One night in the town

They were walking rapidly to their destination, she was lost deep in her thought, calculating their chances of survival. She was not so sure about herself after the strike of the sand wave. It was complicated for her to believe in her strategist talents. She felt like she was a failure. 

Around her, she was hearing the forty-two talking about nature around. They were commenting on almost everything. The birds, the insects, the herbs, the animals, or the air in general. They were talking about so many things. They were over-excited. She even doubted for a second if they were aware of their situation and the fact that that night they would have to fight seriously. 

They acted like they were on a trip for fun, and she took a deep breath. She was not relaxed as much as them. She raised her head and saw a hind with her little ones. Zaelia dropped her jaw in front of the animal. It looked so soft that she even forgot why she was not sharing the enthusiasm. 

At the end of the afternoon, they could see the town in front of them. That was not a big town, she was reassured by its size. She expected something bigger and better guarded. 

They came closer safely and she noticed a few men in arms. She took a path hidden from the evening lights. They were crawling on the floor, hiding in the bushes, and watching what was in front of them. Her heart was racing in her chest and her breath was short. It was a mixture of excitement and fear. 

The town was calm, she was extremely focused, the time was flying and it was her enemy at this moment. She counted 30 men patrolling the streets. The others must be in the massive building in the central place. She analyzed the place discretely and she understood that she had to find a way to block the doors of the entrance to retard the reinforcements. 

She had already seen houses but never of this size. They would not have the energy to carry pieces of wood to block it and they were in inferior numbers so they would not keep the doors by pure force. Suddenly, she heard her answer. She heard the henning of the horses and she had the idea that would save them.

She sent five men to take the horses discretely and lead them in front of the entrance. She made a sign to the others to invade the town discreetly. The night just came and it was the perfect moment to attack. They were extremely excited. Their eyes were shining in the dark like wild animals. They moved silently, slowly. They took their time before striking and then. 

Then she roared in the middle of the night. 

"Kill!"

It felt like they came from everywhere, hidden in the shadows. They sliced the throats of the guards one after another in a symphony of happy yellings.

The horses were slaughtered in front of the heavy wooden doors, they took care to place them all in the same place while they were alive, they attached them to the doors before killing them in the entrance to be sure that they would fall on the spot. 

The smell of blood invaded the streets. The men on patrol rang the alarm but it was already too late. They invaded the streets as if they were a full army. By the time the Men started the distress lights their defense was already heavily wounded. Once they saw the forty-two, they felt the horror of the situation. The group of savages in front of them was covered by sand and dust. Sweaty, their clothes were soaking in the blood of their victims. They were laughing. 

The soldiers tried to run to the building to shelter when they found five or six heavy horses massacred on the floor just in front of the doors. They had no way to escape and no way to win the fight. 

The eyes of the forty-two were the ones of the beasts in the stories. The ones of the blood-thirsty hyenas of the desert. No matter if they were wounded, they were showing large smiles watching the rest of the guards. 

Some civilians took tools as weapons to defend themselves. Zaelia stepped in front of the group, her knife in her hand. Her imposing appearance was terrifying everyone around, including the members of her group. The guards dropped their weapons, the fight was pointless, and even if they won, the loss would be too great. They surrendered to her and her Men. 

She raised her hand in a victory move and yelled. Her warcry was full of rage, a powerful and intense rage. Her Men followed her before running to the houses, spreading like wild animals. They were extremely violent at this moment. They broke doors and every storage they could find. They filled their bags with everything they could find. Tools, jewels, spices, and gold. They discovered the beauty of shiny gold. 

Zaelia lost herself in the forge, she watched the weapons used by the guards. This was the first time she had such a sword in her hand and she liked it. 

She took a few minutes to watch how they were living, she knew she didn't have a lot of time and she tried to memorize everything there. Watching the tools, the anvil, and all the other utensils there. They were much more advanced than what she was used to seeing. Her fingers caressed the hammer, the tools, and the leather apron. She heard the group gathering outside. She rapidly took a rope and gathered all the weapons she could find. She attached them and charged them on her back. There were maybe thirty swords attached, she felt the weight on her shoulders as she walked outside. A few men were enjoying food from the tables of the houses, drinking. They were happily talking about what they found with much joy while the sobbing of the people they ravaged the houses was like a lullaby in their ears.