Chapter 14: The Elven Camp

Skorge and Ritul walked along a long, seemingly endless river while the army`s vast camp stretched behind them. The still water lay like a huge, molten mirror in the ground, reflecting the clear midday sky as well as the waving trees behind the pair, disturbed by a slow wind. These ones were lush and lively but a few hundred meters back towards the horde they were dead and still, completely black and leafless. The corruption had spread a good way out from the camp and it served as a good indication that they had been here for some time now. Skorge had finally decided to change this. With a few sharp barks of command to pack up and get in a reasonable enough formation they would head onward to the great lowlands if the country they had found.

Skorge walked in among the bustle of the camp and happened to spot a genlock throw away a piece of flesh from the corpse of one of its brothers. How this second one had been killed he had no idea but the shorter creatures seemed to die like flies in the camp. Luckily there were enough of them to make up any essential task. The flesh landed with a thud and a gush of dust as it fell close to one of the tents. It did not remain there for long because out of the shadow of the small tent a creature darted out and swiped it up. Once Skorge got a good view of the beast he saw that it was one of the new surface creatures that had taken to accompany the army. It looked similar to the animals the humans had used in the battle but more sleek and with grey fur which almost dripped with the stripes of corruption that infected it. Several of these pack animals had snuck out of the wilds to roam the camp, terrorizing the genlocks and snatching whatever bit of food they could find. They acted like tame pets around the hurlocks however and avoided the ogres and shrieks altogether. Maccabeus had declared his wish to try and use them in battle had had begun to train them with Skorge`s consent. They were savage fighters and totally obedient to any hurlock that issued them a command so it was not long before Skorge found use for these animals among the horde`s scouting and raiding parties.

Skorge entered his command tent and here he found Grattius. The hurlock officer had collected a summary of the last few days scouting reports and had been ordered here to speak of them with the supreme commander.

"What have you found?"

"There are several human settlements ahead of us. Most of them are smaller than the one we found at the edge of the forest but there are a few even bigger in the central lands." The older hurlock spoke with excitement. "We have also spotted several contingents of human warriors traveling on the road. They seem to be mobilizing their forces."

Skorge eyes got a bit wider in surprise. "Have they found our camp?"

"We cannot be sure but it is of course a possibility. However…" Grattius trailed of a little, not sure how to really make what he had to say next make sense. "One of our smaller genlock-led groups claims to have seen one of their settlement`s soldiers meet with a second group which came from one of the main roads and…they were said to have attacked each other after heated words were exchanged."

When Skorge raised his eyebrow, or what would have been an eyebrow, Grattius shrugged. "I had the genlock in question sent to the Torture master." He said. The Torture master was a shriek alpha who was extremely proficient at his profession. Shrieks were naturally talented at finding an opponent's bodily weak points. It was a necessary skill to have when living in the Deep Roads where they might run into enraged and hostile hurlocks, ogres or brontos among other, who were all physically larger and stronger than the shriek itself. Unlike his brethren who used this talent to find these weak spots to quickly kill a dangerous opponent, the Torture master used it to find the ones that caused the most pain, and made sure to suck every little drop of agony from each one in his victims before moving on to the next. The loud howl that timely accompanied Grattius`s words said that he had just started.

"Why would they attack their own while invaded?" he asked with no comprehension at all.

"The surface is a strange place brother." Grattius nodded.

"Well it serves our purposes that much better. Let them fight and bleed each other dry, once they are done we will feed upon the corpses." Skorge smirked and both Grattius and Ritul cackled lowly. Grattius got his chuckled under control soon and continued.

"However, there are a few humans who have spotted us and are moving to defend themselves. These…strongholds…." He scoffed, as the few barricades they had erected around their little nests were hardly worthy of the term. "…Are few and far between. They pose no threat and I find it more likely that they have only seen our scouting parties and do not know our true number."

"Then we shall have some entertainment for a while." Skorge grinned." They are scattered and weak like the deep stalker, lets attack before they unite and become like the ogre."

/

Tartarus had been lead through puddles of brown water and over rotten logs by Aelith for two hours now. The forest had finally woken up and come to life with singing birds and playing squirrels. The sun escaped randomly past the thick branches of the even thicker trees and cast their lights to dot the ground around them, some of the rays reflecting off a clear stream to flash in his face and he turned away with a grunt. Aelith threw a palm sized rock into it and listened to the splash it made. He had wished that the annoying forest sounds were all his unused ears would have had to suffer, but not, they were further pestered by one frustratingly chatty elf.

"So this boy Lian`ta got his leather leggings in a twist because I supposedly killed his boar during our first hunt as children and he went and broke my bow." She said with a look and tone that added, "Can you believe that?"

"So that was totally uncalled for and of course I had to take revenge. I remembered how he said my bow skills were inferior to his so I though hey, why not try something else? So I took this piece of cloth right here and when he was out to hunt for some rabbit like the unskilled hunter he is…I stung him good." She said and laughed at herself. "And that's how I became the Stinger, the short version anyway. Thanks for asking, I always like to tell that one."

