Sandstorm
The magical education at Alcaraz Hall is among the best in the world
Sadie had never seen anything like the maelstrom before her. Sandstorms were common in Tel Kellah, but until that moment she had never realized just how much the city’s magical walls had weathered those storms. Now she looked on in terror as it bore down upon them, a pale tsunami of grainy death swallowing shadows and hills. Each gust was like a feral beast let loose, tearing through the air with a sound like an army of karkadann hooves.
“It’s coming quickly,” Executioner said. “What should we do?”
“It’s too late to turn back,” Hashem replied, eerily calm. “We have to go through.”
Sadie’s eyes widened. “Through that?!” She could see her terrified reflection in her father’s glass eye.
Her father squeezed her hand and smiled at her. “Don’t worry, baby girl. I’m not going to let anything happen to you.”
Sadie opened her mouth to protest, but before she could say anything else Hashem leaped into the karkadann’s saddle and whipped the reins. The beast jolted forward, shaking the wagon and causing Sadie to lose her balance and land hard on her backside. She grunted from the impact, then felt her stomach lurch as they abruptly swerved.
“Executioner, protect Sadie!” Hashem ordered.
Executioner complied, dropping to one knee in front of Sadie and wrapping her arms around her. Even on one knee, Executioner was larger than Sadie was, seeming to loom taller, even, than the coming storm.
“What are you doing?!” Sadie exclaimed. “You can’t! You’ll both be shredded!”
Executioner met her eyes. “Trust us.”
“But my dad-”
“Remember, your father is a warrior.”
Behind Executioner, a light began to glow. Sadie’s eyes widened. Her father’s back had ignited in luminescent scrawl, a constellation of runes glowing as if written with ink made from starlight. He met the wall of sand as it came upon them. Sadie began to cry out, expecting her father to be torn asunder, but her voice died in her throat.
The sand deflected off of Hashem’s skin as if it were trying and failing to cut metal. At the same time, Executioner leaned in further, cocooning Sadie in her arms and bosom. The howl of the wind filled her ears as they penetrated the storm, cacophonous and deafening.
Sadie gasped and grabbed at her neck. She could feel the storm tearing at her throat, asphyxiating her. Even with Executioner shielding her, the breath she drew was shallow at best. The tempest seemed to laugh at her struggle, its roar a mocking anthem against her efforts. Her vision began to blur.
Minutes stretched into what felt like small eternities. Sadie clenched her fists, trying to ignore the burning in her lungs, the agony in her eardrums. She felt like a lone ship tossed about by the vengeful sea. The ringing in her ears was her world, the ache in her lungs her entire reality. What terrified her all the more was knowing that it could have been so much worse. At least she had Executioner shielding her. If she were the one being assaulted by the torrid winds, Sadie would be torn apart in an instant.
How were the other two managing in this nightmare? It was one thing for the karkadann to make it through the sandstorm. Those beasts had hides tougher than any metal. Executioner and her father, on the other hand, were just people. Why wasn’t the wind cutting them? How could they even breathe? Her eyes fell to the runic tattoos carried by both warriors, each one a promise sworn in exchange for a spell. Is this the true power of oath magic?
Another set of runes began to glow on her father’s back. As if in response the gale relented slightly, its abrasive torrents giving way to more serene winds, like an ephemeral sanctuary within the chaos. Suddenly the storm’s breath fell silent, as if the grains of sand were held back by an invisible hand. Sadie peaked out from over Executioner’s shoulder, surprised by the serene cradle they now found themselves in. The storm continued to rage around them, but for the moment they remained safe.
“W-What happened?” Sadie stammered.
“We’re in the eye of the storm,” Hashem replied without turning around. “Take a moment to catch your breath. We’ll have to pass through the other side soon.”
She nodded, allowing herself to breathe in deeply. The newly still air tasted unbelievably fresh, filling her lungs. A wave of relief washed over her, like applying a soothing balm to a burn.
“We can’t wait for long,” Executioner warned.
Ahead the other side of the cyclonic storm was quickly approaching. Sadie guessed that they had about thirty seconds at most before the storm again found them. “I-I think I’m ready.”
Hashem turned and smiled at Sadie. “It’s going to be alright. Stay brave, baby girl. It’ll all be over soon.” He whipped the reins.
