The Homecoming 85.

In The Trees...

Dalinvardél Tanith the elven spy aims along the top of his collapsible crossbow at one of the Harkonin scouts who has come off the trade road and is moving cautiously amongst the trees.
The spy Tanith is about to let the bolt in his crossbow fly when a quiet, and clearly feminine voice tells him in elvish "Not that one".
The elven spy, who is commonly referred to as Dalin by the rest of the group goes still, and the voice continues with "There's a spell on him that will alert the druid if he's harmed in anyway".
Dalinvardél Tanith slightly nods his hooded head in understanding, and the disembodied voice continues with "Shoot one of the others".
The elven spy from the principality of Alínlae glances to his right at where the voice he hears is coming from. He doesn't see the ground pixie by the name of Narladene, who is attached to Helbe the elven thief. But he assumes she's still there.
"Alright then" murmurs Dalinvardél Tanith the elven spy, who moves his aim towards another of the scouts walking amongst the trees, on a farm, just to the north of the trade road that leads westwards to castle Lé Dic.
The spy Tanith lets the bolt fly, taking the Harkonin scout in the side of the neck, and dropping him. Dalin reloads the crossbow quickly, and takes out another two scouts by the time he's up and moving.
The remaining scout, the one with a spell upon him, he's left alone. That Harkonin soldier is moving through the trees, oblivious to the fact that the other three members of his small squad are dead amongst the trees behind him.
Dalinvardél Tanith, who once served in one of the more prominent noble houses in the elven principality of Alínlae works his way towards the nearby trade road.
As he gets to the edge of the trees, and sees the trade road in the distance beyond some fields. The spy Tanith who has just gone by the mounts of the small squad he's all but wiped out.
Wonders if the ground pixie is still close to him. He rather doubts it. So he settles down and waits for the Harkonin army to come by. The trade road might be a few hundred yards away, but with his naturally enhanced eyesight, he can clearly see anyone going by on the road.
Dalin is indeed correct. Narladene the ground pixie has moved on. Infact she's flying through the ground towards the approaching army.
It doesn't take the naturally magical creature long to get to them. As the Harkonin army isn't moving all that quickly. For the simple reason more than a few of them have died mysteriously over the past few days since crossing the border into the Lé Dic fief.
And in mysteriously, that would be by the hand of Helbe the elven thief, Dalinvardél Tanith the elven spy, and even Narladene herself.
The tiny winged creature comes up through the ground, and looks at the Harkonin army that's heading towards castle Lé Dic.
The ground pixie who is attached to prince Helbenthril Raendril, has come up towards the rear of the Harkonin army. Close to where the siege engines and war machines are.
She heads higher up into the sky on what's a cold, and cloudy day here in this part of eastern Druvic. Narladene looks towards the vanguard, at the front of the army which is spread out along the trade road.
The naturally magical creature who is invisible to all, apart from animals. Spots the dark druid Palvarc near the front of the Harkonin army. Riding with baron Harkonin himself, and a number of other nobles in the Harkonin court.
The ground pixie narrows her eyelids as she watches the dark druid, who is a good hundred yards or so further infront of where she's hovering in the air, and getting further ahead as she remains stationary.
Narladene is cautious near the dark druid, and the staff he has strapped at an angle along his back.
Anything that can sense Helbe the elven thief, is something to be cautious around, even for her.
The ground pixie believes there's something that isn't quite right about the staff the advisor to baron Harkonin has in his possession.
She doesn't know what exactly, but she's been trying to find out, ever since she, along with the two elves. One from the island principality of Laerel, and the other from the principality of Alínlae, have been shadowing the army from the Harkonin fief.
Narladene who can see the magical staff close up, even at the distance she is from it. Frowns as she once again takes notice of the gnarled, almost stumpy looking top of the staff that's across the back of the dark druid riding near the front of the army.
The ground pixie is just thinking about if she should make a closer inspection of it. When she glances down right beneath her, and she spots something in the army passing on the trade road below.
Narladene drops back down to one of the wagons, this one that has the nobleborn prisoners from the Lé Dic army in the back of it.
She sees that sir Parvin, a contemporary of sir Percavelle Lé Dic is now tightly bound since she last saw him during the night.
