Aftermath 25.

The Kaldel Plains...

"Do you want me to conceal myself from them?" asks Samiel the mage "No" says Arvelle the plainsman who leads the crew of illegal wreckers.
He continues with "They might hesitate to try something with you around".
The tall plainsman with the shaved head pauses, then adds "Then again, they might not" he shrugs his shoulders then says "Let's hope it's the former".
The powerful spellcaster originally from the city-state of Tuledare nods his head, then in the growing darkness he looks across the village green when Arvelle quietly says to him "Besides, if they concentrate on you, they won't expect what's coming their way if they try something".
The leader of the illegal wreckers who is looking across the village green too, which is sporadically lit with fire buckets and torches in the ground. Then looks at the powerful mage and asks him "How far are they?".
"Not that far" says Samiel, who continues with "Little over a few miles" followed by "They'll be here soon".
The tall plainsman nods, then looks up to the second storey of the house he's been using since they've taken over this village, and he calls out "Can you see them?".
"I can" calls down Mac the dwarf who is up in the second storey room, looking away to the northwest in the early evening sky.
"Come down, and bring them in" says Arvelle to his offsider and best friend, the dwarven shipwright who is originally from the Cascades. Those low mountains and hill country just inland from the coast of the Southlands, not too far from the crescent port of Gilsom.
As Mac heads down, the leader of the illegal wreckers asks the mage from Tuledare "Get ready to act if you think they're going to do something" followed by "If not, hold back".
The tall plainsman, with the shaved head then says "I hope to at least actually do a deal with Rogar" he continues with "Hopefully he's got no ulterior motives like those others seem to have".
Samiel nods to that, then as Mac comes outside and joins them on what's a cool early evening, here in the northeast of the Kaldel Plains.
He spots Sasha and Pallen exit a house on the opposite side of the village green, and make their way across it to where they're standing.
Once the good looking one eyed woman, and the tall plainsman with long hair joins them. Arvelle quietly asks the couple "Everyone in position over there?" as he nods to the house they were just in.
"They are" says Sasha the former mercenary, who like her lover Pallen, hails from the kingdom of Girdane, though Pallen is of plainsmen stock.
They all look over to the house in question, and spot Gorlic at one of the windows, looking at them. The former arena fighter who is originally from the city-state of Brattonbury, nods his head when they all look his way, then he steps back out of sight in the dark room he's in.
"And the others?" asks Arvelle "They're in position" says the good looking woman who has just one eye, and has a gnarly looking scar down the side of her face.
"Tim and Tom have seen to it" says Sasha, who continues with "Davon is with them".
The leader of the crew of illegal wreckers nods to that, and murmurs "Good". Then Arvelle looks at his offsider, and best friend Mac, and quietly says to him "Get Rogar's ship down first if you can, position them over here, next to the wagons".
The dwarven shipwright who hails from the Cascades nods, and does so again when the tall, fairly fair plainsman with the shaved head tells him "Get that armed ship down and lined up as best as you can".
Then after quickly glancing to the house across the village green that Gorlic is in, Arvelle quietly says to his best friend Mac "That's the most important thing".
"Aye" says Mac the dwarf, who follows on from that with "I'll line them up".
The former shipwright from the Cascades then quietly adds in dwarven "Let's just hope the bastards won't know they're there".
"They won't" says Pallen the blademaster in the same language who overheard what Mac just said.
The tall blademaster, who is very fair for a plainsman nods over at Samiel, and says in dwarven to the former shipwright "He can barely tell they're there, and he knows they're there".
"That's something at least" says Mac to the dangerous blademaster, who he's always got along with, even though Pallen's a stone, cold killer. Infact he's basically a murderer at times, who kills people for the most trivial of things.
"What was that?" asks Arvelle as he looks at his best friend Mac, and Pallen the blademaster who have been chatting away in the dwarven language, which he's never bothered to learn.
"Nothing" replies the dwarf who hails from the Cascades, who nods away to the northwest, and says "You should be able to see them fairly soon". The former shipwright, then adds "I'll get ready to bring them in".
Then Mac makes his way to one of the torches nearby. He pulls the burning torch up out of the ground, then makes his way further out onto the village green on what's a cool start to the evening, here on one of the last days of summer on the Kaldel Plains.