Sadie’s breath hitched as they plunged back into the maelstrom. Once more she found herself caught in the merciless swirl of noise, the chaos. She began to tremble, pulse pounding in her ears while the storm roared all around her, savagely beating the wagon and causing it to tremble and creak. For a moment Sadie feared the wood of their vehicle might not hold up. The storm seemed to delight in the fear it incited, the turmoil it stirred.
A knife suddenly materialized next to Sadie, embedded in the wood floor of the wagon. Her eyes widened. She stared at the knife, uncomprehending. What had just happened? Where had the blade come from?
Executioner reacted first. “Ikitan!” She had to shout to be heard above the storm.
Hashem swore.
“What’s an Ikitan?!” Sadie exclaimed.
“Demons!” Executioner told her.
A hoard of figures began to appear around the wagon, emerging from the dusty wall of the storm. The demons were imp-like, standing half a meter tall. They bore blue skin that made them hard to see in the dark, and horns that twisted from their scalps like gnarled roots. In their clawed hands they wielded crude daggers and clubs that thumped against their sides with anticipation. Their eyes shone with predatory hunger, matched by the wicked smirk of their lipless mouths. They were everywhere, dozens of them. The Ikitans’ cackling laughter filled the area, as if they were a part of the storm.
“Executioner, stay on Sadie!” Hashem shouted. “I’ll take care of the demons.”
The Arash Shara woman nodded, wrapping her arms more tightly around Sadie.
The imps surged forward, a flood of blue skin against the whirling sand. They threw themselves against the wagon, battering at it with their clubs and blades, screaming in a language Sadie didn’t understand. Their voices were shrill, almost painful to listen to.
“Pukuniku!”
“Shamshaleh!”
“Ibinhaknas!”
Hashem reached into the pocket of his robe. With a flash of light he withdrew a dark bow and a quiver of sharp-tipped arrows, glistening despite the lack of light. A tri-circle tattoo filled with runes began to glow on his forearm.
Hashem notched an arrow and fired. No sooner had it left his bow than the arrow seemed to transform, changing from mere wood and metal to a vivacious bolt of holy lightning, so bright that Sadie was forced to shield her eyes. The arrow traced a luminous arc through the storm, detonating upon impact and instantly incinerating half a dozen of the Ikitan with a sound like an axe splitting wood.
Were it not for the torrid winds scratching her throat, Sadie would have gasped. She had always known her father was powerful. He had served as an Aspbad Paladin, one of the greatest warriors in the Shah’s royal army. Seeing that power brought to bear for the first time, Sadie realized her imagination had fallen far short of just how powerful her father was.
Hashem fired another arrow. An explosion of holy energy incinerated another group of Ikitan, including a pair that had been attempting to cut at the leather cords connecting the karkadann saddle to the wagon. He continued to rain down arrows on his foes. They streaked through the air like comets, crashing into the demons and destroying them in clusters. The imps began to scatter.
“Look out!” Sadie exclaimed.
A thrown knife glanced off of Hashem’s skin. The crude blade snapped from the impact, bouncing off and leaving no mark. A moment later half a dozen more blades struck Hashem, two across the chest, one on his face, and another even in the back of his head. None of them harmed him. Like the sandstorm, the metal was useless against the enchantment fortifying his skin. Hashem loosed arrow after arrow in rapid succession, picking off the scattering Ikitan as easily as if he were strolling through the Tel Kellah marketplace.
Sadie watched, wide-eyed as her father redefined the boundaries of her world. Each arrow that found its mark was a shocking revelation. Those demons were the most terrifying thing she had ever seen, yet they melted away before Hashem’s strength like a mirage under the harsh desert sun. Her fear began to recede, replaced by a growing sense of awe at seeing her father’s display of power.
“Your father has faced far more terrifying things than those Ikitan,” Executioner said, as if sensing her thoughts. “He is an exceptional warrior.”
Sadie thought back to her outburst at the dinner table. How foolish that seemed to her now. If she had known her father was so capable she would never have yelled at him like that. It had been stupid of her to think he needed her help. What could she even accomplish that he couldn’t? The idea that she could somehow keep an eye on him was laughable. Her gaze fell to her feet and she became filled with shame. Her siblings and mother would be so worried about her, and for what? There had been no point in Sadie coming here. The only thing she accomplished was making life harder for her family by being here. She blinked, and found a new round of tears rolling down her cheeks. Sadie hurriedly wiped them away, disgusted with herself. Is crying all I can do?
