The Rakers

Ivan's blonde hair stuck to his forehead. Despite the chillier autumn weather rolling in quickly, he was covered in sweat. The further south he got, the hotter it got. Ivan thought back to his traveling the road to Tolbi with Isaac and his companions. It was a significantly happier trip. This time, his arms were bound tightly with black iron chains. In front of him a strong Tolbi soldier dressed in grey armour pull Ivan's chains cruelly. The big man held one end of Ivan's chain in his left hand, while his right held a torch of bright red fire.

Ivan had seen red heat from the coals of a fire that had been burning all night. He'd seen the red and orange psynergy of a Mars adept enraged. But this torch, this was something entirely different. It's red was closer to the colour of blood than fire. It sparked wildly. But its most improbable feature: it tamed the monsters and road raiders around them. The beasts followed those who wielded the torches. They did their bidding. Ivan had never seen anything like it.

Unfortunately, those who wielded the torches were his enemies. The Sailors' War is over Ivan thought. A short war it was. The Tolbi soldiers and their beast lackeys stormed the docks the very day Ivan left Kalay. They killed most, but captured some, including Ivan. After the battle at the docks the Tolbi army split up. A small group took Ivan and the other prisoner's south to Tolbi. The rest continued north. Continued to Kalay. Ivan felt his stomach turn with worry. His daughter was there. His small sons. His wife. Ivan had to find a way back to them.

The road to Tolbi descended down a hill, and into a small forest, as it had done multiple times. The region was spotted with hills, farms, small forests, and fields. The road wound between them beautifully. It would have been a nice hike, save for the conditions, and the speed at which the Tolbi soldiers pulled the prisoners along.

Ivan's ear nearly twiched. He heard a bird call in the forest to his left. But it wasn't like the birds in Tolbi. It sounded like the call of a green crane. A rare bird. Ivan had only ever seen one in Indra. The Jupiter adept peered to catch a glimpse of it through the olive trees.

His captor jerked the chain. "Hurry it up, Ka-"

An arrow whizzed from somewhere in the woods, and lodged itself into the soldier's neck. A flurry of arrows followed it. At least twenty monsters fell lifeless, and a few Tolbi soldiers dropped too.

"Get down!" Ivan shouted to the other prisoners. He threw himself to the ground to avoid the attackers' bolts. He tasted dirt when one of the beasts, a massive troll, fell dead next to him.

The ten or fifteen Tolbi soldiers left drew their weapons immediately. With motions from the soldiers, the one hundred or monsters that accompanied them stormed into the woods to fight the ambushers. Skeletons, zombies, trolls, drone bees, and vermin rushed through the trees to find the attackers, who remained hidden.

Ivan stayed down for the remainder of the battle, which was short. He heard screams as the Tolbi soldiers and their beasts, who were cut down easily in the ambush. When it was over, the saviours strolled down the hill, to the road, where they quickly freed the prisoners. The ambushers were dressed in some simple armour, with weak weapons. Compared to the heavy armour of the Tolbi army, and their beast lackeys, these were outmatched peasants. And yet they easily dealt with the Tolbi soldiers.

A blue haired man of about fifty broke Ivan's chains with an axe. He wore a golden band around his forehead and a pretty looking sword at his hip. He looked vaguely familiar. "Who are you?" Ivan asked.

"No time," the man grunted.

Another warrior added, "We have to get off the road."

The second warrior was larger, with red and grey hair and a handlebar mustache. Seeming them together made it click for Ivan: it was Sean and Ouranos. The warriors who had accompanied them on the boat to Tolbi all those years ago. The Colosso hopefuls. They must be at least fifty by now. He looked them up and down, and saw weapons and armour. Still warriors.

"Ouranos! Sean! It's me. Ivan. Do you remember?" Ivan asked them.

Sean squinted and then smiled. "Ivan! Warrior of Vale... Sophia will be glad to see you."

Ouranos gave the adept a friendly pat on the soldier. "Sophia?" Ivan asked.

Ouranos sighed and wiped sweat and dirt from his red hair. "Come on. We have to get off the road."


The ambushing army lead Ivan and the other prisoners off the road immediately, and to the west. Occasionally they dealt with a skirmish with small bands of Tolbi soldiers with beasts following their crimson torches. They fled in the wake of the larger army that Ivan traveled with.

Ivan quickly learned that these men and women were considered rebels by the rest of Tolbi. There were men and women who hailed from the city and its surrounding areas. They called the rest of Tolbi imperials. Iodem claimed now to be an Emperor, in the style of Sana to the northeast. The imperials had already taken Suhalla and Lalivero. They were fighting a war against the Kibombo in the south, and the Kalayans in the north. Ivan shuddered at the thought of it. What could possibly be going on with him? To start an empire? Create an army of monsters, and destroy Kalay? Ivan found himself grew angry.

