The Hire 8.

The Duchy Of Phelm. The Kingdom Of Nastell...

"We're not going that way" says Dalinvardél Tanith the elven spy "Why not?" demands the patrol leader "Because we'll get wiped out" is the reply of the spy from the elven principality of Alínlae, who then looks over at his squad leader.
The squad leader is reluctant to speak up with his superior the patrol leader in their presence.
So the elven spy in the armies of the lands Farque, who is in the army of the duke of Phelm, spying upon their movements and the way they go about things.
Thinks he should explain a bit more, and he says to the patrol leader "Over that ridge and down through the trees on the otherside, they've got way more men than we do" he continues with "We'd have no chance".
The patrol leader, who has brought all three squads in the area together, shakes his head, then says "We're going".
"Well, you lot can go" says the spy Tanith, who then follows that up with "But we're staying".
Seeing that their squad leader is still holding his tongue. And that the patrol leader is about to go off on the elven spy in their midst.
It's one of the two dwarves who speaks up from amongst the squad.
"Aye you heard the ranger" says Shawtus McQuade, who continues with "We're not going".
His cousin Smawfri McQuade adds "If you and your lot want to go on over, then by all means you lot can go and piss off".
The patrol leader is at a loss of words, as he looks first at the elf, then the two dwarves, all three of whom, are clearly insubordinate.
He then looks at their squad leader, and is about to demand they be punished in some way.
When the squad leader finally speaks up and says "We're not going over". As the patrol leader's jaw drops open in surprise, the squad leader continues with "If Dalin says we'll get wiped out. Then no way am i leading my squad over the ridge and into those trees".
The squad leader has trusted the elven spy, who he thinks is a ranger. Ever since their squad was sent north from the camp they were first sent to.
And so far the elf has steered them clear of trouble. Keeping them out of harms way. And away from the enemy. Who over the last couple of days. Are in greater numbers here on the kingdom's side of the border.
The squad leader then says "I'd recommend the rest of you stay on this side of the ridge too. If not, you won't be alive at midday".
After sputtering in outrage, the patrol leader hisses through clenched teeth to the squad leader "I'll have you hanged once we return to camp".
"And you lot as well" adds the patrol leader as he looks at the elf and two dwarves.
And though Dalinvardél Tanith doesn't show any emotion, and just stares back at the patrol leader.
It's a different reaction from the dwarven cousins. One, Shawtus, snorts in derision and shakes his head in contempt at the patrol leader.
While Smawfri, who is the more hot headed of the dwarven warriors. Well, they're both hot headed, but he more so, than his cousin Shawtus,
Loudly mutters "I'd like to see you fucking try" as he keeps tapping the end of his hammer's haft upon the ground as he glares at the patrol leader.
The patrol leader after one more scowling look at the trio of non humans, and their squad leader.
Turns and says to the other two squad leaders "Have your men go over the ridge and deal to the enemy down amongst those trees".
The other two squads along with the patrol leader set off up towards the ridge.
As they do, the squad leader quietly asks the elven spy "You sure there's a whole lot of them over there?".
"I'm sure" is the quiet reply of Dalinvardél Tanith who is more commonly called Dalin by those who know him well. And the name he goes by here amongst the enemy.
"There's well over two hundred, closer to two hundred and fifty of them over there" quietly adds the elven spy who once served in one of the more prominent noble houses in the principality of Alínlae, his homeland.
As the squad leader winces, the dwarven warrior Shawtus dryly says "They're dead". "That's for fucking sure" dryly adds his cousin Smawfri, who is the slightly shorter of the two McQuade cousins.
As they and the rest of the squad, watch the twenty four men, and one patrol leader, get to the top of the ridge, and keeping low, they make their way over it, and are quickly out of sight.
The squad leader looks at the pair of dwarven cousins who are always spoiling for a fight. With anyone really. And not necessarily with the enemy from the unruled lands. And more often than not, with one another.
And if the two of them didn't want to go over the ridge and take on the enemy that Dalin the ranger spotted.
Then the squad leader knows he did the right thing in refusing the order from the patrol leader.
"Hell, they send us out in squads of just a dozen" mutters the squad leader, who then continues muttering with "How's that supposed to work against the numbers they're pushing south now".
"Pretty sure they've just encounterd the enemy" says the spy Tanith who can hear what's happening over the otherside of the ridge.
