"Why are you here?" Venamo and Yilka both shouted at Varma.
Varma suddenly looked less proud of herself.
"You ran away and I followed. I saw you take those clothes and I took some too and followed you here. I heard everything." Varma explained.
"You will not get any ideas. You will return home with us." Venamo insisted.
"Us?" Yilka asked.
"Yes, you're both coming home. No reason to get yourself in trouble for nothing." Venamo insisted.
"If you want to go home, go home. We have no room for cowards like you here." The Fifth said and slapped Venamo on the shoulder.
"Coward?" Venamo asked.
"Those other two are willing to fight, but you clearly aren't. So leave." The Fifth said.
"That's right. Leave." Varma said smugly.
"We're not stopping you from going home." Yilka said and shrugged.
"You two are not doing this right now. Quit being childish and start reasoning already." Venamo demanded strongly.
Yilka and Varma didn't look convinced.
"No. We're doing the task and bringing these guys a weapon." Yilka said calmly.
"Leave your coat where you found it." The Fifth said to Venamo.
"Well, I won't let you do the task by yourselves." Venamo said.
"Then don't. Come with us." Varma said.
"You two cannot be serious." Venamo murmured.
"We're very serious." Yilka said, knowing that he and Varma had won.
"Are you not opposed to her coming with you on a quest in an unknown land?" Venamo asked Yilka.
"If it's all three of us, we can do it easily." Yilka said confidently and casually.
"But also remember that you'll need to steal three weapons if you all want to join the Road of Blood." The Fifth reminded.
"Do you really want to join this group as a permanent member?" Venamo asked Varma.
"Well, maybe not permanently. But I can help Yilka join and then I can return home. I don't want to leave mother all alone." Varma replied.
"So Varma comes along, we steal one weapon, I bring it to who I need to bring it to, and I can join these fellows and you two can go home. Is that a reasonable compromise?" Yilka suggested.
"No, it is not. You are both coming home." Venamo insisted.
"But I want to do the task and help the fight!" Varma also insisted.
"And so do I." Yilka said.
"There is no reasoning with you. Fine! We will steal one weapon, cross the wall, hand it over and see what we may do then." Venamo relented.
"Ha. Well, what are we waiting for? We have a task to do." Varma said eagerly.
"So you want to just head out there without preparation or a map?" Venamo asked.
"Hey, Fifth. Where is the nearest town?" Yilka asked.
"Straight south of here is a town. You can see it from the camp." The Fifth replied.
"Off to there then!" Varma exclaimed.
"Leaving the camp when there is still light outside can be hard. I'd recommend waiting for night." The Fifth chimed in.
"But tonight the sky will be bright with the flames that the Fire Feather left up there." Varma pointed out.
"And every year the guards are distracted looking at them at night. Use that to your advantage to sneak out of the camp. That advice is for everyone here who wants to try this task." The Fifth said.
"Well, it's not night yet so... all we can do is wait then." Varma stated.
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And so they waited in the underground room, surrounded by people who they didn't know. Some looked nervous and some looked confident and some looked like they were done with life. Some were brave and left before others, but Venamo, Yilka and Varma stayed, because Venamo demanded that they only leave once his internal clock tells him that it is night. Venamo spent the time on his knees with his eyes closed, reciting prayers in the Holy people's language that he had been learning since childhood. Yilka sat by the wall and cleaned the blade of Venamo's sword, as he had been instructed. Varma was also sitting on the floor and feeling bored.
"Can't believe the others are feasting while we just sit here. They better leave some for us." Varma complained.
"You chose to follow us here. And wouldn't you rather fight for the tribe than fill your belly?" Yilka asked her.
"You're right! Freeing our brothers and sisters means more than one day of stuffing my face. And once we win, they can join us too." Varma replied with new motivation.
"Did you even hear the distress that they are in?" Yilka asked.
"I saw for myself how they live. They looked like this is the only happy day of their year. I talked with one girl. Her name was Pinean. You should have seen her hands. But in any case, I told her about how we live and..." Varma was explaining.
"You told her that you came from the other side?" Yilka asked and raised his voice.
"Was I not allowed to?" Varma asked and suddenly felt guilty and insecure.
"I'm just worried that anyone you tell about the tunnel might go look for the tunnel. And then the authorities would also find the tunnel. That'd be trouble." Yilka explained to her.
Suddenly everybody in the room heard a screech from above. It was loud and distant and caught everybody's attention.
"Was that the Fire Feather?" Varma asked.
"It was." Venamo said calmly and stood up.
"I would have thought that it had left the area already." Yilka said.
