Rossiel’s stoic voice from behind. “You all should be grateful you’re not going to be cooked like hunted game.” She glanced around at them with her sharp turquoise eyes.

“Ahah, y-yeah that’s for sure.” Travis rubbed the back of his neck nervously and chuckled.

After being led passed several ships, Earidon stopped them in front of a quaint looking cargo ship. He approached a taller elf with long dark hair and a scar running across the bridge of his nose. The elf faced the boat with his arms crossed, watching as others went about filling the ship with cargo.

“Aye, Maewon!” Earidon greeted.

Maewon whipped his head in Earidon’s direction and raised his brow. “Earidon?” A smile spread across his face. “Ah— what are you doing here? How have you been, brother?” The two gave up some time to catch up a bit on things, speaking with gladness. “And who might these all be?” Maewon asked, looking to the Seals.

Earidon gestured with his hand to them. “Maewon, I know this may seem odd to you, but they are the Seals of legend. Or all of them so far…they will be reformed soon, with your help that is.”

Maewon furrowed his brow. He looked to Earidon, a speechless look on his face. “They plan has already been set…? Is it really them…?”

Travis pulled off the ragged fingerless glove on his right hand and held up his hand. “In the flesh,” he said with a grin.

“So it is!” Maewon bowed deeply. “It is an honor to meet you all!”

Kate turned slightly red and waved her hand in dismissal. “I-it’s nothing really, there’s no need for formalities.”

“If you so wish.” Maewon straightened back up and looked to Earidon. “What can I do to help?”

Earidon crossed his arms and nodded to the ship. “An extra five on your ship wouldn’t hurt, right? The five Seals here that is.”

Kate furrowed her brow. Five? But what about Earidon? Was he…was he not going to go with them?

“The last Seal is overseas,” Earidon continued. “And they need a bit of a lift to get there.”

“That wouldn’t be a problem at all,” Maewon replied. “We’re about to set sail for Vasnidale. I would be glad to drop them off somewhere.”

Earidon sighed and stared down at the wooden planks. The elf seemed to be struggling with what he had to say. “I need you to take them to Simakia, in the north eastern territory.”

Maewon stared at him for a moment before chuckling. “You are jesting with me!”

Earidon looked back up to meet his gaze. He took in a deep breath but said nothing in reply.

Maewon went a little pale. “You’re serious…” He massaged his forehead and muttered something in a different tongue. “You know those Iceskins are all over there— and I mean— everywhere! Not to mention some of the most skilled of criminals!”

“Please, Maewon, just this one thing,” Earidon said. “They need this!”

“And through all this, what do I get?”

“You’re helping the Seals stop the fate of this realm. Isn’t that enough?”

Maewon continued to rub his forehead and stare idly down at the ground. After several seconds, he hung his hands at his sides. “We set sail in ten minutes.” He eyed them all and nodded. “Have your things ready. There will be a space made for you in one of the cabins.”

Earidon let out a sigh of relief. “Thank you, brother.” As Maewon began to walk off towards the ship grimly, Earidon turned to them, a pained smile on his face.

“Earidon…” Kate mumbled.

“Unfortunately, I won’t be able to accompany you all,” he said.

“Why not?” Laela asked, the sadness growing in her eyes.

“There is some business I must attend to myself. I must help prepare a team to head for the city of Atara. If what prince Orindir says is true, then the city must be defended at all costs.”

Kate lowered her head. “This…this is just like before. When we had to depart in the dungeons.”

Earidon placed his hand on her shoulder. “And it will be no different when we see each other in the end. I have faith that we will meet again.”

Kate looked up and met his gaze. Separate? Again? She didn’t want to leave his side like she had to before. He was like a father to her…a father she never had. Kate slowly nodded but didn’t say anything.

Earidon smiled and pulled back his hand. He looked around at the rest of the Seals. “Simakia isn’t like any other place you have ventured to, though it is similar to Onn Dorei. These are the heartlands of the Lamari, and the country is in a very poor state of health. Part of the land is under Felorian occupation, so be very careful. I’m sure Maewon can provide you with some cloaks that would be most suitable for the land. Some of the people there are quite desperate to get what they want, so be sure not to bring anything of real value in there.” His smile faded as a look of sullenness grew. “And please…please be careful.”

Travis grinned and put his hands on his hips. “Don’t worry, we’ve been through it all, haven’t we? We’ll make it out in one piece!”

