> Once a proud and famed warrior, known by the name of “The Thunderclap Lord” all across Loktharma, his father had now been reduced to a miserable and bandaged up husk. A mysterious affliction had plagued him, causing his skin to crack and fall off in feather-like pieces. To try and halt this, he had been wrapped up in layers of cloth drenched in a special ointment, leaving only his eyes and mouth uncovered.

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> Mustafar knew that his father's would soon pass, but the kingdom must not cease to exist. He would do anything, anything to keep their legacy standing. Even if that meant selling his soul to the Firelord of the Southern Sapphire tribe.

Excerpt from "Sapphire Flames: A Tale of Exiles"

Eugene De Lavet

We've stopped at Shintai Pass—an opening leading to Kakwai desert—for ten minutes to wait for Captain Azra, and Melodi is visibly irritated. It might be because of the argument with the General earlier, or it might be that she's just anxious to be stopping while we're supposed to run. Either way, she's not saying a word and keeps wearing a scowl even though Alleria tries to console her.

"He's sure taking his time." Tamara taps her finger on her bike's handle. "This isn't like him."

"It's not everyday that he has to fight ten thousand bandits and outrun a burning wall," I say.

"No sign of Leviathan, Lady Tanaka, or the others either. This is looking grim." Tamara replies.

"Maybe we should go," Lek says. "He'll catch up." I'm pretty sure Lek just advocates for that because he finds the Captain creepy as hell.

"We are not leaving the Captain behind." Tamara hits on the handle with two fingers.

"Wait. Someone's coming from behind us." I point to the distance, where piles of dust splash in the air, followed by a slowly amplifying bike engine noise.

"Might be an enemy," Lek warns.

"They're riding a bike. Our bike." Tamara picks up her weapon, a recurved bow. We pick up our weapons too, just in case.

When a row of hardwood suddenly rises from the ground as the bike races past, we pick up the signal and ease our guard. It's Captain Azra.

When the Captain gets near enough for us to make out his presence, we notice something different about him. His armor.

Melodi speaks up for the first time in a while, "He's wearing the Shōgun's Pride. Could it be. . ."

Captain Azra hops off from his bike and make an immediate announcement. "Apologize for the delay; I got held back by a group of bandits then had to retrieve my Soulbound Companion. That aside, I am now your acting Commander. This might not mean much to you, since my official title shouldn't matter to a group of four people. Though I refuse to call myself a General, as the bearer of the General armor, I shall have the authority should we run into any Socenian army—or what's left of them—in the future. Now we ride to Kakwai desert. Waste no time."

"D-does that mean. . ." Melodi stutters.

"Your Father is still standing," Azra cuts her off.

The Captain (now Commander) warns us about possible ambush along Shintai Pass, since it's such an obvious escape path and the only road that can be traveled by bike. However, it's been smooth sailing even after we pass the drywood forest which marks the halfway point.

"So. . . where's this ambush team we were talking about?" Tamara enquires.

"He probably chickened the hell out when he heard we were coming," I reply.

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"Yeah, that sounds reasonable," Lek says. "I mean, here comes a Flairless teenager on a wheelbike with some other humans, running from a giant lava wall a hundred times our size. Who wouldn't run?"

"You meant 'here comes the World's Number One Swordsman and his sidekicks'," I correct him. "They should be scared of us. I'd be scared of us. In fact, I'm shivering right now! I am that good. . . I mean, uh, we. We are that good."

"Are you literally shivering, Eugene?" Melodi asks. "Because I can feel something shaking underneath me."

"No? I thought that was you. No offense, but you do have a habit of rumbling the ground, the air, and everything around you."

"That rumbling noise is definitely not from me."

"Brace yourselves," the Commander waves his hand for us to stop our vehicles. "Something is coming from beneath the grounds—"

Something shoots up from underground, shattering the earth around it and leaves a giant hole in the middle of the road. That thing—who turns out to be a half-naked man—shouts as he leaps into the sky before landing on the ground with a bang, "Are ya ready to rumbleeeeeeee?"

I've never seen a person so huge and ripped. He's at least two meter talls, with frizzy black hair and a Van Dyke goatee. He looks so ripped even his abs seem to have abs. He swings a double-sided mace the length of an adult human, with its mace heads as big as my face, and revolves it in the air as if it's as light as a pen.

"Pleasure, the name's Vokchad. Pyro's champion. Descendant of the Thunderclap Lord. Ya lot must be Azra Kolkov, and, uh, the others."

Thunderclap Lord. I know the name. That's the guy in the folklore Azra told us about. The folklore of the beginning of the world, and the beginning of Flairs as we know it. The Lord was an old ally of the Champion Guinness, but his children would turn against Guinness and escape to the South—where Talilah is today—and raise a giant army in some struggle for power or whatever. I nodded off when Azra got to the not-epic no-fighting part.

