The Stone Hills. Winter...
Lisell Maera hops over some rocks, and keeps low as she makes her way along the trail. The orphan teenager from the city-state of Brattonbury in the Southlands. Glances to her left, down at the village of free folk at the base of the foothill below. Lisell, or Lis as she's often referred to, grimaces as she sees and hears what's happening down there this morning.
The teenager from south of the equator jumps over another pile of rocks, and jumps into a trench that's been dug into the hard ground just below the trail she's been running along.
"Where is he?" asks Lisell Maera in the common language "Over yonder" says the dwarven warrior she's jumped down beside, he nods away to the right and down from the trench, and adds "Behind the stunted trees, at the emplacement".
"Thanks" says Lis in the dwarven language "No worries lassie" says the warrior in the same language. Well that's what the teenager from the Southlands thinks he says. As she has only recently started to learn the dwarven language, and is free to admit it's a hell of a lot harder to learn than elven was.
It doesn't help matters that's she's trying to learn it during a war, as learning something such as a language during wartime is never an easy thing to do.
Lisell Maera makes her way along the trench, keeping low as it's a rather shallow affair to begin with. After all it's been made by dwarves, for dwarves. Not a lanky, nearly sixteen year old from the Southlands.
Lis who is glad to be out of the cold southwest wind that's blowing. Nods her head as the dwarven warriors, who are crouched down and waiting, greet her by her nickname of Lis, or call her "Runner" as she passes them by.
The teen from south of the equator, gets to the end of the trench, and waits for the dwarven warrior at the end to give her the go ahead. As he stands there with a raised hand and looks down the foothill, he eventually says in the common language to the orphaned teenager from the city-state of Brattonbury "Go runner".
Lisell Maera who is a runner and messenger in the army, gets up out of the trench, and quickly heads down to where the stunted trees are.
Lis is just glad that they're in the foothills at the moment. Because to the north in the Stone Hills proper, there's pretty much no tree cover anywhere. As the saying goes 'They're not called the Stone Hills for nothing'.
The runner gets amongst the trees, which hardly does anything to cut down on the cold wind blowing from the southwest. Here in the trees, Lisell passes more dwarven warriors who are crouching and kneeling behind the trees.
She even sees a number of free folk fighters within the trees, the teenager from south of the equator sees more than a few grimaces on the faces of these humans as they watch and listen to what's happening down in the village below.
Lisell Maera comes upon the emplacement, it's a dug out hole in the hard ground, surrounded by rocks and a number of trees. Within it is a ballista, behind which is a barrel winch, with a long chain wrapped it, the barrel winch is connected to the ground by chains, that have been cleverly bolted into bedrock, the bolts have then been covered in the quick setting stone that the Stone Hill dwarves use when they build things.
The end of the chain wrapped around the large barrel and winch is linked to a heavy long spear in the ballista. The missile within the war machine is ready to fire by the crew who operate it.
Amongst the dwarven warriors within the emplacement, Lis spots the leader of this particular war party. The lanky teen, who is nearly sixteen years old, and is already five foot elven, who towers over all the dwarves. Marches up to the warrior in charge, the other dwarves are quick to get out of the way of the young human, who they know has a bit of daring demeanour, not to mention temper. And the fact she's pretty skillful with the blades she carries.
"Why are you waiting?" demands Lisell Maera as she basically stands over Helnd the dwarven warrior, and looks down at him.
The clan Kraelin warrior who is in charge of the war party, refrains from sourly smiling, and tugging on his braided beard. The dwarven warrior who has his blond beard in twin braids, would ordinarily tell a messenger to fuck off if they talked to him like Lis just did.
But he knows this young human is no ordinary runner or messenger, and that she comes from up high, so to speak.
"We wait" says Helnd of the Kraelin clan dwarves, who points beyond the free folk village below, to further south, and adds "Pair of wyverns were spotted earlier just before they attacked" the dwarf who has a strong command of the common language continues with "They tend to do sweeps, this one starting south, which means they'll cover the ground to the north next, this is the way the riders operate".
