The Desert Trail

The journey around Nahar was quite pleasant for the most part. Nasiah got to see rare sights such as a large oasis that was surrounded by green grass and trees as well as a vast river that stretched on for miles.

He took it all in, every animal, every traveler, every few soldiers going on a patrol here and there. It was all so beautiful in his eyes how they lived their lives trying their best to survive day to day with a smile on their faces.

Nasiah would take note of every small hamlet or homestead he would find before he turned to speak to Forenus. 

"I notice there's not a lot of settlements in Nahar, not even much around the rivers and oasis even though they would be great places to live in. Why?"

Usually, talking at such speeds would be impossible. However, each one of the horses had a special saddle on which was inscribed with an Alchemy that allowed the proper passage of sound to those nearby.

"That's because of the creatures that live here." He then gestured out to the land around them, which seemed barren of life.

"While rare during the day, dangerous beasts come at night that constantly stalk those within the desert." Forenus looked around, thankfully spotting nothing of note.

 A few of them are powerful enough to challenge armies of men at a time, and so we pick the few locations where there are not many monsters or seldom enough that we can defeat them easily."

Musa chimed into the conversation. As a sage, he had a lot of experience and wisdom to offer. 

"Many of them as well are sacred in Nahar culture. Take, for example, a large salamander." 

Nasiah, for a few moments, thought of the creature. It was just a rather large animal that was a mix of frogs and lizards. He heard that they breathed fire, too.

"A large salamander is a special creature in our culture. It represents good luck and perseverance thanks to its ability to survive the desert and still stay somewhat moist even when there's a lack of water."

"They're also known for knowing the best hiding spots and can lead those that respect it to treasure."

Nasiah thought back to when he found one. He remembered finding one under a large rock when he was helping the soldiers search for a lost necklace for some woman. 

It looked hungry, so he gave it some meat, which the salamander ate with glee. When it started to move, the guards all instantly followed it and soon enough, they somehow reached the lost necklace beside one of the houses.

Many of the soldiers sang praises of it, but when Nasiah tried to find it again, it had simply vanished. However, the men seemed to be okay with that for some reason or another.

"Because of this, many locals try to stay away from sites with salamanders as they say it is disrespectful."

Nasiah nodded along; all of this was such fascinating information to him that he wanted to know more. Then, he remembered a question he wanted to ask for quite a while.

He turned to Forcas and asked. "You called Jaguar an Aeborne like you; what did you mean by that?"

The young would-be king had never asked that question for quite some time now as, for a while, he was quite busy with taking out soldiers. Now, with some peace and quiet at hand, he could ask his question. 

Forcas grinned, she enjoyed it when Nasiah and her talked. "Well, it just means someone born with an innate Magick rather than someone who cultivated it."

Her ears and tail twitch on command. "Such as myself, I was born under the Magick of the Wolf. That allowed me to gain traits of a wolf such as enhanced speed, strength, and sensory capabilities."

Nasiah looked at Forcas, examining the threads that came from her, which did, in fact, bear those Names. They were enhanced, of course, much stronger than one would see from a regular wolf.

He nodded along with her explanation. "So then, Jaguar was born under the Magick of the Giant?"

Forcas gave him a wink of approval. "That's right, ever since at birth we've both been embedded with special laws of the world that now allow us to use those types of Magick to our desire freely."

The young boy then turned to Musa. "So you must have cultivated your Magick, correct?" 

He knew this since he did not see any threads coming from his body the same way it did with Forcas. Instead, the threads wrapped around his body much like a cocoon.

Musa gave a solemn nod. "Aye, I am but a normal sage. I was not gifted by the Heavens at birth. I used what I had to learn, Magick, to get where I am now."

The Magick teacher pointed to his empty eyes. "I was born blind instead. However, this did not stop me from learning more. In fact, it's why I wanted to learn more, to see the world more clearly than any man could."

He then turned his head to the distant sound of metal clanking. "And now, with this power, I can."

Musa turned his head to Nasiah. "Now I wish to show it to you too because all men, no matter what or who, should be able to experience a wonderful world."

Nasiah focused on where Musa looked. He focused his hearing as he finally found the sound of clanking metal as well. He turned and began to lead them that way.

Forenus followed him, his eyebrows raising. He heard the metal as well. Something was coming; he needed to make sure it was not anything too much for them to handle.

Nasiah continued, charging forward with a renowned sense of vigor in his eyes as he saw the many soldiers of House Yuseff standing their ground by one of the bases.

He wanted to try something new for once.