For fifty years there has been an ongoing war between the monarchical northern country Malta and the ever expanding western empire Hóngyè. Both sides made numerous offenses against the other, and for those past five decades many smaller nations aided each side in their efforts, their loyalties either remaining strong or choking on the obtuse amount of time spent on the conflict with no end in sight. Each domain had been on equal footing when it came to power during all those years, with neither surrendering. And those who did wish for peace, who were in a position of power may have tried to cease the fighting with a peace treaty. But those treaties ended up fairly temporary since there was still so much resentment from both sides, and eventually they would just start fighting all over again.
For so long there was no end to be seen. No resolution. And many lives had been lost in the process. Thousands to millions of soldier's lives had been taken, towns have been pillaged and burned, citizens were caught in the crosshairs, due to food shortages many people had to deal with multiple famines and eventual plagues. They often begged for peace, but they never could count on the other side to keep their end of the deal since there would always be so much hostility from both parties. It was an exhausting ordeal that many were born and died in. But for the time being, everyone was in conflict. Armies recruited young and not many had the privilege to pass from old age.
What was the worst of it all, was that the dangerous resentment that both sides caused attracted even worse malicious forces. Creatures of darkness exposed themselves to bring destruction and devastation onto the heads of the innocent, making it so that the country's attention was divided thanks to these supernatural beings.
The people called them demons. They came in all sorts of variety and caused violent damage wherever they could. Not much was known about them, but there were plenty of citizens that prayed that these tortuous times would stop, which they never did. So these demons spread like an infection throughout the countries, contaminating forests or destroying towns.
It was all so ridiculous and too much, was the thought process of a man named Juma Omari. A 26 year old black man who was the head nurse in one of the medical barracks of the Malta army. He had been an official army nurse for five years now, first learning how to patch a wound when he joined the army at age fourteen. Through his practices, additional mentors, and time spent on mending injuries on the battlefield, he eventually qualified as a professional militant nurse.
He was currently writing a patient release form for a patched up soldier from the 46th platoon. The man had lost his eye and a few fingers by shielding his face from a stray explosive. He was lucky to have survived, but apparently he would be sent back out onto battle the very next day once he rested for a bit.
Omari huffed through his nose. He knew the man needed more recovery time, but the army couldn't afford to have what they deemed as 'such capable soldiers' twiddling their thumbs on the sidelines.
The man was checked out and Omari went to clean recently used surgical tools. He quietly hummed to himself as he sterilized a scalpel covered with dried blood and thought to himself.
He was thankful to be a nurse in these difficult times. He'd rather be here in the medical tents, helping fix up soldiers than be out there on the front lines. He always did have a knack with a pin and needle, so stitching them up was the most heroic thing that he wanted to do. Omari wasn't willing to throw himself between swords and arrows. Or even more horrendous, he wouldn't want to be at the end of a magical fire ball or something crazy like that. He wasn't quite made for fighting or certainly didn't want to be. To willingly sell yourself off to the army or worse; be picked up by a random recruitment officer at a young age like he was, for a cause he didn't feel like dying for, was probably the most awful way to live.
Those types of officers who feigned kindness and generosity by 'adopting' kids, giving them a place to stay, to say that they will protect you, when in all actuality, they were just picking up kids to be groomed into becoming cannon fodder. A cruel thing to do, to take the young and feed them into an endless war.
Of course not all soldiers were mundane street rats who needed a place to sleep and a bowl of stew to keep them fed. Many soldiers came from well-to-do families who idolized warfare and believed patriotism was always the best course of action.
He knew one of those people quite well, actually. In fact, her platoon had just returned and like usual, she was on a high from that sort of patriotism. Jessi Bellows marched in, a young woman with short red hair, and black skin with vitiligo. She had a fun beaming expression to herself as she approached Omari. Coming in as her group bypassed the medical tent on the outside. She saw him hunched over, refilling medicine vials. She was a soldier on the front lines, one that has been there since she was sixteen. Jessi was just a couple years older than Omari.
Like mentioned before, she was no street orphan. She belonged to a wealthy and pristine family who valued nationalism. Omari never understood how anyone who had a family to go back to, a warm bed and food, a roof over their head, would voluntarily join the military.
She chuckled as she leaned on his chair, looking over his shoulder, "Sup, Ponytail," she started playing with it, squeezing the dreads as she said, "Just got back from running off the enemy. The cowards didn't know what they had coming to 'em."
Omari rolled his eyes, "Anyone from your platoon injured?"
"Hardly," she shrugged. "Have a few dead though. The coroner can deal with that honestly."
"Who died?" Omari asked, marking a new vial of pain medication.
"Just some rookies," Jessi flippantly answered. "They got cocky. Unlike me. Hardly got a scratch."
"Let me see," Omari gestured her over, but she just averted her eyes.
"I'm not hurt," she scoffed. "Just a few scratches."
"Scratches that are untreated will get infected out here," Omari stated. "There are some marshes that you might have to sift through in these parts. You especially don't want parasites getting into any open wounds."
She clicked her teeth, but not in a rude way, more because she was used to this sort of behavior. She relented and showed some scratches on her hands, "Here, Doctor. Can they be healed?"
"With some cleaning and disinfectant," he responded nonchalantly, unaffected by her taunting. He brought out a wet cloth, dabbing the scratch marks and taking a cotton ball to wipe it with disinfectant.
Jessi smirked, "You're so insistent on your job."
"I'm good at it," Omari huffed, wrapping her thin fingers with bandages.
"You'd be better on the front lines," Jessi chuckled.
"Mhm," Omari absentmindedly nodded. This wasn't the first time she suggested something like this. He stood up with a clipboard and she followed as he exited the medical tent.
"I always tell you, man," Jessi hummed. "You're tall. Muscly. You'd be a great fighter out there. Hell, I'd even make a spot for you in my platoon. Everyone would eventually see you as a hero."
Omari's eyes flickered to Jessi as he muttered, "I don't see these soldiers who throw their lives away for a hopeless war as heroes. Their sacrificial lambs at best."
"We're hardly lambs," Jessi elbowed him. "More like lions. And besides… this war will end in my lifetime if I have anything to say about it."
