Bao, Belos, and Keyon stand motionless as Arnit makes his way towards the pile of burning wagons. They’re frozen in fear and uncertainty. The Sulfuges notices them but doesn’t say anything yet. He only gives a brief nod to acknowledge them as he passes by. Arnit is just as tall as the wagon, and Bao is reminded once again how massive Sulfuges are. As the wagon reaches the burning pile Arnit finally speaks.
“I see my smoke signal worked,” He speaks quietly and as a matter of fact, but his voice still carries throughout the entire area.
Arnit stands along the side of the wagon and grabs it with all four of his arms. He slowly lifts the wagon up and rests it on his shoulder. He takes a breath and launches it over the fire. The wagon crashes into the center of the pile, and crumbles under its own weight. It’s engulfed in the fire and quickly becomes indistinguishable from the rest of the pyre.
Arnit wipes his hands together to clean off any dirt and turns his attention back to the three watching him, “I was hoping a signal would help anyone find their way back. I was starting to think everyone really was dead. I guess I’m still thinking that.”
Arnit begins to make his way to the edge of the trees where he had come from. Bao snaps out of his confusion and shouts to him, “Arnit, right? What happened here?”
His shouting breaks Keyon and Belos from their paralysis as well, “Bao what are you doing?” Keyon whispers urgently. He isn’t his usual stern self. This time he is quiet, timid, and fearful.
Keyon’s words don’t distract Bao, “Is everyone really dead? Where is Barros?”
Arnit stops when he hears Barros’ name. He leans his head back and looks to the sky. Closing his eyes and lets out a deep sigh, “Barros is still alive. He isn’t doing very well though. If you want to see him, I can take you to him. Just follow me,” without waiting for a reply, he starts off again into the trees.
Bao is the first one to start following Arnit but Keyon and Belos need more time to compose themselves. Every bone in their bodies is screaming for them to run away. To live another day. Keyon fights this impulse only for the sake of Bao. He slowly follows behind his companion, struggling with every step.
Keyon urges Belos to move with them, but he understands how much of an impossible request that is. Still, something about Bao moves Belos to follow. Bao represents new ways to do and see things. He wants to see more of this young and naive Sosun.
Even so, Belos is terrified of the Sulfuges. He is following Keyon into the trees but continues to protest his own action, “I can run. I should run. I can run. I should run.”
The three men follow Arnit but keep a safe distance from him. When they reach his destination, they find Barros. He is lying unconscious on a large rock, beaten, bloodied, and broken. The only indication that he is still alive is the bubbles of blood that form around his mouth as he exhales. There is dried matted blood all over his body and fur as well as wounds still open.
“Barros!” Bao shouts to the man and tries to run to his side.
Keyon stops him from rushing to Barros and directs his attention back to Arnit, “No Bao.”
Arnit continues walking and stands at Barros’ side. Bao slowly begins to see what it is that everyone has been so terrified of. As the Sulfuges stands over his master, he isn’t showing any signs of concern or care. Arnit is standing over him as a victor stands over their foe. As a beast stands over their prey. It’s clear that Arnit has put the man in this condition.
“Sorry everyone. I’m a terrible liar,” Arnit shakes his head and shrugs his shoulders, “I never know how long to keep up a charade and when to come clean.”
Bao can feel his body begin to shake. He is getting overwhelmed by emotions of anger, confusion, pain, and sadness, “Arnit. Tell me what you did.”
“Don’t call me Arnit. That was a pet name I let that little Zultanite call me. I don’t have a name, and I’ve never needed one,” his tone has changed. He is more aggressive now, but somehow also happier.
“As for what happened here, this was all me. Those assassins, my captors... and Barros, I killed as many as I could,” Arnit looks at Belos and growls, “But I’m not satisfied yet!”
Bao and Keyon look at Belos for an explanation, but he is just as confused as they are.
“How could you do this to me Bolbian? I thought you understood what I was doing!” Arnit starts shaking and he slams his fist into the ground in a rage, “Everything I've done up to this point has been for that little girl,” his voice is getting louder, and he is getting more worked up.