"Whatever it is, it didn't sound ordinary." Venamo said.
"Is it night already? Is it safe to go out?" Varma asked.
Then another screech could be heard.
"I think everyone outside will be distracted. We can go." Venamo decided and made his way out since most others in the room were already on their way out as well.
And so they made it outside along with many others, but nobody noticed all the people coming out of one tent. Everybody who was already outside was looking up at the sky. Venamo, Yilka and Varma also looked up at the sky, and there they saw fires flying in unusual ways and in unusual directions, and when they heard another screech, they looked at the direction where it came from. Up there they saw the Fire Feather flying in a very weak looking way. It flew lower than usual, and looked like it had great trouble staying in the air. It was breathing out clouds of smoke and letting out pained screeches, something nobody alive had seen or heard it do.
"Do you understand what is wrong with it?" A girl asked Varma.
"Pinean! I thought they sent you into the cave!" Varma said to the girl.
"They did, but nobody saw me come out because everybody is looking at this." Pinean revealed.
"I don't know what's wrong with it. I've never seen it in such bad shape." Varma answered the initial question.
"Something must be off balance in this world." Venamo calmly stated.
"What?" Varma and Pinean asked simultaneously.
"The legends state that the four Grand Beasts exist to maintain the balance of life, warmth, waters and winds in this world. If the balance is ever off, Leri will kill which ever Grand Beast is not serving its purpose well enough. I suppose the Fire Feather has not served its purpose to her expectations. That would explain why last summer was so short, and why winter came so early." Venamo explained.
"Is the Fire Feather going to die?" Pinean asked with worry.
"If that is what Leri has decided is best for the created world. When a Grand Beast is killed, a new one will come in its place, hopefully better than the last." Venamo explained some more.
"Oh. Well, that's a bit sad. I love the Fire Feather." Varma said somewhat sadly.
"Hey! You girl there!" An angry male voice called from somewhere.
A guard grabbed Pinean by the arm.
"You're supposed to be in the cave picking the moss. Did you think nobody would notice?" The guard said to Pinean in the language of Vastusar.
Varma looked like she wanted to say something, but Venamo yanked her sleeve before she could let out a word.
"It's alright. I'm experienced." Pinean said to Varma and went along with the guard.
Varma watched Pinean be escorted into the dark and miserable looking cave. She was not worried for Pinean however, knowing that she had been there a lot. Her willingness to get all these people out of this situation grew stronger because of Pinean, and she was sure that she'd be friends with her once she is free.
"The guards here are getting less distracted. We should leave the camp while we still can." Venamo said to his brother and his cousin.
"He's right. Pinean will be fine." Yilka said.
"Hmph. Yes. Let's go." Varma replied.
And so they made their way out of the camp's premises while always looking out for guards and acting like they belonged. They made it out of the camp and returned their disguises to where they got them from.
"If someone sees us wearing coats while we're not working, they'll get suspicious." Was Venamo's reasoning for the decision.
"You had your bow on your back the whole time?" Yilka asked Varma once he saw what was on her back.
"That's right. The big clothes really hid it well." Varma replied.
"Well, suppose we should head to the town that The Fifth mentioned. That's our surest way to get this task done quickly." Yilka stated.
"We're close to the hole that goes under the wall. We can still go home, but I know you won't be convinced." Venamo said to the others.
"We won't." Yilka and Varma said simultaneously.
Venamo sighed as he knew that he couldn't just force them to come with him.
"Southward!" Varma exclaimed and pointed forward.
"That's west." Venamo pointed out.
Varma turned left and pointed forward.
"Southward!" She exclaimed again and started marching south, with the others following.
They left the forest near the wall and steered clear of the work camp. They made their journey on bumpy and hilly terrain covered in the brown grass of spring. Above them they could see the fires in the sky flying in unusual ways, directions and speeds, but they did not stop to admire them. They had a destination.
"Does it not worry you at all to march straight into a town in a hostile land?" Venamo asked Varma once they had travelled for an hour already.
"I'm a fast runner. As long as we don't draw attention to ourselves, I can yank a spear away from some guard and I can run away and meet up with you where ever you're waiting." Varma suggested.
"If any town guards hear us speaking our language, they may just send us in the caves with the rest." Yilka speculated.
"Though in fairness, we can't know how our people are treated on this land only based on what little we saw. For all we know, those folk may have been criminals." Venamo added to the conversation.
"Did Pinean seem like a criminal?" Varma asked seriously and turned around to look up at Venamo, feeling upset about what he said.
"Anyone who sends girls to work in caves is not someone who I give the benefit of the doubt. And neither is anyone who serves such a ruler." Yilka chimed in.
