The Thick Of It 11.

Winter.

"Of course i had to be near one of the one's fucking Mira blew up" Lisell Maera the scout mutters to herself.
The attractive young woman originally from the city-state of Brattonbury. Rolls out from beneath the broken bits of planks she's beneath.
The scout in the armies of Farque looks around, and grimaces at what she sees.
The warehouse that she was standing opposite is no longer standing. It's just a pile of broken wood and debris.
The one to it's immediately left. The warehouse that first exploded. Is no longer there. It's just a crater in the ground.
Lisell Maera sourly smiles as she sees the next warehouse along to the right, is on fire.
And knows that one of the other spellcasters in the group has done that.
Because the mage Reinholt, even though he's no longer as powerful as he was more than fifteen years ago.
He still would of blown that warehouse to pieces if given the chance.
The scout Maera sees the other three warehouses here on the western outskirts of Holmsted are on fire as well.
She goes to get up off the ground, when someone grabs her by the left arm, and lifts her to her feet.
"Sorry" says Dalinvardèl Tanith the elven spy as he draws the Farqian army scout away.
"Should of warned you that Mira would of attacked the ones at this end" continues the elf who is a battalion commander in the scouts and rangers division of the armies of Farque.
Lisell Maera or Lis as she's more commonly called by the others in the group, just grunts in reply to that.
As the two of them hurry around to the side of a building, the front of which has been peppered by flying debris.
While frightened people in nearby houses and other buildings, look outside to see what's happened along the western outskirts of Holmsted.
Keeping close to the side of the building, Lisell Maera and Dalinvardèl Tanith watch what's happening across the street.
Seeing the survivors of the attack upon the half a dozen warehouses. Looking around, trying to figure out who it is that's attacking them.
"We don't have to worry about spellcasters do we?" quietly asks Lis in the elven language.
"His highness took care of them" is the quiet reply of the scout Tanith in the same language.
Then the spy, who is originally from the principality of Alínlae, where he served in one of the more prominent noble houses in that elven nation.
Nods his grey hooded head towards one of the warehouses that's on fire.
The attractive young woman from the coastal city of Brattonbury spots an enemy officer yelling orders, getting survivors and others to form a bucket line to a nearby well.
One moment that officer is pointing and shouting instructions. The next moment he disappears.
"Someone got him" murmurs Lisell Maera the scout, next to her Dalinvardèl Tanith or Dalin as he's more often than not called by the rest of the group, nods in agreement with the scout.
"No you can't" says lord Farque, who then adds "So leave him the fuck alone".
Dorc da Orc who has just asked if he could eat him. Grunts in disappointment as he looks down at the enemy officer who lies unconscious on the ground.
An officer in the forces of councilman Hirrye, who just a moment or two ago, was out on the nearby street, yelling orders.
When he suddenly disappeared from infront of one of the burning warehouses.
"How are you at reading minds?" asks lord Farque with a glance at Beldane the cleric who captured the enemy officer.
"Not my strong suit" says Beldane the cleric, who follows that with "Though I'm more than adequate".
"Read his" says the undead warlord who points at the unconscious enemy officer lying on the ground between them.
"Find out as much as you can" adds the large, heavily armoured deathlord who follows that with "Especially anything to do with troop movements and supply lines".
"Yes my lord" replies the powerful spellcaster who hails from the kingdom of Nastell.
Then without looking back, the lord and ruler of the lands Farque says "Stay" followed by "You too".
Dorc da Orc who was just thinking about heading out from between the two buildings, where they are, scowls.
As does his bitter rival, sir Percavelle Lé Dic. Who was thinking the exact same thing as he leans up against the building on the right.
As they continue to look across the street to the warehouses, well those that are still standing, that are on fire.
"There's one" quietly says Jarjin Littlefoot the hobbit who points between two of the burning warehouses.
"There amongst the smoke" adds the halfling who hails from the Sultanate of Dreese, which lies upon the far east coast of the continent.
"I think i see him" quietly says Tamric Drubine the field commander, who glances to his right, and asks "Do you?".
"I think so" says Saanea the witch who set the two northern most warehouses on fire, here on the western outskirts of town.
The short, pretty looking spellcaster from the Maldin Hills, briefly closes her eyes.
Then when she opens them after looking through the eyes of her familiar which is circling above the destruction wrought this morning.
She quietly says "Got him" followed by "He's going to come this way".
Both Tamric Drubine, who is a senior officer in the armies of Farque. And Jarjin Littlefoot who is a member of the personal council to lord Farque.
Nod as they see some of the survivors of the attack upon the warehouses come staggering out of the smoke.
One of them, an officer in the army of the so called duke of Kuradum, councilman Hirrye.
