THE LAST KEEPER

Chapter 248. TRAPPED I

"NOKAI!! Sagiri called, and his blades tore through the archive pocket.

"Sagiri No!!"

Nokai tore through the air, and time slowed as everyone watched the blades emerge and tear through the air. Most of the Yoka squad had not seen the blade in action, and they had barely any time to react. N’varu’s voice reached sagiri’s ears in both warning and panic. Reluctantly, the blade stopped a breath away from Tavora’s throat for a long, tense second while Tavora looked at the sharp edge with fear. It was too late to defend against Nokai, and he knew that. The blades snapped into the ground in front of him, disappearing a few inches into the soft ground as if pinning him in place and preventing him from going any further.

After a second of the blades pulsing dangerously in the ground before Tavora. Sagiri swung his hand back, which was shaking with his need to finish off Tavora. He knew very much this was not his clan’s graveyard, but at the moment, he was still not going to allow anyone to walk over the graveyard. Stepping on someone’s grave after all could guarantee death in some tribes. It is a form of disrespect to the dead. Nokai unearthed itself from the ground and cut through the air as it returned to its master’s hands. Sagiri folded his hand around its handle and swung it around before he held it threateningly, ready to release it again if need be.

Nokai did not sheath its blades as its master still very much emanated with killing intent.

"Keeper, put away the blades. We can’t fight here," N’varu said, but he was very much giving Tavora a distasteful glare. N’varu was right. If he killed Tavora, then a battle between them would ensue, and it would not need an enemy to wipe both squads out.

The Yoka squad had taken defensive positions now, and they had formed a protective barrier in front of Tavora, who was still coughing blood.

Yoka was still standing between the two factions that had suddenly formed. Sagiri’s squad had instinctively taken positions beside him.

"Southerner, sheath your blades," Yoka said after a long pause.

"Perhaps you northerners have an inch to die by my blades. Stepping over the dead who died by your blades? How disrespectful. If anyone takes a step into the graves, I will not stop, my blades this time. I will also not sheath my blades until they do," Sagiri said, still trembling with rage. Yoka looked between sagiri and his squad for a long moment before he spoke again.

"Sheath your blades!" he gave the order to his team. They seemed reluctant for a second, but sheathed their blades and loosened their defensive positions.

"Now it’s your turn, Sagiri," Kiuga said after a moment. A barren moment passed before Nokai snapped back, and it disappeared into the archive pocket.

"We go around the graves," Yoka said after a moment with a heavy sigh. Tavora finally managed to stand on his feet and limped to join the group. He looked like he wanted to say something, but sagiri’s icy glare was still on him, and he just narrowed his eyes before joining the back

even with the visible hostility in the air between the squads. The squads fell back into formation. The only difference this time was that Tavora was at the back of the outer left wing. Silence prevailed once again as the two squads began their journey around the graves before they could proceed inwards. The graves stretched even further around. Just when they all started thinking there would be no end to it, suddenly a wide bath gave way. It seemed like the path was made between graves for people to pass through. It was wide enough for five people to walk side by side. Even so, no one dared to walk into the path until Sagiri stepped onto it.

Everyone could still feel his anger. It was clear to see in his movements. He was agitated ever since his small exchange with Tavora. a few feet into the path, and Oka suddenly hissed. The snake became so restless, and they all stopped instantly. The archive stirred violently, the markings on sagiri’s body crawled rapidly. They were all writing the same message to him.

Danger

"Now!" Sagiri said with agency. Everyone had long known the time had come, and they reached for the makeshift blindfolds they had made. sagiri clasped his seals on and tied his red sash from Galka on top of his eyes. He still had it with him since he did not stay till the end of the exams.

There was shuffling for a moment before everything stilled.

"No matter what you hear, if I haven’t stopped. Don’t stop," Sagiri said. He could now only perceive the presence of the squads. They could keep a tight-knit group and make sure not to lose him. Sagiri began moving again, and the squads could now depend on their senses to follow him partly. They walked for a bit longer, and Sagiri was sure they were now at the edge of the graves.

Oka had been agitated all the while, and Sagiri could perceive the beast’s agitation the deeper they went. Suddenly, however, the beast stilled, and it was as if Sagiri lost its presence completely. In that split second, he could not perceive anyone anymore, as if they had suddenly disappeared.

What?

There was no way he could lose everyone’s presence in a flash. That was impossible. Could he have already been stuck in an illusion? Sagiri reached for his blindfold and pulled, and just as the blindfold came off, Sagiri felt the ground under him shift, and he was falling. The ground beneath him remained the same; however, the feeling of falling was deep. The ground under his feet might not have changed, but the world around him... wasn’t the same in a flash.

The graves were gone. The silence remained, but it was different now. The feeling of familiarity crept into him, and the silence before the storm. He knew this silence very well. His body stiffened. The smell hit him next. The smell of smoke, ashes, and burnt earth

Sagiri didn’t move. He didn’t need to turn. He already knew where he was. The village stood ahead. The village he did not wish to return to.

Or what was left of it.

Structures broken, some still smoldering, others collapsed into themselves. The ground was blackened in wide patches, the air thick and heavy, carrying the remnants of the tragedy that had befallen it.

His breath slowed.

"...no."