“Jirot reminds me of you when you were young, sister,” Tonagek admitted.

  “You say that this soon?” Sonarot replied, her lips f an even wider smirk.

  Tonagek bowed his head. “I because it is true.”

  “She does not cause trouble for father, she adores him too much, but she likes to test me,” Sonarot said, letting out a soft sigh, one full of satisfa.

  “I will pce the boy to sleep so that I may drink with you,” Tonagek said, standing up to pce the boy aside.

  Sonarot watched as her brother took the boy away. Tonagek, who had been so prideful, who had e face to face with all manner of beasts and monsters, who had sidered to fight for the position of a Great Elder, had bee so small after the death of his son so retly. She waited for him to return, though was uo think of words to soothe his ag heart.

  Though the Iyrmen weled death, the death of a child was so different, and even the hearts of Iyrmen, which were often sidered to be made of steel or stone, could only ache for the children of the Iyr.

  ‘Are you safe?’ Sonarot thought of the young Iyrmen who had left, those she had raised from when they were babes.

  Nirot’s heart pounded within her chest as her axe cut through a duabears skull, letting it fall, allowing ao climb up to take its pce. Though she was red hot with rage, she had a different task, the same task as her cousin and his traihe same trainee who could defeat her. They were trained with the Rot family’s ability. While the rage of Naqokan allowed her to smite her enemies, and the rage of Uwajin allowed her to strike with greater fury, the rage of the Rot family was the kind which did not empower their strikes, but rather their bodies.

  The ability of the Rot family was to push through almost any kind of damage. While me dancers could push through the pain of a duabear’s cw, or a birdcat’s bite, it was the Rot family’s rage which allowed them to walk through a Fireball as though they were Gaks, but also all other elements, shrugging off acidic rain, lightning storms, wicked poison, all save for that which assaulted the mind.

  Her role, like that of Jurot and Nobby, was to hold the front lihey would take the blows at the front, allowing Naqokan and Uwajin to sughter as much as they could. Nirot’s blows were more trolled, slig the heads off the creatures, while raising her shield to defend against their terrifying blows.

  How could she, a young Iyrman who was to turn een this year, stand beside her cousin? She, who had cimed the rights of an Expert before turning twenty, something which many of the one hundred could not? A pike struck the duabear from over her shoulder, Bavin’s mighty strength pushing it away from her.

  Bavin, like the farmers, were using rger ons from behind the Iyrmen. It was not a position most Iyrmen would want, but the young man, who had been gifted such a grand opportunity due to his grandfather, did not want to shame his family.

  The memory of returning back to the Iyr as an Expert filled the young man’s mind. He had returned with the news, and had shocked the entire family when he had defeated his twin sister, who had mastered the basics of the Vin family way, but was not yet an Expert. He had never uood why his sister had been so prideful of her family, nor why she was so eager to fight, but upon seeing his sister’s smile when he had defeated her, he uood.

  An itch appeared at the back of Bavin’s neck, the young man wishing to step forward so he could form the vanguard, but he forced the thought away. He would remain beside the farmers, who were in little danger, and would make sure nothing would happen to them.

  It was not the time of Bavin, or the time of Iyrmen, but the time of Fate’s Golden.

  Amira held her bde tightly in hand as she watched the age unfold before her. It was ohing to see Iyrmen bathing themselves in the blood of their enemies, but to see the porters and the farmers w with systematic efficy, as though they had been trained by the Order of Bck Mountain. She had yet to step forward to attack or assist in any capacity, even including throwing javelins. At least Jonn and Korin had cast a spell on the priests to increase their defensive abilities, but she had only drawn her shield and bde. She sed the area for threats, something the keen senses of the wolves rendered near useless.

  Even Adam had stopped throwing out his fire, fog instead on catg a break point within their line, which did not e. The Iyrmeoo sturdy, their ons also eager for blood. The farmers and porters, who assisted with their longer ons, finished off any creatures which dared not to die within moments to the Iyrmen. Vonda and Dunes both held up their spell, Spectral Sentinels, one of the greatest spells within a priest’s arsenal.

  The warmth of the spell surrouhe area, rge ons of light, like Adam’s own Spiritual on, floated in the air. Though, uhe Sed Gate spell, this spell affected a wide range around the priest, easily five metres oher side, its effects only applying to foes the priests picked. The spell then rained upon a holy wrath upon its foes while they remained within its light, also slowing any foe within its range.