The large nobleman's ankles are bound, and he's chained to the tailgate of the wagon, and there's a cloth gag, stuffed into his mouth, and tied around his head.
Narladene lifts an eyebrow as she clearly hears the Range Lord muttering about something behind the gag in his mouth. All the while he looks with utter contempt, not to mention anger at the other three prisoners in the back of the wagon with him.
The tiny winged creature frowns as she looks at lord Milburn, Jared Milburn and sir Galmot, who are all avoiding looking at sir Parvin Dé Gorveré. Infact they're ignoring him.
What's going on here then? Narladene the ground pixie thinks to herself, who gets closer to the large nobleman at the very back of the wagon.
She watches the Range Lord, who is obviously seething about something. Then she draws her tiny sword because she wants to find out something. The naturally magical creature cuts the cloth wrapped a couple of times around the head of the securely bound nobleborn prisoner.
Sir Parvin blinks in surprise as the cloth wrapped around half of his face falls off. The heavily armoured knight, who hopes to the gods he broke young Jared's jaw earlier this morning.
Spits the cloth gag out of his mouth. He goes to shout something, but instead stays silent when he sees the other three nobleborn prisoners look his way when they hear him spit out the cloth gag that was stuffed in his mouth.
The Range Lord looks at the nearby soldiers who are essentially their guards. And sees that they've gone back to ignoring the four of them in the back of the wagon.
"When i get the chance, I'm going to kill the three of you" quietly says sir Parvin Dé Gorveré in contempt as he looks at the others, then he adds "Kievar you craven bastard, you killed your son inlaw, which drove your own daughter mad".
Lord Milburn doesn't say anything, and the Range Lord quietly tells him "And now Raevar knows. So what do you suppose the first thing he'll do when we get to the castle?" he continues with "Yeah that's right, have his herald tell young Linara all about it" sir Parvin then sourly adds "Won't that be grand, her finding out that it was you lot who killed her father, and not the Harkonin bastards after all".
Oh hell, they've found out about that, Narladene the ground pixie thinks to herself as she looks from the seething sir Parvin, towards where the front of the army is, further along the trade road.
"And you, you little shit" quietly says the Range Lord to Jared Milburn, the large rotund nobleman continues with "I'll make your death long and bloody for wielding the blade they killed your earl".
He looks next at the Lé Dic army commander, sir Galmot, and quietly says to him in a tone of disgust "I'm not surprised you got involved Galmot. You always were a coward" he shakes his head then adds "I was against Maxiss naming you army commander. To this day i wish he'd never did that".
The three other prisoners remain silent as they look at the large, rotund nobleman. Jared Milburn probably because he's got a broken jaw, it's definitely swollen enough to be.
While sir Galmot has a broken nose, and has dried blood down his face from when sir Parvin headbutted him earlier this morning.
"Well if i don't kill you three bastards" quietly says sir Parvin, who then nods around them, and adds "And this stinking lot don't" the landed knight, who could of easily become an ordered knight of high rank if he'd joined an order, instead of remaining on his family's lands in the Lé Dic fief, then says "Well there's definitely someone who'll kill the lot of you when we get to the castle. Considering you murdered his younger brother".
"He won't have a chance" quietly says lord Milburn who finally breaks the silence of the three other nobleborn prisoners, he continues with "And nor will you Parvin" the lord of Milburn estate then adds "Harkonin will kill us first".
Sir Parvin Dé Gorveré grins, then quietly says "I wouldn't be so sure of that if i was you" the Range Lord then adds "I intend to kill Raevar Harkonin when we get to the castle".
The invisible ground pixie lifts an eyebrow when she hears that from sir Parvin. Who says that with so much conviction and belief. That she's half a mind to actually believe he'll kill baron Harkonin when they arrive at castle Lé Dic.
The naturally magical creature wings away, heading to where she can sense Helbe the elven thief. Who needs to know this latest development. That baron Harkonin now knows that it was lord Milburn, who had earl Maxiss Lé Dic killed in the border conflict during the summer nearly two years ago.
Helbe the elven thief looks at the mounted scouts, who are nearly two miles ahead of even the fore riders in the army.
