Fortunately, the Scalemen fled from Stusis three days earlier before Crimson would hunt those who stayed behind.

The rumors about Stusis’ civil war did not align with the outcome of this event. It led Beastmen to question how Kihet managed to convince the Dragons to spare the Scalemen. However, that’s the least of their worries after they were threatened by him.

The captains reluctantly accepted Kihet’s ridiculous demand to transport the Scalemen to the Capital of Pamalyra. Their sailors could not believe their eyes as hundreds of Scalemen poured out of the border gates. Many Sailors and residents of the harbor were surprised this many survived the Dragonkin’s genocide.

To improve efficiency, Kihet separated his group across three ships.

Tama, Salith and the Naga Chieftain rode on the Purser as early messengers to negotiate for a location in the capital where refugees can stay.

Krullu, Yizdra, Ainig and the Tortoise Chieftain stayed on the Invincible with the largest population of Scalemen. The Invincible’s protective hull and Ainig’s defensive abilities would ensure a safe passage.

Meanwhile, Kihet, Lily, Aten, Rogus and the Lizardman Chieftain boarded the Path Weaver. They watched over the rest of the Scalemen population. With the Invincible sailing at their rear, the ship can focus everything at the front.

It had already been four days since they set sail.

Kihet, Lily and Aten decided to visit the mess to grab a bite after most of the people had eaten. Kihet went to look for a table while Lily and Aten went to order food. As he observed those in the hall, he noticed Rogus eating alone and made his way to the Lycanthrope.

“How are you feeling?”

“Huh? Oh, it’s you. Like shit. My family heirloom’s bent and I lost an arm. My brother’s gonna kill me.” Rogus sighed. “Whadabout ya? Ya look worse than me.”

“I’m alive. It’s what matters right now.”

“Spoken like a true hero. Glad I made da right choice to follow ya and not dat whiner. I bet those lunatics woulda thrown me aside in this sorry state I am.”

“I did promise Douglas to bring you back. And I owe you for keeping that Bear Spirit away from us back then.”

“Ha! Good! I might cash in dat favor when I see my brother.” Rogus cackled, after ripping a piece of jerky with his fangs. “We lost a lot of good people in that battle.”

“We would’ve lost more if they didn’t sacrifice themselves, but we can’t dwell on the past.”

“Aye. So, off to save Pamalyra next?”

“Maybe. First of, I need to get Scalemen issues situated. I also need to help Tama look for someone and I got personal matters with the Enui there. If possible, I my savings are a bit dried up now.”

“Yer a busy body.”

“What will you do?”

“I’m gonna hafta stick with yer group. Tama’s bringing me back to my brother after all. When we land, I’m gonna go look for a tinkerer. Can’t go fightin with one arm. You should come with, seeing you’re missing a leg yerself.”

“They’ll give you a new arm?”

“Who knows. Da tinkerer I know can give you a blade for a leg depending how moody he is.”

“Sounds interesting.”

“Great! It’s settled then!” Rogus heartily laughed, slapping Kihet on his shoulder. “Hopefully that old geezer still runnin his shop or at least, his apprentices are.”

“Kihet, we’re back.”

“So, what’s for lunch?”

[Don’t want to know.]

Lily and Aten returned with bowls of gruel. Was it bubbling just now? The yellowish chunks looked like crushed fruit with the texture of porridge, but thinner. Some diced carrots were added to give it a more appetizing appearance.

But food is food. Lily stirred a bit then bravely took a bite after Kihet dutifully ate his portion. The gruel was bland an unevenly sweet at some point. It was watery and starchy.

Aten’s bowl was the opposite. It was chunky like mud. He carved out a piece and tore a small portion with his mandibles. He chewed it for a few seconds before quickly spitting it back out. Vivirians weren’t usually picky eaters, but to see Aten reject the food served to him was a bit undaunting.

Fortunately, Kihet was thankful for his tastebuds to be unable to pick up the taste. Meanwhile, Lily and Aten gave up to finish their first serving.

“What did you two talking about?” Lily asked, setting her bowl aside.

“Rogus might know someone to make a leg for me.”

[Of metal?]

“Preferably. Wood won’t be sturdy enough for monsters da Oracle fights.” Rogus then narrowed his eyes at Lily. “What are ya starin at?”

“Where get jerkies?” Lily asked.

“Dey’re mine and I ain’t sharing. The gruel dis ship serve are disgusting.”

