The Vision

"Get down!"

Greg felt a black magic surrounding the arrow. He had a hunch the witches were in the move finding him to get back to them, to his hometown. He has been hiding in the west lands for years. For the first time, he has been located yet he has to expect any attacks for he is an escapee. He looked at Etana and the others ducked on the floor. Explaining everything will not be helpful at the moment. They must fight. He knew that if he told them about himself it will be hard for them to absorb his past. At least, he has to tell them when the right time comes. But first, he has to figure out how to silence the sudden attackers.

Quickly, he grabbed a cloak hanging on one of his wall hangers. He secretly went to his window turning his eyes everywhere. He cannot see anyone around but he felt a strong black magic somewhere else. 'They're hiding.'

"Prepare yourselves. We are surrounded."

He grabbed the rifle and loaded it with bullets that he kept hidden in a box.

"Follow me."

The door is the only way to exit the room but instead, they looked at Greg walking to the center part of the room. He knelt down detaching a board of wood, there is a hole behind it just the right size for a person to fit in.

He looked around to check once again to see that it is safe at that moment, "Get down.".

It is a secret passageway leading down to another floor. He took the first jump. The room is dark probably because it is intended as a hidden room. There were no stairs so they have to do a safe jump. One by one, they followed landing in another room.

Greg started walking with the tip of his shoes to avoid producing a sound that might lead the enemy to them. Feeling the surrounding he made sure there were no enemies near. He signaled his hand telling them to line behind him. In front of him is a thick dark curtain which he carefully moved on both sides for them to pass through. A light from the sun passed through it, their eyes narrowed from a light uncalled for. Silently, they walked attentively to their surrounding. They cannot afford to be reckless.

Suddenly, an arrow passed through them again scratching Greg's arm this time. For a moment, he felt the pain but it never threatened him. He looked behind to see the arrow with its arrowhead buried in the ground, he located where the shaft is pointed. There, he saw the attacker.

"Take cover!" He shouted.

From their view, they can see a guy covered with color black cloak with a bow ready for another blow. Luckily, Greg was able block it with his cloak before it could reach his forehead. His cloak has a shield spell protecting him from any attacks. He then aimed for the flesh but the guy dodged it a little inflicting just a small scratch on his cheek.

Etana was watching Greg having a hard time. She silently moved her hands to get her dagger and aimed it to the man. It successfully reached the guy stabbing his cloak but after seconds, the dagger turned into ashes vanishing into the air. The hole made by the dagger gets back to what it was before. It was gone like it was not even stabbed.

Loudly, Greg told Etana, "You're good. Try aiming for his body."

Greg ran towards the guy for distraction. Etana took her time focusing to her target. The guy was in a panic this time, moving everywhere so she has to double her focus on the target.

"Princess, how many seconds do you need?"

"Five."

After hearing her response, Zico unleashed his sword holding it with his two hands on one side and dashed forward to where the guy is.

'Shall I just aim for him directly? No, he saw me coming towards him. I'll get him on his left side.'

As the man was trying to escape, he can foresee that Zico was going to his left so he moved on a different direction. He turned around to freely evade. He smirked successfully dodging an attack. Little did he knew, Zico was already behind him holding from the back.

As soon as Etana received the signal, at the count of three, she aimed her dagger straight to the guy but he was able to refuse the grip dodging the approaching dagger towards him but an arrow caught him in the end. It was Dylan's arrow that got him stabbing a hole in his stomach. Etana's dagger served as a bait and it is Dylan to finish the mission.

There were sounds up on a tree that made them look to its direction. They once again prepared for a sudden attack to see that it was Alex. He got down from a tree with another guy in black cloak placed on one side of his shoulders.

"So there were two of them."

"Please, don't kill me." The guy pleaded.

The guy tried breaking free but Alex was too hard on locking him. He then threw the guy to Greg for him to catch. He took off their cloaks and murmured an incantation removing the black magic it possesses. The cloak could still have something in it that the enemy might use to their advantage so he murmured a spell creating a fire on the cloak burning it into ashes.

"Hey, what are you doing?" The guy asked.

The guy tried breaking free again but Greg was too quick giving him a knuckle on the nape of his neck making him unconscious.

"How did you do that?" Zico asked.

"It's a magic spell."

The day suddenly went down when they realize that the night is approaching. The night could be dangerous so they have to move quick.

"It's getting dark. Let's get back to the inn."

They went back inside the inn bringing with them the two guys they caught. They will be interrogating them once they wake up.

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"How did you know all of those?" Etana asked.

They were in a room with covered with a black curtains to better protect them. Greg locked it with an incantation to remove their existence. His power of black magic can be traced by anyone that possesses black magic as well so he has to double the layer of black magic that surrounds the inn just to make sure.

"I was once a captive of the witches from the South Land. They thought kidnap children to teach them black magic. It was a good vision to me when I was a child but I found out that they were using us to cause in the land. I escaped from them then I made it here in the West Land where no one knows of my existence."

