2 The Ragabonds Strike Back

Rajak stares up at the night sky in awe at two moons hanging like perfectly placed lanterns. The two celestial luminaries give off a purple-tinted light that compliments the now-pinkish sky. The heat, once oppressive has now turned into a chilling cool. Rajak Blows his breath into his hands, trying to warm them up. Jabel soon approaches, carrying a small duffel bag and an extra hooded cloak.

"What's all that?," Rajak asks.

"Water and supplies. We are going to need them." Jabel answers. He extends his hand to offer Rajak the cloak. "It gets pretty cold at night. You might want to wear this."

"I'm good, not really into the superhero look," Rajak says jokingly.

"Suit yourself," Jabel says as he sloppily stuffs the cloak into the duffel bag. "To get to Deadman's Gateway, we have to head east through the Wayward Dunes. From there, we pass through the Crest of Despair."

"Seriously? Jabel, are you making this stuff up? ''The Crest Of Despair'? Give me a break." Rajak says mockingly.

"I am certainly not making this up. These are the names the people trapped here gave them." Jabel replies. A look of annoyance crosses his face, and he lets out a heavy sigh. "These names came from the many trials the people here have faced: the things they've seen, people they lost, and creatures they have overcome. "He says in his monotone voice.

Rajak rubs the back of his neck. With a look of embarrassment, he apologizes. "Sorry I didn't realize that things were that deep."

Jabel's face softens. "It is fine. "You couldn't possibly have known," he says, extending his hand. Rajak smiles in relief, and they shake on it. They stand there awkwardly for a moment before silently agreeing to move on.

"Let's make haste. I'm excited to see how you will bust through the walls," Jabel says half-grinning.

The boys start their journey east. Neither of them say much as they trek across the harsh dry land of the desert. Lost in thought, Rajak wondered how indeed, he would bust through the walls. He questioned if he had spoken too quickly. "What are we getting ourselves into," he mumbles.

At some point, the many crags and craters shift into a mountainous area. The wide-open space slowly becomes one narrow trail leading straight up the mountain. Although the path is stable, plenty of places around it provide uneven footing. Loose rocks and boulders sit dangerously above.

"From here, we follow the narrow path. Once we reach the top, we will officially be in the Wayward Dunes," Jabel informs.

The boys start hiking their way up. There is only enough space to lay one person of average height across their walkway. As they continue up a little further, the boys can see the Wayward dunes. Covered in pale white, they look like snow. Further in the distance, you can see a circle of rainbow-colored sand. Unlike the dunes before, the Wayward Dunes are scattered about chaotically but still had an elegance about them. "This place gets more and more beautiful as I look at it," Rajak says, amazed

"Yeah, it is truly a beautiful prison, but a prison nonetheless," Jabel says before pointing to an underpass ahead of them. "We are about halfway up. There is a place to refill our canteens there."

As the boys get closer to the underpass, a figure wrapped in a shawl comes into view. Upon further inspection, they realize it is a person huddled up in the middle of the road. The boys stop in their tracks, looking at each other with concern. Rajak decides to approach

"Hey, you ok?" he calls out as he slowly walks over. The person does not answer. Rajak kneels beside them. "Are you hurt?" He asks again. Jabel hears some soft chatter echoing through the mountain. His eyes open wide in alarm.

"Rajak, stand back!" Jabel shouts.

The figure turns around, revealing itself to be a Ragabond. Sunken yellow eyes accompany a flat face and grey skin. It flashes a crooked smile of sharp jagged teeth. "Got You," it shrieks before taking a wild swing. Rajak quickly responds; using his hand to prop himself up, he kicks the Ragabond hard, launching it into the air. The Ragabond recovers mid-air, landing on its feet.

It begins to chatter its teeth. Ragabonds quickly start to drop down on grappling hooks while some climb up the side of the mountain. The underpass entrances are instantly blocked, armed with spears and slingshots. The Ragabonds ready themselves to attack.

"I guess you guys are here for another beatdown," shouts Rajak.

"Indeed," Jabel agrees, removing his trident from its holster.

"I'll take one side, you take the other," Rajak says charging forward. Three Ragabonds confront him. Thrusting their spears forward at the same time. Rajak flips over them, coming down knees first onto the Ragabond in the middle. He grabs the other two by the head and slams them skull to skull. Another two Ragabonds leap high into the air above him. They position their spears downward. Rajak rolls backward into a handstand. Crack! Their spears break as Rajak uses his greaves' shins to block their attack. He extends his legs, allowing the Ragabonds to fall face-first onto his feet.

