The knights brought Rall to a smaller room, chained him to apposite rings on the floor, and locked the door. He could not see anything through the black sack on his head, so instead, he just leaned down. Part of him wanted to fall into despair, to cry and struggle, but he didn't. His Fairylight illuminated the otherwise dark room. He closed his eyes and entered meditation to calm himself down.
At times, he would hear voices outside his door. But he did not understand those foreign words, so they did not distract him from his concentration.
Then there was a moment. The white Fairylight shook and trembled, interrupting the pulsating motion it took during training sessions. And he felt it too. A dark omen, but also a familiar coldness. Instinctively he knew that the Fog was coming.
The Opal Palace's annual auction was coming to a close in a few hours, wrapping up the last public events and payment exchanges. Then the alarm bells rang, and everyone looked north.
A massive wall of grey mist traveled south through the Dead Plains and would soon swallow the Palace whole. But not one person panicked. They knew how much the Fantino Family valued the safety of their clients. Without that, no one in the underworld would ever trust them with their money.
Instantly, the sound of a well-known incantation echoed from the four towers around the villas, followed by the eruptions of four large domes of golden light one after the other. The golden hemispheres first overlapped with each other. Then, as the four light mages tuned to each other's frequency, they fused into one five-kilometer large Lighthouse, which safely enveloped the Opal Palace.
Ten minutes later, the Fog collided with the light. The impact sent ripples of energy through the dome, making it tremble slightly. Then the Fog overtook the Lighthouse, like the ocean with a small reef, flowing ever south. Within the golden light, one could see imprints of small hands banging violently on the dome and ghostly maws gnashing ethereal teeth at their luminescent enemy.
Rall could feel the conflict between the light and Fog. Meanwhile, his Fairylight pulsed with more energy than ever, preparing for what could come.
Somewhere around the villa, Lady Sharyah was looking at the Fog with thoughtful eyes. She had sold every slave she had brought, so she had planned to leave with a single carriage. Fiel was with her, long bandages and several painful bruises hampered his movements.
Another two figures approached the pair. They were Thomas Fantino and Rana Ghon.
"Departing soon?" Asked Mister Fantino rhetorically.
"Shortly," Sharyah said, pointing at the portable Lighthouse she had stolen from Sargar's horse. "Are you sure I can borrow Miss Ghon?"
The giant hammer-wielding woman smiled confidently. "Do not worry, Lady Sharyah. My Captain is here, so the Palace is safe. Sending me to escort you is his way of currying your favor. He says you will be a very influential person in the future, and I don't doubt that." She winked.
"Very well," Lady Sharyah nodded politely, then she turned to Thomas. "And what about our deal, Mister Fantino?"
He fetched a small red pouch from his black jacket, then offered it at the masked woman with elegant movements. "Fifty billion in mana crystals, another fifty in platinum coins, and for the rest, I found the ingredients you asked. Always a pleasure doing business with you, milady. The Opal Palace will lose its brilliance once you are gone."
"Farewell, Thomas. Don't die while I can't see you," answered Sharyah after hiding the red pouch in her cleavage.
One minute later, a luxurious carriage escorted by a giant woman left the golden dome around the Palace, surrounded by a smaller one of its own.
***
Rall had finally been able to fall asleep on the cold and rigid marble pavement. For some reason, being inside the Fog had soothed his boiling emotions. He was calm, scarily calm for a young boy in his situation.
After an unknown amount of time, the knights opened the door to his room and unchained him from the floor. They yanked him up and led him back to the main area of the lodging. He heard the noises of frantic movement all around him, people hurriedly moving objects, dragging them on the floor or putting them in sacks. He recognized the voice of the head attendant to prince Ra Ma who was currently directing around ten other servants. It seemed they would soon depart, but he wondered what they would do about the Fog.
In ten minutes, the prince's entourage had reached the outside of the villa. Thirty carriages, filled with all the whims of the prince, marched towards the gates attracting onlookers. Fifty knights in full armor escorted the caravan, while half that number of attendants made sure everything was in order. The prince himself sat slouched in the biggest and most luxurious carriage, a white and golden piece of Avian artistry with all kinds of comforts and defensive mechanisms. Rall, his head still covered with the sack, was chained behind the last carriage. In this position, and unable to see the ground, he fought to remain standing behind the wheeled convoy.
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The head attendant looked at the blackened sky. The Fog's assault would last at least a couple of days. Still, the prince had ordered them to return, crying that the Opal Palace did not have all the comforts he was used to.
Thus, he had rapidly organized their return, doing away with a lot of his usual safety protocols. Thankfully, he had brought something for the Fog.
He shouted something in his language, and soon a young blindfolded mermaid stumbled out of one of the carriages. She was short and slender, her light blue long hair tied in a ponytail, a leather collar around her neck with a golden plaque written in the Avian language. She wore dirty, torn rags, and she constantly trembled at the feeling of winter. Behind her floated a bright Fairylight, its ten centimeters of diameter were impressive for someone who was surely younger than sixteen.
The attendant came close to her and whispered something in her ear. She responded by lowering her head submissively. A tear found its way under her blindfold.
