We rode our horses heading east and while we were on the way our horses staggered and almost lost their footing and then something unexpected happened.
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Chapter 3: Intrusion
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A hot wind hit our village and almost knocked me off my horse, the houses were getting destroyed as if they were feathers, and trees were breaking from their roots and flying to the sky.
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Our carriage barely withstood this unexpected violent storm that hit Anni, and after escaping we started heading to the capital region Rala.
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Mom said she knows people who could help us there. The problem was that we had to pass through Hali to get there. We didn't feel safe going through there considering all the criminals and the outlaws presiding over the region, but Mom said we have to because it’s the fastest route.
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After two days of riding, we reached the place that dad told us to wait for him in, which was a small village in Hali called Salara. So we stopped by a nearby tavern to get some sleep and wait for dad to get here so we can travel together. While we were waiting I was still confused about what was happening so I asked her.
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“Mom, why are we leaving Anni and what's happening to our village?”
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“It’s a long story and this is not the right time to ask questions, you need to sleep because we have a long trip tomorrow.”
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“ I don’t care about our trip, I want to stay in Anni. This wind isn’t enough of a reason for us to leave!”
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“Okay if you want to know this bad I will tell you, but I have to start from the beginning.
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“100 years ago, all 5 regions were one big kingdom called Ralatenia. and it was ruled by the royal family Fenestra for thousands of years.
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They always protected the kingdom from all harm and hostility using the legendary power Alnijma inherited from their ancestors that gets passed from the strongest fighter of the family to another after one dies.
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“The kingdom was at peace and friendly for so long that soldiers stopped training and the army got weaker. One day the owner of the power Alnijma finally died. It was time for another royal family member to get the power, but for the first time ever, Alnijma wasn’t passed down to anyone.
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According to the legend, Alnijma only gets passed down to worthy royal soldiers who devote their lives to training and protecting the kingdom.
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“At that time royal members didn’t care much because it wasn’t needed since there weren't any wars or battles to fight.
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20 years later, the kingdom Ralatenia was attacked by a huge red dragon now known as Nifeir. The tips of the beast's wings were stained black, His claws were as big as a full grown man, they were hard as if they were made out of the finest steel, flames stream came from his mouth melting mountings to ashes.
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“He went on a rampage destroying most of the eastern side of Ralatenia, which is now known as the region Anni. The king stationed his army in the five major cities of the kingdom so that they could protect the people from the extreme dragon attacks. While the dragon was going insane attacking the kingdom back and forth for many days. The part of the kingdom that was damaged the most was the southeast.
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"After long days of destruction, the dragon Nifeir left Ralatenia and was gone but still undefeated, even though the fighting stopped, the reason for the dragon attack was unknown, and the people were still scared that he might come back. So, they asked the king to leave the army stationed in their cities for a little longer, so if the dragon attacked again the army would resist him and ensure their safety.
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“The king accepted their request. But after some time the armies refused to go back and built their regions in place of the cities they were assigned to, new leaders were elected in each of the cities and raised their own banners separating themselves from the kingdom.
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That incident is what led the kingdom Ralatenia to be divided into the five known regions: Anni, Thani, Hama, Rala, and Hali.
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“To this day the successor of Alnijma hasn’t been found yet. Some people go so far as to say that the power of Alnijma was just a lie created by the royal family Fenestra to scare the other nations from attacking Ralatenia.
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I believe that Alnijma wasn’t a lie andl all of These people will be proven wrong in the future. And one day the successor of Alnijma will appear to lead the kingdom one day.”
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“Wow mom I didn’t know our kingdom had such history, but how did you know all of this information? No one has ever mentioned anything about this story. And what does it have to do with anything that’s happening now?”
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“I was taught a lot of history by my instructor when I was a child,” Tara said.
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“You never told me that you went to school, I thought you were always poor before you met dad?” he asked?
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“This is not our topic now we will talk about it some other day.
The truth is that I believe that the cause of that strong wind isn’t just a normal storm, it’s something bigger and far more dangerous; I believe it’s caused by the mythical dragon Nifeir.
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After all these years he finally came back to attack again, I wonder if the force of the allied regions will be able to kill him this time.”
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“Is this why there was no one in the village?”
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“Yes son, so now all we have to do is wait for Nashami to join us and flee to Rala and let the army handle him,”
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After we finished our talk we spent the night in the tavern and had a good sleep, when we woke up in the morning dad was still not here so we went outside to buy some food.
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The village was full of people in the morning and wasn’t scary like it was at night. When we finished our purchases we headed back to the tavern.
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On the way back, we went through a small alley that leads to the tavern. A bunch of bandits were standing in the way, we layed low and tried to avoid trouble but one of them looked at us.
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“Is she who I think she is?” Bandit asked.
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“ That's definitely her, I can’t mistake those crystal blue eyes, yellow shiny silky hair, and smooth pale skin.” bandit answered.
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There were eight of them, they surrounded us.
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“What are you fools doing, if anyone gets close to us I’m beating him up”
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“Huh! You have the guts to talk to us this way little kid, get away from here before you get yourself killed”.
