The Hire 29.

Northern Phelm. The Kingdom Of Nastell...

The previous two days and nights. And they find themselves running, heading more to the southeast than east as they're pursued by the enemy.
The robber baron Gergus along with his second in command Hammind, who also happens to be his brother inlaw.
Know the area around Dalbar Falls fairly well. But the more they're chased to the southeast, rather than to the east, the direction they want to go. The less familiar the countryside is to them.
The other two in the group. A soldier by the name of Pabell. Who is the robber baron's army.
As well as Lisell Maera, a runner in the mercenary army from the lands Farque. They have no idea where they are.
Just that they're in northern Phelm, heading southeast away from the large village, that they and those in the cavalry patrol led by Darid Parsen, attacked.
They started off just around dawn, attempting to head east around the lake and damaged weir. Then head back north, towards the border. To rejoin the rest of the patrol, so that could head back to the army led by field commander Leivyn.
But they were quickly spotted by those in the relief column of the enemy, who turned up just as night was waning, and dawn approached after the battle that saw the near destruction of the village of Dalbar Falls, and the warcamp the enemy had set up next to it.
The pursuit was soon on, with the enemy chasing after them. The robber baron Gergus, his second, Hammind. As well as Lisell Maera.
All took turns helping Pabell to run, as his right leg had a wound from an enemy sword strike. A wound that Hammind had hastily wrapped with strips torn from a pilfered cloak off a dead enemy soldier.
When Lisell Maera, or Lis as she's more commonly called by those who know her well. Wasn't helping the wounded Pabell to run.
She would briefly stop, and shoot at the pursuing enemy with her crossbow. The attractive young woman from the city-state of Brattonbury is the only one with a ranged weapon.
And it's because of her, they were able to survive that first morning of the pursuit. She'd wait until one of the enemy was close, and shoot him down.
She wouldn't go for a kill shot, she would aim to maim and wound. Hitting the enemy in the legs or the guts. In an attempt to have more of them to stop, and help out their wounded comrades. Which more often or not, would work.
And which Lis would continue to do, until she got low with the amount of bolts she had in her quiver.
By midday, and the early afternoon that first day. The runner, or messenger in the mercenary army from the lands Farque. Would only shoot at the enemy in the most sporadic of fashion.
And by mid afternoon, she hardly shot at them at all. As she only had a handful of quarrels left in her quiver.
It didn't help that the pursuing enemy didn't have any crossbowmen of their own. So that Lis could replenish her dwindling bolts if she had shot one.
Though in hindsight, them not having any crossbowmen, or archers for that fact. Apart from one who the attractive young woman from the west coast of the Southlands. Shot that first morning.
Was a good thing, as the four of them weren't harassed by enemy bolts and arrow. Because if they did, there would of been a good chance that the four of them wouldn't of survived the first day.
As it turned out, not all of them survived that first night anyway. As the enemy, enraged at the deaths of their fellow soldiers in the army of duke Hargen. Many of whom, who were wiped out during the battle at Dalbar Falls.
Continued the pursuit into the night. Not stopping as they chased after the four who were trying to flee from them. Always heading south and east. Instead the way they had originally wanted to go. East, then turn back to the north.
Not having much to eat, apart from what Lisell Maera was able to scrounge from the pack of one of the enemy she had shot dead.
And only drinking from the streams they came across. As they had long ago drunk what was in their water bottles.
The only saving grace they had that first day. Was that it continued to rain. And nor was it hot. And by nighttime, the rain had turned to a constant drizzle, as they continued to flee from the pursuing enemy.
Even then, they weren't all that far ahead of duke Hargen's men who were after them.
Even with Lis occasionally stopping to shot at them. And now with both the robber baron Gergus, and his second in command, Hammind. Stopping every once in a while, to engage with the closest of the enemy.
Cutting down any of them, who wouldn't realise until the last moment, that one of them had stop to fight them.
Hammind, a renowned axe fighter in the unruled lands of the southern reaches of the Colevar Mountains. Was especially lethal doing this. Hacking down any of the soldiers in the army of the duchy of Phelm who came upon him.
It was as Hammind was cutting down one of the enemy, who weren't bothering to hide themselves in the night. As many of them ran with lit torches in the falling drizzle.
That Pabell, who had fallen over once again. And who Lis struggled to get up off the ground, as she was helping him to run at the time.
Suggested to the robber baron Gergus to leave him behind. So that he could draw a number of the enemy to him. And delay them, giving the other there of them. Gergus, Hammind, and Lisell, some time to get further away from the pursuing enemy.
Lis caught sight of the robber baron's face, grimace in anguish at the prospect of letting the wounded Pabell have his way.
Gergus refused, and helped the runner in aiding the wounded soldier to continue on his way.
So it was that two of them would help the injured soldier to run. While the third would occasionally stop to engage with the pursuing enemy.
It was after Hammind stopped to take on the enemy once more in the middle of the night.
And Pabell had fallen over for the umpteenth time. That Hammind returned to them with a cut to his left arm, that he was hastily wrapping with strips torn from the purloined cloak.
That the wounded Pabell finally got his way. As they saw lit torches in the night closing upon them.
The soldier in the army of robber baron Gergus drew his sword, and took one of his daggers from his belt. Looked at the others, last of all, the robber baron Gergus, and hissed at them to run.
Then Pabell yelled out to the enemy "Over here you bastards!" as he limped away.
The robber baron was going to and get him. But Hammind grabbed him by the arm, and shoved his brother inlaw in the other direction.
Telling the robber baron not to let Pabell's death be in vain. The axe fighter hustled Gergus away. And along with Lisell, they ran away, heading south, leaving Pabell behind.
