A lone caravan drove into the desert, its engine rattling through the night.

  Thick wheels ground through the sand. The vehicle was long and black, a motor wagon with a wooden passenger cabin bolted onto the back.

  Inside, Senbi's boots echoed off the wooden floor as he walked down the aisle.

  He caught a whiff of sweat and iron as he inspected the sleeping children lining the aisle, their cheeks streaked with dried tears and their necks and wrists bound by iron collars and chains.

  The corners of Senbi's scaly lips stretched, his tail wagging in joy.

  Looks like none of these human kids are sick. Perfect! They'll go for quite a haul…

  However, he ran into a problem.

  One seat was empty.

  What!? A child escaped!? How!?!?

  He clenched his fists.

  "Everyone, wake up!!!"

  When the kids' eyes fluttered open, and they saw the enraged Senbi, their bodies shook with fear. But before Senbi could utter a word, Meren, the driver, spoke up.

  "What's all the commotion back there?"

  "One of the slaves is missing."

  "How? We wrapped them in chains."

  "That's what I'm trying to figure out."

  Senbi turned to the children, grabbing the whip on his side.

  "Now, kids, you're gonna tell me where that one brat went, or else all of you are in trouble."

  The children remained silent, their eyes welling with tears.

  Senbi cracked his whip on the floor.

  "Out with it!"

  But again, the children didn't speak.

  Senbi turned to the three kids near the vacant seat. There were two on his left and one on his right, sitting next to the vacant seat.

  "You three, speak up now! Or you're gonna get it."

  The two kids on the left held each other while the other one on the right had his back pressed against the window, trying to create as much distance as possible, but there was no escaping Senbi.

  Senbi began a countdown.

  "Three!"

  A child opened his mouth.

  "We don't know, he left while we were asleep."

  "Two!"

  "Please, don't hurt us."

  "One!"

  Senbi raised the whip.

  "Senbi, wait!" Meren said.

  "What?"

  "Calm down, if our clients see the goods with scars, they'll ask for a cheaper price, dumbass."

  "So what am I supposed to do?"

  "Check the cargo hold, ya moron, maybe he's there."

  "That doesn't make any sense. I would've noticed him."

  "Just do it!"

  Senbi clicked his tongue as he walked toward the door at the back of the caravan. Opening it, he saw the room was dark, so he grabbed a nearby lantern. Although he didn't have a lighter, he didn't need one; he focused, and a blue aura appeared in his hand, which coalesced around the candle, causing it to ignite.

  Now, a blue flame lit the room.

  Senbi saw only boxes on the floor, with tools spread across the wall.

  It's just as I thought, nothing.

  He heard a rattling noise. Senbi's slit pupils narrowed. A chest at the back quivered.

  Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions.

  Something's there.

  "Hey, who's in there? Come out, right now."

  The quivering stopped for a moment, but the chest didn't open. Senbi had lost what little patience he had left. The whip at his side shimmered, veins of blue light crawling along the leather.

  "That does it, brat, I'll teach you what happens to troublemakers."

  As Senbi swung, a blur shot upward. The leather whip sliced through the wooden chest, splintering it apart. Gold coins and paper bills burst into the air, scattering in every direction as smoke and dust filled the caravan.

  When it cleared, a small preadolescent boy stood at the center of the wreckage.

  He wore a blue tunic, loose black trousers, and a purple cloak draped over his shoulders. A piece of bread stuck casually to the corner of his mouth.

  Coins rained down around him, clattering across the wooden floor.

  The boy seemed strange, but what was stranger was that the chains that bound his hands were broken; all that was left were the iron collars around his neck and wrists.

  The boy waved his hand.

  "Heyya, my name is Sith."

  Sith beamed.

  "How did you break out of your shackles?" Senbi asked.

  Sith flexed his arms.

  "Easy, I just broke them."

  That cheeky little brat is mocking me.

  Noticing the bread in the boy's mouth, Senbi tightened his grip around his whip.

  I can't injure him, or else his value will drop… No, if this disrespect goes unpunished, it'll set a bad precedent. Besides, this kid wouldn't make for a good slave anyway, but he could make for a nice meal.

  Senbi licked his lips.

  "Die, you useless brat!"

  Senbi swung, his whip cracked in the air.

  The boy paused for a moment.

  "Huh?"

  Before the boy realized the trouble he was in, it was already too late to find out.

  The whip found its mark, carving an arc through the boy's abdomen. Senbi swung again, and the whip tore through his face until even an eyeball flew out of its socket, bouncing on the ground.

  The eyeball rolled into the aisle with the children. Some erupted into screams as they watched in horror, while others fell unconscious.

  Sith fell flat on his back, his body lying still under a pool of blood.

