The Order of Events: The Red Wolf (6 page)

Hoosun was beginning to feel tired and broken, but his will was strong, enabling him to continue onward. He had found the battlefield that he was told of by Samana, the Sands of Arndu. Trying to find the child in the mess of battle would be like finding a needle in a hay stack. Even when utilizing his sharp eyes it would be a great challenge.
              As the battle roared on, at the top of a sandy dune stood a formidable looking figure. It was Druskele, the leader of the Elushu. He wore a dark set of armor, splattered with the blood of his fallen opponents. His war helmet was of a fierce sight, chains dangling all around it, like iron braids. A half-mask visor, with small chains hanging from it, covered the bottom of his face, leaving only the top half of his face open to view as many scars covered it, as if another layer of skin entirely, or no layer of skin. His frozen eyes peaked from within the helmet’s shade, surveying the battlefield below him.
              A strange sight was caught by the warlord, a giant, cloaked owl flying above the battlefield. But he was not the only one to have noticed it. Kaimana too had seen the owl, an image which he had immediately recognized as Hoosun, as he shouted to his flying friend, kicking, slicing, and chopping at anyone who crossed his path as he pursued the owl.
              Hoosun surveyed the field of warring motion, and saw Kaimana waving him down from the foot of a sandy dune. Pressing hard against the heavy winds, Hoosun landed next to his friend, who was surrounded by his fallen opponents, and informed him of the situation.
              After hearing what his friend had told him, Kaimana surveyed the wide spread of spewing dust, and raging winds, as visibility was getting worse. “I don’t see her, Hoosun…where could she be? I can’t believe she came here…”
              Hoosun, although understanding of the position of his friend, had to voice a fact of the situation. “She is brave, my friend, after all…she is your daughter. Did you really think she would have stayed back at the Order? She does not seem as cautious as Samana is.”
              Kaimana nodded in agreement, but was worried none the less as his friend shared the same feeling. “I know, Hoosun. She is very much a headstrong girl, just like her mother…but at times such as these, this could get her killed. When we find her, I want you to take her away from here the second you get a chance. There isn’t much time left.”
 

Dormand shook his head in response, and took Daimana by the arm, leading her through the outer ring of warriors as the Elushu started breaking through the ring which was formed around them. Seeing that the Dawn Bringers were being pushed back, Druskele watched approvingly as his horde was piercing the Dawn Bringers fortification. Victory would be his.
              Daimana was being led away from the battle, hurriedly, when she saw her father and Hoosun on a sandy dune, only a short run from where she stood.
              Breaking away from Dormand’s grip, Daimana raced across the sands. Sandy clouds sputtered from her feet as she trudged her way onward through the mess, the young girl waving her sword to gain her father’s attention.
              Druskele was standing on top of his dune. He pulled a very deadly looking blade from its sheath at his side. It was serrated on the back of the blade, and sharp as a razor on the front end. The warlord signaled with his sword, standing atop of the hill, letting out a loud and clear war cry. “Elush!!! Elush!!! Elush!!!”
              The dune, which the warlord stood atop, burst with clouds of sand as his warriors, who had laid in hiding, revealed themselves for a sneak attack upon the enemy. Daimana was cut off guard as enemy warriors burst from the sands before her, and drew weapons against her. Kaimana and Hoosun saw her amongst the sand and armed warriors, their attention gripped by the war cry and bursting sand clouds.
              Kaimana felt fear grip his heart, tightly, as his daughter was surrounded by enemy warriors, as all were well-armed for the killing.
              As Hoosun took to flight, Kaimana dashed like never before. Like lightning across the sand he ran, yelling out like thunder as he charged for the enemy’s side.
              Druskele saw Kaimana heading a lone charge for his warriors and grinned behind his half-mask. This was going to be entertaining.
              Daimana held her blade at the ready to fight as she saw her father leap, causing a spurting cloud of dust beneath his feet as he leapt. Crashing into several Elushu warriors, Kaimana emerged from the pile of armored bodies and went into a dance of death, dealing a killing blow with his great sword to all who stood to threaten his daughter.
              The enemy rushed down the hill at the brave figure as he stood taking each charging enemy down, each falling with one single stroke of his blade as his back was to his daughter, as she rushed to him, keeping to his back for protection.
              The enemy feared the amazing fighter, and many of them ran around him to attack the encirclement of Dawn Bringers who were soon aware of the advancing attack.
