Star sighed loudly as she let the firewarrior explain the problem to the blacksmith. "So, blacksmith... What do you think we should do?"
She leaned against the wall of the forge, and started to poke the armor hanging on the walls. "Star don't touch that, it is breaking my concentration." Star felt her face reddening and nodded. "Sorry, at least I didn't do something as stupid as muscles here."
"What's done is done... Since he didn't attack them, he won't be considered suspect, but what concerns me is that they knew what those batterys were, and that they were here because their master sent them here... Harnio, what are you thinking?"
Star looked at Harnio, who was standing there with his eyes closed. "Harnio... Are you listening?" She saw him open his eyes frowning and mumbling. "Nothing in my palace talks about this... To get the answers about them, we have to go see their bodies." Star shook her head. 'No. That is a bad idea. What if more of those people around them are also related to the master? How do we know they already know what has happened?"
They sat in silent thought for listening to the darkness of the city around them. Star looked up from staring at the floor. "Lets just leave this place, and head towards the trials... We can't go back and check on their bodies, and we are definitely not cutting them up to see if they have a battery inside them or anything like that..." She used her fingers to brush through her long hair. "If we stay they will find us, and do who knows what... Better if we leave now."
"The girl's right. It is better if we leave first thing in the morning... Even though I will miss this forge and my work. It is better and safer if we move on... Since we are all planning to take part in the trials." She looked at the firewarrior. "Ass, what do you say, since we can't take the trial without you asking us..."
"Fine... The both of you are strong enough, so come with me, and team up with me. We can complete the trial together..." She saw his frown, and looked at Harnio who was also frowning. "We are missing some candidates... The shadow guard and the guardian guard..."
She shrugged her shoulders and sniffed the air. "I am sure we can find some people to fill the ranks of those that are missing as we go there, or even when we arrive... There will be a lot of people there, so I am sure we can find them." She turned to the firewarrior. "You may be the leader of the group, but after your stupid act, all decision processes about batterys and coin are not yours to make... Idiot."
She saw him stand up and nod. "That's fine with me. I just want a good fight, I can't let my unit back north hear I was a failure at the trials..."
"Harnio... what about you? Will you and the blacksmith be able to come with us for the trials?" She watched as Harnio turned and looked at the blacksmith's apron and hammer. "You said you would come with your family... but after what has happened tonight, I am sure the path to the trials won't be easy. What if your family came after we pass the trials?"
"You serious Harnio? You think some crazy people are going to stop me and my family from traveling with you... My money is on that it would be safer if we all traveled together." Star let out a breath that she was holding and smiled. "Than that settles it. First light, we leave for the Capital."
Star turned around and walked out of the blacksmith and took a deep breath. "Finally, I will be able to see her again soon. I just need to find a few more people before the trial starts... We better become guards, or I am going to find a better group." She turned and looked at the men standing in the blacksmith forge looking at each other. "What are you standing there for? We are leaving, for the capital soon, shouldn't you be packing or something?"
"I am already packed and ready. All I have is on me." She rolled her eyes at the firewarrior. "Good for you... What about you Harnio, and the blacksmith are you both ready to go?"
"I will go and wake my family... They will be ready to take the first transport to the capital... I will shut down the forge until I get back... Harnio, I don't think you will be able to take all your research and experiments. It won't all fit in the transport with the others." She looked at Harnio frowning as he looked towards the back of the forge. "Don't worry about me... I have all the research that I need here..." She looked at him in confusion. "What do you mean? I don't see any books on you or anything, just that hammer you carry around with you always."
"As I said... I have my research, and all the things I need. I will pack some clothes and food, and I will be fine." Star nodded. "If you say so. Than we shouldn't have to much trouble getting ready than." She turned and looked at the long list of items that they had to forge and shook her head. She walked over to the list and pointed to it. "What about this? Will you be able to get this all finished in time?"
