The Stone Hills. Winter...
Old Tharlo walks over with a resigned look upon his face "What is it?" asks clan chief Baedin Kraelin, who is pretty certain he knows what the look on Tharlo's face is all about.
"Chief, we've found more of them" says old Tharlo "And?" prompts the Kraelin clan chieftain when the old dwarven warrior sourly smiles and falls silent.
With his clan chief standing there staring at him, Tharlo finally relents and says "He's gone on ahead to deal with them by himself". The clan chieftain who also happens to be a hammermaster looks beyond Tharlo to where Helnd is standing, Helnd with a resigned look on his face, nods yes when he sees his clan chief looking at him.
Baedin Kraelin rolls his eyes, then after shaking his head in disbelief, the dwarven clan chief asks Tharlo "How many of them?". "Just over a dozen of them chief" replies the old warrior "Guards, or camp followers like we've been finding for the last two weeks?". "By the looks of it, most be actual guards" says old Tharlo.
The hammermaster Kraelin nods, then quietly says "By Thaxel and Dovarn, mayhap we'll get lucky, and one of them will actually take his head off". "Aye hopefully chief" says old Tharlo, who after a slight pause, adds in a dry tone "But i doubt it".
"Aye" murmurs the clan chieftain, who then sighs and follows that up by sourly smiling, then he looks over to his right, where on some rocks, sits a rather rotund dwarf in a long fur cloak, who has similar facial features as the Kraelin clan chief.
"You want to look on him cousin?" asks the dwarven hammermaster "Why?" says Barmil Kraelin the delver, who scratches at his short cropped brown beard, and adds "He'll be fine". Staring at his cousin the delver, the clan chief dryly says "Humour me". The younger cousin sighs, then says "I'm telling you, he'll be fine" he continues with "You need a whole damn army to stop that one" Barmil Kraelin rolls his eyes as his older cousin the clan chief just continues to stare at him.
"Oh alright" mutters the most powerful spellcaster in clan Kraelin, who gets up from the rocks he's sitting on, so that he can cast. He finds sitting down an awkward position to cast spells, he needs to feel steady on his feet, though grounded, so to speak, through his feet and up through the rest of his body to feel comfortable casting spells.
Baedin Kraelin looks at old Tharlo, who has lifted his snowy white eyebrows in a questioning manner. The clan chieftain just shrugs his shoulders in reply, and refrains from sighing at what he has to deal with.
The hammermaster glances over at his tubby cousin. And though as much as he likes his cousin, the clan chieftain wishes he had another spellcaster with him helping him out.
Baedin Kraelin would of liked to have that mage Mira Reinholt here. Who from all accounts, is blowing up everything left, right and center, over to the west on the coast, in the Galve clanhold, and down into northern Belinswae there. Apparently the mage from south of the equator has personally killed two justifiers. And has their armies there in disarray.
Or the Kraelin clan chief would like to have the elven prince, Helbenthril Raendril back. As he's proved more than useful when he's worked with the Kraelin clan. But he's gone east to help out clan Omban, who are under attack from one of the largest army's from Belinswae that has invaded the Stone Hills.
Instead Baedin Kraelin is stuck with his cousin Barmil. Who like all delvers, dislikes being outside. In Barmil's case, he absolutely hates being out from beneath the ground.
And the hammermaster had to first bribe him to leave their mountainhold, then secondly has plied him with strong drink every morning to keep him outside in the sunshine, wind, rain and snow. In today's case, sun and wind, as it's a clear cold day, and windy. Like most winters days here in the Stone Hills.
There's another reason the clan chief has got his cousin the delver to remain out of the tunnels, strongholds, and mines in their clanhold. Though Baedin Kraelin doesn't like thinking about that, and he shoves it out of his mind for the moment.
"Well what's he doing?" asks the clan chief who is also a hammermaster "He's approaching a group of justifier's guards" replies Barmil Kraelin, who continues with "He's walking straight down the middle of the road, he's not very stealthy is he".
