Blue Sky, Crimson Sand

-Silver Wolf Guild Hall-

Dressed in her green-and-gold outfit and Argent Gloves, Leona was admiring her office. It was slowly but surely looking the part of a Guild Master's office. Thanks to the diligence of the guild staff, the floor was a lot less dusty and the baseboards had been washed. The picture frames had been straightened and dusted off. Leona's little pet project was coming to fruition.

An older staff member entered the office bearing a letter. Leona received it and gently opened it. It was from Rashid, Chieftain of the Blue Sky Clan. She had defeated the Red Sand Bandits a couple of weeks ago and saved his people from extermination. What did he need now?

"Dear Leona,

I'm writing this letter to request your help once again. We're slowly rebuilding our home, but now we've become the target of slavers. They keep attacking our village and chipping away at our meager defenses. I'll explain more when we meet in person." The letter read. Leona set it on her desk. It looked like she was going to Desierto once again.

"I'm going to Desierto. I'll be back as soon as I can." Leona said to the staff member, who nodded and made a note to post on the office door. Leona briskly walked to her room and gathered her equipment. She put on her backpack and grabbed her Nightshade Machete. She shut her room door and strolled out of the guild hall, then shut the door behind her and walked into the cold.

Leona raised both hands into the air.

"GRIFFIN SUMMON!" Leona called out. Moments later a loud screech split the air and a griffin appeared above her. It slowly and gracefully descended to her side, landing gently on its feet.

"What do you need?" The griffin asked in a smooth voice.

"We need to go to Desierto. We're going to Nebdoui." Leona answered as she climbed onto its back.

"It will be done." The griffin said before taking flight. With a flap of its eagle wings, the pair were aloft and flying at treetop level. They were on their way to Leona's home village.

-Nebdoui, six hours later-

Leona landed on the outskirts of Nebdoui. She slowly dismounted the griffin and dispelled it. She walked into the village and was greeted by Chief Elijah, Sophia, and Chieftain Rashid himself, who was in the company of a substantial cavalry escort of sixty men.

"Your presence is most welcome, Leona. Come, we have much to discuss." Rashid bade her. Leona wordlessly complied, following the trio to Chief Elijah's tent. Joining them was Leonidas.

-Inside Chief Elijah's tent-

"I'll cut to the chase. We've come under attack by slavers lately. It's nothing new, but in the past the slavers would move on to easier targets as soon as we fought them off. This group keeps attacking no matter how many losses they take." Rashid explained his tribe's new trouble. Chief Elijah raised a white eyebrow.

"That doesn't make any sense. What's so important about your village that they'd keep attacking it even after it's clear that they won't succeed?" Chief Elijah asked. Rashid shrugged his shoulders.

"I don't know. I wish I could give you an answer." Rashid replied. Silence filled the tent as its occupants tried to make sense of the slaver's logic. It was a perplexing question in need of an answer.

[Word Count: 565]
[Total Word Count: 565/7,000]

Leona watched the group in silence. Everyone was trying to figure out why the slavers kept attacking a target that fought back. Even Sophia was stymied by that development. Everyone stood in silence until Leonidas spoke up.

"Hey, did the sultan's army ever round up all of the Red Sand Bandits?" Leonidas asked the group. That question broke the deadlock and got everyone to thinking.

"No, they didn't. The last I heard of them was that a sizable group of them had managed to escape into the southern desert, where they can hide among the endless dunes until the end of time. The sultan called off the search after three days." Chieftain Rashid answered the burning question. Leona was not happy to hear that answer. So much for the follow-through on rounding up all of the bandit king's followers. Now the Red Sand Bandit remnants were causing trouble again.

"What if the Red Sand Bandit survivors are serving as muscle for the slavers?" Sophia asked.

"It'd make sense. The survivors would want revenge for their leader and they'd be able to finish what they started under a new leader. The slavers wouldn't care if the Blue Sky Clan home village burned as long as they got captives out of the deal." Leona opined. Rashid looked at them with a serious face.

"All of you may be right. They've found a new leader and they're continuing the feud. If it's true, we need to stop them... again. Since the sultan didn't come through for us, this time we may have to take matters into our own hands." Rashid said in all seriousness. Chief Elijah "hmmm'd" in response. The Jarnefeldts kept quiet.