He frequently asked Sean and Ouranos, who seemed to be the leaders of the rebels, what was going on. When could he return to Kalay to his family? How did their rebellion start?

The best answer he got was from Sean, as the group was passing over a shallow stream. The group had to travel two by two, as the shallow area of the stream was narrow. Finally, Sean had a second to talk with Ivan.

"What's going on Sean? How did you end up tied in all of this?" Ivan asked. Sean and Ouranos hailed from a small village in Goma, near Kalay. They weren't of Tolbi.

"We were here since Colosso in the summer. That's when the darkness came. We couldn't go back north. It was a death zone. So stayed here. When our money ran out we camped and hunted outside the city. When the Eclipse ended, we headed back immediately. But it was still too late. Iodem had already declared himself the Emperor, and the Tolbi guard became the Tolbi army," Sean explained as the pair waited for others to cross the stream.

Ivan sighed. "And no one was allowed to leave?" Ivan guessed, remembering how quiet Tolbi had become after the Eclipse. No letters were sent, no travelers came from the region. Of course they were forced to stay. It's the only thing that made any sense.

Sean nodded, "The Imperials shut down the docks completely. We were practically prisoners within the city. Eventually, a large portion of the city grew were fed up with it. We were branded enemies of the state by the imperials. Those cowards are only loyal because they're being paid. No one knows where the gold is coming from. The guards who couldn't be bought joined us, and we pounded on Iodem's palace doors. The imperials tried to push us back. It got to the point where we were a shove away from bloodshed. But no one wanted that."

Sean paused. "What happened?" Ivan prodded.

Sean sighed. "The torches happened. That damned red flame. The Imperials brought their monsters into the city. There was a short battle, but most of just ran. It was hopeless."

Ivan thought back to the battle at the docks. The beasts easily overpowered Ivan's group. How could anyone fight back against a wave of monsters like that? They had no fear. Only vicious hunger. That was what was heading for Kalay. For Ivan's family.

"I need to get back Sean. I need to get to Kalay. My family is there." Ivan pleaded. A wind came through the winds, blowing dead leaves of orange and red off the trees.

Sean frowned and ran a hand through his blue hair. Age had paled his eyes and wrinkled his forehead. Parts of his blue hair were starting to grey. The man wasn't much older than Ivan, but Ivan looked fifteen years his junior.

"You can't," Sean said finally.

Ivan's face clouded. "What do you mean?"

"Look Ivan. I have a family in Goma too. In the path of Iodem's army! But we can't stop that army. The best way we can help them, is by doing what we're doing now."

Ivan frowned. "And what is that exactly?"
It was Sean and Ivan's turn to cross the stream. Sean ignored the question and pressed forward. Ivan followed. The water was cold and fast. It soaked Ivan's boots and the bottom of his pants.


Ivan's boots still weren't dry by the time he arrived in Dragonfell. The group dissipated quickly once they got to the village. Sean explained that the rebels were remaining integrated in Tolbi's society. For the most part, they continued their day to day lives, gathering occasionally to resist the Imperials in various ways. They wore no symbols, nothing to distinguish themselves. Nothing to give away their identity to the Imperials.

The village homes were cobblestone and wood with some blue brick in the style of Tolbi. It was only a handful of houses and farms, with a single mill, but the people called their village Dragonfell. A little bit dramatic, Ivan thought. He refrained from commenting. Unknown to the imperials, the tiny village was headquarters to a rebellion. Right under Iodem's nose. The problem with having an army made almost entirely of mindless beasts, was that intel was in short supply. A monster can't report back to his commander, explaining exactly where and how it encountered a rebel. Ouranos explained all this to Ivan. This is how the rebellion thrived.

When the rest of the ambush group had gone to their homes in Dragonfell and the surrounding areas, Sean and Ouranos lead Ivan to the village mill. The rest of the Kalay prisoners were brought home with various rebels, separating from each other in order to avoid the suspicion of the imperials.

When Ivan stepped in the old stone mill, Sean and Ouranos immediately relaxed. They threw their things to the floor and practically collapsed onto the wooden chairs. Sean motioned for Ivan to sit, and he did. The smell of fresh bread filled the air. An man of about seventy pulled puffy fresh bread from a huge oven. He smiled warmly at Ivan as he sat.

"This is Manus. He's one of us. A Raker. Kindly, he's been housing us during this…" Ouranos trailed off.

"War." Sean completed firmly.

"A Raker?" Ivan asked.

Ouranos nodded. "That's what we're called."

Manus placed the bread on the table and shook Ivan's hand. "A Warrior of Vale?" Manus guessed correctly. Sometimes Ivan was recognized in far away places.

