At that moment some guards appeared on horses not very far off. Seeing the group of fishermen hurdled together they rode towards them. The fishermen fidgeted, some tried to whisk Dioha away while others tried to put as much distance between themselves and the others. Some of the guards broke off from the formation and rounded off the fleeing fishermen, forcing them back into the group. The captain of the guards, who was the only one among this group with a helmet, stopped his mount in front of the fishermen. His companions circled the group of fishermen, hassling them occasionally. Dioha looked at all their faces but couldn't recognize any single one of them. These guards weren't inhabitants of his island when he was here the last time. These were certainly newcomers as none of the original citizens of his island would dare rise against him, even in his absence. He never had any guards in or around his castle. It just wasn't his style. He could handle every threat that came his way. He use to be a one man army.
The captain looked at the faces of the fishermen without saying a word, his eyes roaming from one face to the next. Some of the fishermen did their best to hide their faces by lowering them.
"WHAT'S THIS RUKUS ABOUT? THIS EARLY MORNING, SHOULDN'T YOU BE ABOUT YOUR BUSINESSES?" the captain asked. The fishermen kept their heads lowered, eyes averted. One of the guards raised his whip and lashed out at the nearest person.
"SPEAK UP, YOU DUMB BRUTE" the guard yelled.
Anger flashed in Dioha's eyes as he swung his head in the direction of the guard who'd just struck out. A hand closed over his clenched fist. Dioha looked at the hand, then at the owner. The fisherman who held him had a silent plea in his eyes. Just then, the captain spotted Dioha.
"YOU THERE, COME FORWARD" the captain beckoned to Dioha.
Dioha lifted his face defiantly at the guard, daring him to come towards him instead. The small crowd of fishermen had parted, paving a direct path for Dioha to get to the captain. A whip rose behind Dioha and cracked towards him. Dioha put up his hand and caught the whip without looking behind. Dioha suddenly jerked the whip towards himself causing the guard to fall of his mount. Obviously, these guards were Scavengers not Enforcers. Scavengers for all their hunting skills and tracking abilities lacked one basic thing, strength.
Dioha quickly looked around and counted six guards. Even if he had just his speed, he reckoned he could take these guards on if they all were Scavengers. Scavengers were fast, but not as fast as Enforcers. He wouldn't even need to exert himself to the Watcher speed level to beat them at movement, reaction and reflex. All he had to do was, take them out as quickly as possible. As long as he didn't let any of them shape shift, it would be fine.
"YOU DARE?!" one guard shouted.
The guard nudged his horse in Dioha's direction drawing his sword instantly. The fishermen scampered away from the ensuing fight. Dioha waited for the horse and rider to get really close. The guard swung his sword down with all his might aiming for Dioha's head. He missed as Dioha ducked and pulled him off the horse by yanking the wrist of the same hand that swung down. The guard landed with a bone breaking thud and lay still.
Dioha turned round with a smile, looking at the faces of the guards. He was twirling the sword he had gotten from the unconscious guard on the floor. The guard who had been pulled off his horse earlier, threw his whip backwards, and then brought it forward towards Dioha. Dioha ducked and retaliated instantly by throwing the sword in his hand at the guard. The sword impaled the guard's heart, killing him instantly. Dioha turned around again, the grin on his face growing wider.
The captain of the guards observed Dioha with narrowed eyes. This scrawny looking kid before him, looked awfully familiar though he was sure he hadn't seen the face here earlier when the island was taken over by his master. The captain deduced that this kid may have just arrived on the island causing the fishermen to gather around him, thereby breaking the decree by his master that there should be no form of gathering. But this was a sealed island, the sanctuary of one of the Watchers. No ordinary person should be able to find it, let alone enter. Except, of course, this was that Watcher whose island this was.
Another guard screamed and drew out his sword, preparing to charge. A sharp order from the captain froze the guard in mid scream. All the guards turned to look at their captain.
"THIS IS AN ENFORCER. YOU WON'T DEFEAT HIM THIS WAY" the captain said and took off his helmet. The guards looked at each other knowingly and smiled. Dioha was confused. It seemed like they knew something he didn't. They pulled something out from under their uniforms and took it to their lips. They all had vials that contained a dark greenish liquid which they emptied into their mouths and swallowed.
"DON'T KILL HIM" the captain instructed. He himself had drunk nothing. He sat relaxed on his horse and now looked prepared to enjoy a good show.
The three guards began changing after drinking the mysterious potion. Dioha cursed inwardly when he saw this. It was just so typical of his new reality for him to always face odds that weren't favorable. If he was to defeat his opponents, he would have to use his Watcher speed at full blast.
Dioha moved. He locked one of the guard's pressure points in a blink and dashed to the next. The second guard was halfway through his transformation when Dioha got to him. In a flash Dioha touched every spot leaving the guard immobile on the floor. A frown was already on Dioha's face as he proceeded to the third person. The transformations were faster than usual, and the weirdest part was, they were all transforming to a cursed creature.
Dioha swerved right sharply. He only had a moment to realize the third guard had fully transformed into a big black snake. The snake was easily seven feet long and forty inches wide, an abnormally huge snake even for a Scavenger. True, Scavengers could transform into creatures far bigger than their natural size but this snake was far beyond what was expected. Was it the potion? Dioha wondered. There was no time to dwell further on that thought as Dioha saw the snake move towards him. The snake rushed at Dioha fangs bared. It struck with a speed that did not match its size, but Dioha easily evaded the attack. Dioha lunged in immediately with a counter and the snake took it head-on. Dioha's palm strikes and punches were useless against it and it took Dioha just a few seconds to realize that. Dioha drew back, evading another attack in the process. Unless he had a sharp object or could make use of his powers, he was not going to kill this snake. The snake shot out a spray of liquid towards Dioha's eyes yet he managed to dodge it. Some got on him but thankfully not on his eyes as that would have rendered him blind. Dioha remembered the sword impaled in one of the guards and glanced in the direction where the man had died. The snake raised its head up looking down on Dioha with disdain as it towered above Dioha. It let out a blood chilling hiss that not only pierced and irritated Dioha's ears but somehow stunned Dioha momentarily. Dioha placed both palms on his ears to keep out the sound which was causing serious pains in his ears and head making him disoriented.
Dioha fell on his knees as the pitch rose. The snake sensing Dioha weakening stopped hissing and dove in again. Dioha rolled to the side at the very last moment after forcefully willing himself to ignore the pain momentarily. Dioha rolled several yards away before stopping to pull himself up. His roll had directly taken him next to the impaled guard who lay dead on the floor. Dioha pulled the sword out as he got up. He shook his head to clear it while keeping an eye on the snake. The effect of that hiss was still on him but thanks to his training as a Watcher, his mind was very powerful. To become a Watcher one did not just possess extraordinary skills and physical power, one's mind needed to be as strong as one's physical abilities.
The snake slithered towards Dioha slowly apparently wary of the weapon in his hand. When it got close enough it lashed out quickly aiming to bite Dioha in the shoulder. Dioha timed his movement to perfection striking at the snake's head at the moment it was going to sink its fangs into his left shoulder. The sword never touched the snake's head instead Dioha got bite and wrapped in seconds. Confused, Dioha looked at his hand which was still held high. A whip was holding it up, a whip held by the captain of the guards. Dioha slowly blacked out as the venom from the snake took over even as the snake kept tightening, crushing the wind out of him. The last thoughts on Dioha's mind as he passed into unconsciousness, was what had happened to his secure island? What had happened to his brother and sisters? How did this people get into the island? Why were they transforming into a creature that was a taboo among their tribe?