Chances were high that this time Leona would have to kill all the bandits because the Red Sand Bandits knew exactly what was waiting for them if they surrendered. They would be carted off to the Tri-Council city for trial and public execution. They would fight to the last man to avoid that fate. Leona was not looking forward to this, but it had to be done. Otherwise the slavers would keep trying until they succeeded in enslaving the entire Blue Sky Clan.

Chieftain Rashid turned to Leona.

"I know what I'm asking is going to be hard, but I wouldn't ask you if I knew you couldn't do it. I'm asking you to help us again." Chieftain Rashid appealed to her.

"I'll stop them. I'll stop the slavers and their new army." Leona said grimly. She had killed bandits and slavers before. In the harsh environment of the desert, it was killed or be killed.

"If you succeed, I'll form an alliance with your village." Rashid offered as an enticement.

"Just tell me where I need to go." Leona said to him, not even thinking about the offer of an alliance. This fight was going to be difficult because the bandits knew their backs would be against the wall. When people got desperate, there was no limit to what they would do to stay alive. Any option was a valid option if it had the faintest promise of keeping them alive. They would fight with desperate energy to avoid the hangman's noose.

"You'll need to go to their camp and fight them on their home ground before they can raid our village again. This time I can spare some warriors to help you. I want you to go into their camp and free any captives they may have taken. I don't care if you kill the slavers and bandits or not. Just stop them and free the captives." Chieftain Rashid briefed her on what he wanted her to do. The choice of whether to kill or not was now in Leona's hands. That was cold comfort to the blonde. That choice may have already been made for her.

[Word Count: 639]
[Total Word Count: 1,204/7,000]

-Outside Chief Elijah's tent-

Leona walked out with Chieftain Rashid and Leonidas at her side. She was about to go into battle again. It seemed to be a natural state for her... she was always in some sort of battle. She was fighting to keep up with other Guild Masters and she was fighting to improve her magic so that she could protect the guild she was in charge of. Now she was about to go into battle against slavers to prevent the enslavement of a possible ally.

Desierto was infamous for its harsh climate and its diverse collection of bandit gangs and slavers. A popular joke in the Tri-Council city was that Desierto had as many bandit gangs and slaver rings as the desert had grains of sand. It was easy to crack jokes from behind fortified walls while protected by the sultan's army, but the city people had a point. One could not throw a rock without hitting some sort of outlaw. With so many places to hide and such a large area to hide in, it was small wonder that Desierto was conducive to behavior that was outside the law.

"GRIFFIN SUMMON!" Leona called out while raising both hands. Her griffin appeared and landed beside her. Leona started to climb onto it at the same time Chieftain Rashid got onto his horse. Leonidas walked up to her with something to say.

"I don't need to say this, but I will anyway. Be careful out there, Leona. There's plenty of raiders and slavers looking to make a name for themselves by being the one to bring you down." Leonidas warned her.

"A lot of people have tried to kill me. All of them have failed. Maybe it's because I'm too stubborn to die." Leona made a self-deprecating joke. Leonidas did not laugh.

"Look, I don't think you quite understand your importance to Nebdoui. You're something of a village hero. You've given us a fighting chance by getting us an alliance with Regudo. We've gone from a regular pit stop on a bandit gang's monthly desert mayhem tour to a minor power they're reluctant to mess with because of the fact that you came from here." Leonidas stressed to her. Great. That was no added pressure at all. It was comforting to know that she was one of the only things standing between her people and outlaw groups who wanted to destroy Nebdoui just because they could and it was there.

"I'll be fine." Leona assured him. Rashid interrupted the moment the Jarnefeldt siblings were having with a brief and gruff announcement.

"It's time." He said to Leona.

"All right Leonidas, I'll be back later." Leona bade her older brother farewell. Rashid goaded his horse into action. Leona's griffin took flight and began following the chief and his cavalry escort back to the Blue Sky Clan village. As Nebdoui faded into the distance behind her, Leona faced forward. It was time to help the people of Desierto again. That was what she did... help the honest people of Earthland against villains who thought that the world was their plaything.

[Word Count: 520]
[Total Word Count: 1,724/7,000]

-Blue Sky Clan Village, seven hours later-

The sun was just beginning to set when Leona, Chieftain Rashid, and their cavalry arrived at the Blue Sky Clan village. Everything was calm... too calm. There were waist-high adobe walls that protected the village, but that was about as far as fortifications went. Maybe "fortifications" was too generous a term to use to describe the beat-up adobe walls that were scattered around the village. They looked like they had seen some serious wear and tear.

