The Lost Ones 47.

Summer. The Sultanate Of Dreese.

Heading through the trees towards a hill, Tovis the war engineer stops. Then waves to the soldiers to his right, to keep heading in that direction.
Then the young engineer who is originally from the kingdom of Druvic, and is now a captain in the armies of Farque.
Looks at the handful of the Sultan's personal guards to his left. And nods for them to go straight ahead.
They do so without question, following the commands of the foreign mercenary.
They would of done so anyway, for the simple fact that going straight ahead, is the quickest and direct way to the village at the base of the hill they're approaching.
The war engineer then looks at the rest who are following him, including Beldane the cleric.
And gestures for them to keep following him, as he heads off at angle to the left, making his way through the tropical forest, towards the clearing where the village sits at the base of the hill.
This island, just like the other one on the east side of the channel.
Doesn't have much in the way of inhabitants.
As it's at the very northern end of the island chain that's part of the Sultanate of Dreese.
Far from any large town on one of the larger islands further south in the chain.
This close to the equator, there aren't a lot of people living on any islands. Whether they be part of the nation of Dreese or otherwise.
This island, like the other one across on the otherside of the channel, has just a few villages on it.
And most if not all the local inhabitants fled to the south in the islands over the last couple of weeks. When the Viceroy's forces turned up here, and decided to make their last stand here on the two islands that are separated by a channel.
The war engineer from the Southlands, which is over twelve thousand miles away to the west, on the otherside of the continent.
Looks up into the clear blue sky, on what's another warm tropical summer's day here in the island chain off the coast of the mainland of Dreese.
To make sure there's no airships, from both fleets flying directly overhead.
Then he stops at the edge of the trees, and he nods for Beldane to come forward beside him.
As away to the right, he spots some of the Sultan's personal guards, leave the treeline, and run in a crouch. Head across the open ground to the village at the base of the hill.
Both the young engineer from the kingdom of Druvic and the fighting cleric from the kingdom of Nastell, two nations that are in the Southlands.
Watch as the Sultan's personal guards are shot down by enemy archers and crossbowmen in the village.
Just one of the handful of the personal guards to the Sultan of Dreese, gets close to the village.
Falling thirty feet or so short of a house at the edge of the village.
He's crawling along the ground, with an arrow in his side.
When both Tovis and Beldane see an enemy soldier with a crossbow pop up at an open window, and let loose the bolt in his weapon.
Which takes the wounded personal guard to the Sultan, crawling along the ground, in the top of the dead.
"A pity" quietly murmurs Tovis the war engineer to the powerful spellcaster beside him.
"Yes, a pity" is the quiet murmur from Beldane the cleric after Tovis sent more of the personal guards to the Sultan of Dreese to their deaths.
The young engineer looks back at the soldiers in the army of the Sultanate behind him and the fighting cleric.
And he gestures for them to spread out to the left, and quietly says to them "Wait for my signal".
The war engineer, who once served in the army of a baron Harkonin in his homeland of Druvic. Hopes the soldiers he sent to the right around the village, are spreading out that way.
And that they too, will wait for his signal as he told them to.
Tovis assumes they will, as the soldiers in the Sultan's army, follow his and the rest of the group's orders without complaint.
They're easier to control compared to the Sultan's personal guards. Who tend to only do what the mercenaries from the Southlands command them to do, during battle like they are now.
Which is exactly what lord Farque wants them to do. As the undead warlord wants to get rid of as many of the Sultan's personal guards during this battle as possible.
And so far, that's happening with ease. As they're always sent in first against the enemy. Something they would probably do anyway. Since they're so willing to fight for the cause of the supreme ruler of the Sultanate of Dreese.
"Ready?" quietly asks Tovis the war engineer.
"I am" replies Beldane the cleric with a nod of his head.
Then the young engineer who is a captain in the armies of Farque, quietly tells the fighting cleric "Go for it".
The cleric who is a member of the church of Glaine, a god who is called by another name on this side of the continent.
Stops holding his power within himself, and casts a blast spell at one of the houses on this side of the village.
The fighting cleric then puts up wards around himself and Tovis, as at least half of the house he targeted, is shattered apart in a cloud of debris.
That's the signal for the attack upon the village. And those of the soldiers in the Sultan's army who have spread out to the left and right.
Charge from the treeline, and head across the open ground towards the village at the base of the hill.
Both Tovis and Beldane wait a few moments as they watch the Sultan's soldiers attack the village.
Then they too leave the relative safety of the tropical forest, and cross the open ground to the village that some of the Viceroy forces are in.
"Don't know why I'm the one climbing a bloody tree" loudly mutters Jarjin Littlefoot the hobbit, who then adds in a disgruntled tone "Some kind of damn tree snake nearly bit me".
