Golden Altus had once been the breadbasket of the Lands Between. The cleanup of Liurnia was going well, but the Academy's seed collection wasn't intended for restarting civilization. We needed a staple crop. If we could find anything left in this land of ash, it would be wheat in the north of the Altus Plateau. The windmill villages hopefully would have some surviving seed.
I went with a small group. My bodyguard, the peerless tracker; my knight-captain, who had fought King Morgott at the walls of the Capital; a few more knights who were keen of eye; and a team of laborers and porters. We did not wish to attract attention. A larger group would have been safer from the rumored marauders, but that would have majorly strained our supplies.
Imagine my frustration when we encountered them straightaway.
They baited us, and I fell for it. A lone woman stood at the top of the hill, where the buildings were not totally incinerated. Strangely, there were live birds about as well. Scavengers. Ravens. It was likely a trap, but surely the birds meant grain. Animal remains would not have lasted so long.
I called for my team to keep aware of ambush. Few left in the Lands Between were well-fed and well-slept in those days. I thought my best could outmatch any mauraders. We approached with all due caution. I could not have anticipated they were assassins.