"Exactly! And that's why we will walk the Road of Blood and join their fight!" Varma spoke passionately.
"There is a difference between noble courage and foolish boldness." Venamo reminded.
"And didn't you want to return back home to your mother after the job is done anyway?" Yilka asked Varma.
"I didn't mean I'd join the fight permanently." Varma admitted with shame.
"Also shouldn't we conceal our weapons better now that we are no longer in disguises?"
"We can hide them somewhere before we enter the town, and then get them back once we're out." Venamo suggested.
"We? I said I'd go snatch the thing myself since I'm a fast runner." Varma questioned.
"You are not to go in an unknown town alone." Venamo insisted.
"Such a well working team we are." Yilka commented.
"What is that over there?" Varma asked when she saw a large tent in the distance.
"Please don't be another camp." Yilka commented.
"It's too small to be a camp. We might want to scout what types of folk are there before we talk with anyone there. Wouldn't want our journey to end so soon if the tent is filled with crooks or rangers." Venamo reasoned.
"Well, I could go peek under the wall of the tent to see what is the deal there." Varma suggested.
"Sounds like an idea." Yilka said and shrugged.
"We won't be far behind." Venamo added.
"Fine. If you insist. But don't draw attention to me. Now let's go." Varma said and made her way to the tent.
Once they were closer to the tent, they noticed that outside the tent were troughs filled with water, and that gave Varma an idea.
"You two flip those troughs over and hide under them so you don't just stand here and look odd." Varma suggested.
"What if we just stand far enough away?" Yilka suggested.
"If somebody threatens Varma, we need to be close. So yes, we should hide under them since they are so perfectly close to the tent." Venamo added.
"Great. You two go first." Varma said to her cousins.
They didn't argue back, but just took one last look at the tent ahead and the area around it, and then briskly stepped over to the troughs and both flipped one over and hid under them.
"Now's my time." Varma said confidently and snuck over to the tent.
She raised the bottom of the tent's wall and and looked inside. Inside she only saw rugs on the ground and a cauldron in the middle of the tent and an altar in one of the sides, but nobody was inside.
"Well this doesn't look that bad." Varma said to herself.
"Hm?" A voice from somewhere in the tent said.
Varma let out a small scream and tried to get up and run away from the tent but before she could get running, something wrapped around her ankle and made her trip. She flipped over to her back and saw a noseless, earless person whose skin was covered in scales of the same colour as the grass at this time of year, and who had a snake's tongue and eyes, but otherwise a humanly face. The scaly person unwrapped her tail from Varma's ankle and said something to her in a language she couldn't understand. Venamo and Yilka bounced out of their hiding spots and saw the situation. Venamo dragged Varma by her arm away from the scaly person who looked confused by the situation.
"What are you here for?" The scaly person spoke in the language of Vastusar that Varma and Yilka couldn't understand, but Venamo could.
"I swear that thing blended in with the grass and I couldn't even see it." Varma said to her cousins while standing behind them.
"We are headed to the nearest town." Venamo said in the Vastusarian language.
"The girl speaks the Uhmak language. Are you escorting her away from the camp?" The scaly person asked.
"Ask that thing what it is and why does it talk?" Varma told Venamo.
"She's a female Venomfolk. I already know." Venamo replied to Varma and then looked at the Venomfolk lady.
"We only want to know how far the nearest town is." Venamo asked instead.
"We do not tell anything to people who don't answer questions directly." The Venomfolk replied.
"What is it saying to you?" Varma asked Venamo.
"She won't tell us how far the town is if we don't answer directly what business we're on." Venamo answered to Varma.
"Well just tell her that we're on a pilgrimage or something like that." Varma suggested.
"She heard what language you speak and figured that you must be from the camp. And now's she's heard me speak this language as well. I don't know if we should tell her the truth." Venamo replied.
"Ask her about the Road of Blood. If we admit where we came from, she might tell someone." Yilka suggested.
Venamo asked the Venomfolk if she knows of anything called the Road of Blood. She seemed confused by the question.
"Never mind that. We have been let go from our work duties and we are now looking for a new home in a town." Venamo then said to the Venomfolk.
"Your body heat changed. You're lying." The Venomfolk said.
"Excuse me?" Venamo asked her.
"Ha. Judging by the look on the girl's face when she looks at me, I think your folk haven't met much of my folk. And that tells me that you're not from these parts. So where did you come from?"
"Did you get us in trouble?" Varma asked Venamo.
"I have this under control." Venamo assured Varma.
