The Stone Hills. Winter...
The line of horsemen are trudging along a snow covered track. They're Justifier's guards from Belinswae. And after encountering a band of dwarven warriors earlier in the morning, and all but wiping them out.
They're now heading north, further into the Stone Hills, trying to find more of them. In what the officer in command, from what his maps say anyway, is the Omban clanhold.
The officer in command who is near the front of the line, looks away to the west, where in the distance, he can see the large mountain that stands alone from the rest of the range in this part of the Stone Hills.
He then looks up into the clear cold sky as they come down a hill, when one of the riders further back in the column, spots something, and calls out "Fliers!".
The officer in command and others scan the skies, and he spots a pair of wyverns to the east against the winter sun, that's still in that half of the sky as it's just after mid morning.
"Ours or another army's?" asks the officer in command as he holds a hand up to shade his eyes, as he can see the silhouettes of the wyverns, and notices that there's riders on them, making them tame wyverns from Belinswae. And not wild ones, which have been occasionally spotted in the Stone Hills, though further south from here.
"Can't tell" says the guard riding beside the officer in command, the Justifier's guard continues with "They're riding low on their beasts for sure".
"Can't blame them" says the officer in command of the column of riders, he then adds "If it's windy down here, imagine how bad it is up there". He along with every other guard, has heard the constant complaints of those squads assigned to the wyverns, about the strong winds that they have to fly in.
How perilous it is, not to mention how bitterly cold it is up in the sky on the back of a wyvern, compared to how it is on the ground.
The officer in command who can now see the lead riders of each wyvern, are sitting up, compared to those further back into the saddle, quietly says "Still can't tell whose army they're in". "Nor can i sir" says the guard riding beside him, which is echoed by a few others near them.
"Not to worry" says the officer, who like most of the column, is from the city of Falnic, who like the others have been in the service of their Justifier for quite some time. The officer won't have any pressed guards in his force. They're more trouble than they're worth in his opinion.
The officer in command also isn't worried about whose army the two wyverns approaching from the east are in, whether it's there's, or another Justifier's army.
For though the Justifiers themselves don't exactly work together. When they're not about, and are occupied elsewhere. Guards from different armies are more than willing to cooperate with each other.
True they may not fight side by side that often, or at all. They still share information about the enemy, and swap equipment and supplies between armies if one or the other need it.
Just last week the officer in command of this column traded supplies with an officer from Justifier Kaellin's army which is further east. Which along with the army they serve in, are the two largest armies from Belinswae to invade the dwarven clanholds of the Stone Hills.
"They're either ours or from Justifier Kaellin's" says the officer in command who continues with "If not, then they've blown off course and are lost". The guard riding beside him, nods his head in agreement, then says "Looks like they're circling to the south, most likely coming down to land".
The officer in command nods his head as he sees this too, then he quietly says to the experienced guard riding beside him "They might have some information of the whereabouts of the enemy". "Let's hope so sir" says the rider on the horse beside the officer in command.
They haven't seen any sign of the enemy over the last few days. Their encounter with a small party dwarven warriors early this morning, is the first contact they've had with the enemy in three days.
The officer in command suspects no one else in their army has run into the enemy lately. Ever since a large column of guards were wiped out last week. When they were going through canyons just to the southeast of the large, lonely mountain. Where an avalanche hit them.
They watch as the pair of wyverns turn south, then drop down in altitude as they circle back up, and head to the right of the column of riders. It looks like they're going to land on the snow covered ground to the right of the track that the line of riders are on.
The officer in command flings up an arm, as he feels the wind coming off the wings of the wyvern that lands first. While the second lands right behind it's tail.
He has to squint to see them as there's a glare coming off the snow, as the sun is at an angle on this clear winter's day, that's making visibility in some directions quite difficult.
The wyverns, as wyverns do, have their wings up when they land, and these two keep them up for a little while longer.
As they do, the officer in command spots the lead rider on the first wyvern. He's the only guard on the wyverns he's got a good view of.
The lead rider turns his head, and looks in this direction. The officer sees it's someone slightly taller than average, in a thick cloak that the wyvern riders wear, he's also wearing a thick cloth wrapped around his face, only leaving his eyes and forehead exposed as the hood of his cloak is up on his head at the moment.
The lead rider lifts an arm in greeting, and the officer in command of the column of riders does likewise after he calls a halt. The wyvern rider then drops his raised arm down, in a quick slashing motion.
The two wyverns drop their wings they've been holding up, and crossbow bolts and arrows slam into the column of Justifier's guards, shot by the dwarven warriors on the backs of the pair of wyverns.
The guards in the column are totally unprepared for the attack, and are taken completely by surprise. More than half of them are down from the first volley of shots.
More of them are knocked out of their saddles when the dwarven warriors let fly more bolts and arrows from their crossbows and bows.
Tamric Drubine doesn't even let loose an arrow from his bow, as he's one of only a handful of archers on the two wyverns. As everyone else has crossbows.
The nobleborn youngster from the kingdom of Sarcrin in the Southlands, is the lead rider of the first wyvern. And he's the last one to get down off the large, winged creature once all the enemy horsemen are down, either dead or wounded. Without really knowing what hit them.
Tam looks back at the wyvern behind the one he rides. And sees Lisell Maera is down off the wyvern she's the lead rider of. He nods to her, then takes the hood of his cloak off his head, and undoes the thick wool cloth wrapped around his face. He basically pushes it down around his neck, to keep warm, as it's a cold windy day here in the Omban clanhold, especially up in the skies above.
