INSIGNIAS: THE REGALIS

The warm sand was firm under their shoes. The heat of the midday sun penetrated their thick coats. The dessert looked unending no matter where they looked. It stretched like the span of the cloudless blue sky. Its pull unlike any other. The land was overflowing with power and energy, it felt more alive than any forest and river in Arconien. Unlike in Noir of the Shadow Islands, the South Edgeburn’s power emanated from each grain of sand, each crarrying and cradling the same amount of power; the heat of the sun that touched the land; the warm wind whirling near the surface. Its power didn’t pulse; it stayed in the ground and air, touching their skin and filling their lunch.

Tessa’s insignia pulsed to life, never calming down, and her body felt the irresistible pull of familiar energy around her. It felt like her power had come back to its home. She couldn’t explain the feeling.

“Be careful.” She turned to look at Faz. “It’s only in the beginning.” She had no idea what he meant but stayed silen, still overwhelmed by the South Edgeburn’s power.

It had been three hours since the group started walking near the edge of the river but not too close because the Rosein Army might use the water to capture them. Faz explained that the landmarks change randomly so they would easily get lost if they walk through the dessert. Large dangerous creatures also live in and on South Edgeburn that hunt, kill, and eat anything that moves without mercy. Tessa felt chills run down her body when Clyne talked about his encounter with a large red serpent before he met Faz.

“I thought I found treaures,” he exclaimed, “Rubies! Lots and lots of them!” Faz grunted at this.

“How did you escape?” Aria asked, frowning. Clyne’s grin widened.

“Faz saved me.” He patted his friend’s shoulder. “My hero.” His coos earned a disapproving glare from Faz.

“Stop,” he warned but it only made Clyne laugh. Tessa watched as Faz’s expression turned to guilt but it was only for a second that she thought she imagined it.

“How did you defeat it?” Lei asked. Clyne made a sound of discomfort.

“We didn’t,” Faz answered, “It was near impossible to kill.” Tessa glanced at the expanse of the dessert, watching for anything amiss.

“Does that apply to every creature in this place?” Tessa sofly asked.

“It’s better not to find out.” Kol shrugged.

“How safe are we near this edge?” Aria asked, eying the water suspiciously. The water was clear as when they were on the other side of the river. Now, it was grey like the color of cement but it still reflected the sky, turning it dark and murky.

“Safer than the dessert,” Ciar replied. He and his companions discarded their robes. Tessa followed and removed her coat. It was only her who was still in it because the heat didn’t bother her as much as everyone. The heat, she realized, wasn’t as painful as she expected in a dessert. It was uncomfortable but it wasn’t enough to make everyone sweat heavily.

“We should have passed the third mountain,” Skhy announced after minutes of silence. He was holding one end of the map, Nate held the other. Tessa shifted her gaze beyond the river but she could only see nothing but grey fog reaching the heavens. The group agreed to walk in the dessert until they stood in front of the fourth mountain of the Slithering Mountains so they were as far as possible from the searching Rosein Army.

“Are you sure that they won’t try to follow us here?” Lei was also staring at the fog but Tessa couldn’t see her expression.

“They are not insane,” Ciar muttered. Faz scoffed.

“Why can’t we just fly or teleport?” Clyne grabbed two smooth stones on a pile of dark stones near the edge of the river.

“We’ll be too tired to fight.” Kol followed his example and grabbed three stones.

Clyne threw a rock and it skipped on the river’s surface four times before it disappeared in the water. He fist bumped the air. A wide grin was plastered on his face when he turned around. Behind him, small bubbles emerged where the rock sunk. Tessa couldn’t remove her gaze from the bubbles, too curious. There was something unsettling about how the bubbles continued to surface. It took her a moment to grasp the water, to feel it; it was harder than normal; something blocked her mind and power.

“My turn,” Kol said.

“No,” she whispered. The water refused to answer her call. She figured it was because South Edgeburn couldn’t be controlled easily. This made her nervous. Something’s wrong.

When she noticed in her peripheral vision as Kol walked toward the edge, Tessa shouted.