  However, such abilities were usually for those who were more experieypically, one would gain the ability when they were ihirties, for being a great priest was a long, arduous rode, which many priests only dreamt of. Yet, here were two figures, both in their early twenties, who khird Gate spells, and had known such for years.

  The stakes. The pit. The spell. The Iyrmen. The pikes. The arrows.

  Though the birdcats and duabears wished for the group’s demise, to feast upon their flesh with supernatural zeal, they could only fih. Of course, before all of such defehere was one Amira hadn’t expected.

  Fireballs.

  Three Fireballs.

  Three Fireballs after casting two Third Gate spells to keep the towers up?

  ‘He must know Fate spells,’ Amira thought.

  “That was… much easier than I expected,” Lucy panted, surrounded in a sea of blood and guts. Mara stood beside her, and though she was also covered in blood and guts, she stood with a refined grace beside her liege.

  “Weren’t you meant to stay back?” Adam asked, slipping Wraith bato his belt.

  “You stepped back so we stepped forward,” Lucy retorted.

  “I guess that makes sense…”

  “I need a bath…” Lucy said while the st dying growls and screeches of the remaining duabears filled the fort.

  “Before that, we should make sure the fire doesn’t spread from our end, or theirs,” Adam said, making his way to the wall of the fort to check the giant bzing wall which surrouhe other fort.

  “Is that Wall of Fire?” Dunes asked, staring at the outpost. “Do they have a Priest of Noor?”

  “Might be from another kind of caster,” Adam replied, trying not to smirk. “It’s a miracle the area hasn’t caught fire yet.”

  “Perhaps it is a Priest of Noor,” Dunes said, shrugging his shoulders. “I doubt it, but there are strahings.” His eyes fell to Adam expetly.

  Adam shrugged his shoulders too, befathering everyoogether to che their wounds. As expected, the Iyrmen had taken the brunt of the damage, but they were each still retively healthy.

  “I’ll heal you all a little, and Jonn will do the same,” Adam said, pg a hand on Laygak’s shoulder, and then Faool’s.

  Lay on Hands: 35 -> 5

  Adam pced a hand on Laygak, Faool, Nirot, Naqokan, Uwajin, and Nobby, each of whom had been ihick of things. Ohey were healed, Jonn did the same, while Adam kept a few points in his back pocket, just in case.

  “Good work,” Adam said, patting Fred’s babsp;

  “I didn’t do anything.”

  “Keeping an eye on our fnk is more important than you think, Fred,” Adam stated firmly. “Not everyone o draw their bdes to be useful.”

  Fred’s eyes fell to the magical steeds, each which would have no doubt been able to do his role better, though they had remained within the fort, staring at the various walls to spot anything which could have snuck around.

  “I uand now,” Amira admitted to Dunes, while the younger Iyrmen began to butcher the creatures, and the older Iyrmeo che the other fort and deal with any rogue fmes.

  “No,” Dunes replied. “We have met no grand figures, yet.”

  “What of those in the Iyr? Burg and Wing?”

  “They do not t,” Dunes replied. “They were due to the Iyr. Adam…” Dunes wasn’t sure what to say, but he recalled the words which had ehe Iyr’s lexi.

  While the group began to set the tea, a pair of Iyrmen fiheir own tea.

  “The Rot family will not act alooated after swallowing the least of the tea. He could barely taste its fvour, though he was certain it lum fvoured.

  “Will you e?”

  “Half dragon. Demon. Goblin. These are Aldish terms, for Aldish ways. The children, they are yrandchildren, so they are my family too,” Tonagek replied sternly, the other Tonagek shining through for only a moment, before it slipped away back to the boy Sonarot knew.

  “What of Adam?” Sonarot asked, staring into her brother’s eyes, though her eyes were rexed, without judgement.

  “Adam…” Tohought about the young man, who his sister had all but adopted into the family. His story was well known to him, for they had crossed paths in the most awkward way, a erhaps one of the most signifit mark upon the boy’s journey.

  Tonagek recalled the phrase which had ehe lexi of the Iyrmen, something which had beeo make sense of a young man who was equally as terrifying as he was embarrassing. A young man who would face against the likes of Emperor Shama, Lord of Fmes, even if it meant his death, a would shirk at the sight of his daughter, who bullied him so eagerly. A young man who was terrified of the Iyr, a would give them plenty of reasons to kill him.

  “Adam is Adam.”

  My sleep is F again.