The last skeletons and Zombies were destroyed before the Dina agents fizzled into the forests beyond. Tamura and Madakos were panting, trying to lose the Lin troops that were now convinced they were in fact Necromancers. Madakos and Tamura entered other forests, in desperate panic before falling down on one forest floor panting and sweating.

  “I don’t know if my lungs can keep up with this,” Tamura panted breathlessly, “everyone wants to fucking kill you!” She said huffing at him.

  “Why would that be?” A Drake said.

  The dragon like being, snarled in delight, it did not look friendly and Madakos did not particularly want to find out. It darted for Tamura with its talons before redirecting itself towards Madakos. Madakos eviscerated the creature with a hole through its chest.

  “Shit…” Madakos exhaled, “I am sorry, I am a dangerous man to be around.”

  “You have to tell me why that is!” She said emphatically.

  “I will in due course, but first we have to go the shadow lands, somewhere away from all this mess.”

  Her glare could bore a hole through him, her eyes demanded information, and her body language in general was filled with frustration. He clambered around rickety trees finding a small opening to put his 12th construct. Tamura gawked at the thing. All her facial expressions indicated how much she wanted an explanation. Finally out of discomfort, he realised he had to explain.

  “I’m a Warlock, that’s why we have to get out of here,” he said frantically.

  “Warlock? What does that even mean?”

  The construct was hidden from most buried in the sand near dense undergrowth and near hills. She stared to bore eyes through him, close to hitting him as she gesticulated aggressively. The Drake smouldered, its flesh burnt into cinders, the ash palpable.

  “It’s how I get my magic, now we have to hurry, there is no time,” he said, hurrying her with his hand gestures, and clearly rushing.

  They ran through forests, anywhere off of an official road. They were not that far away from the coast.

  “Where are they?” Dina agents snarled.

  “Come on,” Madakos seethed, “we have to get out of here.”

  Her eyes were now staring into his, a furious determination, they leapt through brush, cutting themselves on thorns and snagging vines and scraping through almost all the vegetation. There was sand up ahead.

  “We need a boat!” Madakos growled.

  His head turned both sides, behind to see if there were any pursuers and to the sides to see if there were civilians. He jangled his satchel in front of the fisherman’s face, putting the bags of coins in his hands. There was a dozy fisherman and two boats in his makeshift harbour, two pinnaces, the man seemed to be quite good with wood, Madakos did not think too much about that, tossing all his gold at him.

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  “90 gold coins good enough for a boat?” He said, rather impatiently.

  The fishermen simply nodded, confused, but intrigued, eyeing the bedraggled strangers with worry, which was soon overcome by greed.

  90 gold coins? Ah whatever like I care what someone who gives me that amount of money did it for. He could be a Demon Lord. All he wants is a boat, I’ll give him a boat, he paid for 10.

  The man stared at them. Tamura clambered on, her face ripe with anxiety, and a sudden realisation entered her soul.

  I really didn’t need to be here, or with him did I?

  Madakos clambered on, and the two of them rowed the pinnace away from the shore and into the sea. Madakos created his 13th construct on the ship itself, it was hardly a heavy thing, Tamura stared at it, and she managed to catch a fish, she watched as Madakos created wind to further the speed of the vessel. Any more than two passengers were uncomfortable, especially with this strange box like thing in the middle.

  “It creates magic?” She asked.

  “Zira, created by the first Warlock,” Madakos explained, “it’s why everyone is trying to kill me.”

  She stared at him again, getting a knife out.

  “Is there a bounty on your head?” She asked with a most dangerous look, and calm cold voice.

  “Are you trying to say something?” He snapped back.

  He was nearly ready to shoot her, but she assuaged his fears. Her hands up to catch physical blows, already ready to calm him down.

  “I am also wanted remember,” she said, “I have cast my lot with you.”

  A massive wave nearly drowned them, he cast Zira to aid in the wind that would pull them along. They mostly avoided it, but were still both drenched in salt water.

  “Fuck…” he muttered, spluttering the water off his lips and face.

  He could hardly open his eyes, but forced himself to despite the discomfort to see the direction of travel. Tamura killed a bunch of trout, keeping them in a barrel, looking at Madakos, who guided the pinnace. Still, even now, he was paranoid, looking around him. A giant sea monster rumbled beneath them as Madakos attempted to zigzag away from the thing. He did not dare attack it, or the various other sea monsters that lurked in the deep.

  My Zira will not be enough to fight said things. And if I fight one, more will surely follow, and this boat is fragile anyway. Madakos thought. No fucking way!

  A giant fish like thing hopped out of the water, it was perhaps 100 metres long, terrifyingly large and Madakos stared at it for a long moment, knowing exactly what it would do.

  When that thing flops on the surface it could very well sink us. We must be quick.

  Quicker than any sailing ship, Madakos manipulated wind and sea to race through the ocean currents, the ship was going dangerously fast, but as it so happened, Madakos probably wasn’t going to reuse the ship, much. Still they sped along at an absurd speed. Tamura holding onto the rigging putting her bodyweight downwards in order to not fall off.

  “Oi!” She shouted, “this is absurd.” She muttered, barely audible to him. The sound of air and water overbearing.

  Small fish flew past them, even such tiny objects colliding could be deadly, two fast forces could quite possibly kill both or at least stun both. The sea was spraying at them, of course it was, the air was totally full of ocean spray, the large sea monsters splashed the water and caused a massive tidal wave that Madakos only avoided because he was faster than the wave. The pinnace hurtled forwards at astonishing speeds, for two hours Madakos accumulated Zira, 13 Zira a second. Hurtling like a rocket, finally a beach was spotted, and suddenly Madakos stopped putting anything in the currents and the wind, instead breaking. Tamura was nearly flung out, stabbing the deck and hissing at Madakos, something inaudible but likely rude. The ship stabilised, rocking back and forth, before it slowly docked on the open desert beaches. Rocking, bobbing and creaking, Tamura threw a knife at the mast, making it tumble downwards. It creaked and broke in half.

  “Fuck! What kind of sailing was that? That was insane! You fucking idiot! We could have died.”

  “You are still very much alive,” he said matter of factly.