"You're just biding your time," he sighed, reaching a tent full of more patients that smelled like rotten skin and dried blood. He approached one who had a mangled leg and looked over his patient report. He clicked his teeth and shook his head. Moving to the patient, he said, "Sir, you're going to be discharged. You'll have to retire."
"No... " the man grumbled. "I can still fight. I can-"
"Sir, with a leg like that, you can hardly stand," Omari countered. "It has become too infected. It'll need to be removed or you'll get toxins in your bloodstream that'll kill you. I'm discharging you after your surgery."
"No!" the man barked, sweat dampening his face. "I promised him! I promised him that we would stay together! Please, I need to talk to Zeke. I need to talk to him."
A couple of other nurses came to his side to placate him as he whined into the air, "I need… I need him… Zeke…"
Omari walked off to check on other patients and Jessi remarked, "You're always so cold to them."
"I can't help him anymore than this," Omari sighed. "Besides… Zeke is already dead."
Jessi's eyes lowered and she nodded, "Do you even like being a nurse?"
"It is the way I want to help people," Omari stated. "Help them here, so they won't die."
"You don't even like the army though," Jessi scoffed.
"Well…" Omari glanced over another patient's report, seeing that they were temporarily blinded by an explosion, "It's not like I have anywhere else to go."
He finished off and left the tent with Jessi tailing behind him. When he left, a nurse called him from behind. She emerged from a tent with a wave, covered in a dried blood stained apron and dirtied gloves. She threw those in the laundry hamper outside and rushed to Omari. She was a small woman, younger than both Omari and Jessi with straight black hair and dark tan skin. Her name was Maliha and Omari was quite decent friends with her. She was born from a more South Eastern City, she also had a family back there. She came to this military to be a nurse which Omari thought was moderately respectable. She came to their side and said, "Are you checking the supplies, Omari? I would like to join. We've run out of clean bedding, masks, and cotton swabs."
"Where's the laundry boys?" Omari questioned.
"They went out drinking last night and hadn't come back," she sighed.
"Hmph, slackers," Omari grunted then gestured for her to follow them. They were moving to the storage when Jessi briefly looked out to a low mountain range far to their right. She nudged Omari, saying, "Did you hear that in a week we'll be crossing that to rejoin the main army?"
Omari turned to where she was pointing at and he grimaced, "I hear things faster than you do all the time cause I stay here at the camp. Of course I heard about that."
"It's super dangerous…" Jessi then smirked, "You scared?"
"Tsk, no," Omari grumpily clicked his teeth.
"Aw," she goaded. "You totally are, you coward~!"
"Shut up," Omari turned away.
"It's okay, Omari," she smiled. "I'll protect you from those nasty demons."
"I don't need your protection," he huffed. "I know how to defend myself."
"But you won't fight for yourself," she hummed.
"You're not asking for me to fight for myself, but for this country, and I hate unnecessary conflict," Omari mumbled. "This whole war is an unnecessary conflict. I don't need to die for these idiotic politicians."
"Hey, my father's one of those politicians."
"One of those warheads."
"It's not a big deal," she shrugged. "This war will end soon. I'll make sure of that. Once I get promoted to general, I'm gonna absolutely destroy the opposition."
"Remind me what you are right now."
She stared and bashfully answered, "A lieutenant..."
"Mm."
"Hey! Don't make fun of me," she whined. "I'll be promoted to captain any day now and Hóngyè will have to watch out!"
"Such a mercy," he chuckled.
"Hmph, I'll give them as much mercy as they do for us," she snipped.
They got to Storage, but before going inside they saw a new shipment roll in; large carts with containers. The three approached it, but first noticed the Supplies Officer Betsida arguing with the handler. She was loud and furious as she barked, "I don't want that stuff here. Send it somewhere else!"
"I was instructed to bring it here!" the exasperated handler yelled back.
Omari came to intervene, but when he saw what was inside the container, he almost lost it out of anger.
Black Gold. It was magic, usually dark magic contained and transported. Without a proper magic user manipulating it, the raw magic becomes dense, unstable, and volatile, making very good explosives. But they were also very expensive, highly valued, and difficult to get your hands on.
Though being the army, they had an easier time getting a hold of it. But to have it here would be more dangerous than when they would be crossing the mountain range in a week. He glared at the handler, also shouting, "What're doing?! Are you trying to make us a target?! Get this out of here!"
"Who are you?!" the handler was startled, but now was trying to size up Omari.
"I am the head medical officer," Omari growled. "And we are already having bodies pile up over here. We don't need Black Gold to put us in a bigger position for attack. What if the enemy finds out we have this stuff here?! We don't have the manpower to protect this and our own soldiers!"
"That's what I said!" Betsida snapped. "This is more trouble than it's worth. Remove it from my sight immediately."
"Listen, listen!" the handler grumbled. "I have orders from General Abe himself that it will stay here until you all transfer over to the main army! And unless you have someone to outrank him here, then I'm sorry. My hands are tied!"
Betsida glared. They really didn't have anyone who fit that description. At best they did have Major Myers for a while, until he took an arrow between the eyes three days ago. Betsida was actually now considered the highest ranking officer in the vicinity, barely making captain last year, but she hardly had a say in this.
Though Omari was still very against this. He turned to her, muttering, "We can't have this here."
Her face scrunched up as she thought long and hard, then finally answered, "I have no authority over this situation, but-!" Their eyes widened as she raised a finger, "We aren't sitting on these ticking time bombs. We're moving out earlier than planned. Spread the word. I'm not sitting here like a duck waiting to be shot at."
"But Captain!" Jessi argued. "We still haven't finished our third mission to remove the enemy from this territory."
But Betsida just firmly shook her head, "If I am being forced to be responsible for this shit, then we are leaving as soon as possible. We aren't going to wait around here." She pointed to Omari, "Get your staff and patients together. We're going to have everything packed by tomorrow morning."
Omari heavily sighed. This meant that they'd be going into the forest sooner and his heart wasn't prepared for that. But it would be a million times safer if they didn't stay in one place with the Black Gold any longer than they had to. He gestured to Jessi and said, "Help me check the stocks and then we'll go get the patients ready."