Finally, Hashem fired his final arrow, killing the last pocket of Ikitan. The demonic howls dwindled, then subsided. And then, as swiftly as it had begun, the tumult ceased. Their wagon emerged out the other end of the sandstorm, again finding calm. The dusty wall continued behind them, moving away their wagon.
Hashem pulled back on the karkadann’s reins. The wagon rolled to a stop. The air stilled and became quiet. The tension dissolved from Sadie’s small frame. She breathed a sigh of relief. Executioner released Sadie and took a step back.
Hashem dismounted and approached the two women. “Everyone okay?” Executioner scowled at him. Hashem chuckled. “Just being polite.”
“That was amazing!” Sadie exclaimed. “I... I never knew that you could... I mean... You...” She stumbled over her words, unsure of how to convey what she was feeling. Sadie bowed her head. “I’m sorry... I gave you so much trouble... I should never have stowed away. I should have trusted you, and-”
“Sadie, stop,” her father interrupted. “I told you, it’s my fault. I sprang all of this on you and expected you to just accept it. I should have done more to reassure you before leaving. It’s a parent’s job to make their children feel safe, and I failed at that.” He met her gaze. Somehow even his glass eye seemed filled with regret. “I’m sorry, baby girl.”
Sadie sniffled. “I-I’m glad I saw you in action, though.”
Hashem smiled. He threw his arms around her. She leaned in, wrapping her arms over his massive frame.
Executioner cleared her throat. “I don’t mean to interrupt your tender moment, but we need to get moving again. Wild Ikitan don’t venture within fifty kilometers of large cities. These ones were probably in service to humans.”
“Humans?!” Sadie demanded. “Those things serve people?!”
Hashem nodded. “The Ikitan are minor demons. They can be nasty because of their numbers, but they aren’t a threat to high level warriors or magi. They’re known to attack smaller settlements, though they tend to stay away from cities like Tel Kellah. The only time they’d dare get this close to a city is when ordered to by someone more powerful.”
“But why would a person work with demons?!”
Hashem knitted his eyebrows. “Unfortunately there are magi who use their skills for personal gain rather than helping others. Many are deserters who have abandoned the Covenant Faith. It’s common for them to make contracts with demons and use them to attack traveling merchant caravans.” He stood. “It’s too late for us to turn around. Sadie, you’ll have to finish the journey with us. Are you prepared for that?”
“I-I can try to be.”
Her instinct screamed at her to say no, to ask to be escorted back home. She had no place in this desert. She knew that now. But she didn’t dare refuse, didn’t dare ask her father and Executioner to split up just to take her back to Tel Kellah. They still had to bring back Princess Ariana, and if one of them returned to the city now, their chances at doing so would be greatly reduced.
Hashem smiled. “When we reach the next town I’ll send a falcon home to tell your mother you’re alright.” He turned and leaped back onto the karkadann. The wagon jolted forward once more. This time Sadie managed to keep from falling. She sat down next to Executioner, leaning her back against one of the supply barrels.
Executioner remained silent, examining the map. Her finger traced their path, an arrow drawn through the desert. Sadie didn’t dare get too close for fear of annoying the Arash Shara woman, so she was only able to make out a couple of points on the map: Makhun, and something called Alcaraz Hall.
Her gaze drifted back up to her father. She watched him from behind as he led them through the desert. Despite the desert’s chilly kiss, Sadie felt warmth growing in her chest. How could anything go wrong with both her father and Executioner here? She smiled to herself. My dad is really awesome, isn’t he?
The thought caused a warm feeling to flourish in her chest, soothing her alongside the calming bump and roll of the wagon. Her eyelids began to droop. Until then she hadn’t realized how tired she was. It made sense. She hadn’t exactly slept well before deciding to crawl into the wagon. Exhausted, Sadie decided to give into the darkness, and allowed sleep to take her.
She couldn’t tell whether she slept for one second or one hour. All she knew was that it felt like only a moment had passed before she was shaken awake. Executioner was saying something, but Sadie couldn’t quite process it.
“Uhhh...” Sadie moaned groggily. “What is it?”
“You have to wake up,” Executioner urged her.
Sadie looked up. The sky was still mostly dark. “Why? It’s still night.”
Executioner pointed forward. Sadie squinted, trying to make out what the Arash Shara woman was pointing at. Up ahead she saw a bunching of vague silhouettes, larger than the demons from earlier. As they drew closer, she realized that the silhouettes were people. There were dozens of them, dressed in turbans and desert-faring cloaks. Many of them carried bows, arrows already notched.
Hashem growled. “Bandits.”
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