My hopes that the Mantises would ignore the village were unfounded, and I think we were all wondering if this morning's sunrise would be our last. Despite all my practice, my rifle felt heavy and foreign in my shaking hands as the swarm advanced. Fortunately, they weren't our only visitors.
The villagers erupted in cheers as lightning and fire tore through the advancing insects from above. Some chanted a name: Wali al Aswad. The rider, still hidden behind black robes, didn't acknowledge the ovation. With swift efficiency, their small flight of Wyverns decimated the Mantis swarm and made for the horizon.
Wali al Aswad... I need to meet this person, if only to thank them.