"Our walls have been the only thing keeping us alive. Unfortunately, we haven't had time to repair them because the slavers come back every other day. We have better warriors, but they have numbers on their side. Every raid they chip away a little more of our defenses, kill a few more of our people." Chieftain Rashid explained in a grim tone of voice. It sounded like the slavers were fighting a war of attrition. They knew that they had the numbers to keep pressing an attack even if it was not successful because they could afford the losses while the Blue Sky Clan could not. Maybe Leona could make a difference again. Maybe she could finish what she started and end the threat to the Blue Sky Clan.

"I see. I'll do everything I can to help. What's the plan?" Leona asked the chieftain. Stony-faced warriors started manning the walls of the village. Rashid dismounted his horse and motioned for Leona to follow him into his tent. Leona dispelled her griffin and followed him into his tent for a briefing.

-Chieftain Rashid's tent-

"We know where they're based." He started explaining while pointing to a large map of Desierto with a walking stick. Circled in black was a dot not too far from the Blue Sky Clan village. It was situated in the middle of the desert, where most people were unlikely to look and unlikely to venture. The desert itself protected their encampment. Not any longer.

"We can't get to it because we're too busy defending our village. That's where you come in. I want you to go to their camp and put them out of business. I'll send some of my best warriors to help you." Rashid laid out the plan. Leona understood where he was coming from. If she could at least get into the camp and cause a distraction while the Blue Sky Clan warriors got into position to prevent any enemies from escaping, she could help them win this struggle. After all, the slavers could not mount an attack against the village if they were too busy fending off an attack on their own camp.

"What do you want me to do? Do I go in alone and cause a distraction while your warriors get into position?" Leona asked him. Rashid looked at her. Their strategy session was interrupted by a young warrior in a blue turban rushing into the room and bowing to the chieftain. He carried a well-made composite bow and a quiver full of arrows.

"Father, the entrance wall reports activity on the horizon!" The youth reported. Chieftain Rashid looked at Leona.

"There's been a change of plans, Leona. We need your help to defend the village." Rashid informed Leona. Leona nodded. She would hold off on raiding the slaver camp in order to defend the village.

"What do I need to do?" Leona asked.

"Wait until they get close to our village, then fly over their heads on your griffin. Maybe that'll distract them long enough for us to thin their numbers. You have permission to attack them at will." He informed her. Leona nodded. It was simple, but sometimes the best plans were simple ones. Besides, the enemy was almost at their doorstep. They did not have time to come up with anything more complex.

"OK. I'm on my way!" Leona said before rushing out of the tent. She raised her hands to the sky and called her griffin. She then climbed onto its back and waited for the order to go into action. She could see more archers rushing by her to get into position. She felt this same atmosphere of "calm before the storm" in Wolfsmane back in the Cursed Lands several months ago.

Leona took a deep breath and waited for the order to take flight. Right now waiting was all that she could do. Waiting was always the hardest part.

[Word Count: 738]
[Total Word Count: 2,462/7,000]

For many tense minutes Leona sat on her griffin waiting for the order to take off. The wait was almost unbearable. The village warriors manning the walls were likely going through the same thing. At this point combat would almost come as a relief. That was an awful thing to think, but it was true.

"GET READY!" Chieftain Rashid called out. Blue-turbaned archers strung their bows and readied arrows to fire. The blue-turbaned cavalry mounted their horses and waited for the order to charge. Leona took a deep breath. The wait was about to end and the fight for the village was about to begin.

"STEADY!" The blue-turbaned youth counseled his men. He was at the front wall with the other archers. His bow was drawn and ready. Leona looked to the chieftain. He was on horseback along with his cavalry. In his right hand was a gleaming scimitar... he looked the part of an actor in an entertainment lacrima that had a romantic view of desert life outside of the Tri-Council city.

Leona focused her attention on the horizon. The invaders were slowly starting to come into view, and they numbered in the low hundreds. They were all mounted on horseback. It was a small army of slavers and they meant business.

"STEADY!" The blue-turbaned youth repeated. Leona could hear the hooves of the army getting closer to the village. It was almost time. Tension was filling the air. Soon arrows would take the place of the tension.

