People began jumping out of the caravan while the hovering wagons began turning quickly until they stood in a circle with the wagons on the outside. The Viridians, travelers, and guards alike seemed to know exactly what to do as they rushed from wagon to wagon, pulling sheets of a dull gleaming cloth down to the ground, covering a large section of ground. They drove long metal rods into the ground, tying the sheets to them while a howling sound became louder and louder.
Balarn moved to the center, clapping his hands to get their attention. Irwin looked over, noticing that Yogog and the two female Ignitzions were helping the guards set up their tent. Their quick movements showed they had done this before, and Yogog's furrowed brow told him that whatever was going to happen was going to be dangerous.
"Listen!" Balarn shouted above the ever-increasing howling of the wind. "The tents will protect us from the storm. Don't, under any circumstances, leave the safety of the tents at any cost! No matter what happens, stay inside! The cloth is fireproof and will protect us, but it will become very hot outside. Hot enough to melt off your skin!"
The bearded smith waited till everyone had shown they understood before jumping down the wagon, taking his pack with him. "Take your stuff, or it will be gone when you return," he shouted up.
"They could have explained what was going to happen before it became a thing," Greldo muttered next to Irwin.
"Maybe they were afraid some people didn't want to come?" Irwin replied as he looked around. Monyque's normal self-assured look was gone and pale-faced. She grabbed her stuff as she followed her lanky guard down below the gleaming cloth. The other smiths and guards followed in rapid succession.
As Irwin landed on the soft sand, the howling wind masked the thudding of his feet, and although he saw the lips of some guards move, he couldn't hear them. A pull on his sleeve made him look up. Greldo gestured inside.
Irwin nodded but stepped aside to let his friend in as he looked around. Far to the left, the sky had turned overcast as if a massive storm was brewing, and tiny bits of sand were blowing around, ticking against his face and exposed skin. The temperature suddenly began rising exponentially, and he saw the final Viridian guards close the flaps and rush inside.
I wonder if I could stay outside? he thought. The tiny bits of sand seemed to glow, and as they ticked against his skin, he could feel their heat. It wasn't uncomfortable, but it was hotter than even the sparks from the forge when he'd crafted the holder for his rankplate.
A movement from the corner of his eye drew his attention, and he saw the female guard beckon him to enter. With a final look around, he ducked under the flap. Yogog and some others instantly began pulling down the flap and tying it up.
The howling inside was slightly muted, but talking wasn't an option. Noting the others sitting on the ground, fanning themselves, Irwin sat beside Greldo.
I wonder how long this will last, he thought.
Minutes turned to hours as the storm blew unabated, and the temperature continued climbing. Eventually, Irwin saw the other smiths lie down pale-faced shortly after, followed by the Viridians. Only Yogog, he, and the Ignitzions remained seated.
At a certain point, Irwin began dozing off, the increased temperature and the constant roaring making him sleepy.
He snapped back awake when a rush of blistering hot air and sand slammed into him. As thick as his skin was, the sand was scratching it harshly, the heat even painful to him.
Why… what? he thought, his groggy mind rapidly waking up. Feeling the pain on his face increase as his body was being shoved back, he triggered his Coperion Body. Immediately the wind felt less powerful, the heat of the sand less sharp, and he pushed himself to his knees.
The roaring wind boomed oddly, hurting his ears. He covered his eyes with his hand peering around through his fingers. The tiny beats of sand struck his fingers, and even with his eyes nearly closed, he felt them painfully beat against his eyes. Still, he quickly saw what was going on.
One of the cables that held the entrance flap closed had ripped free from the metal rod and was whipping about. The entire tent billowed outward, the cloth stretched tout as the wind threatened to rip it up and drag it away. Yogog was up and leaning forward, forging towards the entrance, eyes narrow and focused on the rope. The sand didn't seem to bother his eyes, which were wide open and filled with resolve. Behind him, the others lay flat on the ground, futilely scrambling for a handhold in the sand as they were being shoved backward across the ground.
Need to close it, or this tent is gone, Irwin thought as he saw Greldo, head flat against the sand, barely able to remain in one spot.
