Following the destruction and pillaging that was done to Kano, the army composed of humanoid creatures was dispersed, with spheres of light leaving their bodies and entering Maximilian's, as touched each of them. A slow paced process but that was necessary in order to not burden his own soul. He had taken the souls of many soldiers in Kano after all, so there was no reason for him to fragment his own. With the exceptions being the sword on his waist, the miniature sun in the sky and the black cloud beside it. His three first incarnations and his only companions in his current journey. Traveling across the desert of Inada, his goal lied beneath the sands where nothing seems to survive.
“Are you sure there is anything to be found here?” asked the dark cloud, Tormenta, as she cast a shadow upon Maximilian to protect him from the sun’s scorching heat.
“Yeah. There are some inconsistencies but the map is actually the real deal.” the man replied as he unfolded a large map drawn on parchment. It was not drawn by someone with impeccable drawing skills but it was something made by a person he trusted. The map taught one how to reach a hidden building, concealed by the sands of the desert for decades. It was made with the intention of being the perfect place to hide important goods. And, he only came to know about it because an acquaintance of his was part of the group of bandits who built it. Since age was taking the best of him, the old man decided that it was time someone went and made a use of it’s treasure.
“This place is so pleasant~ I feel like I could live here forever.” added the sun that floated close to Tormenta, also known as Sol. Although he had the appearance of a sphere of flames, he was harmless to the touch while being friendly. The two were rather talkative and looked after Maximilian in their own way. The sword on his waist, however, remained silent. Maléfica had a very serious personality and preferred to keep her words for the moments they were actually necessary. As a weapon, her role was to cut down her master's foes after all. However, there were times when she simply could not keep silent, such as when someone bad-mouthed her master. Checking the map for the confirmation of certain markings that indicate the location of the treasure, Maximilian came up with a plan.
“If we know not the desert, we only need to summon those who do.” with those words he brought forth a green light from his left hand.
“Obey our command.” he exclaimed to the desert as the light entered a sand dune. The light spread over the entire dune, until part of it started to wiggle. The grains of sand started to gather, rolling up the dune and started to give form to a half humanoid body. It looked like a person, made of sand, with the lower half of the body buried in the sand. After it seemed to understand what happened and how it came to be, the sand giant pulled itself out of the sand, with its legs being formed accordingly, and then it knelt down.
“My Lord.” were the words it uttered as it showed respect to its creator.
“Lead us to the center of the desert.” Maximilian commanded. One of the markings on the map indicated that the treasure was at the exact center of the desert. Given the size of the desert and the lack of conspicuous landmarks, it was hard to find the exact place even with a map. However, the sand creature was made from the very desert. It should know how to transverse it like no other. And it was shortly proved to be true. After several minutes of walking straight, they reached the point where the golem said was the center of the desert. With that, Maximilian issue new orders and gave life to more similar creatures made of sand. He used them to empty the immediate surroundings and reveal the bare rock that lies beneath the sand.
“Hoh, is that the place, my Lord?” this time it was Sol who asked, floating closer to the center of the sandless crater, where a structure made of stone stood. It had no locks, no crevices and no visible mechanisms that could hint to a way to open the secret hideout. Yet, that was meaningless before him. Once again producing a green light from his hand, he pressed the light against the stone, before a face was formed on it.
“My Lord. What is your wish?” was said with a polite voice. Maximilian quickly instructed this new incarnation of his to open the door to the hideout. With a quick vocal confirmation, the structure started to spin and raise, as if it was a bolt being unscrewed. As it rose at the center of the crater, Maximilian found out that it was hollow, with a spiral staircase inside it, probably leading to the hideout. Having Sol lead the way, to illuminate the dark staircase, Maximilian descended into the abandoned bandit base. It was several meters beneath the sea level and one could only wonder how it was possible to breathe just fine at the end of the staircase.
“Dusty. But that is something we were expecting, given how impossible it is to access this place without proper knowledge or power.” he said to no one in particular as he examined the room at the end of the staircase. It was empty, with a few torches on the walls.