Down on the ground watching the halfling climb down the branches of the tree, Dalinvardél Tanith the elven spy rolls his eyes, then murmurs "Quit your moaning" followed by "If you're killed, at least you'll come back".
"Hmmmmm maybe i should of let that snake bite me after all" murmurs Jarjin Littlefoot in the halfling language, who then switches back to the elven language the two of them have been conversing in, and quietly says "Help me down".
The spy Tanith reaches up to the lowest branch in the tree, and the elf who stands six foot four inches tall, takes a hold of the hobbit who is from the mainland of Dreese, and brings him down to the ground.
"Thanks" murmurs the halfling who is a former air sailor in the Sultan of Dreese's fleet.
Then Jarjin Littlefoot, who is really a hordes outrider from the southern tundra by the name of Zubutai Timaginson, who just happens to inhabit the body of the hobbit from the coastal nation of Dreese.
Says to the tall elf from the principality of Alínlae in the Southlands "There's quite a few of them making their way along a trail towards a stream, that looks like it goes back to the coast".
The spy Tanith, who once served in one of the more prominent noble houses in his homeland of Alínlae, and is now a senior officer in the rangers and scouts division of the armies of Farque, nods his head.
Then he turns and looks around at those waiting behind him, and he quietly says in the common language "You lot head out" pointing at the first ten, who are all personal guards to the Sultan of Dreese.
"How far away are they?" murmurs the elven spy in his native language.
"About four hundred yards or so" is the murmured reply from Jarjin aka Zubutai the barbarian hordesman in the same language.
"There's a group of the enemy about four hundred yards that way" quietly says Dalinvardél Tanith in the common language, as he points away to the northeast, back in the direction of the coast.
"They're on a trail through the forest" quietly continues the elf from the Southlands, who then adds "I want you to try and attack them from behind, while the rest of us hit them from the side of the trail".
"How many?" murmurs the spy Tanith in the elven language.
"About fifty or sixty of them" is the whispered reply in the same language from the halfling who is a former air sailor.
"There's about thirty of them" quietly lies the elf from the principality of Alínlae in the Southlands, to the personal guards to the Sultan in the common language.
Then Dalinvardél Tanith or Dalin as he's more commonly called by those who know him well, tells them "They shouldn't pose too much trouble, and you lot should get them running in a panic, so the rest of us can hit them as they're fleeing".
The personal guards to the supreme ruler of Dreese, all nod in enthusiasm as they want in on the fighting.
The elven spy, who like the rest of the small group from the Southlands, who are essentially mercenaries in Sultan of Dreese's forces, infact the only mercenaries.
Says to the ten personal guards to the Sultan "Get going" followed by "Try and give us a bit of time to get in position".
The ten guards in the battalion of about five hundred or so, who are separate from the rest of the army, as they're slightly under the direct control of the Sultan, quickly move off through the tropical forest, here in the interior of the island.
As they do, Jarjin aka Zubutai Timaginson murmurs in elven to the spy Tanith "Those idiot guards will attack the first sight they get of them".
"I know" murmurs Dalin in the same language, who then adds "Well, i certainly hope they do".
The halfling from the mainland of Dreese nods in agreement with that, then the spy Tanith waves for the remainder of the soldiers to follow after him and Jarjin Littlefoot, as they set off through the tropical forest.
It's well after midday now, and the battle has been going on for quite some time, as it started out on the water, well before dawn this morning.
And back near the coast, lord Farque looks up as he walks through part of the tropical forest that covers a lot of this island, as it does the island on the east side of the channel.
A channel that at it's widest, is nearly two miles. And at it's narrowest, is only about a quarter of a mile wide, if that.
The undead warlord looks up again, and leaps up into one of the taller trees to be found in the tropical forest.
The heavily armoured deathlord looks out to the channel, as sees that there's still a few ships from both fleets engaged in the naval battle.
Though the bulk of the Sultan's sea going fleet in the channel, are close to the shores in the channel of both islands.
As they deposited most of the Sultan's army onto the two islands that are separated by the channel of water. Here near the equator, at the very northern end of the chain of islands off the coast of the mainland of Dreese.
The lord of the death realm watches as one of the Sultan's ships slowly sinks out in the channel.
While nearby, one of the Viceroy's ships, is burning. Though not with ordinary flames. As a lot of it is covered with blue coloured flames.
As it's been repeatedly hit by the same spell by one of the practitioners of magic in the Sultan's fleet.
As that vessel drifts uncontrollably towards a rocky outcrop on the shores of the other island, near where the channel is at it's narrowest.