Maliha interjected, "I can go back first. I'll tell them early."
"Good," Omari nodded. "We'll get your supplies."
She quickly left as the two rushed inside.
Jessi gave a nervous smile, joking, "Don't worry, we got plenty of time."
Omari snorted and reached the old shipping crates which had the leftover medical supplies that they had received a week ago. It'd have to be enough to get him and all his patients across the mountains. Though, he'd have to hope there wouldn't be any confrontations so more soldiers wouldn't get injured, depleting their supply even more. They got what they needed, pushing carts of supplies out to the medical tents, exiting as Jessi said, "Guess I'm not filling out those battle reports, huh?"
"Guess not," Omari replied. "But hey, when we get back to the main barracks, I'll buy you a drink so you won't feel too bad about giving up on your mission."
Jessi beamed, "I'll take you up on that offer!"
They pushed the carts far away from the storage when something whistled in the air. It slammed onto the building, hitting the Black Gold, exploding it instantly. Omari and Jessi shielded their faces from the blast. Shrapnel and dust flew high into the sky, gusts of wind blowing past them. They turned back to see the storage building was completely leveled, flames blooming from the wood. The destroyed Black Gold also lit up nearby tents and panic was already setting on the camp as people rushed out to see what had happened. Omari looked at the plume of smoke that came from whatever projectile decimated the storage and saw that it emanated from a cliff side on the mountains.
Jessi yelled, "Betsida!"
She went to rush out, but Omari pulled her to the side, much to her protests, but it was also to get her out of the open. He showed her to run against the side of the tents to stay out of the enemy's line of fire. As they dashed, the alarm bell rang and soldiers armed themselves for an upcoming attack. Jessi looked at the people running about and told Omari, "Find Betsida if you can! Someone needs to direct these people!"
Omari's eyes widened and he said, "Good luck, Lieutenant."
She nodded, then told him, "The trees on the north side of the camp- meet us there, okay?!"
"Okay!" Omari nodded and sprinted to get Betsida. The wreckage was scorching, but he gratefully found the unconscious senior officer laying on her back as he went to her side. He shook her a bit and she groggily woke up, grunted and spat out some blood. Her forehead was bleeding from the impact of her fall.
Seeing Omari, she muttered, "Really should have just made them take it somewhere else…"
He nodded, telling her, "You most likely have a concussion and may have some internal bleeding. But I'm going to have to carry you out of here."
She nodded and he scooped her up, even when she groaned in pain. He carried her down past the tents and saw through the cracks of fabric that enemy troops were marching in. From the mountain, there were cannonballs hailing down and on the ground soldier's swords met and arrows pierced through tents. Yells and screams filled the air, the flames spread.
Omari's feet carried him to the edge, dodging projectiles and fights. He slipped past them as the members of the camp were pushed back to retreat into the forest. He saw that the medical tents were quickly emptied and the ones who were hanging back were soldiers that sacrificed their lives to get others to safety. He briefly saw Jessi on the front lines, swinging a battle axe and quickly cutting down two more Hóngyèse soldiers. She noticed Omari and ran to him, barking at the remaining soldiers to fall back, but to hold off the enemy. She got to his side, her face flecked with blood and soot as she said, "Medical staff is far up ahead. Some soldiers are there with them, but most of our army is being backed up here."
Bestida groaned and budged.
"Don't move, Captain," Omari told her.
"I can stand on my own."
"You're very injured," he said.
"I'll make it," she hissed. "I've faced worse and managed to save myself from it. I'll survive."
He really didn't feel like arguing with her in the midst of a battlefield and let her down. She unsheathed her sword and stated, "I'm going up ahead to lead our army out of these woods. I'll get medical help up at the front of the line. Now!" She waved her sword to the trees, "Retreat!"
The soldiers nodded and followed, Omari and Jessi keeping up pace with the group. They rushed up the hill, listening to cannonfire upturn ground and fall trees. They watched soldiers get hit, or splatter against rocks. But they had to keep going, had to keep fleeing. It was so loud and everything was going by so fast. The last thing Omari remembered was that Jessi was beside him to his right, there was an explosion to his left that burst his eardrums and he was thrown near her. They collided and hit the ground. Muffles, painful groans, and their bodies slamming and scraping against the rocky terrain then tossed them down the hill and Omari's vision went black.
-
He groggily woke up, feeling that the skin on his arm was burning. He hissed and looked at it to see a searing burn mark. He grasped it, then glanced around to see where he had landed. It was some sort of split of the earth that shortly channeled out to the side of the mountain. Some trees had fallen across the crack up above him, but he thankfully noticed a small underground stream pouring from the side of the wall. Omari placed his burn mark there, biting his shirt as the cold water slid across his injury. He whined from the pain, but was able to stifle any sobbing cries from it. On his belt he had pockets for bandages and ointment that he applied to the arm. He must have run out of pain killers since he couldn't apply that at the moment.
His vision was a bit blurry while doing this, but he had received wounds before in the midst of a heated zone, so he could patch himself up blindfolded by now. Omari glanced around, unsure how to proceed, especially if the enemy was still in the area. Judging by the sun, he was probably out for about half an hour, maybe a bit more. He lifted himself up with a groan and when he stood, he saw behind some rocks was Jessi, lying prone on the ground.
Omari's heart dropped at the sight of her and he rushed to his friend's side. He felt her side for some bruising or punctures, then lightly pushed Jessi on her back and saw that she just had some bruises on her face. He thought she was down for the count, but when moved she quickly woke up, surprised to see Omari above her.
"Wha… What happened?" she muttered.
"We fell down this crevice," Omari told her. "We didn't fall too far, so our injuries should be subpar."
"Mm," she grunted, slowly pulling herself up with his assistance. He checked her, no broken ribs or limbs. She wasn't bleeding anywhere, so she was good for now.
"It's quiet," she mumbled. "Where's the rest of our army?"
Omari looked up to the large crack in the ground, "They're either all dead or they managed to escape."
She nodded and then walked to the exit, but Omari stopped her, "Wait a minute. We should wait here for a while until they leave."
"They'll scour this area looking for survivors and kill us," she remarked. "If we just sit here, they'll find us and either take us as hostages or execute us. We got to go."