“I’ve killed so many people that I’ve lost count. I love it! But I’ve never had the chance to kill a Zultanite. What are their insides like? When you shatter their crystal skin, do they bleed? I’ve always wanted to know. I don’t know which gods to thank for bringing that little girl to me three years ago but couldn't let the opportunity slip me by. I couldn’t kill her right away though, I wanted to savor it. To take my time and remember every broken bone and confused cry.”
This is almost too much for Bao to hear. He is clenching his spear now, ready for a fight. Keyon also has his weapon drawn but he is much more hesitant to jump into a fight.
Arnit slams the ground again and lets out a frustrated scream. He points at Belos, “Can you imagine my frustration when I saw you run into the forest with the girl last night? Years of buildup, years of patience, and self-restraint, all for someone else to take her life in a moment of confusion. When I realized what had happened, there was no point in playing along with these people anymore. I let out all my bloodlust and slaughtered anything I could lay my hands on,” he turns his head and looks at Barros, “I tried to satisfy years of bloodlust in one night. Pointless.”
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Belos can feel Arnit’s rage towards him and in a moment of panic and self-defense, he speaks without thinking, “Wait, wait! I didn’t kill Kikka, we were just trying to escape the fighting. She’s fine!”
“...”
Arnit immediately snaps out of his tantrum, “What?”
“I just mean if you thought I killed her, that’s not something I was ever trying to do,” Belos realizes he just put Kikka’s life in danger again.
The Sulfuges gives an evil smile, “Then you’ll take me to her. After that, you can be on your way. I was going to kill all three of you right here, but none of you need to die today.”
His smile slowly gives way to a chuckle, and then to laughter, “Barros though, I guess I’m done with him,” he reaches for the ground and picks up a large, bloodied hammer. Bao recognizes it from the other night. It’s the same one the Redmane guard had when Kikka snuck off to be with Arnit. They all really are dead. Arnit killed everyone.
The laughing continues as Arnit swings the hammer in a large arch colliding with Barros’ chest. The crash is loud and strikes the rock underneath. The ring from the impact echoes in the ears of everyone there. When they look back at Barros, he is gone. There is nothing left that resembles the Redmane.
This is the end of Barros. The end of his caravan. He was an ambitious man, a caring leader, and a proud father. He is dead.
Bao can no longer stay still. Rage, and sorrow immediately take over and he charges at the murderer, “Arnit!”
“Bao, No!” Keyon can’t stop him.
The Sulfuges is still laughing, “I told you that isn’t my name,” he rushes to meet Bao.
With the same power that took Barros’ life, the hammer crashes into the ground in front of Bao. He just barely stopped in time to miss it. The ground breaks under the force and dust briefly blocks the two from seeing each other. Bao doesn’t need to see Arnit though, he is large, and Bao thrusts his spear into the cloud knowing he is likely to find his mark. Just like Maria and Keyon warned him in the past, in addition to their bloodlust, Sulfuges are smart with a keen battle sense. Even without seeing the weapon, Arnit dodges the strike easily.
The hammer raises for another strike and its force clears away the smokescreen. Bao wants to dodge but he has already seen this strike twice. He knows he can’t dodge right now. He braces his spear to take the brunt of the force as Arnit aims for his side. The force is strong and painful. Bao is knocked in the air briefly and lands several feet away.
“What is that strength?” Bao couldn’t have known to brace for power like that. If he had heard a god’s name invoked maybe he would have, but there was no magical force behind Arnit’s strikes. This power was completely his and his alone. This is what everyone was so terrified of.
Now he knows he has gotten himself into trouble. This isn’t like the assassins where he had a fighting chance to win. Instead, Bao has stopped trying to fight and is only trying to survive. He makes no attempts to strike, he only dodges and blocks where absolutely necessary. This won’t last much longer.