Leona watched as the first volley of arrows streaked towards the village's defenders. They sheltered in place and tried to avoid being hit, but the sheer number of arrows meant that some defenders were going to be hit. Men fell to the ground with arrows in their shoulders, neck, and even head.

"NOW!" Chieftain Rashid shouted.

"FIRE!" The youth ordered. The village archers swiftly aimed and returned fire, giving as good as they got. The invaders took at least thirty losses themselves as numerous men were dumped out of the saddles by return fire. Chieftain Rashid turned to Leona.

"NOW!" He ordered. Leona nodded. Her griffin flapped its mighty wings and kicked up sand. Moments later she was airborne and on her way to the action. Here went nothing.

Leona's griffin soared right over the heads of the invading army. Her griffin used its front claws to knock men out of the saddle and give them gashes across the forehead. As Chieftain Rashid had hoped, some of the slavers were turning their attention away from the village and towards her. She hoped that the defenders could capitalize on the confusion while it lasted.

"What the HELL was that?!" Leona heard a man shout. Another one screamed as he was knocked off his horse and onto the sand. Return fire from enemy horse archers was heading their way, so the griffin soared higher and out of bow range. Leona and her griffin alone would not be enough of a distraction. She needed a little help from some feathered friends.

"O FABLED HARPIES, O SISTERS THREE! LEND YOUR STRENGTH UNTO ME!" Leona thought. Moments later the harpy sisters appeared in flight beside Leona.

"Hey girl, is it already time to fight?" Sylvia asked her mistress.

"It's always fight time whenever Leona calls us!" Daphne snarked. Leona did not bother to give a rebuttal. In a manner of speaking, the dark-haired harpy was right.

"Let's just do this already." Sandy pleaded.

"See those guys down there, the ones on horses? If you could knock them off their horses, it'd be a big help. Just don't hurt the guys with blue turbans. They're on our side!" Leona ordered.

"Got it!" Sylvia confirmed. The flying group came around for another pass. The village defenders were holding their ground so far. They had taken losses, but so had the slavers. Caught between the Blue Sky Clan's archers and the Silver Wolf Guild Master's flying summons, they were trying desperately to figure out which threat to prioritize on eliminating.

The harpies entered a steep dive and dove on the slavers, knocking several from their horses and drawing blood with their talons. Her griffin joined the fray, bowling over six just by swooping at them. Leona used a Wind Blast on a group of enemies near the front, knocking them to the ground with her magic and making them easy targets for the archers. Suddenly streaks from magic bullets began whistling by her... one grazed her left shoulder as the griffin ascended.

"Red Sand Bandit gunners! Get them!" Leona telepathically instructed her harpies. They voiced their compliance and dove on the gunners. Leona wheeled her griffin around and located the snipers, then dove on them. When she got close she ordered the griffin to land.

"Are you sure about this?" The griffin inquired.

"Yes. We can't let those gunners target the friendly archers!" Leona replied.

"As you wish." The griffin relented. He slowed down and came to a stop on the soft sand. Leona swiftly jumped off of his back and drew her machete. She rushed towards the gunners while her harpies distracted them. She would have to act fast because the enemy would be sure to come after her once they learned that she was alone and on the ground.

[Word Count: 882]
[Total Word Count: 3,344/7,000]

"What should I do?" The griffin inquired with telepathy.

"Take to the sky and keep after them!" Leona answered as she closed with the distracted gunner squad. They were busy shooting wildly into the sky in an effort to deal with the airborne threat. That was the perfect opportunity to start some mayhem of her own.

"What the-" One of the bandit gunners asked before Leona cut his head off with her machete. She rushed up and stabbed another one as he brought his gun up to her chest. She used him as a shield to absorb the frantic, poorly aimed gunfire of his fellows before casting him aside. One of the men attempted to hit her in the face with his rifle butt, but Leona ducked under the clumsy attempt and stabbed him through the chest with her weapon. She withdrew the weapon and used it to dispatch another man who rushed towards her with his rifle held like a baseball bat.

"What's going on?!" A scimitar-wielding man on horseback asked before being forcibly dismounted with a Fast Ball to the face. Leona killed him with a stab through the chest before he could get up. Leona scanned the area for any more gunner squads. There was one firing on the village walls roughly two hundred meters to her right. She needed to stop them.