The knights brought her on top of the middle carriage, where she moved her hands to her chest. The words were from a different language, but the rhythm was always the same. Mixed with a mermaid's voice, the incantation for Lighthouse became a beautiful melody that enchanted men and women altogether. Another dome of light appeared, this one smaller and denser, enveloping everything from the head of the first carriage to Rall's pitiful figure.
BOOM!
BOOM!
The sound of two explosions echoed from the other side of the Opal Palace. Every head turned towards it, seeing purple flames rising to the blackened sky. The giant golden dome enveloping the oasis trembled, decreasing its size by one hundred meters in all directions. Sometimes it happened, people trying to assault others during the auctions. But never had an attack targeted one of the four light towers. There was simply no reason to, other than courting death.
Many of the Obsidian Warriors flew to check.
But the head attendant did not care about it. They were almost at the edge of the Opal Palace, and they had a Lighthouse of their own anyways. There was no reason to stop.
The Avians were proud people. They always held their heads up and their sights at the sky. So they did not notice several cross signs etched on the ground under their feet.
Click
The head attendant's brows creased, and he looked around, searching for the origin of the clicking sound.
Click Click
Realization hit him, and he shouted something. But it was too late.
BOOOOM!!!
The ground exploded in purple flames. The carriages jumped, the knights flew ten meters away from the convoy. The head attendant was thrown violently on the ceiling of his carriage, losing his consciousness. The young light mage flew back from the top of the middle carriage, her body landing close to Rall. The boy was on the ground too. When the explosion had hit the convoy, the last carriage had almost capsized over him. The chains still resisted.
He heard the sound of hurried steps - then someone took the sack off his head. He saw a tall, skinny man, with long well-kept grey hair and a clean-shaven beard. In his hand was a purple knife, which effortlessly cut through the iron chains.
"Boy, come with me and do not ask questions. First we need to run."
Rall saw his chance to escape and nodded. Then his head turned to the mermaid light mage on the ground. The blindfold had come off, and now he saw her reddened eyes and tears of sorrow. She was in pain, but she was not dead. He was about to abandon her when her Fairylight appeared in front of him, pulsing in agitation. Rall gave her another look, then turned to the old man. "She comes too."
The man could have ignored his request. There was a high chance that he was just another heartless criminal. Instead, he sighed and took the mermaid girl in his arms.
They ran through the chaos, avoiding the purple flames lingering on the ground. In an instant, they reached a dark wood carriage, ready for departure at any time. The carriage driver was dressed like a butler and was laughing hysterically. "YES! EXPLODE, YOU BASTARDS! WAHAHAHAHA! YES! HOW I HAVE MISSED THIS SMELL!! WAHAHAHA!"
The old man with the girl in his arms, Rall, and two Fairylights jumped on the cart.
"Go, Hopp! Go!" Screamed Conrad from the top of his lungs.
"YES, SIR!" Answered the crazed butler, inciting the two brown horses to start running.
Behind them, a number of the Obsidian Warriors returned, accompanied by a more distinguished figure. He was a lean man with long black hair and his callous hand on the sheath of a long and slim sword. He wore a simple black shirt and comfortable black pants. The air around that man was calm, and the flames drowned out as he walked past them. It was as if his internal energy was affecting the environment around him, projecting his tranquility. He was the Captain of the Obsidian Warriors, known as one of the best swordsmen on the Continent - Lann "The Swift" Klunge.
And Lann was not easily fooled.
He turned his head, following the most minute traces on the ground, and noticed a carriage running away, a golden and a white orb of light floating behind it. He bent his knees, right leg slightly forward, then put his sheathed sword on his left side. The muscles in his body tensed, readying a strike that had surprised many enemies before.
"Martial Technique - Iai"
With practiced movements, he painted a perfect horizontal arc with his sword. His slash cut through the air, quickly reaching the carriage and removing its ceiling like he had opened a can. The noise of the air tearing arrived a few seconds later, terrifying like the shriek of a vicious beast.
Rall turned around, and he exchanged looks with the distant swordsman. They had to leave. The words of his father returned to his mind.
Darkness is the safest place for a light mage.
"Go in the Fog. I'll protect you!" Shouted Rall.
Conrad looked at him and saw the determination in his emerald eyes. He could not hold back his smile. "Hopp, to the Fog! Hurry!"
The swordsman got back in position and charged another slash. The first one was just a warning shot. This time he would go for the kill. But then, he saw Rall sitting crosslegged on the cart and emptying his mind. His facial features, his posture...
"Theo's kid," he laughed. "You bastard, you went ahead and got yourself a son before me! Unbelievable!" A serene smile appeared on Lann's face, and he relaxed his muscles to let his internal energy dissipate.
"Through the night and through the mist, let those who see our heavenly light seek salvation in our Lighthouse. May their souls be at ease under our protection, and we swear under the heavens to bring them peace!"
When the carriage and its passengers entered the Fog, a pale dome the color of moonlight hugged them in its protective gleam. Conrad looked at Rall's Lighthouse, and tears started streaking from his eyes. In his mind was a simple prayer.
Wait just a little more, I will soon be there.