A tired smile spread across Earidon’s lips. “Always the confident one, Travis. Good, your friends will need that when venturing through there.”

“Not too much though,” Kirith said, glancing to Travis. “We’ll keep a low profile.”

“Good, good.” Earidon clasped his hands together. “Once you replace the Seal, head for Vasnidale and meet me at the Capital Tower in Atara. We’ll do our best to warn the Council of this impending threat.”

“SEALS! WE’RE READY WHEN YOU ARE!” called Maewon from the deck.

Earidon bowed his head and straightened himself. “Farewell to you all then. Creator be with you.”

Kate immediately wrapped her arms around Earidon. She bit her lip and pushed back tears. “And the same to you…”

Earidon was a bit surprised, but he accepted the embrace. “We shall meet again, dear one. Not to worry.”

Kirith smiled briefly. “Really, it is a pleasure that you do this,” he said. “Thank you, Earidon.”

Earidon pulled back, as if it would be the last embrace they would have. “Anything for you all.” His pained smile returned. “Anything…”

Off in one of the shadows of the alleys lurked a figure, watching, staring, listening. Though by now, he had heard enough. With the swish of his cape, he turned around and darted into the back alleyways, traversing within the shadows. No one saw him, no one batted an eye, for he was one with the shadows around him. He snaked the streets until he reached the edge and escaped into the forest. The figure no longer needed that cloak of shadows to hide him from sight.

He passed many trees and stopped in a clearing. Several Felorian knights sat upon the backs of dragons to which lay on the ground, resting quietly as smoke emitted from their nostrils. But there was one rider in particular that the figure had his attention on. Prince Orindir. He sat upon the most elegant and largest of the dragons, which displayed a set of silver and snow-white scales. A gimeilin sat upon Orin’s shoulder, looking around fearfully and anxiously.

The figure stopped in front of Orin and went down on one knee, pulling the hood from over his head. “Your majesty,” said the spy. “I was able to overhear on their conversation.”

Orindir looked down at him and furrowed his brow. “And?”

“They are heading for Simakia, right into the Occupation lands. They say the next Seal is there. I doubt they will survive on their own…”

Orin thought for a moment. Simakia, those were dangerous lands, even for the Seals who were so young. His plan of total Tellarian destruction would work. You want to save the dragons, but is punishing the human race the right thing to do? Is that what the Creator wants? Those words from the girl pierced his mind. She was so compassionate, so caring. Why was she giving him mercy?

“Prince Orindir?” Daechir said from across the clearing upon his dragon.

Orin shook his head, taking his mind back to reality. “They will stand no chance in those lands.” He looked towards one of the other dragonriders. “Ilviron, you will go with Daechir to send word of their presence.” He looked to Daechir and nodded. “Daechir, when you replace them, you’ll know what to do.”

Daechir grinned and nodded. “Of course!”

“We’ll be off, Milord!” the dragonrider answered before steering his dragon up and into the skies within a heartbeat along with Daechir.

“What shall you do, m-m-my Prince?” Gawz squawked from atop Orin’s shoulder.

Orindir looked around at them, exhaling softly. He gripped Seraphiel’s mane tightly. The day was nearing, and he could feel the power of the dragons growing. “We make haste for Vasnidale. Nheriel, our army is prepared, yes?”

“Indeed, they are just about ready, your majesty,” replied Nheriel, a powerful looking Felorian.

“Then it is settled.” Orin narrowed his eyes and looked up. “I shall speak with the enslaved dragkin there in the city and explain my plan. Everything will be ready for the day of judgment.”

From below Orin lay Seraphiel, breathing softly. She closed her eyes, resisting any sense of objection. Seals…save him from the ultimate fate he will face… Seraphiel thought.

Saying their goodbyes, the Seals boarded the ship. Leaving the docks took some time, but the crew managed to bring the Southstar, the ship, out to sea. As they did so, the winds began to pick up in strength from the coast and push them further out. And even after a minute of being out there, the crew had become busy with keeping the ship on course and making sure everything was in check.

Later during the day, the winds began to pick up and the waves beat against the side of the ship. Captain Maewon had ordered the Seals to stay in their cabin, since things were going to get rough on deck. Reluctantly, they all did so, though they were curious about the situation. They all sat around, occasionally looking around to the small window.

Kate sat with her legs crossed, fiddling with the Althrist stone in her fingers. She looked around at them. “So how long do you think this will last?” she asked.