"I need a lift, Sylvia!" Leona telepathically called to the harpy. Sylvia swung by and Leona grabbed onto her right talon. The pair soared into the sky and Leona pointed her machete towards the gunners. Sylvia nodded and swooped in on them.

Leona was dropped off right into the middle of their formation. She dropped to the ground immediately used a Storm Impact spell to stagger them and use the sand as a smokescreen to cover her movements from their comrades. Leona swiftly dispatched two of the ten gunners with slashes across the chest and decapitated a third right as he saw her rushing out of the sand. Seven more remained.

"WE'RE UNDER ATTACK!" A gunner bellowed before Leona rammed her machete through his back. Her harpies handed the next three bandits with their talons, leaving one more. He had his weapon leveled at her head and was about to fire. Her griffin flew in from behind and seized him by the shoulders, lifting the screaming bandit high into the air. The unfortunate man was dropped from a high distance and landed on the sand with a THUD.

Leona paused again and looked around for more threats. She did not spot any more gunners yet, but she spotted five horsemen bearing down on her with scimitars gleaming. Leona leaped into the air and used an Air Burst to dismount them. She rushed towards them and killed two before they could fight back and stabbed one through the chest as he raised his scimitar. The remaining two rapidly remounted their horses and spun around to gallop away, but her harpies got them and lifted them into the sky for a one-way trip.

The blonde saw that the slavers were beginning to give way before the Blue Sky Clan cavalry. They were taking advantage of the confusion she was sowing to force them back. Leona had to keep up the pressure so that the enemy could not form up for another attack on the village. She opted to stay out of the scimitar melee and focus on picking off enemy support teams like gunners.

Leona spotted another gunner team fifty meters away and called on her griffin to pick her up. She grabbed onto its talon and pointed them out. When it got close, it hovered and fired a burst of wind with its wings that dealt multiple cuts to a gunner's body and face. Leona then dropped into the middle of them and began attacking anything that moved.

"STOP HER!" A man yelled just before Leona cut him across the chest three times. Next she killed one bandit caught on a reload with a cut across the throat and stabbed another one as he fired at her. His shot grazed her left shoulder, but Leona could not stop now. She punched another gunner in the face with a Mach Straight and knocked him down as another team of enemy horsemen joined the fight. She stabbed the enemy through the chest and used a Wind Blast to knock the six enemy horsemen down. There were six gunners remaining.

Leona's harpies dealt with the gunners as her griffin focused on the horsemen. Leona rushed towards the gunners and defeated them one by one until none were left standing. She then focused on the horsemen... three of them were left alive. They had gotten back onto their horses and were riding to rejoin the main body of the invading force when the harpies swooped down and killed them with their talons.

The exhausted blonde watched as the invaders started to break contact with the Blue Sky Clan. At first those able to flee disengaged in ones and twos, then in larger groups of up to two dozen men at a time. Eventually the remaining slavers disengaged under a hail of arrows from the defenders. The cavalry kept chasing them, intent on ending their hated enemy once and for all. Chieftan Rashid rode up to her.

"Don't let them get away! Follow me!" He commanded before rejoining his men in pursuit of the enemy. Leona got onto her griffin and gave chase. This was an opportunity that was too good to pass up.

[Word Count: 924]
[Total Word Count: 4,268/7,000]

-In the desert-

Leona flew just ahead of Chieftain Rashid and his cavalry force of almost one hundred men. She could see that the chief and his men were determined to end this struggle once and for all. There would be no third engagement with the Red Sand Bandits. Leona would see to that.

Ahead of them was a retreating force of seventy enemy horsemen. They were riding hard for their camp, where they would make a stand and beat back the Blue Sky Clan counterattack. At least that was what they hoped would happen.

"We're almost there!" Rashid shouted to Leona. Leona nodded in acknowledgement. She was about to head into the fray to cause another distraction. While she occupied the attention of the slavers, Rashid and his men would encircle the camp, then come in from all directions to cut off any attempt at escape.

"I'll go ahead and get their attention!" Leona shouted back. The chief nodded and gave Leona the go-ahead. The griffin flapped its wings and sped towards the camp with the harpies right behind it. This was it. One of the enemies turned around and spotted Leona coming right at him.

