The Thick Of It 22.

Winter.

"Don't let them take me!" shouts the prisoner as he's hauled off down the hallway between a couple of local soldiers .
"Don't let them do what they did to Domore!" continues the prisoner, who is an officer in councilman Hirrye's army.
"You served with him Morris" adds the prisoner as he looks back down the hallway.
He then shouts out "By the gods what that green one did to him!".
One of the local soldiers dragging him away, slaps him across the back of the head.
The fight goes out of him then, and he slumps between the two soldiers taking him away.
The prisoner can be heard sobbing as they go around a corner, on the way to the nearby cells.
The adjunctant Morris, and commander Tracklen share a look. Then the two of them look over at the group who have just recently arrived here at the main council building. In the capital of the city-state of Kuradum.
Their leader, the lord Farque just shrugs his broad, heavily armoured shoulders in response to their look.
Then the commander of the local army, and his adjunctant share a look again.
As they both know how the mercenary army hired by the ruling council of Kuradum treat some of the prisoners they capture.
And they don't particularly want to know about whatever happened earlier today, wherever the group were.
After clearing his throat, Tracklen the Kuradian army commander says "I gather things were a success?".
"They were" replies lord Farque, who then says to the local army commander "Gather your staff".
"The council?" asks Tracklen, a man in his early thirties, the most senior of the army officers still loyal to the ruling council of Kuradum.
"No" says the undead warlord, who continues with "Your staff only".
The senior most army officer in the Kuradian council's army pauses for a moment, then nods his head, and says "Yes my lord".
In response to the large, heavily armoured deathlord telling him "Meet over in your rooms in the barracks" followed by "We'll be there soon".
The army commander and his adjunctant nod, then turn and head the otherway down the hallway.
Though not before looking one more time at the large green creature, that is undoubtedly an ork.
It's standing there with a wide grin upon it's broad, green brutish looking face.
Blood splattered across both it's face and body. A lot of it dried looking blood.
But plenty of it fresh. As blood drips from it onto the hallway floor, here near the rear of the main council building.
Commander Tracklen and his adjunctant Morris don't say a word. Apart from when the army commander gives an order to one of the pair of pages following him and his adjunctant.
The local army officers remain silent as they round the corner, watching the young page hurry away infront of them.
They don't speak again until they make their way out through a side door of the main council building, here in the heart of the city of Kuradum.
"What do you think that was all about?" quietly asks the adjunctant Morris.
"Not having any councillors?" says the army commander Tracklen.
"No" says the junior of the two officers, who follows that up with "What Harmit was going on about with Domore".
"Fairly obvious I'd say" is the quiet reply of the army commander, as the two of them, along with the following page, make their way through the gardens that lie to one side of the main council building.
On what's a cold, but clear winter's day here in the capital of the city-state.
"We've both seen what they do to the prisoners they take" says commander Tracklen who then adds in a slightly dry tone of voice "What prisoners they do take".
The junior officer nods his head in agreement to that. As the mercenary army from the lands Farque hardly takes prisoners at all.
As their lord is of the opinion wiping out the enemy is the best course of action during wartime.
"Seems to be working" says the commander of the ruling council's army in the war against the rebel councilman, Hirrye.
"We're getting reports of surrenders and others leaving the war" continues commander Tracklen, who follows that with "Kind of smart they let go a small number of prisoners who have witnessed what they do to the others they take".
The adjunctant nods his head in agreement to that as they enter one of the courtyards to the side of the army barracks.
They along with the following page, don't bother to go around to the parade grounds to get to the headquarters.
They just go through one of the barracks, entering through one of the side doors, and going out another on the otherside of the barracks.
The barracks, like most of them here in the center of the city, is fairly empty.
As most of the council's army are spread out across a lot of the city-state as they fight against councilman Hirrye's forces.
At most there's only five hundred soldiers in the capital of late. And though commander Tracklen was first against having so few of the loyalist army here in the capital.
He went along with lord Farque's plan to have so few here in the city of Kuradum.
A plan the foreign lord has yet to fully explain to the local army commander.
Though the senior most officer in the army loyal to the ruling council suspects the lord and ruler of the lands Farque has some elaborate plan with having so few of the loyalist army here in the capital.
They enter the headquarters, and the army commander and his adjunctant, along with the page, head to Tracklen's offices.
There they find a couple of the commander's staff already waiting for them.
Others start to arrive soon, well those still in the capital city on this cold but clear winter's day.
A short while later and the group of foreign mercenaries arrive. Some of them remain in the outer room. While the rest come into the main room,
Commander Tracklen and his adjunctant Morris share a look as they see the state of the large, green creature that's an ork.
It's no longer blood and gore splattered. It's now soaking wet, dripping water where it goes.
It has an absolutely murderous look upon it's broad, green, brutish looking face.
