"First off, stay there. Secondly, what did you mean?" Shakha asked.
"I mean… they're not hurting anyone by being together-"
"That's somewhat true, but Lleedo's been stealing food."
"Was it ever so much that someone else starved?" Khal asked but Shakha shook his head whole lowering his hands.
"It's not just about whether the food was a lot. It's about accountability…"
Shakha's words trailed off as his eyes lowered.
"Mmm… what do you suggest I do?" He asked.
"Mr. Guard could join your troop. That way, his relationship with the Wraith wouldn't be a punishable offence and we could give the two of them food from time to time." Khal said with a smile.
Shakha glanced at Lleedo and Stella.
"What about this: we take Lleedo home and he swears never to see the Wraith ever again as breaking that oath would end in his death-"
"Why are you so against our love?" Stella asked while removing her hood, revealing her rather beautiful face.
Well, Shakha thought it was different because of how different it was.
Her cheeks were high and her eyes were more grey than the usual Rendaro black.
"I… actually don't know. I don't think our tribes have clashed for generations." Shakha said as he scratched his beardless chin.
"Even if our clans were warring. Would that give you any right to come between the love Lleedo and I share?" Stella asked, her face flustered.
Shakha saw this and simply broke out into a fit of laughter.
"You keep saying that word as if you know what it means. You're young and probably really horny. When our clans clash again, and they will, Lleedo will have to cut off your pretty little head and if he doesn't, he'll lose his. So, say your goodbyes and-"
"So you're just gonna ignore my suggestion," Khal said.
Shakha sighed before turning to face Khal who had a pained expression.
"Look, this isn't even about custom anymore. If the Great Arcus's find out we've been secretly contacting the Wraiths, we'll all get punished and no, Khal, I will not risk having that happen." Shakha said prompting Khal to lower her head.
He sighed before gently placing his hand on her shoulder.
"What about… lord Katsíki?"
Shakha's eyes widened.
"Ouch!" Khal cried before frantically stepping away from Shakha, whose eyes trembled.
"W- what?" He muttered.
"You almost crushed my shoulder, asshole!" Khal cried while Shakha's hands visibly trembled.
"I'm… sorry. I'm so sorry." He said as he approached Khal, but she was still quite upset and so as he offered her his hand, she slapped it away.
Silence followed as Shakha and Khal stared at each other.
"You… don't know what that thing is capable of. Both of them." Shakha said with a trembling voice.
"I know. It was just a suggestion…" Khal said with a frightened expression.
Shakha sighed before looking back at the two secret lovebirds.
"Fine. We'll go with your plan, but if word of this ever goes out. We'll be forced to run. That means leaving everything behind. Don't forget that Laïn has her whole thing with her brews and Eshi… well, she's there. We can't put all that at risk just for two people we barely know." Shakha said.
Khal lowered her head again and Shakha felt a knot forming in his stomach.
"Fine."
"What?" Shakha asked.
"Let's do it your way," Khal said faintly.
The knot grew tighter.
"The two of you could go to Coh. It's… safe there." Shakha said with an awkward smile, but it was actually Khal who responded.
"You want to send them there? But you were just saying how dangerous that place is. Are you just trying to get them killed by the Golden Knight?" Khal asked making Lleedo and Stella gasp.
"Not at all. That place is genuinely safe. From the outside looking in, at least. There's fresh water, fertile land and… it's under the protection of those two." Shakha said with narrowed eyes.
"That… could work," Khal said, but Lleedo walked up to Shakha before puffing his chest.
"Sir, may I make a request?" He asked.
"Call me Shakha. Also, what do you want?" Shakha asked with a raised eyebrow.
"I'd like you to forget about us. You can pin the thefts on me, but I'm begging you, forget our relationship. Even if we end it getting caught and punished, it'll all be worth it if I can spend even a little more time with Stella." Lleedo said with unshaking eyes.
Shakha frowned while crossing his arms.
"Shakha?" Khal called.
"Yeah?"
"I think we should grant him his request. After all, you've done something quite similar in the past, right?"
Shakha scoffed as he looked at both Stella and Lleedo.
"Oh no. Some Traeltors have been eating bits of our supplies." Shakha said unconvincingly as he turned around to leave.
"What?" Lleedo asked.
"Sheesh, those things are really becoming problematic. They ate a whole box of dried fruit." Shakha droned as he walked north.
The sky had turned a dark grey and a cool breeze announced the morning's arrival.
Shakha yawned as Khal walked up to him.
She wrapped her arms around his and yawned as well.
"You did the right thing." She said sleepily.
"They will get caught by someone less… forgiving and they will die."
"That may be true, but at least they'll have no regrets, right? Spending time with someone you love… it's worth all the pain and stress, right?" Khal asked, but Shakha simply scoffed.
"Answer me!" Khal cried before punching his shoulder.
"Yeah, sure. Whatever." He said as they walked.
"Oh yeah, this is for hurting me," Khal said before punching Khal again, but her punches had almost no effect on the warrior.
.
..
Shakha and Khal eventually returned home and at this point, the sun had risen and it generously bathed the land with its heat.
The two fell onto the bed and saw that Laïn and Eshi were nowhere to be found, but neither of them cared.
They simply relished the cool of the shade the hut provided.
Some time passed and Khal eventually asked.
"Was it really that bad?"
"Mmm? Do you mean Coh? That thing… Katsíki is a cold and evil being. It would be better if he outright came to the Oasis and ravaged it, but no. He claims to be the champion of peace, civility and non-violent conflict. Yet with the same breath used to preach words of healing… he ordered that Golden wretch to brutalize my mother to the point where she was just a pile of flesh and dirt." Shakha said through gnashed teeth.
