Charek drank the soft sandwine, drinking far too much considering how little remained upon their journey back. However, even after two bowls, his heart did not stop aching, the sandgiant letting out a grunt of pain, the kind of pain that was not physical, but of the heart.

“Would you like me to beat them?” Ramzan asked from beside the heartbroken father, who never wanted to see his daughter escape his arms.

The father thought back to all those years ago, almost six decades now, when his wife had given birth. He recalled all the screaming, the crying, all the blood against the sand. She, who had bullied him so hard to marry him, left him within years. Without her, how was he meant to raise the girl? He was no good, even as she grew, he bought the wrong gifts, he did not understand what to do when she turned thirty, when she was finally fifty, and an adult, and now when she was about to leave him?

She, who used to toss her rattle in the sky, until it accidentally landed on her head and she cried so loudly, and when he had soothed her, she did it once more and cried when her father had caught it.

When the current Shen was but a boy, he had come to meet with the dragons, those very same dragons which were still hostile to Aswadasad. His father had tried to fix their relationship, and the three forces met within the sand giant’s village, under the watchful eye of Zabrax, and though perhaps the trio had plots to kill one another, the two dragons who caused the Shen trouble despised one another truly, while the Shen would not join either if it meant offending Zabrax. Zabrax would have entered the fray against the trio, which would have caused greater trouble. Even if the dragons joined together to try and kill Zabrax, the Shen would not allow it, and if the Shen joined a dragon to slay the other, or even Zabrax, they would be unable to, especially with the sand giants willing to assist their patron.

Was it then?

Tanika had seen how disrespectfully the dragons had spoken of the sand giants, but it was not just the dragons, but the Shen, who had all but ignored the sand giants, save for those of the council. Tanika had seen it, the way her father was so casually dismissed by the Shen, and not just the Shen, but the Faros and even the other nobles of Aswadasad, and the way he had to accept it, retreating out of his own home for the Aswadians.

‘I will become a hero!’ Tanika had declared to her father. ‘Just you wait, pops!’

Charek regretted not going out to become a warrior himself, for then his daughter wouldn’t have felt so ashamed of him. He lied to his heart, for he knew she held no thoughts about him, but the pain made him feel better at watching her go.

“If she wishes to leave, I will not stop her,” Charek finally said, recalling all the memories of his daughter, who adored him so sweetly as a girl, but bullied him relentlessly when she grew older, especially after wishing to become a hero. The trouble she had caused for the village, one might have thought they would have tossed her away, and perhaps if they were not the dignified sand giants. If they were the treacherous Aswadians, they may have.

In another tent, where a large group of little ones settled themselves, the large woman huffed.

“He does not understand!” Tanika grumbled.

“Does he not?” Bael asked.

“He does not,” Tanika confirmed, glancing down at the merman girl, reaching down a finger towards her. Kizwolima gasped at the size of her finger, for she did not knew landdweller could grow as big as some mermen! She reached over and grabbed the giant’s finger, checking to see if she was real, withdrawing to Bael’s side once she confirmed it.

“Hey, hey, you should thank your father,” Adam called, narrowing his eyes as the mischievous teenager, but she was not a teenager, even for giants, and she was too old to be speaking of her father this way. “Since he kept you this entire time, you got to meet us, and we might be the best group to join if you want to become a hero, and survive long enough to return back to your father to show off.”

“You may be the reason she is killed,” Bael joked.

“I might, but if someone’s going to die first, it’s going to be me, since it’d be shameful if I didn’t after causing all that trouble, and I don’t plan on dying.”

“You will be second to die,” Bael stated.

“Oh yeah? Are you going to claim first place?”

“The hero should die first.”

“So should I die first?” Tanika asked.

The trio laughed, Adam reaching out a fist, causing the woman to tilt her head, until he taught her how to bump fists.

“Well, since I’m first place, I should be first place,” Adam said.

“What?”

“You see…” Adam began to explain what he meant to the giant woman, while Bael fell deep into thought, allowing Kizwolima to hold his hand to play with it.

