CHAPTER 41
SHAME AND BLISTERS
"Stir up thyself, and awake to my judgment, even unto my cause, my God and my Lord."
PSALMS 35:23
Mackis, his men, and a select group of Martyna's soldiers arrived on the Burlington highland. Through their telescope, they took in the sight of their former city, now a remnant of war, badly damaged. The once mighty gates had been replaced with new ones, bearing a grand inscription: KINGDOM OF SHUNAB.
Armored troops swarmed the kingdom, giving it the appearance of a city perpetually at war. The lively and vibrant city of Burlington was no more, replaced by a dichotomy of armies and slaves.
Unaware of the full layout of the kingdom, Mackis and his armies used the underground tunnel to secretly enter the palace. They found a woman at the tunnel's exit, struggling to open the tightly sealed steel door.