“Not another day, please!” Travis almost gasped, massaging his stomach as he sat on a crate.

“Can you still stare at the sea, Travis?” Kirith said sarcastically, waving his hand to the window. “That beautiful mass of water surrounding us on all sides?”

Travis glared at Kirith. “Sure, Kirith, sure,” he said. “Laela, you think you can cure sea sickness?”

Laela smiled nervously. “M-maybe? I’m not sure that’s how it works..,”

Kate rolled her eyes. “Travis, it’s not like you’re dying in battle! You’ll survive, just get over it.”

“Aha, that’s easy for you to say, you don’t even have it!” Travis looked to Rossiel, to whom none of them really noticed before. “What about you, Rossiel? Gh…you haven’t said much.”

She sat with her legs crossed on a crate near the corner. She looked to Travis with that same stoic expression. “It doesn’t bother me at all, not like someone as big as you,” Rossiel replied as a matter of fact.

Travis turned a bit red, as he grew flustered. “H-hey! Excuse me?!”

“With all that muscle and meat, along with your height, it’s not surprising that you would feel sick. I’m also not surprised that you wouldn’t have realized that with that thick head of yours.”

“Oh, please!” Travis snapped. “It’s not like you were any different back in the forest! Three days it took for you decide to leave!”

Rossiel narrowed her eyes. “You are such a fool! Do you have any idea what I’ve been through? I’m sure this could also be added to the list of things you don’t understand.”

Travis gripped his knees, nearly standing up. “I do know! More than you believe!”

Kate face-palmed and sighed. Now he really did it.

Rossiel cocked and eyebrow and crossed her arms. “Do you now?”

Laela quickly stood up, clasping her hands. “P-please stop fighting! Travis, you know better than to say such things! And you too Rossiel, we should be working together!”

Rossiel and Travis looked to her as their expressions became shameful. It was like Laela had caught them in the act of doing something terrible, like two parents realizing their kid had seen them arguing.

Rossiel leaned back and looked away. “Of course, of course, my apologies,” she said, letting her voice trail before she gave Travis a glare.

Travis snorted and sat back down. “Whatever you say, Laela.”

Kate piped up. “Besides, shouldn’t we be thinking of how we’re going to handle this Simakia place?”

“Kate’s right,” Kirith said. “Earidon warned us about it, and he has every right to. I’ve heard things about it that might not make it the best place to go on a simple adventure.”

“Things…like what?” Laela asked.

“Most of the continent is a desert and well…the amount of crime is pretty high.”

Travis rubbed the back of his neck. “And we’re going there? By ourselves? What if we get mugged?”

“We’re not alone.” Rossiel eyed Travis. “They’ve always been quite scandalous in their country, particularly because of a bad economy and slavery. Not to mention there are multiple tribes that have the freedom to do as they please.”

Kate blinked and straightened her back. “Whoa wait— it not only has high criminal activity but slavery?”

Rossiel nodded. “As you might’ve heard Earidon say, part of the country is under Felorian occupation. They’ve been there for many years and have enslaved much of the Simakian population. People can only guess what they’re after, whether it be building cities or extracting resources, and maybe for pleasure as a side.”

“Well isn’t that just great,” Travis said and began to count with his fingers. “Criminals and pickpocketers, slavery, AND Iceskins. Let’s just add Obligators to the list to make matters worse!”

Rossiel held up her finger. “Don’t forget that there are beasts that live out there in those deserts too.”

Kate shook her head despicably. “How does anyone live out there?”

“Beats me,” Kirith said, putting his hands behind his head and leaning back.

“Maybe…it’s not as bad as it sounds,” Laela said, smiling nervously.

Travis sighed. “Laela, I know you’re one for hope in the future, but this place is crawling with danger.”

“Yes but…if we could just stay low no one would bat an eye, right? Everyone there must be busy enough keeping themselves out for the dangers.”

Rossiel nodded in agreement. “Earidon mentioned that the Captain might have some cloaks for us to wear, did he not?”

Kirith nodded. “Those would make a good asset. Let’s hope that prince isn’t there too,” he scoffed. At that moment, the ship was knocked by a strong wave, causing the structure to sway.

“Trolls rump— Creator, no,” Travis moaned.

They all looked to him to see that he was clutching his stomach and keeling over. “I would take ten of him rather than this!”

