They scorching heat beating down on the sands as they travel through the desert. The hot and bright day had turned to dusk and the Riders has all slowed their Kagans down close to the wall of the mountain ridge.
"We'll set up camp here," one of the riders called out. "It's too dangerous at night to travel now that we're in Deathworm territory." He tells Jayce and Terek while hoping off his Kagan. The large reptile scatters from the group and mounts itself on the wall.
"Wait. What's a Deathworm?" Jayce asked curiously as he slides off the back of his Kagan. The Kagan he was on does the same thing. "And why the hell do they do that?"
One of the riders walked over to Terek and his Kagan to make sure both Terek and Timber hopped off okay. "The Deathworms are not what you would expect. They are massive wingless dragons that roam the Southern Dunes and below. They are the reason nobody has been able to reach any of the docks for so long." The Rider began to unpack and set up a fire. Terek unhooked his sheathed sword and carefully set it down on the coarse sand. The sand at first felt hot to the touch, but as he reached down and scooped it up, the sand seemed to chill to the touch.
"The sands in the areas near the mountain cliff side are known to be cold. No body knows why but it'll help you rest in this heat no matter the time." A short man walks up, he was dressed like one of the riders as he slides his face coverings down and goggles off. A long scar crossed his face and over his nose until it reaches his left eye. His left eye looked blank, his iris filled with a white clouded colors. "The name is Gregor. I'm sorry I couldn't help myself when I overheard you guys talking."
"We didn't get to properly introduce ourselves either. I'm Jayce." He stood up and walked over to Gregor, reaching out to shake hands. The short older gentleman took his hand and firmly shook hands. "Those two are Terek and his Direwolf Timber."
Terek just sat down in the cool sand and nods. He was still trying to piece everything together. Timber was sniffing around the sand being her first time in a desert. The pack and the Hunters were the only ones who were able to explore outside the village and the forest.
"Might I ask what you three are doing down here in the desert?" Gregor asked out of curiosity.
The two young men exchange looks for a split second then silently agreed. If anything, these people would be the only ones they could trust. "We have urgent business in Strazza Grah." Jayce told the man but caught a worried look.
"You don't know anything about what is going on over there do ya?" The other ride asked and looked over at the two.
"No…? Why do you ask?" Jayce questioned. The two didn't have a clue about what was going on on that continent.
"The current Human King of Strazza Grah was murdered a few days ago." The rider told the two. "Being from the clans up north, I can understand why there's been a lack of communication. No offense"
"Terek… Do you think she's connected?" Jayce looked over to him as he laid down against the sand.
"If you're talking about the Princess, the Mages are blaming the Kings death on her." Gregor slaps the back of the riders head before he could say more.
"I think that's enough talk for one night. Let's eat up then we can rest." He spoke softly. Jayce had gotten up and walked over to the edge of the cool sand, staring out into the distance. Now he too was questioning what was truly going on.
The morning came quickly, allowing the group to get prepared ahead of time. Jayce and Terek were ready but they both were still questioning the current situation. Time had past since the disembarked from their camp, Argi had caught up moments later in time for them to reach the village she mentioned. Argi slithers through the front gates, passing her guards as they stood atop the walls and beside the gates themselves. They too were dressed like the riders, wearing gear to combat the harshness of the desert. Once inside the gate walls, Argi stops in the village center, waiting on the young men on their Kagans.
Once Jayce, Terek, and Timber all enter the center of the village, the two young men hop off of the Kagan Crawlers they were once on before they walk over to Argi.
"The man we spoke of, will be in the stone house to the far back of the village." She started to lead them but stopped for a moment. "But as I said yesterday, be prepared for his injuries have scarred him. Severely…" Argi turned around and began to lead them to the back of the village. To the old stone house. A couple young maids were cleaning when the saw Argi and the boys arrive to the house. The stopped in their tracks and bowed.
"How is he today?" Argi asked the maids as the stood back up and looked at her.
"The pain still haunts him… But the Phantom Pain has only gotten worse." The maid on the left was short with dark brown hair tied up in a pony tail. Her and the other maid were dressed similarly with dark pants and a short sleeve top.
"Can you please show these two young men to him?" The maids nod and begin to head in. "These two will lead you to the man I spoke of."
"Thank you Argi. After we speak with him, we seriously need to talk to you about something." Jayce told her then began to follow the maids.
Terek stood behind for a moment as if he were to ask a question but shook his head. With that he walked into the housing behind. He entered and was greeted by a set of old stone stairs in front of him and two open doorways on each side. Timber had ran past and hopped her way up the cold stone stairs. There were no questioning, they had the man upstairs. Terek took one step at a time until he reached the top. Jayce and Timber stood with the maids at the shut door, waiting for Terek to arrive. The short maid slowly opened the door and looked down as she stood by it.
Jayce walks in first, seeing a slightly older man looking out the glass window to his right. He laid there covered up with visible scarring on his face and his arms covered in scars and burns. At first Jayce was about to question what Argi meant about severe until the man slowly turned his head to look at Jayce.
"Jayce…? Is that you?" The man asked. The right side of his face was almost missing. His teeth visible through his cheek where skin should have been. His right eye was missing and covered with a fresh bandage.
Jayce looked at the man in the eye then his eyes widened. "I… I was afraid nobody survived… You were the only one…" he stopped to catch his breath. "You were the last one to help me… Felix.."