"It's hot." Orion said as his eyes were adjusting to the bright sunlight reflecting off the sea of sand around him. Looking around more carefully, he realized they were in a precariously large desert with sand as far as the eye could see. The red prince and the white haired warrior were still dusting themselves off before they had begun to realize they had truly made it into another land.
Draco spoke up after they had adjusted to their new circumstances, "Well field guide, what do we do now? I don't see the portal back, are we going to starve out here now?" Both he and Indra were gazing at him with a fair amount of disappointment. "What are you looking at me for? This wasn't my idea, I told you I didn't know what was in that room back there, so how was I supposed to know what would happen?" Orion retorted, although it didn't seem to help the mood at all.
Indra was shielding her eyes as she pointed to a nearby rocky outcrop, "Look, we should rest there until nightfall, it will be easier to travel at night anyway, as long as the moon is still on the same cycle, we should have plenty of light."
Draco looked troubled as he questioned, "What if monsters come out during the nighttime?" Indra had a haughty look on her face as she replied, "I'd rather fight beasts than be hot all day." Draco did not seem very convinced, but before he could argue, Orion was already headed off towards the bland rocky shelter to seek some shade.
After they had taken a brief rest, the sun was beginning to set over the unfamiliar desert, blending the sand in an array of yellow and orange shades reflecting over the dunes. Before they set off, Orion had taken out some of the dried jerky he had hidden for later.
Draco saw him and began to grin slightly, "Thanks Orion, how thoughtful of you, where's the rest though?" As he pulled out the snack, the expression on his face turned sour.
"Oh riiight." A voice spoke from behind Orion as he felt a certain static tension in the air, "How thoughtful indeed Orion, and such confidence you will catch something tonight because you didn't even bring some for yourself." Indra said as her intimidating tone had frozen Orion in his place, and she swiped the jerky from his hand, split it in half and shared it with Draco as the hunter looked on with eyes full of indignation.
Looking around, he realized twilight was upon them as a cool breeze ruffled through his hair, "Alright, now is a good time to set off, as long as we trust our compass to take us north, that is." In the moment that he finished speaking, he felt a presence above them over the outcrop.
"There's only more desert north of here." A calm voice spoke from over the rocks. The three of them scrambled out from under the rocky outcrop, and Draco put himself in front of Indra and Orion as he demanded,
"Who are you and what do you want?" Looking up, Orion saw a man sitting on the highest point of the rocks, staring at the full moon. He was dressed in white garments with gold accents and a golden ring over his head, looking only slightly more traditional than himself and Draco and much more elegant.
Standing up and turning around, he surveyed the three of them briefly before answering in an annoyingly casual tone, "Who's asking?" Draco flashed frustration briefly before answering, "I am Draco of the kingdom of Arcadia and-" The man laughed as he put his hand up.
"I'm just kidding, I know who you are. I am known by most people in these realms as the Saint Ea." Draco's look of frustration vanished and was replaced by a look of certain uncertainty, "Seriously, you are claiming to be one of the Saints from the myths?"
Ea kept his lighthearted expression as he answered, "In Arcadia, they are legends now but in this realm, a Saint still presides over the land." Draco still looked skeptical but asked regardless, "And what region would that be exactly?"
He smiled and opened his arms wide as he introduced the land, "Welcome to the realm of Nanna!" Orion chuckled as he commented half to himself, "Are you saying we are no longer in Mythos? And how are your clothes spotless?" Ea just chuckled back at him, "How are you so dirty, you just got here?" Draco and Indra couldn't hold back subtle laughter at the comment.
Orion had heard that there could possibly be other realms than Mythos from the scholars, but he had little interest until now, standing in the middle of one as he prompted the strange man in white.
"Anyway, you said you know which way civilization is, so could you point that out for us before we go?" Ea paused for a moment before he jumped down in the sand beside them, "No need, I will be accompanying you on your quest, it seems fun."
Draco's expression turned more serious once again, "Sorry, but we aren't foolish enough to trust you after a brief interaction."
Ea's smile faded into a look of interest, "I have a proposition then, let me duel Orion and the first to be disarmed loses. I'll give you anything you desire if you win, and if I win, I will accompany you without any more objections."
The hunter had already stopped paying attention and was just staring at the sky as a rock hit him in the head, and he saw Indra chuckling. After seeing Orion's lack of interest in the situation, Draco just shrugged and raised the hunter's hand as if offering him as tribute, "As you wish, I suppose, good luck, Orion!"
The hunter showed doubt on his face as he spoke, "Why do you want to accompany us anyway? 'It seems fun' is always hiding an ulterior motive."
The mysterious man in white's expression still seemed genuine as he responded, "I just simply wish to walk with humanity once again."
What?
"Walk with humanity? Oh right, you are claiming to be one of the Saints from legend. Then if you are truly divine, prove it." The hunter said with a new conviction. Ea simply smiled and said, "No." The man in white gave a signal to Orion's companions.
Why does it have to be me?
Indra and Draco backed up to give them space, and Orion realized what was happening too late as a golden sword materialized into Ea's hand with a handle wrapped in white ribbon, which flowed beyond the sword and a slightly curved blade that he could tell was honed by a traditional master.
Orion started to look worried before his face was overtaken by a look of smug mischief, "Oh noooo, it seems I don't have a sword, I guess we will have to do it some other time." Ea just smiled and pointed towards the invisible binding mark on Orion's hand, "Liar."
The hunter's face turned red as he summoned the black blade he had won in the tournament. Orion didn't even look guilty, just more embarrassed at being caught in front of a stranger, "No getting out of it now, so shall we get on with it?"
Ea readied his sword and looked at Indra, "On your signal, fair lady." Indra looked a little surprised at the respect before she raised her spear in the air for a moment and subsequently lowered it, signaling the start of the match. Orion and Ea both circled briefly before black and gold flashed before their eyes. Ea had already advanced on Orion, as if testing his footwork.
Their swords clashed together in brilliant sparks under the moonlight, showing almost mesmerizing rhythmic movement as they were locked in the heat of the sword dance. Orion's technique was refined from many years of training and experience, but as the match went on, he began to understand that his opponent's technique was almost… sublime.
Ea showed almost no expression except the occasional grin when Orion had a well-timed movement. Orion on the other hand, looked more and more discouraged as he was trying to keep up with an opponent who had both perfection and creativity, his adaptation getting outpaced by his opponent. "I'm done, this is a waste of energy."
Orion said as he threw his sword in the sand at Ea's feet. His opponent just frowned, "There is no honor in surrender." Orion just scoffed at the comment, "You were dragging it out on purpose."
Draco just flashed frustration at Orion, "Why would you just give up? You seemed to have a good back and forth there for a while." He just sighed and responded condescendingly, "Then you were watching a different fight. He was just testing my footwork, technique, and concentration the whole time. He was going to take my sword when he got bored anyway, so I took that luxury."
Ea just turned around and started walking towards the East and slightly to the North, "He's mostly right, I was more curious as to how his innate ability to adapt worked." Draco's expression turned to curiosity as they followed him east toward civilization. "Well, did you learn anything?"
"No, he was smart enough to throw the match before I could see anything of interest." He said as they followed him across the sea of sand.