"Aye, and it sounds like they're getting a good fucking too" says Smawfri, his cousin Shawtus nods in agreement, as the two of them have hearing just as good as the elven spy.
"We better piss off back in the direction we've come from" says Shawtus to the squad leader "Unless you want to wait here for that lot to come over the ridge and kill us too" adds the slightly taller, and slightly older of the dwarven cousins who hail from the Sunreach Mountains.
"Good idea, let's go" says the squad leader, who gestures back the way they've come from, and adds "The sooner we get moving the better".
The squad of a dozen, which includes their leader, another scout along with the elf who is pretending to be a ranger. As well as the pair of dwarven warriors. And the rest who unlike the trio of non humans who are mercenaries. Are actually soldiers in duke Hargen's army.
Make their way back down off the hump between two rugged looking hills. Moving fairly quickly down the rocky hills. With Dalinvardél Tanith leading the way.
The elven spy, one of many spies from the mercenary army from the lands Farque, who have infiltrated and joined the duke of Phelm's army here in the north of the kingdom of Nastell.
Actually led his squad, along with the two other squads in the area just on this side of the border. To where he knew a fairly substantial sized force from the armies across the border in the unruled lands were expected to be.
The elven spy who hails from the principality of Alínlae. Was glad to see that the force from the unruled lands was mostly made up from those in his own army, the mercenary army from the lands Farque.
Dalin isn't exactly trusting of the robber baron's actual armies. From experiences over the last week or so.
He's lucky they haven't blundered into some of them where they shouldn't be.
But from what he's seen over the last couple of days. It seems things have changed in the structure of those who are attacking the duchy of Phelm.
He's pretty certain that his army from the lands Farque are now in command of the campaign against duke Hargen.
It couldn't of happened soon enough in the opinion of the spy Tanith. For previously in the week just gone by. He'd feared he'd lead this squad he's with. Into a situation they couldn't get out of. Where there'd be a good chance he'd get killed by his own side in the war if they'd accidentally run into a force from one of the robber baron's armies.
That would suck, Dalinvardél Tanith thinks to himself, who as they get down to more even ground, silently adds, getting killed by your own side, how embarrassing.
The spy who is in the armies of Farque. Knows the risks of pretending to be one of the enemy. Where you could be found out by the enemy, and being executed by them. As well as getting accidentally killed by your own side if you're not careful. Both things, he's actively trying to avoid.
Once they enter some woods, which like the hills behind them. Are dry, and it's still only the start of summer.
The elven spy who is posing as a mercenary ranger from the principality of Alínlae. Drops back, and sends the other scout forward. For he knows there's no one around on both sides of the conflict apart from their squad.
Dalin drops back to walk beside the two dwarven warriors from the eastern end of the Sunreach Mountains.
The elf who served as a spy in one of Alínlae's more prominent noble houses. Refrains from grinning as he glances down at the McQuade cousins.
Who after they mentioned a couple of things about their past. His memory was jogged about who they are. As he had actually heard about them before from a number of people.
Specifically sir Percavelle Lé Dic, who in the past had fought alongside the dwarven cousins. And Dorc da Orc, who had fought against them a number of times in the past.
Dalin wonders what Shawtus and Smawfri would think if they knew sir Percavelle Lé Dic and Dorc da Orc now fight on the same side.
They wouldn't believe it, is what the spy Tanith thinks to himself with a slight shake of his head.
As he knows all four of them haven't seen one another in a decade. Since they were involved in a war between nobles in the kingdom of Melaurn. Which is faraway to the south in the Southlands.
When the former earl of Lé Dic teamed up with the McQuade cousins. Who had a dwarven dreadnought at the time.
To hunt for the large ork that all three of them wanted dead. Because of what the big, burly ork had done to them in the past.
Dalinvardél Tanith quietly says, in a murmur really "No, do you?". In response to Shawtus murmuring to him "You think any of them will survive?"after he waved back in the direction they've come from.
The three of them usually murmur, or whisper when they speak around the others in the squad when they're on the march. Knowing that they're the only ones who can hear what they're saying.
"I doubt it" dryly murmurs Shawtus McQuade, which gets a grunt from his cousin Smawfri who is slightly shorter. Which is a bone of contention between the two cousins. As it's a subject the two of them have argued about for decades. Arguments that usually leads to fights between the two of them.
"Well there you go" murmurs Dalin, who then says in a louder voice to the squad leader "There's a stream or creek away to the left through the trees" the elven spy from the principality of Alínlae continues with "It will be a good place to fill up our water bottles".