She saw the blacksmith smile, and put on his apron before turning the forge on. "Leave that to me and my brother here. We will get it down... Can you go let my family know about leaving in the morning? They know about us moving to the capital ever since Harnio first said he wanted to join the guard." Star nodded and took a step outside. "What about me? Is there anything I can do to help?"
She turned and looked at the firewarrior with a tight lipped smile. "You have done enough already. I think... Keep an eye on him, and don't let him leave this place. He may do something stupid again."
Star left the blacksmith and started to walk through the dark streets of the underground city smiling. "Finally, on the move. A little further from Iyane, but closer to returning back to her."
"Stop right there... What are you doing on the streets at this time?" Star stopped and turned around in surprise. "I couldn't sleep, so I went for a walk, I am heading back now." She watched as a small group of armored men and women walked up to her. She looked at them suspiciously. "There is no curfew here, so what is the problem?"
"We ask the questions here, not you have you seen anyone strange walking around here?" Star looked at them and shook her head. "No, I haven't seen anybody. As I said I was walking around minding my own business."
She narrowed her eyes as one of them walked closer to her, and took a long sniff before walking back to the group. She took a step back. "What in the blasted hell are you doing?"
"She doesn't have the smell on her. It wasn't her. Let's go. The smell is around is here somewhere." She stood staring at them as they turned and walked away from her, looking at them in confusion and frustration.
"Smell... What are they talking about?" She looked at the blacksmith not far from where she was and cursed. "Do they already know?" She cursed and started running to the blacksmith's house cursing as she ran.
"Bang... Bang..." She stood at the door knocking furiously. "Come on open the door."
"Bang... Bang..."
"I am coming... What is it?" She sighed as she saw the door open and ran inside before closing the door behind her panting. "Star what is it? Why do you look so worried?" She looked out the nearby window before letting out a long breath with a steady stream of curses. "Blasted firewarrior..." She turned to the lady standing in front of her. "Sorry. Something has happened, we all need to leave for the Capital now... Please wake up your daughter, and pack quickly we need to leave now."
"What happened? What about my husband? Is he safe?" Star nodded and started pushing her to start packing. "He is fine. Harnio, and a firewarrior is with him at the forge. Just need to hurry please. I will talk about it when we leave."
"Okay. I will go wake her up... Lucky we decided to go with younger brother... Our stuff is ready for the capital." Star frowned as she looked at all the boxes and packs. "We can't take all this with us right now. Will have to get it at a later time. We need to go now to the forge."
"Fine... Let me get a small bag at least...' Star nodded and watched as the wife and daughter grabbed a small pack. Star smiled at the daughter. "Don't be scared, we are going to be safe."
"BOOMMM!"
Star cursed as the ground started to shake. "She opened the door and grabbed her bow off her shoulder and looked around. "We need to move now. Stay close to me."
They started moving through the darkened streets. She looked in the distance as a giant ball of fire covered the blacksmith's forge. She turned and heard a gasp, and tried to stop the wife from running towards the fire. "Stop..."
"Husband!"
"Daddy!"
Star cursed, and started to run after them with her bow drawn. She saw them at the fire and frowned. "What happened here? Has the firewarrior done something stupid again?" She looked at the ground frowning, and watched as small pebbles were being pushed by a small breeze along the ground. She smiled. "Harnio..."
She grabbed the wrists of the two and started pulling them from the fire to the side of the blacksmith where Harnio's house was not affected by the flames. "What about my husband?" She looked at the daughter crying. She looked at them both. "I am sure he is fine... Lets get into Harnio's house... I am sure he will be there safe with the others."
She opened the door and looked at the open hatch and pointed looking down the ladder at the panting blacksmith covered in soot and dust with the firewarrior and Harnio looking up. "See. he's here. Get in the tunnel quickly." She let them climb down first before she followed them and turned looking at the firewarrior with anger in her eyes.
"What did you do now?"
