During the night, Arturo had fallen asleep with Archard’s body in his lap. He was awoken by the sound of horses galloping nearby. For a moment, he didn’t know where he was. Then the memories flooded back. Before he could fully comprehend his surroundings, a dozen riders stormed through the forest and surrounded him with their weapons drawn.

“Don’t move,” one of them commanded as Arturo gripped his sword.

I won’t let them take me prisoner; I’ll kill them all! Arturo thought. He was about to make a move when he realized the riders weren’t the same people who had attacked Arindall. One of them carried a banner, but the sigil was different: a big white crystal in the shape of a shield. Each rider bore the same symbol on their armor. Some wore the insignia on their chests, others on their shoulders.

“Stand up, slowly,” The same man told him, his spear mere inches from Arturo’s throat.

Arturo let go of his sword and stood up.

“Whoa, he’s a big one,” someone commented.

“Look at that sword. No way he can swing that.”

“Quiet,” one of the riders snapped and moved to the front. This one looked like a leader. His armor was gold-plated, with the giant crystal symbol on his chest plate. He didn’t have a weapon out and the other men straightened when they saw him.

“I apologize. We mean you no harm,” the man said.

The other riders lowered their weapons. The leader looked at the body on the floor. “A relative of yours?” he asked.

Arturo nodded and looked at his father. He needed to bury him, along with his mother, brothers, and sister, if he could find her body. “Who are you?” he asked.

“Veldahar Opisaki, leader of the Crystal Syndicate,” the man announced, dismounting. There was a scar running down his jawline. He had black hair with dark brown eyes and he was a bit on the older side with a few gray hairs. There was no doubt he had seen plenty of combat. “And you?”

“Arturo Pentori. What’s the Crystal Syndicate?”

Veldahar grinned. “We’re a mercenary band. I happened to be nearby when a bunch of folks around here came screaming past us. What happened?”

A mercenary band? Arturo had heard plenty about them from his father. Why were mercenaries this deep in Azzellia? He forced himself not to reach for his sword. Just because they were mercenaries didn’t make them his enemy. “We were attacked by a group of strange people. I don’t know where they came from. Will you help me?” He felt foolish asking the question. Mercenaries didn’t work for free and he had no money to pay them.

Veldahar laughed. “Boy, that’s where we’re headed. If the attackers are still there, we’ll wipe them out,” he said.

“Why are you out here and not at Arindall?”

“I wanted to make sure there weren’t any traps waiting for us. I was also hoping to see stragglers like yourself,” Veldahar said. He looked down at Archard’s body. “I’m sorry for what happened. I’ll clear the village and let you know when it’s safe.”

“No.” Arturo surprised himself at his response. He was oddly calm. “I want to fight with you.”

Veldahar looked back at his men, who shrugged under his gaze. He scrutinized Arturo closely. “You look like you can take care of yourself,” he said at last, then turned to one of his men. “Jason! Grab a spare horse and give it to Arturo. We ride for Arindall.”

“Yes, sir,” Jason said and galloped away. He was back within a few minutes with a spare horse riding next to him. He handed the reins over to Arturo.

“You take this horse and we’ll get going.”

Arturo grabbed Archard’s body and put it onto the horse. He expected Veldahar or someone to tell him to leave the body but nobody stopped him. Once the body was secure, he hopped onto the horse. Some of the others eyed his sword and one shook his head.

“Let’s go then.” Veldahar spurred on his horse and they began riding toward Arindall.

Arturo followed close behind Veldahar. The mercenaries looked determined; their weapons were held at the ready. Veldahar never told him why he was this deep in Azzellia but that was a question for another time. He wished the group had been this close when the attacks started. His family might still be alive.

The thought almost made him tear up. He was the last Pentori. His family was gone. Arturo wasn’t sure he would ever come to terms with it. His father training him. His mother talking to him and urging him to slow down. His brothers, who may have teased him but wanted to help him, and his sister. Jen would never have a chance to be the warrior she wanted to be.

Gripping his reins tightly, Arturo stared ahead and forced the thoughts away. Arindall wouldn’t be more than a half-hour ride. He didn’t know how far he walked last night. It had felt like hours, but he doubted Archard could have walked for that long.

Nobody talked the entire ride. Veldahar kept his gaze forward, while a couple of other riders kept looking to the right and left. Some split off and melded back into the group a few minutes later.

The trees started to thin out. Veldahar stretched out his right arm and formed a fist. The entire group stopped. Veldahar ordered some of his men to scout the area, then turned to Arturo. “I hear no fighting,” he said. His gaze was piercing, making Arturo a little uncomfortable. “What can you tell me about the attack?”