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It was a terrifying moment as the bandits surrounded us, one of them aggressively pulled my mom from her hand. Without hesitation, I knew I had to act to protect my mom. With adrenaline pumping through my veins, I lunged forward, using my wooden sword to strike his head with all the strength I could gather. The impact was solid, and he crumpled to the ground unconscious.
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But the fight was far from over. Two more bandits, fueled by anger, came at me with their gleaming daggers. My instincts took over as I agilely dodged their quick attacks.
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I seized the opportunity to sweep one off his feet, causing him to slip and take his weapon. I wasted no time, snatching his dagger and using it as a means of defense. Then I proceeded to wrestle the second one until I had a chance to grab the dagger and stab his shoulder, forcing him to retreat in pain.
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But the odds were against me. Before I got my guard up two other bandits came from behind my back, catching me by surprise. They held me firmly while their friend landed punch after a punch on my body repeatedly. Darkness closed in as I started losing consciousness, and with one final blow from their leader, they slammed me brutally onto the ground.
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And at that point I wasn’t able to move so I looked up and saw my mom getting tied up, so I screamed as hard as I could.
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“Leave her !”
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“Who is this little kid do you guys know him?” leader asked.
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“Don’t harm my servant !” Tara said.
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“No one cares about your servant, all we care about is you. I’m taking you home”. Leader said.
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I’m a servant? Take her home? What are they talking about?
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Their leader was about to take her away but an unknown kid stood and stopped him.
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“I won’t let you go this time!” The kid yelled
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“Hahaha Are you another servant of hers.”
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“ I’m no one’s servant moron, I’m Narami from the Akaru clan. And I came here to kill you Shoraz!”
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The determination in Narami's furious eyes and scars all over his body and the iron pipe in his hand spoke volumes about the hardships he had endured. It was clear that he was a force to be reckoned with.
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He had long black hair, his clothes were ripped and full of dirt. I don’t know what he wants but all I could hope for was that he could find someone to come to our aid in this desperate situation.
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Narami ran straight towards Shoraz, and when he was about to hit him, Shoraz put a knife on my mom’s neck
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“Get away from here before I cut her throat”
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Nara stood frozen in fear in his place and stopped moving.
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While they were talking I took my chance and started crawling.
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“This is between me and you, she doesn’t have anything to do with this. leave her and face me like a man” Narami said.
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“If this is between me and you then why do you care about her?. Or maybe you are still traumatized from what happened to your little family?” Shoraz smirked.
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“This is it, nothing is stopping me from killing you now!” Narami screamed.
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Shoraz pushed the knife harder on my mom’s neck, As Narami dashed toward him, I sneaked behind him and pulled his foot.
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This unexpected move created an opportunity for Narami to strike Shoraz's arm, causing him to release my mom
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My mom collapsed on the ground beside me, and the sight of blood flowing from her neck shook me to the core. Unable to contain my anger and frustration, I gathered my strength forcing my body to get up to rejoin the battle and to kill them all.
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“ At that moment my body felt like it was heating up in an oven. Rage consumed my mind, and the last thing I remember was getting up and hitting everything in front of me left and right until the world faded into blackness.”
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“Stop talking now, you have multiple bone fractures and bruises. You have to rest if you want to have a fast recovery, "the doctor said.
“He already slept for two days, let him talk while he can, maybe we can get a clue to help us understand the situation,2” tavern owner replied.
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“That’s all I remember from what happened that day, do any of you know anything else? Anything that can help me find my mom?” Estora asked.
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“ My name is Fondo and I’m this tavern’s owner and the kid you talked about is my son Narami and he hasn't returned since that day. we will ask him to explain to us what happened once we find him. We have been looking for him all this time but to no avail. And we will make sure to look for you Mom as well”
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“And as for that day my men told me that they heard voices of screaming outside of the tavern, so they rushed outside to see what was happening.
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They described what they saw as terrifying and unbelievable. A kid was floating in the air with his eyeballs inside out his hair up and a strange dark aura was visibly surrounding him, and seven men were smashed into the ground.
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And after that a black thunderbolt struck him from the sky and everyone went unconscious, and when they woke up they told me everyone was gone other than you.”
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“I don’t understand, did this actually happen? And was my mom kidnapped?” Estora Asked.
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“My men have no reason to lie, but this is all we know right now kid, we are going to have to wait for my son Narami to come back and tell us the rest of the story”
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“How do you know that he’s coming back?” Estora asked.
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“He always does,” Fondo answered.
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three days later, I had partially recovered my strength and was able to resume my regular activities. However, the doctor advised me to wait for at least one more week before considering a return to any form of combat.
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I went for a little walk back to that alley hoping that revisiting the scene might trigger my brain to remember something but unfortunately nothing from that day came back to me.
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I returned to the tavern where I was staying, and as I was entering my room Fondo approached me.
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“Hey Estora, I have something important to tell you. Come have dinner at my house this evening and we will talk all about it.”
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“Okay, I will be there.”186Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡElzTzINhyX
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