Two days later, in the afternoon.
Taz and Zero strolled together around the camp as they chatted. In the middle of their conversation, a soldier approached them and said, "The reinforcements from the royal forces have arrived!"
Taz looked at him and sarcastically said, "My, they've arrived so fast."
The soldier became anxious and said, "I know it's not my place to say this, but we must be respectful to them."
Zero giggled, then said, "We outrank them."
"I know, but a general has arrived with them. He'll take command of the army," The soldier said.
Taz and Zero glanced at each other.
All the legion's officers, the commander Hilal, Taz and Zero, went outside to welcome the general.
They waited outside the gate and saw another legion coming to their camp.
But this time, they weren't ordinary soldiers.
The legion brought by the general had beast hunters, magic users, elite soldiers equipped with the best armor and weapons possible and Jinn knights.
Some looked like beasts, some appeared like behemoths, and others were Ifrits and Marids.
Zero looked at Taz and said, "It looks like the general wants to secure northern Persia as soon as possible."
Taz looked at him and said, "That army should've spearheaded the conquest."
"Pawns go first in chess, then you bring out the powerful pieces," Zero said.
The general rode at the head of the army. He approached Taz and Zero and said, "Arrows." He placed his hand on his heart and nodded in greeting.
The general was well-armored with golden silver. He had a reddish skin tone and long, silky black hair. He had a long, braided beard and fierce eyes.
Taz and Zero touched their hearts and said, "General."
The general smiled, then said, "Call me Khalid. Are you two from the squad under the bear's command?"
"Yes," They answered.
General Khalid laughed, then said, "The capital wasn't supposed to be destroyed."
Taz and Zero glanced at each other.
"Don't worry. You may have made a colossal mistake in your mission, but not every day a squad of arrows erases a capital city out of existence. Your squad gained the respect and admiration of Mesopotamia and its king and the recognition and fear of our foes," Khalid said.
Taz smirked at him and said, "As they should. This is only the start of our endeavors."
The general laughed, then said proudly, "Well said, wolf!" He passed them and said, "Meet me in the commander's tent."
A While later, in the commander's tent.
General Khalid and his Lieutenant, along with Major Hilal, the Wolf and the Spark, gathered in a war room around a long table to discuss war plans.
Khalid looked at the map of Persia that highlighted the progress of the conquest and said, "For a mere military legion to advance this much is truly impressive." He looked at Hilal and said, "You have potential as a great leader."
Hilal smiled in pain; his wounds were yet to heal. "I'm honored by your words, General Khalid," Hilal said. He looked at Taz and said, "But in our last battle, if the arrows never arrived, we would've been wiped out."
"You had to choose as the spear of this conquest, either relocate or hold your ground. Both carried grave costs," Khalid said.
Zero crossed his arms and said, "The last battle was proof that we underestimated the Persian's weaponry and development. I hope we keep that fact in mind, general."
The Lieutenant became furious and spoke against Zero. Khalid gestured to him to be silent and said, "It's fine, Lieutenant. Only arrows are allowed to make such remarks."
Khalid looked at Zero and said, "What happened to the Major wasn't an underestimation, but unreadiness."
Khalid crossed his arms behind his back and said, "Putting that aside. I must declare a few points. The command of the second legion is now transferred to me by the orders of the supreme general and the king." He looked at Hilal and said, "Secondly, I want everyone who's heavily injured to be transferred immediately to Mesopotamia."
Hilal furrowed his eyebrows and said, "But, general, we can still fight."
"A great battle is upon us; the injured ones will only hold us back," Khalid said.
Hilal sighed, then left the tent.
Khalid looked at Taz and said, "As for you, arrows. I assume you know what's your main task within the legion."
"To aid in battle and protect the legion from the remnant," Taz said.
"You will simply follow the latter till I give further orders," Khalid said.
"We can be valuable to you as we were to the Major," Zero said.
"It's because you're valuable. I'm conserving you; the magic users of the royal army will handle the rest," Khalid said.
"You said a great war is upon us. What did you mean by that?" Taz asked.
"You two harshly underestimated the repercussions of your last mission. From the start, the Persians were defending. Now, they're enraged and desperate. As we speak, an army of three hundred thousand is coming to this camp. A considerable amount of those troops are golems," Khalid said.
"Golems?" Taz asked.
"Just like that giant soldier you faced in the last battle. It's a Persian-made abomination that was inspired by the golems used by the Hebrews in their rebellion against the late king," Khalid said.
"That's why my lightning barely affected it," Taz muttered.
Evening time in the camp.
Taz and Zero sat around a campfire while they ate.
"That fucker lied to me," Taz said.
Zero looked at her and asked, "Who?"
"The prisoner I tortured, he said it would take time before the Persian military makes another move," Taz said.
"He wasn't off by much. Didn't the general say the army is arriving within two weeks?" Zero said.
"Well, yes, but the royal forces take months to travel a damn meter," Taz said.
