Mercenary Tales 34.

In The North Of The City-State Of Vexil. 

Onboard one of the two Vexilian frigates that has broken off from the rest of the small fleet, and made it's way north from their attack at dawn. 

It turns to starboard, when one of the lookouts spots something further to the northeast on the freezing cold winter's morning. 

One of the ship's two mages makes his way from the aft wheelhouse, to the bow where the lookout is situated. 

When the airman points to what he's spotted again, the mage partly closes his eyelids as he looks to the same spot. 

After a moment, the Vexilian mage in his nation's aircorp nods his head, and by mindspeech sends a message back to the captain of the warship. 

A moment later, and the frigate turns further to the east, as they continue northwards at a steady twelve knots. 

The order comes to prepare for battle again, though calling this morning's action, a battle. Would be a bold face lie, as they and the rest of the fleet have faced no resistance. And totally destroyed the army they've encountered, who have made their way across the border from the kingdom of Girdane. 

It's not too long before the Vexilian aircorp warship is slightly tilted down to starboard, as those on deck can hear the orders being given by officers below deck. 

Now more of those on deck have spotted what the lookout caught a glimpse of a little bit earlier. As the crew start catching sight of movement down in the forested hills in the direction they're heading. 

Communicating with his fellow mage, who is below deck with the crew. The Vexilian spellcasters near the bow starts relaying him information. 

Then after a look back to the wheelhouse, through the front windows to the captain, who nods his head. 

The mage in the bow relays the order to his fellow practitioner of magic who is below deck. A moment later the first of the starboard side magetubes fires. 

And a twelve foot wide ball of pure energy, red in this instance. Streaks off through the early morning sunshine on this cold winter's day. 

Heading towards the side of a hill in the distance to the northeast. As the frigate's crew has spotted more of the army that's crossed the border from the kingdom of Girdane, that they and the rest of their flight group, and their accompanying ground forces have been tasked to destroy. 

"Look they're coming right at us" says Helbe the elven thief with a nod of his hooded head to the south of them. 

With a side long glance at the young elven noble from the island principality of Laerel that she's attached to. 

Narladene the ground pixie just shakes her head and wryly smiles as they see the Vexilian frigate that's now heading this way, shoot off one it's magetubes in this direction. 

The thud of the powerful magical weapon can be heard for miles in all directions, on what's a clear and sunny, though freezing cold early winter's morning, here in this part of the hill country found in the north of the city-state of Vexil. 

The blurred and shielded elven magic user who after shifting to another tall tree away to the right, then quietly says to the naturally magical creature upon his right shoulder "Now directly at us". 

Then without any irony at all, the highly talented elven practitioner of magic adds "I'll have to protect myself now". 

"Sure" dryly says Narladene the ground pixie, who shakes her head again when she spots a fleeting grin appear on the face of the elven master assassin who she's 'attached' to. 

The tiny winged creature who can sense what the young elven noble who is the grandson of the ruling prince of Laerel is about to do. 

Takes off before he casts his spell. And she wings away and decides not to go with him when he shifts. 

As the elven masterthief shifts towards the incoming Vexilian warship. Narladene watches the magetube shot approaching. 

The naturally magical creature just stays in midair, about eighty feet above ground, and looks back down to the forested hilltop they were just on. 

Narladene sightly winces, and not because the magetube shot of pure magical energy hits her, which it does with no effect at all. 

But because she sees the last of the stragglers with the column of mercenary soldiers in the army of the Geist Trading Company, that she and Helbe the elven thief were secretly watching. 

Are about to get hit by the magetube shot as they hurry up the hillside they're on, as they and their fellow mercenaries rush to the nearby border with the kingdom of Girdane. 

The ground pixie watches the twelve foot wide red ball of pure energy get closer and closer to the hilltop, and she shakes her head as it hits the canopy of the forest. 

Burning away the top of the trees it hits, spreading fire in all directions, before it slams into the ground. 

The ensuing explosion sends dirt, rocks, and bits of flaming trees, mushrooming up into the clear early morning sky. 

A few of the retreating mercenaries were hit directly by the magetube shot, they're the lucky ones, as they're killed instantly, their lives snuffed out without them even knowing. 