“Not much. All I saw were soldiers in armor cutting down my people,” Arturo said. He hoped to find out where the attackers had come from.

A rider came into the forest and headed for Veldahar. “Commander, the village is deserted except for some survivors,” the scout said.

“Interesting.” Veldahar stroked his chin thoughtfully. “Let’s investigate what happened. Move out!”

Arturo spurred his horse forward. He was the first to enter the village. The attackers were gone, just like the scout said. What hurt to see were all the corpses and burned-out buildings. The stench of the dead churned his stomach and he had to fight to keep himself from gagging. He recognized some of the dead. Thomas Hopkins lying on the ground with arrows stuck in his chests. Next to them was a kid, whose name he didn’t remember.

There were more destroyed buildings as they moved along. There was blood everywhere, abandoned weapons and arrows sticking into the ground. Arturo wanted to look away. One of the council members, Eben Vistrome, was lying on the ground with a huge gash across his chest. Nobody had told Arturo how awful the stench of a battle could be.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

“Odd,” Veldahar said and got off his horse.

“What?” Arturo asked.

“All of the dead look like your people. Do you see any of these raiders anywhere?” Veldahar said.

Arturo opened his mouth then shut it immediately. Veldahar was right. The only dead on the ground were the citizens of Arindall. He looked around to make sure but couldn’t find a single body that belonged to the attackers.

“Commander,” another scout said as he rode up. “We’ve spoken to some of the survivors. It seems the attackers retreated and carried off their dead.”

“Interesting.” Veldahar looked thoughtful as he walked over to a corpse and closed the eyes of the victim. “Any idea where the invaders went?”

“Not sure. Nobody had a clear sight from what I’ve heard.”

“Scout the area. Tell everyone to look around and try to find out where the attackers could have gone,” Veldahar ordered.

With a quick salute, the scout hurried off. Arturo walked toward his house and was surprised at the lack of damage. Out of all the buildings nearby, his was one of the few that was relatively untouched. His hand trembled as he opened the door and saw his mother’s body on the floor. The men he’d killed were gone.

“I’m going to bury my parents,” Arturo said. He didn’t hear Veldahar’s response as he grabbed Archard’s body and walked into his house. His stomach lurched with disgust as he looked at his dead mother.

It was too much. Unable to hold it back, Arturo emptied his stomach and wiped his mouth. The stench, blood, and the death of his family... How could any man bear such monstrosity? He was so entranced in his misery that he didn’t notice Veldahar standing behind him.

“Let me help you bury them,” Veldahar said.

Biting back an angry retort, Arturo stood up. “I need to find my brothers’ bodies first, and my sister.”

When he walked out of the house, Arturo was amazed at how efficient the Crystal Syndicate was. They were gathering bodies and securing each house to make sure there weren’t any hidden surprises. Despite his sorrow, he was curious about these mercenaries. From what his father had said, mercenaries cared more about money than anything else. These ones appeared to care about the dead and weren’t stealing from them or looting the buildings.

The mercenaries were even organizing the bodies by who they thought was family. Who were these people? Their actions went against everything he had been told.

“Wait!” Arturo exclaimed when he saw two men pick up Marcus’s body. They stopped. “He’s… my brother. Same with the one next to him. Let me take them.”

“Go ahead,” the men shrugged and moved on to the next body.

Arturo felt like he might vomit again. He couldn’t believe his brothers had been overpowered when fighting together. Taking a deep breath, he hefted Marcus’s body and took it back to his house. He came back for John. During the trips, he noticed some of the survivors of the attack.

Michelle Danvers was still alive and didn’t look injured. She was weeping over her husband’s body. There were a few familiar faces that looked more like statues than living humans. They were standing and staring at the ground, not responding if someone spoke to them.

Once Arturo made it back to the house, Veldahar handed him a shovel and they started digging. Arturo didn’t forget about his sister, he just wanted to bury these bodies first. And if Jen had been trapped in a fire there was likely nothing to bury.

Veldahar didn’t speak as they dug. Arturo didn’t want to talk right now. He didn’t understand why Veldahar was helping him bury his family. The man was a commander of a mercenary group, yet he didn’t complain as he helped place Leann’s body in the first hole.

After hours of digging, the last body, of John Pentori, was placed into the hole. If Arturo was alone, he would be weeping. Instead, he lowered the shovel and walked away. The commander followed.

“I’m going to check for my sister,” Arturo said before the man could ask where he was going.

“I’ll go with you.”

