Isipar River Salient, Kota
Keruuk inhaled the morning mist as he hefted his rifle, mounting the bayonet.
Across from him, the enemy waited. The bridge they'd built, a metal thing that still looked flimsy in his mind, had to be destroyed.
He checked the antidotes banded to his arm. Three syringes, their needles long. It worked fastest when delivered to the heart.
A gift from the far west, so far across the Sunset Waters they called it the Ocean of Dawn. So far to the north, they lived in winter while here it was summer.
A gift from Aviye, whose people struggled against an enemy that also used forex gas and endless manipulations.
He had disguised himself as a regular soldier for months, but that ended today.
Bare chested now, his tattoos were made plain for all to see. Bear and Thunderbird. Horned Serpent and Cloud Wolf. These were his guides across years of training.
The spirits that would take him to the afterlife.
