Chapter 31: Green Snow

‘I will beat them. Believe me; I’m close to gaining the sufficient strength! Then, we, all our New Earth’s kin, won’t have to hide and cower from anyone!’ Upon finishing narrating all that happened to him since he last departed Kingdom Earth, apart from the conversation with Archbishop Silternjan, Zax included every detail and made a firm pledge to Anet and Zetsa.

The convoy was on the move and the hour was nearing early noon.

It took a while for both women to transmit a message back, as Zax taught them. They were lamenting on the new kind of danger that was made known to them, reflecting on the manner to respond.

‘Our families ... our friends... ‘ For the very first time in their relationship Zax heard a tone he did not recognize, directed at him from Anet.

‘Take the communicators back, Zax. We need time to think with no distractions’. Zetsa hurriedly said. She sounded mad, and certainly was, but her true intent was to terminate the communication between her little brother and his girlfriend before the conversation will escalate and someone will say out of anger something that he or she does not really mean.

‘Take it’. Though Anet had other things to say, her heart told her to listen to Zetsa.

Zax grimaced and neither could see, but his lack of response as well as the sensation that the foreign object in their ears is gone, gave Anet and Zetsa an idea as to his current disposition.

‘Did it go how you wanted?’ Lili asked as she received the communicators.

It took Zax a moment to answer. He needed to compose himself. ‘Honestly? I don’t think that it could from the first place’.

‘At the very least’, Zax secretly thought. ‘They know now that nothing bad is or will happen to them’.

Early evening of the third day.

‘Bandits?’ Zax raised a doubtful brow. ‘Fifty. They ride Two Headed Stallions Deformed Beings. The strongest among them is weaker than the leaders of those Gray Lords from back then, at the Peak of the Mist Lord level’.

Since the deconstruction of the Gray Lords bandits at, mostly, his hands, no new group of lowlifes was able to take their place and dominate the Titan Kapok Trees forest. However, from time to time, someone will gather a group of meager experts to try their luck at the task, such was the band of bandits his Soul Sense detected.

‘They are heading at our direction. Why?’ He wondered, and then sent. ‘Who else noticed those bandits approaching?’

‘Bandits?’

‘I did’.

‘They... ‘

A chain of responses resounded in his sea of consciousness.

It was determined early on that Zax will act as the convoy’s surveillance for the better part of the trip. His Soul Sense could only be perceived by fourth level Martial Mortal or higher and its scope was the largest. Hence, almost no one knew about the bandits before he alerted them.

‘According to the forest’s map, there should be a village four kilometers east of us’. Riv said.

‘That small place... ‘ Not just Zax, but everyone in the group had a Soul Sense or Sublime Soul Sense with the range to locate the village.

‘I’m erasing our traces. Those bandits will miss us if we’ll hasten our pace for couple of minutes’. Gadgel made a quick calculation five hundred meters behind the convoy.

‘Continue going at a higher pace’. Bonjier ordered.

Zechariah complied, commanding the people to increase their pace with the excuse of wanting to find a place to settle for the night due to “bad weather”, which Martial Mortals at Bonjier’s and Kloky’s level could marginally stimulate.

The third day’s evening and night passed smoothly.

As most were resting, Zax monitored the Howling Heads, the bandit group he discovered.

After arriving to their destination, they sure acted haughtily and done some damage to the village’s homes. Nevertheless, in the end it seemed that they were more bark than bite. Their goal was to solidify their menacing status, first, steal and rob, second. As for kidnapping and murder ... they avoiding executing these heinous acts and when they left the village, as Zax listened to their talks he learned that they did not have the steel for such things.

‘The villages and tribes in the forests don’t have the protection of cities and clans. They have to waste their Splinters on mercenaries and that too is a temporary solution. If these Howling Heads will reign over them, at least they’ll be a deterrent to those with worst principles’.

For this reasoning he let them live as they continue to move on.

Fifth day.

‘Giant Havreim and Varinka return, but there is someone not too far behind them’. Zax alerted everyone, though he was not cautious of the tailing stranger.

For the first time since they left the pathway and he caught up with them, Kloky send to scout ahead to of their thirteen, without explaining why.

‘Zechariah, stop the convoy. Zax, come with me’. Kloky ordered and without further delay flew toward the direction of the incoming three. ‘Converge with the rest’. He told Giant Havreim and Varinka as they passed them.

“Why did you ask me to come with you?” Zax asked.

Kloky’s line of sight intersected with the stranger, who halted his advancement on a wide and high branch, waiting.

“The person we are going to meet ... if I haven’t told you to join me, would you have used your Soul Sense to eavesdrop?” Zax stayed quiet. “Might as well bring you with me ... Besides, it’s because of you that we have to trouble this person”.

They arrived to the branch and the stranger welcomed them with a nodding smile, which Kloky returned.

“Zax, meet, Mister Huland”. Kloky introduced the young man.

He was clad in exquisite earthly beast fur from shoulders to ankles, a young looking man with short brown hair and dark brown mustache. His skin was pale white and his eyes deep blue. His height was about Zax’s shoulders, but his width was the same, hence, unfitting his frame.

‘Advanced first level Martial Mortal’. Zax deduced in an initial, shallow examination, but by Kloky humble conduct he figured that there is more to Huland.