“No! Get back!” Because she could take a step back, the river exploded. The rushing waves painfully hit her, slapping her against the ground. Despite the crushing waves, she crawled with her eyes half closed to look for her friends, the sand wet and sticking against her hands, arms and pants. She couldn’t hear anything but the roaring of water falling and splashing; couldn’t see anything but the downpours.

“Lei!” she called. She coughed several times when water entered her mouth. Blinking rapidly to chase away the dripping water, she noticed a shadow approaching her. Her heartbeat quickened; her breathing ragged. The shadow quickly encompassed her vision. Looking up, its length seemed to reach the sky which is now full of thick grey clouds. With trembling and cold limbs, she stood up. She had a hard time because the waves kept pushing her to the ground. Her legs started to feel numb. Come on, Tessa.

Without a second thought and without destination, she ran forward, tripping several times, but never stopping. When she heard voices on her left, she followed it. What if they’re enemies?

“Faz!” she cried. Then she painfully slammed against a hard surface, stopping her and she was back on the ground. Groaning of pain on her knees and arms, she felt a strong arm circled her shoulders, pulling her up.

“You’re here,” Faz’s breathless voice reached her. She breathed a sigh of relief. His other arm found itself under her knees. She tensed.

“What are you doing?” Tessa blinked the water away to frown at him. Her heart skipped a beat when he saw concern and fear in his silver-coloured eyes.

“We have to go.” Faz ran with her in his arms. Tessa placed her arms around his neck, her face against his chest so she couldn’t see where they were going. She heard and felt his heart drumming in his chest, matching her own. She didn’t know how long Faz ran but she noticed as the sky cleared and no more water falling down.

“It’s ok now,” she breathed, “You can let me down.”

“No.” Faz tightened his hold around her. Looking up, she could only see his clenched jaw.

“But-”

“Tessa!” She turned toward Lei’s voice. Lei and the others behind her ran to meet Tessa and Faz. She breathed another sigh of relief. Her gaze swept over each face.

“Skhy and Ciar and Nate?” Tessa asked once Faz placed her on her feet. She wobbled a little but Faz and Lei grabbed her arms to steady her. Only when Lei grabbed her hands that Tessa noticed that they were shaking, even her legs. Lei tried to warm her hands which comforted Tessa. Everyone was wet from head to toe. A lot of their tools and supplies were carried by the waves.

“They were looking for you. Behind you.” Tessa followed Aria’s gaze. Skhy, Ciar and Nate were running toward them.

“Everyone’s fine,” Tessa whispered.

“Not yet,” Faz said, frowing. She looked back where they came from, expecting to see the river, but there was nothing but sand. How far are we?

“Tessa,” Skhy and Nate said at the same time when they reached the group. The two mirrored Faz’s expression of concern and fear.

“I’m fine, I’m fine.”

“We have to hide,” Ciar said, his wet hair looked black than dark gray. He hiked a hill and the others followed.

“You cold?” Faz asked as they trekked. Shaking her head, Faz raised his eyebrow and pointed at her still trembling hands. Lei had to dig into Nate’s backpack for a first aid kit. No one asked Tessa to heal them.

Faz unceremoniously interwined his fingers over hers, warming her cold hand. Tessa caught her breath and smiled after. The blissful moment was cut short by Clyne’s shout.

“I see trees!” Tessa and Faz hiked faster. Once on top, she followed Clyne’s gaze. There was nothing there but bright gain-yellow sand.

“There are houses there,” Kol pointed. Again, there was nothing there.

“Is that the river?” Nate was eyeing the horizon. Tessa glanced at the three with worry.

“Mirage,” Faz voiced out, making Clyne, Kol and Nate turn to him. “They’re not real.” Some of her companions fell into a conversation about mirages Clyne and Faz saw during their journey together. The others were checking the map. Tessa, on the other hand, checked the sands for anything suspicious. Her gaze landed on something green below the hill. She was sure that it wasn’t there when she looked earlier. Something shifted in her gaze and the green expanded. Her eyes widened at the wide garden of bright green gems a couple few away.

“What is that?” she whispered. The voices of her friends were drown by the loud trembling of the ground. The sand started to roll down the hill, taking Tessa and her companions, as the emerald scales expanded vertically. Tessa caught her breath as she was pulled downward.