Less than quarter of a mile to the east of the village. On a small rise, and in small, we're talking less than twelve feet high, as the Kaldel Plains are extremely flat. With very few rises and falls in elevation with the exception of the canyon country further to the south.
Tamric Drubine the field commander quietly says "They're definitely up to something" as he lies there flat on his stomach, looking through his magical brass, cylindrical eyepiece. 
Lying next to him on his right, Lisell Maera the messenger nods, then quietly asks "What though?".
"I'm not sure" is the reply from the nobleborn teenager who is originally from the feudal kingdom of Sarcrin.
On the left of Tamric Drubine, or Tam as he's more commonly referred to by the others. Beldane the cleric grunts, then he slightly grimaces.
As the fighting cleric in the church of Glaine, who hails from the kingdom of Nastell. Is holding his power within himself, taking a bit effort to do so.
"You okay there?" quietly asks the young field commander in the armies of Farque to the powerful spellcaster who is the newest member of the group.
"I'm hanging in there" says Beldane the cleric, who has Tovis the war engineer lying on the ground to his left.
The churchman who follows the god Glaine, the most popular deity worshiped in the north of the kingdom of Nastell, quietly asks the young field commander "What else can you see?".
"Not much" is the quiet reply of the former heir of a previous knight of castle Drubine, which is located in the heavily forested north of the kingdom of Sarcrin.
The young field commander looks back through his eyepiece, which he's switched to allow him to see in the dark. The image it gives him has a green hue or tinge to it. Though it clearly shows him what he wants to see. And at a some distance too.
Tam who is looking at a group of people standing to one side of the large, circular open grassy area on the western side of the village. Sees that they're all looking away to the northwest in the early evening sky.
The nobleborn teenager looks in that direction too, and after just a few moments he spots something.
"Airships coming in from the northwest" quietly says Tamric Drubine, who continues with "Three of them, no wait, there's four".
"Who are they?" asks Lisell Maera who is more commonly called Lis by the others.
"I'm not sure" quietly says the nobleborn teenager who after describing the four airships, one of which is clearly outfitted for combat, he adds "Whoever they are, that lot in the village are waiting for their arrival".
As he continues to look through his brass, cylindrical eyepiece, to watch what's going on in the village, that's a den for the illegal wreckers who brought down the warship that they were flying on as they made their way over the Kaldel Plains after leaving the kingdom of Nastell.
Field commander Drubine spots the short figure of a dwarf out in the circular open area on the otherside of the village. Waving a torch back and forth, and beckoning the airships down towards him.
"Rogar's ship's out infront" quietly says Arvelle who continues with "I can recognise that bark of his anywhere, even at night".
"The twins are still on it" says Samiel, who after a slight pause adds "Well, Sara is onboard".
Nodding her head, Sasha the former mercenary says "Famic will be with her" followed by "Those two are inseparable".
Arvelle the leader of the illegal wreckers. Who for the last year or so, have brought down airships all across the Kaldel Plains.
Quietly says to Samiel "From the running lights, and the size of what you lot described it. I'd say the third one is the rerigged merchant that's been outfitted for battle".
"It is" says Sasha, who has taken out her small brass, cylindrical eyepiece, and is looking through it.
The good looking woman with just one eye, who hails from the kingdom of Girdane, hands the instrument to Arvelle, who looks through it too.
"Too wide to be a proper fighting ship" quietly says the tall plainsman with the shaved head, who momentarily pauses before adding "Though it's got plenty of magetubes and ballista to do a lot of damage".
After handing the small cylindrical eyepiece back to Sasha, Arvelle quietly tells the others "We'll have to be careful here".
Then as Mac continues to beckon the first of the approaching airships down, Arvelle says to Pallen the blademaster "Have those helping out with the mooring to get into position". The dangerous blademaster nods, then he shouts "Mooring crews forward!".
From the side of houses, and from behind them alongside the village green. Men and women hurry forward to help moor the approaching airships.
The first of which, a twin masted bark is nearly over the village green. The vessel which belongs to the merchant Rogar. Who does business throughout the south of the kingdom of Druvic. Has been here before.
And the captain of his airship brings the vessel down smoothly, to where Mac points to.