"SHE'S GAINING ON US!" An enemy horseman shouted right before the griffin flew into the middle of their formation, breaking them apart and causing panic. As the horsemen struggled to keep order, Leona flew on towards the glittering lights in the distance. That was their camp. That was where this fight would end.

Leona spotted numerous streaks of light heading towards her. There were more gunner squads! Leona had to get rid of them before the chieftain's men could make their attack. Leona was dropped onto the roof of an adobe building, where she went to work against a three-man team.

"What the Hell?!" One man asked as Leona punched him, knocking him to the ground before he could aim at her. A downward stab of the machete finished him. She quickly dealt with his two teammates and turned her attention to the rooftop door.

"Keep on the gunners!" Leona telepathically instructed her summons as she rushed to the door and went inside the building.

-Inside the slaver camp, building-

Leona quietly made her way down the stairs. There was a lot of activity going on below her. A lot of pounding feet thundered on the stone floor and out the door. She had to be careful because there was not as much room to dodge in close quarters.

"There's an attack on the camp!" A man's voice said with alarm.

"Nonsense! That Blue Sky Clan should be dead by now! We sent four hundred of our best men!" Another voice answered incredulously. Someone ran into the building.

"THE CAMP'S UNDER ATTACK! Some giant birds are killing our gunner teams! Enemy horsemen are almost here!" A panicked man reported to the other two.

"WHAT?!" The disbeliever asked. Leona chose that moment to rush down the stairs and into action. She killed the first man with a decapitating strike before he could even turn around. The second went down with three slashes to the chest. The third ran toward her with his scimitar raised and was stopped by a stab to the chest.

Leona noticed that she was in some kind of barracks. She needed to find where the captives were being kept before the slavers could kill them. She burst through the front door and went in search of the prison.

-Outside, in the camp-

Leona burst outside to find a scene of chaos. Men were running around and trying to fend off the Blue Sky Clan cavalry. She spotted a large building near the back of the camp ringed with watch towers. That had to be the jail! Leona sprinted towards it, fighting her way through disorganized slavers.

"Hold your ground! HOLD YOUR GROUND!" A scimitar-waving man shouted. Judging from his black turban, he was a leader. The sound of metal meeting flesh ended the man's attempt to rally a defense. The six spear-wielding men gathered around him were soon mercilessly trampled into the sand by mounted soldiers.

"We've lost all our gunner teams!" A panicking slaver shouted before he literally ran into Leona. Leona stabbed him through the chest while he fumbled for his sword. She kicked him off the blade and continued onward.

"Help the Blue Sky Clan!" Leona telepathically instructed her summons as she rushed through the camp. She carved her way through the camp, dispatching lone slavers who tried to stand up to her. She kept working her way towards the building with the watch towers. Her harpies were dive-bombing clusters of bandits, hampering their efforts to fight the Blue Sky Clan cavalry that was ripping through their camp.

Leona noticed that the wooden gate to the building was quickly closing. She was not concerned. She had a way in.

Leona raised a hand and fired a Gale Cannon spell which hit directly in the middle and caved the gates in. Leona fired another and the gates were blown open. She came under fire from gunners in the watch towers.

"I need help! Get those watch towers!" Leona called to the griffin. A screech filled the air as a watch tower's legs were shredded by the razor wind, toppling the tower and sending its hapless occupant falling to the ground. The next watch tower was dealt with in the same fashion.

"Thanks!" Leona said in appreciation as she opened the metal door to the building and went inside. This was it. She hoped that the captives inside were still alive to rescue.

[Word Count: 934]
[Total Word Count: 5,202/7,000]

-Inside the jail-

"STOP RIGHT THERE!" A black-turbaned guard shouted as he brandished his scimitar. Leona kept walking and knocked him down with a Mach Straight to the face. She stabbed down and killed him, then walked deeper into the jail. She was in the right place. Now she needed to find the captives and protect them.

She walked into the next room and caught a guard sleeping at his desk. On his waist was a ring of keys. Behind him was a large cell full of men, women, and a few children. Leona sheathed her machete, brought a finger to her lips and motioned to them to keep quiet. A man with black hair and an eyepatch nodded to her and urged the other occupants to remain silent.

Leona sneaked up on the sleeping guard. She sneaked behind him and drew back her fist. He woke up and turned around.