The squad leader, a man named Barron. Who is from farm country in the south of the duchy. Who joined the duke's army about five years ago when he was seventeen. As he didn't see any prospects staying on his family's farm.
Points in the direction that Dalin has indicated and tells the squad who serve in duke Hargen's army. To go that way to the creek, to fill up their water bottles.
For even though it's early in the summer. The foothills in the southern reaches of the Colevar Mountains. Which spills south into the north of the kingdom of Nastell, and the duchy of Phelm. Is already dry looking, with little to no rain falling here on the eastern side of the range this summer, and late in the spring that's recently passed gone.
They've essentially been sent out to keep an eye on the armies of the robber barons from the unruled lands to the north of the border. A border that's essentially just a line on a map.
For what Dalinvardél Tanith has seen so far. Is that there's no difference between in the landscape on either side of the border. You have to go into the south of the duchy of Phelm before farmland gets more prevalent.
And there's also no difference in the people here in the north of the duchy of Phelm and across the border in the unruled lands. They're basically the same stock. Infact many families live on either side of the border.
And that's not all. As trade is often conducted by those here in the north of the duchy and over in the unruled lands to the north of the kingdom.
After all Phelm, like a lot of the duchies in northern Nastell. Were once unruled lands themselves in the past. Phelm itself was unruled lands a few hundred years ago. Until an ancestor of duke Hargen decided to invade the then north of Nastell. And declare what he claimed in the unruled lands at the time, a duchy of the kingdom.
Dalin as they get to the creek, wonders when the next lot of squads in the duke's army is going to head their way. So that he can lead them into another ambush.
Fills up his water bottles, then has a look around. He walks along the creek, which no doubt by the end of summer, or even earlier, will run dry.
The spy who hails from the elven principality of Alínlae eventually spots what he's looking for. A number of small rocks in a pile at the edge of the creek.
Dalinvardél Tanith sits down at the base of the closest tree. And for all intensive purposes. It looks like he's murmuring to himself in his own language, which no one else in the squad understands.
When he first did it, sitting off by himself, murmuring away to himself the squad leader asked the two dwarven warriors what the elf was doing.
They replied that he was probably praying. After all the elves worship forest gods. And here in the north of Phelm, there's an awful lot of forests.
But what the elven spy is actually doing. Is speaking with his contact in the mercenary army from the lands Farque.
"I don't know if they'll start sending similar sized squads north now that we're moving down here into the kingdom in numbers" quietly murmurs Dalin in elven, who continues murmuring with "Or if they'll come up here in force now" the spy Tanith briefly pauses before adding in a murmur "I'm picking the latter, especially now that we've taken command of the robber baron's armies".
If you look carefully, the part of the trunk of the tree that the elven spy is sitting against, next to his right hand, and up to be precise, is damp.
Because there's a water elemental courser in the armies of Farque, invisible to the eye as he's just the finest of mists. Sitting beside the elf from the principality of Alínlae.
And though it's a bit difficult to understand him in that form. If Dalin concentrates, and listens carefully, he can hear what the water elemental from the lands Farque is saying in elven.
The two of them quickly exchange information, and the spy Tanith. Whose suspicions about the mercenary army of Farque now being in charge of the robber baron's campaign against duke Hargen. Has proven to be correct.
Is given new orders to coincide with the new tactics that are now underway.
"This should be interesting" murmurs Dalin in his native tongue, who slightly grins as he can just make out the laughter from the water elemental courser sitting beside him.
They then wish one another good luck. And the elven spy who has infiltrated the duke of Phelm's army.
Gets up, and rejoins the others of his squad in the duke's army.
"Hmmmm which way now?" muses Barron the squad leader "This way" says Dalinvardél Tanith who gestures to the southwest as he now knows that a substantial size force in the duke's army is that way.
"See if we can meet up with any of the others who have come up this way" says Dalin who continues with "Definitely be beneficial for us to be amongst a larger force now that the enemy are making a push south".
"Aye that's for damn sure" says Shawtus the dwarven warrior, who gets a nod of agreement from his cousin Smawfri.
"Sounds like a plan" says the squad leader, who then adds "Lead the way Dalin". The squad sets off through the woods, not knowing that they have a spy in their midst.
A spy who has not just kept them out of harm's way, but also caused most of the other squads in the duke's army who have been in their vicinity. To be wiped out by the enemy from unruled lands across the border . . . . . .