Harnio looked around from the bow of the Princess and stared at the land in front of them. He looked at the belt of the firewarrior while scratching his arm. "It looks like we got here before they did."
"That gives us a chance to get ahead of them..."
Harnio turned and looked in the direction of the brothers. "Monk... Its almost time... We're going to get a lot of answers here... I'm also looking forward to all the things I can learn about this place, and the guardians of Athlos."
"Thats not why we're here little brother. We're here because of the stupid trial..." He watched in silence as the monk took a long drink from his wine skin. He turned around and looked over the island.
"Warriors... We need to move the Princess and put it in a place where it can't be seen." Harnio looked around the coast line frowning. He turned to the firewarrior.
"I understand captain... As you can see there's no place around here to hide in... Where will you hide?"
"Kind of you to be thinking about the Princess and us... I'm planning to take the Princess back to that empty city... Find what I can use and sell... We'll be back in a few days to come pick you all up at this point, if you survive... Hahaha I'm joking I know you'll survive."
"Fair enough... Lets go ashore." Harnio took a steep and started to walk in the air with his hands behind his back. He looked at the Princess, watching it as it started to turn around, and stood at the shore watching it slowly fade from his view.
"Have you finished staring at the Princess?" Harnio looked at his feet and nodded. "I'm finished... That might be the last time we see it... I was just saying my farewells..."
"What do you mean by that?" Harnio pointed to the monk. "Its up to him if we survive or not... We know nothing about this trial priestess, even he doesn't. Just something about the wall and if he tries to do something stupid."
"We have to trust that he makes the right choices... That's all we can do... Come. Lets go together... We can get lost here easily." Harnio nodded, and took a step catching up to the others as they followed the monk in silence. He watched the back of the monk and sighed to himself quietly. He bent over and picked up sand and let it fall through his fingers.
"Harnio... What are you doing? You scared me for a moment. I thought that they were here." Harnio lowered his head and looked at the sand. "Sorry monk... I'll just stay with the group... Don't worry about me."
He turned when he stood on the top of a sand dune and looked around at the air around him. He frowned. "What's the matter this time?" Harnio looked in the direction in front of him. "Death is that way... Painful death..."
"Harnio, there's nothing there now." Harnio shook his head. "Its buried under ground... A lot of death..." He took a step appearing near the monk. "Monk are we heading to that direction?" He pointed to where he felt death come from.
"Yes... That's where we have to go... Why do you ask? Also, how do you know?" Harnio looked down at his feet. "Death... There was a fight there long ago... People buried under the sand... It hurts."
"Harnio are you okay?" He scratched his head and nodded. "Just a headache, but I'm fine." He closed his eyes and floated in his mind palace. "I still need to find more information about these eyes of mine, and what I can do with them."
"Harnio... Harnio!" He opened his eyes and looked around. "What are you doing walking in the air? If the drones saw you, they'd come in this direction." He felt his face turn red and floated down, before standing next to Mouse. "Mouse, keep an eye on him... This place seems to not suit him well."
He looked at Mouse as he nodded at the firewarrior and turned. Harnio watched as Mouse gave him a thumbs up and signed at him. "He said... Don't fight what has happened to you, or you'll experience pain and headaches... I know all about that." Harnio smiled. "Why is it when I'm near you I feel peaceful? Its as if your body gives off this sense of a calm and peaceful nature."
"He said... That is what his body does... Since half of it is from a tree, trees give off that feeling... We all feel it around him." Harnio nodded. "I'll have to do some research about that... I'm sure that this sort of operation couldn't just happen to anyone." He looked down at Mouse's legs with interest. "Mouse..."
"Can you all be quiet for a moment? We're near the place. I need to concentrate and listen to lady luck." Harnio looked down at the ground and touched it with his hand. "Painful past... But at least you're all home where you should be and not in a battery or a spark..."
"PHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHOOOOMMMMMMMM"
"Hold on to something!" Harnio stood amongst the sand that started to rise around them admiring the fountain of sand. He stood still looking at everyone starting to panic. "Don't worry... It means no harm... Its energy moving it. Monk, the trial is here. I can feel it, just as I'm sure you can sense the treasure."
They stood watching the sand around them fly into the sky until they were standing on the top of a stone pyramid. He pulled out his pipe and started to smoke it, feeling his racing heart slow down. "What's this place?" Harnio walked up to the stone archway in front of them and looked at the stone columns. "This has to be the entrance to the wall... See the inscriptions, and patterns, they show battles and wars..."
"What do you hear lady luck telling you?"
"I need to go in there alone..." Harnio looked at the doorway frowning. "Makes sense... Its for the monks eyes only after all." He took a step back and looked around sadly, he turned and looked at the others. "Its a pity, but I can't argue with the rules."
"We'll have to keep this place safe for you instead..." He watched as the monk looked at the firewarrior. "Stannir... If I don't come back... Don't blame me for our deaths."
