On the way back to Enkare Nkai, the army moved much slower than it did on departure. When they were moving to intercept the Humanitas Sangh, the Enkarian Runebound were carrying their Arcanists, but not now.
Not only was last time just an uncomfortable emergency measure, but with this difficult battle behind them, they now carried the solemn duty of transporting their dead and wounded back to the city.
Fortunately, this process was made much easier by the floating carts provided by Erik and Elora, to once again solidify everything they had to offer in the minds of their new subjects.
These carts were essentially just metal plates with handles for pulling, but their real benefit stemmed from the sigils used to keep them up in the air. Not only did this make pulling them far easier, but it also kept its delicate cargo stable.
Just like that, their large army snaked across the desert of Djibouti, back towards the Ethiopian jungle that hid Enkare Nkai. Erik and Naeku were right in the middle of this warrior train… where they made the surrounding Enkarians very uncomfortable.
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At first, it was just Erik teasing and flirting with Naeku as they walked, and the werepanther reacted with nothing but embarrassment. Her eyes flickering at the soldiers in their surroundings. But, this situation didn’t last long.
As soon as Erik managed to pull her out of her embarrassment, she started to hit him back just as hard… and thus started the discomfort of those around them.
Occasionally, their eyes would glance at the couple, and they’d be unsure what to think. On the one hand, there was their powerful new emperor, whom they admired greatly; on the other, their beloved, widely respected warrior princess.
Only neither of them really looked like those people. Right now, they just seemed like two teenagers in love. It humanized them in a way that made these people both uncomfortable, as well as more reverent.
Regardless, their travel continued undisturbed… until it didn’t.
It happened sometime after re-entering the jungle, around the area that was under Erik’s protection. As their long snake of people pushed past the dense foliage, a sudden, powerful roar shook the second rankers to their core and brought the first rankers to their knees.
Instantly, chaos descended on the ranks. Fear crept into the minds of these usually fearless warriors, and a miasma of despair fell on them. It was an unnatural fear, only enhanced by a powerful, third-ranked pressure.
Screams started rising, and chaos began to rise… until a single, powerful voice brought them back to reality.
"Enough!" Erik roared, his teasing, playful personality completely subsumed by solemnity. His voice, filled with his own third-ranked power, cancelled out whatever this roar had done and calmed people’s minds.
At the same time, he took out his hammer and planted it on the ground with a heavy thud. At the same time, an icy-white magic circle appeared in his left hand, which he stuck into the air. Instantly, a massive thundersnow barrier, several hundreds of meters across, appeared to cover the people around him.
Mere moments later, a large pack of several… somethings charged out of the jungle and crashed upon his shield.
"What the fuck are those…?" Erik muttered, now finally taking a moment to let the situation sink in. Just outside his barrier were more than fifty strange creatures that, if anything, looked like a mix between a snake, a pather, and a crocodile.
Their body was serpentine—each stretching several feet long—covered in thick, plated scales like an armoured python. Along its back, bony ridges form jagged, mountain-like protrusions, giving it a living, moving hill-like appearance.
Their heads were monstrous blends of panther and crocodile—a feline snout filled with jagged, overlapping fangs but with a massive jaw that suggested the armoured, bone-crushing bite strength of a crocodile.
Their golden, slitted eyes glow faintly in the dark, exuding an eerie, hypnotic radiance. Powerful, clawed limbs jutted out just below their heads, which they seemed to use for movement as much as for attacking his barrier.
"Nyoka-Mlima," Naeku uttered in total surprise, already sporting her spear and shield in hand. "They’re a mutated predator species that’s appeared sometime after the awakening. They’re extremely aggressive, but… normally, they’d never attack a massive group like ours. Especially with a third ranker present."
"Right, well…" Erik chuckled as he hefted his weapon to his shoulder. "I think that roar explained their sudden bravery."
Naeku nodded miserably, her expression a far cry from Erik’s. She wasn’t particularly worried about their situation here and now, not with Erik’s dimension holding two more third-rankers… no, she was far more concerned with what this represented.
This was the first recorded appearance of a third-ranked beast… and she feared their kingdom was not prepared.
But Erik wasn’t concerned with that right now. After the unsatisfying end to his last battle, he actually wouldn’t mind a chance to release some frustration.
Thus, he jumped up into the air, passed through his should unobstructed, and crashed down in between the mutated creatures with a difficult name. His new outfit, the intimidating silver military coat, fluttered behind him as it stuck to his shoulders like glue.
A burst of lightning exploded from his impact zone and blew away several of the first and second-ranked Nyoka-Mlima gathered around his barrier. Behind him, gazes of relief, gratitude, and awe filled the Enkarian’s eyes as they realized the problem was solved before it even began.
They all possessed the warrior spirit, but it had been severely drained by the difficult battle they already endured recently. Still, they all took up their weapons and lined up behind the barrier with grim expression.
Meanwhile, the long snake of warriors came to a stuttering halt as news of the attack quickly began to spread. Naeku immediately received calls from both Enkai and Ankhur over the sigil stones, asking her what was happening and if they needed help.
Glancing at the imposing image of Erik, hammer over his shoulder, coat fluttering in the wind, Naeku smiled lightly. "No need," she said, denying their offer of aid. "You should protect your own areas, just in case there’s more of them."
After receiving their acknowledgement, Naeku looked back over at Erik… and noticed a much larger Nyoka-Mlima had just slithered out of the jungle and roared furiously at Erik, clearly upset over the way he’d treated its underlings.
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"A third-ranked beast, eh?" Erik muttered, flourishing his hammer with an excited grin. "I always enjoy new experiences… Let’s see what you got."