There was a flurry of footsteps as legs ran past in the fort. The usual order was mired in a little chaos. And that it was not outright bedlam was a testament to the temper of the fort’s residents. Something ominous had taken place tonight, and the murky black skies were evidence of that. The skies had only wept like this in the desert once in the past and it had happened on this very day, only a year ago. The last time in celebration, this time in grief. Thick black clouds hung low like a heavy curtain. Thick enough to blot out the ever-present sphere of scorching fire, the eternal light, the Sun itself. The pouring rain only signaling the arrival of floods. Floods that were rather rare in a desert. 

The last time it happened, it was because a new Dune had arrived and the sands blew and the winds cheered. The skies themselves welcomed him. This time, it was because the new Dune, only a year old, was attacked. And the skies wailed. 

The outside was a storm, but the inside of the fort, at the eye, it was eerily silent. 

In a chamber in the fort that was bathed in a bright but warm glow by a sphere of light floating quietly in the air. 

You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.

“How is he?” asked a man with a grave face.  

“His life is not in danger but he might be paralyzed for life from the knee down”, replied an older-looking woman whose facial features the man shared. 

“What of the assassins?” questioned the older woman.

“Death-Sworn. Killed themselves before we could apprehend them”, answered the man in a heavy but low voice. 

“Any clues left behind?” continued the older woman. 

“None we have found yet”, replied the man. 

That night was destined to be a sleepless one. The eldest son and the firstborn of the Dunes had been attacked. While the child survived, scars that reminded everyone of that hateful encounter remained.

It had taken all the control the people in the room had to keep their nerves in check. Blaming one or the other wouldn’t get them anywhere and yet emotions were running high. Emotions they were trying to keep calm to think with rationale. 

Searches had been done, yet no proof could be found. The fact that the assassins were able to sneak in and attack showed a dangerous lapse in their defences. They had been lax and they had been had. 

Even if they wanted to war, they had to have a target to direct their rage at. They were simmering. And some foolish Sand Bandits presented themselves as targets. Seeing that they were served on the platter, the Dunes rampaged out with ferocity. 

It was the beginning of the end of the Sand Bandits. Few survived, either by hiding too well or running early enough. But they didn’t dare to resume their business activities in the desert for the foreseeable future. 

Since then, it was also the most peaceful the desert had been. The residents the happiest for it.