Only a few moments have passed and Keyon and Belos still are not able to engage in the fight. Bao ran in purely on rage, but the other two only felt a fraction of his emotions. From the moment they first saw Arnit pushing the wagon, they have been gripped by fear. There is no way for them to win this fight. Still, they want to find someway to help their doomed friend.
“I can run. I should run. I can run. I should run,” Belos continues to think to himself.
Arnit is now in a position to finish off Bao. The Sosun is nearly at the end of what he can do. Arnit isn’t laughing anymore. Instead, his eyes focused, and an evil smile is plastered on his face. He raises the hammer to satisfy his bloodlust one more time.
Belos closes his eyes, clenches his jaw and makes a dash towards the fighters, “I can run!” he rips off the shirt covering his dark carapace underneath. From behind, Keyon can see the shell on Belos’ back fold open, freeing a pair of transparent wings. These wings propel the Bolbian at frightening speed while emanating an eerie sound.
Keyon had never heard a sound so unsettling before. These wings are foreboding. Like a swarm of insects approaching a field, Keyon’s deepest instincts told him to either run from the sound or strike first. Thankfully this sound was enough to bring Keyon back to his senses. Belos would arrive to help Bao first, but Keyon would be there soon after.
Arnit stops his hammer from falling when he hears Belos. He turns to face the Bolbian who is now in the air. Did he jump? Is he gliding? Flying? Arnit pivots his body to adjust the angle of his strike and lashes out at Belos. A miss. Belos is gliding across the ground and his wings make him extremely maneuverable. This buys Bao time to get out of Arnit’s striking range, and now he, Belos, and Keyon have surrounded their enemy.
The man isn’t fazed and keeps his smile, “The three of you have guts at least. Maybe if all three of you were Bolbians I would consider backing down. Here though, you still don’t have a chance.”
“One Bolbian should be enough for you,” Belos grabs his mask and drops it to the ground. He really does have a bug face. He raises both hands and two serrated claws fold out from under his forearms. These aren’t standard weapons. They are a part of his carapace, a part of him. For a moment, he is willing to forget his humanity and embrace a darker side, “Watch carefully Bao. You should never let your guard down around a Sulfuges... The same goes for a Bolbian.”
Belos charges Arnit once again. His wings continue to screech as he glides around the giant enemy. He dodges swings from the hammer and slashes where he can reach with his claws. First on his legs, then his sides, and then his arms. The two are engaged in swift and powerful battle. Bao is captivated for a moment by their fighting. Are they smiling? What frightens him the most right now is that the two of them appear to both be in their element. Both dancing with the epitome of death itself.
This dance doesn’t last forever. Belos talked big but he only meant to buy a little time for the others. The true strength of Bolbians is in numbers. In a one on one, he has no hope of killing a Sulfuges. He is reminded of this again when Arnit finally grabs one of his arms. Now immobile, Arnit easily grabs the other arm. He begins to slowly pull Belos’ arms apart. The carapace at the shoulders begins to crack and Belos begins to scream. This only makes Arnit more ecstatic.
Before he rips off Belos’ arms, Arnit stops himself. He pulls Belos closer, “Where is the girl?” He drops him to the ground and punts him with the hammer. Like Bao before, Belos goes flying from a direct hit from Arnit. Keyon catches him while Bao moves in between them and the Sulfuges.
Belos’ carapace is hard and isn’t damaged from the hit he received but the shock still reverberated throughout his body. He vomits on the ground before Keyon helps him to his feet.
“We’re all gonna die here, I guess. I can’t remember the last time I fought anything bigger than a bug. I’m rusty,” desperation is starting to set in on Belos.
“Thanks for trying,” Keyon doesn’t have any realistic words of encouragement right now, “I’ve regained some of my strength. I can buy some time for you and Bao to get to the horses. Once I do that, I might be able to get away as well,” Belos doesn’t believe that last part.
“Wait, you can use magic right?” in his desperation, Belos has an idea.
“I can.”
“If we stay here, we’re all going to die. I don’t know any magic, but you do. So, if there’s any chance of getting out of this alive, there’s something I need you to see.”