They didn't think the wounded soldier would last long. Or give them that much time to flee from the duke's men. For they soon heard the sounds of fighting behind them.
But every time they thought Pabell had met his fate. They could hear him shout in defiance and anger at the enemy.
He was still shouting at them when they finally got out of earshot of those behind them as they ran through the steady drizzle.
And when Lis glanced back, she couldn't see any of the lit torches carried by the duke's soldiers following after them for some time.
Until eventually she spotted one, then two, and then a third. Finally start moving, heading more or less in the direction they were going, south.
The following morning dawned grey, with the drizzle still falling. Though more intermittent compared to during the night. A clear sign that the weather would clear some time today. If not, then the next day would be fine.
But at least the morning was relatively cool, another sign that the day wouldn't be hot, unlike most of the early summer that the southern reaches of the Colevar Mountains has endured so far.
In the early morning, they had turned east again. In an area of northern Phelm, that both Gergus and his brother inlaw Hammind don't know at all.
The land here isn't so hilly, and the woodland is more dense. Not as sparse as it is in the border region.
Nor is the grass as dry and brown as it is further to the north.
And as they make their way through the woods, they find plenty of trails and tracks, clear signs that there's people in the area. Most likely foresters and hunters.
As the land hasn't been cleared that much in this part of the duchy of Phelm, to create farmland.
The three of them, who have only stopped now and again since yesterday before dawn. For short periods of time, to catch their breath, before continuing on their way.
Are walking as much as they are running, this second morning of fleeing the duke's men.
Of the three, it's the attractive young woman from the city-state of Brattonbury who is the least inconvenienced.
Lis who has trained to be a runner. Trained to run long distances over various terrains. Is by far in the best shape out of the three of them.
It helps that she's nearly a decade younger than the robber baron Gergus, and his second in command, Hammind.
It's after they've wound up through some trees, that have gone up one of the hills. That they stop and look back for the first time in a while to see if they're still being pursued. As they hadn't heard any of the enemy behind them since after dawn.
"I can't see any of them" quietly says Hammind after he binds the cut on his arm with fresh strips of cloth, as they look back down in the direction they've come from.
"There" quietly says Lisell Maera who has the keenest eyesight out of the three of them. The messenger in the mercenary army from the lands Farque, points out what she's spotted. And the robber baron and his brother inlaw eventually see the enemy too.
Slightly frowning, Hammind quietly says "I see archers with them now". "Local huntsmen and foresters no doubt" quietly says the robber baron Gergus as they each stand behind a tree, looking back down in the direction they've come from.
They can just make out one of duke Hargen's soldiers, pointing towards the hill the three of them are at the top of.
Gergus, the youngest of the five robber barons of the unruled lands in the southern reaches of the Colevar Mountains, to band together to wage war upon the duchy of Phelm.
Frowns as he notices something, then he quietly says "I think they're in disagreement about something".
"They're arguing" is what Lisell Maera quietly says, as it's obvious that the local hunters are not wanting to do, or go whenever the duke's soldiers want to go.
"Whatever it is, it's not stopping Hargen's men" quietly says Gergus the robber baron, as they see in a clearing to the north, the duke's men move off, heading more or less in the direction of the hill they're up.
There's a trio of local hunters, who are pretty reluctant to follow after them. Eventually do, though they only follow at a walk, and are not running like the dozen or so soldiers in duke Hargen's army, who are still in pursuit of the trio who have crossed over the border from the unruled lands.
"Let's move" quietly says Gergus, and the three of them turn, and head down the east side of the hill they're on. Making their way through the trees at a jog, and though they're tired and sore. They make sure to watch where they're going, so as not to fall, and twist an ankle. Which would be disastrous for them.
The woodland on the otherside of the hill opens up a fair bit. With more clearings, and open ground between clumps of trees.
It's as they're running across one clearings to a patch of trees, that they find out why the local hunters were so reluctant to head this way.
Something fairly large bursts from the trees. It's all scales, claws and fangs, and goes for the three of them.
Gergus has never seen one before, nor has Hammind. But they're both heard tales of them, as they used to be more common in the southern reaches of the Colevar Mountains.
But now they're only found in this region of northern Phelm, where there's still abundant forests, and where it isn't so dry compared to what a lot of the foothills are in the southern reaches, especially in the summertime.
"Land dragon!" yells the robber baron Gergus in alarm and fright as the creature barrels towards them.
It is infact, not a dragon at all, but a type of serpent. The size of a small wyvern, that resembles a dragon.
Though with incredibly small wings along it's back, completely useless for flight. It's why they're given the name land dragon by the people of the southern reaches of the Colevar Mountains.
And when you find one land dragon, you usually find others, as they aren't solitary creatures, but are indeed pack animals.
Another one bursts out of the trees to their left, and after Lis shoots the bolt in her crossbow into the face of the first, which howls in pain.
The tail of the second land dragon, hits her in the legs and knocks her down as it scurries forward and runs into Hammind.
The robber baron Gergus hauls Lis to her feet, while Hammind rolls away from the land dragon that tries to rake him.
"Run!" yells the robber baron as a third land dragon comes scuttling from amongst the trees away to the right.
The creatures, all about twelve to fourteen feet in length, standing about seven feet in height. Hiss at the trio of humans. Though the one with the crossbow bolt in it's face, is growling in pain more than it is hissing.
Gergus, Hammind and Lis briefly pause as the three land dragons watch them.
Then the trio of humans run, and the hissing land dragons chase after them, a chase that will be much worse than what they had to previously endure with duke Hargen's men, who were, and still are pursuing them . . . . . .