"He dunny no what stealthy is" dryly says old Tharlo, both chief Baedin Kraelin and the warrior Helnd nod in agreement.
"Looks like they think he's one of them" says the dwarven delver "Aye they've got a few mercenaries like him" says the clan chieftain "Not exactly like him" dryly says old Tharlo, Baedin Kraelin snorts, then says "Aye".
Then the clan chief says to his cousin "Come on then Barm, show us what's happening like" the dwarven delver scowls at his cousin, and tells him "You know how bloody difficult it is to cast two spells at once?".
Refraining from rolling his eyes, the dwarven hammermaster says "His highness, prince Helbenthril casts plenty of spells at once" beside his clan chief, old Tharlo nods his head in agreement.
"That elven prince is overly talented" says Barmil Kraelin, who didn't say that as a compliment, but in a tone of derision, the dwarven delver then mutters "And by Thaxel's beard i swear he be a thief if anyone asked my opinion of him, which they haven't".
The clan chieftain nudges old Tharlo who just muttered "Fatty's jealous of someone" the old warrior falls silent. Though he doesn't have anything to worry about, because Barmil Kraelin didn't hear it, as he's too busy saying "He's walking straight towards them" the dwarven delver pauses then adds "He's drawing a hammer, and that nasty looking pick axe of his" he pauses again, then says in a dry tone "He's attacking them".
"They're dead" dryly murmurs Tharlo, both chief Baedin Kraelin and Held nod in agreement with the old warrior with the long white beard.
The chieftain of clan Kraelin is just about to suggest they gather the rest of the warriors, and head down to the trade road, and make their way south along it until they get to where the skirmish with the enemy is taking place right now.
When the other reason that his cousin Barmil is staying up here outside, comes stomping through the scraggly looking trees behind them.
Wincing, Baedin Kraelin hears old Tharlo mutter "Fuck me" then the old warrior says "I'm off" and he turns around and quickly walks away, the clan chieftain asks him "Where are you going?".
The old warrior doesn't reply, but the dwarven hammermaster is pretty certain he hears old Tharlo mutter "To find a high cliff to walk off". The chief of clan Kraelin looks over at Helnd, and finds his acting second trying to slip away without being noticed.
Before his chieftain can ask him where he's going, Helnd quickly says "Gonna check on the lads, get them moving like" before he hurries after the hastily departing Tharlo. Baedin Kraelin scowls at them as they rush off.
Holding in a sigh, the clan chieftain turns around, and he looks at his cousin, who has sat back down on the rocks he was sitting on previously. Sitting with him on the rocks, is another fairly rotund individual, a she-dwarf, his wife.
"Hight chief" says Fomar Kraelin, Baedin Kraelin makes an noncommittal sound, which sounded like a grunt more than anything else, then he says "Fomar" to his cousin's wife.
She-dwarves tend not to join war parties, infact they're discouraged in doing so. And then there's the reason they think it's the duty of male dwarves to do all the fighting, while they, the she-dwarves, do other things in the clanhold.
Well that's how it is here in the Stone Hills, and in other places where the clan society is strong in dwarven communities. Though in some spots, like down in the Southlands, you'll occasionally see she-dwarves as warriors. Though it's hardly a common occurrence.
The Kraelin chieftain looks at his cousin's wife, who insisted she come along if her husband was going to leave the clan's mountainhold. It's the main reason Barmil actually came up from underground, it's because his wife Fomar wanted to come along, and it gave the delver confidence to come up outside.
Suppose i should be grateful that she got Barm to come along, Baedin Kraelin thinks to himself, the dwarven hammermaster softly sighs, then silently adds, but i can't find in my heart to do so.
Fomar Kraelin is a bit of a glutton, infact the clan chief thinks she's a fucking pig if he's honest. As she sits there, she's eating some cooked fowl, from where she got that, Baedin Kraelin has no idea.
Then there's the consistent chattering from her, Fomar likes to talk as much as she eats. At the moment she's chattering away to her husband as she eats. Which is never a pretty sight.
