The Hill Country. Southern Girdane.
Farsen Geist winces as he looks over at his older cousin Gamil, who is breathing heavily, practically wheezing as he sits upon a log.
The younger of the two cousins shakes his head, as he's a little short of breath too. Though no where near as bad as his older, and slightly overweight cousin.
Farsen looks down the forest road that goes further north into the kingdom of Girdane as more of the column head that way after crossing the border, then he looks over at his older cousin again.
"Of course she had to show up now" dryly says Gamil Geist after he somewhat gets his breath back.
"Only to berate us" says Farsen Geist, which his older cousin grunts in agreement with, then the younger of the Geist cousins adds "Then take off again".
Gamil who is leaning over, with his hands upon his knees, nods his head in agreement with Farsen as they continue to watch those in the column who survived the attack, head along the forest road that goes deeper into the kingdom of Girdane.
Farsen wryly smiles when he hears a muttered "Bitch" from his older cousin Gamil, then he goes over and sits beside him on the log.
"Well, this didn't turn out exactly as we planned" says Farsen Geist after a few moments of silence as they watch the mercenaries who survived, head down the forest road on this freezing cold winter's day here in the hill country of southern Girdane.
"You think?" sarcastically says the older of the two cousins, who then follows that with "Sorry cousin" he then adds "It's been a bit of a shit day".
Farsen Geist nods in agreement with that, then they look to their left down the forest road, when they hear the guard commander Kilmas calling out to them, who is hurrying back up the road.
"At last something good this day" says Kilmas the commander of the Geist Trading Company guards, who continues with "Marqand's column survived unscathed".
The guard commander follows with "They were basically over the border here in Girdane when the Vexilian army and aircorp attacked".
Kilmas then adds "Couple of riders from his company just came in, he sent them when he spotted us crossing the border as we fled".
"Finally something good alright" says Gamil Geist, next to him his younger cousin Farsen nods in agreement with him.
Then the older of the Geist cousins asks what they've all been fearing "Marqand and his lot see what happened to Dillason and the center column?".
Guard commander Kilmas grimaces, then he replies with "They had a pretty good view of everything from the hilltop they were on, and from what they could see this morning, it looks like Dillason's column was basically wiped out".
"Fuck" mutters Gamil Geist who then sighs, as that's what the wizard Hoptas could briefly see too, before their own column came under attack.
The two cousins who have gathered a mercenary army, share a look. Then the younger of the two quietly asks "You think we'll be able to carry on with who we have left?".
"Who knows?" quietly says Gamil Geist, who then falls silent as one of the wagons that survived the attack earlier in the day, rolls on by.
The Geist cousins ses that it's some of captain Mackrin's camp followers, and that there's odd shaped, coffin like boxes in the wagon bed.
They both wonder what the mercenary captain is hauling around in that wagon. As they do, they instantly forget about asking anything about it.
Then the two of them look over at their guard commander, and Gamil Geist says to him "Make sure to keep this lot moving" followed by "And that they make it to the rendezvous point".
The older of the two cousins briefly pauses, before continuing with "Hopefully we'll be able to salvage something out of this mess".
The guard commander nods his head, then waves over a couple of his men who have been waiting nearby.
Then Gamil Geist groans as he's helped to his feet by his younger cousin, who then quietly says to him "Come on Gam" followed by "Let's get out of here".
The Geist cousins start heading down the road, as they do they're joined by the wizard Hoptas, who was resting on a nearby downed tree.
The practitioner of magic looks a little worse for wear too, after they were attacked this morning by a warship in the aircorp of the city-state of Vexil.
As they walk as the skies start to clear, in the early afternoon, Gamil Geist asks the practitioner of magic "You find out what happened to that ship that attacked us?" followed by "Why it veered away like that?".
"No idea" is the reply from Hoptas the wizard, who continues with "Probably some failure of some kind, happens quite often".
The older Geist cousin grunts, then says "Just glad it moved off like it did" he follows on from that with "And that other one went off to help them out".
Gamil Geist briefly pauses before he adds "I have a feeling if that hadn't of happened, then we would've ended up like Dillason's column".
Next to him, his younger cousin Farsen winces, then nods in agreement with Gamil, then the younger of the two cousins, says "Thank the gods, or whoever for that".