Continues staggering across the street, coughing and sputtering. Heading in this direction. Where the three of them are standing to the side of one of the last houses on this side of Holmsted.
A town well behind enemy lines in the city-state. A good forty miles from the frontlines in the war between councilman Hirrye's forces, and those still loyal to the ruling council of Kuradum, led by councilman Sammis.
The enemy officer waves off the attention of some of the locals who have come outside to see what's happened this morning.
Then he makes his way around to the side of the house where Jarjin Littlefoot, Tamric Drubine and Saanea the witch are watching things.
He blinks a few times in confusion, then he's promptly faints, falling to the ground infront of the young field commander in the armies of Farque.
"You get to carry him" quietly says the halfling who is former air sailor, having served in the fleet of the Sultan of Dreese.
"Thanks" sourly says Tamric Drubine, or Tam as he's more commonly called by the others in the group.
Then the young noble who is originally from the feudal kingdom of Sarcrin, asks his lover the spellcaster from the Maldin Hills "You want to read his mind before we take him away?".
Saanea the witch nods her head that she will as they continue to watch the remaining warehouses, here on the western outskirts of Holmsted, burn.
On this cold winter's morning, in this part of the east of the city-state of Kuradum.
A little while later in the morning, in the empty two storey building they appeared in just after dawn.
Zam the ex mercenary enters the large room, and nods when Mira Reinholt the mage who he was following, tells him "Over with those two".
The teenager from here in the city-state of Kuradum walks over to where a pair of enemy officers are lying on the floor unconscious.
And with the help of Tovis the war engineer who is following him. Zam puts the unconscious enemy officer he's carrying over his right shoulder. Down on the floor next to the other two.
"You get to keep an eye on them" says Tovis the war engineer to the ex mercenary.
"Holler out if any of them wakes" adds the young engineer who hails from the kingdom of Druvic, who is now a captain in the armies of Farque.
As Tovis wanders away to where the others are, leaving Zam over on this side of the large room.
The newest member of the group, having only joined during the autumn.
Glances away to the left, to the nearest corner. Where Dorc da Orc is squatting.
At first the teenager from the city of Kuradum thinks the large ork is taking a crap.
As Zam has seen him in that position before, doing exactly that. Something he doesn't particularity want to see again. Or to be exact, smell again.
But no, the ork warleader isn't taking a dump, much to the relief of the ex mercenary.
What the big, burly ork is doing. Is looking this way, at the trio of enemy officers, drooling as he does so.
Zam slightly grimaces and hopes to hell the ork general in the armies of Farque doesn't take it in his head, to come over here and start munching on one of the enemy officers.
As there's no way in hell that he'll be able to stop the big, burly ork from the southern polar region of the world.
The ex mercenary looks around for the ork weaponsmith's shadow. And he finds him in the opposite corner of the large room from general Dorc.
And though sir Percavelle Lé Dic is near where the others have gathered and are discussing things.
The nobleborn knight from the kingdom of Druvic is paying them no attention.
The large, heavily armoured knight is looking this way, eyes on his bitter rival, Dorc da Orc.
Zam feeling uncomfortable, clears his throat, and looks to where the rest of the group are talking about things. Hoping they don't take too much longer with their discussion.
The ex mercenary, who can see through the open windows, smoke in the distance from the remnants of the burnt out buildings on the western outskirts of town.
Sees that the rest of the group are here, with the exception of Helbe the elven thief.
Zam isn't at all surprised at that. As he's learnt since joining the group in the autumn.
That the nobleborn elf from the island principality of Laerel, who is a member of the royal family that rules that elven nation.
Tends to go off on his own, doing something or another on behest for lord Farque.
Zam the ex mercenary is just wondering where the elven masterthief is.
When the elven magic user suddenly appears in the middle of the room.
"You're not going to believe this" says Helbe the elven thief, who then says something in the elven language. Or what Zam assumes is elven, but it isn't.
For lord Farque responds in the same language, and the elven master assassin tells him something.
The undead warlord nods his full helmed head, then looks across the room in this direction.
"Bring them!" calls out lord Farque, who then adds something in the ork language as Dorc da Orc suddenly gets up and heads this way.
Zam picks up the enemy officer he brought in. And quickly steps out of the way, as the ork warleader picks up the other two unconscious enemy officers.
The ex mercenary, followed by the ork general, make their way across the large room to see what's happening.
When they do find out, Zam's eyebrows shoot up in surprise, and wonders what they'll do next.
He along with the rest of the group, listen to what lord Farque has to say, before they depart the town of Holmsted by way of a gateway cast by Beldane the cleric.
On what's a cold winter's morning here in this part of the city-state of Kuradum . . . . . .