“Sol.” with only that being said, Sol understood that he was to light the torches as his own light might not be enough. Luckily, the torches were not damp and just had a little bit of mold. With Sol’s flames, they were all lit and he was able to see the surroundings without issues.
“So it is just an entrance after all. Let's see what else we can find here.” he commented and moved on to the first door he found. Since he did not think there was anyone else inside the base, seeing how dusty everything was, he opened a red door to his left. Only to be assaulted by the stench of rotten food. He immediately closed down the door and moved on to the next. The door to his right. He was a little bit hesitant since he did not want to experience the terrible experience from moments before, so he chose to be careful and open it slowly. Luckily it was just a normal room, empty space used to store bigger things like chairs and tables. Some of which were piled up in the back of the room. Seeing that there was nothing of value in there, Gran left the room and continued to explore the hideout.
As he walked, the observed that there was some sort of ventilation system. He could see ventilation ducts every few meters. He simply did not know how they worked. But that was not what he wanted to know anyway. What he wanted was to find the hidden treasures that the bandits kept concealed in that base. Sol, who walked ahead of him to light all of the torches, seemed to find something as he shouted at the end of the hall.
Maximilian rushed to Sol's location in order to see what happened to him, only to find out that accidentally burned a painting. Since he thought it might be valuable, he shouted nervously but it was not the case. It was just the painting of some fruits in a bowl, that could be found pretty much anywhere. However, it was used to conceal a hole on the wall, where a lever was installed. When the man saw it, he weighed the risks and decided to pull it. Right after he did so, the sound of heavy stones being moved could be heard. Right behind him, the wall opened slowly, revealing another dark room. This time Sol did not even wait before rushing in to light the torches. However, the light emitted from his body alone was enough for one to see what was kept there. Several golden coins, goblets, plates, a harp, vases, etc. Articles one could only expect to find in a noble's or wealthy person's house. He did not think twice before filling his bag to the brim with everything he recognized as most valuable. However, before long he noticed some shaking. At the same time, sand seemed to invade the building from crevices previously inexistent. A trap, he figured. He could only rush to the surface, accompanied by Sol, before he saw the structure he used to enter the building sink into the stone. The structure he gave life to made a saddened expression and explained that a self destruction trap had been activated and his end was near. Before it could die, however, Maximilian removed the soul from the stone, so that he would not suffer.
[Exit]
Word Count: 1,514/1,500 (Minor Raid & Destruction of Inada)
“Are you sure there is anything to be found here?” asked the dark cloud, Tormenta, as she cast a shadow upon Maximilian to protect him from the sun’s scorching heat.
“Yeah. There are some inconsistencies but the map is actually the real deal.” the man replied as he unfolded a large map drawn on parchment. It was not drawn by someone with impeccable drawing skills but it was something made by a person he trusted. The map taught one how to reach a hidden building, concealed by the sands of the desert for decades. It was made with the intention of being the perfect place to hide important goods. And, he only came to know about it because an acquaintance of his was part of the group of bandits who built it. Since age was taking the best of him, the old man decided that it was time someone went and made a use of it’s treasure.
“This place is so pleasant~ I feel like I could live here forever.” added the sun that floated close to Tormenta, also known as Sol. Although he had the appearance of a sphere of flames, he was harmless to the touch while being friendly. The two were rather talkative and looked after Maximilian in their own way. The sword on his waist, however, remained silent. Maléfica had a very serious personality and preferred to keep her words for the moments they were actually necessary. As a weapon, her role was to cut down her master's foes after all. However, there were times when she simply could not keep silent, such as when someone bad-mouthed her master. Checking the map for the confirmation of certain markings that indicate the location of the treasure, Maximilian came up with a plan.
“If we know not the desert, we only need to summon those who do.” with those words he brought forth a green light from his left hand.
“Obey our command.” he exclaimed to the desert as the light entered a sand dune. The light spread over the entire dune, until part of it started to wiggle. The grains of sand started to gather, rolling up the dune and started to give form to a half humanoid body. It looked like a person, made of sand, with the lower half of the body buried in the sand. After it seemed to understand what happened and how it came to be, the sand giant pulled itself out of the sand, with its legs being formed accordingly, and then it knelt down.
