THE TOWN OF GAMOT

"Can't sleep?" Sulaya asked her daughter. She is currently roving around the camp until she sees her daughter dumbfounded while sitting on the rock.

"I miss Granny Juana. I thought she will come with us,"

"No she won't, she knows the danger ahead of our journey, so I decided to let five of young spiral hunters return to Sulaya island with her." Sulaya sighed. Then she continue, "I miss her too..."

"Mother, I felt suddenly nervous, to meet the king, you know, I never met him in my whole life!" Mindaza said.

"It's a surprise for the King that he will meet an island girl, and that is my precious daughter."

"What do you mean?"

"You will know, when we reach there. I'm sure the king will be glad to meet you..." Sulaya said.

Mindaza looked into her mother's eyes and smiled. There was never any doubt when Sulaya was there. Until Sulaya left her front, and continued on her walk around.

Mindaza took a deep breath and looked at her sword. She sat up, restless with her thoughts.

In the morning, orphaned children were fed before they traveled to the king's place. But the expected arrival was not in order.

"Something's wrong in here" Sulaya said.

She held up her sword and she told Ganadara to take Mindaza with her.

"Stay here until I gave a signal, Ganadara will take the lead, all of you will be safe here in the trees"

Mindaza nodded to Sulaya.

"Be careful, we will be more alert" Ganadara said as she nod at Sulaya.

Four men and two women joined Sulaya to take the risk. As they approached the hill they found the first body, a woman's remain. Somebody put an axe through the back of her head. And her blood could be seen drying for about several days.

"Horrible killings, bad people are here" one spiral hunter said.

"There is probably an attack, get ready. We need to see the king as soon as possible."

Sulaya said as they fell to the ground. Observing the surroundings, she thought that maybe someone would see them and put them in the trap.

They slowly crawled past the lifeless bodies of children, young and old people. Sulaya hated to see the situations, and at the same time she feels sorry for the people who were killed in the area.

"You had enough strength, your daughter is here" one female says behind, as Sulaya hears it, she turned her gazed.

"What are you doing here? I told you to stay there!" Sulaya said in low voices, and her eyes widened when she saw that Mindaza was following them.

"I don't want to hide Master Sulaya; I want to help you; let me be careful of myself now." Mindaza nodded as she answered her mother.

"You are truly a hunter" one male said.

"Daughter like mother" one female whispered.

"Come here, don't ever try to do this again, our people need you." Sulaya said.

When Mindaza got close to her mother, she looked down on the crumpled body. The woman had been about thirty, with a thin, lined face. Her mouth was open in a permanent silent scream. They moved on cautiously.

"Who would have done that?" Mindaza asked. But Sulaya did not answer.

The second body was a few paces further on, with the third one beyond that.

There was no sign of battle or even resistance, only of slaughter and massacre. All the dead were unarmed civilians.

The spiral hunters stood at the narrow paling that served as a protective barrier, looking up the single main street. It's the town of Salom, which has numerous lanes that plummeted right angles down both sides of the ridge.

The houses were either destroyed, or still smoking from a recent fire and bodies lay thick on the streets.

"Northern men have taken the town." There was no emotion in Sulaya's voice. At the same time, one man from the spiral hunters group said, "I think they already captured the city"

Mindaza saw the two Northern men's bodies. Half of their bodies are on fire with a knife stuck in their chest, and she said, "At least some of them paid the price."

Everyone looked in the direction Mindaza was looking at. They found out that what she said was true.

"Keep close and, keep your hand in the hilt of your sword" Sulaya told her daughter.

They moved cautiously, dodging from house to house as they advanced up the long ridge that comprised the town of Salom. Each building revealed fresh horrors, with dead and mutilated bodies, women, men and children, and even dogs and cats, stuck to the floors with congealed blood.

'The Northern men know no pity," Sulaya said softly. There was a faint sheen of sweat on her face.

Mindaza nodded, unable to speak. The scenes were the same as in the village they had discovered in the north, except multiplied a hundredfold.

