Guess who's back for now! I am!
I have a terrible, shameful confession.
…I love AUs. Especially the ones set in a fantasy setting.
Did you know "Sahara" means desert?
"I think we've done enough progress for today" speaks up a masculine voice, settling his sword in the warm sand.
His friends let out a collective sigh, and everyone prepares for a freezing night in the merciless desert. Tents are pitched, and a fire is lit to ensure warmth, light and cooked food. The shapes of six people are reunited around the campfire; the outline the light creates easily distinguishing them from one another.
"How much time until we finally make it out of here?" asks a young lady clad in a light pink robe, the bottom hem of which is covered in drawings of diverse beasts that could only be described as chimerical. She bears no weapon to speak of, but she does have a huge leather-bound book seemingly written in a foreign language. A gigantic white tiger lays behind her, acting almost like a giant pillow, its paws encircling the young woman in a protective manner.
"I hope not much, because I'm seriously getting annoyed of the heat. Can't say I'll miss the giant sandworms either, but I must admit they really put up a good fight!" The last statement is punctuated by an enthusiastic fist thrown in the air, belonging to yet another young woman. Her garments consist of a sleeveless shirt slightly torn at the hem, long pants tied at the ankle with bandages, and a yellow band on her forehead. She has no weapon either, but the heavy boots she wears and the brass knuckles are proof enough she needs no sword to hold her own.
"We've been slowing down a bit these last few days; since we've been so busy fighting, progress hasn't been significant. We really need to hurry, our rations are coming rather low, truth be told, especially water. At most, Tomoe and Maria, I give us four days if we hurry. I suggest we really pick up the pace, else we're going to be in trouble". The man who spoke is older than most others, but he is still in a good enough shape to swing around a large, person-sized sword. He is covered in heavy metal armour, ornate with complex patterns, although he does remove it once he finishes his answer. It's obvious the heat of the desert penetrate the steel, even if he is careful and covers it with special oil so the heated metal doesn't burn him.
All the while, a giant man dressed in a white robe is tending to everyone; deserts are after all hostile lands, and fights are not uncommon. His healing magic does wonders however, and bloody wounds, bruises and punctured skin are quickly sealed, healed and soon enough, nothing but faint scars from the biggest wounds are left. He doesn't seem fit for his job given his stature, but some offensive spells make up his arsenal should the need to join in active battle arise.
Sitting quietly in the corner is another woman; she appears older than the other two, though she probably looks younger than she really is. She is dressed in a short, black robe that takes an interesting plunge at the collar, to reveal a piece of red and black cloth tied around her neck, much like a scarf but not quite one. A silver belt is looped around her waist, and against it are tied a few pouches. She wears high, fur-hemmed black boots, and atop her head lays a pointed had with an absurdly big hem. Yet another belt loops around the base of the pointed hat, and a moon-shaped pin is sewn against it. By her side sits a young man. He is dressed in almost comical attire, reminiscent of the one worn by red mages; except the fabric of his is made up of various shades of blue. A long, thin fencing sword is securely contained in a leather sheath tied to his belt. His has bears two long, thin feathers, both white. He sits close to the woman, and one could easily arrive to the conclusion they are at least well acquainted to each other.
Soon everyone retreats to their personal tents, seeing how the next day will be a long and arduous one.
Everyone wakes up early, before the sun even begins rising and the heat impedes their progress. The air at this time is fresh and almost acceptable, though the wind is blowing and sand is flying in the group members' eyes. Fortunately they have cloths to cover their mouths, and once everything is picked up, the white mage, Hank, loads everything on his back, as the weight poses him no problem. The group walks quietly, stopping whenever the harsh wind stirs up a pseudo-sandstorm, and everyone walks close to each other, so they can support each other whenever the sand becomes too difficult to tread on properly. The sun slowly rises at the horizon, and it's not long before the air heats up, the sand becoming unbearably hot.