"There, there. The Arcusus is still alive, right? And now, we won't have to worry about Petrus and the others, right?" Khal asked while gently rubbing Shakha's arms.
She then noticed that tears were welling up in his eyes prompting her to gasp.
"Oh, come here." She said as she helped him sit up.
She then wrapped her arms around him as he silently wept.
"I… I wish I was stronger. Then at least I'd have been able to protect…"
"Shh. Let it all out." Khal whispered.
Shakha nodded as he tightly clung to her.
He hadn't realized it, but it had been an eternity since he last wept.
An eternity since he-
"I need to talk to her." He said as he tried getting up, but Khal forced him down.
"Stay put. I'll get her."
"But-"
"Look at yourself. We can't let the legendary Skullcrusher be seen like this. Be still. I'll be right back." Khal said softly as she stood to leave.
Shakha's eyes trembled as his mind flashed back to that moment.
The moment when his own weakness became painfully clear.
"Skullcrusher."
Shakha had gotten that name in his youth after crushing the skulls of several Rhitah. He then developed a habit of aiming for the heads of all of his opponents.
He quickly became a renowned warrior and was even in line to become a Greater Arcus.
He was strong, but every time a knight or some force from beyond the Oasis appeared, his ego was crushed and he was forced to watch as nightmarish scenes unfolded.
Shakha looked at shaking hands and cursed them.
He wanted to hack them off-
"Shakha?"
A sweet voice called making more tears pour.
He looked up and saw Calëb, who slowly approached him with a pained expression.
Shakha lowered his head and covered his face with his useless hands.
He hadn't thought about what he'd actually say to Calëb and so he simply hid. Like a child.
His eyes widened as his body was pulled into the embrace of large, but scarred arms.
He wondered why Calëb never healed them, but his curiosity was quickly washed away as Calëb gently ran her hand through his hair.
Strange noises then came from outside.
"What? He's actually crying?" Laïn asked before rushing into the hut.
Eshi and Khal followed her in and they watched as Calëb slowly let go of Shakha who quickly wiped away his years.
"Silly boy." Calëb sang.
"What happened," Laïn asked.
"I'm not sure, but I think he finally grew far too tired of holding those tears back," Calëb said, but Shakha frantically waved his hands.
"No, I just had something in my eyes." He said before wiping his face some more.
"Come on, don't be like that. Sometimes all you need is a good cry." Laïn said as she, Eshi and Khal sat next to Calëb.
They all then stared at Shakha who squirmed while avoiding everyone's gaze.
"W- what do you want me to say?" Shakha asked.
"Anything," Eshi said.
Shakha looked between all four women before taking a deep aching breath.
"I really hate Katsíki." He said with clenched teeth.
"OK, and?" Laïn asked.
"And?" Shakha sounded pitifully.
"Yeah, keep going. This is the perfect opportunity for us to get some stuff out of you. So go on." Eshi said, but Shakha's eyes narrowed in response.
"Oh, so you're trying to take advantage of my moment of weakness. Well, too bad. I'm feeling a little better, so yeah." Shakha said only for Laïn to tackle him.
The two fell backwards, but Shakha felt a chill after seeing the intensity in Laïn's eyes.
"Calëb, break his fingers until he talks! You can fix them later." She hissed.
"Fine! I'll talk! I'm tired of following tradition even though I'm exiled. I'm tired of being weak. I'm tired of watching mom suffer. I'm just so tired and now that stupid goat has come to make things even worse." Shakha yelled.
"There. Was that so hard?" Laïn asked as she dismounted Shakha, who sat up before deeply sighing.
"I'm tired of all of it." He said.
"I can't say much, as a lot of what you said sounds like something you'll have to figure out on your own, but just know this: every injury I've endured and will ever endure, is for you and by extension, the Foph. The girls probably feel the same as you do. They had to watch you throw almost everything away." Calëb said before crossing her arms.
"So, don't worry about me. Just keep forging your own path and I will watch over you ever so proudly." Calëb said and Shakha simply nodded.
"Now, what happened with the whole storage hut situation?" Calëb asked prompting Shakha and Khal to gasp.
"Err… traeltors! It was those damned eight-legged miscreants. We'll have to find a way to stop them from eating our food, darn it." Shakha said unconvincingly.
Caleb's eyes narrowed for a moment.
"Mmm… shouldn't be too hard to kill them when they appear. Thanks for checking it out. For a while, I thought that one of the guards has been sneaking out food for some stupid reason like trying to impress a girl." Calëb said with a sweet laugh.
Shakha and Khal laughed as well although Shakha looked more like he was in pain.
"Alright, chat time's over." Shakha said before rolling over and hiding his face in the blankets.
The women all shared a good giggle much to Shakha's dismay.
"Tell me if you ever want to talk more about things, ok?" Calëb asked as she stood to leave.
Shakha nodded faintly.
After noticing that Calëb had left, Shakha turned around to find Laïn and the others staring at him.
"What?"
"She's right," Laïn said as she stood up.
"It's really hard to see things through the perspective of someone who's trying to help you." She said as she stopped near the hut's exit.
"I guess it's hard to consider the perspectives of others in general," Laïn said before leaving.
Shakha thought about what Laïn and Khal meant.
He wondered what the world looked like to demigods like Golden Knights.
He wondered what the world looked like to Katsíki.
The Golden Knight obeyed his every order to the word meaning that he was an existence whose purpose was to rule over others.
A dark lord, bent on achieving his mysterious goals.
Shakha wondered where such an existence came from.
He assumed that Katsíki's was a dark plane. A world where he reigned supreme.
TO BE CONTINUED