The desert wind carried secrets.
Rayyan stood atop the cliffs overlooking the Valley of Shams, where the sun bled into golden sands. His companions — Meilin, Hiroto, Anaya, Amir, and Yuki — stood behind him, watching as the ancient dunes shifted unnaturally. Something was stirring beneath them. Something old.
"This place," Amir murmured, his eyes narrowing. "It was once the burial ground of a jinn king who defied Solomon. He tried to awaken the beasts of fire — the ones sealed before the Flood."
"And now his grave is trembling," Yuki said, resting her hand on her blade.
The group had followed a vision Rayyan received after touching the sacred map in the previous chamber — a call to the Valley of Shams. As they trekked through the cursed dunes, Nael, the scholar of sacred texts, rejoined them with urgent news.
"Iblis has begun whispering to the High Jinn Lords in the East," Nael said grimly. "One has already fallen. The Firecaller of Garuda's Nest. His fortress was swallowed by flame and shadow."
Anaya looked stricken. "Then time is running shorter than we feared."
Suddenly, the ground cracked beneath them — and from the sand rose a monstrous form. It was no ordinary beast. It wore the sigils of an ancient pact, once sealed by Solomon himself. Horns twisted skyward like blackened trees, and its eyes burned with emerald fire.
"That is Khazzar, the Eater of Dawn," Amir said. "He was sealed beneath these sands millennia ago. Only Iblis would dare unbind him."
Rayyan summoned his blade of light, drawn from the Ark's inheritance. Meilin leapt into position beside him, while Hiroto began drawing symbols in the air — summoning protective wards from the scrolls of his ancestors.
"Spread out!" Rayyan shouted. "We must weaken it — not kill it. Its body is cursed. It will release fireworms if destroyed!"
As they fought, Elira, the Jinn Queen of Qaf, appeared with reinforcements, her silver wings slicing through the sky. "We came as soon as we sensed the disturbance," she cried. "Hold it off!"
The battle raged across sand and sky. Fire met ice, steel met claw, and incantations echoed like thunder. Finally, through coordinated strikes and binding spells, the monster was sealed once again — but only barely.
Rayyan fell to his knees, exhausted.
Nael crouched beside him. "This was only one of Iblis's summoned horrors. The true war is coming. We must return to Zeruzalem — to retrieve the Ark of Solomon before Iblis reaches it first."
Rayyan nodded. "But we will not go alone."
He turned to the warriors around him — from the far isles of Japan, the deep deserts of Maghreb, the mystic lands of Bharat, and the icebound northern realms. "Summon your people. Not just leaders — but those willing to fight. The final gathering must begin."
Yuki sheathed her sword. "I will call upon the Frostbound monks. They owe us a favor."
Anaya stepped forward. "And I will summon the River Guardians. They've kept peace in the Ganges for a thousand years."
Hiroto added, "My clan's dragonblood descendants will come. They've waited long for a righteous war."
Amir looked to the burning horizon. "The Dune Warriors ride again."
Rayyan stood tall. "Then let Iblis tremble. We ride for Zeruzalem — and the Ark that holds the power to bind or destroy him forever."
The wind howled louder, as if acknowledging the storm to come.