As a few of the warriors go amongst the fallen enemy to dispatch those who are wounded. Other dwarves gather the horses, and take any equipment and supplies they can use. A handful of the warriors, those who are able to ride horses. Will take the enemy mounts north into the heart of the Omban clanhold.
The two Southlanders, Tamric Drubine and Lisell Maera stand off to one side watching the dwarven warriors. They're joined by Jarka Mard, and the ever present Omick. The two warriors from clan Mard, along with a number of others from that clan further to the west and north. Have remained with Tamric Drubine ever since meeting him in the Kraelin clanhold earlier in the winter.
"Get a shot off Jarka?" asks Tamric Drubine with a grin upon his young face, as he knows the youngest son of the Mard chieftain isn't particularly good with a crossbow. In Jarka's own words, he's shit useless with that damn contraption.
"Aye i did lad" says Jarka Mard who is grinning too, the fairly young dwarf who is in command of the war party from his clan, a clan that hasn't been attacked by the enemy, the Justifiers of Belinswae, then adds in a slightly dry one "If i hit anyone, only our gods know".
Both the nobleborn youngster from the kingdom of Sarcrin, and the orphan teenager from the city-state of Vexil quietly laugh, while Omick as he stands behind his clan chief's youngest son, silently laughs.
"Well that's another lot we've taken by surprise" says the heir to the former knight of castle Drubine "We were lucky here, we had the sun shining in their eyes, and the glare coming off the snow for them to contend with" says Lisell Maera, who then adds "Won't always be so easy".
"True" quietly says Tam who nods his head in agreement with his fellow Southlander, then the nobleborn youngster adds "They got what they deserved, that's all that matters" Lis nods, as does the two warriors from clan Mard.
From the air they saw the site of the skirmish about two and half miles away from here to the south. Where this force of Justifier's guards, attacked a small war party from clan Omban, who were keeping a watch on this track that winds it's way through the hills in the east of their clanhold.
"Clan Omban lost ten warriors this morning" says Jarka Mard, who continues with "And by Thaxel and Dovarn we'll be remembering them, like all the others the clanholds have lost, forever" after a slight pause, he adds "And these bastards from Belinswae have lost nearly forty here today, at least that's something, but never enough for even one warrior lost".
Jarka Mard is silent for a few moments, then he looks at Tam "Still, that was quick thinking lad, i would never of thought to come at them from out of the sun like you did" both Lisell Maera and the mute Omick nod in agreement.
"Then again this be only the third time I've been up on these beasties" says the son of the clan Mard chieftain, who then adds in an extremely wry tone "The first two times i was too busy puking my guts out to think about anything apart from hoping that we'll land in one piece again" and knowing that the nearby wyverns can more or less, understand the common language, Jarka then adds in dwarven "Damn beasties are bloody annoying".
Tamric Drubine laughs, then says "They're not that bad" just then, to make a liar out of him, the wyvern that Tam is the lead rider of, squawks in a foul tempered way, then claws at the snow covered ground in agitation. That sets off the second wyvern, that also squawks in a bad tempered way.
"Well maybe a bit" wryly says the nobleborn youngster from south of the equator, who never thought he'd be a wyvern rider. But after a number of flying lessons from lord Farque, who also taught him what to say in common to command the large, winged creatures. He's found flying most of the time a fairly easy task, not to mention a pleasurable experience.
"They're getting testy again, we probably should get going" says Lisell Maera to her fellow Southlander in the elven language "Bloody temperamental things" adds the orphan teenager from the city-state of Vexil.
The son of the former knight of castle Drubine nods, then calls out in dwarven to the war party "Let's go!". The warriors hurry back to the two wyverns after collecting all that they've taken from the enemy.
As four of the dwarven warriors remain on the ground, and take the surviving twenty five horses back north along the track, to the nearest safe haven in the Omban clanhold.
The rest of the war party are on the backs of the two wyverns, that are quickly back in the air again. With Tam and Lis at the reins of the two large, winged creature.
The nobleborn youngster from south of the equator points to the southeast, and the pair of tame wyverns head that way. It's not long before those on the captured wyverns can see the large camp where the army that's pushing into the Omban clan is based.
They keep well clear of it, at least five miles from it as they continue to the southeast, they even see other wyverns in the morning sky, who they also keep well away from.
After a while, Jarka Mard who is sitting directly behind Tamric Drubine, taps him on the shoulder and points. Tam looks in that direction, and after a few moments he sees what the dwarven warrior with his naturally enhanced eyesight has spotted.
It's an enemy patrol, mixed riders and foot soldiers. Which usually indicates that there's pressed guards in the squad. The nobleborn youngster sees that the squad of Justifier's guards is about thirty strong, and that they're heading east.
He looks back to the trailing wyvern, and lifts up his right arm, and gives a couple of hand signals to Lisell Maera, who he's sure has spotted the enemy patrol too, thanks to the sharp eyesight of the dwarven warriors flying with her.
Lis nods her hooded head in response to Tam's signal, then she calls out a command in the common language to the wyvern "Strike down!". Infront Tamric Drubine's wyvern is already dropping down out of the sky. And her wyvern does too, as they dive attack the enemy patrol from behind, who have yet to spot them . . . . . .
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