A Grand Design 36.

Winter. Central Girdane.

"Looks like it might snow" quietly says Tovis the war engineer as he looks up at the sky that's got cloudy all of a sudden.
Behind the young engineer from the kingdom of Druvic, the ork warleader Dorc da Orc grunts in agreement.
While up ahead, sir Percavelle Lé Dic says in his overly boisterous voice "Yes quite" followed "A little bit of snow shall not stop us, wot".
Next to the war engineer, the fighting cleric Beldane rolls his eyes, while Tovis wryly smiles as he shakes his head as they look at the heavily, armoured knight who is out infront.
The young engineer, who is a captain in the armies of Farque, looks back at the following ork weaponsmith, and quietly asks him "Are we still going the right way Dorc?".
"Yeah cunt" says Dorc da Orc who with a wave of one of his large, meaty, skillet sized hands in the direction they're going, adds "He fucken that way".
They're making their way down a country lane, heading east through the duchy of Wostin, here in the central region of the kingdom of Girdane.
The force from their army they've been with, has gone back west, to continue the attack upon the crown's army. The wizard Larris has gone with that part of their army. So that they're not short of too many spellcasters.
Meanwhile it's just the four of them at the moment going eastwards through the duchy of Wostin.
A few days ago, they and part of their army they were with. Ambushed and attacked a battalion of the regent of Oaklynn's army. Wiping them out to the last man.
And though the four of them didn't actually see it. They were in the same area. When that battalion in the regent's army, were raised up from the dead, and attacked another of the battalions in the regent's army, who had come west to fight against the rebellious dukes of Dalmar, Girnath and Falosen.
There's a third such battalion in the regent of Oaklynn's army who have apparently come out west to fight the rebels from the very west of the kingdom. But they're not yet in the duchy of Wostin, where they should be by now.
So the four of them, Dorc da Orc, sir Percavelle Lé Dic, Tovis the war engineer, and Beldane the cleric are heading east to locate them.
Along with lord Farque, who is somewhere out infront of the four of them.
The young engineer originally from the kingdom of Druvic calls a stop. The captain in the armies of Farque is in charge of the four of them. Though Dorc da Orc is a general in the same mercenary army. No one in their right mind would have him in charge of anything unless absolutely necessary.
So Tovis, who is the youngest of the four of them by nearly eight years. As he's in his early twenties, while Beldane the cleric is nearly thirty years old. Put himself forward to be in charge. While they follow after lord Farque who is trying to locate the third battalion of the regent of Oaklynn's army, that's come out to join the fight against the rebellious dukes from the very west of the kingdom of Girdane.
They've stopped on the country lane, at the start of a wagon track that leads to a farmhouse.
The war engineer takes out one of the maps he's got, and looks at it, and after a few moments he says "We could very well be in the duchy of Fandell now".
The cleric Beldane looks at the map too, then nods his head and says "You're right".
The fighting cleric who hails from the kingdom of Nastell looks around, then adds "This farmland all looks the same".
The young engineer who is a captain in the Farqian mercenary army is in agreement with the member of the church of Glaine.
The countryside they're going through lacks any hills of significance. And it's only broken up by a scattering of woods and stands of trees every so often.
And they've see a lot more people on the farms and in the fields, as they've walked east over the last two days. Far more than they've seen in the rural areas further to the west in the kingdom.
Tovis puts away his map, then he asks the large ork "Is he still that way?" as he gestures along the lane they've been following since early this morning.
"Huh?" says Dorkindle who is looking down the wagon track to the right, that leads to a farmhouse a couple hundred yards away.
"Yeah cunt" is the distracted sounding ork warleader who is sniffing as he looks at the nearby farmhouse.
Noticing this, the young engineer who once served in the army of a baron Harkonin in his homeland of Druvic, asks the ork general "What is it Dorc?".
"Booze" says the weaponsmith from the wolf tribe of orks with a grin upon his wide, green, brutish looking face.
"And foods" adds the big, burly ork who is from the southern polar region of the world.
"Fucken get some" says the warleader of the ork race, who then sets off along the wagon track that leads to the nearby farmhouse.
"Dorc, we can't very well go and steal from some farmers" says Tovis the war engineer after he tells the ork general to come back.
"Why the fuck not?" asks a perplexed looking ork weaponsmith as he stops and looks back at the others.
"No cunts at home" says Dorkindle gesturing towards the nearby farmhouse "They not gonna know it us" adds the large ork who is the son of the former matriarch of the wolf tribe of orks.
Sir Percavelle follows after the ork general, and the young engineer tells him "Hold up Percy".
"Some decent food would be good, wot" says sir Percavelle Lé Dic who briefly pauses as he looks back at the other two, then he adds "Farm folk tend to have good food, and this farm looks a prosperous one".
