Guard Captain Lisa and Yarro went out the back entrance. The army barracks were only a few blocks away from the castle. He snuck a glance at Lisa. Her brows furrowed, deep in thought. He knew her well from his long days of training as a Peacekeeper. She must have been wondering if there was an upcoming demotion for some unexplained reason. But Yarro knew she worked harder than anyone else there. No way they would get rid of her. Eventually, she returned to the present and caught up to him. “Are you sure you’ll be able to make it to Dawic? You don’t look so good,” she said.
He didn’t feel so good either. But he had to go, by order of the Lord Chancellor, as well as personally wanting to go. “I can make it, don’t worry about it.” His stomach grumbled just then and he realized it was way past dinner time. All of this running around must have used up all of his energy. He rubbed his stomach a bit and looked around for something quick to eat.
“Don’t bother. The closest to-go is in the opposite direction of where we’re headed,” she said. Yarro sighed, disappointment clearly displayed on his face. He probably won’t eat until after clearing Dawic. This was going to be a long night.
At last they arrived at their destination. There was only one man in the front, who appeared to be drawing, lost away in thought and not at all aware that 2 people just walked into the building. Despite being on duty. Guard Captain Lisa stood in front of the desk with an appropriate pose for her stature for a few moments before clearing her throat. At the sound he rushed to put it away, surprised and his face now bright red in embarrassment. “We need to speak to Army General Calina.” Lisa said.
“And who is requesting this meeting?” asked the man. He squinted at Lisa, as if she was familiar but he wasn’t sure how. He wasn’t a very good guard.
“Guard Captain Lisa, and Peacekeeper Yarro. It’s urgent,” Lisa said.
The man’s eyes widened in recognition and he immediately stood up, his body rigid and his eyes a hint of horror from his previous lack of respect, or perhaps incompetence. “Right away. Please wait here,” he said and left. Lisa decided to gaze out the window with her arms folded behind her back. Unfortunately for Yarro, there was nowhere to sit. The man came back breathless. “Follow me,” he said, and turned around again, this time to show them the way.
Army General Calina’s office must have been in the very back of the barracks for safety reasons. They passed by numerous areas of folks training, exercising, and otherwise doing all manner of drills. A woman in a courtyard stood by a wall, arms planted on her hims, observing a large group do a sparring session with someone else. Her dark skin shone with sweat and her short afro was speckled with gray. Deep frown and forehead lines etched into her face as she studiously watched those training in front of her. Her eyes shifted to them once she noticed their group approach. The man introduced them. “Army General Calina. This is Guard Captain Lisa and Peacekeeper Yarro.”
Calina was wearing the non-combat army uniform. She nodded to them and dismissed the man. “What can I do for you?” She directed this at Lisa only. Here, he was merely a guard of a former small town, so the ladies were in charge. Yarro was to speak only when spoken to. He made sure to stand right behind Lisa, and keep his hands behind his back just as he had in the Lord Chancellor’s office.
Guard Captain nodded and formally bowed to her superior, technically. Yarro followed her lead then she briefly motioned to him. “Earlier, Peacekeeper Yarro came to me about a Master Earth Elemental that erupted from the Dawic mines and destroyed the town. Me and my Peacekeepers cannot go, we have orders to stay here. But Lord Chancellor and Queen Illa have given permission for you to send a company up north and defeat the Master Elemental.”
At this point Yarro handed over the sealed parchment. She inspected the seal for just a moment long enough to verify the validity before she opening and reading it. As it went on, Yarro’s eyes began to wander. A woman with brown skin, long black hair in a bun and kohl eyeliner came up to her, noticed the seal and let out a loud whistle. “Everyone take a break!”
At her shout, half the group collapsed on the floor. Some ran to a watering fountain on the side of the courtyard, while others wiped off their sweat. One caught his eye. A man with thick wavy black hair and groomed stubble. The lengthier parts of his hair stuck to the sides and back of his neck, the tips dripping sweat down his shirtless muscled body. The man caught Yarro staring and winked. He felt his heart catch in his throat, where it stayed until he looked away and remembered how to breath again.
“Tell me more about this Master Earth Elemental.”
Lisa looked at Yarro, who snapped himself out of it and he realized it was his turn to talk. All three women were looking at him. His heart was already beating fast, no longer from the handsome man who had just winked at him, but the intense look of the women who surrounded him. Yarro recounted all the details he could of the traumatizing event. What he remembered, anyway. Some of it was foggy due to the head injury he sustained and the rush of it all happening so fast.
Army General Calina looked at him with an intensity that was just as strong as Governor Erica. Though there was also a strange twinkle in her eye, possibly over the thought of fighting the monster. He flustered a bit, and tripped over some words as he remembered how Governor Erica might not have survived the attack.
When Yarro finished, the Army General looked over the rest of the group, clearly exhausted and sweaty. She leaned to the woman next to her and said “Do you think they’re ready?” she said. It appears they’ve discussed this before.
