Post by whandall on Jul 23, 2020 10:39:32 GMT
An hour after dusk a group of six Druchii soldiers left the war-camp in Avelorn, riding eastwards on horseback. They all carried repeater crossbows and swords, four of them with shields. Whandall, their young leader was tensed, but he did his best not to show it to his small squad. The seasoned soldiers following him were all veterans and much older. If they disapproved the decision to put an inexperienced soldier in charge, they were professional enough not to show it openly.
The squad passed the newly constructed defence towers and the outer perimeter shortly after, entering the eerie living forest of the dreaded Everqueen. They slowed to a trot as the forest instantly became thicker and Whandall reached for his saddlebag to pull out a map that they found on their last raid, revealing the hidden paths and the location of the second Thalken staging post that was responsible for the last attacks against them.
It was critical to travel unseen so none of them risked to light any torches. The faint glow of Whandall's crystal, that he used to read the maps, was barely enough to navigate their path. After several hours they finally reached their destination and left their horses behind. Whandall and his second stripped of their armour and put on Thalken armaments which had been scavenged from fallen bodies and repaired while the other four silently moved to their positions.
Only moments later the first tents on the western edge of the post were ablaze. As the first Asur reacted and sounded the alarms the first volley of flaming bolts hit the eastern side, struck down a patrol and lit even more canvas on fire. In the erupting chaos, Whandall and his second moved in, disguised as their hated brethren. The thalken guard, they had to pass saw through it way too late. Whandall swiftly closed in on him and rammed his Assassins Claw into his breast. He collapsed instantly and was unable to alert anyone as his lungs drowned in blood.
The team pressed onwards towards the centre of the ruined terrace that hosts the enemy camp. In the middle, a beautiful Elven woman wearing a hood of silk over a sparkling ithilmar tiara barked orders in graceful Eltharin. Whandall gracefully crept towards her without making any noise. Without hesitating, he swiftly slit her throat. The enemy Commander dropped dead at his feet, a look of surprise on her face as she breathed her last. He smiled sadistically and collected her head as a prove of their successful mission. On a quick glimpse around the tent, he also grabbed a silver ring with a gemstone from her table before leaving the post. His second blew his horn twice in rapid succession, to signal the rest of the squad to make their retreat and meet up where they left their horses.
The squad of six all managed to escape and pushed their horses as hard as they dared to escape their pursuers. The screams and shouts began to fade, but volley after volley of arrows rained down on them still and the living forest seemed to wake around them. It felt like hours had passed when they finally outpaced their pursuers and came to a wider path where they could finally see the stars again. Whandall ordered a short break to check up on everyone and change back into his dalakoi. He just then realised that one of the soldiers had dropped dead in his saddle, pierced by several arrows. While cursing he made sure that his horse would carry him home and handed the reigns to his second as they continued their journey back to the Drachau's camp.
The squad passed the newly constructed defence towers and the outer perimeter shortly after, entering the eerie living forest of the dreaded Everqueen. They slowed to a trot as the forest instantly became thicker and Whandall reached for his saddlebag to pull out a map that they found on their last raid, revealing the hidden paths and the location of the second Thalken staging post that was responsible for the last attacks against them.
It was critical to travel unseen so none of them risked to light any torches. The faint glow of Whandall's crystal, that he used to read the maps, was barely enough to navigate their path. After several hours they finally reached their destination and left their horses behind. Whandall and his second stripped of their armour and put on Thalken armaments which had been scavenged from fallen bodies and repaired while the other four silently moved to their positions.
Only moments later the first tents on the western edge of the post were ablaze. As the first Asur reacted and sounded the alarms the first volley of flaming bolts hit the eastern side, struck down a patrol and lit even more canvas on fire. In the erupting chaos, Whandall and his second moved in, disguised as their hated brethren. The thalken guard, they had to pass saw through it way too late. Whandall swiftly closed in on him and rammed his Assassins Claw into his breast. He collapsed instantly and was unable to alert anyone as his lungs drowned in blood.
The team pressed onwards towards the centre of the ruined terrace that hosts the enemy camp. In the middle, a beautiful Elven woman wearing a hood of silk over a sparkling ithilmar tiara barked orders in graceful Eltharin. Whandall gracefully crept towards her without making any noise. Without hesitating, he swiftly slit her throat. The enemy Commander dropped dead at his feet, a look of surprise on her face as she breathed her last. He smiled sadistically and collected her head as a prove of their successful mission. On a quick glimpse around the tent, he also grabbed a silver ring with a gemstone from her table before leaving the post. His second blew his horn twice in rapid succession, to signal the rest of the squad to make their retreat and meet up where they left their horses.
The squad of six all managed to escape and pushed their horses as hard as they dared to escape their pursuers. The screams and shouts began to fade, but volley after volley of arrows rained down on them still and the living forest seemed to wake around them. It felt like hours had passed when they finally outpaced their pursuers and came to a wider path where they could finally see the stars again. Whandall ordered a short break to check up on everyone and change back into his dalakoi. He just then realised that one of the soldiers had dropped dead in his saddle, pierced by several arrows. While cursing he made sure that his horse would carry him home and handed the reigns to his second as they continued their journey back to the Drachau's camp.