"I smell blood mixed with sand." Lestan's words echoed in Asoke's mind while they climbed down to the streets and followed the soldiers. Asoke wondered how even the boy knew that smell and could feel it?

They were sneaking in the alley and hiding behind the corner to watch them. It was already dark at this time. Soldiers were holding torches.

"So-" Asoke started saying and was immediately interrupted by Lestan.

"We need to climb to those roofs. From there we'll be able to see anything." Lestan whispered looking at roofs.

Asoke looked at them too and started to wonder how to get to them. He couldn't find any way up from the outside, so he decided to get there from the inside.

"Right, come this way." Asoke lead to the closed door.

"What are you doing?" Lestan asked.

"Do you have a better idea?" Asoke replied starting picking lock in the door.

"Actually yes, I can jump between those walls and get to the roof." Lestan stated.

"Well I can't. Besides it will be less risky, come on." Asoke whispered opening the door.

Lestan sighed. "Fair point," he said and followed the thief into the house.

The prince closed the door behind him and Asoke went straight to the stairs leading up. There he spotted a ladder to the roof. Lestan got ahead of him and climbed first on the ladder. He carefully lifted the trapdoor and peeked outside. After a moment he opened the trapdoor completely and climbed to the roof. Asoke followed him quickly.

Asoke could tell that Lestan wasn't in a good mood right now. Something upset him very badly. When Asoke got to the roof he saw Lestan climbing a higher one. He quickly followed him only to witness again the prince go ahead. Lestan jumped to the other roof and was already running farther. Asoke quickly started running to jump to another roof and immediately continued running to catch to him.

"Wait for me, your highness." Asoke shouted in whisper to him when he was close enough.

"Not my fault that you're so slow. Besides we're already at the place." Lestan stated and crouched approaching the edge.

Asoke crouched too to avoid being spotted by soldiers and looked at the street. What he saw was strange. Many soldiers just stand there in front of a dead end, like there suppose to be something very important. At the dead end were strange soldiers that were drawing a red circle on the ground. Close to them were cages with people inside; and one person was just dragged from one of them in the circle's direction.

"What is going on?" Asoke asked confused.

"They're sacrificing those people to draw that magic circle." Lestan stated with cold voice.

"Whoa, we need to stop them." Asoke said forgetting to whisper.

"Hash," Lestan silenced him and put his hand on Asoke's chest in gesture to stop him," we don't have any chances with so many soldiers. Besides it is too late now, they almost finished." Lestan stated.

Asoke sighed. "Okay, what do you think that circle does?" Asoke asked.

"If I was to guess it will resurrect any sand soldier nearby; and to teleport them to another circle like that." Lestan remarked.

Asoke asked surprised, "Sand soldiers?"

"Yes, can't you see their skin?" Lestan asked.

"No, it's too dark." Asoke responded. Then he looked over the soldiers in dim torch light and noticed that their skin was rather gray like the one of sand monsters. "Yeah, I can see something, but don't you mean sand monsters?" Then he asked.

"No, sand monsters are mindless creatures with a lot of sands and are impossible to defeat with normal measures. Sand soldiers are soldiers enhanced with sands, while they're still conscious. They can be defeat normally, but they are harder, because of wearing the armor and their combat training." The prince explained.

"How do you know all that?" Asoke asked curious.

"I just know how the magic works." Lestan answered.

Asoke was confused by the statement. Was Lestan just guessing all of it on the fly, because he knew how magic works? It was beyond Asoke's understanding. The black hair boy has his first encounter with the magic sand and already can read it so well? That impressed the thief even more.

They looked at the soldier that was dragging a beggar to the circle. The beggar wasn't giving himself without a fight, so it took some time when the soldier brought him there. At some point he lost his patience and cut off beggar's feet. Asoke widened his eyes and had to admit it was very effective. Beggar was screaming louder, but he didn't fight back anymore. Without any resistance he was dragged to the circle where next to them some strange soldiers in robes and armor stood from drawing the circle.

"Who are they?" Asoke asked.

"They are sand shamans." Lestan answered.

Asoke asked confused, "Sand Shamans?"

"Yes, mages turned with the sands like the soldiers." The prince explained.

"What they're doing." Asoke asked when one of them cut beggar's throat.

"They're combining the sands and blood in ritual to create those circles. Pay attention Asoke." Lestan explained annoyed.

Blood of the victim ran down on the circle and mages started to mumble something.

"Right, by the way, how you know how sand and blood mixed smell?" Asoke asked curious.

Asoke widened his eyes again when he saw magic sand floating over the circle and grabbing the blood with it. Then it settled in the drawn circle making it glowing.

"It's not the first time I smell that." Lestan answered blankly, obviously paying more attention to the scene.

"But how can you even smell it?" Asoke protested.

"Are you bored so much at the moment to ask such stupid questions?" Lestan replied annoyed.

Red smog came from the circle and also a red light came from it straight to the sky. They looked up and saw dozens of them come from different parts of the city. Mages went around the circle and soldiers started to march into the circle. When they went into it they've transformed into floating sand just like those defeated sand monster. Sand was sucked into the circle and other soldiers went to it to repeat the process.

"When all soldiers go in we will attack." Lestan stated.

"Okay, what's your plan?" Asoke asked.