Lord Farque glances up into the clear, blue early afternoon sky, and murmurs "This way you fucks".
The large, heavily armoured deathlord as he stands upon a branch that could very well break beneath his weight at any moment now.
Slightly nods his full helmed head, then he slightly crouches, and from near the top of the fifty tall tree, leaps straight up into the sky. Nearly sixty feet straight upwards.
The ship's captain spins around when he hears a vaguely familiar voice say "Head north" after he hears a slight thud on the deck behind him.
"Sir?" says the surprised captain, some of his officers and the helmsman turn as well, and they're just as surprised as he is.
"How did you get onboard?" asks the captain in the Sultan's airfleet.
"I jumped onboard" says lord Farque is a totally nonplussed tone of voice, who then says "Now head north" followed by "And rise up".
The lord and ruler of the lands Farque who basically commands the Sultan's forces, continues with "You're too fucking low, you might get hit by an enemy spellcaster down below".
Forgetting all about how the large, heavily armoured foreign mercenary got onboard. The captain starts shouting out orders. 
And the airship that was heading inland from the coast across the island, turns to starboard and starts heading north, rising in altitude as it does so.
Lord Farque, who is also known by the name of Draugadrottin to the people of his lands, steps forward to stand next to the captain.
"Is that spellcaster onboard in our fleet?" asks the lord of the death realm, who then adds "Or?".
The captain along with the first officer, both slightly shake their heads no.
Then the airship captain quietly says to the undead being "No sir" quickly followed by "He's with a representative from the Sultan's court too".
"Fuck" sourly says the undead warlord, which is what the captain and his officers, along with crew too. Feel like saying as well, concerning who they have onboard with them from the Sultan's court.
But they're too afraid to voice that. Not so the foreign mercenary who is in command of the Sultan of Dreese's forces in the war against the Viceroy of Dreese.
"I see them" says the deathlord of Farque when the captain tells him "There they are" followed by "Coming back this way".
"Keep following the coast north" says the undead being who has the elven name of Des'tier, which translates to, The Destroyer.
The lord of the death realm continues with "I want to see how things are elsewhere".
The ship's captain nods, and says "Yes sir". While the first officer quietly murmurs "They're not going to like that". Referring to the two men who quickly making their way back along the deck to aft.
The representative from the Sultan's court when he reaches the stern deck with the rather dead eye looking wizard beside him. Glares at the large figure in the dark blue and black heavy plate armour standing next to the captain, who is beside the helmsman.
"Captain you are to fly inland" says the rather pompous looking fellow who is a member of the Sultan's court, who then adds "Those are your orders".
"My orders are to fly north" states the ship's captain, who knows exactly who is in command here. The man who has won victory after victory for the Sultan of Dreese in the war against the Sultan's younger brother, the Viceroy.
"They are not, you are" says the court representative, who is interrupted by lord Farque, who tells him "The captain has his orders" followed by "If you don't like them, then you can jump fucking overboard you piece of fucking shit, and take that fucking puppet with you" as he nods his full helmed head at the wizard who is part of the Sultan's cadre of spellcasters.
The representative from the Sultan's court, who has never been spoken to like that before in his life, ever. Stands there, mouth agape, as he looks at the foreign mercenary who commands the Sultan's forces.
The heavily armoured deathlord takes a step forward towards the court representative, and the wizard who is under the Sultan's direct control, and he says in a cold, tone of voice "Well?".
The court representative, who is a member of the local nobility, nervously backs away, taking the wizard with him. They turn, and hurry along the deck, then they head down a ladder to below deck.
"Ignore any orders that jackass tries to give you" says Draugadrottin to the ship's captain "After I've left the ship too" adds the lord and ruler of the lands Farque.
"Yes sir" says the captain to the foreign mercenary who is extremely popular amongst the Sultan's army and fleets, as he's won victory after victory for them in the war against the Viceroy's forces.
And no doubt will do so again here, on the two islands separated by a channel of water, at the very northern end of the island chain off the coast of the mainland of Dreese.
As both the first officer and the helmsman grin after watching what just happened.
Des'tier wanders over to the port rail, and looks down. Though not before he looks away to the west across the island, in the direction of the west coast.
He has sensed, and now caught a glimpse of quite a lot of the Viceroy's forces retreating to the west coast of this island.
Which is what he wants them to do. As he wants a fair few of them to survive this battle.
That's why he's ordered the rest of the group from the Southlands, to have the fighting take place on the eastern half of the island, and up along the east coast.
For it looks like the Sultan's forces are going to be victorious in this battle. Just as lord Farque wants it to appear, as the battle between the armies and fleets of the Sultan and Viceroy of Dreese continues . . . . . .