              Druskele watched, amused at the sight of blood trickled sand and dead bodies that surrounded the fearless warrior. This was not the first time he had seen Kaimana in battle. The two were long time nemesis, and had come against each other in battle before. After all, Druskele had the scars to remember.
              Kaimana called back to his daughter, his armor covered in enemy blood. “Daimana, I’m going to try and fall back, and regroup with the others. I can only hold this up for so much longer…hold onto my back.” Daimana held onto her father, approving of his sound battle logic.
              Hoosun flew, above, looking for an opportunity to grab Daimana, but the battlefield was too crowded for him to do so. Druskele saw the owl again, and started his way down the dune side. Picking up an iron spear from one of his fallen warriors, he looked up at the circling owl, grinning evilly beneath his half-mask. The owl would never fly again.
              The warlord shot the spear from his grip with great velocity. Having released the shaft, he watched as it pinned its target dead on, a target that had never seen it coming.
              Hoosun never did see it coming. He plummeted to the ground below, and fell right in front of the charging mess of Elushu, right in front of Kaimana. The warrior’s eyes were aflame with fury as he saw his friend lying before him, in a heap of pain, but Hoosun was not dead.
              The owl tried to prop his body up, and grunted heavily in severe pain, due to the iron spear shaft that was set into his shoulder. Kaimana, taking over the situation, left the hold of his daughter, and leapt over the wounded body of his friend, dealing a deadly slash to the face of an oncoming enemy as he downed them with one blow.
              Druskele gritted his teeth. He could see that the bird was not dead, as it lay struggling on the dune below. But it was of no matter. Druskele at least removed the owl from causing any potential problems for him on the battlefield. Now it was time for him to clash blades with his great nemesis, Kaimana.
              The leader of the Dawn Bringers stood strong, enduring the chaos that continued to pour down the dune from above. There were but few foes left to come down, most of which had run away in fear of the brave warrior, while the rest had charged down to meet their death by his blade.
              Kaimana caught sight of Druskele heading down the sandy hill, and called back to his friend, Hoosun. “Hoosun, do you think you can manage to fly out of here? Do you think you can muster the strength?”
              The owl was wounded pretty badly, but managed to stand upright and spread his wings, feebly. “I can try, my friend.”
              Kaimana cut down another charging enemy and guarded two incoming blades. “Hoosun, hurry, take Daimana with you! It’s about time.”
              Hoosun turned to Daimana as she grabbed his feathery hands in hers, and shook her head. “You won’t have enough time to get out of here. You’d be doomed if you took me on your back, especially with your wound. Go alone, Hoosun, leave quickly.”
              Hoosun respected the young one. For a child, she showed great bravery, and selflessness. Hoosun turned to Kaimana, who had heard every word that Daimana said, and was given a nod of approval from the warrior leader. “Go now, Hoosun. Make haste in your departure, before it is too late.”
              Hoosun nodded respectfully to his friend, and took to the sky, every beat of his wings causing the spear shaft to crawl deeper into his body.
              Kaimana stood with his daughter at his side, the time was soon to come. Kaimana gripped his blade at the ready, as his daughter did hers, both preparing for a charge up the hill.
              Her father grinned beneath his helmet, speaking as they stood and watched as only but ten Elushu rushed down the hill to meet them in battle, the remainders of the ambush squad.               “I am proud of you, daughter, you are so brave. Let us stand together now, and cut down those who stand before us, for they stand no chance against those with spirits that are as strong as ours.”
              Daimana smiled at her father, as soon the two warriors shouted together, taking on the coming foe. “Yeahaaaah!!!”
              Hoosun circled the sky above, looking back to the ground below. The time had come. The sands of the battlefield shifted. Like waves of water, the dunes crashed upon the open ground, sputtering clouds of sand everywhere. All those who stood before the sands disappeared amongst the flurry, and were soon gone from sight in the raging ocean of sands.
              Hoosun circled the empty battlefield from above. There was no one to be seen. He was unable to bring Daimana back to the Order…he had failed.

Back at the Order, Samana stood at the outermost wall top, looking far into the southern distance. Her hood was pulled over in an attempt to hide her anguish. The girl’s eyes were dry, her body feeling as wet rags that had been ringed out of all energy. Leaning upon the battlements, she waited and watched, hoping at any time to see the great owl, Hoosun, flying with her sister in grasp.
