Desert Company: Retrospective

L had promised that they would return back by dusk. So Saya and Tvuj were walking back to the entrance, while Suruj opted to stay with L and Kwazhak. One stroke, two halves. A fight with two sides. They haven’t even fought anything, yet it wrings Saya’s heart so. If they went to the tournament, then L wouldn’t be happy. If she helped Kwazhak and L, it would seem to result in an unbeatable battle. ‘What should I do?’ was the only question running through her mind.

A hand reached out and snatched Saya’s arm. Alarmed, she turned around to see two Al-Wa soldiers.

“Two more escapees were found. Total four. Wakoku-Daimyo Hospital. Over.”

She forgot they weren’t hidden. The soldiers had found them due to her carelessness. Saya tried to free herself from the man’s grasp, but it was tight to the extent where a bruise formed on her arm. She was unarmed. She left her scimitar in the right wing. But if they resisted…

“Mahou Hikari!” Tvuj chanted, causing a blinding glow. Saya felt Tvuj attempting to separate the soldier’s hand from her arm. The soldiers recovered from the light and swiftly held up cuffs.

“Here!” Saya used her right arm and took hold of Tvuj’s hand. They made a particle transfer.

“Mahou Tobbuu!”

A gale of wind came from the girl’s hand, forcefully separating Saya and them as a sound of a clink was heard. Flying backwards down the hallway, they heard the soldiers’ blather.

“Those little runts- Should we call the captain?”

“No, let them go. We’re done here,” He put his hand up in front of the other grunt.

Soaring through, the girl and Saya were only connected by their hands linked together. A loud crash followed after. Saya looked up and parted the hair that blocked her eyes, noticing that Tvuj’s hand rose up as well. She looked at her wrist to find a cuff attached to her wrist, and the other on the girl’s. There was no physical bind between both of them, so it must’ve been a work of sahar or magnets.

“You okay?” Saya pulled her up, “That was amazing, but…”

“...”

She indicated at the cuffs fastened on their hands. They were made of metal, and had a blinking blue light. It must’ve been a tracking device, she thought. But the soldiers weren’t pursuing them any longer it seemed.

“Let’s head back to the front to join up with Hyun-woo and Toqemur.”

Back at the entrance, they found the two of them with the same cuffs attached to one of their hands. Saya called out to them, as their faces turned into panic.

“Oi! Don’t come near-”

It was too late. The cuffs magnetically linked to all four of them.

“Asshibalgaeseki!” Hyun-woo cussed in Renhua, followed by a sigh. “Now we’re stuck. Where’s Suruj?”

“He said he’s going to return on his own. Tteyuka, we gotta get back!” Saya urged, her eyes darting around. “There!”

She pointed down the road towards a man and his rickshaw, a two-wheeled carriage that pulled by using two shafts. They ran out of the hospital area, stumbling a few times, until they reached the person tending the vehicle. Asking for a quick permission for use, the man kindly lent it to them free of charge. With a bow and a brief ‘Azasu!’ to show their thanks, Toqemur, Saya, and Tvuj got in the rickshaw as Hyun-woo lifted the entire cart with a huff.

“Ghh… Why are you guys so heavy,” He spat as he placed the two shafts around his waist, only for Toqemur to flick his head.

“Hohoh, three girls are heavy now?”

“I refuse to comment. Where we headin’?”

“Search the streets for Ashojan and the others,” Saya quickly replied. “The soldiers may come back for us.”

Hyun-woo firmly lifted up the shafts and began to run, the rickshaw moving at the pace of a buggy. Racing through the streets, the cart shuddered and bumped along the windy roads.

“You’re pretty fast without using sahar spells,” Saya commented, after nearly hitting her head on the ceiling of the carriage.

“I didn’t take the fastest track record in my school for nothing.”

They covered a quarter of the entire town until they spotted Ashojan, a boy that wore a gray bandana. He was staring at a fortune cookie platter in one of the market stalls. Saya directed Hyun-woo and they zoomed towards him.

“Ashojan!” Saya called in Khoit as the rickshaw came to a hissing stop, throwing the three of them forward. Ashojan’s shoulders perked up. Then his face turned into a vexing one.

“Tch. Are you all done with your hooky game of ‘find-the-guy-who-only-has-one-letter-as-a-name?’”

“Where are the others?”

“Shunji and Perez are trying to cut bonsai correctly for a contest,” He said in a lousy voice, “Htet and Lanu are trying to haggle something in the market.”

“Thanks!” Saya hopped off the cart and started to run down the street.

“Oi, slow down! We’re getting pulled along too!” Toqemur exclaimed, falling out of the rickshaw. The others soon followed. In an open plaza, there was a loud commotion, with two people on a stage. Saya cringed, as they were furiously cutting bonsai trees with scissors and pruners.

“Ahahaha! Nananalo na ako ‘to eh!” Perez enthusiastically shouted in Galag, nevertheless the surrounding crowd roared. “Ang dalu ng timpalak!”

“Idiot! They don’t even understand what you’re saying!” Shunji berated him with Azu slander. Saya pushed through the masses, guiding the other three trailing behind her, with Ashojan tagging along. By the time they arrived at the front, a winner of the contest was already decided.

“And the winner of the weekly Bonsai Chousen is: Shunji Niktar!” A loudspeaker boomed the boy’s name.

There was various cheering throughout the square, as Perez squatted on the ground in defeat. This was the chance, Saya thought. Since all of them were gathered in one area, in exception for Suruj, the soldiers would most likely track them to this one location. And it was exactly like she expected.

As Shunji was about to take the grand prize, a cuff immediately linked one of his arms, and another on Perez. In a blink of an eye, Saya, Ashojan, Perez, Toqemur, Shunji, Lanu, Htet, all of them were gathered around, linked by cuffs and an invisible force. Saya did not even notice. It must have been a grunt using an agility spell.

“This is Al-Jadir 09. All but one fighter has been secured since the attempted scat,” An unnamed soldier radioed through a foreign communication device, “Waiting until further notice.”

This was for the best. In order to keep their freedom, they would best be captured than running from place to place in danger of being caught. Shunji, Hyun-woo, and the others looked on in confusion as Ashojan angrily made his way towards Saya.

“You… You got everyone here on purpose, did you?” He steamrolled past Saya’s space as she moved back. His entire face was covered in a mask and a veil. “You lead us here so that we could be rounded up, was this a part of the plan? Looks like I was right… I shouldn’t have trusted the girl that gets spoon-fed by L and the others. That clock was…”

“Wait, Ashojan, you’ve got the wrong idea-”

“I know perfectly well what's going on, Izdaha. Putting faith in one person leads to one thing after another through their agenda. You’ve gotten support from Al-Wa itself, and you want to fight in the tournament.”

Ashojan took out a minor blade, drawing it backwards from his green coat.

The sky blinked a flash of light as a crash sounded, the ground ruptured. Startled, people began to clear out from the area in a panic. A wave of dust kicked up into the air, choking everyone’s lungs. When the brown clouds slightly dispersed, a silhouette of a boy could be seen. He folded his arms.

Suruj Zundui.