"The situation will only worsen; this fight is not something we can just watch," Oliver thought as he looked at the remaining members of the tribe. He had left Sunville with 400 of the strongest individuals in the clan, leaving behind all the women and children in that city with huge amounts of resources to help them survive until the mission was completed.
"In the end, only less than seventy people remain in the caravan, and I don't even know if we will survive until the end," he continued his thoughts and then looked around, searching for Ashar.
After searching for a few minutes, Oliver found neither Ashar nor the old man Owen, as if they had vanished before the fighting began. "Damn those bastards! I shouldn't have trusted them from the start. The master is busy fighting Connor; this is my chance to escape. Old Sun and Kiran—I'll take them with me, gain their trust, and start anew in the tribe."
"Guys, standing here is pointless while we are a burden on that master who is fighting to protect us. Let everyone take the arrows and distract Connor to give us a chance to finish this," Oliver ordered everyone around him decisively and began organizing to minimize casualties as much as possible.
Everyone present felt the tension; they had tasted the power of those petals and saw them absorbing the blood of their brothers, and now they had to attract the attention of that terrifying person.
"I agree with him; staying here means a slow death, and fleeing will not help. All around us are mountains, and we don't even know the types of creatures here. We won't survive; our only chance is to help that master," Old Sun's expression became serious; he didn't know who that person was, but he saw it as the only opportunity to survive.
"Old Sun is right; let's help the master save us," said the guard Carl, helping to calm the situation.
In moments, everyone was convinced, and they began to retreat, taking defensive positions and distributing bows among themselves.
Old Sun grabbed a bow and headed to the northern side behind Chris, but Oliver surprised him by grabbing his hand and shaking his head slowly in refusal of what Old Sun was trying to do.
"What do you mean by this, Oliver?" Old Sun's eyes glowed with anger; he hadn't forgotten what happened to him in the past few days at the hands of Oliver and his followers.
"Staying means death; there are only you, me, and Kiran left to protect the tribe. The other bastards have fled," Oliver approached him and whispered in his ear.
"What?" Old Sun was startled for a moment and looked around but couldn't find Ashar or Owen. "I haven't seen Ashar since he helped me kill Logan, and Owen hasn't appeared. Did they have their own plans to leave before it even started?"
"So what do you want to say?" In the end, Old Sun quickly regained his composure; he had been through tougher times than this.
"You will leave; you, me, and Kiran will meet up with the tribe, and we'll do everything we can to protect it and bring it back to life." Oliver wasn't in a hurry and explained calmly, then added, "Do you think those children can live without someone to lead and protect them? You don't want to destroy the tribe that Ethan entrusted to you."
"Don't you dare mention Ethan, you traitor!" Old Sun grabbed his dagger and pointed it at Oliver's neck, looking at him with anger.
Oliver looked confidently into Old Sun's only eye; he saw his weakness and helplessness in it, his desire to fulfill his promise to Ethan. He added again, whispering as if he were a devil manipulating Old Sun's mind, "You know the decision you have to make in the end."
"Bastard." Sun lowered his dagger and thought in his heart that the formation must have been completed by now. He looked at Kiran, who was confirming to the guards what they should do; everyone had the determination to fight to the death.
"For the tribe only," Old Sun said with a determined expression. "I'll go bring Kiran and meet you on the opposite side of the cave."
Oliver watched Old Sun move away, trying to convince Kiran with cold eyes. "Ashar was right about one thing regarding loyalty; Old Sun is the only choice." Then he too moved away, leaving before anyone noticed.
...
In the battlefield
Between the rugged mountain rocks, which rose with pride and arrogance, the traces of the battle between Chris and Eric were evident as clear signs of the fierce struggle that occurred there. The ground was disturbed, marked by the effects of wind and storms, mixed with the green roots scattered and the small scattered stones.
In the place where the fighting intensified, the rocks were shattered, and fragments flew in every direction. The marks of blows permeated the surface. There was a trace of bursts of destructive energy, leaving black petal marks on the rocks, sparkling like tiny pieces of crystal, while the atmosphere was charged with the residual energy of the battle.
As the sounds of screams and noise rose, the strong winds left their marks, filling the air with the smell of dust and smoke, intensifying the scene. The atmosphere was tense, as if the mountains themselves were holding their breath, waiting for what would happen.
Eric stood grimly, his face pale, with different blood marks on him in the middle of the sandstorm, directing his gaze at the black petals before him while keeping his caution against the dense roots spread across the ground, waiting for the opportunity to pounce on him.
"You're still as strong as you were, but I have prepared a lot for this fight," Chris shouted from the other side loudly, "The body of the night lily!"
All the petals in the air stopped in their place, swallowing the storm around them and retreating beside Chris to completely envelop his body. The black petals wrapped around him and fused together, forming a black monster five meters tall, its size instantly increased and suppressed the storm where Eric stood.
It looked like a giant lily standing amidst these mountains, taking the lives of all who looked at it with disdain.
"What a powerful move," Eric grimaced. "But why do you think I haven't done the same?"
Sands were swept from between the rocks by the wind, and Eric's face became more serious as he focused all his energy on the sand, which began to shine green, merging together to form a faceless giant body. Eric stood on the head of the body, concentrating all his strength to control it.
"The fun battle has just begun, ha ha ha!" Chris shouted loudly, then many flowers opened around the lily's body, releasing green gas that began to envelop the sand statue and dissolve different parts of it.