Just as the day becomes promising progress-wise, a large shadow suddenly obscures the sun in front of the group, and a silhouette is clearly cut; it appears to be a giant vulture of some sort, its head not covered in skin or feathers, but rather a skull with glowing red eyes. In fact, the skin seems to be completely missing, revealing the beast's muscular and skeletal structure. It doesn't take any more than that for everyone to go into position; Hank drops the equipment he was carrying, both Gabriel and Navel ready their swords, Naomi already weaves spells to throw at the creature, Tomoe commands her tiger to prepare for action, and Maria is already jumping in place, ready to deliver her deadly kicks.
"Everyone! We need to take that bird down and bring it to the ground, we can't attack if it's flying!" announces Tomoe. "Go, Hanzou!" The tiger bounces, but he is not nearly heavy enough to weigh the vulture down, although he does manage do hurt it at the flank. "Naomi, try to damage or restrain its wings so it can't use them!" proposes Navel, and no sooner does the black mage throws fiery arrows at the bird. It doesn't seem affected at all, however, and shakes them off like it's nothing. It begins circling them and, after two turns, suddenly screeches and spread its wings wide open. Boney spines are thrown around, and Hank just has the time to cast a defensive spell on everyone to at least reduce the damage done to those who are touched. "Fire doesn't seem to affect it at all" sighs Naomi. "Little Guy, help me here, try freezing its wings!" They now both throw icy wind at the creature's appendage, and they freeze at the base; the sudden impediment prevents it from properly flapping its wings, and it falls to the ground with a heavy thud. It begins flailing around, however, and a heavy cloud of dust is lifted in the air. Nonetheless, Hank's aero spell manages to dispel the dust, and the relentless assault on the beast continues. Hank slightly hunches his back at Maria's cue, and she takes a running start before using him as a step to launch herself in the air. She aims directly at the bird's face to kick off its skull, but the ice on its wings has melted, and it slaps Maria midair. She is promptly caught by Gabriel, and he lets her on the ground. "Try attacking its wings before it takes off again!" commands Gabriel, and everyone is on it. The feathers are slashed by sharp blades of wind, torn and cut by swords, burned by thunder and even trampled on, until the beast's wings hang limply at its side. Its sharp beak and talons are still free, however, and Navel is not quick enough to avoid a peck to his side, nor is Tomoe fast enough to move out of the beast's claws' way, and is wounded at the arm; Hank is quick to heal them both, but the pain remains. Maria once again jumps at the vulture, this time using Tomoe's tiger as a step, and just as Gabriel slashes one of the vulture's legs off, she kicks its lower beak. The bone shatters and breaks and the undead bird screeches in pain and anger. Unable to take off, to escape or to even properly attack, it begins a sort of frantic, desperate series of convulsions, and while everyone is still lashing out at it, it still has enough vigour to protest. Even with one eye punctured by Navel's sword, burns to its internal organ from a chain-lightning spell or even fractured bones from Maria's and Gabriel's relentless assault, it still won't die. Finally, when its long neck is laid bare on the sand, finally in reach, Gabriel severs the head off its owner, and the convulsions stop. The sand is painted dark red and black from the bird's blood, bone fragments scattered around the sand like serrated teeth. There isn't much to loot from it either, but at least it's gone. "Woah that was the first time I saw one of those! What even are those things?!" Maria speaks up first. "I don't know, but now that it's out of the way, it's better if we carry on. Scavengers won't take long to pick up the scent, and one fight is more than enough" finishes Gabriel, and with that, Hank quickly heals the wounded before picking up their equipment. The party resumes their travel though this time they talk a bit among themselves, congratulating and complimenting each other for a battle well fought.
"Alright, let's settle down, everyone! This place is perfect. From that rock there, we'll be able to see where we are tomorrow morning. I think we made a lot of progress today, even with that giant bird thing in the way. Let's get ready to sleep so we can get up early."
"Alright, Gabe. Let me unpack our stuff first, I'll take care of the tents" proposes Hank. "Let me help you, it'll go faster if we're two." "Awesome, thanks Gabe!"
"Tomoe, why don't you cook tonight? You make the best food!""Haha, thank you Maria! I don't mind preparing dinner. But I want you to watch me, you really need to learn to cook by yourself." "Aaaah but cooking is boring! Can't it be more awesome?" "Here, why don't you cut up the vegetable? You love cutting up things, right?" "Can I punch them instead?" "No."