"Not now... They are still around." She took a step back as she saw a sword grow in his hand and stare at the top of the hatch. She drew her bow and aimed up there as well. "Harnio, get the blacksmith and his family down the tunnel. We'll clear up here."
"Nnnooo. I stand here too. Blacksmith knows where to gooo." She turned and looked at Harnio staring at the open hatchway and nodded.
"Blacksmith... Move!" She ducked as a balls of fire flew past her and the firewarrior. She picked herself up and looked at the firewarrior. "What has happened, who is attacking us?"
"They are... I guess they are servants of the master. They came in and smelled the place before blasting it to shreds."
"I need to destroy all my notes up there in my room, or they will find out what I have been doing..."
Star looked at Harnio, and than at the small fireball crater left behind. "I will deal with destroying your place Harnio."
She looked at the firewarrior and shuddered. "What happened to him. He seems different in battle..." She watched as he threw his sword up into the hatchway hitting the roof of Harnio's room, instantly causing it to turn into a ball of flames. She turned to Harnio who looked worried.
"There is explosive..."
"BOOOOOMMMM!"
Star found herself being pushed back by the hot air and clenched her jaw pulling her bow and smiling. "I finally see you up there." She started to release arrows hitting multiple targets. She cursed. "They are the ones who stopped me as I was walking back to the blacksmith's house."
She took a step back as the room above them started to glowing. "We know you now... You can not hide from us anymore. The master knows all."
"BOOM!"
She turned and looked at Harnio. "Close that hatch, or destroy it or something. This is a fight we can't win. We have the disadvantage," Star looked at the firewarrior who was throwing small balls of fire. "She's right... Harnio get that hatch closed now!"
She looked at the crouching Harnio and took a step back towards him. "You can do it. Breath and relax. Use your abilities and close that hatch. It will keep us safe." Star watched as Harnio lifted his hand and pointed behind them at a pile of ash on the ground. She cursed and muttered under her breath and pulled her bow shooting wildly. "Firewarrior, the blacksmith and family are gone..." She watched him turn around and look at the pile of ash and Harnio crouching. He looked at the hatch. "I will deal with the hatch, you deal with him..."
Star nodded. "Now you are talking sense." She lowered her bow and looked at Harnio. "If you stay like this, they will get you and kill you like they did to them. Let's move back. The firewarrior will deal with the hatch."
"NOOOOOOOOOOOO!"
She felt herself slammed against the wall of the tunnel, and tried to push back against it. She slowly turned her head cursing as she watched Harnio floating in the air with wind racing around him as he wrote with his hands in the air in front of him.
"BOOOMMM!"
She turned and looked as the space above her was torn open and her eyes opened wide as a giant vortex of wind carried Harnio's room high into the sky. Her eyes were wide open as she watch him push his hands together, and looked up as giant hands of wind compressed everything into rubble. She felt the wind lesson on her as she landed to the ground she turned and looked at the firewarrior was running towards Harnio. She cursed and started running as Harnio collapsed onto the ground, and the firewarrior pick him up and started running with her.
"What comes up... Must come down. We need to move." She ran as fast as she could with the firewarrior by her side through the tunnel system.
"BOOOOOMMMMMM!"
She felt the tunnel shaking and looked behind her as part of the tunnel collapsed. She stopped running and stood panting leaning against the wall of the cracked tunnel. "At least... they can't follow... us in here now..." She looked at Harnio with a worried face. "Is he alright?"
"He is fine. It looks like he exhausted himself, when he released that attack... He is very strong... We need to keep an eye on him, and hope he can learn to control his strength."
Star nodded and looked at the ladder in front of them frowning. "There is only one way to the capital now, but without him we can't even move." She turned to the firewarrior who put Harnio on the ground sitting against the tunnel wall. "We need to wait for him to wake." We should be fine here for the time."
Star sat on the ground breathing heavily. "I hope he wakes soon. Seeing the blacksmith like that must of really shook him."