Kirith grinned a bit smugly. “You know, you should ask Rossiel for help. You two seemed to be getting along just fine earlier, so what would it hurt?”

Travis frowned at Kirith and looked to Rossiel. “Yeah, how about it? I’m sure you’ve got some— elven herbs that could settle my stomach.”

Rossiel narrowed her eyes. “Nothing I would give you, that is for sure.”

Another wave hit the side, causing the ship to rock like a cradle. Travis grunted and covered his mouth with his hand. “I can feel that fish beginning to swim back up from this morning…!” He got up and stumbled to the door before throwing it open. And within a blink of an eye, he was out of the cabin. Kirith, Kate, and Laela burst out laughing, and even Rossiel began to smile a little.

Many days passed as they traveled south, only with a couple rough tides here and there. They were growing used to the sway of the ship, Travis too but in a slow manner. Though the only problem was that they had all become sick of seeing the same thing, just like what Kirith said; the same small cabin, terribly plain food, water surrounding them from all sides, the nauseating sway, the list went on! Seeing a good sort of storm clouds was the most entertainment they got, but then it was into the cabin for them since it would pour down rain.

The Seals were just hoping to get to dry ground soon, because this was growing unbearable for them. Despite their somewhat antsy emotions, the rest of the crew of the ship seemed perfectly fine with it all. They had all been out on the sea for many years, and that took dedication that the Seals lacked. It was somewhat amusing for the crew to see how loathsome they were. At first glance, it was odd to see the elves, such majestic beings, working on an unclean and rowdy area. It wasn’t a typical job for a wood elf, but these elves seemed to enjoy it very much. Though, Rossiel pointed out that half of the work was done by the Ventusmancer, a wind mage, which was a very common job for the seas.

But after many days of feeling absolutely no hope, land was spotted from afar, and the Seals were overjoyed. In no time, they reached the docks. The sun shined brightly, but its heat was now beating down on them. This small port town was a set of small sandstone dwellings that were clustered close together. Olive trees were scattered here and there. It was nothing fancy, but it was quaint and relaxed. Much of the docks were almost full, but thankfully there was a spot left to port.

“Dry land, thank the Creator!” Travis exclaimed in exhaustion as they all stood on the deck.

“Doesn’t look like much,” Maewon said, coming up beside them. “But this is the closest port we could get you to, Anati.” He looked to them. “We’re on the northeastern coast, does that work?”

Kirith nodded. “It’s good enough. Thank you, Captain.”

“Yeah, thank you for all that you’ve done,” Kate said and smiled.

“It’s a real pleasure!” Laela cooed.

Maewon smiled in return, but it was as if there was an existing strain in him. “I’m glad,” he replied. “We do not usually do trading here, mainly due to what this country is going through. I don’t know if you’ve heard…but the Felorians are indeed here, and they are not an easy folk to get around.”

“Oh, we know,” Kirith said. “We’ll be keeping to the shadows and away from attention.”

Maewon furrowed his brow. “Careful there. Even the shadows will try to get to you.” He directed his attention to one of the crewmembers walking passed and ordered him to grab the cloaks from below deck before letting him rush off. “This town is as safe as it gets, I doubt you’ll really replace anyone with malicious intent aside from maybe one or two.”

“We have this under our control,” Rossiel said, putting her hand on her hip.

Maewon glanced to her. “I wouldn’t be so quick to say so, dear one. This place is nothing like the forests you have grown up in.”

Rossiel simply looked away, not saying anything in reply.

The elven crewman came back with a bundle of what looked to be dark and tattered cloaks. Maewon handed them out to them one by one. “Here you are…”

Kate rubbed her thumb against the fabric and glanced to the torn edges. “Er— are you sure these are durable?”

“More than enough,” Maewon nodded. “If I gave you anything stronger or cleaner, you’d be getting one too many hungry eyes on you.”

Kate’s eyes widened slightly. “O-oh…”

They put on their cloaks and departed from the ship. Saying their last goodbye’s, the Seals left the docks as Maewon’s ship left for sea. Now they were really on their own, more than ever now, on this foreign and strange land. They hadn’t noticed how lonely it felt until they stepped off the ship. Now back on the trail to the next Seal, they couldn’t figure out what to do next aside from following the crystal.

