Linry and Riniock dismounted their politami at a safe distance, ensuring they wouldn't be spotted by any potential enemies.
Something felt wrong.
They hadn't even reached the camp yet, but a thick column of black smoke billowed from its centre, rising like a signal of destruction. And beyond the smoke, something else festered within the Ikshari camp.
'Wildfire?' Riniock muttered as he and Linry advanced swiftly but cautiously.
But as they drew closer, the air was filled with harrowing screams. A chaotic medley of sounds assaulted them – metal clashing, heavy thuds, pained sobs, and desperate cries.
They concealed themselves and found a vantage point. What they saw made their eyes widen in shock.
The camp had been overrun by a force unlike anything Riniock had seen before – warriors with the features of rough-skinned beasts, neither wholly human nor animal.
Some bore a single horn on their noses, striding through the wreckage with ruthless efficiency, spears in hand. Without hesitation, they impaled any fallen maegi in their path, showing no mercy, not even to the gravely wounded.
Others had wide, fan-like ears and elongated trunks for noses. They carried staves, chanting as they conjured flames, setting tents and other appliances ablaze.
The third group was scattered across the battlefield. These had monstrous jaws lined with oversized mandibles. Some wielded bows, loosing arrows at anything that moved – especially fleeing maegis. The rest gathered in the camp's centre, where a group of Ikshari captives lay bound and beaten.
'What are those…' Riniock whispered, stunned. He had never heard of such creatures.
'Vaxuums,' Linry replied. 'Nomads. Warriors. And they despise the academy.'
'Why?'
'Why wouldn't they?' she retorted.
Riniock smirked at that, but his attention quickly returned to the unfolding carnage.
At the centre of it all, one of the vaxuum warriors stepped forward, drawing a broad, curved sword. Without hesitation, he decapitated one of the captive maegis.
The others squirmed, eyes wild with panic, but bound as they were, resistance was futile.
The vaxuums moved with eerie efficiency, hardly speaking as they carried out the executions. One by one, the captives fell until none remained. The camp was nothing but smoke, ruin, and death.
That was their cue to leave.
Linry and Riniock turned to slip away – only to find themselves staring down the sharpened points of spears and arrows.
Massive vaxuum warriors had surrounded them. Despite their bulk, they had moved with startling silence, trapping the pair before they had a chance to react.
Instinctively, they raised their hands in surrender. There was no time for a spell – no incantation quick enough to cast before the vaxuum warriors could thrust their weapons forward and cut them down.
Their captors' eyes lingered on Linry's attire, scowling at its unmistakable markings.
Then, one of them stepped forward, raising his spear, intent on striking her down.
'Vayalem!' Linry shouted, voice firm. She repeated it, louder. 'Vayalem – Vayalem!'
The warriors hesitated. Their weapons lowered slightly, their faces contorted in a mix of surprise and confusion. They exchanged glances, speaking in hushed tones, their language foreign and guttural.
One of them turned and shouted towards the distance, calling to the others. The word Linry had spoken rippled through their ranks.
Riniock swallowed hard, sweat beading at his temple. 'What…what just happened?'
'I called upon their leader,' Linry said. 'The Vayu.'
'How do you know that?'
'My father learned the word from his father before him,' she explained. 'He always told me – if we were ever confronted by a vaxuum tribe, we were to say it.'
Dragged through the scorching sand with blindfolds tightly secured, Riniock and Linry were hauled before a vast assembly of vaxuum nomads. When the cloth was finally pulled from their eyes, they found themselves kneeling beneath the relentless sun, surrounded by a hundred imposing figures.
A wide berth had been left around them, save for one vaxuum who stood closest – a presence that commanded attention.
'You are enxan, are you not?' The vayu's deep voice carried through the silence, slightly muffled by the trunk that curled near his mouth.
'Enxan?' Riniock echoed, unfamiliar with the term.
'In your tongue, you call yourselves humans,' the vaxuum leader clarified. 'I am Vayu Ishan, an eno vaxuum, ruler of this tribe.'