The half dragon thought of her father, how he didn’t want her to leave, but it was out of such an excessive love and worry. He couldn’t help but think how lucky she was, since he did eventually relent, and she would be so welcome to return home.

Home.

‘What a curious word…’ Bael knew of the word, even if he was no longer about to feel what it was any longer.

“Before we leave in the next morning, make sure you hug your father before you leave,” Adam said. “It’s my only condition for you joining.”

“She is my companion,” Bael stated firmly.

“You can leave the group with her if you want,” Adam snapped back. “Considering how lovely he seems, and how much he loves his daughter, I can’t accept no punk daughter who has no idea how much her father adores her.”

“You should hug your father before you leave,” Bael relented, since for once, the fool had a point.

Tanika flushed slightly, glancing between the pair, but she felt how heavy the air had become. ‘They’re rather queer…’

Adam stepped out of the large tent in the evening, wanting to exercise, noting John and Yasha already practising, with Ashmir watching the pair, guiding them. Adam’s eyes then darted aside, spotting Charek, who was also practising with his large blade as the sun began to descend towards the horizon, towards the capital.

Charek panted for air, noting the half elf, who swung his axe simply for a hundred reps with each arms, in sets of ten. “…”

“Do you know of the Order of the Thousand Hunts?”

“Who has not heard of them?” Charek replied. “They have become High Garden now.”

“One of their Vice Commanders and his apprentice killed my children,” Adam said, causing the sand giant to blink hard. Adam inhaled sharply. “The Iyr brought them back, and they helped me kill the bastard.”

Charek remained silent, unsure of what the half elf was talking about. ‘His children were killed?’

“My children look like goblins,” the half elf said, swallowing down the darkness. “Well, Jirot and Jarot, but Larot, he looks like a demon, but they’re all Iyrmen. My eldest trio, they look like silver half dragons, they’re Iyrmen too. My youngest two, they look like half elves, but they’re Iyrmen too.”

“Your children look like vavwa?”

“Yeah,” Adam replied, swinging his axe. “So, at the beginning of this year, the Grand Commander, something Greatwood, I don’t remember his name exactly, it might have been Robert, Richard, or James? James, I think, since the Aswadians call him Yamas, right? He came for justice. Funny, isn’t it? His Vice Commander killed my kids, my sweet Jarot, my sweet Larot, and they hurt my little Jirot, who maybe bullies me a little too hard, but she…”

At first, Charek thought the half elf was joking, a terrible joke to be sure, but seeing the way the half elf stopped, choking up, his eyes tearing up, simmering with a rage, he understood, father to father, that he had lost his children.

“So I killed him,” Adam said, swiping the air with his axe. “I cut his neck clean off, the bastard. How dare he come to me looking for justice. How dare he not drop to his knees and beg for my forgiveness? No, not my forgiveness, he should have dropped down before my wife, and begged her for forgiveness, the bastards. How dare they, they who worried my pregnant wife. If something would have happened to Xarot…”

Charek was fairly certain the half elf was a fool, a ridiculous fool, a liar who spoke such tall tales, and was rather grand at his performance.

“I killed him too cleanly. My children were watching, so I couldn’t go too far, otherwise what would they have learned?” Adam sniffled, wiping his eyes with the back of his hand. “So I understand what worries you, but you don’t have to worry. Taygak, she won’t be forced away from the land, otherwise I’ll beat up the Grand Commanders for a second time. Your daughter, the only way she’ll be in danger is if my stupid mouth gets me killed first, and even then there’s still all these terrifying monsters around us who will fight.”

“…”

“What was his name?” Adam asked. “Ramzan?”

Jurot’s eyes darted to the half elf, who grabbed his armour as he returned back to the tent. “Okay?”

“Yeah, just having a quick spar,” the half elf replied casually.

“…”

Tanagek stood, cracking his neck from side to side. “With who?”

“Ramzan.”

“Why?”

“I told Charek about how I killed the Grand Commander of High Garden, but he didn’t believe me, so I think beating Ramzan soundly would ease his heart, because I’m pretty sure everything I said made him think I was an idiot,” the half elf replied simply, strapping on his armour.

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Yeah that makes sense.