Jabel, surrounded by six Ragabonds, effortlessly dodges and parries their spear attacks. A Ragabond with a slingshot leaps into the air and fires off a stone. Jabel swings his trident, deflecting it back. The rock hits the Ragabond right between the eyes. Jabel throws his trident in the air and quickly steps forward, grabbing the tattered cloak of one of the Ragabonds and pulling it over its face. Whack! Jabel's knee connects with its bumpy nose.

Jabel then slides quickly behind his opponent and kicks them forward. He raises his hand and catches his trident. Taking a wide stance and holding his trident at his back, he thrust his trident forward. Letting his trident go, he turns so that the trident faces his front and thrusts again. He repeats this several times, pushing the Ragabonds into a tight group, then widely swings his trident, knocking them off the side of the pathway.

The enemy number rapidly increases as they continue scaling up the mountain and into the underpass. Jabel and Rajak fight desperately but are pushed to the center by the overwhelming numbers. Jabel starts breathing heavily as his energy starts to deplete. Rajak, on the other hand, does not seem to be getting tired.

"How are you not tired yet?" Jabel questions.

"I don't know, but if we don't figure a way out of this, we're screwed," Rajak says. "Any suggestions?"

Jabel's eyes dart back and forth as he scrambles to find a solution. He looks at Rajak and nods. "I got it," he says. Jabel places his trident behind him, pressing it to his back and letting it rest in the crevice of his arm. "Place your back against mine and lock arms with me."

Without hesitation, Rajak complies. The boys begin to turn, making sure to stay in time with each other. They steadily start to pick up the pace as they move forward. The Ragabonds move back, trying to avoid the blade of the trident. Some inevitably get hit and thrown off the side of the mountain.

The plan works to their dismay. Narrowly making it through the enemy lines, Jabel and Rajak begin to make a run for it up the path. Jabel straggles behind, barely able to keep up. The Ragabonds stay hot on their trail as they give chase. Poorly aimed stones fly past the boys as the Ragabond slingers sling rocks at them. Whoosh! The sound of a bolas flying through the air before it wraps around Jabel's feet, tripping him. His trident is torn out of his hand and off the mountain.

"No! Father!" Jabel shouts.

"What are you talking about?" Rajak rushes to his friend's side. He fumbles with the bolas, trying to untangle Jabel's legs.

"Leave me. I'm just dead weight." Jabel says.

It takes no time before the Ragabonds are upon them. Jabel sits on the ground, trying to catch his breath. Rajak raises both his hands in the air, signaling his surrender. The Ragabonds stop and stare as the one in the shawl steps forward.

"Surrender?" It shrieks, tilting its head to the side.

Rajak says nothing, only nods. The shawled Ragabond Looks at Jabel. "Him Pick up," it commands. Rajak grabs Jabel by the arm and helps him to his feet. "Tie," it says, signaling to its comrades. The boys are tied together at the waist, while their hands are also bound. Once the boys are secured, the shawled creature chatters its teeth. Two Ragabonds approach, with stone knives in hand. Their shawled commander gives off a gleeful cry.

"Hey, what the heck do you think you're doing? We already surrendered!" Rajak protests.

"Assurance," it replies before snapping its clawed fingers.

The creature pulls back the knife. Rajak closes his eyes in anticipation of the pain. It stabs the knife into Rajak's side, but it breaks on his skin to everyone's surprise. The Raganond tilts its head and stares at Rajak, who stares back in confusion, It quickly grabs another knife, and this time stabs him in the chest. Once again, it breaks. Rajak smirks as he realizes yet another one of his abilities. However, his smirk quickly fades as Jabel cries out in pain

Blood leaks from his side. The Ragabond pushes the blade in a little deeper and purposely breaks the handle of leaving the blade inside. Jabel lets out an even louder cry. "Hey, you sick piece of trash!" Rajak screams in rage. The shawled creature can see the anger in his eyes as he begins to flex his wrist. The ropes start to tear slightly. The Ragabonds begin to laugh loudly. They don't appear to be too concerned with his outburst.

"It's...ok," Jabel says, struggling to get his words out. Rajak calms down, realizing his actions could hurt Jabel further. The Ragabonds relax, and the boys are led back down the hill into the canyon. Jabel's wound causes him to struggle the whole way. The walk seems to take hours. Rajak continued to flex his rest, breaking the ropes a little at a time. Finally, they reach the place where the Ragabonds live—a giant cavern leading into the ground.

The Ragabonds take them through the burrowed hallways with many twists and turns. Their final destination is a small room with a pit roughly about fifteen feet deep and eight feet wide. The Ragabond pushes them in. Jabel lands on his side, aggravating his wound. Rajak finally breaks the ropes, bounding his hands, and rushes to Jabel's side. He looks up to see the Shawled Ragabond grin as a cover is placed over the pit. Everything goes black.