they walk the city on foot silently.
It's warm today and the sun beats down on them, the dark green uniform soaking in its rays. Sweat drips from their foreheads as they walk. They'd been so keen to rescue Captain Dunder that they forgot about his torturous ways. They could have called for a carriage but Dunder said he wanted to, "do it like the locals do," whatever that means. Dunder doesn't explain the mission, though he evidently already knows the details; he walks, acting as more of a guide than a superior.
Soon, they all understood why Dunder had chosen to walk. The slow pace allowed for thought and a vacation away from the mission which had filled the forefront of their mind for the past month. Looking closer at Dunder, at his tall outline from behind, you can see the remnants of a bruise around his eye. He whistles a tune, glancing back at the students occasionally. Dunder takes them to a bakery around lunchtime. Their calves ache, but with the scent of fresh bread to distract them, the pain numbs.
At nightfall, they reach the train station.
Xiao startles awake in the morning, unsure of how much time has passed. The Light seeps through the windows, blinding her. "-wake up sunshine," Yuto teases. She's the last to wake up, the others stare at her with a grin on their faces. "What?" Xiao demands. They ignore her and return to their activities. Yuto reads a paper with the headline, "demonic forces advance, Zelisthia in DANGER." Nel eats his breakfast of egg and bread, humming and tapping his foot in appreciation for his food.
Xiao kicks Yuto in the foot. "Ow, what the he-," Dunder sends a firm glance at Yuto, "-heck," he sighs. Sometime later, the train stops.
Immediately after exiting the train, the dry air, and the scolding sun beat down on them.
There's a cart near the exit taking advantage of tourists and selling headscarves that Dunder buys for the boys.
They shield their faces from the relentless sun, Xiao feels a bit queezy from being met with this environment immediately after waking up. Yellow sand surrounds a city built from adobe and white tarps. "Dunder what are we doing here?"
"We're here to take care of some demonic beasts."
"-you can't be serious"
"This town is based on the edge of the empire and the only thing protecting it is the desert. Of course, demonic beasts don't care about the weather so occasionally soldiers come to take care of them."
"Seems like you know a lot about this city."
"It's my home." They look between one another, all asking themselves, "He lives here?"
The city smells of spice. They walk on compacted sand, listening to the sounds of the handpan's the local busker's play. Locals call out in their shops, a beautiful and Melodic language Xiao did not understand. Children in dirtied clothes gather water from the public tap. Running back to their homes gleefully, with the weight of the water pales hanging from a long stick atop their scrawny shoulders.
Dunder weaves through the narrow streets and crowds, the team follows him by spotting the tallest head amongst the sea of heads. He enters a shop lacking a front door or wall, with only fabric and tapestries to separate the building from the street. "Amalie, I'm home." A black woman in a long linen dress appears from the back room. She has sunken eyes, a tired expression, but a beaming smile. Her hair is tied low using a piece of scrap fabric that sways as she runs to hug Captain Dunder. "Daniel," she kisses the captain, pulling back only to smile more. "I thought you said you wouldn't be back for four months? What happened," she swipes her finger across the bruise around Dunder's eye.
"They sent my team for demonic beast extermination," her breath catches out of fear, then she breathes out heavily, releasing it. Amalie turns to the group, "I hope he's not getting you all in trouble." They quickly shake their heads, reassuring her.
A young girl with pigtails runs out from the back room, "Daddy!" she screams, stumbling to hug Dunder's legs. He picks up the little girl, bouncing her on his hip, "hey pipsqueak," he shows a rare smile.
"Who are these scary boys?"
"Juun, stop that," her mother scolds.
"They're soldiers, they're going to help me battle monsters!"
"They're so young though! Why can't I help you fight?" she asks innocently. Dunder laughs, "because you're my daughter."
"No fair!"
He puts his daughter down, she runs to go retrieve something, Dunder and his wife catch up and a few minutes later Juun returns with a wooden sword. She says, "ahah! I found it!"
Dunder glances at his wife, "did you give her that?"
"No, it's her uncle again."
"Who's ready to face me?" she grins. Xiao steps up, placing her fists in front of her, feigning a battle stance. "Ohohoh, I see one of you is brave." Juun swipes at Xiao's leg and Xiao screams accordingly, "ahhh! My leg! You've cut it off!"
"When do you head out?" Amalie asks Dunder.
"This isn't something that can be delayed," she looks at him sadly, "alright." She exudes powerlessness, despite the way she rules over her husband; but Xiao thinks this isn't about the beast that threatens her family's safety. She doesn't know about Dunder's past, and she wonders about the true weight on his family's back. With their tattered fabric and dirt floors, the Dunder family survives in an uninhabitable land without complaint. she wonders if perhaps this was her future now, this unknown feeling that engulfs the Dunder family. The trust, the worry, and the love they have for each other. The stark contrast between the persona Dunder had shown his comrades, and what was perhaps his true personality was vastly different. She wonders if the world had been peaceful, if Dunder would be able to be himself. With his family, he's as transparent as glass; his stoicism is gone and the scarred skin around his eyes, upturned with his doting smile. She couldn't understand it.
Dunder takes them to fill their leather flasks at the spout. He begins to speak about the desert and its many dangers, thoroughly lecturing them not to stray very far.
They enter the desert armed, with only their headscarves and flask to support them. The further they walk the worse Dunder's condition appears to be. Sweat falls in beads down his neck, he gulps down the flask, water drips from his mouth. He's frustrated, the beast hasn't shown itself yet.
They camp in the desert. The isolation is gnawing, but worse is the freezing temperature. Unexpectedly, the cold was a worse enemy than the daytime. The heat killed you slowly, you got used to the dehydration, the sweat coating your body, the feeling of your feet sagging into the sand, and the ache as you try desperately to lift your foot to release it.
The cold was unbearable, lonely, and exhausting. There was nothing for a fire so Xiao ignored her buried shame in favor of using the others for warmth. It was nice to be so close to someone; but soon morning would come, and she'd remember that for the rest of her life she'd be an imposter, nobody would be there to hold her.
Christopher knew, but sometimes she'd look at him and have doubts about his loyalty. She wondered when the day would be she'd awake to his betrayal. She couldn't really trust him, not with this body, not with this secret. Yet, sometimes Christopher would look at her, as if he knew the thoughts racing in her head, with a soft sort of pity. She felt a mix of guilt and anger at these times, her self-hatred peaking its two-sided head out, looming over her heart.
She turns her head to look at Christopher. Her head is tucked between her knees, shielding it from the morning sun. He's tinkering with nature magic, recently he'd learned to cast vines through his hands. It was offputting to watch but effective.
Her gaze softens, the heat lulling her to sleep, she blinks, beginning to fall asleep while looking at the red sky. She dwells over her last words, "that's not right," she rubs at her eyes, trying to clear her vision and return the sky back to normal.
"It's here!" Dunder shouts.
She darts up from her seat. The ground begins to rumble. Sand shakes, falling into the earth, sinkholes erupt all around them. A giant centipede ejects from the ground. Its body is hard and shrouded in an exoskeleton. Its twenty meters long and three meters wide, it towers over the boys, looking down at them like insects.