"You speak Uhmak a little differently than the Uhmakians that I've met. You're from the actual country of Uhmakas, aren't you?" The Venomfolk asked.
"Why is she speaking like she's got us?" Varma asked Venamo.
"I believe she has figured us out." Venamo replied to Varma.
"Things must be pretty bad up there if you're escaping and coming here. Even Rarhea would be a nicer place for your folk, but I won't report you to anyone." The Venomfolk assured.
"We're actually here on a bit of a mission, but we appreciate you sealing your lips. Since you live here, could I ask you some questions about how things work around here?" Venamo asked.
"You are welcome to. We can talk inside the tent and sit down even. But only if you introduce yourselves."
"I am Venamo Kinuei. This is Yilka Kinuei, my brother. And she is Varma Erka, our cousin." Venamo answered after deciding that the Venomfolk lady is worth trusting.
"I am Ku Koara. I own this tent that I run as a resting place for travellers and a place of worship as well." The Venomfolk called Ku revealed.
"Are you sure it was a fine idea to tell our names to her?" Yilka asked Venamo.
"I trust her. She invited us in. I say we get inside. We may learn something useful." Venamo replied.
Venamo followed Ku inside the tent where she sat on a rug. Venamo also sat on a different rug and that made Yilka and Varma less hesitant to do the same.
"So what would you want to know?" Ku asked.
"I want to know how the Uhmak live in this land. We saw the camp where the cave diggers stay, but is that how they all live? And can we safely speak our language around the folk here?" Venamo asked.
"That camp you saw isn't the only one of its kind. Though the Uhmak people here aren't forced to work in resource gathering by law, they are usually forced into it by circumstances." Ku explained.
"Please elaborate." Venamo requested.
"Well, after the last Uhmak rebellion fifty years ago failed, the Crown wanted to teach the rebellious people a lesson, and decided that the Uhmak people who live on this side of the border here in Vastusar may no longer own land, or build fences or grow anything. He also decided that the schools may not accept Uhmakians to attend class anymore, and paying Uhmakians for their work also became illegal. This meant that the only way the Uhmakians in Vastusar can live, are by living as hermits or as feral folk, or go work for whatever resource gathering operation the Crown is running. Of course, those who speak the Uhmak language outside of a worksite will be assumed to have escaped from one. Oh yes, leaving a worksite or the camp outside of it without the permit seal is not allowed for them either. Many people who chose to live as hermits and feral folk have since been sent to work as well, as they were assumed to have escaped from their worksites when ever the Crown's rangers found them. So you might want to be careful when speaking your language around others here." Ku explained.
Venamo seemed disgusted and angered upon learning the things Ku explained.
"Could you translate to us?" Varma asked Venamo.
"Later." He replied and then looked at Ku.
"What does the permit seal look like? Is it possible to forge them?" He asked Ku.
"Well, it may be possible, but hard. The seal is made out of a wax that the bees produce up on Keleke cliff. But I'm not sure if you want to go there. The Crown is running a quarry right in the area." Ku told Venamo.
"First we'd need to know what a genuine permit seal looks like before we can forge it. I'm sure we'll get a glimpse of one if we go to that place." Venamo said.
"Anything else you want to ask?" Ku asked.
"Who is the king or this land?" Venamo presented a question.
"The current king is the son of King Xalksor, who was regarded as a great king who worked well with the neighbours of Vastusar. King Xalksor was such a benevolent and fair ruler, that goddess Leri herself gave him a powerful Leri stone, that made him the ruler of Holy magic down here in the created world. He could enchant items and living things to make them the best that they could be. Without even being present he could make trees grow tall and fields grow lush, and waters fall down clean. Leri trusted him with that power, which she has never done with anyone who isn't one of the Holy people. But every king dies some day. When Xalksor died, his son Pushkrilleri assumed the throne. It was an odd case, since before Pushkrilleri became the king, nobody had ever heard of him. Everybody assumed that Xalksor had no heir, and that there'd be a succession crisis once he dies. Pushkrilleri has been the king for a hundred years now, and when ever he makes a public appearance, he looks as young as ever. Some even speculate that he has actors who play him, and the true King has never shown his face. Pushkrilleri has been the opposite of his father. He used the Holy magic that he inherited from his father and made the weapons and armour of his Vastusar's army stronger. Their weapons can destroy anything they touch except other enchanted items, and their armour can withstand any blow from anything that I know. An army like that could not be beat, and so Vastusar conquered its neighbours a hundred years ago. Or most of them." Ku explained.
"Why did the Uhmak people rebel fifty years ago?" Venamo asked.