The woman next to her rubbed her mouth and chin, and appeared to be contemplating deeply. Slowly, she began to nod after careful consideration. “I think so, yes. They should be ready to go in thirty minutes.”
Calina turned back to them. “Peacekeeper Yarro. This is Commander Veer.” Calina held her hand out to gesture towards the woman next to her. “You will be joining her, and her company, to head out immediately to Dawic to kill the Master Earth Elemental. You will tell them what you told me of the creature and help them in any way you can. You are not to go off and do whatever you like. Do I make myself clear?”
Yarro nodded at once. “Yes, madam. Thank you.” He formally bowed as Calina left and didn’t stand straight again until she turned her back and left.
“Alright listen up!” Commander Veer shouted. The low chatting stopped and they all turned to her. “We’ll be leaving in thirty minutes for Dawic. A Master Earth Elemental has destroyed the town. This is Peacekeeper Yarro.” She pointed to Yarro and he felt all eyes on him. He stood up straighter in an effort to make himself presentable. It was pointless based on the various murmurs of disbelief.
The guards and the army had a bad relationship, mostly due to the fact that their jobs so often overlapped. Then the teasing turned into baseless opinions on the skill of each job and such opinions were drilled into the newbies. Part of the reason he left the capital was due to this inane chatter everywhere. He spotted the man from before grinning with his mates and no doubt making the same jokes he’s heard before a thousand times over.
Commander Veer continued, “He’s come from Dawic and will tell us about the thing on the way over there. Dina, Kael, and Aster, get the horses ready. Everyone else grab your overnight bag.” At her instructions, the training area became a sudden flurry of activity. People moved back and forth, and began to haul all manner of items to and fro.
“Um, Commander Veer?” Yarro peeped out. She turned towards him. “You wouldn’t happen to know where I can get some quick food, would you?”
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She frowned. “This is no time to get food. Get ready to move out.” She nodded at Lisa on the way out.
Yarro slumped. Oh well. It was worth a shot. “Overnight bag? I don’t have an overnight bag.”
Lisa was already leaving and motioned for him to follow. “The guard barracks are only a few minutes away. If you’re quick you can grab something over there and meet them at the horses. I’ll have someone get you some rations for on the way.”
Yarro gratefully smiled, and followed her back out. He was finally beginning to feel better, physically at least, and was able to keep up with her but just barely. Up front only had Sorochin messing around. “Where’s Peacekeeper Neila?” Lisa asked. She was quick to frown. “She’s supposed to be with you at all times.” Yarro didn’t stay to hear the answer. He kept moving straight past them.
He didn’t have anything in the barracks, as all his stuff was back in Dawic. Or rather, what was left of it. Yarro headed to what the guards called the Extra Room, where they kept all extra items they needed. He grabbed a bag and whatever he thought he needed for an overnight trip, including some overnight rations. Someone came to him with some beef jerky and 2 water skins, one of which was clearly marked as drinking water. Just having them on his person made a calm wash over him.
Lisa was now gone from the front area. Presumably having done what she wanted. He made his way over to the army barracks a little slower than when he left, mostly due to the extra weight, but he still made it. He rounded to the side with the stables and there was already at least 2/3rds of the company getting their horses ready and fixing their bags to them.
Yarro looked around, unsure which one to take. Until the man he spotted from before that caught his eye came up to him. He was wearing a shirt this time. In fact, he was wearing the armor that Rylin’s army sported when they went out. It framed his shoulders quite nicely.
“You’re Peacekeeper Yarro, right? The guard?” The man smirked at the mention of his profession and any pleasantries he felt towards the man evaporated into mist. This guy must be one of those army people who look down on guards. Yarro internally sighed. “I’m Soldier Kael. You’ll be riding next to me,” he said as he led him to their horses, passing by a number of other soldiers glancing at him and whispering. Their horses were up front, and Yarro assumed Commander Veer would be leading the company on the way over to Dawic. Up close, these horses were much nicer than what the guards have, and way nicer than the one that was given to him on the first trip to Dawic.
Yarro attached his overnight bag on the back of his assigned horse and went through everything to be sure he and the horse were secure when Commander Veer came out. “Alright listen up!” she shouted. She got on her horse in one swift motion and turned to face them. The rest of the company also got on their horses. “We’ll be heading straight to Dawic. No breaks and no stops. Should take about 6 and a half hours. Once we get there we search for survivors and kill the Master Earth Elemental. Peacekeeper Yarro here will describe it and any known weaknesses when we get a little closer to town.” The fact that he got there sooner than 6 hours only served as a reminder at how sore his body still was at the moment.
Commander Veer turned back around, and kicked the horse into motion. “Move out!”
The company walked through the city first before breaking out into a gallop once they passed the city gates. Yarro was never good with horses. He got the basics down, but it only stressed him by the time they started galloping. His mind was too focused on not falling off, since he had never had to go so fast before. The trek was long, and they passed plenty of farmland on the way across the cloudy atmosphere. Having been brought up in the city, he couldn’t exactly appreciate the view of miles and miles of barley farms.