He grumbled but agreed. He followed her out of the cracked ground and they soon noticed to their right were many dead bodies. Some of the enemy's, mostly their soldiers. Jessi glared at the wake of bodies and turned to Omari, whispering, "Let's see who's done this."
"Wha- No!" Omari hissed. "Let's get out of here while it's still clear."
"You go," she had such a hateful stare to her. "I need to see who did this."
"But why...?"
She looked at him and gave a rather battered smile, "It's good to get intel on our enemy. If we can figure out who did this then we can warn ahead to the main army."
Omari's gaze lowered and his eyebrows furrowed, but he just sighed, "Okay, let's do this quickly."
"Mm!"
They traversed through the rough terrain, hiding amongst the brush and looked out to see that their entire camp had burned down. Any tent that survived the flames was broken and torn, and there were many bodies littering the grounds. The enemy's soldiers had regrouped and had cleared out any and all survivors. They saw a large red palanquin embedded with jewels and silks sitting amidst the devastating chaos. There were many guards surrounding the palanquin and one imposing woman soldier clad in black stood in front of it with the coldest expression that Omari had ever seen. He immediately assumed that she was the general that caused this attack, but then the curtains of the palanquin fluttered open, glistening a glittering rose and gold as a figure emerged.
This person was laced with scarlet, layered in multiple regal robes that trailed behind them. A cherry silk ribbon rolled down between their arms, haloing them. A tight golden sash squeezed their small waist and every piece of fabric was detailed in dignified Hóngyèse styles. Gems were imprinted on their clothes, natural and slimming. Their hair was long and black, gold and silver rings embedded with diamonds holding their braids. Large sections of hair were scooped up and held in a metal head piece that had two stems that wore crimson tasils. Jewelry laid on their chest and encompassed their neck, but all this glitz and glamor did not hide the light brown skin that traced across this person's face. They had phoenix eyes that dipped down at the corners and were encircled with vibrant red eyeliner wings. Their mouth had a black spot painted on the bottom lip and everywhere Omari looked at this colorful person, he saw something new.
He had never seen a Hóngyèse General, but once he saw this person, he was convinced that they were the highest of ranks. It surprised him that someone who looked so young could reach a goal such as becoming a general, but he supposed being from a different country, Hóngyè's rules would be different then theirs. Omari was so starstruck by their elaborate appearance that he almost forgot why he was there.
Jessi nudged him and whispered, "Hey, hey!"
"Wha- What?" Omari blinked back to reality.
"That's the general," she pointed to the illustrious person, saying, "That's General Tao Liu."
"Tao Liu?!" Omari gasped. He may not always know what's going on in the battlefield, but he did know THAT name. That name belonged to one of the deadliest generals in all of Hóngyè. Someone so formidable that many leaders on their side retreated immediately upon his name as they wished not to engage. From what Omari heard, he was a powerful spell caster. Someone brimming with pure, unadulterated talent and has been reported to have brought whole armies to their knees with his power. Both sides hated him so much. Even his own people find him disagreeable, calling him the Villain of Hóngyè. Though Omari had no idea what this guy could have done to his own people to receive such a title.
"I thought he was still on the southern border," Jessi clicked her tongue. "This is bad. We have to warn our army as soon as possible."
"Mm," Omari nodded, eyes still captured by the magnificence that was this person. The man just seemed to glow at every inch of sunlight. It was hard not to be taken in by such brilliance.
Then another approached the general, the two watched them conversing and were just barely able to make out their conversation. The soldier that stepped forward looked conniving and rude, his face like a weasel as they could hear him say, "General Tao, this area is clear of Maltan scum. I'll take my men to proceed and cut off their remaining soldiers on the other side of the mountain."
The general looked at the man, with a serene gaze. He spoke, his voice steady and absolute, "Commander Jin, give way to your search, but I will not offer any of my soldiers in your pathetic little chase."
The man named Commander Jin made a face that actually made Omari chuckle a bit, but the soldier nodded, "This coalition to thwart off the enemy has been successful. I pray for future fortune between both of us."
He crossed his hands together and bowed, but their stare did not break. It was full of malice and disdain, but the two managed to keep the peace.
"Off then," General Tao smiled. "May you find your fortune on your trail."
Commander Jin nodded and removed himself.
Omari accidentally released a snicker from seeing the man's huffed up face.
Jessi then whispered, "Kay, let's go now."
"Mm," he looked at the general once more, then snuck off with Jessi to try and climb the mountain. They stealthily went up through the trees, with Jessi saying, "I knew those cannons must have been manipulated with magical energy since they had such a reach. But I didn't think it'd be his magical energy. I've seen him a couple times when I was stationed at the southern border. First time was a stealth mission to try to gain info. The second time… I saw him on the battlefield."
"What was he like?"
"Ridiculously powerful," she huffed. "Our troops didn't stand a chance against him. And then after he used so much of his powers to weaken us, his soldiers quickly trampled all over ours and we had to retreat." She scowled, "But it's not just that. He's impeccably tactile and caught us by surprise plenty of times. He probably had spies in our ranks to inform him about the shipment of Black Gold. Though I don't know why he destroyed that stuff instead of taking it. It's expensive."
"Maybe he didn't want anyone to have it," Omari suggested.
"Oh, come on," Jessi shook her head. "If he had such raw power he'd be even stronger on the battlefield. Why wouldn't he want it?"
Omari didn't know. He never had a single ounce of magic imbued in him his entire life.
"Well whatever it is, we'll report to whatever general will be stationed at the main army," she sighed, climbing up some rocks. "It'll take a couple days, but we can make it."
"Mm," Omari nodded, but then saw something whiz past him. He blinked to the side to see an arrow in the dirt. Then another flew by and he flinched and dodged. He turned to see a few Hóngyèse soldiers were behind them, firing at the two.
Jessi gasped and yelled, "Run, Omari!"