A magic user from the royal forces overheard Taz's insult. He approached her with a smug look and an arrogant posture and said, "I must've misheard! Were you two insulting the royal forces!?"
Taz looked at him in displeasure, furrowed her eyebrows and said, "You did mishear. Because I insulted the royal forces and whatever mediocre bloodline that produced you."
"I'll have you know that my mother is a princess," He flaunted.
"Yet she gave birth to a bitch," Zero insulted.
Another royal forces soldier stepped in and tried to pull his prideful comrade away. "What the fuck are you thinking!? Those are arrows!" He whispered.
The prideful soldier shoved his comrade away and snarled, "What if they were arrows!? They're no better than us!"
"We're not just better, we're superior," Taz instigated.
Zero laughed to instigate the conflict even more.
The prideful soldier pointed at her and said, "That's it!! I dare you to a challenge!"
Taz smiled at him and asked, "What challenge would that be?"
"We're both lightning users, so I propose the handshake challenge!" The prideful soldier announced.
Soldiers from both the military and royal forces began to gather and cheer.
Taz looked at Zero in confusion.
Zero stood up and told Taz, "The handshake challenge is holding hands while keeping it charged with lightning. The first person who pulls their hand loses."
Taz stood slowly, looked at the prideful soldier and asked, "What will I gain from this?"
"Whatever the winner demands, as tradition states," The prideful soldier answered.
Taz stood before the prideful soldier, stared him down and said, "This is quite unfair for you."
The prideful soldier extended his hand to her and said, "I never lost this challenge!"
Taz held his hand and said, "There's a first time for everything."
The prideful soldier coated his arm with lightning and shocked Taz's hand. On the other hand, she appeared as if she never activated her lightning.
The soldiers were in awe to see Taz handling the powerful current without using magic, but in truth, she was.
Taz activated her magic yet kept it hidden. It was the same when she used her invisible field before.
Zero was as baffled as the next soldier beside him, but he quickly noticed how Taz could tolerate the lightning of the prideful soldier. He looked at her footing and noticed that the floor had lightning burn marks that grew longer and branched with time.
He giggled, then muttered, "Quite the creative manipulation, Tanaz."
Taz stared at the prideful soldier and said, "I feel embarrassed for you. All this lightning and no results."
The prideful soldier glared at her and asked loudly, "How about you try before insulting?"
Taz chuckled, then used invisible, hidden lightning that made the prideful soldier scream in pain and pull his hand away.
She crossed her hands, smiled at him and chirped, "Come on, I barely used my lightning."
The prideful soldier rubbed his hand, glared at her and said, "Damn you."
"You lost! Give her what she wants," Zero said.
The prideful soldier sighed in frustration and said, "Fine!"
Taz approached him and said, "What I want is simple. An arrow couldn't stop this attack, so I want to see if you can."
She clamped her fist, charged it, then looked at him and asked, "Are you man enough to try?"
The soldier became concerned and said, "That's going to kill me if I didn't protect myself."
"Do it, the result will still be the same," Taz said.
The prideful soldier coated his body in lightning and prepared himself for the punch.
Taz slowly extended her fist to his gut. She looked at him while her fist drew nearer and said, "It's just a slow and weak hit. I don't know why you're afraid."
The prideful soldier looked at her nearing fist in fear.
"Just... a slow... and...weak...hit," Taz said, then her fist landed on his gut.
The prideful soldier flew away and rolled on the ground. Luckily for him, there was nothing on his landing path.
Taz looked around at the royal forces and said, "The royal forces might think they're the best around, but keep this in mind. The arrows are the ones sent when you cunts fail or work too slowly. Neither do I need to remind you all. The arrows are never equaled with the likes of the royal forces because that mere statement insults us!"
Days later, in the afternoon, with Ahmad outside of Mesopotamia.
Ahmad sat in a caravan with another man while reading a letter. Soon, another woman entered and sat beside him.
Ahmad looked at her and said, "You sure took your time, Safira."
Safira smiled at him and said, "Well, I hoped you'd die of old age, advisor."
Ahmad signaled the man accompanying him to knock on the caravan's wall. The man complied, and then it began moving.
"If I remember correctly, Safira. When we first met, I was sixteen, and you were in your mid-twenties," Ahmad said.
"Lovely times, Ahmad. You were strapped on a chair, and I had full permission to make you suffer," Safira said.
Ahmad giggled, then said, "If you were nicer to me, I would've married you instead of my late wife."
"As charming as you are, I prefer men who don't smell like ink and tobacco all the time," Safira said.
Ahmad handed her the letter he was reading and said, "A bath would make the smell go away, don't you agree?"
Safira took the letter, and it read.
"The man with us is an imposter. Kill him quietly and swiftly."
After reading the letter, she giggled and said, "I'd argue with you on that point. Some scents are harder to get rid of."
"For example?" Ahmad asked.