Arturo walked to where Jen had stayed the night. If only she’d been home. Surely, she would still be alive. Why did the attack have to happen last night? Shaking his head, he willed those thoughts away. There was nothing he could do now.

The house was destroyed. There was a small fire still smoldering and Arturo saw Isabel’s parents in front of the house with severe burns. Not too far off was a small body he assumed was Isabel.

Among the ruins was a body of which there was almost nothing left but bones. This person could have been a male for all Arturo knew, but he wasn’t dumb. Jen was the only other person in the house when the attack happened. Archard was right; Arturo was the only one left in his family.

Veldahar was standing behind him, being respectful yet surveying the damage. Eventually he walked up to Arturo.

“I’ve been informed of where the attackers went,” Veldahar said.

“Where?” Arturo exclaimed. Adrenaline rushed through him as he thought about killing the soldiers who ruined his life. “Are we going after them?”

“If only we could,” Veldahar sighed. “The attackers came from the Unknown Waters.”

“What?” Arturo didn’t understand how that was possible. Nobody had ever crossed those waters, let alone arrived by them.

“Yes. There are footprints, along with boat markings along the beach. Do you want to see?” Veldahar asked, knowing the answer before Arturo responded.

Clouds were forming overhead, though it didn’t look like it was going to rain. Arturo would have welcomed the rain. What would be more fitting than to drown in misery? The wind blew and warm air brushed over him. Perhaps a storm was coming and it would kill the men who destroyed Arindall.

Arturo knew better. Whoever had attacked would come back or attack somewhere else. He vowed to himself that he would be there when that day came. It was all he had left. If the scarred man was right: this was only the beginning. The continent will change. That’s what he said, Arturo thought.

They arrived at the beach. A lot of the mercenaries were there, scouring the area and pointing at footprints or areas where the ships had landed. Arturo needed no convincing to know the mercenaries were right. Did that mean the attackers came from over the Unknown Waters or did they drift along from somewhere else?

“Kallahan, give me a report,” Veldahar commanded.

Kallahan broke off his conversation to approach the commander. “There had to be at least fifty ships, maybe more,” Kallahan began, his beard flowing with the wind as he spoke. His bald head shined when a ray of sunlight hit him before disappearing behind a cloud. “I’ve spoken to some of the survivors; the attackers did take some prisoners.”

“This was a raid, but for what purpose?” Veldahar pondered. “Has anyone found anything? Armor? A shoe? Anything at all?”

“Nothing,” Kallahan said. “These people left no trace of who they were.”

“This sounds like the other two attacks we’ve heard about,” Veldahar observed.

That brought Arturo out of his stupor. “Other attacks?”

“Yes. People are attacking via water and leaving before help can arrive. I was sure we’d get here before they could leave,” Veldahar said.

“There were two other attacks?” Arturo stepped in between Kallahan and Veldahar.

“There was an attack at night from the Unknown Waters in Vandalor and another near the borders of Vandalor and Azzellia. I suspected the attackers would come down here, but I didn’t expect them to hit Arindall or I’d have been here instead of Tarvorren,” Veldahar said.

Arturo realized his mouth was hanging open and shut it. If there had been three attacks now, the invaders could strike again. I’ll be at the next one. I won’t let them do this to another village! He found himself gripping the handle of his sword. He quickly let go before anyone realized what he was doing.

“The sigil is the same as well,” Veldahar mused. He glanced at the ocean as if he could see something no one else could. “I have a feeling this was their last stop before heading back to wherever they live.”

“Agreed. Whoever the attackers are, they hit the coast and made sure not to venture too far away from their ships. Perhaps they’ll be back next year,” Kallahan said.

“Maybe. Tell the men to saddle up. It’s time for us to go.” Veldahar turned to Arturo. “What will you do? Help rebuild Arindall?”

“No,” Arturo said. Staying here was out of the question. There was only one thing he wanted to do now. “I’m going to kill the man who killed my brothers.”

“How will you do that?” Kallahan said.

“I don’t know. I’ll find a way,” Arturo said.

“Come with us,” Veldahar said, and motioned for Kallahan to get moving. “I plan on finding these attackers and ending them.”

Arturo hesitated. Did he want to join a group of mercenaries? Sure, they didn’t seem like the people his father had told him about, but that didn’t mean the Crystal Syndicate wasn’t in this for the money. For all he knew, they were being paid to investigate these attacks.

Would that be so bad? Get paid to avenge my family? The offer was tempting. And he had nowhere else to go. He would have to leave Arindall. Staying here would remind him of his dead family.

“Yeah, I would like to join you,” Arturo said. “Before we go, I need to get something from my house.”