"Do you think we were right to release the queens?"

"Argh!" Oré scrunched the corners of the map slightly in his fists, "Enkerai... if you ask that one more time, I will bash you over the head with that staff of yours!"

It had been six days since they left Burmaan, and although the victory had felt sweet for a few hours, the gravity of what might happen to the town gnawed at Enkerai. As they walked down the broad mountain path, Enkerai voiced his concerns for the umpteenth time that day.

"But what if the bandits do come back this way and do to them what they did to Manyatta?" Enkerai scratched his bare chest nervously. He had slung his jacket over the back of his bag to protect the food in it from the sweltering heat; the gentle blue of the sky held not a single cloud and the sun beat down on the pair relentlessly. Summer was coming to an end, but it was going to make sure it left an impression.

"Then it happens," Oré sighed, "It's beyond us, we did what was right. That's all that matters."

"Hmm."

"Come on, we're almost at Bitpos, that means the end of our journey's in sight," Oré said, trying to steer the conversation back to something positive, which was a surprise in itself. Normally he was the cautious worrier and Enkerai was the positive dreamer.

"The end of this part of our journey," Enkerai corrected, "Don't forget we still have to wait for the troops and bring them back."

"We'll do it!" Oré assured him, "Bitpos Valley rests just over that ridge. They say the gates of Bitpos are humungous. They made them during the last war back when Ormadillia invaded! They're even bigger than the Burmaan gates. It'll be great!"

"Really?" Enkerai asked, forgoing some of his worries for curiosity, "What's Ormadillia?"

"It's this country to north east that cut itself of from the rest of the world," Ore explained, "The stories say that they built a wall right the way round the country. No one knows what it's like inside."

"That's an expensive sounding wall.

"Yeah, it may have been built with Ancient Tech."

"Ancient tech? The machines from the old civilisations?"

"Yeah, and apparently they used quite a lot of it to attack Western Oorunell in the last war. They did this sneak attack on the side of our continent that was facing them. All the people closer to the coast, like the Etikuni, Iyanran, and even your people, the Manyattans, had to flee to Old Burmaan and then on to Bitpos."

"Old Burmaan?" Enkerai asked confused.

"Yeah, the Burmaan we saw was rebuilt a few decades ago after being completely destroyed in the last war. Bitpos, however couldn't be broken. They say it's got a museum with artifacts from the war. Even some damaged Ancient Tech."

"Where does the radio tower come into play then?"

"Ah, that was created recently, when sending messages further distances became more commonplace. It's pretty tall from what I've seen in photos."

As they continued their discussion about Bitpos, the boys marched on with a renewed spring in their step, immersed in conversation about all they would do there and the people they would meet. So engrossed were they in conversation they almost did not notice the figure ambling towards them until he was a few steps away.

"Hey, is that a person?" Oré asked, squinting his eyes.

"Looks like it, but something doesn't quite seem right," Enkerai noted and jogged forward, "Sir, are you all right?"

The man was middle-aged and dressed in rags. These weren't the rags of a poor man however, these were the rags of good quality clothes that had been severely damaged. The smell of pungent chemical smoke clung to him, each inhalation an assault upon Enkerai's nostrils. As Enkerai touched the man's shoulder and tried to support his weight, he noticed the man's eyebrows had been singed off, and half his face was severely burnt. The man looked up at Enkerai and muttered unintelligibly.

"What's he saying?" Oré questioned, trying to pick words out of the babble.

"I think it's something about 'fire from the sky'," Enkerai said, leaning his right ear towards the man.

"Tell him to take a seat, we'll give him some food and water," Oré said dropping to his knees to take off his backpack. But the man would not sit. No matter how much Enkerai encouraged him to, he just continued to mumble and sway slightly from side to side. They tried to place the food in his mouth but he turned away.

"This isn't working, Oré," Enkerai conceded, "I don't know how to help him."

"Hold him still," Oré said, "We may have to force it into his mouth and see if he takes it. He's clearly not well."

Enkerai grabbed the man by his upper arms and tried to keep him in place while Oré lifted food to his mouth. The man began screaming and struggling against Enkerai, suddenly filled with energy. Enkerai leapt backwards, releasing the man which subsequently allowed him to run past the boys and down the path in the opposite direction to where they were headed.

"Should we...?" Enkerai began.

"No... some people are just beyond our help," Oré said, and they continued on down to Bitpos.