The sun came down, and the sky first turned a purple and pink before changing into a deeper purple and finally the night sky. A dark sky full of stars and a full moon lit their path to Dawic. The crickets chirped and occasionally when they passed closer to the tree line, fireflies hung around the edges of the empty dirt roads. It was a familiar peaceful night. A few times he had stayed up late and would just stand at the edge of the town listening to the sounds of the night. It helped calm him in the earlier days when the village still was unsure about him.
Yarro’s thoughts drifted back to the town, and the feelings all came crashing down on him once again. The town he spent a whole month getting to know, and understand all the people in it, is likely gone. The work he put into getting them all to trust him. Gone in an instant. He hoped Governor Erica was able to escort the town out, or even perhaps distract the Master Elemental away from the town long enough for them all to escape, but what would happen to her? She was the strongest Earth user he had known, and cared for the town deeply. But one person couldn’t stop that mountain of a beast, and she asked him to get help. Well, help is coming, and Yarro wished that if she could hear these thoughts, he wanted her to hold out for a little longer. Though it was certainly too late. At least a full day after the attack happened and said “help” just left earlier today.
“Are you OK?” a voice broke his thoughts. He recognized it as Kael’s voice. Yarro turned to his side, and although it was dark, he could see Kael’s eyes shine with concern.
“Yeah-” Yarro squeaked out. He hadn’t talked in a few hours and cleared his throat before continuing. “I’m fine… Just concerned with what we’ll find when we get there.”
“Don’t worry. Whatever gave you that wound, we can handle it. I won’t let you die,” Kael said and puffed out his chest a bit.
Yarro couldn’t help but roll his eyes. Ah yes, because the army could do so much better. No one stood a chance against that thing. He was sure the army couldn’t handle it either, if those stories are to be believed. “Uh...Thanks.”
“So what... is it? This Master Earth Elemental?” Someone from the back asked. It was understandable that someone asked. A Master Earth Elemental hasn’t been seen for hundreds of years, if not thousands. There was some information on them, but none of it was from monster manuals or the like. It mostly came from myths and legends that people heard growing up. Yarro did as best as he could describing it, with as much detail as he could remember. Sometimes a person from the company would ask a question that would spark another detail. It was all such a haze though, so it was hard to gleam much information from his memories. Perhaps he had a worse concussion than he thought.
“Ambush! Earth elementals!” someone shouted. The company stopped their travels to look in the direction of the warning. Normal earth elementals were coming from the direction of Dawic. When they rushed to them, their rocky bodies ground against stone and they looked exactly like smaller versions of the Master Earth Elemental.
Some of the army members dismounted and began to attack. Yarro did the same. Fighting manuals said to defeat any elemental, their eye needed to come out of the socket. For earth elemental, it would be the jade orb on top. He uncorked the water skin and its water rushed out. The force made it difficult to control but he did his best to aim it at a nearby jade orb. It hit, and instantly the earth elemental collapsed into a pile of non-sentient rocks. If only that worked on the Master Earth Elemental.
Yarro turned to the next one, encased the orb in water, and yanked it out with a simple motion. It was a lot easier than trying to pressure the orbs out. He turned to the next one, and popped the orb out. All around him the company was fighting these earth elementals. Some were flattening rocks and using it to simply whack it out. He wasn’t sure how experienced this company was but it seemed to be working so he didn’t say anything.
Unfortunately, he wasn’t paying attention to his surroundings close enough and one of the elementals ended up attacking his horse. It dug it’s hands into the earth, and out came a large rock. It ran and lunged at the horse. A painful whinny reached Yarro’s ears before he could even move his water. Instantly dead. He yanked out the orb as quick as he could, and watched as it collapsed into a pile of rocks and rubble. They were now one horse down. How much longer would it take to get to Dawic now that he would have to double up.
A status report after the fight ended said the horse was the only casualty and injury. Normal earth elementals like these are simple to destroy, anyone with basic combat training could take them down. The only problem was the numbers they tend to run in. They could easily run off a town if it got big enough. A town like Dawic, judging by the direction they seemed to have come from. There was no telling how many more they would meet on the road, or how many veered off.
Kael offered to share his horse, which he was grateful for, but then he had to share a horse with Kael. Mr. Protector. There was no use arguing with people like him. No use trying to convince them he could protect himself. That he went through training too, but it would never be good enough. Kael is that type of guy. Just one of those things people like him could spot a mile away.
Halfway through, Commander Veer had him switch horses with Aster to give Kael’s horse a break and to keep the speed of the company. Yarro couldn’t have been more grateful.
Yarro didn’t even realize they arrived at Dawic until they were practically at the entrance, as a thick fog had blanketed over the town. There were no torches lit. No window lights, or anyone walking around. No shouts or rowdy laughter coming from the tavern. Yarro’s heart dropped to his stomach. It was worse than he feared. He hoped some got away, however the stench was apparent before the bodies came into view. Bodies lying in pools of blood.