Linry lowered her head respectfully. 'My name is Linry. He is called Riniock.'
Ishan stomped the sand beneath him, a sharp huff escaping his trunk.
'You are well-versed in our ways,' he observed. 'No ordinary enxan would know of the vayalam custom. Where did you learn it?'
Linry hesitated, keeping her gaze downcast. 'I'd rather not say.'
The vayu let out a rumbling chuckle. 'A bold enxan indeed.'
His heavy gaze lingered on them before he finally relented. 'Very well. Speak your piece. Judgment shall come after.'
Linry lifted her head, her expression carefully measured with a hint of reverence. The vaxuum were a proud and domineering people, intolerant of outsiders who dared to speak to them as equals. She understood this well and chose her words accordingly.
'Your warriors have captured us under the assumption that we belong to the Academy,' she began, addressing the matter directly.
'Do you not?' Ishan's eyes narrowed. 'You wear their robes.'
'I am their prisoner, not their student – nor their ally,' Linry clarified. 'Riniock is from a distant province beyond the sea.'
A chorus of grunts echoed from the gathered vaxuum. Though most were not fluent in the common tongue, they understood enough to react with scepticism. Ishan, however, seemed proficient in their language, his piercing gaze weighing their claim.
He turned to his warriors, exchanging words in their native tongue – words that clearly stoked their anger.
'They do not believe you,' Ishan translated, his tone edged with disdain. 'Enxan are known to be deceitful and wicked after all.'
Riniock cleared his throat. 'We've slain maegis from the Academy in the village nearby. Send someone to verify it.'
The tribe did not take kindly to his bluntness. A thunderous roar erupted from the vaxuum ranks, their hostility palpable.
Ishan merely raised his arm, and at once, the uproar ceased. The stillness that followed was as unsettling as their outburst. With a single gesture, he signalled two young warriors, pointing towards the distant settlement of Haitenshire.
The chosen vaxuums struck their chests in salute before darting off at full speed.
'The young hepi and riu vaxuum will confirm your claims soon enough,' Ishan stated. 'Until then, you may prove your allegiance through action.'
Linry's gaze sharpened. 'What do you mean?'
Ishan turned, gesturing behind him. From the ranks, a group of eno vaxuum shoved forward a bound Ikshari maegi. His body was bruised and beaten, his lips split, his swollen eyes barely able to open.
He has been a prisoner for a while now.
'We have an enxan prisoner,' Ishan declared. 'If you are no ally to the Academy – kill him.'
The maegi was forced to his knees, his bindings cut. A moment later, Linry's restraints were severed as well.
'If you dare turn against us instead,' Ishan warned, his tone final, 'we will riddle all three of you with arrows.'
Linry exhaled slowly, rubbing her wrists before rising to her feet. 'I understand.'
The other maegi staggered slightly as he was released, his confusion evident. As soon as his gaze landed on Linry's robes, a wave of relief washed over him.
'You're Ikshari!' he exclaimed, his tone easing into calm. 'I'm glad to see a friendly face in this desolate place.'
Linry said nothing. Instead, she struck first.
Fire erupted from her fingertips, but miraculously, her opponent reacted on pure instinct, conjuring a barrier just in time to deflect the attack. His expression twisted in shock.
'What are you doing?!' he shouted, his voice cracking with disbelief.
Still, Linry remained silent, pressing forward with relentless aggression.
It took him a few moments to grasp the reality of the situation. Though caught off guard, he managed to ward off her strikes. And when the truth sank in – that she was no ally – his hesitation vanished.
'Traitorous bitch…' he spat, countering with an onslaught of spells. 'You're her, aren't you? The one we were warned about – the one cavorting with the enemy!'
The vayu and his warriors watched in silence, their unreadable gazes fixed on the battle. The maegi's words seemed to stir something amongst them.
Ishan turned to his tribe, his expression thoughtful. 'She speaks the truth, it seems,' he murmured in their tongue. Then, with measured interest, he added, 'Now, let's see just how useful she is.'