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Feint Whispers Chapter #8: You will Rune the Day...

jasamcarl

First Post
The days following what, by preference of the army's commander, has come to be called the 'Greenskin Massacre' pass with a flurry of activity. The Evenwood forces, reinforced by both the recently healed as well a few dozen men sent to by Lord Evenwood from the castle's garrison (Castle Guard is fully recovered), move swiftly after their victory to consolidate their gains, spreading out all across the woods in search of every remaining goblin they can find. The humans pilliage the greenskin's primitive hovels, taking what they can and destroying what they can't along with any resistance they encounter. Black blood pours profusley in every corner of the woods. Those goblins that aren't slaughtered while trying to keep their things are chased into the Serpentcoil Mountains to the north. By the end of the two weeks, not a greenskin remains alive in the Evenwood.

The pilliaged loot that has been collected is very diverse, a collection of items the goblins had orginially aquired through raids on richer, human lands over the course of a generation or more. Coins of every sort are also very much on display, with seemingly every known lord, king, or even emir or sultan, being represented on atleast one bit of silver or gold. Strangly, their seems to be a disproportionate number of imperial coins bearing the representation of the Emperor to the South.....

The business is nasty, but that hasn't stopped it from attracting like flies to meet a trickle of merchants from the valley, the Empire, and the northern reaches of the Kingdom who come to trade both barter and metal for the army's pilliage. These are the type of men who would take even the risks associated with trudging through a thick forest, under possible threat of goblin attack for whatever profits they can squeeze from a successful army. They bear food, alcohol, trinkets, and of course weapons, both mundane and magical for the waiting soldiery, including both the nobles and, of course, the Fist. Talk of veangeful goblin spirits subsides as the men enjoy their payoff...

That slaughter behind them, the army now finds itself camped on the western edge of the Evenwood, looking out on the barren flats of the valley, and, in the distance, small farms and homesteads surrounded by fields of wheat and barley. Less than a days march to the villiage of Travensburg lies ahead, followed by perhaps another day it reach Duvik's Pass and a possible confrontation with the army of human rebels that covets the Fist's patron town....

The sun just having appeared along the western horizen to wake the sleepy camp, two scouts, shortswords at their sides and bows are their back, approach the place where the party is camped. They flank another, a disheavled, youngish man, who simple knitted and tanned clothing marks him as peasent. As he gets closer, the fact that he is shivering with fear becomes apparent, a condition not mitigated as he stares frantically all around at the hundreds of heavily armed men that surround him. Once his eyes settle on the members of the Fist, the look of fear is atleast partially displaced by a look of awe. Awe and silence...

One of the scouts speaks, "General, Sirs, we found this serf fleeing from the west towards our encampment. He says he is from Travensburg and brings a message for the "strong claw" that lead's this army. He refused to tell anything more..."
 
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Bhartus is grateful for this intrusion. If I had to listen to that D'orite retelling the battle one more time I'll have to put my mace through his head... or mine!

Bhartus stares keenly at the serf. He allows Jericho to receive the message.
 

"Heh, my guess is he isn't here to join our ranks," Norri quips, "But three gold says he brings bad news."

Norri sits back, aiming to pay careful attention to what the scared looking fellow may have to say.
 


Whitney, now once again as herself with her brown hair and glasses, looks up from her studies at the arrival of the messenger. :At least it's not another suitor.: she tells herself as she puts away her quill to listen to his message, getting up to follow him as he's taken to Jericho.

"Mist follows." her familiar says in her peculiar tongue that only familiar and master understand, Whitney sighing as she pauses to stoop down and pick up the cast. "Mist wishes to see many mens try to dance mating dance with mommy.." she adds with a hint of amusment, the last days of many of the formerly rude knights now showing even more attention now that her true identity and name have come to light. Being her father's daughter was worse than being 'Julia' at times. At least they were quite upfront with 'Julia', Whitney was more of a prize. Mist took all the attempts, blunt and subtle with amusement as Whitney turned all them aside.

"Behave cat." Whitney says as she follows the messenger and her friends.
 


"Strong claw?" Tarowyn wonders aloud as he approaches the man with the others. He steps in close to the man, looking him in the eye, and asks, "That have anything to do with the Broken Claw Orcs?"
 



Mirth said:
"Strong claw?" Tarowyn wonders aloud as he approaches the man with the others. He steps in close to the man, looking him in the eye, and asks, "That have anything to do with the Broken Claw Orcs?"

Jericho thinks on the musing, "Broken Claw Orcs? Anything to do with orcs could be quite entertaining indeed, I have been itching to get into the thick of combat once more."
 

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