★ H A V A Ñ A K ★
[ H A V E R N Y A K ]
THE ARENA OF SAND
He raised his head from the golden desert sands and forced himself to his knees with the last vestige of strength in his triceps. The coarse grains of sand, the very hot ones that had burned under the sun that shone without mercy over the entire north, could not leave him lying there a second longer, even if he had not recovered from the last blow.
Since the bell was rung, he had not touched his opponent. If it had been a fight to the death, he would have been dead. Lotino, who was his opponent, enjoyed the show to the fullest, he was fast, nimble enough to nullify all his attempts.
"You should not be fighting here, look around... they are all qualified to be here," Lotino whispered, and Kinada turned a deaf ear. He knew the mind games Lotino was trying to play. If he wasted even a thought on it, it would weaken him quickly enough for Lotino to achieve victory.
The chants, the cheers of the crowd, which seemed to sing only the praises of his giant opponent, reached his ears and he closed his eyes angrily. . .
The sun cast a shadow on him as his opponent moved closer to him, he barely felt his surroundings darken as his eyes were closed, and before he knew it, his opponent was only an arm's length away from him, he received a kick to the head, and the dust welcomed him again as he fell face down in the desert sand.
As he lay there in shame and disgrace, he heard the laughter of the people surrounding them. He did not bother to look up or try to get back on his feet, because he knew that the third time he would definitely collapse.
Everyone was happy to see him defeated. They all hated him, and it gave them great pleasure to see him humiliated in this way.
"Kinada, you are an abomination. You should be living with the spirits in the forests of Eslava, not here where you hang out with freeborns," Lotino whispered in his ear as he leaned over him and spat on Kinada's head. Lotino chuckled with the crowd as he walked out of the circle while Kinada was completely incapacitated.
Among the voices he heard, a significant voice, the loudest, came forward with an announcement.
"Lotino wins the rematch just like he won the first one!" Kinada heard a voice say as he gradually began to slip into nothingness. . .
★ ★ ★ ★ ★
R E E D A’S H O U S E
. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .He opened his eyes and found himself lying on a bed. He was no longer lying in the arena of sand. There was only someone who cared to take him from the field and save him from being roasted under the intense sunlight.
He saw the barefoot woman walking gently toward him.
"You are awake," she called to him from the entrance of the room, and he sighed.
"You promised that you would never try again. You promised never to go with the army into the arena of the sands," she whispered. Her voice was cold, as cold as the cold water.
Kinada gave her no answer. He just stood there staring at her as she continued to walk toward him. He was far too impassive to give the right answers or at least say a "thank you."
"Are you going to get yourself killed? Going up against someone like Lotino?" she said softly as she sauntered over to the bed and sat down next to him. Her black nightgown was as shiny as her hair.
"So what! Lotino is like any other man out there, he's like me, we are all citizens of Havañak," he said to her and she heaved a sigh of concern.
"Kin, you know they do not see you like that," she said, and he stroked his white hair, where there was no room for any other color.
There was silence. The moment she said those words, it dawned on him again. She reminded him of something he never wanted to remember. He would give anything to erase the reality of what he was in the eyes of others and perhaps make them see him differently.
He'd give anything just to be treated like the others. He wished everyone was like Reeda, who looked at him like a true citizen and did everything to make him not feel like an outcast.
"K-Kin... I... didn't mean to remind you of those things, I'm just trying to protect you, I don't want you to get hurt," Reeda said to him and he turned his back to her and curled up with his hands between his knees.
His left pupil, which always glowed like flames, his amazing white hair, which made one think, and his face, which looked more like one from the West or East, were the things that distinguished him from all the other people in Havañak. At one point he tried to blind that eye and used an eye patch, but Reeda was there just in time to stop him, as she always was. And he could not cover his hair with any dye, no matter how good. Dyes had never stuck to his hair before.
"I just wish..." whispered Kin.
"You've had the same desire since we were kids. I think it's time to let it go. It doesn't matter what or who they think you're. To me, you're the best person I've ever met, and without you, my childhood would have been very boring," Reeda said, chuckling softly.
She lay quietly and curled up behind him and put her right hand under his arm. Kin grabbed her hand and held it tightly, supporting her head on his shoulder.