He pushed himself forward, even his increased weight barely able to keep him from being blown away. Yogog was moving ahead of him at the same speed, trying to grab the cable that was still whipping about. It took him a few attempts, but he finally grabbed it, and Irwin saw the burly smith's body yanked forward and then to the side. A blazing inferno seemed to rush on outside, the glowing grains of burning sand like a sea of red, orange, and gold.
It's like the inside of a forge, Irwin thought as he forged on ahead, feeling like he was being pushed back by a giant wave.
Yogog struggled with the ropes, and Irwin saw the edges of the cloth of the flap begin to unravel slowly. With a final burst of strength, he pushed forward and grabbed Yogog's shoulders. It felt like someone was trying to pull Yogog away, but with their combined weight, they finally remained in one spot, the cable suddenly standing taut. Irwin grappled across Yogog's shoulders and arms until he could grab the cable together with the other one. Yogog's eyes were narrow, a look of focus in them, and Irwin nodded.
Digging his feet in the sand, he slid one hand up the cable, then drew it in. Ever so slowly, the rope was pulled closer, the top of the flap coming further and further down. Long strands of what almost looked like metal wire were hanging from the edges. When the edge of the flap reached within reaching width, Irwin hesitated. Yogog didn't, and Irwin was stunned to see him let go of the cable and jump up and grab the flap. For a moment, it seemed like he wasn't heavy enough, then he pulled it down, leaning on the ground and holding it there.
Irwin reeled in the rest of the cable. One of the metal rods sat to the side, and he saw the loop was empty. Dragging the cable through, he began pulling it tight until the flap was fully closed, one side by the rope and the other by Yogog's weight. Sitting down on the edge of the flap while holding the cable, Irwin leaned back, feeling the storm against his back. A look to the side saw Yogog drawing in ragged breaths, beads of sweat on his head, and his eyes closed.
I hope this storm dies down soon, Irwin thought.
Almost two hours later, it finally did, though, to him, it felt like an eternity. With shoulders and arms stiff with pain, his Coperion Body long since disabled, Irwin almost wanted to cry for joy when he realized the howling was becoming softer, the pushing in his back weaker.
Another bit later, the raging storm slowly faded away into the distance. The Viridian's got up and began wiping sand from themselves while grabbing their luggage from the pill on the far side of the tent.
"So… I wonder who's going to get punished for this," Yogog grunted, pushing himself up and sticking out a hand to Irwin.
Irwin grabbed it, letting the burly smith pull him up.
"What do you mean?" he asked as his arms dropped to his side, cramped from the long hours of strain. He had noticed that the others had fallen quiet, even the Viridians staring at him.
Yogog kicked the metal rod Irwin had bound the rope to, glaring at it. "Whoever tied this did a shitty job. These cables don't snap. The only time I've heard this happen was when someone used a too-short rod, and it was yanked out in the middle of the storm. No, this was stupidity that nearly cost everyone but a few of us their lives."
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"I tied those, and I swear on my grandfather's roots that I did it properly," the female guard snapped as she glared at Yogog. "I've been doing this for over ten years!"
Yogog looked back, his eyes narrowing. "Yeah? Well, explain to me how this thing got loose then?"
"I can't, but it's not because of my knots!" the guard shouted, moving further.
Irwin noticed that her bark skin looked slightly paler than before, a layer of the outside almost seeming to have been sanded off.
"Enough," a deep shout came from outside while the flap was yanked open.
Tragt had to bow his head as he moved inside the tent before glaring around. A dozen or more Viridians filed in after him, standing to the side and looking at the female guard.
"What in the name of the holy grove happened, Brea?" he snapped as he glared at the female guard.
"Tragt. You know me! You taught me those bark-damned knot-"
"Language!" Tragt roared as he moved forward, towering over everyone. "Brea," he said as he took a deep breath, seemingly to forcefully calm himself. "Don't say what you want it to be. Think. Carefully. Is it possible that you botched the knot?"
Irwin saw the young Viridian woman gnash her teeth.
"Breath! Think!" Tragt said.
