A thrill ran down her thorn. For the maiden time since their journey starts, Kael senses unfeignedly trapped.
The Tsaki Clan's land was dry, snap, and uneasy. Nothingness packs the olfactory property of worldly concern and gives out vegetation, lifting dust into the air like ungratified purport.
Leave Of Absence, brittle and brownish, lift in the wind before crumbling underfoot. The trees were sparse, their roots twisting through parched soil, sputtering for life.
The village itself was a cluster of mud-brick firms, their parties hardened by the sun.
Minute streets wove through the market square, where traders phone out for clients, their voices hoarse from years of bargaining.
The melodic phrase was buddy-buddy with the olfactory property of roasted metric grain and spiced roots, but beneath it consisted of something else—the stale, unshakable scent of desperation.
This was not a berth of forgivingness. It was survival.
Orin root for Kael's hood lower over her human face as they take the air along the market's edge.
The masses of Tsaki had piercing eyes, and the lowest thing they needed was unwanted attention.
No coin. No shelter. No allies.
Only
instincts.
This land goes to the earth's benders. People who verbalize to the soil, who crouch the country to their will.
Orin stayed in the darkness, his astute gaze skimming the market. Their coin was long gone, and survival involved action. Stealing wasn't ethical—but starvation didn't wait for honor.
Kael walked close beside him, still but watchful.
A basket of advanced fruit sat unattended. The merchant's back was at work, late in an argument.
One move. Spry. Precise.
Orin's fingerbreadths come together around an apple. And So a second.
Kael stiffened. She didn't say anything, but he palpated her uneasiness. This wasn't who they were.
But endurance was cruel.
They disappeared down a bowling alley, quick to head for the hills unseen.
And So, a voice. Calm. Measured.
"You're warm. But not quick enough. "
Orin spun, mitt reaching for his blade—only to pause.
A humanity placed upright before them, arms hybridized, an unreadable expression on his expression. Not a soldier.
Not a guard. Just a Farmer, dressed in a dust-streaked tunic, his manus calloused from work.
But his eyes—penetrative, recognized—had met everything.
Kael tense beside Orin. Not a scourge. But not harmless either.
The man—Zoro—sighed and motioned
to the stolen fruit. "Hungry? "
Orin alleged nothing.
Zoro exhaled. "Come along with me. Before someone less forgiving catches you. "
A yap? A trick? Or something else?
Orin weighed the risks, then glanced at Kael.
She gave the slightest nod.
They followed.
The scent of roasted food grain and simmering stew filled the dimly lit collapsible shelter, the quick freshness of lanterns casting flickering shadows against the material walls.
Orin and Kael ride fussy-legged on a woven mat, their finger's breadth tearing through flatbread and right fruit like starving animals.
Zoro laughed softly as he refilled their wooden bowls. "Eat, eat up. You two depend like you've been fighting the wind for weeks. "
Orin wiped his mouth with his sleeve and tilted backwards, his reflection darken. "You could allege that. "
Zoro took a slow sip of his herbal drink, then set the cup down. "Indeed, what wreaks you to the Tsaki Clan? "
Kael hesitates, glints at Orin. He was surprised. "We didn't come here by choice. "
Zoro's eyebrow furrowed.
Orin continued, "We were swallowed by something. . . a dark- spirit crack. "
At that, Zoro's fingerbreadth stiffened against his cup.
"A dark spirit tornado? " he recalled, his voice hardly above a whisper.
Kael nodded. "And before that. . . we saw a black horse in the woods. "
Silence.
Zoro positions his loving cup down cautiously, his formerly-warm expression hardening. "You ensure it? "
Orin's gaze sharpened. "What do you know? "
Zoro breathed out acutely, running a hand over his beard. "That horse you saw is an admonition. An Sultanate of Oman of the Shadow Chosen. "
Kael swallowed. "Sultanate of Oman ??
The fire crackled softly as secretiveness filled the collapsible shelter. Orin sat rigid, his construction undecipherable.
"The black horse… it's an omen" he said, his voice low. "Wherever it appears, disaster sticks.
I've tried the old floor, but I never thought…" He trailed off, exchanging a knowing coup d'oeil with Zoro.
Zoro nodded . "The prophecy posits that ubefore the rising of the Shadow Chosen, the beast of darkness will take the land. It has been hundred since it finally seemed. " He emanated sharply. "That means…"
Kael shifted uneasily. "That means what? "
Orin's jaw clenched. "That means someone is awakening the power of the shadows. " He wicks to Zoro.
"You roll in the hay as well as I do—this isn't but a warning. It's a declaration. "
Zoro's finger's breadth tightened around the parchment in his hands. "The lowest clip the horse was seen, the macrocosm burned in war.
The six clans plow on each other, and the balance of the element nearly collapses. " He hesitated before adding, "It is said that the Shadow Chosen will bear a mark, a symbolic representation tied to their fate. "
Kael lower, touching her neck abstractedly. "And if this opt one appears? What happened then? "
Orin's voice was dismal. "The clans will do everything in power to hinder them. Even if it means eliminating them from the face of the earth.
At that moment Zoro's gaze stopped at Kael's neck just before it met his eyes. The dancing firelight created moving shadows which revealed to him the faint scar that remained like an ancient wound. A mark.
His heart pounded. No… it can't be.
Kael noticed his stare and his body tensed up. "What?"
Zoro's mouth went dry. His inner voice warned him to maintain composure. Every passing moment became crucial because he believed she was the person he suspected.
He made a fake laugh while shaking his head. "Nothing. Just a thought."
Orin wasn't fooled. His eyes moved rapidly between them. He asked in a concerned tone, "Zoro, can you describe what this mark looks like ??.
Zoro hesitated, then spoke slowly. The sigil appears as a dark swirling pattern which resembles the subterranean roots of the underworld.
Kael swallowed hard. She touched her neck once more with her fingers in a futile attempt to erase the truth hidden beneath her skin.
What would happen if someone displayed this mark on their body?
Zoro stared directly at Orin before speaking in a hushed tone. The clans will continue their pursuit until they eliminate the marked individuals.
The fire produced another loud crackling sound. A strong windstorm blew outside the tent.
Kael's stomach turned to ice. She experienced an overwhelming sensation of vulnerability without understanding the reason.