"I just think when I earn the spot and become one of the seekers, they'll look at me differently," he said, stroking the back of her hand with his thumb.
"Why do you think they allowed you to accept the challenge in the first place? It was never a fair fight. Lotino was drafted into the army when he was only 12 years old, you're just a civilian, they just wanted to humiliate you, can't you see that?" said Reeda.
His ego bit him the moment he heard Reeda. He would never accept being weak just because he was not part of the army.
Civilians were recruited for the Brotherhood of Seekers: a search team for the missing heir to the throne of Great Havañak, who had been reported missing after failing to return from a mission to expand Havañak's borders.
Kinada knew that, he knew that civilians were recruited, he saw their opponents, he saw that they were treated fairly, their opponents were never part of the army. It was supposed to be civilian against civilian. Random civilians who signed up were just pitted against each other, and whoever won got a spot. But he had to compete against Lotino, who was part of the army.
These citizens are now all fighting for a place. Not all of those who were successfully recruited came forward because they cared about the ruler or his missing son, so many of them came forward for the money, which was good enough to risk their lives for.
Kinada thought about all this and he realized that if he wanted to get a place as a seeker, he had to get through Lotino, no matter what it cost him.
Reeda, who had not heard from Kin in a while, thought he had already fallen asleep, but that was not the case. He was thinking.
"Then I'll prove to them that he's no better than I am just because he's in the army," Kin whispered, and she was startled, shocked. She thought she would succeed in convincing him.
Kin turned to her and let his eyes circle around her pupils. She did not know what to say to him.
"Have you lost your mind?" She said. She was angry, but she could control her emotions very well. Kinada knew that, and he took advantage of that. He knew she'd never agree to get angry with him for any reason he didn't know either.
"No, I'm not. Okay? Listen to me, Reeda," he whispered in her face.
"I've to do this, for me. I can't go on living like this," he added.
"Can you even hear yourself speak? You've already lost twice to Lotino. You know the rule, don't you?" she said, raising her voice slightly, just barely above a whisper.
"Don't you even think how I'd feel if Lotino were somehow-" she said, breaking off.
"Nothing will happen to me, I promise you?" He said to her, looking at her already watery and tired eyeballs.
"Okay, fine. I'm not asking for a third round. After all, I've been living like this since I was a kid. They can't hate me any more than they've for the last 24 years." He said, and she listened.
"Promise," said Reeda, and sighed.
"Must I?" he said, and she nodded.
"Okay, I promise you, Reeda Dreja, never again to go to the arena of sand for a fight against the melon head named Lotino," he said, and they both burst out laughing.
★ E A R T H R E A L M ★★ H A V A Ñ A K ★A R E N A O F S A N DThe people were gathered, the Arena of Sand had never been so full. They were all waiting for the last great battle. This was the day when the last member of the Brotherhood of Seekers would be chosen. Lotino, who was eligible to be the leader of this brotherhood, had already been summoned by the ruler's advisor, who was also the announcer. He had realised that with Lotino's fighting abilities, anyone who could overcome him and win the battle would be worth the last place. For the journey to the forests of Eslava, they needed men with great fighting skills."Is there one man! Only one man bold enough to stand against the Warcraft, Lotino?"The ruler's advisor spoke with such enthusiasm, patting Lotino's bare chest. Lotino chuckled when he saw that there was no one in the crowd willing to accept the open challenge. He was not the only one looking forward to the fight, Lotino himself wanted nothing more than for the bel
In the confines of his room, Kinada sat on the bare floor wondering what this next phase of life would look like for him. It was bad enough to be different, to be despised by all and regarded as an outcast in his own land. Now he is faced with a greater battle, one which is worse than he has ever faced."You brought this one upon yourself Kinada, you and you alone" he muttered to himself. If only he listened to Reeda. "I have not just lost my freedom but possibly the only soul who has ever cared about my existence."Sitting on the cold hard floor, he leaned back on the rough wall behind him, resting his head on the wall, he took a deep breath. He is no doubt tired, beyond tired, in fact, tired is an understatement. Broken is the word. To be clear, Kin was both physically and emotionally broken. If he wasn't already used to the entire world being too hard on him, he would be crying his eyes out. He took a moment to examine his bruised body a little. His swollen arm, bruises all over