Lisell Maera nods in understanding and agreement. And refrains from what she was intending to do, which was to angrily yell at Helnd to order the attack.
Besides she trusts the judgement of the dwarven warrior from clan Kraelin in charge of this war party. Who is normally half drunk most of the time, and a talkative and boastful drunk at that.
Though during times of war as it is now, Helnd is stone cold sober, and won't touch a drop of alcohol until the war is either won or lost.
"How goes it to the east?" asks Helnd as he knows Lis has come from that way "They've sent scouts through and we've picked them off" replies the teen orphan from the Southlands, who left her post just after sunrise, to run the five miles through the foothills to get here.
"Any riders that way?" asks the dwarven warrior who is command of the war party numbering about a hundred and twenty. Just over a hundred warriors from a handful of clans, and the rest being free folk fighters. Those humans whose villagers and towns have been the first to be attacked by the armies of Belinswae.
"None" replies Lisell Maera, who then adds "And no justifiers too" Helnd grunts then says "That's a relief" the dwarven warrior who carries a number of axes, including a waraxe with a heavy crescent shaped head, adds "By Thaxel i hope there's not a one on the beasties we spotted earlier".
Lis nods her head in agreement with that, as there's no delvers or spellcasters in the vicinity to counter any justifier who might be in the area.
The teenager from the city-state of Brattonbury in the Southlands is just about to answer Helnd who has just asked her "Any of that other lot you run with nearby lassie?" followed by "He's not here is he?". When there's a whistle from somewhere further downhill amongst the stunted trees.
The dwarven warrior in command of the war party moves to the front of the hole in the ground, and climbs up on some rocks in the ground so he can see more clearly to the south. Lis joins him on a rock next to those he's standing on, then Helnd quietly says "There they be" the dwarven warrior with the twin braided beard adds "There be the flying beasties".
Lisell Maera nods her head as she spots the two wyverns that Helnd points at, and though the teenage orphan from south of the equator knows she can't see the large flying creatures as clearly as the dwarven warriors can, she can see them clearly enough as they head westwards, briefly disappearing behind a hill before they turn northwards.
Helnd jumps off the rocks, and gives a few orders, he doesn't have to say too much, as the dwarven warriors know what to do. Lis gets down off the rock she was standing on, and moves out of the way. The runner takes her crossbow from across her back, and slides the underside back, putting it into firing position as she loads a bolt into it.
"Steady lads" is what Lisell Maera thinks Helnd says to the ballista crew in the dwarven language as they watch the pair of wyverns sweeping around from the west as they head north, towards the hills behind the free folk village, where the war party is waiting in hiding.
Seeing the wyverns drop closer to the ground, the ballista crew who number five, being to slowly move the war machine to one side on its stand, as they track the large, tame, flying creatures from Belinswae.
The dwarves and the free folk fighters of the war party, along with Lis, hiding amongst the stunted trees. Know it's the wyverns who will spot them if they're spotted, well before the riders on them do.
Helnd has raised his right hand, as one of the wyverns banks away, and heads across the village below, going from west to east, before it turns back northwards.
While the other wyvern, heads north, comes in from the west, from the right of the war party amongst the trees on the foothill right behind the village.
Helnd drops his hand and barks an order in the dwarven language "Shoot the" is what the teenager from south of the equator understands he says, she's pretty sure the last word is a swear word, one she has yet to learn.
There's a thunk that reverberates through the hole that's been dug in the ground as the ballista is fired. The heavy long spear is shot off into the sky, trailing the chain attached to it, behind it.
Lis doesn't see it hit, but she does hear the wyvern that's sweeping above the ground, about eighty yards down from the emplacement, squawk loudly in pain as the missile goes through it's left wing and into it's hide.