The former earl of Lé Dic in his pompous and overly loud voice then says "Besides the meals we've had to endure of late are a lot to be desired, wot".
"What's that supposed to mean?" demands Beldane the cleric who has been cooking for them over the last few days.
"It means i wouldn't serve them to thy enemies, that's what" says the former paladin in the order of the Knights of Saint Mar-che "Wot" adds the nobleborn knight from the kingdom of Druvic, who sets off after the large ork.
The war engineer and the fighting cleric share a look, then they too start making their way along the wagon track that leads to the farmhouse that's a couple hundred yards away.
The four of them make their way to the farmhouse. And at the front door, the ork general briefly thinks about kicking it in. But tries the doorknob instead, and finds that it's unlocked. Dorkindle ducks down, and enters the farmhouse. He's followed by sir Percavelle Lé Dic, or Percy as he's more commonly called by the others in the group.
Then Tovis the war engineer and Beldane the cleric enter the farmhouse.
Inside, Dorc da Orc who is drinking a bottle of wine he's found in the kitchen. Has located a cool room that's beneath the house.
While in the kitchen, the former paladin from the kingdom of Druvic is rummaging through the pantry, taking foodstuffs he's stuffing into a cloth sack he's found.
After Beldane closes the front door behind them, Tovis slightly frowns as he looks around in the main room, and he sees a smouldering fire in the fireplace.
The captain in the armies of Farque looks into the kitchen where Percy is busy procuring supplies.
The young engineer slightly frowns again, as he sees smouldering coals in the open fire pit used for cooking.
He also sees half empty plates and cups on the table in the kitchen. As if the occupants were interrupted in their meal. Breakfast by the looks of what remains on the plates.
"What is it?" quietly asks Beldane the cleric, who follows after Tovis, who makes his way to the back part of the farmhouse, to look into the bedrooms back there.
"Something's wrong" quietly says the young engineer who hails from the Harkonin fief in the east of the kingdom of Druvic as he heads back to the kitchen.
"Can you sense anyone or anything?" asks the war engineer, the fighting cleric frowns, then he senses out from where they are in the farmhouse.
"Nothing within a few miles in all directions, well nothing magical" is the reply from spellcaster who is from the kingdom of Nastell.
The cleric in the church of Glaine then puts a hand on his mace, and after a moment or two, he tells the Farqian army captain "There's no threat" he briefly pauses before adding "Well, i should say there's no threat to me".
Tovis the war engineer nods, and he makes his way to the trapdoor at one end of the kitchen, and calls down into the cool room "Dorc get up here!".
The large ork who has already lifted up two barrels of ale through the open trapdoor, into the kitchen.
Can be heard grunting as he comes up the stone steps from down in the cool room, carrying bottles of wine, and two large hams.
"What cunt?" asks the big, burly ork from the frozen bottom of the world, after he places the bottles of wine onto top of the ale barrels, then drops the hams on the floor.
"Can you tell where these people went?" asks the young engineer, who points at the half empty plates and cups on the table, then over to the cooking pit that's still got burning embers in it.
"They left in hurry" adds Tovis, who follows that with "Sometime early this morning by the looks of it".
The son of the former matriarch of the wolf tribe of orks, who he killed. Which was only fair, as she was doing her best to kill him at the time.
Grunts as he looks around, then he walks to the backdoor in the kitchen as he repeatedly sniffs at the air.
He opens the door, and looks outside, as snowflakes start to slowly fall from the cloudy midday sky.
"They fucken took off that way" says Dorkindle who points to where he can see boot marks on the ground "In a fucken hurry too" adds the large ork who can tell that the people who were in the farmhouse, both adults and children, ran away from the farmhouse.
Looking outside, Tovis the war engineer slightly nods as Beldane the cleric quietly says "Wonder what caused them to flee?".
"Did lord Farque come here to the farmhouse?" asks the young engineer as he looks at the ork general who is putting the bottles of wine into one of his sacks.
"Nah" says Dorc da Orc he waves in the direction of the country lane they were on, and adds "He went by on that fucken road out there".
The ork weaponsmith then nods to the backdoor, and continues with "These cunts took off way earlier than when Farque went by".
The war engineer from the kingdom of Druvic, whose has suddenly taken interest in what's happened here, quietly says "I wonder what's happened?".
The captain in the Farqian army then says "Come on, let's see where they've gone". Tovis looks at the other three, and nods for them to follow him outside.
Beldane slightly shrugs his armoured shoulders, then follows the war engineer out the backdoor.
Carrying his sack of supplies, sir Percavelle Lé Dic exits through the backdoor too.