Another arrow just barely missed him and he ran to his left while Jessi escaped uphill. They separated and a couple of the soldiers chased after Omari, repeatedly firing arrows at him. He fled down the slope, narrowly getting struck. The men chased him for quite some time, his breath becoming ragged and a sweat forming on his forehead. He reached the end of a tree line and saw a steep slope below him. He didn't catch his balance in time and tumbled, the speed of his run adding to his momentum. He rolled all the way down, scraping against rock and skidding on the dirt. He eventually crash landed into a pile of bushes, gasping from shock. But then he heard voices from those soldiers who were searching for him on top.
"Where'd he go?"
"Uh, maybe he's down at the bottom, I'll go check."
"Alright, be careful."
One man searched at the top as the other tried to slowly make his way down the slope. He started glancing about and Omari knew that he wouldn't be able to get out of there with these two on him. When the man passed his bush, Omari lunged out, grappling him and slammed his head against a tree. The man toppled down, unconscious. And Omari took his bow and arrows, and pointed one at the man on the top. He stared at the unsuspecting person, not yet knowing that Omari had a clear shot to his head.
He sweated a bit, hands trembling and then clicking his teeth. He repositioned it and fired the arrow, stabbing the man in his leg. He yelped and fell down, and Omari made a break for it.
He ran through the woods, trying to escape when the trees started getting denser. He panted loudly, and the more he ran into the forest, the more he realized how turned around he really was. Everything was getting so dark, so crowded. The satchel of arrows and bow got caught on some branches and he left it behind in his haste. The canopy was shielding a lot of the sunlight from coming down, so it was getting harder to see. Omari trudged through, trying to find his way out when he tripped over something. He fell to the ground and glanced back to barely make out some sort of stone was in his way. But it wasn't just random rock, it was more like stone brick from a building.
He stood up and turned to see a dark blue light bloom down from the sky like moonlight. Omari's mouth fell as the sky seemed to have turned dark like night and everything had a sapphire luminescence. Shedding across the trees and a large opening. Shining in to reveal ruins.
It may have once been a building of some kind, but now it was deteriorated rubble that crumbled from age. Worn out and caved in, there wasn't much to it besides some cobble ground and what looked to be the last intact wall that remained standing. All the other walls had crumbled over time but this one still stood, covered in vines and moss. Omari approached it, seeing that engraved into the wall was a dried up stone fountain. Many leaves had fallen inside over time with insects crawling all over it. He then faced up to see a carving. It was worn and old, cracks forming all over, surrounded by a variety of plants and animals, but what remained in the center of it was a sword.
It was placed inside a hole of its shape, resting there without intention. Omari stared at the sword. It seemed untouched by time, glistening in the blue light. It's blade was so clean that it reflected his face and on the handle was golden carvings of vines wrapped around it. It was quite the beautiful thing, that even though Omari had no interest in handling weapons, something about this one just seemed different.
He touched the smooth blade, running his fingers along it until he reached the hilt. He grasped it and with a light pull, removed the sword from the wall. He held it in his hand, admiring the craftsmanship. It was an utterly beautiful thing.
Omari murmured as he touched the edge, "Still sharp."
-
He left the cramped wilderness of the forest, honestly quite surprised that he didn't face any dangers inside. They had heard that demons were roaming those parts, but perhaps they migrated elsewhere. As he emerged from the woods, he couldn't take his eyes off the sword. There was really something about it that he couldn't quite explain yet. And he wondered why the thing was just left in the woods in the first place.
Very peculiar.
Omari started making his way down this meadow when he heard the sound of horses. He glanced to his right and saw soldiers of the Hóngyèse army riding across the plains. Before he could duck in the tall grass to hide, one officer that even from this distance Omari could recognize as Commander Jin, shouted. The commander spotted him and yelled, "A soldier! A bastard from the Maltan army!"
Omari paled and ran. He dashed down the field, sprinting through the grass as he listened to the daunting sound of horse hooves echo across the ground. He panted, rushing far away with a loud anxiety screaming through his veins. He could imagine what they would do to him. String his limbs up with rope, tying it to their horses, then they would whip the animals to run. He wanted to cry from such a thought and quickly tears threatened to sting his eyes from the panic.
He jumped over rock and crevices, but those beasts were really after him. He thankfully reached the next treeline, but by then the soldiers were already hot on his tail. He was grateful that none of them seemed to be archers. He threw himself over root and branch, hearing the beasts struggle to enter the woods. But they soon found an opening and raced inside. Commander Jin pulled out a long sword and called with a wicked grin, "Slow down, Maltan Scum! Make it easier for me to remove your head!"
A sickness was washing over Omari and a fear was ringing in his ears. Branches scratched his face and pulled at his clothes to constrict him from moving forward, but he pushed onwards. He jumped over a fallen log and soon saw a light that revealed the end of the tree line. He chased after it, finally finding himself on the other side. But his heart sank when he stood before it.
Only a little further up ahead was some more grassy land, but then a cliff ended it. His breath was loose and burned his chest, but hearing those horse's hooves encircling him out from the forest, he ran to the cliff's edge. Good that he did so, for if he left a second earlier, when Commander Jin came out, he would have been struck down by that long sword.
Omari now stood near the edge of the cliff as he turned to see all that was behind him. All the soldiers on horseback had surrounded him and in the center was Commander Jin with a hateful smile, "You've truly cornered yourself. Why don't you stop running like a coward and try to fight with that sword in your hand?"
He blinked then looked at the blade. He had almost forgotten all about it if he was going to be honest. But even if he did try to wield it, it wasn't certain that he could even strike down one soldier. And if somehow he did, the others would immediately cut him down.
Commander Jin chuckled, "Come now, Maltan bastard. Fight or surrender. I do love chasing small game, but I have bigger prey up the mountain."
Omari's grip tightened on the sword and he steeled his resolve. He'd rather die by his own hand than be ripped apart by these maniacs. He stepped back, but then saw Commander Jin quickly ride forward to reach him with his blade. At that Omari panicked for a moment, accidentally took another step back and felt no ground. He slipped, losing his balance and fell. As he did, no scream escaped his throat as he was struck silent with fright.
His mind was storming as one thought rang through.
Oh god, he was really going to die!
He briefly saw the blurred silhouette of Commander Jin, but then was spun around to face the ground and his eyes widened at what was there. He looked down and saw a march of soldiers. Of Hóngyèse soldiers! And in the middle, that was right below him, was a red palanquin. He heard a small yell as someone had seen him fall, but he couldn't react much when he crash landed through the roof of the palanquin.