A look of disgust, mixed with anger. That's directed at the leader of the mercenaries, lord Farque.
Still, the ork, that stands seven and half foot tall, and must weigh well in excess of seven hundred pounds.
Goes and sits in a corner of the main office, when the lord and ruler of the lands Farque points there, and says something in the low, growling language that must be the ork tongue.
"What happened to the ork fellow" quietly says commander Tracklen to the elven envoy named Helbe, who along with lord Farque does most of the talking for the mercenary army from the lands Farque.
"He fell into one of those ornamental ponds in the gardens next to the main council building" is the reply from Helbe the elven thief.
"Fell?" asks the adjunctant Morris, who finds it hard to believe the ork would fall into anything it didn't want to.
"He had a helping hand" dryly says the highly talented elven magic user with a glance over at lord Farque, who is quietly discussing something with Dalinvardèl Tanith the elven spy at the open doorway between the main office, and the outer one.
After the large, heavily armoured deathlord speaks with the spy Tanith, who makes his way into the outer office.
The lord and ruler of the lands Farque joins those around the table in the main office of the Kuradian army commander.
With commander Tracklen is his adjunctant Morris, as well as a trio of other officers in the loyalist army.
And with the undead warlord, and Helbe the elven thief, are other members of lord Farque's personal council. Mira Reinholt the mage, and Jarjin Littlefoot the hobbit. As well as the field commander Tamric Drubine.
While Dorc da Orc sits in a corner of the main office, feeling both angry and miserable for himself.
After the deathlord of Farque shoved him into one of the ornamental ponds in the grounds of the Kuradian city council.
After glancing at Helbe the elven thief, who tells him "All clear". Lord Farque points to one of the maps on the table.
"We wiped out one of their companies there at dawn" says the undead warlord pointing at a spot in the northeast corner of the city-state.
"Interesting thing is that the entire company was made up of local soldiers, defectors from your army" adds the large, heavily armoured deathlord, who continues with "Not a single mercenary with them".
Commander Tracklen frowns when he hears that. For the enemy tends to have mixed companies. Both local soldiers and mercenaries.
True on the frontlines, local companies amongst councilman Hirrye's forces may fight by themselves.
But you can guarantee the next company along will be a mercenary company that's been hired by the so called duke of Kuradum.
"Seems Hirrye doesn't entirely trust those he's hired" says the lord of the death realm.
The undead being who is also known by the name of Draugadrottin to the people of his lands, then adds "Especially the foreign mercenary companies he's hired".
The lord and ruler of the lands Farque points at two other spots on the map that shows all of the city-state of Kuradum, and he says "One more is here in the east, and another in the south".
Lord Farque, who has the elven name of Des'tier, which translates to, The Destroyer continues on with "And there's at least three other of these companies across the nation, where exactly, we're not sure" followed by "We hope to find out soon".
Commander Tracklen nods, then asks "What's their purpose?" the senior Kuradian army officer loyal to the ruling council continues with "He's up to something with those companies that are locals only".
The large, heavily armoured deathlord looks over at Tamric Drubine and nods his full helmed head.
The young field commander Tamric Drubine steps closer to the table, and says "Quite simple really".
Then he goes on to explain what these specific companies in councilman Hirrye's army are up to.
The Kuradian army commander, his adjunctant, and three other loyalist officers listen in silence.
Then after field commander Drubine stops speaking and steps back, commander Tracklen mutters "Son of a bitch".
"Indeed" dryly says the lord and ruler of the lands Farque, who continues with "That's why even with our attacks upon their supply lines and wagons, they're still able to resupply a lot of their army this winter".
The Kuradian army commander grunts in dissatisfaction, while next to him, his adjunctant shakes his head in disgust.
Then they both look at the maps on the tables as lord Farque says "That's why he was in the freelands, the unruled lands to the north".
The undead warlord continues with "He's got those up in Simsar doing his bidding" followed by "I suspect he's doing the same with the unruled lands to the east, and those directly to the south as well".
"Makes sense" mutters the army commander Tracklen, who then adds "No wonder we've had trouble getting supplies, as well as hiring mercenaries from the surrounding freelands" followed by "We've had to go further afield to get them".
Draugadrottin nods his full helmed head in agreement to that, then he says "What are we going to do?.
Followed by "We're going to change things, that's what we're going to do".
In response to the Kuradian army commander asking him "What are we going to do about it?".
The lord and ruler of the lands Farque then looks at the elven envoy, and says to him  "Tell them".
Helbe the elven thief nods his white hooded head, then he tells commander Tracklen, the adjunctant Morris, and the trio of local officers who are part of Tracklen's staff.
What they're going to do about these latest developments that they've learned about councilman Hirrye's plans in his attempt to overthrow the ruling council of Kuradum, and become the sole ruler of the city-state . . . . . .