As the starlit morning rose over the town, Priscilla, Jensen, and a group of mercenaries gathered for the journey toward the Sandlands. Priscilla sat atop her steed, with her torso adorned in the usual white top, this time accentuated with leather armor that strapped to her extremities, giving her a valiant air around her.

The others had similar armor, padding their vital points as they gathered around the town's entrance. Jensen sat with his warhammer holstered and arms crossed. To the left of him was a woman with half her face covered, twin daggers strapped to her waist, and a row of throwing knives hugging her exposed thighs. Behind them was a man cowled in a black cloak with a bow on his back. Each was more remarkable than the last, and they quickly numbered a dozen.

Mercenaries—the lot of them, skilled and prideful adventurers who traversed the empire from west to east and north to south. They were Jensen's friends from countless hunts they performed in the past, but now they found themselves connected to Priscilla's rise to lordship. It hadn't been long since they rode into town, but now they'd have a hard time leaving.

"Shouldn't Vorn be back by now?" Jensen asked, looking to the left toward the woman.

The timing was perfect. As before she could reply, they could collectively hear a rustling through the woods outside the town. A figure in skintight black broke through the foliage and rushed through the entrance toward the group.

“Vorn, you’re back.” Jensen greeted the newcomer, who pulled down her hood, revealing a face not unlike the dagger-wielding woman’s.

The woman nodded and slightly bowed toward Priscilla. “My Lady, the convoy is a three-hour ride away. We should catch them during their next rest in Silvervale.”

“That’s not too bad. We can see the empire’s actions up close and decide what to do once we’re there,” Priscilla pondered momentarily before replying. “Good job, Vorn. No issues while you were scouting?”

“None,” Vorn replied. “The entire group was focused on entirely different matters. I don’t know where the emperor collected those men, but they were a ragtag bunch, to say nothing else.”

“That just makes them easier to hunt.” The masked woman chuckled and caressed the dagger by her side.

“We’re not going to hunt them, Vera.” Priscilla retorted. “We’ll only see if they’re involved with the Church of Zenith. And stop them from damaging the empire’s balance if they attempt anything unsavory.”

“The way they were—we’ll need to intervene, I’m almost certain of it,” Vorn spoke up as she saddled a riderless horse behind Vera.

“Why do you say that?” Jensen questioned.

“They had no dignity befitting imperial soldiers, Jensen. I couldn’t get too close, but they seemed more like bandits than anything.”

“It would’ve been better if we could get more information from the imperial city, but we’re running out of time. People are dying every day, and the demons still lurk in the shadows. The only thing we can do is take it one challenge at a time. If they’re bandits, we’ll handle them like bandits.” Priscilla shrugged as she held onto the reins of her steed. “Let’s move out. The sooner we catch up to them, the sooner we’ll see what awaits us.”

“Yes!” The others quickly agreed and spurred their horses into a gallop, sending them out of town with a cloud of dust lifting behind them.

Their forceful gallop caused the nearby wildlife to stir. The flapping of wings and the skittering steps of small creatures shuffling through the underbrush echoed with every hoofstep.

An hour later, they passed by a cozy creek, filling their water pouches and letting the horses take a momentary breather before picking up speed again and pushing onward.

Another two hours passed, and they reached a flattened area covered in blood, torn fabrics, and hundreds of footsteps and hoof markings.

"They passed through here," Vorn said as she saw the demolished land.

Priscilla scanned it and spurred her horse to hasten. The state they left the place in didn't bode well for whatever plan the imperial group was in the midst of. "Let's hurry. There shouldn't be this much blood when they're not even near the Sandlands yet."

The concern was a necessity because when they neared the village ahead of the destroyed area, screams stifled the air, and a scent of blood wafted through the air. The group had planned to stalk out the imperial soldiers and follow their journey to the Sandlands, but hearing the screams, Priscilla's group had to act.

They rushed into the village, and immediately, their senses were assaulted by the carnage unfolding. The imperial soldiers were throwing people around like sacks of wheat, raiding and killing as they rode through it.

Blood flowed through the dirt road that passed through the village, and bodies piled up. There was a small group wielding farming tools and makeshift weapons, defending themselves against the imperial soldiers. Seeing them, Priscilla leapt off her steed and attacked. The others followed after her, and soon, a confrontation erupted.

The imperials in the back were the first to notice the group's arrival and shouted, which attracted the attention of everyone else in the area. Priscilla wasn't bothered by this as she leaped into the air and kicked one of the imperial soldiers in the face, sending him flying.

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Behind Priscilla, Vera came and tossed out several throwing knives toward several off-guarded men, who buckled onto the ground instantaneously. The group quickly showed how skilled they were as they approached swiftly and attacked firmly, leaving no room for complaint from the imperial soldiers.

"Who the hell are you?" One of the soldiers roared, and what answered was a dagger to his throat as Vorn silently appeared behind him.

"Bastards—do you not realize you're attacking the loyal legion of the Ellis Empire? This offense is a crime befitting death. State your names now!" Another angrily chimed as he rushed forward to confront the group.

"You talk too much," Priscilla replied, leaping into the air and flying forward with a surge of wind behind her back. She twirled forward and kicked downward, sending a biting blow of forceful wind striking at the man and planting him firmly against the dirt, unable to resist.