He gets the rifle placing it on the table.

"This is a firearm you haven't heard about. Someone gave this to me."

"Who was that?" She asked.

There were silence in between them for the question hooked him. He took a sip from his cup to think what word to start.

"He was around my age when he got here in the West Land. He was wearing a foreign clothing that time. We met somewhere in the forest near here. His name is Agan."

"Agan?"

"You know him, smidget?"

"How does he looked like. Tell me. He could be my father."

Greg has seen the shine in Zico's eyes, interested to what he is going to say next. He closes his eyes to remember everything the first time he met Agan.

"He was a tall built man carrying a sword and something covered with a cloth on his back. He had a strong aura that surrounds him. It was just a day we hangout together fighting monsters to protect this small village. He showed me how to use this rifle and gave it to me before we separated our ways."

Tears started to fall from Zico's eyes. His father died on him. For a moment, he felt missing someone he dearly love, his father. He still remembers the last words his father had told him.

"Agan was a good man."

Zico took a little sniffs from crying and wiped it off with a cloth. Simply, Alex offered him his drink to ease his pain and Dylan giving him small taps on his head.

"Here, drink this."

"So where did the conversation ended?" Zico asked.

"Zico, how did your father died?"

"He was just found dead in his room in the morning."

Somehow, Etana was getting in to the conversation trying to connect the informations she gets but it is not enough.

"Could it be someone had poisoned him?"

"We do not know. There was bite in his neck so we assumed it was a snake that poisoned him."

"When I was in the care of the witches, I learned that they use snakes for transferring their black magic. Snakes are their pets. Only witches can do that. They only teach us children the basic spells that is the first degree spells but I studied their book secretly. I've reached the second degree spells. Controlling a snake is at the 4th degree. We call them, Tiana. A class for a higher tier."

Suddenly there was a shout from the outside cutting off their conversation.

"Who's that?"

"The townspeople."

"What's happening?"

Greg hurriedly went downstairs to see the townspeople gathering in front of his inn. There were commotions everywhere.

"Help!"

An old woman is shouting inside a house asking for help. People were gathered outside so he had a hard time passing through a bunch of people. He saw the woman with the child on her lap.

"My daughter. Help me!"

The woman was crying heavily trying to encourage her daughter to still breathe.

"Please, don't give up."

The girl was already frail and sick. Her skin had gotten pale nearing her death. Greg ran towards the girl to see her condition but it was too late. She gave up unable to bear the hard life.

"Agatha? Agatha wake up."

She was trying to revive her but life gave up on her leaving no words for her mother grieving upon her lost. Etana and Zico followed him witnessing the girl's death. At that moment, Zico felt the grief of losing someone. The pain he felt losing his father is like the woman in front of him losing her daughter.

"What happened?" Etana asked.

Despite of grieving so much, the woman tried speaking saying, "It is hard to find a food in this town. It is the season of drought, our rice fields cannot survive with the weather. There is no rain to grow them."

Since the town is lagging behind from her kingdom, she thought that maybe she could help the people before they leave.

Softly, she gave her words of encouragement giving her a tap on her back, "We'll give your daughter a burial but please hang in there.".

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"We have to do something to help the people in this town." Etana suggested.

Etana together with Alex, Zico, Dylan, and Greg were currently holding a meeting together with the town's elder, the capable oldest of the village. They were discussing the plans how to execute their plans with the people to participate.

In the morning, their plan last night were spread in entire town and they have to gather at the front of the inn.

The townspeople agreed since they are much in need of solutions to get through the drought. Etana divided the people based on their physical capabilities from men with physique to women. Men did the heavy labour, they are to dig a hole at the center of the town with a large diameter and has 30 to 50 feet deep until they can see water overflowing. The water will be used for drinking and watering the field.

Dylan brought the other men to the riverbanks to collect clay. The clay will be used to make bricks needed to pile up inside the well to avoid it from breaking. Working together, it took three days for the townspeople to finish. The town is becoming alive.

It is time for Etana and her group to leave. They have already served their purpose. People began giving them tokens of gratitude before they could bid their goodbyes. A young boy approached them giving them horses, there are four horses behind him with a rope rolled around his hand.

"My grandfather is giving you these horses to serve as his token of gratitude."

The boy gave her a smile happy to the reaction that Etana gave her. He immediately ran back to his grandfather that turned out to be the eldest in town. He was standing from a distance giving the boy a tap on his head. Etana nodded to express her gratitude.

'May the heavens will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory.'

"So long, young lads. You can come back anytime." Greg assisted them to the outside gates of the town saying his goodbye.

"We'll never get back here, old man." Alex replied.

Greg gave him a smirk, "You never changed."

Etana rode her horse first ahead of them then they followed behind her. It was still early in the morning so they have to be fast in their travel.

"Where do we go next?" She asked.

"To my land, Rondoeuvres."