"I didn't ask." He grumbled. "I asked how much further?"

"Oh…to me it sounded like you asked about the story of my appropriate title." She shrugged. "We will be there soon handsome."

"Stop calling me that. I do not even know what that means. My name is Tartarus." He growled.

"Hey now, you will find that alot of women find scars attractive. And you have the most notable I have ever seen. And I have seen a man get clawed by a bear and live to show it." She chuckled. They walked across a stream that was barely more than a trickle really and then returned onto the interrupted path.

"Surfacers." Tartarus groaned.

"Elf." Aelith corrected, earning herself another growl. Tartarus would have returned to silent grumblings but then the trees opened up to reveal a wide clearing which was filled with big white tents, caravan wagons and piles of supplies. The boxes and crates and barrels lay neatly tucked in against each tent`s thin fabric wall. There were small status of various forest creatures all around; the most prominent and noticeable was a wolf sitting erect, as if on guard with eyes carved so realistically that he for a moment actually got the feeling it sent him a suspicious glare. There were fires in place dotted around where ever there were space and on the far side he thought he saw a herd of white, horse like creatures with horns. He had only seen similar creatures when he saw the humans ride their big, smelly horses but these were sleek and the very image of grace. Almost beautiful, he thought. And there were elves everywhere.

Adults in leathers like Aelith with bows and daggers at their backs, elders who tended to shops and storage and storytelling, children running around tents in play hunting where it seemed one of them played the "Hunter" while the rest were called the "prey" and the hunter must catch all to win. That was as much as he got time to notice before every last one of them snapped their eyes to him and froze in whatever they were doing; even those white, horned animals watched him warily. In a flash the male and females with weapons had these out and pointed at him in a series of swishes and sliding of metal and creaking of bow strings. The closest man with a bow looked as if to let the arrow fly but then Aelith stepped out from behind Tartarus where she had been standing a raised her palms.

"Wait, please wait and listen. I need to bring this darkspawn to the Keeper." She shouted. For another second no one moved but then an woman who looked a bit older than Aelith came up.

"Aelith, have you gone mad?" she accused. "What, by the creators, drove you to bring a darkspawn to our camp?"

"I have him restrained Dilwyn. Keep the children away and bring Vilia here." She said as the two women locked gazes.

Tartarus had no idea as to what was going on here but he recognized a challenged when he saw one. It was obvious by this Dilwyn`s angry, searching eyes and Aelith`s raised chin and slightly puffed chest that there was old disagreement between the two. After a while Dilwyn finally scoffed and rolled her eyes.

"Fine, but if this thing does any harm it will be your hide Stinger." She snarled and walked off to get the Keeper. The older and the children left them to return to their previous activities but it was clear that they did so with far less happy spirits now and worked slow due to constant looks his way. The warriors remained but at a distance. Aelith sighed.

"Sorry about Dilwyn. She is Keeper Vilia`s niece and sees herself as security responsible around here. She tends to bare her fangs and hiss at anything new." She shrugged. "Don't worry, any false step and she reserve yet another prick from the Stinger." She smirked and leaned against the wide trunk of a tree. Tartarus was silent for a while and then spoke.

"I am confused. She challenged you and backed down from your…superior strength." His tone made it clear he used the term lightly." And yet you allow her to walk away unpunished?"

"Well it would hardly be practical if I went around beating on anyone who don't agree with me would it?" she asked but Tartarus return look made it clear he thought it was perfectly so. She sighed.

"She has earned herself enough butt-whoppings from me to last another few years back when we were kids. If she hasn't learned by then well…then I guess I had better remind her." She giggled and tossed with her sling. Any further conversation was interrupted when Dilwyn returned alongside an elderly woman wearing leathers like the warriors but also a coat of bear skin around her shoulders hung down her back. She had deep, piercing eyes that burned with wisdom and power not visible in her withered frame. Yet she moved with grace and determination and when she spotted him her eyes flared with suspicion and anger well hidden behind a stony mask of neutrality. She walked up to the two of them and stared into Tartarus`s big eyes without a flinch and then she mumbled.

"Aelith, leave us please."

The young elf hesitated a moment but then nodded. "Yes Keeper." And then she left them and disappeared into one of the far away tents. Vilia looked at Tartarus with utter disdain and for the first time in the darkspawn officer`s life of blood and battle, he felt a shill run up his spine. Yet this did not manifest in any way in his appearance and he met her searching look firmly

"You are different from your fellows are you not?" she asked. "I sense it in you."

"In many ways elf." He snarled

"Then there is some hope at least for us to stop this plague."

"Not if I have a say in it."

"You don`t."

She then unleashed an immobilizing torrent of lightning straight at him and Tartarus roared in pain and torment. All the elves turned and watched in frozen shock as he fell.