"Huh?" He asked the blonde before a Mach Straight knocked him out. Leona dragged the unconscious man to the ground and grabbed his keys. She rushed over to the cell and tried key after key until the sixth one worked. The one-eyed man thanked her.

"Thank you. I'm Captain Hisham from the sultan's army. The slavers captured me during the first day of the operation against the remaining Red Sand Bandits." He explained to her. He pointed towards a metal door with bars on it.

"That's an armory. If you can get in and get us armed, we can help you." The captain suggested. Leona made a beeline for the door and fired a Gale Cannon at the hinges, knocking it off of one. She kept pulling to the sound of groaning metal until the door relented and came off the hinges. The men in the cells ran for the stockpiled swords, spears, and other weapons and began arming themselves. Suddenly five guards burst into the room.

"PUT DOWN YOUR WEAPONS!" They shouted while drawing their swords. Leona wordlessly threw the metal door at them and knocked them all down. The liberated captives rushed the guards and killed them all before they could get up.

"Thank you. You... look familiar." Captain Hisham said to her, tilting his head as if trying to recognize her.

"I'm Leona Jarnefeldt." Leona answered. The man's face lit up in recognition.

"Truly we are blessed!" He said to her, his borrowed scimitar stained with the blood of the guard she had knocked out.

"We're not out of trouble yet, Captain. We've got more slavers outside. The Blue Sky Clan's fighting them, but we need to move." Leona said to him.

"Not until I free my men. Some of my men are still in here." Captain Hisham refused. Leona sighed. Fine.

"OK, where do I need to go?" Leona asked. Hisham put a hand out to keep her from moving.

"Protect the women and children. We'll handle the rest of this slaver trash in the building!" The man asserted. He and the three dozen armed men formed a small army and went through the door that the guards had just barged through. Leona was left with the women and children.

"OK. I'll protect them." Leona said to no one in particular.

-Fifteen minutes later-

Leona was standing watch over the remaining captives when Captain Hisham burst back into the room.

"The jail is ours!" He proclaimed triumphantly. His army was a lot larger now than it was when he had set out to free his soldiers. More women and children were in tow. Leona was relieved that the captives were now safe.

"Great. Now we've gotta get outta here." Leona told him. This time he nodded.

"I'll lead the way. You follow me!" Captain Hisham ordered. The small army moved out with a one-eyed man leading them. He broke down the door and cut his way past two guards who were surprised by his sudden appearance.

-Outside the jail-

"They're running away!" Chieftain Rashid reported to Leona.

"I've freed the captives. They're going to be OK." Leona reported back to him. Rashid nodded in acknowledgement before ordering his men to chase down the retreating enemies. Horns blew in the distance. Leona spotted more Blue Sky Clan cavalrymen arriving to cut off the retreating slavers.

"Who is that one-eyed man?" Chieftain Rashid asked Leona. By his side was two dozen horsemen with bloody scimitars.

"I am Captain Hisham of the sultan's army. Your friend here saved my life. I'll be sure to report her brave deed to the sultan himself." The man answered.

"Don't forget about the Blue Sky Clan. They helped me get here. Please put in a good word for them too." Leona politely requested of the captain.

"Of course." He answered. Leona looked at the chieftain. The chieftain looked at her. The Blue Sky Clan cavalry was escorting columns of slavers who had surrendered back into the camp. It was finally over.

[Word Count: 819]
[Total Word Count: 6,021/7,000]

-Nebdoui, two days later-

Leona, Chieftain Rashid, his son Prince Abdul, and the cavalry rode into the outskirts of Nebdoui in triumph. They had stayed at the bandit camp until the sultan's army arrived to take custody of the surviving slavers. Captain Hisham and his men had made it to the Tri-Council city and rallied the army. The Blue Sky Clan had lost one hundred and thirty-six dead and fifty-five wounded in defense of their village and forty-five men in the raid on the camp, but they had won the war. The Red Sand Bandits were truly gone this time.

"You did well, Leona. We are indebted to you for everything you have done for us." Chieftain Rashid said to her in approval.

"I hope this time is the last time we ever have to deal with the Red Sand Bandits." Leona opined. The weary chief nodded.

"As do I." Prince Abdul, the young man who had reported the invasion two days ago, voiced his agreement. He was the one who led the cavalry detachment that had cut off the slaver's escape and forced their surrender. He had also brought down over three dozen slavers during the defense of the village with his bow. He was a staunch defender of his home and detested slavers as fiercely as his father.