Finally, Dorc da Orc carrying the barrels of ale, after stuffing the hams in another of his sacks. Follows the others outside.
And after broaching one of the ale barrels, and he starts to drink from it. The ork general leads the way after Tovis the war engineer says to him "Follow after them Dorc".
They walk across a field, going by a small barn, that has a milking cow in it. That watches them as they pass by.
The big, burly ork from the southern polar region of the world, who as he drinks from the barrel of ale he's opened, leads the way southwards as the light snow continues to fall.
They go through a stand of trees, a woodlot that was planted some years ago by the looks of it.
And beyond, they cut across the countryside, now obviously off the farm they were just on.
The warleader of the ork race as he follows the tracks of those who left the farmhouse in a hurry.
Suddenly stops as he looks towards some woods in the distance, while he constantly sniffs.
"Something up ahead in those woods Dorc?" asks Tovis the war engineer as he does his cloak up tighter, as the snow continues to fall.
"Peoples" says Dorkindle, who then adds "More than there fucken was in that house".
The others glance at one another, then look to the woods about five hundred yards away, as the ork weaponsmith says "And something fucken else?".
"Oh?" says the young engineer who hails from the kingdom of Druvic, who then asks Dorc "What exactly?".
"Dorc don't fucken know" is the annoyed sounding reply from the ork general.
Sir Percavelle's eyebrows lift up in surprise. For though he and the ork warleader are fierce rivals. Both of whom wouldn't be upset if harm befell the other one.
He knows his rival has seen a lot of the world, especially the Southlands. And seen a lot of what's in it. Far more than he has. And for the large ork not to know what something is, is a rare occurrence.
"A person?" asks the captain in the Farqian mercenary army "Nah a fucken animal" says the big, burly ork from the frozen bottom of the world, who after a slight pause adds in puzzled tone of voice "Or creature".
The other three all glance at one another, when the large ork says "Smells a bit like a fucken bug, nah more like a worm" followed by a loud mutter of "A big fat, fucken worm".
"Any idea what that could be?" quietly asks Tovis as he looks at Beldane.
"I'm not sure" says the fighting cleric, who continues with "I've read about giant bug like creatures, but they're not here in this part of the Southlands".
After a moments pause, the member of the crunch of Glaine, who is the most recent member of the group, after joining last spring, says "And i haven't heard of any big worms".
The war engineer nods, then looks at the former earl of Lé Dic, who like him, hails from the kingdom of Druvic.
The large, heavily armoured knight shakes his head no, and says "I doth not encountered anything of the nature the filthy beast has describe".
Then looking towards the woods that is about five hundred yards away, the young engineer says "Should we check it out?".
"Fuck yeah cunt" says Dorkindle, who wasn't interested before, but definitely is now. As he's curious to find out what's in the nearby woods.
The ork weaponsmith sets off through the lightly falling snow towards the woods.
The others follow after him, and as Dorc da Orc continues to sniff, and to listen carefully, he tells the other three "Smells like some fucker has died in there" as he gestures towards the woods they're heading towards.
Nearly ten miles away, further east, in the duchy of Fandell. Lord Farque is pretty sure he's found the missing battalion of the regent of Oaklynn's army.
He can sense a large body of people in and around what he suspects is a town, a further fifteen or so miles east of where he is standing on a knoll in the middle of a paddock.
The undead warlord nods his full helmed head in satisfaction at locating the enemy. Who have stopped for some reason, and not continued on westwards.
As the heavily armoured deathlord wonders if the regent's battalion has stopped to wait for others from the east of the kingdom, to come westwards to fight against the rebel dukes.
He senses back to the west, to where the others are following him at a distance. He suspects they're now in the duchy of Fandell, or just about to leave the duchy of Wostin and enter Fandell.
The lord and ruler of the lands Farque senses for Dorc da Orc as the large ork is easy for him to locate.
The lord of the death realm quickly locates the lifeforce of the ork warleader.
And Draugadrottin as he's also known by the people of his lands, slightly frowns behind the faceplate of his full helm.
The undead warlord senses the three humans, Tovis, Beldane and Percy with the ork general.
They're wandering off south, and no longer going east. He figures they're only a couple of miles south of the country lane he himself used as he crossed over in the duchy of Fandell.
And though that's not necessarily a problem, them not continuing eastwards is.
"What the fuck are they up to?" mutters lord Farque, who then thoroughly senses for all living, dead, and anything or anyone magical back ten miles behind him, in the area the four of them are in.
The heavily armoured deathlord is silent for a few moments, then he frowns in earnest behind the faceplate of his full helm as he suddenly senses something.
"Fuck" says the lord and ruler of the lands Farque, who then takes off running, heading back west in the direction he's come from as snow starts to lightly fall . . . . . .