It's about ten others who are close by, the last of the column. Who die more excruciating deaths. As they're ripped apart, and shredded by the debris of the explosion as they fled towards the top of the hill they were heading up. 

Narladene just shakes her head again, then turns around when she hears another magetube shot, followed by another, and quickly by another. From the approaching Vexilian frigate, that now Helbe the elven thief is onboard. 

Who the tiny winged creature originally from the Sunreach Mountains, suspects is snooping about, before he does something rather dramatic. 

Onboard the twin masted warship, prince Helbenthril Raendril who found it easy enough to get through the barrier and protection spells around the airship. Reads the mind of the frigate's captain, and the mage who previously was out on the bow. 

The highly talented elven magic user who is blurred and shielded, and has no concerns of being detected, let alone getting caught. 

Lifts an eyebrow when he discovers that a member of the mage council of Vexil sent the small flight group from the Vexilian aircorp, along with a ground army of close to five thousand soldiers. 

Hmmm the mage Fendal, Helbe the elven thief thinks to himself, as he wonders what that particular member of the mage council of Vexil is up to. 

Apparently he knows that an army was intending to cross the border into northern Vexil. But it's make up he's not too sure about. 

The elven master archer who wishes that particular mage was actually here, so that he could go through his mind to find out what's actually happening. 

Observes the captain and the crew with him in the wheelhouse, including one of the ship's mages for a little bit longer. 

Reading all of their minds, and finding out that they're here doing their jobs, which is to protect the city-state of Vexil. 

Which has come under attack from a mercenary army that's been gathered by the Geist Trading Company. Which just so happens to be a Vexilian based, family owned company. 

By the forest gods, what a mess, the elven princeling from Laerel thinks to himself as he exits the warship's wheelhouse. 

Then as a couple more magetube fire, sending a loud dull this reverberate through the airship, and across the nearby hills. 

The highly talented elven practitioner of magic thinks of something he can do to help out those in the column he was watching earlier, to avoid getting wiped out. 

For he's more than certain now that the Geist cousins, Gamil and Farsen, and the mercenary army they've gathered, have been set up. 

And though he doesn't particularly want to destroy the Vexilian aircorp vessel. For the simple reason they're doing the job they're ment to be doing. He comes to a compromise. 

The blurred and shielded elven magic user is quickly off the deck, and he's walking down the hull. 

The elven magic user who can easily cast multiple spells at once, is soon upside down, and at the magical keel that runs along the underside of the Vexilian aircorp frigate. 

Prince Helbenthril Raendril could easily destroy the warship by shattering the magical keel. But instead he just gives it a small three foot long crack along the length of it. At the stern of the frigate, right in front of the rudder. Which he does snap to one side. 

Sending the vessel lurching violently to port, where it starts circling away from the direction it was going. 

The elven master assassin drops the spell keeping him stuck to the underside of the Vexilian frigate. And he drops down, as the out of control airship wobbles away to the west and south. 

The young elven noble from the island principality of Laerel shifts away, with the sounds of shouting and yelling from the crew on the damaged airship behind him. 

"Have fun?" asks Narladene the ground pixie a short time later when she lands upon the right shoulder of the elven magic user she's 'attached' to. 

"Me?" says Helbe the elven thief innocently, followed in the same tone of voice with "Have fun?". 

The naturally magical creature just snorts at that from the elven masterthief. As they see in the distance to the southwest. 

The out of control frigate, which is slowly losing altitude. With the second Vexilian frigate heading it's way, to offer any help that it can give. 

The tiny winged creature who knows that the highly talented elven practitioner of magic could easily of destroyed that airship. 

Only crippled it, probably causing it to crash land somewhere to the south, asks the elven master assassin "Find out anything useful onboard that ship?". 

Nodding his hooded head as he stands upon a thick branch, high up in a tall tree as they look to the southwest on this bitterly cold winter's morning, prince Helbenthril Raendril tells the ground pixie upon his right shoulder "As a matter of fact I did". 

When the the young elven noble from the island principality of Laerel doesn't elaborate straight away, Narladene says to him "Well?". 

"A member of the mage council sent those airships and army north to deal with any incursion into Vexilian lands" says Helbe the elven thief, who after a moments pause, adds "A mage by the name of Fendal" . . . . . .