Wonderful 67.

The Principality Of Maladimbáh...

"Come on you lot" says Riley Hait the mercenary ranger who has slid open one of the stable doors "We've got company" adds the human ranger from the elven principality of Envadarlen in the Southlands.
Sir Percavelle Lé Dic who is sitting on a couple of hay bales, where he's eating an apple, quickly gets up and is the first one out of the stables. The heavily armoured knight is followed by Tamric Drubine, and finally Shur Kee the monk.
"Pray tell, what is about?" asks sir Percavelle Lé Dic who for once, speaks as quietly as he can, which is about a normal speaking voice for anyone else.
"Percy go with Dalin" says Riley aka Zubutai the barbarian hordesman, who then looks at the other two and adds "Shur Kee, Tam" followed by "You're with me and Lis".
The nobleman from the kingdom of Druvic shrugs his broad shoulders, then he puts on his full helm as he follows the elven spy Dalinvardél Tanith.
"Where are they off to?" quietly asks Tamric Drubine "To be bait" is the quiet reply in elven from the ranger Hait, who then adds in the same language "Well Percy will be" followed by "Eventually".
Riley Hait nods for the other three to follow him, and as they walk in the relative darkness of the early evening, Shur Kee asks the mercenary ranger "Where is friend Helbe?". "He'll be around" replies Riley aka Zubutai the barbarian hordesman, who then he glances at Tamric Drubine, and in the elven language, he quietly tells the nobleborn youngster from the kingdom of Sarcrin in the Southlands "Look after Shur Kee".
You mean, he should be looking after me, the former heir to castle Drubine dryly thinks to himself, as he knows that the short statured monk can be extremely dangerous at times. So much so, that the two spellcasters normally in the group, Helbe the elven thief and Mira Reinholt the mage give the acolyte in the order of Bru Li a wide berth when he's in his meditative fighting state.
The four of them head along the lake shore, walking slowly as they make their way eastwards, for on that side of the large village, is where the two griffons and those who were upon them, are at the moment.
While Dalinvardél Tanith and sir Percavelle are wandering around to the otherside of what's essentially a town, heading west, then north. As the elven spy wastes time, and to keep the knight in the order of Saint Mar-che out of trouble until he's needed.
The elf from the principality of Alínlae in the Southlands looks north into the evening sky, and he spots the third griffon quickly approaching the lake and the large village on it's northern shore.
The elven spy who is ignoring the questions directed at him by the earl of Lé Dic in the kingdom of Druvic. Sees that apart from the rider upon the back of the approaching griffon, there's at least seven others. Guards by the looks of it.
Dalinvardél Tanith sees that the heavily armoured knight has both his shield and the shortsword with him, both of which are magical. The elven spy is glad that sir Percavelle has them, for no doubt they will need them.
His griffon drops in altitude, then sweeps down low over the ground, just to the side of the paved road, which was obviously dwarven in origin. The griffon then lands down next to where two more of it's kind waits. Both of which squawk in greeting, as they were hatchlings together when they were younger.
He gets off his griffon, and the seven guards he's brought with him, get off the large winged creature too.
His guards join the half a dozen guards one of his cousins has brought along, while he walks over to where his two cousins stand a bit further away, closer to the shore of the lake, here to the east of the large village.
"You know there's an elven noble here" says lord Parsenellé after he's hugged his cousins in greeting "There is?" says lady Laelmainé, as she along with lord Galithellé look from their ambitious younger cousin to the large lake side village they're just outside of.
"Can't sense anyone" says lord Galithellé, who is closer in age to Parsenellé than the maid Laelmainé. Lord Parsenellé, who helped both of his cousins carve out their lands from the lands of the lords to the east and northeast of their own family's lands, nods his head, then says "There is" he continues with "I can't sense him as well" as the three of them converse in the language of the elven nobility.
Both Galithellé and Laelmainé nod in understanding, as they know that their younger cousin, who has taken over the traditional lands of their extended family from his father, in what amounted to a coup. Has a sprite that's attached to him, who will be able to sense anyone or anything magical.
"Wonder how they're doing that?" murmurs lord Galithellé who then adds "Holding their power within themselves?" the tall, lean elven noble follows that up with "If they have, they've been doing it for a while cause Lael and myself have been here for quite some time" the lady Laelmainé nods her head in agreement with her cousin.