He groaned, feeling some pain, but he startled the person inside. He looked to see them abruptly pull themselves up from where they were laying and Omari felt his lips pursed. He had fallen into scarlet blankets and the one resting there, he could quickly tell was the General Tao Liu. But in the general's alarmed state, he was not dressed in the finest of robes, nor was his hair elaborately put up, nor was he wearing intricate makeup. No, he was only in his red under robes, his face bare, and his hair down with strands all over the place. Omari looked up to see exposed tan skin and a very poofy bedhead. That hair encircled a round face that was frozen with complete surprise and disarray.
Omari could see that his eyes were a wondrous umber with traces of amber bleeding into the irises. He was completely astounded by these seconds of awe as the sunlight from the broken roof of the palanquin silhouetted this stunned person. They were both surrounded by a bloom of crimson as the two stared at each other with the most paling of shock.
But before either could react much at all, the palanquin shook and the soldiers outside who were holding it lost their footing when Omari slammed down inside, causing the structure to lose its balance. It swung and then sunk forward to a diagonal right as the men struggled with keeping it upright. The men on the right tripped and pulled the others with them, crashing the palanquin down a dry ditch and into a tree. With this sudden movement, the people inside fell that way. Omari slipped down, his back landing on one of the palanquin's corner support pillars. And with that gravitational pull, the general fell forward too. He slammed into Omari's chest, which Omari thought would actually hurt more, but that's when he noticed that the general was a lot smaller than he was.
He landed on him with a grunt, his legs tangled over Omari's hip. The general groaned, placing his hands in front of him to pull himself up, but then realized how he ended up in such a provocative position with a stranger. His hands were on a large, broad chest and his face rocketed with blush. Tao Liu yelped, trying to push himself off of whoever this was, but couldn't quite get the right footing to remove himself at this angle.
Then suddenly, the soldiers outside who were holding the palanquin, got help from others and they pulled it back onto the main road. But it was janked harshly as they did so, and the gravitational pull shifted yet again. Once it was moved back to where it was before, it had a strong sway and the two inside got thrown about.
General Tao fell on his back and sharply looked up to see Omari had fallen on top of him. He was trapped underneath as he felt Omari's weight above him. He was absolutely shocked to have this strange man's body trapping him and glanced down to see his bare legs were entwined with Omari's. Tao Liu also noticed that his robe had been riding up in certain places and before he could reflexingly move them down, movement came from above him as Omari shifted his weight and the general could feel a forgein friction briefly grind down in a place he didn't expect to be touched that day.
Omari whined, pulling himself up as he felt that he may have hit his head. He blinked and looked down to see the vulnerable and stiff general underneath him and yet again he was caught off guard. As was Tao Liu who saw this large man loom over him. It was a predicament that neither had imagined would ever happen to them.
Before anything was even said, Omari unconsciously moved his right hand to stabilize himself, but he was still holding his sword when he tried to steady things. He used it as support and it impaled into the floor of the palanquin, a foot away from the general's head.
Tao Liu saw that blade and immediately grew pale. He reacted and formed a ball of energy in his hand. The general shouted, "Assassin!" and he lashed out, blasting Omari out of the palanquin.
Omari went flying and hundreds of Hóngyèse soldiers gasped as they ducked for cover away from his body. He crashed onto the dirt, toppling around as the soldiers watched, bewildered on how to act. General Tao emerged from his palanquin, now wearing pants and having a very flustered expression. He shouted, exasperated, "How dare you?! You damned cur!" He raised his hand, emanating another powerful spell as he called out, "I'll erase you, shameless fiend!"
He shot out a ray of electrical power and Omari yelped with surprise. His eyes grew wide as he saw the light charging right for him. All he could do was block it with the sword, though that would hardly do much to shield him. When he felt the slightest impact, he cried out, feeling the pressure push on him. But it was odd.
He took a peek and saw the light of the spell pressing against the sword, not going past it and completely engulfing him in deadly power. His mouth fell as the sword took the whole impact of the blast and with a whoosh, it quickly absorbed all the energy, leaving the blade to glow for a moment, to only dissipate.
Everyone stood in silence, staring in shock at what just unfolded, but then a movement occurred as General Tao leaped from his palanquin. The other soldiers made way for him and he gestured to the woman in black who threw him a polearm that he caught in mid air. He pointed it to the befuddled Omari and charged.
Omari wasn't the most skilled in swordsmanship, so when General Tao Liu darted towards him and their blades collided, they only had to cross a few times until the general quickly disarmed him. With a quick swift movement, he spun the sword out of his hand and it flew into the air. It soared behind him and was caught by the lady in black. Omari stood there, completely defenseless.
General Tao pointed his polearm at him and commanded, "Yield."
He eagerly relented, desperately hoping that Tao Liu would spare his life. But when he looked into the general's eyes, he was surprised with what he saw. It was methodical and analytical, staring him down with the keenest of interest and peculiarity.
The woman came to his side with the sword, and with both hands, gifted it to him, but he did not take it just yet. Still keeping his blade pointed at Omari, he glanced at the sword with a tinge of bewilderment. Eyes gazing down at its reflection, he then turned back to Omari, saying, "Where did you get this?"
Omari glanced behind them and saw plenty of soldiers now circled around, pointing their arrows at him. With so many arrows aiming at him, Omari didn't quite feel like not answering, so he quickly replied, "Ruins! I found them in ruins up above!" He pointed to the cliff where he fell. They all looked up on instinct and saw that Commander Jin and his soldiers were still up there, watching them. Once they noticed that they had been spotted, they pulled away with pure fright on their faces.
When they were out of sight, Omari heard the general make a huff then turn back to the sword. He carefully took it from the woman's hands and held it by the hilt. He stared at it from every angle he could and said, "Quite the pristine weapon to find in ruins."
"Yes, sir," Omari muttered, keeping his eyes averted out of fear for his own life.
But as he did the woman barked at him, "Look at the general when he speaks to you!"