On the north side of the village green. Near the two storey building that Arvelle has been using. And near where the wagons that have the remaining magetubes are positioned.
Those onboard, even at night. Can see the magical weapons in the back of the wagons thanks to the fire buckets and lit torches dotted across the village green.
And as Rogar's twin masted bark is about to land. Mac who is directing the approaching vessels, waves to the next airship to land directly behind Rogar's vessel. So that it's bow is pointing at the stern of the first airship that's almost on the ground.
As he directs the second airship. Mac is also keeping an eye on the third vessel. The merchant ship that's been outfitted for combat.
As are the rest of the group, including Arvelle who waves and calls out a greeting in reply to the one from Rogar, who has come to the port rail when he's spotted the leader of the illegal wreckers.
As some of the wreckers help to secure the merchant's bark, and others wait for the other three airships to land.
Arvelle moves forward to speak with Rogar, as well as the twins Sara and Famic who have joined the merchant at the port rail.
The lovers Pallen and Sasha glance at one another. As they see the third vessel, following Mac's directions to drop down onto the otherside, or southern side of the village green.
The two of them look at Samiel the mage, who quietly says "Watch the magetubes onboard the merchantman".
The powerful spellcaster who hails from the city-state of Tuledare, where he worked for the dock authority there, then quietly adds "Movement is usually the only indication of them being fired" he continues with "You can't really sense them until they've actually fired".
The couple originally from the kingdom of Girdane nod, then the blademaster Pallen quietly says "Keep an eye on the ballista too" he then adds "If they swing about and take aim, then we're in trouble".
And as the second vessel comes down to land, right behind the first. They watch the third airship, the merchantman that's been rerigged, and outfitted for battle. Drop down to land where Mac is waving his torch towards.
Not as far forward as the first vessel. But more inline with the second. Though on the south side of the village green. Right inline with one of the houses over there. The house that the former arena fighter Gorlic is in.
Then the dwarf from the Cascades who is former shipwright, waves out to the fourth and final airship. And gestures for it to land behind the stern of the third.
"How many spellcasters have they got in total?" quietly asks Sasha "There's a few of them" says Samiel, who knows that he's been sensed for some time by the practitioners of magic onboard the four vessels from the kingdom of Druvic. Who have come here to try and purchase the magetubes the illegal wreckers are selling.
"If they're smart, and they're planning something, they should do it now, while they're still in the air" quietly says the Tuledarian mage as they watch the third vessel come down to land on the south side of the village green.
"They must not be planning anything" quietly says Pallen the blademaster, who is closely watching the rerigged merchantman, the tall plainsman with the long hair then dryly adds "Or they're not that smart".
As the third airship settles down onto the ground, and the fourth one starts to come down behind it. Like the two on the north side of the village green have done. And are now being secured with mooring lines.
Though the crew of the second vessel aren't exactly in a hurry to do so, unlike the crew of Rogar's bark. Something that Sasha notices, as the former mercenary from the kingdom of Girdane is looking that way.
"They're delaying back there" quietly says the good looking woman with just one eye, and a scar down the side of the face that's missing an eye.
Both Pallen and Samiel quickly look to where she has nodded, then the powerful mage quietly says "Get ready".
"For what?" mutters the blademaster Pallen "Anything" is the reply of Samiel, who knows he's quicker than any of the spellcasters onboard the four vessels that have come from the kingdom of Druvic.
As the crew on the second airship are slow to throw mooring lines overboard. The powerful mage, the former mercenary and the dangerous blademaster. All look across the village green at the third vessel that's just touched down to the ground.
The three of them are watching the merchantman with it's magetubes and ballista.
"They've got crew positioned at the ballista on this side" quietly says Pallen "I see it" quietly says Samiel the mage, who then quickly adds "You might want to move away from me" followed by "I might not be able to protect you if they target me".
The lovers Pallen and Sasha quickly glance at one another. Then just as they're about to move away from the Tuledarian mage.
They, along with Samiel here a shout of command from the third vessel that's landed. The merchantman that's been rerigged, and outfitted for combat.
And they see the two port side ballistas swing about. As well as some of the port side magetubes move as they slightly stick out of the hull of the airship.
The loud thud of magetubes can be heard firing, though not those onboard the merchantman . . . . . .