There's yelling and shouting within the emplacement, and a couple more dwarven warriors jump into the hole to help with the winding of the winch barrel as the screaming wyvern is brought down.
The orphan teenager from the Southlands jumps out of the hole in the ground, as does Helnd, who calls in the common language to the others in hiding "Wait".
They watch as the crippled wyvern, with a ten foot long heavy spear, pinning it's left wing to it's side, descend quickly towards the ground. As the chain attached to the long spear is pulling it down as the dwarves on the barrel winch are furiously winding it in.
A couple of the wyvern riders fall from the large flying creature, and another jumps from it, just before the wyvern lets out a loud squawk of distress, then crashes it to the hillside with a loud thud.
"First squads!" calls out Helnd in both the dwarven and common languages, as the ballista crew release the chain, and reload the war machine, this time with a thicker spear, that they don't attach a chain too, as it'll take too long to do, as the other wyvern alerted by the downing of the first, is heading up the hill from just to the east of the village below.
Lis who glances at the thicker long spear in the ballista, slightly winces as she sees the slight depression down the length of the shaft. The teenager from the city-state of Brattonbury in the Southlands knows what that particular missile is designed to do, and what's in it.
As the first of the warriors and free folk fighters head downhill through the stunted trees, some towards the village below, and the others to the downed wyvern, that's still alive by the squawks of pain that's constantly coming from it, from where it lies on the side of the foothill.
The second wyvern from Belinswae sweeps over the trees, going over where the downed wyvern lies. Riders upon it's back, use bows and crossbows to shoot at the Stone Hill war party on the ground.
Their shots are wildly inaccurate as shooting at moving targets on the ground in partial cover, from something moving in the sky is a difficult task, unless you're highly skilled with a ranged weapon like a bow or crossbow.
There's a thunk that reverberates from the hole in the ground that's the ballista emplacement. The thick long spear heads off into the sky as the wyvern in the sky, a reddish coloured one that slightly glistens in the dull sunlight of the cold winter's morning, banks away to the west as it goes to circle around to sweep over the patch of stunted trees again.
The missile just hits the wyvern above it's left hind leg as it's circling. The spearhead goes in, but the thick shaft as it's intended to do, shatters. The reddish coloured wyvern lets out an almighty loud squawk as the acid incased within the thick spear, splatters across its hindquarters when the missile shatters apart.
As the wyvern wobbles in the sky, and it furiously flaps it's wings and veers away to the south over the free folk village below, no matter what the riders upon it are trying to do, to get it to either land or turn it around.
Helnd the dwarven warrior calls out in dwarven then common "Rest of the squads move down!".
Lisell Maera joins the dwarven warrior in command of the war party, as he heads down the hill, he like most of the warriors are heading to the village below that's under attack from a force of guards from Belinswae.
"There's probably more of them than us down there" says Helnd as he glances at Lis, as a number of free folk fighters have been fighting the guards from the Belinswae down in the village for some time this morning. Knowing that they've had the protection of the wyverns if anyone was to break cover from the foothills and come to the aid of those in the village below.
Helnd who had been waiting for the pair of wyverns to get in range of the ballista emplacement, then says "Thank Dovarn there was no justifier with them beasties".
Lisell Maera nods her head in agreement, then the clan Kraelin dwarven warrior frown as he looks away to the foothill to their left. Where he spots movement, heading down it, in the direction of the free village below. They're dwarven warriors, and amongst them Helnd spots someone else.
"Oh fuck me" says Helnd in an exasperated tone, he then adds "Lassie i asked you if he was here" the dwarven warrior follows that up with "And there he is!".
"Ah yeah" says Lisell Maera who looks away to the east at the foothill she crossed earlier to get to this one, the teenager from south of the equator, who earlier saw who Helnd is referring to, says "He's in the area".
"Fuck me" mutters the dwarven warrior in command of the war party as they run down the hill through the stunted trees, Lis faintly smiles as he sourly adds "That fucking madman about is all we need" . . . . . .
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