Omari flinched and obediently did as he was told, even though he was sweating so much from complete nervousness. Tao Liu looked at him when he did, then accidently let out an amused snort. They blinked at the expression, which the general quickly shielded with his large sleeve, then composed himself, giving the sword back to the woman, addressing her as, "Sun Zhen, put this in my palanquin. As for this Maltan citizen, apprehend him."
"Yes, sir," Sun Zhen nodded and went to the palanquin as other soldiers moved to cuff him in chains.
The general yawned and handed the polearm to a nearby soldier, announcing, "We will continue back to base. Chain him to the back of my palanquin and station five guards around him. Make it so he can't dream of escaping."
They pulled the dejected Omari to the back of the palanquin, tying him in chains. Then came over the five big, burly guards that were heavily armed and kept him in line. They prodded him with the hilts of their spears to keep him moving, even though he would gladly walk wherever they wanted him to go so as to not kill him.
Soon, the procession of soldiers started marching onwards through the forest with Omari as their hostage. He groaned a bit and winced along the way, really cursing how much bad luck he had that day.
It all happened so quickly that he hardly had time to think. First, that awful Black Gold made them a target which he easily predicted, coming true when it was blasted to smithereens! Then they were chased out of their camp, him and Jessi got split up, he was chased down a lot more, and then he fell into the palanquin of one of the most dangerous men in all of Hóngyè. He was lucky to not have died just then and there, but now he couldn't imagine what unspeakable horrors were to await for him once they reached their base. He wasn't even a soldier and he had to go through all this nonsense. He always tried to not kill the people he fought in self defense, yet he was being pushed around like he had started this war in the first place. He hated war so much! It was the dumbest thing in existence, but he was more than stuck in the middle of it, in the worst position ever. He was a goddamn nurse for Pete's Sake! He saved lives! He didn't kill anyone because he was a-
"You're a nurse, yes?" Omari blinked and jolted with surprise as he turned up to see the general had pushed away some of his curtains and was addressing him.
He looked at him with a distinct curiosity and before Omari could properly answer, maybe he was taking too long, he got jabbed with the butt of a spear hilt by one of the soldiers. He snapped, "Hey! The general is speaking with you!"
He knew that! Man, let a guy speak!
Omari cleared his throat and replied, "Yes, General Liu. I am."
The general flinched and his eyes grew with such language. Omari stiffened, unsure what he just did when the soldier yelled at him again, "How dare you speak to the general with such disrespect?! He is Hóngyè's Crimson Jade! You dare defile his namesake with you forgein foolishness?!"
Omari didn't know what to do. He was very unfamiliar with Hóngyè's customs. He never addressed anyone from there, because he never held a conversation with one! They were at war! No one from Hóngyè has been allowed to legally step inside Malta for decades unless it was an ambassador or something! So not many knew their etiquette anymore.
Though this soldier didn't seem to care about that, just ready to lift his spear and beat him with it. But the general raised his hand and the soldier yielded. Omari was holding his head, ready for the hit, but the general said, "Look at me."
Omari's breath hitched, but he followed suit, frightened out of his wits. Will he die by their hands? Just for speaking out of line? He really didn't know when they'd finish him off, but it kept feeling like any second now.
He looked up at Tao Liu with eyes veering on tormenting hopelessness. But when he saw the general, he saw an expression of concern and he explained, "General Tao."
"Eh?" Omari questioned.
"General Tao is how you may address me," he generously answered. "Or if you must, General Tao Liu."
Omari stared then muttered, "Tao Liu…"
"General," he corrected. "That is how you address someone from Hóngyè. Tao is my surname."
"I see," Omari mumbled.
He averted his eyes again, but then the general noted, "A nurse having a sword like this is an interesting sight."
"It is not mine, General Tao Liu," Omari assured. "I just found it."
"Mm," he hummed, then said, "Well, it is no regular sword. We shall see how truthful you are when we get to camp."
"Mhm," Omari regretfully responded. His shoulders and back felt heavy. He had fallen so much that day, gotten plenty of burns, bruises, and scratches that the pain was finally starting to settle in. He made an unconscious groan, but kept persevering to their destination.
When they reached the camp, he saw hundreds of tents pitched up with flags organized across the area. Many soldiers were fulfilling their basic duty like cleaning their weapons or running to file reports. He saw tactile sword training and an archery range. There was a line for the hungry men and women as they poured soupy porridge into bowls. But eventually he passed prison cells. They were like cages, but draped in cloth and with hay inside. The prisoners in the cages were soldiers of Malta, stripped of their weapons and armor. They looked worn out and tired, heavy eyes and slouched. But what Omari noticed was that there weren't many injured amongst them. In fact, the most noticeable injuries seemed to be patched up or put into a cast. He thought it was an odd thing to see.
Before he could look at them any longer, the Hóngyèse soldiers prodded him with the butt of their spears to move him forward. He huffed in annoyance, but then also realized that they really weren't threatening him with the blade of their spears either. He wondered why they weren't being more aggressive.
The palanquin finally stopped in front of a large tent and any soldier who was in the vicinity that was not part of the march, noticed and bowed. The red curtains were pushed aside, and out came General Tao. He was not dressed in his full regalia like before, but was modest and kept. His hair was in that metal head piece and a few gems littered across his skin. He exited the palanquin and stepped to the ground, quickly turning to where Omari was. He approached the man and told the soldiers, "Remove his chains from the palanquin and bring him to my tent for questioning."
The loyal soldiers did as was commanded and Omari was pulled to the large tent in the center of the camp. A couple of them opened the tent's curtains for the general as he stepped inside, followed by Sun Zhen and Omari. They went in and a few soldiers trailed behind. Inside was an expansive area, with an ink desk neatly covered in parchment and scrolls. To the side was a carrier hawk in a cage and around were chests filled with who knows what. Tapestries were hung and candles were lit, it was quite the elaborate place, but fitting for a general such as Tao Liu.
He went to his desk and sat down, Sun Zhen placing the sword on top. She stepped back and they waited in silence as Tao Liu took a closer look at the weapon. He handled it with care, taking out glasses to examine it up and down. He muttered to himself rather calmly as everyone remained in anticipation. And after a moment of contemplation, he said, "Nurse, tell me, what is your name?"
