The War of Sand

Chapter Five

Chapter Five

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On trek, North of  Infinite City

New London

New London was a flourishing and lively country. For generations, the reigning kings and queens had brought about good fortune and bountiful crops, punishing crimes and rewarding those who did good deeds. Their citizens adored them, allowing even the Royal Family to flourish. The country was located on the southwest corner of the main continent. It was a country comprised of mainly sand dunes and heavily gem filled mines; the only places were the ground was green or wet was near the coastal areas. 

The world was going through a crisis, however, and New London was not exempt. Fresh water was becoming scarce. New London was hit particularly hard because, as a desert country, the majority of towns were located near rivers and lakes, and those bodies of water had recently started to dry out. 

They were still better off than Selva.

The country of Selva was north of New London. It could also be considered a desert country, but they had forests and a lot of green meadows. The only difference was that they contained three of the five volcanoes known to exist.

The two countries shared a river that contained the majority of the fresh water both countries need to survive. It ran down from the north and through Infinite City, the capitol of New London. When the drought seeped in, the Selvans started setting up dams, allowing little to no water to pass down to New London. New London had attempted to diplomatically compromise with Selva, but they had refused and attacked the Great Mines up north that was at the border of both countries. Selva had continued attacking small villages and towns that were near their border, but had continuously gone after the mines as well, leading King London to believe that they were also after the precious gems the mine provided.

At the latest attack, the London soldiers had been prepared and had managed to capture a few of the enemy soldiers, holding captive for the prince.

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It had been only a day since Prince Johann had left the Imperial Palace and the walled city of Infinite. He traveled north on sandmobiles with a convoy of two hundred men. Only a hundred were to stay with him when they reached the mines; the other hundred were to head to villages that had recently been attack.

The prince wore his weapon resistance suit; it was black and covered any and all vital parts of his body. His helmet gleamed in the sunlight. His men were dressed similarly. The only way to distinguish them apart were the velcro name pieces on their left chest. Unfortunately, the outfit made the heat even more unbearable than usual. They were sweating bullets by half an hour past dawn, and now it was even worse.

Prince  Johann took out his enchanted glass bottle of water, screwing the top off. He gulped down about half of it but it instantly filled up full. At times like these, it was great that magic existed in the lands.

There was a sudden tweet that filled the air. He scanned the horizon. A carrier bird sang its' song, circling the convoy. His second in command, Imperial General Joshua, gave an answering tweet and he bird flew down to him, handing over the message before flying away. Johann was glad to see that there was a small station only a few feet up ahead. It would allow the camels and his men to rest up while he inspected the message that they had received. When they arrived, Johann raised his hand in the signal to stop and the men behind him instantly followed his orders.

He unmounted and addressed his soldiers. "Half an hour break. William, keep time. Everyone hydrate yourself and replenish your energy. Dismissed!"

He drove his camoflouge sandmobile to park near the edge. He jumped down from the automobile, checking equipment and assessing the fuel.