Brea closed her eyes and drew in a deep breath before exhaling. Then again. As she opened her eyes, Irwin saw a stubbornness in them, and he knew the answer before Brea spoke.
"I did the knot right. I'll let eldest Gilerinasi perform her soul skill on me!"
There was a sudden and loud uproar of the surrounding Viridians while Tragt's face turned ugly.
"That won't be nes-"
"It is!" Brea snapped. "You don't believe me. For my honor, I need to prove I did it right!" She glared around, then at Tragt, before walking passed him, her breathing ragged.
A look of pain crossed Tragt's face for a moment before he turned to the others.
"My sincere apologies. I don't know what happened, but I will make sure you are all compensated. When we reach Cinder Grove city, I will reimburse you all with half of your traveling fee," the old Viridian said in his deep voice. Then he turned and left the tent.
As soon as he was gone, the Viridians began muttering and leaving, too, until only the five smiths and their guards remained.
Tragt's booming voice sounded from outside. "Stand on the lookout, grab the scorchers! There's a chance of an Emberion cloud!"
"Well… that was interesting," Yogog said, rubbing his arms from where he stood beside Balarn. "Thanks for helping me out there, Irwin," he said with a wide grin. "As heavy as I am, I don't think I would have been able to do that by myself."
Then he turned to Balarn. "Last time was a lot better. Though Tragt is right. Those Emberions after were a pain in the-"
A loud scream came from outside, followed by Tragt's booming voice. "Emberion clouds south! Grab your bloody scorchers! Keep them away from the wagons!"
"You had to say that, didn't you?" Balarn growled as he ran forward. "Follow me!"
They rushed out of the tent just in time to see the guards grabbing long spears from below the wagons as a red cloud descended upon one of them. The guard next to it barely managed to jump clear as the mass of thumb-sized beads of flame rushed forward. Within moments, the entire wagon was engulfed, and dull booms resonated from within, shocking the wave but seemingly not injuring them.
"Scare them off!" Tragt roared, and Irwin watched in shock as the guards jabbed the spears forward, roaring gouts of flame shooting out and toward the swarm.
"Why are they shooting them with fire?" he snapped as he turned to Balarn.
"They are trying to overfeed them with heat so they will get sleepy and leave," Balarn said. "Whatever you do, don't get close. Those things drain the body heat out of anything they touch."
Irwin licked his lips as he gazed around. He was itching to summon his flame and Eyes of Blaze to help.
"If I use my eyes, will they-"
"Don't!" Balarn said as he turned to him, eyes wide with panic. "The reason they are using those scorchers is because if they follow the flame to them, they can throw them away! I have no idea what would happen if you do that."
Irwin nodded as he looked around at the group of guards slowly surrounding the cloud of Emberions. They had been moving jittery, but as the gouts of flame rippled across them, those on the outside seemed to slow down. A few suddenly flitted away from the group, a stream of what looked like hundreds heading to one of the guards. He let out a surprised cry, then hurled the scorcher away. The Emberions raced after it.
"Explosion," the guard screamed as he jumped back.
Before Irwin or anyone could even react, the Emberions reached the scorcher, swarming it. For a fraction of a moment, nothing happened. Then it exploded with a boom, a ball of fire as large as a wagon erupting from it while individual Emberions were flung all around. They shot out like streaking marbles of fire, hitting the guards before they had a chance to react. A chain reaction of booms followed as some hit the scorchers the guards were holding.
Irwin felt something pick him up, then he was flying through the air to slam into a wagon. His vision turned dark for a moment, then he shook his head.
The guards that had been standing there were gone, flung about while foot-deep craters covered the sandy they had stood on.
"Everyone that can stand, grab a scorcher and fire at them," Tragt roared. He was the only one still standing, wielding two scorchers, his dark bark looked even blacker while a section of his leafy hair was burned away.
Irwin looked around. One of the long spear-like things lay not too far away, and he pushed himself forward, sprinting to it and grabbing it from the ground. As soon as his fingers wrapped around it, he felt his first card hum, startling him momentarily. It was almost like when he was reforging cards. A scream of pain made him look up. The cloud of emberions was moving towards another wagon, leaving behind a destroyed wreck and the blackened remains of a Teinefola.