"Hahaha... Don't be like that... I thought you are the brave one that faced all for coin, women and wine..."
"Haha... Thats just the wine talking... I better go... Lady luck said, they're close so if I were you I would prepare for a fight amongst the sands."
"We'll deal with them brother... No one will enter this place, while you're in here."
"Thanks brother... I'll see you soon." Harnio watched as they knocked their fists together. He turned to the priestess. "What does knocking fists mean?"
"It is just their greeting... Something brothers like them do." Harnio frowned. "Why don't we do that? I only see them doing that."
"Everyone has their way... Don't worry about them... They'll see each other soon, he'll be back stronger and probably drunker than before... Stupid drunken monk."
"Hey I heard that... I'll be back... Keep this place safe... I leave it in your hands. Don't miss me too much..." Harnio watched the monk's back in the darkness of the stone archway and he turned looking at the sand around them. He looked at the firewarrior who was staring in the distance. "We better start preparing... We don't want anyone to enter this place... We should hide it."
Harnio smiled. "I can create a sandstorm... I've read about them in books... Just a lot of wind, and the sand is here... You can't see anything during the storm unless its right in front of you."
"Good idea little brother... Than we can sit and wait for them to arrive and snipe them one by one as the drones go searching for us."
"Harnio... The sand storm has to cover the entire island... If they see a storm, they'll come straight for it, since it'll tell everyone that its here." Harnio nodded. "Don't worry about that... I'll cover this place in a sandstorm no one has seen in years."
"How do we protect ourselves from the sand... We don't want to get it in our eyes, or we'll be blind." Harnio nodded. "Don't worry. I'll make this area safe from the storm, and anyone who is standing here, will not have to deal with it."
"How long can you keep this sand storm going?" Harnio looked around. "There's lots of wind and sand here... I can make it self sustaining, which means I just have to start it... Problem will be, that I won't be able to stop it, and when the monk comes back we'll have to go through it... Or wait for it to die down by itself."
"No we won't... Brother can tunnel us out of here..." He looked at the Firewarrior frowning. "What is it?"
"What if they're going to be tunneling as well?"
"Its the only place to survive in a sandstorm... Can't move anywhere on the surface while its raging over our heads."
"Firewarrior... It depends on the one leading them... They're drones, so in their eyes their expendable... Also, we don't know if they have a similar ability to Drummen."
"Yes. that's true priestess... Harnio... Make your storm... Priestess and snipers keep an eye out for any stray drones, and take them out from a distance."
Harnio smiled and walked down the pyramid stairs and touched the sand with his hands. He picked up a handful and started to write with another. He dropped the sand, watching as wind started to pick it up around him. He turned and pointed to the east as large clouds and winds started to gather. "Here it comes... Enjoy the time to rest... They won't find us in this storm."
He walked back up the steps admiring the carvings on the stones. "Interesting... They really tell a story here... This place is incredible."
He bent down and raised his hand stopping an arrow with a wall of wind behind him. He stood up and looked at the arrow, watching it fall to the ground. "Harnio!" He took a step, appearing next to the group at the top of the stairs. "It seems, the storm is not here yet... We need to defend this place until than." He nodded at the firewarrior and gave the arrow to the priestess. "I think you can use this better than I could."
"Thanks Harnio... He watched as the fire eater unit and the priestess started firing around them. "That's five for me... Make that six... It seems your unit can't keep up."
"Hahaha... Don't worry about them... They'll keep up won't you fire eaters?"
"Sir, yes sir."
He watched as they all pulled out fire energy weapons, and started to fire at the drones they saw arriving."
"For the master..."
He frowned. "They didn't mention the queen... Could there be more than one who can do this?" He shook his head. "The priestess mentioned that the person opened a bottle... Maybe something given to him, by the queen."
He formed a wall of wind as a swarm of arrows were incoming. Harnio stood there watching the arrows freeze in mid air. "Harnio... That's a great skill." He looked at Cliffhopper who was cracking his knuckles. "You can't leave the stairs yet... The storm is coming... Just keep them off the stairs Cliffhopper." He watched as the firewarrior jumped and landed on the bottom stair with Cliffhopper. Harnio let the arrows fall to the ground and looked at the black dots starting to climb over the dune... "There's a lot of them..." He looked at the incoming sand storm frowning. "Its taking its time... It should be breaking here shortly."
"Can you hurry it?" He shook his head at the priestess. "If I hurry it, my calculations might become incorrect... Just a few moments more... Its almost here."
He raised his hand creating a wall protecting the firewarrior and Cliffhopper at the bottom step. He watched as the defense unit of the fire eaters move in a line behind them.
"It seems everyone is getting serious about this... I must too... All for the monk." He turned and looked into the darkness. "You better make it out monk..."
"PHSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSWMMMM"
Harnio smiled. "Right on time... Lets see what you do in a sandstorm."