"Uh- Omari, Juma Omari," he answered.
"You go by Omari?" the general questioned.
"Yes, sir," he nodded.
"Well… Omari," Tao Liu analyzed him from afar. "It would be quite the sloppy job, if that was supposed to be an assassination attempt."
Omari paled and begged, "Please, General. I wasn't going to do anything like that. I swear on my life. I just found the sword and fell into your palanquin."
"Hm," Tao Liu thoughtfully muttered. His finger tapped the sword until he finally spoke, "Omari."
"Yes?"
"Do you know why I haven't killed you yet?"
"Uh…" Omari frankly couldn't answer. The general did try before he thought, but the sword did block him. But he was unarmed now, he could easily kill him if he wanted to. "I… I don't quite know, sir."
The general stared at him then said, "Well, to tell you the truth…" he gestured to the sword. "There has never been a single normal weapon that has ever taken the brunt of my attack head on."
Omari shuffled about nervously, not knowing what to say.
"And yes, there are plenty of magical weapons in this world," Tao Liu noted. "But I am now at a level where no weapon I have encountered has survived against me." He gave a rather wicked smile, quite pleased with himself. Then he loosened his shoulders to say, "But this sword here… it did." His eyes flickered up to Omari, "Why do you think that is?"
Omari stiffened, sweat dripping from his head as he tried to croak out an answer, "Maybe it was made by a really powerful magic user."
The general watched him squirm then smirked, "More powerful than me?"
Omari wanted to pass out.
What does he want him to say?! He doesn't know anything about magic! He's so screwed. This general could kill him anytime he wanted if Omari spoke out of line. Why was he dragging it out?
Omari felt like whimpering, but he didn't want to die while whining like a coward.
Tao Liu gave an amused smile then said, "Perhaps you're right." Omari faced the general who was all too sly. "Perhaps a magic user long ago enchanted this blade to have far more power than I. I think it is very plausible, since... you don't seem to be lying."
He blinked, his mouth falling open in the disbelief that the general of his enemy thought he was being genuine.
Tao Liu's eyes widened at his expression and let out an entertained chuckle, "What's with that face? Are you not an honest character?"
"I swear I am!" Omari exclaimed.
"I know," the general smiled then leisurely wielded the sword, "You must be telling the truth, or you would have thrown away your life already to try and foolishly kill me." His gaze grew calculating, "I can tell even more by looking at the sword itself." He gestured for Omari to come closer and the guards pushed him to do so. When he approached he looked to where the general was pointing, "This here, engravings." Omari peered down and saw what he thought was detail in the sword, was in fact indeed engravings. In a language he didn't recognize.
"This text… it's ancient," Tao Liu stated. "Perhaps older than both our countries. I have only seen evolved writing resembling this a few times, but even those were rare and old."
Omari thought to himself and then questioned, "Are you thinking that this sword might be a remnant of an ancient forgotten civilization?"
The general looked over the sword more, than back at Omari, "It just might be. This could be one of the last reminders that whoever they were ever existed. Strong and powerful. With weapons like this, it's a wonder why they were ever wiped out." He then asked Omari, "You said you found this up on that cliff area?"
"Yes, sir!" Omari nodded, trying to be as accommodating as possible.
"And up there we will find the ruins?"
"Deep in the forest, sir," Omari explained. "A little past a fielded area."
"I see," Tao Liu wondered. "Very interesting."
Omari agreed, but then his legs wobbled. He was tired. Tired from this whole day. He glanced behind him and saw that the sun was setting. All he did was run and fall today, and the exhaustion was finally catching up to him.
The general noted, "Thinking about escaping?"
"N-No, sir," Omari muttered. "Just seeing that night is falling on us."
"That it is," he huffed, but then looked at Omari. He noticed the scratches and bruises. There was also a burn on his left arm.
His eyes narrowed at that, "Omari?"
"Yes?" his head felt like nodding off to sleep if he wasn't in such a tense situation.
"Why are you so far away from your unit?"
Omari responded, "There was an explosion that knocked me out. I woke up seperated from them." No need to tell him about Jessi.
"I see," the general accepted, then said, "It is getting late for all of us. Lieutenant Sun Zhen, take Juma Omari here to Guo Sying's prisoner barracks."
"Yes, General," she approached Omari and tilted her head to the outside where the men who held his chains led him. They left the tent and passed by many others until there was one with a large steel cell inside where a tall, bulking lady stood in front. She was perhaps the biggest woman Omari had ever met and she stared daggers down at him. This woman was decked out in padded armor, with an orange headband. When they approached her, everyone in the group appeared nervous which made Omari even more anxious. The only person that seemed unfrightened was Sun Zhen that always held the coolest of expressions.
She met up with the giant lady, saying, "Good evening, Guo Sying."
"Good evening, Sun Zhen," the giant woman answered. "Is this the little rabbit that's been causing us some problems?" She leaned down to Omari, giving him a whopping one large angry eye.
Sun Zhen nodded, "News spreads fast. General says to put him in your cells."
"My cells, huh?" she gave a wicked grin that made Omari shrink even more. "And what am I supposed to do with him? Get information out of him? Teach him a lesson?" Her teeth were large and her eyes were menacing, "What about it, kid? Dissect your legs and remove a vein at a time? Rubbing your stomach with burning hot iron? Or maybe, slowly and carefully rip out one finger nail after another?"
Omari wanted to throw up. His face looked rather green and queasy. He didn't know what he did to deserve any of that. He was willing to apologize a million times if not to face those horrible fates.
Sun Zhen sighed, "No, the general didn't instruct any form of torture, Guo Sying. Just that he would be put in a cell until further notice."
"Aw," the giant lady sighed, then let out a chortle, "Ruinin' my fun."
Sun Zhen nodded and handed the chained up Omari to Guo Sying and departed with the fellow soldiers. Guo Sying took Omari to his cell and threw him in, locking him inside. She taunted the poor fellow, "Find it nice and cozy in there, cause when the general figures out what he's gonna to do with ya, that's when the real fun begins."
Omari let out an indigent quack, and the woman boomed out a laugh, leaving him to the isolation of his cell.