Irwin grit his teeth as he looks at the spear in his hands. There were runes on one end, and he knew the guards had been holding them there. Hoping for the best, he randomly touched one. Nothing happened, but the resonating from his first card became stronger. Touching another one had the same effect, but when he put his finger on the third one, a wide cone of fire sprayed from the tip of his scorcher. He immediately turned it on the emberions, moving closer.
The fire sprawled across the tiny fire creatures, and this close, he saw they had shiny white eyes with red iris and gaping wide mouths. Their own fire seemed to come from their eyes while the fire from the scorchers was sucked into their mouths.
It's like they have tiny versions of my Eyes of Blaze, Irwin thought as he moved the fire across the cloud.
Balarn and the others were moving in from the other side, all with their own scorchers. Some of the guards were moving in, too, heavily wounded and some with barely a leaf on their heads.
As the cloud began moving more sluggish, Irwin slowly felt his heart rate slow. Perhaps things would go alright? He'd barely finished the thought when a group of more mobile emberions burst out from the cloud, streaking towards him and the others.
"Throw it," Balarn roared.
Irwin didn't even hesitate, hurling the scorchers up, intending to toss it over the incoming emberions and into the cloud. The emberions moved like a flash, heading for an intercept course.
No! Irwin thought, and he threw himself back from the explosions just as it happened.
This time most of the power blasted him down instead of back, and he slammed into the ground. The soft sand cushioned his fall, while his thick Coperion Body's skin helped with the rest. But he knew not everyone would be that lucky.
Greldo, he thought as he pushed himself up, right into a few dozen emberions that streaked towards him.
Irwin's flame roared alive almost without him thinking it, and he forced it forward and around him as he instinctively closed his eyes for the explosion he expected to happen. A second passed, and nothing happened, and he opened his eyes.
The emberions hovered before him, inside his fire almost lazily, their tiny mouths gaping wide as they seemed to gobble up his flame.
What… is… Irwin thought as he blinked.
A surging motion caused his eyes to widen, then a dark cloud of tiny fire creatures surrounded him, and he increased his flame as much as he could. It burst up and out of him as he sat on the ground, the sand below him beginning to glitter as the previous storm's particles had. The emberions huddled together in the fire, and as he saw them hang there, he realized many had their eyes closed, seeming to sway back and forth gently.
I hope they won't eat all of my fire, Irwin thought as he remained sitting on the ground, staring at the tiny creatures in wonder. As they showed no signs of aggression, and his flame didn't become weaker, he felt himself begin to calm down. Very slowly, he pushed himself into a better sitting position as he stared at the emberions wondering how long they would stay.
--
"Irwin!"
"Calm down, there is nothing you can do for him now!" Balarn shouted as he held Greldo back.
"We have to do something! They are going to drain all his heat!"
"He seems to be doing fine," Ignalia said as she moved to stand beside them.
Greldo spun to her, his eyes wide.
"What?"
"He is just sitting there, and those little fire elementals are hovering around him. They almost seem asleep.
She and Hotzli were the only ones that were unharmed, all of the others, including Yogog, were covered in burn wounds and charred hairs. The Viridians were scrambling around, trying to help and save as many of their leafed brethren as they could, while Tragt moved to stand beside them. He had a scorcher in his hand, but the runes had stopped burning.
"You say they seem to sleep?" he rumbled, staring at Ignalia.
"Yes, many have their eyes closed," she said.
"Good…" Tragt said before turning around. "Clear the tents, get the wounded aboard, and get the wagons ready! As soon as they leave, we leave!"
Greldo watched the tall, heavily charred Viridian stomp away before looking back at where Irwin was sitting in a mass of glowing little demons.
"How long till they leave?" he asked.
"Shouldn't be too long," Yogog said as he rubbed a set of red scratches on his arm. "Let's just wait till they do! I'm sure Irwin will be alright."
Greldo glared at the smith before turning his attention to the cloud.