“Just one-? No, two! I mean three! Wait, four!”

“Wha- no! Why are da numbers going up?!”

“Give me seven!”

“Do you even understand me?! I ain’t givin you anything!”

Lily continued pestering Rogus for a share of food other than gruel and soon enough, Aten joined to ask for some too. The two kept pressing Rogus with their broken Pamarine until a sailor off in the distant made his way to their table.

He approached Kihet’s side. “U-umm, guest. Captain Aghili calls for you. She wants to speak to you at the helm, alone.”

The author's tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon.

“I see. Lily, Aten, I’m headed out. You two might as well stay here and introduce yourselves to Rogus. He’ll be traveling with us.”

[Got it.]

“En! Be careful walking, Kihet.”

“Wait! Don’t leave me here with em!”

“You’re on your own.”

Kihet rose up using the firelance as his walking cane and followed the sailor. He could hear their rowdiness from the end of the hallway.

After jumping up the flight of steep staircase, he noticed a sandstorm rolling beside them. The wall of fluttering sand was as tall as the clouds he saw hanging over the skies. Both the Path Weaver and Invincible would be fine if the sandstorm had hit them, but thankfully it was moving parallel to them.

Path Weaver’s large deck was busily occupied by sailors maintaining the vessel and Scalemen who were curious about Pamalyra’s vast desert. Though the two groups were separated, but thankfully there were no hostile relations.

Kihet eventually challenged the last set of stairs and found Captain Aghili keeping the ship steady. The Mixrel instructed a shipmate to take the wheel before greeting Kihet.

“Keep her steady! As long as we follow the trail of the wind, we’ll arrive two days early.” Aghili dusted her feathered hat of sand. “You, walk with me. We have problems soon to encounter.”

“Pirates?”

“That’s one, but I’m not too worried bout them around here. See that sandstorm over there? The Guardians are expanding their territory and we’re right beside them.”

“The sandstorm can grow?”

“Under normal circumstances, no. A runic pillar that was supposed to keep the Guardians back was destroyed. No one attempted to replace it. At this rate, the sandstorm will consume Navargzan within a decade if the council of Merchants don’t do anything.”

“And why are you telling me this?”

“They won’t listen to their people and prefer to buy their way out of responsibilities. Since you’re going to meet with em, I want you to tell them urge them about repairing the Runic pillar.”

“Why should I? After helping the Scalemen get refugee status, I could leave with them before the Guardian hits.”

“I figured you’d say that. What do you plan to do after you secure land for the Scaly folks?”

“What I do is none of your business.”

“Fine. I was going to direct you to the arena if you need some cash. If you’re lucky, you might see the champion fight. Wanna know who he is?”

“I already know.” Kihet said, limping away.

“Sheesh. I was just trying to be helpful.”

Suddenly, the bells sounded. The watcher on the crow’s nest rang the bell, warning sailors on deck to run to their posts.

“Captain, we’re moving too close to the sandstorm!”

“What?! Helmsman, why did ya bring us towards it?!”

“I didn’t!”

“Steer us away. We have time to get away before things get worse.”

The sandstorm was slow to a crawl when Kihet climbed onto the deck. No one noticed it crept up to them within a matter of minutes.

The Helmsman spun the wheel, but to no avail, the ship did not turn.

“Captain, I can’t turn us away…”

“Get out of here. What do you mean you can’t-.” Aghili paused after she reached for the wheel.

She was uncertain whether she could feel resistance upon spinning the wheel. The rudder was still intact, but the wheel was very loose.

Then she realized.

“Sound the horn! Warn the Invincible to not follow us! All hands on deck! Open all sails, raise the parachutes! I want us out of here!”

The watchmen sounded the emergency horn to warn the invincible. The Invincible behind them quickly steered away from the path.

Groups of sailors on each side of ship tugged on ropes, revealing a pair of large wings. The fish fin like wings curled up to the height of the tallest mast on the ship and secured on numerous posts.

“What’s happening?”

“We’ve hit a monster’s sandpit. There’s still time, but it’s likely it already noticed my ship.” Aghili answered. “Put yer backs into it! Hurry!”

The ship gradually picked up more speed as more sails opened.

“Captain! Something is burrowing towards us!”

“That it is. Man the harpoons! Prepare the Spikes!” Aghili threw commands left and right. “Guest, I will show you why the Path Weaver is the best vessel for hunting large creatures.”