Sean nodded. "We saved him on the road. Along with some other prisoners from Kalay."

The four sat at a wooden table, and ate quietly for a while. Manus served warm mulled wine and hard cheese. Finally Ivan spoke up. "Is it time for questions?"
Ouranos nodded.

"Who is Sophia?"

"Sophia started this rebellion. After we were defeated and dispersed by the Imperials in Tolbi, she gathered us back up. All in secret. She organizes every movement we take. It's all very calculated," Sean spoke quickly, and Ivan had trouble retaining it all.
"By every movement you mean… every raking?" Ivan joked.

Ouranos frowned. "Sophia is a raker. Yes. For Iodem's garden."

"She'a a gardener?" Ivan asked, astonished.

"She was," Sean said. "Now she's a rebel. Our leader."

Ivan shook his head slightly. "How does she manage that? From Tolbi itself? Iodem's palace even..."

"The palace is the best place she can be. She's our best spy. She knows Iodem's troop movements. She's been close to him for years. Still is. The Emperor has no idea she's with us. She tells us where to move and when by sending letters out," Sean explained.

"How does she manage letters? We haven't received a single letter from Tolbi since before the Eclipse," Ivan asked.

Ouranos took a big bite of bread. "It's true. Letters don't get out of Tolbi. Ever. But within the Emperor's so-called territory… that'a a different matter."

"Tolbi. Suhallo. Lalivero. All crawling with Rakers. But the Imperials have no idea who's a Raker and who's a loyalist. So we operate in secret. Taking letters from Sophia out to Rakers all over North Gondowan. It's a good system." Sean finished, interrupting Ouranos again.

"Crawling?" Ivan asked. How can that be?

"Yes. Most of us aren't loyal to Iodem. How could we be? He's holding us here. Keeping us in line with literal monsters. Only the cowards are loyal to him," Sean said while chewing cheese.

"But you can't beat him. You're still outnumbered," Ivan finished, finally putting the dots together.

Ouranos shook his head angrily. "His supply of monsters is endless. The only way we can fight it is in secret.

"Sophia is confident that we can end it this way. We just need to be persistent," Sean added optimistically.

Ouranos laughed bitterly. "I'm not so sure."
"She knows what she's doing," Sean argued. Ouranos shrugged and took another bite of bread.

"You're right," Ivan agreed. "When you said this was the best way to save our families. To fight Tolbi from the inside."

The old miller who was hosting them stirred at this. "Not Tolbi," Manus corrected, while frowning. "I am Tolbi. We are Tolbi," the old man gestured out to Sean and Ouranos and to the rest of his village. "They are not Tolbi."

Ivan nodded gravely. "Of course. I apologize." He felt guilty, but the old man placed a kind hand on Ivan's shoulder.

After a while Ivan spoke up again. "I have to go. I have to meet Sophia. She needs to know I'm here. Here to help."

Manus nodded. "I was thinking the same thing," Sean said. "We have a Warrior of Vale on our side now! We'll go with you. Tomorrow morning."

"I'll go alone," Ivan said firmly. "Manus recognized me," he nodded at the old miller. "If he did, anyone might. I have to travel low profile. I have to sneak into Tolbi. It'll be much easier alone."

Ouranos nodded in agreement immediately. Sean looked like he wanted to protest but finally agreed.


That night, Manus gracefully offered a bed and traveling food to Ivan. Ivan slept more peacefully than he had since before the Sailors' War started. He woke up just before the first crack of dawn, and equipped his gear quickly. He did his blonde hair up in a ponytail before realizing something. Low profile, he remembered.

Luckily Manus had a small mirror. Ivan used it and a pair of old scissors to quickly shear himself. He cut his hair short, as close to the scalp as he could get it. Ivan barely recognized himself. His hair hadn't been that short since… since ever. He brushed some dirt on his face, and placed a bandana on his neck. He replaced his green tunic with a simple grey one. He even left most of his trinkets and gear with Ouranos and Sean. He replaced his tisiphone edge with a simple iron sword. His violet eyes still shined bright, but there wasn't much he could do about that. All in all, it was a good disguise.

Ivan left the mill as dawn started lightning up Dragonfell. It was a pretty little town built on a small hill. In the distance, Ivan could see a small band of imperials with their monster pets walking slowly down a road. Ivan sighed.

Behind the mill Ivan caught a glimpse of Manus. He was kneeling next to three small stones, placing flowers. Gravestones. Ivan thought back to the mill's empty rooms. The room Ivan had stayed in still had a few simple dresses in the closet. Manus had a family once. He didn't have to ask the miller to know what had happened. Ivan looked back at the imperial band and shuddered angrily. He pulled the bandana over his mouth.

Time to go end this.