Ghadib's blood flowed slowly onto the cracked floor, mingling with the ashes and dust that covered the throne room. His breathing was ragged, painful, each breath an increasingly insurmountable effort. But despite the pain, despite the inevitable, he had to speak.
Aisha was still kneeling beside him, her trembling hands clutching his blood-soaked coat. His gaze wavered between anger, despair and denial.
— Father, stay with me. You will get through this...
Her voice cracked with every word, as if she refused to accept reality.
Ghadib, for his part, knew that there was no way out for him. His tired gaze fell on Raikuto, still panting after his confrontation with Abraham. Between his fingers, the medallion he had entrusted to her pulsed with a familiar energy.
But before he could confide his last words to Raikuto, his gaze returned to Aïsha.
On his daughter.
On the one he had kept at a distance.
On the one he had betrayed... out of love, out of fear, out of obsession.
He saw the rage in her eyes, the heartbreak. He knew immediately what she was going to say.
And she didn't give him time to avoid her.
"You owe me an explanation," she hissed, her voice breaking with tears. For what ? Why did you do this to Raikuto and me? Why did you lie to us, why did you treat us like pawns?
She shook her head, her fists clenched.
—I always followed you. I always tried to be the girl you wanted. But you never trusted me!
Ghadib smiled faintly, a sad smile.
"Because I didn't want you to see how broken I was.
Aïsha froze.
Ghadib breathed hard, each word costing him excruciating pain, but he had to say them.
—When your mother died... something broke inside me.
His trembling hand touched the locket.
—I was an ambitious man, Aïsha. I believed I could understand this world, control it. But his death showed me a truth I refused to accept: we have no control over anything. Not life, not death.
He closed his eyes for a moment, before opening them again, staring at his daughter with painful intensity.
—I looked for a way to bring her back. I sacrificed everything for this.
Aïsha felt her throat tighten.
— Was it for her? All that?
— Yes… and no.
Ghadib lowered his head.
—At first, yes. I just wanted to see his face again, hear his voice. But the more I advanced, the more I got lost. I stopped seeing people as people. Raikuto… I bought it like you buy a weapon. And you... I trained you as an heiress, but never as my daughter.
He coughed, blood escaping his lips.
—And now I see what I did.
A heavy silence fell over them.
Aïsha was trembling, her fists clenched.
—You abandoned us… for a ghost.
She lowered her head, tears beading on her cheeks.
— But I understand.
Ghadib slowly looked up at her.
— You… understand?
Aisha nodded, pressing her hand against her father's.
— I would have done the same thing.
His voice cracked.
—If it was you who had died, if it was Raï... I think that I too would have given everything to bring them back.
Ghadib felt a weight he had carried for years collapse.
"I'm sorry, Aisha. I'm sorry I lost you... when you were right in front of me.
Aisha shook her head, choking back a sob.
— No… I'm still here.
She squeezed his hand a little tighter.
—And I forgive you.
A tear rolled down Ghadib's cheek.
He began to smile, a sincere, light, almost relieved smile.
- THANKS…
His hand became heavier.
His breathing slows.
Aïsha felt her heart tighten.
— Dad…
Ghadib looked up at her one last time.
— Never let anyone steal your strength.
His gaze drifted towards Raikuto.
—Protect her.
Raikuto clutched the locket, his fingers trembling.
Then, Ghadib exhaled one last time.
And his hand fell back, inert.
Aïsha felt the world collapse around her.
— Dad?
No response.
— Don't… NOT!
She shook her body, called him again.
But it was over.
Raikuto placed a hand on his shoulder, his voice tight with emotion.
— Aïsha… we have to leave.
But she didn't move, frozen by grief.
— Aïsha, they are coming.
She slowly looked up at him, her eyes filled with tears.
Then they heard footsteps approaching.
The mercenaries advanced through the rubble, their weapons ready, Abraham leading the way, a satisfied smile on his lips.
Raikuto stood up abruptly.
— We have to flee. NOW.
Aïsha didn't respond, unable to look away from her father's lifeless body.
Then Raikuto gently grabbed her arm and pulled her with him.
— I promise... we'll come back... but not today.
One last look at Ghadib…
Then they disappeared into the shadows, leaving behind the man who had both shaped and destroyed them.
But Abraham and Karnak did not intend to let them go.
The steward sighed, looking at Ghadib's lifeless body as if he were just another removed obstacle. He shook his head, then looked up at the fleeing silhouettes of the two teenagers.
— Catch them.
The mercenaries rushed forward immediately.
Karnak, for his part, crossed his arms and observed the scene with a predatory glint in his eyes.
"They run well," he noted. But they won't go far.
Abraham raised an eyebrow slightly.
— That remains to be seen.
He held out his hand.
A wave of chaos spread through the air.
The time for the hunt had just come.
****
The impossible escape
Chaos was everywhere.
Aïsha and Raikuto were fleeing through the ruined corridors, their legs threatening to give way from fatigue and pain. The smell of blood and ashes pursued them, mingling with the distant screams of the mercenaries.
