The Rising Pheonix

Chapter 24

Unknown POV

Traveling with a caravan always gives me such joy. They are so close to one another and have so much fun. It's a welcome respite from my everyday life. Every year I eagerly await the for their letter, informing they are near, so that I may join them on the last portion of their journey.

However, this year, I felt something was different. The caravan leader, Madam Merlinia, sent a letter asking if I could meet them before they reach their checkpoint. Their checkpoint was one days ride away, and meeting them sooner meant I would be meeting them in another town across the border in Liquidora. I've been there before so I knew how to sneak past the border patrol.

When I finally met up with them, the atmosphere of the whole group seemed off. I couldn't put my finger on it, but it seemed like they were forcing their smiles. Greeting my friends and everyone else, I went to Madam Merlinia to find out the reason for the atmosphere and why I was called here earlier.

"Greetings Madam Merlinia. Has all been well?" I ask tentatively. Madam Merlinia was a kind yet stern woman. She was an older woman but she still had the strength of a woman half her age. She had grey waist length hair, with gold beads and jewels throughout. Madam Merlinia was always composed and acted regal. As if she was a descendant of royalty.

"No, unfortunately it hasn't. The earth has given us a warning. We must leave Liquidora and we may not be able to return for some time. Normally, we would be able to pass through as normal, but we have grown in size and now we must move slower. Which is worrisome. The earth has warned that soon the path to our last city, Arocall, will be blocked and unsafe. Going through Arocall is the only way to cross the border without needing to take a large detour." She said as she sent the signal for them to speed up.

"Ahh, so that's why you asked for me to come earlier. Luckily, I brought three extra men with me. I had assumed something was wrong and I didn't want to come to your aid without backup. The men I brought are people that I've brought before, so they will not cause trouble to the caravan. Besides, they know how much I think of you all as my family." At that she smiled at me. The first real smile I received since we meet up.

It's been three days since then, and everybody has gotten so much happier. It's finally back to the way I remembered it. Just as I was starting to think that Madam Merlinia may have misunderstood her message, I sensed fighting. We were not in any immediate danger, but I sensed a large amount of hostile energy towards Arocall.

I quickly called for my men and told one of the travelers to inform Madam Merlinia it isn't safe to continue. Then we dashed off towards Arocall. Before long, we came across some men hiding in the forest, they had the same hostile energy I felt before. In front of us I could see what looks like a wall of earth protecting something. I couldn't see how many men were defending that wall, but I felt two really strong presences. One of them was fighting and the other was being protected.

Wanting to aid them I motioned to my men and we charged it, attacking from the rear. There were a lot of them and only four of us, when we attacked we were stealthy. However, we were only able to attack a few men before we attracted attention. The hostile group then split into two groups, one attacking us and one attacking the original target.

Hopefully with some of the tension off of them, the travelers will be able to last a little longer. Now that we are being swarmed, we can't afford to think about them. These soldiers are very hostile. At first I tried to just knock them out, but that almost proved to be fatal for me. One of the people I knocked out in the begining came back and almost severed my head! If it was for one of my men, I'd be dead.