The elven magic user who wants to cast a spell on one of them. Is silently debating if he should. Considering the spellbound scout will return to the front of the army. Where the dark druid, and his staff will be.
Baron Harkonin's advisor with that staff might be able to detect the spell upon the scout if he returns to the vanguard.
"Oh well, he'll just have to go around in a circle, and return to near the rear of the army" Helbe the elven thief whispers to himself, the young elven noble who is blurred and shielded as he couches next to a boulder up a small hill, just off the trade road, on the north side.
Waits for the next of the scouts to turn back, and report that this stretch of the road is clear. It's when they're nearly alongside the small hill, that the scout the elven masterthief has been watching closely, turns his mount, and heads back to the following army.
The elven magic user grins and enscrolls him. The scout will bypass the fore riders, then those at the front of the vanguard, as he circles south of the army, which he'll eventually come back around and join near the ranks at the rear.
There the scout will appear to go mad and start attacking his fellow soldiers. And he'll be good at it too, since the highly talented elven spellcaster has increased his strength, as well as his skill with the sword.
Prince Helbenthril Raendril waits until the scouts are further down the empty trade road infront of them, and the scout who is returning to the Harkonin army is out of sight, which coincidentally is when he heads south off the road.
He shifts further westward alongside the road, and stands near where it goes over a stone bridge that's above a small river.
The blurred and shielded elven magic user watches the approaching squad of Harkonin scouts, who are all relieved that no incidents have occurred along the trade road today.
Not knowing that the scouts who are off the road, those going across country, have all but been wiped out by the two elves today.
He's just about to start killing the squad of now nine scouts, when Narladene the ground pixie suddenly appears on his right shoulder, and says to him "We've got a bit of a problem".
"Oh?" says Prince Helbenthril Raendril "Say unlike an army heading along this road that we're trying to stop?" adds the young elven noble from the island principality of Laerel.
Ignoring that, the tiny winged creature says "They know". "Know what?" asks the elven master assassin "The baron, he knows that lord Milburn had Percy's brother killed" is the answer from the naturally magical creature, who then tells the elven princeling what she's found out from listening to the conversation of the nobleborn prisoners that the Harkonin army have with them.
"Shit" mutters Helbe the elven thief, who hopes the lady Hollis Duc de Laér has informed young lady Linara Lé Dic of what really happened to the young girl's father.
She hadn't when the young elven noble last asked her. And with good reason, as they don't really want sir Percavelle Lé Dic to know what happened to his brother Maxiss.
Well not as yet, what with an enemy army approaching the Lé Dic castle. As the former earl is liable to do something even more stupid than usual. If he finds out the three most responsible for killing his younger brother, are still alive, and are being held prisoner by the Harkonin army.
"She'll have to be told" murmurs the grandson of the ruling prince of Laerel, who after a few moments thought adds "Or i could just kill those three?".
Narladene shrugs her shoulders, as she doesn't really care what he decides to do, just as long as he decides to do something.
Then again, both young Linara and Percy deserve to see justice for what was done to earl Maxiss, the elven princeling thinks to himself, who having made a decision, quietly tells Narladene "Go and tell Dalin to head this way".
The ground pixie nods and takes wing, she disappears when she dives into the ground. As she does, the first of the approaching scouts falls from his saddle and hits the ground dead.
They do so one by one, as Helbe the elven thief kills each of them by blasting their minds after he reads their minds to find out information.
The elven magic user sends the horses fleeing, across the countryside to the south of the road. Then he quickly disposes of the nine dead scouts by burning their bodies magically. Once they're white ash, and the breeze on this cold spring day starts blowing the white ash away.
The young elven noble starts weakening the ground beneath the stone bridge. He doesn't do it on the bridge itself, as he guesses the dark druid Palvarc will check that when he crosses it.
He weakens the ground by opening fissures beneath the foundations at either end of the stone bridge.
Helbe the elven thief figures it'll collapse once there's quite a lot of mounted soldiers on it. If not then, it definitely break and collapse when there's a few heavy wagons go over it at the same time. Or one of the war machines or siege engines goes across it.
"That'll slow them down some" prince Helbenthril Raendril murmurs to himself before he shifts away to join Dalinvardél Tanith the elven spy who is heading this way . . . . . .