"LEONA!" Leonidas called out. He was wearing a blacksmith's apron and waving to her. Soon more people clustered around Leonidas. The blonde mage was glad to see them.

"You made it!" Leonidas called out. She got off of her griffin and slowly walked over to him. She was glad that the fighting was over.

"Yeah. Somehow I made it again. This time I think it's over. The Red Sand Bandits are finished. They're on their way to the hangman in the Tri-Council city." Leona said to him. Chief Elijah and Sophia came out to meet her. Chieftain Rashid and Prince Adbul dismounted their horses and walked over to the chief.

"Did Leona succeed? Is the threat over?" Chief Elijah asked. The Blue Sky Clan chief nodded.

"She has saved us from disaster twice. Nebdoui has more than earned an alliance with us. If you would care to, we will go to your tent to discuss the terms." Chieftain Rashid offered.

"That would be excellent. I would be glad to discuss the matter with you." Chief Elijah voiced his agreement. Rashid, Abdul, Elijah, and Sophia walked towards his tent. Leona and Leonidas faced one another.

"You did it, Leona! You just got us another alliance!" Leonidas said enthusiastically.

"Yeah. I wasn't aiming for that, but I certainly won't turn it down. We need all the help we can get." Leona said to her brother.

"You're right. We'll need the help because the Crimson Sashes are still out there. They're watching and waiting for the right moment to strike. They haven't forgotten about us." Leonidas said to her.

"And I haven't forgotten about them either." Leona retorted. Leonidas put a hand on her right shoulder.

"Look. I know you want to protect Nebdoui, but be careful. What you just did is gonna make some waves. A lot of waves. They'll want you dead now more than ever because they know you're a major threat." Leonidas cautioned her.

"I'll be careful." Leona assured him. She was tired. She just wanted to get back to the guild hall and recover from the past two days. There had been a lot of fighting. Leona wanted to take a break from it before she re-entered the fray in some new location.

Leona called her griffin. Her work here was done. She was ready to go home.

"Be careful, Leona!" Whitney and Erica encouraged her.

"Be careful!" Leonidas echoed their words. Leona waved at them and was about to take off for Silver Wolf Guild Hall. There she had to come to terms with the sudden return of Silver Wolf's founder, Leila Vergious. She had returned to the guild hall just two days before Leona had set out on this job. The guild staff and members were excited to see her, and so was Leona.

[Word Count: 689]
[Total Word Count: 6,710/7,000]

-Silver Wolf Guild Hall, six hours later-

Leona landed gently on the snow outside the guild hall. She dispelled the griffin and walked into the guild hall. There she was greeted by older staff members.

"Welcome back, Guild Master!" They greeted her.

"Thanks guys." Leona said as she walked to her office. She had a lot to do. Leila's return had created a lot of buzz around here. It was mostly good buzz... the staff and rank-and-file members were glad to see the guild's founder back. Leona was too.

-Inside the office-

Leona walked into her office and laid the Nightshade Machete on her desk. Her backpack soon followed it. She slumped into the chair and looked at the wall map, her eyes making their way to Desierto. She had accomplished yet another mission for Silver Wolf, another one that was certain to add to its reputation. Slavery and banditry had been dealt another setback in the desert country.

Leona's thoughts turned to her home. She had bought it some more time and she had bought it a new ally. Nebdoui was safe for a while longer. How much longer would it be safe? The Crimson Sashes were still out there.

She would deal with them when the time came. The blonde's thoughts then turned to Leila Vergious. The return of the ex-Guild Master meant that the guild had regained its most powerful mage, which would make attacks on the guild hall a lot more costly for any would-be invaders. Leila was much stronger than Leona, which added another layer of security to the guild. Few people in their right minds would want to attack someone with the power that Leila had at her command.

All in all, it was good news for the guild. However, Leila's return did not absolve Leona from the obligation to get stronger or to take jobs that advanced the guild. Leona would keep going and keep working until one day she was as strong as the ex-Guild Master. That strength would make sure that both her desert family and her Silver Wolf family would be safe. Buoyed by that thought, Leona got up and went to her room... she was going to take a trip to the guild hot springs.

[Word Count: 377]
[Total Word Count: 7,087/7,000]