  "Serves you right, brat," Senbi said as he erupted into laughter.

  He continued.

  "If you had just been a good kid, I might've sold you to a good family, but as you are right now, you're more valuable dead than alive."

  Sith's lips curved into a smile.

  His skin knit itself together. A new eyeball formed. Then, his body rose as if being controlled by a marionette; his brows furrowed, and a devilish smile spread across his lips.

  A moment ago, Sith's green eyes gazed at Senbi with an innocent expression. Now they glare at him like a tiger staring down its prey.

  A shiver crawled up Senbi's spine.

  "A human that can regenerate!? What the hell are you?"

  Sith chuckled.

  "Thank you."

  "Huh?"

  Sith approached Senbi, his boots clicking off the floor.

  "I don't often get the chance to fight people. So thank you… For sacrificing yourself."

  Sith shot forward, his arm drawn back. Senbi's heart raced. Without a moment of hesitation, he swung his whip.

  Sith snatched the whip.

  Senbi's jaw dropped.

  'Impossible! He's just a kid.'

  Sith yanked the whip, causing Senbi to fly towards him.

  Planting his fist in Senbi's face, Sith sent him flying, crashing out the window at the other end of the caravan.

  Sith walked through the aisle, the children whose faces were masked with horror, now gazed at him in awe.

  The vehicle came to a stop. Meren exited to check up on Senbi.

  "Senbi, what the hell happened?"

  Senbi lay on the cold sand, struggling to speak.

  "It's that kid… He's not normal," Senbi said before closing his eyes.

  As the driver turned around, Sith was standing before him.

  As soon as he saw the fire in Sith's eyes, sweat crawled down his skin.

  Sith took a step forward.

  Meren drew a revolver.

  "Stay back!"

  But, before he could pull the trigger, Sith shot forward, driving his fist into Meren's stomach. Meren stumbled. His face thudded on the ground.

  ***

  Sith took a deep breath. The fire faded from his eyes.

  His lips curled into a bright smile as he waved a peace sign.

  As he turned around, he saw the children's faces pressed against the window; they appeared baffled by what they had just witnessed.

  When Sith walked toward the caravan, the kids ran to the farthest corner.

  The oldest stepped up.

  He stepped out of the caravan and stood before Sith, a nervous smile on his face, waving his shackled hands.

  "Hey, you were pretty cool back there. My name is Cassius."

  Sith didn't respond. Instead, he raised his hand. A blue aura flared around it.

  Sweat beaded down Cassius' face.

  Sith swung.

  Cassius froze, squeezing his eyes shut.

  CRACK!

  The shackles around split cleanly apart, the broken chains clattering to the wooden floor.

  "There! You're free now." Sith said, smiling.

  As Cassius stared at his wrists, his lips curled. "Thank you so much!"

  He turned to the caravan.

  "Guys, come over here, it's safe."

  After a few minutes, the kids all stood outside. Sith broke their shackles. Their faces beamed with joy.

  "Wow… how are you so strong? You're just a kid!"

  Sith scratched his head.

  "My uncle trained me."

  "Your uncle must be really strong."

  Another kid spoke up.

  "Hey, if you're so strong, how'd they capture you in the first place?"

  "I noticed they were going in the same direction I was, so I asked if I could come too."

  "Huh? You let them capture you?"

  The kids bubbled with laughter.

  Sith scratched his head, not understanding what was so funny.

  "You're one crazy guy."

  Cassius asked, "By any chance, are you headed to Strife village?"

  "Maybe, I think so."

  "Why are you going there? They say there are a lot of bad people."

  "There's a special treasure there that I'm looking for."

  "What kind of treasure?"

  Sith grabbed a golden cone-shaped item from his pocket. It hovered over his hand and pointed east.

  The kids gathered, staring at it. "Whoa," they said.

  "This is a fragment of the Mijrāh; they point to other fragments, and when you put them all together, you get the Mijrāh."

  "And what is that?"

  "I don't really know, but apparently it can grant any wish."

  "Really? What are you gonna wish for?"

  "To find my uncle."

  There was a moment of silence.

  Cassius chimed.

  "Sorry, I don't wanna sound ungrateful, but if we took the caravan to Strife Village, we'd likely get captured."

  "You wanna take the caravan with you?"

  Cassius nodded awkwardly.

  "Sure, no problem, I can walk there."

  "You mean you're still gonna go?"

  "Yup."

  The children took the caravan back home, waving goodbye. Sith waved back. However, one child shouted.

  "You didn't tell us your name."

  "My name is Sith, but my friends call me Shishi!"

  "Goodbye, Shishi!"

  Shishi turned his back, facing east. He began treading forward as the sun began to rise.