"I have a name too!" I protest.

"Ye, ye, Little Stickman. I'll give ya ya lot later." He clicks his tongue. "Man. I didn't think there would be so many of ya here. I've told the Lord to bring actual troops instead of hiring some shady bandits, but he insisted on maintaining secrecy. Y'know, I can't stop four of ya. But if ya think this is the last of us and y'all gonna get out alive, you're delusional. Ya can't outrace the wall."

Wow, this man is rude. But then again, he's probably a gymer.

"He seems too strong for my database. The stats won't show," Lek says.

Azra summons his SC and asks, "Okra. Give me some information."

Okra does a quick scan before replying, "He's a fusion. An Earth and Fire-typed, around your level."

"A. . . fusion? There are people out there who have TWO flairs?" I groan.

"No, idiot." Melodi lightly hits my shoulder. "It just means that his Flair has the characteristics of both types, which broadens the strengths and weaknesses against other Flair types. Both Fire and Earth are strong against Nature type, so he gets double the positive aura."

"What about Water?" Fire is weak against Water, while Earth is strong.

"They cancel each other out."

"Well, whatever. He might have abs, but we have me. He isn't gonna stand against the might of four people."

"No. You go." Tamara climbs down from her bike as she says. "We won't outrace the wall if we keep stopping to fight people like this. I'll entertain him."

Vokchad lets out a thunderous laugh. "Hah! I love your confidence, Little One. What makes ya think I'd even allow ya to battle me?"

"I'm not asking for your permission." Tamara rubs her hands together, and a falcon-shaped cyclone forms behind her back. I've seen that falcon striked a few times in Training,

"Tammy!" Melodi runs up to her. "It's too risky to face him alone. Let us help."

She laughs light-heartedly. "I'm an orphan who should've died in a ditch thirty years ago if it wasn't for the General's kindness. I'm born a lowly, expendable commoner, and will stay a lowly commoner for all my life. But yours are different." She looks at me, then at Azra, then at Eugene. "You're of royal blood. Your lives are worth living."

"That's not true. You're not any worse off than us just because you're born the way you are."

"Is it really so, Melodi? Would you say if you were me, you wouldn't be one bit jealous you weren't the daughter of the General?"

I'm shocked. I don't talk with the Groundskeeper much, but I'm not so daft to not realize the close bond between her and Melodi. To see her talking to Melodi like this is like seeing me losing a sword fight.

Melodi bites her lips. "Why are you being so mean? You don't mean it, do you?"

"I do. I very much do."

"If you think you can get rid of me with some harsh words, you're wrong!"

Vokchad smashes his mace to the ground and snickers. "Keep talking. I ain't in a rush. The lava's gonna drown ya lot, not me."

"You know he's right. You can't waste any more time, Melodi," Tamara says with a stern face.

"But you will die!" Melodi pleads. "Together, we can make it out of here."

"I owe the General my life. My choice is made. Go."

Melodi is about to say something, but Captain Azra walks up to her and says, "She's trained her whole life to keep yours safe. Respect her choice. Don't disappoint her by dying here."

"I-I understand. But this. . . this is so cruel. I-I don't want to lose two people I love in one day." A single tear flows down Melodi's cheek. I want to say something; something nice, even, but ultimately stay silent. I have nothing but jokes, and when I don't joke, I've got nothing.

"You won't lose me," Tamara assures her. "Stay strong. Kolkov, escort them to safety."

Azra lightly bows to her, a Socenian gesture of respect. "Thank you," he says. We all bow. I know better than to disrespect someone who's fighting for our sake.

"Show's over. Let's fight." Vokchad reminds us, his hand resting on his mace.

We hop on our bike and proceed to ride around the colossal man, but not without turning back to look at Tamara one last time. Her eyes glint and her jaws tighten, and the wind falcon behind her back grows to the size of a bison.

I try to keep a few meters of distance between myself and Vokchad as I drive past him. I don't want to be anywhere around him, to be honest. He seems to be the type who would win against me in an arm-wrestling duel.

Right after I pass him, I hear a loud growl from the man. "Ya think ya can get away?"

I turn back to see him swinging his giant mace at me, but his movement is blocked mid-way by a firm grip of the wind, and the wind falcon swoops in to push him staggering to the side.

"Look at me! I'm your adversary!" Tamara draws out her bow and starts shooting at Vokchad. The aid of her wind glides the arrow straight to his chest, so swiftly I can barely see it flying through the air.

"Ya a nuisance!" Vokchad growls as he punches the air. "I'll break ya in half!"

We get past Vokchad safely. By the time we reach the end of Shintai pass, Tamara's wind falcon only sounds like a gentle mountain breeze.