The instant they ducked into the shadow of the bluff, the desert's oppressive heat felt a bit more bearable, though it was still a long way from cool. The shade offered a slight, almost illusory respite, like a gentle mirage whispering relief amidst the scorching landscape.
Here, the air grew denser, clinging to them with a heaviness that seemed to carry whispers of past lives. It was a heady mix of scents: the faint but distinct odor of long-extinguished fires, the staleness of sweat that had permeated their clothing, and an underlying metallic aroma that spoke of dried blood, forever embedded in the sandstone's pores.
They huddled behind a ragged outcrop, its jagged edges snagging at their garments like the desert itself trying to hold them back. Just a stone's throw ahead, the cave's entrance beckoned, a yawning black maw nestled in the rock face. It bore the telltale signs of countless nights spent around campfires, with sooty streaks marring the sandstone like a silent testament to the generations of travelers who had sought shelter within its cool embrace.
A single sentry stood leaning against the wall outside, his curved sword hanging lazily in one hand. The sun had baked his skin into a dry, cracked leather, and his clothing was stiff with sweat and dust. His eyes idly scanned the rolling dunes in a lackadaisical manner, more out of routine than actual surveillance.
Isan observed the sentry quietly for a moment before whispering to his comrades, "Keep it down.", his voice was barely a murmur, a mere rustle of fabric against the desert's silence.
Without another sound, he reached into his pouch and pulled out a small, sharp weapon - a kunai. The metal flickered briefly in the sparse light, hinting at its presence before he threw it with a smooth, casual motion when the sentry bandit was turning his back towards their position while walking lazily in the same '0' routine. At first, it looked as if it would miss, sailing past the sentry's right side, from behind, but mid-flight, it jerked to the left as if controlled by an unseen force, its speed increasing dramatically.
The sentry never had a chance to react. The kunai plunged into his throat with a sickening, wet tear. His sword clattered to the ground as he clutched at the gaping wound, a desperate gurgle escaping his lips. His legs gave out, and he crumpled to the side, a dark stain spreading rapidly beneath him, turning the sand into a gruesome black mush.
Isan was moving before the body hit the ground. In a crouched sprint, he reached the fallen man and dragged the still-warm corpse into the deeper shadow along the rock wall. Shira and Daiana joined him without a word, helping to wedge the body and his weapon behind a cluster of weathered boulders.
No one spoke. The cavern ahead seemed to drink sound, leaving only the low thump of their own heartbeats. The unknown waited inside, and charging in blind would be suicide. They needed a plan, and contingencies if it failed.
Isan straightened slowly, feeling every eye on him, from Daiana and Shira to the three rescued trainees, and, even, the bound and scarred bandit, watching him with a mixture of fear and anticipation.
For a long heartbeat, Isan said nothing. His gaze traveled over each of them, weighing them, measuring their readiness. Then, almost imperceptibly, the corner of his mouth lifted, not in amusement, but with sharp confidence.
"This,", he said, his tone low and steady, "is what we're going to do."
His attention shifted to the scarred bandit. "You're going to walk in there first.", he said, before continuing. "And we... are going to be the new batch of captured trainees."
The man hesitated, his jaw tightening. Isan's head tilted slightly, a look that didn't need words to carry its weight. "…Fine.", the bandit muttered. "But I am not sure it's going to work. They will notice something is wrong when they find me alone bringing you back."
"Don't worry. We are counting on it.", Isan answered him calmly while looking at the stunned expressions of everyone around him.
"We just need a way to get inside without any trouble or raising any alarm, after that is a matter of quickly assessing information and defeating them.", saying so he gaze into each face in front of his, before continuing, "This is... unless any of you has a better idea."
No one spoke. The silence stretched long enough to become uncomfortable. Isan grew a small smile and lightly shook his head. "Like I was saying. The most important part is getting inside, but we ned to assume the worst and prepare for it. In that case... Shira."
"Yes?", Shira' voice immediately sounded.
"You are going to have the most important task of all of us. There should be a leader, right?", saying so he redirected his gaze momentarily to the bandit, who hurrily nodded his head. "And he should be the strongest of all of you, right?", once more the bounded bandit nodded his head, even more faster now.
"With that being the case, Shira your task is keeping him occupied while the rest handle the remaining bandits. Are we clear?", as he finished, the surrounding trainees were baffled by his words, causing them to look at each other and raise their pressing questions.
"What about you, Isan?"
"Aren't we going to rescue our friends?"
"Shira's good, but… he's still just one of us. Can he really handle their leader?"
Calmly hearing their questions and valid points, Isan let them finish before raising his hand closed, causing them shut up and look at him.
"Those are all valid points. I will start with the last. Shira won't lose, don't you worry. He is more than capable.", saying so Isan smiled brightly at Shira while lifting his indicator finger.
Shira blinked at the certainty in his tone. Heat spread through his chest, a rush of energy filling his limbs.
"Not to mention that Shira has a secret weapon he can fall back on, although I am sure he won't need it, right?", Isan continued, glancing back to the others with a faint smile. Shira, still caught in the momentum of that faith, nodded once.
"In regards to our colleagues... this is the coldest and cruelest truth, but we aren't strong enough to face and defeat this encampement while rescuing them, at the same time.", a sad and sickening look adorned everyone face, except for the bandit and Isan, who had just closed his eyes, before opening them and looking at the people in front of them again.
"That isn't to say we are going to abandon them and leave them to die at the hands of those filthy bandits. My absence and Shira facing their leader is to purposely make them overconfident and face us instead of resourting to tactics such as: holding a hostage.", although they understood his words, they simply nodded their heads without any conviction and energy, looking unsettled, while Isan had raised another finger in his raised hand.
"As for my absence -", he couldn't continue as one of the trainees intervened, "We know, your absence is to make them overconfident."
"No. That is a mere side effect of my absence. What I will be doing... is something else entirely. Come closer.", beckoening with his three raised fingers, they all aproached.