The corridors shook from the impact of the explosions. Behind them, the shadows of Karnak's soldiers stretched across the cracked walls, drawing inexorably closer.
— We're never going to make it... Aïsha panted, tears burning on her cheeks.
Raikuto pulled her tighter, his gaze fixed forward.
— Yes. We continue.
He didn't know where they were going. He just knew they couldn't stop.
A turn.
Another.
Then… a gutted wall.
Raikuto stopped abruptly.
There, in front of them, stood a man.
The last sacrifice
Idriss.
His body was a walking battlefield. His armor was broken, his clothes torn, and blood formed a trail behind him.
But in his hand... his sword still held.
He looked up at them tiredly.
— Stop.
Raikuto and Aïsha froze.
The footsteps of the mercenaries echoed behind them, like a countdown of doom.
Raikuto opened his mouth, but Idriss shook his head.
"Take her away from here.
His voice was hoarse, exhausted, but firm.
Raikuto felt his heart tighten.
— No… Wait…
Idriss placed a trembling but firm hand on her shoulder.
—Listen to me, kid. He paused to catch his breath. I have served Ghadib all my life. Today, his final order is in your hands.
Aisha shook her head, her eyes wide.
— No… You can still—
Idriss placed a finger against his lips.
— Don't argue.
His gaze softens, a tired smile stretching his lips.
— Be more stubborn than your father. Screw.
Aïsha trembled under his words.
She wanted to refuse. Tell him there was another solution. But the mercenaries were arriving. She could already see their shadows in the smoke.
Raikuto grabbed her arm and forced her back.
—We have to go.
She struggled, wanted to tear his arm away.
— I can't leave him!
—It's not a choice! Raikuto replied, his voice breaking with emotion.
Behind them, Idriss exhaled slowly.
He looked at the ruined corridors, the rubble of the palace he had served all his life.
Then, he turned his gaze towards the approaching mercenaries.
Karnak led the charge, his sword still dripping with the blood of those he had slain.
- Interesting. Karnak stopped a few meters from him. Are you planning to hold us back, old carcass?
Idriss tightens his grip on his sword.
- You don't even have any idea.
Then, without waiting...
He charged.
- GO FOR IT !
Aisha screamed.
Raikuto violently pulled her through a hidden passage, preventing her from looking back.
Behind them, they heard the clash of blades.
Idriss' cry.
Then, silence.
A silence more deafening than all the rest.
Aïsha staggered, her legs giving way beneath her.
Raikuto barely caught her, but he didn't have the strength to say a word.
Their only protector had just fallen.
And now they were truly alone.
****
As the mercenaries advanced towards him, their shadows distorted by the flames, Idriss felt his mind slip away for a moment.
A breath.
A heartbeat.
Then everything became clearer.
A young warrior
He saw himself again, long before he wore the captain's armor.
A simple apprentice, barely a teenager, clumsily trying to wield a sword that was too heavy for him.
- Again !
The swordmaster's blow sent him back several steps, his arms trembling from the impact.
— Duty comes first, Idriss!
He gritted his teeth, pushed back the pain, and regained his guard.
He wanted to prove his worth.
He wanted to be more than just a desert boy.
The years passed.
He became stronger. Faster.
He rises through the ranks, his sword carving his path across the battlefields.
Then he met Ghadib.
Under the banner of Samakhrystal
He relives his first day under this man's orders. Ghadib was not yet this lord tormented by his obsessions. He was a leader, a respected man, a formidable warrior.
— Do you want to serve me? he asked, his piercing gaze scanning Idriss.
—Yes, my lord.
— So protect what I build.
And Idriss had done it.
Battle after battle, victory after victory, he had stood by Ghadib.
He had believed in himself.
He had seen the man before the monster.
And then… there was Aisha.
A child in the heart of the storm
A little girl with dark hair, running barefoot through the palace gardens, laughing in the hot sun.
Aisha.
She was the only light in a palace of secrets and shadows.
He saw himself teaching him how to hold a dagger, how to defend himself.
She frowned as she clutched the weapon that was too large for her small hand.
—Why do I have to know how to fight?
He had smiled.
— Because one day, you might be the one to have to protect someone.
He never thought this day would come so quickly.
But today...
It was his turn.
One last fight
He came back abruptly to reality.
The palace was burning.
The mercenaries were there, their blades drawn, their faces masked.
Karnak stopped first, assessing him with an impassive gaze.
"You are a loyal soldier, Idriss. It's almost a shame.
The captain tightens his grip on his sword.
—That's what desert men are.
A silence.
A quiver in the air.
He knew he wouldn't win.
He knew his body wouldn't last long.
But he could waste their time.
He could give them a chance.
One last time.
He exhaled slowly.
Then he whirled his blade and stood on guard.
His gaze met Karnak's.
— Do you want to take me? he growled.
The mercenary leader tilted his head slightly.
- Alright. Let's give him a warrior's death.
The mercenaries took up position.
Steel sang.
Idriss gritted his teeth.
—Then come on.
And he charged.