Reeda continues to pace back and forth in Kinada's apartment. She was sure she read Kin's message right, of course she did. But she wants to believe she missed something up. There's no way Kinada was foolish enough to leave a message like this, or even stupid enough to attempt to carryout what she could make out of his message."Surely, Kin is not that stupid" Is he not? I mean he readily threw himself into Lotino's den with his eyes wide open, even after he had already lost to him twice. If that is not stupidity of the highest order, what is? "I need to talk some sense into that block head" she said aloud. Reeda made to rush out of the house, but it struck her like a heavy wind of reality. "But how do I get in? oh no, no, no" There's no way she can get to Kinada. No matter how much she tries, they won't let her in. Even if she finds her way in, How would she get audience with him?She slowly sank into the bed feeling so defeated. Why on earth did Kin have to put her in this situa
She has tried so many times, using different techniques to make her forget about the incident, all to no avail. It wasn't working, nothing seems to be working. Her curiosity is getting the best of her and no one can blame her.If Qora did not know better, she would think Tanara was high on some substance, but she's yet to find a substance that can make this young woman high. "You have not been having a good sleep have you? You look terrible" Qora said to Tanara who sat at the bar staring right back at her like she had no interest in the words that just came out of her mouth."What is the matter dear, talk to me. You don't look okay!" Qora pressed on. "Of course I'm not ok Qora. How could I? Nothing seems to be making sense anymore, absolutely nothing." Tanara snapped at the poor woman. "Hmm, it's still about your mystery man is it not?" Qora askedRolling her eyes, Tanara replied "Firstly, He is not MY mystery man. And secondly, it is not just about the man, Qora. I feel there is m
★ E A R T H R E A L M ★★ N U M C R É S ★"Bring me his head!" shouted the grim voice of a grey-haired old man in a silver robe through the dense crowd at the entrance to the tavern. He was not exaggerating; he meant every word he spoke.Even as he screamed at the top of his lungs, he attracted no attention. A hand raised in the air and a back and forth motion signaled his troop of mages.Men in black robes began to crowd into the tavern - through the wide-open door that revealed a view of the crescent moon disappearing into the thick grey clouds in the sky.Moran was somewhere between the inner and outer chambers of the tavern when he heard Goja command his magicians to bring his head. His heart beat faster, he knew they were slow at their movements, and it would take them time to find a way into the second chamber he was heading towards, hoping to find an escape route.He knew that he had committed a great offence. For someone who had dedicated his life to stealing masterpieces,
★ E A R T H R E A L M ★★ N U M C R É S ★The creaking sound of the door woke the cat, who was lying on the chair in the living room. He immediately hopped down when he saw Tanara's shillouette. She stretched languidly while wrapping her tail around Tanara's leg."Careful!" shouted Moran as he pushed Tanara out of her cat's grip and drew his sword. Before Tanara could ask why she was pushed out of the way or why he drew his sword, she heard her cat scream loudly, and the next thing she saw was cat blood splattering across her face."Alos must have sent this monster after us. I should not be here, I'd be putting you in danger," Moran said, sliding his blade back into position. In doing so, he overlooked the frozen young woman standing next to him.Tanara had run out of words. Her eyes wide, she stared at the dead, headless cat before her. Staring into her palms after wiping her face with them, she looked at Moran very angrily.Moran straightened up and backed away a bit. It was hard fo
★ S H A D O W W O R L D ★★ TSHIRI'S THRONE ★Hands gently laid on the door. . .One hand on each side. . .A deep breath and a few negative thoughts about what awaits him on the other side of the door if he fails a mission.Alos was supposed to retrieve the crier from Moran, and somehow he failed. He knew that he was responsible not only for his own actions, but also for those of his followers.They had all failed in a simple task that night, and he knew full well that there would be consequences that he would have to face as reparations for his failure. He had spent the entire day reporting on last night's failure and was thinking about the best way to say that he had failed. But he knew he could not avoid it, and he thought this night was the perfect time to come into the presence of the Dark One.He pressed gently, and the door opened. It revealed the empty, vast land, wide enough to lose sight of man. He could not see the end of the land. Even in the glow of the moon, he could