And her fondness for talking isn't the best when they're moving through the hills and mountains. She talks when she should be silent on a track or trail, if they know that some of the enemy are about.
Getting her to shut up, has been a pain in the ass for the clan chief for the last couple of weeks since they've headed through the foothills south of their clanhold. To go after the survivors of justifier Marsille's army, who they defeated in what's now being called, the Battle of the Redoubt.
"What you be doing?" asks Fomar Baedin to her husband the delver "Checking up on him" replies Barmil Kraelin as he and his wife sit side by side on a pile of rocks.
"Who?" asks the she-dwarf "Him" replies the dwarven spellcaster, it takes a moment for Fomar to realise who her husband is referring to, and as she throws away the wing bone she has just stripped bare, she grins, then says "Oh aw i do like him".
You would, Baedin Kraelin dryly thinks to himself, the dwarven hammermaster then silently adds in the same dry tone, he talks as bloody much as you do.
"Best be going, see if he's alright like" says the clan chieftain, who turns and walks away and starts to make his way downhill to the trade road. Baedin Kraelin grimaces as behind him he hears Fomar say to his cousin "Come on then, let's see how he fares too, we dunny want anything to happen to him". "He be fine" says the dwarven delver.
The clan chieftain quickens his pace as he hears his cousin's wife start to whine in her annoying voice that she wants to go and see too. The dwarven hammermaster knows that Barmil will relent quickly to appease his wife.
By the gods, bloody all of them too, i don't know who is worse! Baedin Kraelin thinks to himself, the chief of clan Kraelin then silently adds, her or the madman?
"Definitely the madman" the hammermaster mutters under his breath as he almost runs down to the road, where he sees the fairly large war party has already assembled, and are moving south, to join those who have gone ahead.
The dwarven clan chief hurries forward to where old Tharlo and his acting second Helnd are at the front of the war party. Baedin Kraelin wants to put as much distance between his cousin Barmil, and Barmil's wife Fomar as possible.
They make their way south along the trade road that leads into northern Belinswae, and it's not too long before they reach a slight bend in the stone road, where a group of clanless dwarves are standing.
Recognising the two leaders of the group of about twenty clanless dwarven warriors traveling with their war party, Baedin Kraelin says to the two of them "He about?".
"Aye chief Baedin" replies Marl "Just around the bend like" adds Lommy "He's around the bend alright" mutters old Tharlo behind the dwarven clan chief.
The dwarven hammermaster sourly smiles, though he's in agreement with what the old warrior just muttered. Then he leads the way around the bend in the cutting that goes through the side of a hill, before the road continues on along some open ground.
Baedin Kraelin stops, then rolls his eyes at what he sees, there's a dozen or so dead justifier's guards scattered across the road about thirty yards infront of where he's stopped.
While standing off to the side of the road, is the tall figure of a large human, in a full suit of shining plate armour, who has a snowy white cape attached to it, a cape that's billowing in the wind behind him.
"Ah there you are my fine short fellow, i wondered where you had got yourself to" says sir Percavelle Lé Dic in his overly loud voice in the common language when he turns around and sees the chieftain of clan Kraelin on the road.
"Fucking madman" utters Baedin Kraelin in the dwarven language, who then switches to common, and says "Percy" by way of greeting, then the dwarven hammermaster says "I see you've been" he pauses then adds "Busy".
"Ha! Nothing to it old chap" says the boisterous knight in the order of Saint Mar-che, who then with the point of one of his steel boots, nudges the body of the justifier's guard closest to him, who is not dead, but unconscious.
"I've even got you a prisoner this time, an officer too by the looks of things" says the nobleman from the kingdom of Druvic in the Southlands, Baedin Kraelin blinks in surprise, then genuinely smiles, as it's been near impossible to find an officer amongst the survivors of justifier Marsille's army.
Well I'll be, he's finally done something of worth instead of just killing them all like he usually does, the clan chieftain thinks to himself . . . . . .
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