"Though South Uhmakas has been under Vastusar's rule for a hundred years now, for the first fifty years South Uhmakas was left relatively alone. As soon as they conquered South Uhmakas, they built the wall that separates the land to avoid any efforts from the north side to come cause trouble. But around fifty years ago it was discovered that the moss that grows in the caves of South Uhmakas can power the ships and machines of Vastusar. The Crown became especially interested in the area, and increased its supervision of the area. The Crown relocated prisoners to South Uhmakas to work in the caves, but one day the prisoners rebelled to overthrow their masters, and the native Uhmak people joined the rebellion to push the Crown's influence out of their land. The rebellion was hopeless. The weapons and armor of Vastusar's forces are enchanted with holy magic, making them impossibly durable and destructive. Anyone without holy magic has no chance fighting the Crown's forces." Ku explained.
"Would Leri allow her magic to be used for such destructive purposes?" Venamo asked.
"Holy magic makes things better at what they're meant for. A weapon meant for killing becomes more deadly with holy magic. An arrow enchanted with holy magic can pierce a stone wall. A sword enchanted with holy magic can cut a tree with one swing. Now may I ask a question in turn?" Ku asked.
"Of course." Venamo replied.
"Why does your forehead say "Deserving" in glowing letters?" Ku asked.
"What? Glowing?" Venamo asked in bewilderment.
He stood up and noticed that the grass around had become lush and green while all the grass in the rest of the tent was still brown and lifeless. He went to a water barrel by the corner and looked at his reflection. In the reflection he saw that the mark on his forehead was indeed glowing with bright white light now.
"What does this mean?" Venamo said to himself.
"What's the matter?" Yilka shouted from where he was seated.
Venamo came over to Yilka and Varma and pointed at his forehead.
"That holy lady back in Reutsa truly did something to me. And look at what is happening to the grass beneath my feet." Venamo told them.
Yilka and Varma looked at the grass that was turning green before their very eyes.
"She gave you the blessing of Holy magic!" Varma exclaimed.
"But can I control it?" Venamo asked himself.
Varma and Yilka both shrugged.
"Wait. I feel some sort of... new instinct." Venamo said and the mark on his forehead stopped glowing and the grass stopped turning greener.
"Did you learn how to control it?" Yilka asked.
"What did I do?" Venamo asked right back.
"You're not glowing anymore." Varma said.
"So that's how it's done." Venamo said to himself.
"What did you do?" Yilka asked.
"I can't really describe it."
"Of course you'd say that." Varma said.
"Hold on." Venamo said and pulled his sword from his back.
He held it in the air and closed his eyes, and soon enough the mark on his forehead glowed again, and so did the carvings and the edges of the Defiance. Venamo opened his eyes and looked at his sword.
"What did you do?" Varma asked.
"I hope I enchanted my blade. But I can't really test it here." Venamo replied.
"Enchant it? Is that a thing you can do now?" Yilka asked.
"Ku said that people who have holy magic can enchant items to make them better at what they're meant for. I have a suspicion that I may now have holy magic in me as well." Venamo explained.
"And Ku is that Venomfolk you talked with?" Yilka asked.
"Correct. She also told me that if we don't have a certain seal, the authorities might give us some trouble, so we'll need to forge one from the wax that the bees make on a cliff near a quarry. I expect the place to be heavily guarded, so having our weapons enchanted would serve us well, because their weapons are likely to be enchanted with holy magic as well. Once we get that wax, we'll need to find someone who can make a forged one, or we need to see genuine permit seal to know what it looks like." Venamo explained.
"And once we're there, we can also steal a weapon from one of the guards." Varma pointed out.
"Our best chance is by going there at night. We should get going. But first I need to know where that place is and how far away it is." Venamo said and turned to Ku.
"How far away is that cliff that you mentioned?" He asked Ku.
"By foot, about a day's travel away. But by riding you can get there before morning." Ku answered.
"Well, our mounts are back home. We better get going right away then." Venamo told her and was about to step away.
"Ah, but wait. I do have some fast mounts . If you've got something to trade them for, they're yours." Ku proposed.
"We only really need one. But I will ask the others about it." Venamo said to her and turned to the others.
"Should we trade the Holy lady's golden accessory for a mount so we can get to the cliff before morning?" Venamo asked Varma and Yilka.
"We were meant to buy fine salts for Nofa with it." Yilka argued.
"Well, she can wait for her damn salts." Venamo snapped back with.
"Does it even matter if we make it there before morning since the sky will be bright tonight anyway?" Varma asked.
"I... suppose you are correct." Venamo admitted.
"Well, let's go then!" Varma exclaimed eagerly.
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