The Seals began their walk into the small town, keeping their heads low. The streets were dusty, but not too crowded. People walked here and there— no, not people, Lamari. Many of them were diverse in looks, there were even Lamari with lizard like skin along the back of their head and arms followed by a snake like tail. The Seals were somewhat mystified by these strange looks all in one place. One child with lion-like ears and a small tail with deep tan skin came rushing out of one of the small homes. He skidded to a stop when he saw the four-cloaked figures passed by with eyes wide with curiosity. A woman clothed in long sand-beaten robes gently grabbed his shoulder and pulled him back inside. The residents there seemed more wary of them rather than intimidated, which, they hoped, wouldn’t get them in trouble.

Kate looked on ahead, since looking at other “people” would somehow give her looks. She sighed quietly. “This is so weird…seeing all of them at once is just odd.”

“I don’t replace it too bad,” Laela replied quietly. “I think it’s interesting!”

Kate laughed quietly. “Maybe so for you, but for me, where I came from nobody, looked this way.”

“Kate,” came Kirith’s soft voice from her left. “What is the crystal showing?”

Kate took a peek from beneath her cloak and looked to him, shrugging. “We’re heading in the right direction, its not blinking at all though.”

Kirith cursed under his breath. “Alright, then let’s keep going.”

They continued walking through the small streets, passing by a well with many Lamari women gathering water from it, an old Lamari dog making pottery, and many others. Walking by some laundry hanging out to dry, they reached the edge of town where all that was left was desert, with shrubs sitting here and there and visible canyons. There was a scorching haze as far as the eye could see.

Kate stuck her hand under her cloak and pulled out the Althrist stone. Holding it out towards the desert, she examined it. The light continued to point in the same direction, straight into the desert. “It’s still pointing that way…”

Travis sighed and rubbed his forehead. “We have to go through that?! Isn’t this how people die out here?!”

“Let’s just hope we won’t be the next,” Kirith said. He turned to them with a distasteful look. “We’re going to have to get ourselves a ride because no way are we walking through that.”

They found the nearest stable, which was just as shabby as the rest of the buildings. Camels stood idly inside, chewing at hay in their makeshift stalls. A meaty male Lamari panther leaned against the outside wall of the stable next to the main entrance, sipping from a canteen.

Kirith looked back at the group and held up his hand for them to stay. “Excuse me, I need four of your camels,” he said plainly.

The Lamari spat out his drink before pushing his dreadlocks aside. “What— these aren’t for sale, little cub,” he said with a thick eastern accent, eyeing Kirith skeptically.

From beneath his cloak, Kirith rummaged through his satchel. “I could always double my payment, which was originally one-hundred silver coins.”

The Lamari nearly choked on his drink at his words. He stood straight up, his ears twitching and his tail flicking. “I’m listening.”

Kate let out a soft sigh. Despite Kirith being averagely angry most of the time in some way, he was good at getting people to negotiate. She looked towards the end of the street and the desert beyond. Kate hadn’t realized how dangerous this all seemed. They were going through a wasteland, a wasteland! None of them had the slightest bit of experience with the desert. What if they ran out of water? What if they became dehydrated? What then? They wouldn’t get any aid out there; it wasn’t like the wilderness up in the northern countries where there was actual food and water all around them. Kate bit her lip and looked away from it. They wouldn’t die out there, the Creator wouldn’t let it, right?

Kate felt an arm wrap around her shoulders and pull her close. Kate whipped her head to the left to nearly jump back. An old man had made himself comfortable right next to her. He had bushy and messy gray beard with deep lines and rather big hands and ears. And now that Kate thought about it, he looked very similar to a…

The old man grinned a yellow-toothed grin. “You humans seem ta’ got a lot of coin on ya’ there. I’m sure I can provide you with something worth while, with coin of course.” Kate could just smell the putrid scent of his breath. He leaned forward, getting closer to her face. “So how about it, hm?”

“A-ah…” Kate stammered, trying not to die from that stench. “I’m sorry but we’ll pass…”

“Mm? Are ya’ sure? It’s the best in town.” He pulled out a small cloth bag from his ragged pocket that was filled with some kind of substance before waving it in front of her.

“Step away from her,” Kirith said darkly, facing them.

The old monkey-looking man pulled back from Kate and waved a hand. “N-now, don’t be so rough, this stuff is premium, refurbished! A-and it won’t last long! So get it now and view the world a whole new way!”

The stable owner let out a soft growl that matched that of a beast. “Quit messing with these cubs, Baasim! We all know your so called ‘heaven’ is a pile of lies and a trip to a medic!”