"You need to shoot those shamans as quickly as possible. They can't activate the circle or we'll be doomed." The prince explained.

"Got it, what then?" Asoke asked.

"We kill the rest of the soldiers and release the rest of the prisoners." Lestan answered annoyed. "What else did you think?" He sighed.

"Okay, okay, I'll focus, happy?" Asoke protested.

"Exceedingly," Lestan responded sarcastically.

Asoke shook his head, because he needed to think for a moment to understand the meaning of the word. Lestan seems to give him that moment and continued just when Asoke finished the process of understanding.

"I'll sneak up there and you stay here and shoot anything that has sand skin." He went few steps, stopped and turned back to the thief. "But don't start shooting at random time, wait for my signal."

"Hey, do you think I'm that stupid?" Asoke protested.

Lestan turned around and started to walk. "No comment." He replied and left.

Asoke growled and turned again to the streets. He observed next soldiers to vanish in the thin air in the magic circle. After some time no more soldiers went to the circle and remaining ones took their positions to guard the circle. Some of them were patrolling the area. Asoke noticed that some soldiers who went on street patrol haven't returned. Did that mean that Lestan got to them? He prepared three arrows, the same amount as the sand mages. He aimed them and waited for a signal.

Not much time passed when he heard a noise. Mages turned their gazes to the sound source and were about to move, obviously to activate the circle. Asoke immediately released the arrows and hit all of them. Two were shot on the head, but third one on the shoulder. Archer quickly took another arrow and shot the remaining enemy on his head. Unfortunately that wasn't over, they weren't dead. Having arrow in their heads only slowed them for a moment, but not killed.

Asoke started to panic and quickly touched his dagger. He concentrated so hard to make himself faster the same way as Lestan could do it. Suddenly everything around him started to move slower. He could see the mages next to the circle to move strangely slow as well the soldiers near them, which were running indifferent directions.

Unfortunately he also was moving slower. He was confused why it worked that way. He didn't have more time to think about it though, because the mages started to reach the circle.

"Fuck." Asoke growled and quickly reached for another arrow and shot the mage that was the nearest to the circle. It stopped him for a moment, but what more importantly Asoke noticed that even if he's moving slower it was still faster than the others.

He took out three arrows again and aimed for all mages at once. The situation gave him a lot of time to focus his aim and hit with a precision. All mages were hit again, in the chest this time, but they still weren't out. He then started to shoot one arrow after the other in fast series. That way he could shoot even more arrows at the end and after not long they fell on the ground dead.

Then Asoke took a deep breath and everything went to the normal. He looked down and saw Lestan fighting with the soldiers, but also one soldier running to the circle. He looked differently, like a captain, not an ordinary soldier. The thief quickly shot him with an arrow he had already prepared and touched his dagger again.

"Lestan," Asoke shouted.

Lestan looked at Asoke and then at the soldier. Time at that moment slowed down again including the prince. Asoke was shooting arrow after arrow at the captain soldier to prevent him reaching the circle. Unfortunately arrows weren't enough to kill him and Lestan was occupied with few soldiers at the other side of the square.

Suddenly Lestan started to move the normal way, so faster than anyone else at the moment. He ran in captain's direction and kick jumped him to throw him on the ground. Asoke still was shooting the arrows at him and the prince started to slice him with his sword. Not long time passed when the soldier was defeated; they succeeded and time returned to normal.

Asoke looked at the place where mages were and saw only three sand balls floating in the air just above the ground. He looked back at the captain soldier who was turning into the same sand ball, but this one quickly went to the prince and was sucked by his amulet.

Other soldiers rushed at the prince again, so Asoke started to shoot again. Lestan turned to them immediately and returned to the fight. After some time finally it was over. Lestan's amulet sucked other sand soldiers and he sit on the ground to rest.

It was completely pitch black then. Only some torches laying on the ground or other attached to walls or standing near the circle were lighting the area. Asoke tired from shooting climbed down and approached the circle. Sand balls went immediately to his dagger and he felt like some strength returned to him. He stared at the circle made from the blood and he started to feel sick.

Lestan approached him and put his left hand on Asoke's right shoulder. "Go release those people and rest, I'll deal with the circle." He said.

"How will you do it?" Asoke asked turning his head to the prince.

"With magic, of course; go, you look like you need a rest." Lestan stated.

Asoke didn't protest; he needed to get away from that circle. He turned around and walked away to other end of the square. He approached one cage and opened it. People carefully left it and walked away and after some time started to go faster or even ran. He thought that they were really scared at the moment to behave like that. He went to another one to repeat the process. After opening all four cages he went to the wall and sit next to it.

Asoke sighed and looked at Lestan. He looked like he was drawing on the circle with his chalk and mumbling something. After some time the circle started to glow with white color and red color vanished. Asoke stood and approached the renewed circle.

"How did you do that?" Asoke asked shocked.

"With magic," The prince answered rolling his eyes. "Put your hand on the circle." Then he added.

The circle stopped glowing that much and Asoke carefully touched it. He felt a strange sensation on his skin and immediately took his hand back. It was too late though, a light purple smoke went from his hand.

"What is that?" Asoke asked squeezing his hand with another.

Lestan touched the circle himself to have the same effect. "It's our curse. The darker it get the closer we are to death."