"A demon!" One of the soldiers cried out as he pulled back to the side.

"Demon, your mother!" Jensen huffed as he slammed his warhammer toward the man's chest, forcefully slamming him back into one of the villager's homes.

Priscilla's group managed to disarm their opponents, but when the soldiers felt the disadvantageous circumstances, the man held off by Vorn pressed forward and dug the dagger she held into his throat. It caused a guttural howl to bubble from the man's bloodied throat. His flesh dried out like a desiccated corpse before peeling into chunks as a monstrous change rang through the village. The man's bloodshot eyes squirmed side to side, and he forcefully craned his head until it twisted and stared at Vorn.

"Get back, Vorn!" Priscilla shouted as she rushed toward her. Before Priscilla could get far, however, the soldier behind her laughed and lunged at her back. The flesh around his eyes receded and cracked as shriveled patches of red peered through. His limbs extended and aimed for Priscilla's heart, but she spun around, deflecting his attack and creating space between them.

Vorn reacted and jolted backward. Her legs were always the most capable of the team, and she made a gap between them, but the changing soldier stretched his arm, disjointing it and lashing out with a whip-like claw that barely whizzed past Vorn's face. It struck the dirt and sent cracks rippling through the ground, greatly distressing the already panicked villagers.

All around, the soldiers began to transform, their bloodied red eyes glimmering with malice and hunger. It was a bad sign, but Priscilla's group had half-expected unexpected situations and responded with a heavy-handed counter-offensive.

"Protect the villagers," Jensen grunted as he held off the creature closest to him, his biceps taut as the two held each other off.

The villagers pulled back while Priscilla sent her opponent flying backward. She leaped into the air and struck out with a chain of flames that pierced into the creature's skull, eliciting a vile shriek that caused the panicked villagers to drop to the ground.

While the creature burned, Jensen took his warhammer and slammed it at his opponent's jaw, shattering it into a spraying deluge of blood and bits. The creature's tongue lolled, and its frenzied eyes burned. It moved forward, but Jensen continued his onslaught, turning the beast into an unmoving pulp.

Vorn was the same. Her opponent lunged at her side, but she side-stepped it and stabbed her dagger into its neck. It wasn't enough, but with a twirling flick of her torso, she mustered her strength, causing a wide gash to spread across. The soldier still stirred, a guttural howl escaping through the hole in its neck, but Vorn slashed out in a flurry of strikes, causing the life in its eyes to fade away.

The group moved swiftly, resisting the creature's advances. Blood sprayed, and before long, all of the transformed soldiers were lying lifeless.

Priscilla burned the remains and frowned. "There's not enough of them to be the whole force. How many soldiers did you see, Vorn?"

"Hundreds, My Lady. They must've split up into smaller raiding groups." Vorn replied while catching her breath.

"Dammit. Are all of the soldiers monsters?" Jensen huffed in response.

"They might be," Priscilla responded coldly, staring out toward the woods that led toward the Sandlands and the other villages bordering the two regions. She turned toward the villagers, "Do you know where Blackthorn town is?"

One of the men walked forward, still slightly trembling, and responded. "Yes," He paused momentarily, unsure how to address Priscilla, "My Lady!"

"Good. Take the surviving villagers and head to Blackthorn. You cannot handle these creatures if they return. Be safe and go, at least for now!" Priscilla commanded. "I'm aware that leaving your home is difficult, but survival is the most important now."

Priscilla's command weighed heavily on the villagers, and they whispered among themselves. Several nods among the group signaled their reluctant approval of the transition. "As you command, My Lady. Thank you for your worry. We'll gather some belongings and head out before the creature's return."

"You sure about this, Pris?" Jensen came over and asked. "Won't we fill the town up before we even reach the Sandlands?"

"So be it, we can't let them just destroy people's lives freely. If we can help, then we should." Priscilla calmly replied, "Worst case, we'll have to expand the town." She smiled, but the meaning behind her words was clear.

Jensen laughed. "As long as you know what you want, let's do it then. I never thought I'd see the day the empire's people would be helping the sand barbarians, but here we are."

"We'll see if they're the barbarians the empire painted them out to be. Can they be any worse than these demons that breed in the shadows?"

"That's true, we'll see soon enough." Jensen nodded. He truly could not know whether anything the empire said could be trusted. Each day brought monstrous changes, and all of it stemmed from the empire he once had the utmost faith in.

The group waited a half hour until the villagers gathered and headed toward the town. Priscilla sent a few mercenaries to escort them, ensuring their safety if there were any more of the creature's groups in the rear lurking. With Jensen, Vorn, and Vera, their group had enough strength to handle the remaining threats.

"Stay safe out there, and if you find any more survivors, take them with you," Priscilla commanded to the mercenaries.

"Yes, My Lady!" They responded and bowed, leading the villagers away.

Priscilla rose onto her steed and waved them off before spurring the horse into a gallop. "Let's make haste, spread out, and remove the threats before us. Stay safe, rid the empire of the creatures, and let's meet at Sunstone Pass!"

"Let's do this!" Jensen huffed, riding off into the northeast.

The group rushed off and headed through the area in a hasty gallop. No matter how many creatures stood before them, they were ready.