The royal place of Salom overlooked the town, its stone walls seemingly impenetrable, its tall tower glowering over the fields and far beyond, and its walls thrusting upward from the sheer face of the cliff in every spot save one, where a drawbridge crossed a deep, defending ditch.

"Mother, do you think the king is still alive?" Mindaza asked.

"I believe he is still alive for now," Sulaya replied as her eyes ran over the town of Salom.

"The king will be inside, awaiting his chance to launch a counter-attack," Mindaza says positively.

"Let's see," Sulaya said.

"Shall we go further?"

Sulaya nodded. Then she added, "Hunters, please be careful now. These men would not be mere raiders but trained warriors."

And so, the Spiral hunters make their move again, with Mindaza following Sulaya's movements, keeping in the shadow of the buildings as they made their way up to the head of the steep ridge. She winced at the sight of two monks, crucified to a church door. One was still alive and moaned as they passed.

"We must help him," Mindaza said, as the man twisted against his bonds and turned agonised eyes to them.

"Let me check it first," Sulaya said and she walked near the monk, followed by the other hunters.

"His life will be in danger, even if we cut him down, he would have lingered in pain for many hours and then he will slowly die" Sulaya explained.

But Mindaza did not answer. She could not look at the dead man. She felt sick. The ridge steepened as they neared the town of Salom.

"Be alert, the drawbridge is down" Sulaya said for what she saw around. The sound of his sword clattering against the stone wall of a house seemed to resound like the clash of cymbals. Mindaza unsheathed her sword. The thrill of power surged up her arms. She closed her eyes in relief as new courage chased away her fear.

"So, let's begin" Mindaza balanced her sword across to her shoulder.

But Sulaya placed a hand on her arm as fast as she could to stop her daughter and said.

"No, stay behind me."

Mindaza stopped immediately but her eyes turned to her mother. Realizing that she had never seen her looking so nervous before.

As their footsteps echoed on the wooden planks of the drawbridge, changing to a sharper clicking when they hit the rock on the other side. The gatehouse rose above them, stark stone and home to three men of the guard. these guars are all warriors who are good at using swords. But all of them, were dead sprawled on the stone floor.

Next there are four guards tied to the pillar of the "gate post" they are known for their good skill with the bow, but they are now bloodied and lifeless.

"How did the invaders manage that?" Sulaya asked, as she looked around her. "How did they manage to get past the guard?"

Mindaza shook her head. "Let's hunt for these men"

"Keep close, and don't do anything until I say so!" Sulaya reminded her daughter. She thinks that it is just a trap, or maybe the northern men are hunting them.

There are also wild dogs roaming the area, some of them barked but they ignored them and just passed by.

The town of Gamot is primarily enclosed by thick stone walls. That is why this place's foundation has remained solid for so long. The outlines of the rock climbed to a central basaltic mound, which supported the royal hall. A twelve-foot-high wall surrounded a scatter of stone and timber houses, each with an internal defensive stair and battlements. Flies rose in filthy clouds, buzzing over a dozen carcasses, feasting on blood and mutilated flesh.

Everyone is alert as they walk. they never take their eyes off their surroundings. This is to unite in one place in case someone attacks. Counting three steps they close the distance to each other, and their hands hold their weapons.

"I think there is no one here" Mindaza said.

as she felt disappointed.

"Someone's there?" Sulaya called out.

"If you are still alive, you can show up and introduce yourself to us, we will help you if needed," Sulaya ordered. But there are no voices that are being heard.

Even in the high part of the houses and buildings no one shows up. And so, they checked the buildings one by one, seeing both of them men and women as dead warriors, and a few oldsters with their heads crushed.

"All of them were hit by an ax, the cause of their death" one male spiral hunter said.

"In that case maybe it is another tribe that attacks this area," one female responds to his comments.

"Axe wounds," Sulaya said, as she analyzed the scene.

"But there's a few dead here, where is the other?" one female from spiral hunter asked.

Sulaya nodded at her. She carefully thinks of something, and then she turns her gazed at the other directions.

"We only have that room to visit now"

After Sulaya said this, all members eyes turned to the royal hall.