"Burned flesh," Safira said, then she conjured a ball of lightning that shocked the imposter, and she swiftly shoved a knife in his throat.
She sat, sighed in relief and said, "I knew this was all wrong the moment you were nice to me."
Ahmad placed his feet over the seat, crossed his legs and said, "It was an act, but what I'm about to tell you now is the only act of kindness you'll get from me."
Safira stared at him.
Ahmad looked at her and said, "We're heading straight to Kaiden, or the remnant as they call him these days."
"If you know where he is, you should've told the arrows," Safira said.
Ahmad chuckled, then said, "This is why I made you retire. You were a perfect infiltrator but never a good spy."
Safira looked around and said, "Now that I think of it. These kinds of caravans are not the ones that you would use."
"I know my brother, and he's an idiot. That trait tends to be attractive to those who share it. His men think it would be easy to lure someone like me, but I know better," Ahmad said.
"Does Nimrod know about your suicide mission?" Safira asked.
"He knows, and he respects my wish. I've already chosen successors to lead after me, and I wrote a full handbook of my methods," Ahmad said.
"What about your family?" Safira asked.
"I've done my job as a father for Hajras and Tanaz. They reached prominence in their fields, and both have enough inheritance for them and their successors," Ahmad said.
Safira leaned back, crossed her legs and said, "After decades, we're going to have a rematch with Kaiden." She looked at Ahmad and said, "You were right. This is the nicest thing you've done for me."
"Don't get used to it," Ahmad said.
Safira chuckled, stared at Ahmad and said, "I've heard about Tanaz's husband. How's she these days?"
"She's Scarred. Things became worse when Yara decided to keep that rape offspring," Ahmad said.
"How so?" Safira asked.
"She hinted to me about wanting to kill it while Yara isn't watching," Ahmad said.
Safira sighed in shock, then said, "By the gods."
"I've always seen myself as someone who reads people well, but Nash took me by surprise. I never thought that boy would turn out to be such a monster," Ahmad said.
"It's always the innocent-looking ones who turn out to be most wicked," Safira said.
The caravan stopped.
Ahmad and Safira glanced at each other, pulled out their daggers and stepped out.
Safira approached the driver's seat and saw the driver rummaging through his weapon bag. She pointed a finger at him and zapped him dead.
She returned to Ahmad and said, "Do you see Kaiden?"
Ahmad looked around and said, "He's close by. I can feel it."
They heard the galloping of a horse, and when they turned to it, they saw a dark-cloaked rider heading their way.
Ahmad went to the carriage and took a bow. He swiftly aimed at the rider and fired a shot.
The rider, however, waved his hand, and the arrow was flung away.
Safira hummed and said, "A master-class technique. That's Kaiden."
Kaiden jumped off his horse, approached them and removed his hood. Safira conjured a lightning sphere and guided it to strike Kaiden.
He absorbed it, smiled at them and said, "You two never change! When will you learn that I'm unkillable!!" He stopped, glanced at them and said, "My, you two aged like bananas."
Safira smiled at him and said, "Don't worry about us. You should worry about your back pain, old man."
"I'm still in my prime, old woman," He said, then he looked at Ahmad and said, "Little brother, you've been awfully quiet so far. Have you missed me that much?"
"I'd miss a stab wound over your memory," Ahmad said.
Kaiden laughed, then said, "Disrespectful as always! How many times do I have to beat manners into you?"
He gestured with his hands and said, "You know what? Forget it. After I'm done with you, I have a bigger target to kill; hopefully, she'll put up more of a fight than you two."
"Who's the lucky woman?" Safira asked.
"None other than my lovely niece, that naughty girl tried to smite me. I ought to discipline her," Kaiden said.
Ahmad lost his temper and fired an arrow at Kaiden. He dodged it and said, "Do better, little man!"
Safira conjured multiple lightning spheres and launched them toward Kaiden. He absorbed it, shot Ahmad with lightning, then swiftly drew his sword and sliced Safira's throat.
He stood over them and said, "I knew this would be disappointing, but you two exceeded my expectations. This is...pitiful." He noticed Safira trying to heal herself, then stepped on her leg, shocking her.
Safira began gasping heavily and twitching.
Kaiden smirked at her and said, "That's right, you old bitch. Suffer, cling to life as hard as possible, only for me to deny you that hope."
Safira shot him, but it was the same result.
Kaiden absorbed it, laughed at her and said, "I'll remember to touch myself thinking about how you died."
He aimed at her and shot her with powerful lightning bolts. Her head split open and burned.
Kaiden approached Ahmad, kneeled beside his head and said, "Let me tell you a little secret, brother. I always knew you betrayed us for Mesopotamia. That's why I made sure Radhi and his slave girl were tortured and killed." He stood, laughed manically and drew his sword.
He planted the sword into Ahmad's head, marking his end. He sheathed his sword, walked to his horse and said, "Time to find that little bitch and end her."
He jumped on his horse and galloped onto the horizon.
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