"It's a spell of some kind, it's masking them" says the youngest of the three cousins, his two older cousins are surprised at that, and the lady Laelmainé murmurs "How the hell are they doing that?".
Lord Parsenellé shrugs his shoulders then says "Who knows?" then adds "Who cares?" he continues with "I'll deal with them if they interfere". "Well at least we know something" says lord Galithellé, who then adds "At least we know it isn't Yardeníl" the two other cousins chuckle at the mention of the local lord whose lands they're in. An effectual lord at best, who to the north of him is the extended Parsenellé family. And while there's a series of peaks directly to the south of here which is basically land of the principality, that's if a ruling prince was in charge of Maladimbáh at the moment.
Further south of that, little over a day's ride on horseback, is the northern reaches of lord Haldéilv's lands. One of the powerful southern lords of Maladimbáh whose lands border the arid and dry plains of the nomads south of the elven principality.
"Did you see him?" asks lord Parsenellé who continues with "Or those traveling with him?" lord Galithellé replies with "I'm not sure" he continues with "I did see a group of travelers approach here while i was flying in" the cousin who got here first then adds "He might be amongst them".
"Bloody knight" mutters the youngest of the three cousins, lord Parsenellé, whose guard were attacked by a traveling knight in a tavern in one of the villages in his lands a few evenings ago says "More of my guards are heading this way, infact an entire column of them, they'll be here sometime tomorrow" he continues with "Until then, we'll check this place out and the surrounding area for him".
Lord Parsenellé turns and says in the normal elven language "Karrelíth lets begin the search" the senior guard Karrelíth says "Yes my lord". "Haelvéne you and the others go with them" says lady Laelmainé to the senior guard of the squad of six she brought with her, the senior guard nods her head, and all thirteen elven guards start spreading out as they start towards the large village on the northern shore of the lake, they're followed by the trio of elven nobles who are cousins.
"Who else is with this knight?" asks lord Galithellé who then adds "There's a few of them, but your messenger wasn't exactly rich on details". "A short fellow with an odd shaped hat, and two youngsters, a boy and a girl really" replies lord Parsenellé who continues with "Obviously all human". "Obviously" dryly says lady Laelmainé who at nearly three hundred and eighty years of age, is the oldest of the three cousins. Though that's still fairly young for an elven noble who could easily live to be twelve hundred years old, and even older.
"There might of been an elf with them" quietly says lord Parsenellé as they walk by the first of the buildings here on the eastern side of the large, lake side village "In fact, I'm fairly certain there's one" adds the youngest cousin who is now the head of their extended family, he continues with "One of my guards who was attacked, briefly remembers speaking to an elf just before the knight attacked him and his fellow guard".
"This mysterious noble perhaps?" quietly asks lady Laelmainé "Maybe" murmurs the youngest of the three elven magic users who doesn't mention what his guards were attempting to do when they were attacked a few evenings ago.
As a couple of the guards knock on the door of a house and enter it before anyone answers, lord Galithellé quietly says "You sense that?" he follows that up with "A weapon of some kind" the other two cousins nod as they sense what he's talking about.
And as all three of them put up barrier and protection spells around themselves, lord Parsenellé says "Another one on the otherside of the village too" he pauses for a moment, before continuing with "A shield too" he then adds in a murmur "Damn powerful as well".
The youngest of three cousins, who apart from being the most ambitious of them, also happens to be the most powerful out of them when it comes to magic, glances at his right shoulder where his sprite Dolmanad has just appeared to him. The sprite whispers something to him in his right ear.
"To the right, through the buildings that way" quietly says lord Parsenellé to his two cousins "That's where that noble is" quietly adds the fairly young elven noble who is the head of their extended family.
After sharing something with his two cousins via mindspeech, lord Parsenellé moves away to the right, following behind a couple of guards who are heading that way. While the cousins Galithellé and Laelmainé continue the way they're going, briefly stopping as a goblin fumbles to light a lamp on a post beside a building, a sure sign that there's a fair few non elves living and working in and around the lake side village.
They sense a magical weapon, a sword they can now discern is getting closer to them, while another weapon, along with a powerful feeling shield is heading to this side of the large village as well, as the guards continue to check all the buildings and dwellings they come across.
Away to their right, lord Parsenellé listens to the directions of the sprite Dolmanad of where this hidden elven noble is, who from what the sprite says, isn't all that far away . . . . . .