"Don't get it in your head, that you're one of the gods or something" dryly murmurs Narladene the ground pixie, which causes Helbe the elven thief to grin.
The two of them have just arrived, and are listening to the Geist cousins. The blurred and shielded elven magic user is floating in the air, above the forest road the fleeing mercenary army are on, as it heads further north, and west into the kingdom of Girdane, as they go to meet up with the column of the army led by captain Marqand.
"Seems we missed her" quietly says the naturally magical creature as she stands upon the right shoulder of the elven masterthief she's 'attached' to.
The ground pixie who is originally from the Sunreach Mountains, who has sensed the young elven noble from the island principality of Laerel casting a number of spells, quietly asks him "Find anything?".
The elven master assassin nods his hooded head, then after looking around, he shifts further down the forest road.
Narladene does a little involuntary shake when they get further down the road, and they see the wagon with the odd shaped coffin like boxes going by.
Helbe the elven thief quietly says "Think that elf might be with Misa Geist" he continues with "There was another two elves with the group that she had with her when she briefly met her cousins".
The highly talented elven practitioner of magic who has read the minds of the Geist cousins Gamil and Farsen, and others.
Then quietly tells the tiny winged creature standing upon his right shoulder "She was pissed with the way things have gone".
"I can well imagine" wryly says the ground pixie, who at over seven hundred years old, is relatively young for one of her kind.
The grandson of the ruling prince of Laerel drops down to the ground to the side of the forest road. Then the blurred and shielded elven magic user heads into the trees as the column of mercenaries continues northwards.
Away from the road, prince Helbenthril Raendril casts a spell. It's an illusion spell, to be precise, a viewing spell.
Taken from the point of view of Farsen Geist, who Helbe the elven has found out has the better eyesight of the two Geist cousins, as the older Gamil is shortsighted.
"Hmmm" murmurs Narladene the ground pixie as they watch the viewing spell that has been taken from the memory of Farsen Geist.
The spell is floating in the air just in front of Helbe the elven thief's face, and is just over six inches high.
"That's her I gather" quietly says the tiny winged creature, who slightly frowns then murmurs "Wonder who those two elves are?".
The young elven noble from the island principality of Laerel shrugs his shoulders, then says "No idea".
As they watch and listen to the moving images, the elven master archer continues with "That fellow is Margin, a wizard".
"You don't say?" dryly says the naturally magical creature, who follows that with "What gave it away? The robes he's wearing I guess".
The elven princeling sourly smiles but doesn't say anything in response to that, instead he watches his viewing spell that shows the recent meeting between Farsen and Gamil Geist, and their cousin Misa, and those with her.
"Hmmm I don't see this elf" says the ground pixie who is originally from the Sunreach Mountains, who then adds "The noble who created those rifts".
Prince Helbenthril Raendril nods his hooded head in agreement with the naturally magical creature, who narrows her eyelids as she looks closely at those in the viewing spell.
Then after a slight grunt, Narladene quietly says ""There's something" she briefly pauses, then mutters in the ground pixie language that the elven masterthief doesn't understand "Wish I could actually sense what's happening there".
Then after switching back to the elven language, the tiny winged creature says "Think they're communicating by mindspeech as they talk".
Narladene points at Misa Geist, one of the two elves, the one named Jarkellé. Then she points at the wizard named Margin.
Helbe the elven thief nods as he suspected such, as he looked closely at the wizard in the viewing spell in front of his face.
Then after glancing at Narladene who has a thoughtful looking frown upon her face, quietly says to her "Anything else?".
"Not sure" murmurs the naturally magical creature, who after a brief pause, continues with "There's something about that Misa that isn't quite right" followed by "Not sure what though".
The highly talented elven magic user is silent for a few moments as they watch the conversation in the viewing spell until it ends.
Then prince Helbenthril Raendril quietly says to her "Magical?" Narladene replies with "Most likely" followed by "Can't tell unless I was actually there, or nearby and could sense it".
"Probably something to do with this missing elven noble " quietly says the elf who is a member of Lord Farque's personal council and is his envoy.
"Probably" quietly says the ground pixie who nods her head in agreement with the young elven noble she's 'attached' to . . . . . .
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