Baasim scowled at him and spit at his feet. “You don’t know true ecstasy! Stupid cat…” He quickly hobbled away on his boney limbs, angrily mumbling to himself.

Travis blinked. “What’s with him?”

The stable-owner rubbed his forehead. “Some old substance dealer, he sells Lagrisk. It’s…very deadly… but you need not worry about him. Now is there anything else you need?”

Kirith looked in the direction of where they had gone to seek the stone’s direction. “What is down that way?” he asked and pointed.

The stable-owner looked that way too and snorted. “That way? To the south? Arshama of course, but I warn you, that city is no place for cubs like you.”

“There’s no need,” Travis said confidently. “I can take care of them.” Though he did look much older, the rest of the group knew that his looks didn’t come close to his age.

“That may be,” the stable-owner said, “but even the greatest men go missing there.”

The group managed to get supplies packed on their camels for the journey, and, with a few complications, set off into the desert. Some of them had to ride together, since Kirith didn’t want to spend all their currency on something they wouldn’t need later. They didn’t know what they expected out there. All the Seals could do was hope that they would arrive at their destination sooner or later. The cloaks they wore didn’t help either with the excessive heat. Getting the chance to drink was more than amazing, but it was the feeling of loosing it all that made them worried. It was just great to get a good desert wind every now and then, but it always got the sand caught in their eyes. There were no clouds to shade them, no trees to rest under. None of them knew how to set up a proper tent, which left them to sleep out in the cold desert nights.

Kate didn’t know anything about surviving in a desert, aside from what she had seen on film. She thought, maybe that having that asset would help. But now that she was riding in an endless wasteland, nothing came to her. Was there really nothing that she knew that could possibly help? All there was to it was to rationalize and survive. Unless, there was indeed something she had missed and never got the chance to fully understand it. It wasn’t like she knew that she was going to be going into a desert.

Their journey lasted several days, following the light of the crystal deeper into the haze. The Seals were wishing they had stayed on that boat, and maybe they wouldn’t have to deal with any of this. But of course, they had to go on this quest to replace this Seal, who, out of all the places, was in one of the most dangerous areas in Tellaria.

Kate’s hands were beginning to grow raw from holding the reins of the camel. Her torso had become sore along with it from sitting in the same position every day. The heat was too overbearing, too much. She could feel the flecks of sweat just running down her body. Whose idea was it to put a city all the way out here? She stared off ahead. Any second, maybe they would just see a towering pillar, a castle, something! She looked around at the others. From beneath their cloaks, they looked just as tired. “Make it all end already,” Kate breathed from her chapped lips. At this point, she couldn’t tell if she was over exaggerating all of it or this was truly how it felt.

They began walking up a hill of sand to which the sun couldn’t cast its light on. Wind beat down the slope, causing some sand to be carried right into them. There probably won’t be anything past here, Kate thought. Why did she even bother thinking about it? They would die out there anyways. They didn’t know what they were doing, they were just kids—

“I see something!” came Kirith’s voice from ahead.

“Are you sure you’re not seeing things?” Travis asked. “Because I saw the city earlier and I…I think we missed it.”

“I’m convinced you’re all seeing things,” Rossiel retorted.

“No really!” Kirith was atop the hill now, moving his camel out of the way for them to see.

Everyone moved slowly on their camels up the hill, anxious to see if Kirith was making this up or if there really was something. Travis reached the top before Kate. “What…what is that?” he said.

Kate came up by his side and looked off, though this was no mirage they were seeing. Multiple figures down the hill and across the land were digging, some carrying sheaves of wheat. Dark mud pits sat here and there with more figures wading in them. These figures were, from what Kate could tell from afar, Lamarian, and many of which only had loincloths of baggy pants to wear. There were others who stood out, wearing fine light blue armor and shimmering hair. They were…waving something at some of the backs of these Lamarian workers.

Kate looked off to the far south. There were tall walls with spires rising from behind it. A large sea sat next to it, glistening lightly. “I see the city, but what is this?”

“I don’t like this at all…” Laela murmured warily.

Kirith leaned forward to get a closer look. “Are those Felorians?”

“Felorians or not, I’m curious as to what they’re doing to those Lamari,” Travis replied.

Rossiel exhaled slowly. “If you all couldn’t already tell,” she continued. “This is mining and material-gathering yard. This…is the slavery they spoke of.”