“My Lord.” were the words it uttered as it showed respect to its creator.
“Lead us to the center of the desert.” Maximilian commanded. One of the markings on the map indicated that the treasure was at the exact center of the desert. Given the size of the desert and the lack of conspicuous landmarks, it was hard to find the exact place even with a map. However, the sand creature was made from the very desert. It should know how to transverse it like no other. And it was shortly proved to be true. After several minutes of walking straight, they reached the point where the golem said was the center of the desert. With that, Maximilian issue new orders and gave life to more similar creatures made of sand. He used them to empty the immediate surroundings and reveal the bare rock that lies beneath the sand.
“Hoh, is that the place, my Lord?” this time it was Sol who asked, floating closer to the center of the sandless crater, where a structure made of stone stood. It had no locks, no crevices and no visible mechanisms that could hint to a way to open the secret hideout. Yet, that was meaningless before him. Once again producing a green light from his hand, he pressed the light against the stone, before a face was formed on it.
“My Lord. What is your wish?” was said with a polite voice. Maximilian quickly instructed this new incarnation of his to open the door to the hideout. With a quick vocal confirmation, the structure started to spin and raise, as if it was a bolt being unscrewed. As it rose at the center of the crater, Maximilian found out that it was hollow, with a spiral staircase inside it, probably leading to the hideout. Having Sol lead the way, to illuminate the dark staircase, Maximilian descended into the abandoned bandit base. It was several meters beneath the sea level and one could only wonder how it was possible to breathe just fine at the end of the staircase.
“Dusty. But that is something we were expecting, given how impossible it is to access this place without proper knowledge or power.” he said to no one in particular as he examined the room at the end of the staircase. It was empty, with a few torches on the walls.
“Sol.” with only that being said, Sol understood that he was to light the torches as his own light might not be enough. Luckily, the torches were not damp and just had a little bit of mold. With Sol’s flames, they were all lit and he was able to see the surroundings without issues.
“So it is just an entrance after all. Let's see what else we can find here.” he commented and moved on to the first door he found. Since he did not think there was anyone else inside the base, seeing how dusty everything was, he opened a red door to his left. Only to be assaulted by the stench of rotten food. He immediately closed down the door and moved on to the next. The door to his right. He was a little bit hesitant since he did not want to experience the terrible experience from moments before, so he chose to be careful and open it slowly. Luckily it was just a normal room, empty space used to store bigger things like chairs and tables. Some of which were piled up in the back of the room. Seeing that there was nothing of value in there, Gran left the room and continued to explore the hideout.
As he walked, the observed that there was some sort of ventilation system. He could see ventilation ducts every few meters. He simply did not know how they worked. But that was not what he wanted to know anyway. What he wanted was to find the hidden treasures that the bandits kept concealed in that base. Sol, who walked ahead of him to light all of the torches, seemed to find something as he shouted at the end of the hall.
Maximilian rushed to Sol's location in order to see what happened to him, only to find out that accidentally burned a painting. Since he thought it might be valuable, he shouted nervously but it was not the case. It was just the painting of some fruits in a bowl, that could be found pretty much anywhere. However, it was used to conceal a hole on the wall, where a lever was installed. When the man saw it, he weighed the risks and decided to pull it. Right after he did so, the sound of heavy stones being moved could be heard. Right behind him, the wall opened slowly, revealing another dark room. This time Sol did not even wait before rushing in to light the torches. However, the light emitted from his body alone was enough for one to see what was kept there. Several golden coins, goblets, plates, a harp, vases, etc. Articles one could only expect to find in a noble's or wealthy person's house. He did not think twice before filling his bag to the brim with everything he recognized as most valuable. However, before long he noticed some shaking. At the same time, sand seemed to invade the building from crevices previously inexistent. A trap, he figured. He could only rush to the surface, accompanied by Sol, before he saw the structure he used to enter the building sink into the stone. The structure he gave life to made a saddened expression and explained that a self destruction trap had been activated and his end was near. Before it could die, however, Maximilian removed the soul from the stone, so that he would not suffer.
[Exit]
Word Count: 1,514/1,500 (Minor Raid & Destruction of Inada)