              Amen and Henk walked the grounds below. Henk looked through her spectacles at the tiresome sight of Samana on the wall top. “Amen, she’s been sitting up there for over a week, now. I’m not sure if she’s even slept at all. We need to do something about her. She can’t just sit up there. The sands are at least a week’s journey, if her sister got as far as that.”
              The silent one picked a ripe, round fruit from a passing tree, and tossed it up and down in his hand, gesturing with his other hand, pointing from the apple to Samana, atop the wall.
              Henk smiled, and grabbed her friend’s arm. “Good idea, Amen, she must be starving. I’m not sure if she’s bothered to eat either.”
              The two ran up the wooden stretches of steps and bridges, running from wall to wall, until reaching their destination at the outermost one.
              Standing at the top of the wooden wall stairs, Henk and Amen approached the watchful girl, slowly and quietly, as not to startle her. Henk approached the saddened girl, watching as her green eyes were filled with sadness at the prospect of not seeing her sister again.
              Henk reached her hand back for the apple, keeping her eyes fixed on Samana, and spoke in a very calm and soothing manner. “Samana, me and Amen…we got you this. You should eat it. It’s an apple. I know you’re sitting here waiting for them to come back, but they’re not going to be here any sooner by you standing there, wearing yourself out. I know Hoosun sure wouldn’t want that, and I bet your sister wouldn’t either. Come on now, eat up.” Henk reached out with the apple with an offering hand, but it was not accepted.
              Samana paid no attention to the apple, and blinked tears out from her eyes. Her voice was sad and distraught. “I keep hoping I’m going to see them on the horizon…but I still haven’t…the last night I talked to Daimana I told her this is what father wanted us to do, that this was what he wanted for us…it seemed as though she believed me, and then we went back to sleep. I felt something was wrong when I woke up without her next to me…I thought maybe she just went to explore the grounds, but then I saw Hoosun flying outside the window. It seemed as though he too was searching for her. I ran down the tower, and Hoosun came to me, and said she was gone, that she had taken the horse and left…maybe I should’ve gone with her…at least we’d be together…”
              Henk felt the pain that breathed from the girl’s heart. She too had lost someone, long ago. Henk put a caring hand on Samana’s shoulder, giving out some tears of her own as she began speaking, timidly. “I know what you mean…I’ve lost loved ones, too. My mother and father died in a storm, five years ago. I was only four years old. We lived out on an open plain, when the storm tore through our house, shredding it like a ravenous beast would flesh. My aunt, Cinda, had gone foraging for food only a few hours earlier, and upon coming back to the house, found me in the wreckage. She was a mute. She brought me here, and we lived here happily, but she wasn’t very healthy, and got sick, and died after we had only been here for two years. Since then, I’ve lived here without her. I’ve been made an outcast among the people here, because I guess you could say I have a rare skill. At times I can pick thoughts from peoples’ minds by touch. It happens only randomly though.  People think I’m a freak because of it. The Mother says that it is not a freakish attribute, but a gift from Fate. I know the pain that you’re going through, Samana, losing loved ones is always hard. I’ve had to try desperately to cope, and I had only but Hoosun and the Mother to help me through it. I just want you to know that no matter how hard it is for you, you’ll have more than them. You’ll have me, and Amen, too. We’ll stand by you, Samana.” The brown-haired girl smiled, and wiped tears from her cheek.
              Samana drooped her head, and pulled her hood back, letting loose the first smile she had shown for days, as she grasped Henk’s hand. “Thank you, Henk…it is so hard to lose those close to you…I hope I have not lost her. But if I have…if she is gone, then perhaps it is meant to be.”
              Henk looked to Amen, as the silent one walked over to Samana’s side and threw his arm over her shoulder, in friendly gesture, he and Henk soon leading Samana down the wall steps, and through the inner wall bridges.
              Light passed through the green archways, as one after another they were walked through by the silent trio, as Henk and Amen led their new friend to the center of the Order. Whatever lay ahead, Samana felt she could deal with it, even if she did not fit in well, as Henk and Amen did not fit in either. Now she had her new friends to help her through the hard times, and to the sorrowful girl, that meant quite a great deal.                                                                                    As the three walked together through the ancient stone structure, they did not quite know it yet, but they would remain together, for their lives would be tied forever from this day forth.