"Sooo… it looks like it's just the two of us now Nao-""No. Go help the girls.""Aw come on…" "Do I have to repeat myself?" "Fine." With a sigh, he stands up and goes over to the girls, taking over the task of actually cutting the vegetables rather than punching them.
"Hanzou, what is it? Are there enemies nearby? Are we under attack?" Tomoe asks as the fierce tiger rises on its feet, snarling, and stands at the edge of the circle of light made by the fire. At least a dozen pairs of yellow eyes are positioned around the camp, probably belonging to a pack of desert beasts.
"We can't fight here, we risk damaging our stuff. We need to drive them away. Be careful not to anger them, or they'll attack us. Back down slowly, and be careful".
"Right, Gabriel".
The group, although circled, slowly makes its way closer to the fire. The raptor-like creature approach, some going as far as to poke their head inside the circle of light. However, a light breeze picks up and cinders are thrown in the air, before some of the pieces of the wood used to light the fire somehow escape the flames. One of the flaming pieces stops by a reptile's feet, and, not knowing any better, it closes its jaws around the fire. The flame burns its mouth and letting out a startled yelp, jumps towards the group. Alerted from the brutal shock, the raptors all jump in to attack, clawing and biting anything in their way. It's a terrible mess, and the group can't hope to settle it down with all their tents unscathed. The light sound of an arrow piercing the air can be heard however, and a raptor falls limp as an arrow pierces its throat from one side to the other. Several other arrows follow, and before long half a dozen raptors lay on the sandy ground, while the others escape into the night.
"Maria, look! There's someone on that rock!" Shouts out Tomoe, pointing in the general direction from which the arrows came.
"Heeey! Can you hear me? Thanks for the help!" she shouts in response to Tomoe's statement.
The shadow jumps off the rock in one swift move, and a second later it's approaching the camp. From a distance it's difficult to make out whether the newcomer is a man or a woman, and once the mysterious person is clear into view, the group has no answer to their question, as their saviour's face is covered in a mask. In fact, not a single inch of skin is visible.
"…it's no problem."
From the voice, however, it's not hard to tell it is in fact a young man. He wears rather elegant attire, mostly red and white in colour. A red, long-sleeved dress shirt adorned with white designs on it, white cloves, dark red pants with designs on the hems, a white belt on which are clipped three fluffy red-fox tails and white (although dirty) boots. The mask he wears is shaped like a red fox's head, and through the eye holes, one can see two eerily red eyes staring back at them. On his shoulders is a white hood, which is securely clipped against the mask to ensure the wind doesn't blow it off. A heavy white cloak acts as a final layer of clothing, ensuring protection as well as a sort of mysterious look. He is holding a large bow, and a quiver is tied to his back.
He quietly walks around the camp, retrieving the arrows that didn't break, and just as the stranger is about to leave, Hank calls him out.
"Say, why don't you stay with us? Since you helped us, it's only fair we return the favour. We're traveling across the desert, and there's no more than three days of walk."
"Alright. I'll go get my stuff, I have my own rations."
"Wow, mysterious dude, isn't he, Naomi?"
"Yes indeed."
Not much later, the newcomer unfolds his tent, installing himself a bit afar from the others, but still close enough to be deemed safe. He retreats without much of a word, bidding everyone a quick goodnight, and he shows no intention of removing his mask.
Later, when everyone is asleep, Hank softly calls out Gabriel.
"Do you think we can trust him? He seems a bit odd to me."
"Yeah, I think we can. He could've easily attacked us from afar. He looks like he isn't used to being with others, or maybe he's hiding from someone? Who knows? Besides, he'll probably part ways with us once we reach our destination."
"Alright. You're probably the best among us to judge, so I'll trust your word, Gabe."
"Of course. Good night, now. We still have three days to go."
"Good night."
How do I end stories?
Yesss AUs.
Well, that's it for now folks! Somehow, the heat is making it easier to write.
Oh, that's right! I finished my very first year of college, and now I'm on vacation. I'll prolly be writing some more in the next couple months.
I still love you guys!
See you!