A large mound of moving sand quickly headed towards them. It grew in size and eventually, the gargantuan monster surfaced to face them.

“It’s a Shovel Head!”

“Drop the anchors, bring it to port side!”

The giant creature had a half disc above its eyes acting like a cap to shelter its eyes from the harsh sunlight. Its back was protected by a set of plates all the way from its head to tail and all four limbs. Its underside was grown with golden fur, always groomed while it slithered underneath the desert.

It ran its webbed claws through the sand to take a running leap towards the ship.

“Release!”

A barrage of ballistics showered the creature. Some bounced off its carapace while a few were lucky to pierce its fur. The few harpoons that managed to strike its softer underside had rope attached to them.

Kihet spotted sailors dropping anchors onto the sand. Suddenly, he stumbled backwards from the centrifugal force of the ship abruptly steering to the side of the creature. Because his [Chain] anchored him onto the ground, Kihet was able to find his balance instead of falling like a few others.

“Release the Spikes!”

A deafening howl and a shockwave ran across the sandy desert. As soon as the ship glided next to the beast, three large stakes from the ship’s side impaled the monster’s side. Sailors then proceeded to climb on the thrashing creature. They hoisted a downward facing ballista, about the size of a Giant, and planted it on the neck of the Shovel Head.

“Keep the creature steady for them!”

Four metal bars fitted into the holes on all sides and the sailors began rotating the handles. The longer the sailors turned it, the arches of the weapon curled up and a large steel stake rose up from its center.

Sailors kept pushing until the stake snapped back into the device. It punctured the Shovel Head’s carapace, spewing fresh monster blood from the gap.

The monster screamed yet again, and its enormous body suffered with intense pain. Its agonizing cry had gone quiet. Its head slumped on the sand and ceased all movement.

“Kihet, what happened?” Lily came running to see the commotion. “Whoa! That’s a big monster!”

“The captain was showing me how they do a hunt.”

[What’s that?] Aten pointed at the downward facing ballista.

“I don’t know, but I’m interested to know how it works. It could be useful in the future if I can get its schematics.”

The three observed the aftermath of sailors dismantling the downward facing ballista and handing the parts to Kobolds.

A group of pigmies heaved the parts above their heads, diligently bringing them to their workstation on deck. Some could be seen wiping blood stains while others replaced and repaired worn parts.

“Kobolds!”

“They’re working right now. Don’t distract them.” Kihet said, holding Lily back.

“But they’re so cute! I want to hold one!”

[I have plan. Give treat, they come.]

Aten revealed a small ceramic jar and placed it in front the group of Kobolds, hoping it would reenact the scenario of his first encounter with them.

Unfortunately, these Kobolds did not bother checking. While Aten and Lily were trying to lure the Kobolds to them, Kihet looked for the captain.

“Good job crew. Retract the Spikes and let’s get out of here.”

“You’re not taking the monster with you?” Kihet asked.

“We are in Guardians territory. With all the ruckus we made, one be bound to pop up. They’re beings not even us can hunt and they’re much more unpredictable unlike a Shovel Head. There’s only been one person in Pamalyra who’s still alive to have battled without a armed ship and defeat one unscathed.”

“Who was it?”

“People called him the Liberator or Silver Mane. Nowadays, it’s said he lives in a remote harbor. I don’t recall his real name, but he goes by a nickname name these days.”

“It’s my brother, isn’t it?” Rogus bitterly asked.

“Douglas?”

“Yes, that’s the name! And you said you’re his kin? You do have silver hair awfully identical to Silver Mane, but…”

“Ya want proof? Here it is.”

A damaged greatsword was presented to Kihet and the Captain. Its golden edge outlined its silvered body, decorated by seven jewels one might find on a crown.

Never once had Kihet properly examined a named weapon closely. His ears could differentiate the graceful hum produced by magical effects. Rather than hearing it from a source what most enchanted equipment were, the entire blade was inherently forged if magical materials.

This allowed Kihet to confirm its authenticity.

“That is certainly [Rolling Crown]. But wait... Why is it bent…?” Aghili asked.

“Don’t touch and don’t ask.”

“Yeesh, for someone related to the great Liberator, you got an attitude. Anyways, what’s the Liberator doing these days?”

“He’s drinking himself down to the bone at a run down tavern.”

Kihet wasn’t sure about Rogus’ statement though it had been months since he saw Douglas. With Rogus in his group, Kihet was sure he’d meet Douglas soon to learn of his full background.