The forest stretched endlessly, a sea of green broken only by asingle dirt road. Two horse-drawn carriages tore down the path, wheelskicking up clouds of dust, hooves pounding like war drums.The lead carriage's driver, Garrick, gripped the reins like his lifedepended on it, and it did. His eyes darted behind him, heart hammering.Inside the carriage, leather seats held a family frozen in fear.Malric, the husband, clenched the armrest, while Liam, the oldest son,pressed against him, shaking. Elara and Finn, the younger twins,huddled together. Isolde, the wife, stared out the window, jaw tight,refusing to look back.

The second carriage tore through the trees behind them. Threebandits leaned forward like predators.Varek controlled the reins, eyescold and sharp, he was the leader. Kael flattened onto the roof, pulling aglowing yellow sphere from his coat. It shimmered, twisted, andmorphed into a massive sniper rifle, he was the group's powerhouse. Hetook careful aim. The bullet screamed through the air, slicing toward thefirst carriage.

Inside, the bullet whizzed just past Elara's head. The family hit thefloor hard. Malric, Liam, Elara, Finn, and Isolde smashed themselvesdown, hearts hammering, breaths stuttering.

Garrick shouted, muscles straining as he yanked the reins. Thecarriage lurched onto a rocky, twisting road. The bandits followed,struggling to keep control.

Chaos erupted inside the second carriage. Kael tumbled off theroof, hitting the floor hard. Varek cursed as Ryven craned his neck outthe window, rage twisting his features, he was a newbie in the group.The floor was a sea of glowing cacti, stolen treasures glinting in themorning light. Ryven scrambled, looking for leverage, but nothing camefast enough.

Ahead, a cliff loomed. The first carriage swerved sharply. Thesecond carriage didn't have time. It launched into the void. Ryven andthe glowing cacti flew through the air, crashing together violently. Bythe time the carriage landed, Ryven was pinned, stuck, and shreddedagainst the spiny green mass.

Garrick risked a glance behind. The bandits had stopped. Reliefflickered, just for a moment. The family slowly rose. Isolde pressedagainst the window, scanning the woods. Liam and Malric exchangedtense nods; Elara and Finn stayed crouched, trembling.The road straightened into the open city gates, stone walls, towerslooming, a castle at the heart of it. But chaos struck again. The secondcarriage burst from the trees, slamming into the rear of the first carriagewith a thunderous crash.

Ryven crawled across the roof of the second carriage, cactus andbruises clinging to him. Rage and pain twisted his face. Arrows andbolts flew from the city walls, striking him. He fell screaming. Varekskidded to a halt. He knew it was over. The lead carriage rolled safelythrough the gates.

The first carriage screeched to a stop inside the gate. Dust andbruises clung to the wheels, the family shaking like leaves in a storm.Three guards ran forward. Roland, a rank 3 cadet, yanked the door open.Inside, the family huddled together, faces pale, breaths ragged.Theron ran in, eyes widening at the scene, this was his first day on thejob, children clinging to each other, a mother trembling against herhusband.

The guards lifted the family out, hands firm, guiding them towarda heavy wooden door beyond. The echo of hooves and screaming fadedbehind them, leaving only the quiet tension of what they had justsurvived.

The family stepped into the room, still shaken from the chaosoutside. A man in a crisp white uniform greeted them with a nod. Malricand Isolde held their children close, hearts pounding, eyes wide withfear.

Outside, the fight flared again. Ten to fifteen soldiers rushedtoward the bandits' carriage. Soldier Kale and Soldier Joren grabbedVarek, yanking him out and forcing him to the ground. They moved torestrain him, but a flying projectile struck Kale in the head. He collapsedinstantly, stunned, as Joren froze, staring at the chaos around them. Thesoldiers behind the carriage lined up, returning fire, but two more wereknocked out before they could react.

On the city walls, soldiers raised their weapons, scanning for theintruder. Wall Soldier Taren pointed at a massive tree. Bullets struck thebark, sending splinters flying.

Underneath, Kael crawled behind the tree, sliding across the dirttoward a nearby trunk, careful to stay low.

The wall soldiers kept firing, until a massive explosion shook thecity. Smoke and flames filled the air. They froze, stunned, eyes wide.High above the destruction, two figures streaked across the sky.One rode on the back of the other. Rathra clung to Raidren, his headsnapping toward the wall guards. Raidren's expression was calm,confident. In an instant, they vanished.

Back near the carriage, Soldier Joren and Soldier Alric heard thedistant destruction. Joren drew a shaky breath and turned a corner,nothing. He spun around and froze.

Rathra hovered inches from his face, hiding on the back ofRaidren, who had smoke curling from his pipe. The soldiers panicked,firing wildly, but Raidren moved with uncanny precision, twisting andducking, untouched.

The other soldiers fell back, alarm etched on their faces. Rathra'sgaze swept over the group, scanning. He looked over his shoulder atRaidren. In a blink, he disappeared.

At the base of the wall, soldiers' bodies collapsed to the ground,unconscious or dead from the shock and impact of the fall. Above,Raidren balanced on the edge, steady and calm, and with a swift move,sent the last soldier sliding off the wall, he might live or not, but eitherway he will be removed from the fight.

Rathra landed at the base of the wall, silent and precise. Thesoldiers tried to react, but it was too late. One by one, they died, killedbefore they could react, unable to keep up with his speed and skill.From a distance, Kael, the sniper bandit, aimed a glowing magicalshot at Rathra. The projectile blazed toward him, but Rathra vanishedand reappeared in front of Kael in an instant. With a single, powerfulthrow, Rathra sent him flying through the air, probably dying from theimpact. The remaining soldiers froze, fear written across their faces,knowing they had no chance against him. Rathra's eyes scanned thebattlefield, calm and unyielding, as the chaos of the fight continued tounfold around him.

Rathra snapped his fingers, and Raidren appeared right in front ofhim. Rathra leaped onto Raidren's back, and in the next moment, theywere standing inside the royal castle at the center of town, right in theking's room.

Rathra swung his hand through the air with precision. The walls ofthe castle around him tore apart at the stroke, and the knights caught inthe path were thrown aside, dismantled by the force. As the castlecrumbled, the king, lying safely on the floor, watched as Rathraapproached him.

Raidren stayed in the background, head bowed, a clear expressionof regret across his face. Rathra stepped closer to the king, just inchesaway, and smiled with a chilling calmness.

-----

Rathra and Raidren kicked the iron door open as the door wentcrashing into the back wall of the room. It was a treasury."Hey Raidren, do you see this thing?" Rathra said, pointing to a setof 6 rings on a stand. "Just what we need!"

Author here: hey, just wanted to thank you for reading even the first chapter. Iknow this story is not perfect, nor even amazing, but it's my story, I've beenworking on it for years!. I will be uploading chapters daily until I'm caught upto where I am (chapter 10) and then a new schedule will be announced with thesupport of even just 5 people who support me. If i even get 1 good comment, thatwill be enough for me. Thanks!, and hopefully you keep reading!