[piosenniel]

Nerindel's post

"What!" exclaimed Ghurdan, " we will crush them!" his eyes burned with silent rage, he and his men had fought the infidels of the north and survived time and time again, he thought this foray to be no different.

"Oh really," Dristi replied Slyly, " care to wager…?" Ghurdans lips twisted into a wry grin and his dark eyes twinkled letting Dristi know that he would take her wager and that he understood that she had indeed heard the wager that his young first mate had made with him at the start of their journey. But before he could answer Sevora intervened.

"Dristi.." smiled Sevora, "what makes you think I want to fight them?"

They both turned and looked to Sevora, Ghurdan did not understand, they had just been told that the Elders would not be converted and he had orders to Annihilate those who would not follow the path of the Dark Lord.

"We are here to Teach them the true path and we cannot do that if they are dead" her voice honeyed as she spoke. "But they will not turn! these girls have already said as much!" Ghurdan exclaimed indicating both Jasara and Khasia, "Yes, but they have not yet heard what we have to offer!" Dristi put in, nodding her head in understanding of what Sevora meant to do. Ghurdan turned and looked at the pair, his brow knitted in frustration, "Do not worry my friend, there may yet be the battle you crave, If what they say is true then not all will convert and if none convert We Will Crush Them!" But Sevora seemed to look as if she was sure that they would convert.

Ghurdan then saw Sevora's blindness, in her arrogance she really believed she had the power to convert these heathens, but he believed that they would not yield and if she was not going to be prepared then he would be. "We should at least scout out their camp, I will lead the scouting party myself !" Sevora scowled at him, but then something flickered in her ebony eyes and she granted the sea captains request.

"One of them should come with me, if my assumptions are right then they will know were the tribe might move their camp." Sevora's patience was growing thin, "Very well take the younger girl and the boy named Uri, Naramath will point him out for you." she hissed at him. Ghurdan bowed, ever his eye on the priestesses and bade for Khasia to follow him, she seemed reluctant to leave and glowered at her sister as if this was some how her doing.

Ghurdan did not ask the priest which of the children was Uri instead the told Khasia to call him. Ghurdan had seen enough in the meeting to know that his dark lord was both cunning and wise, he knew that if anything were to happen to Sevora or Dristi these sisters would be trained to take their place in the Citadel, they were already much alike the two priestesses and as the boy approached he wondered if this one was Naramath's replacement, 'And who is to be my replacement' he thought, laughing out loud and scanning the group of converts that sat together, never once thinking that any within his own group would be worthy of taking his place.

He then went to the Cart and started to unhitch the two sand coloured horses, "Can you ride" he asked Khasia and Uri as he heard them approach, "Of course" the boy scoffed, Ghurdan turned slowly to regard him, his young eyes flashed with malice and he stood tall with his chest puffed out in defiance. Ghurdan grinned at his defiance then turned to Khasia, "And you are...." "I am capable!" she put in before he could finish. "Here! you will have to ride together until we acquire more," he said passing the reigns to Khasia, he then mounted the second horse and looked eastward.

"They are horse riders then, your kinsmen" he asked Uri as they trotted eastward through the camp, "Yes, there is a village and a few farmsteads not far east from here that they trade with." Uri answered seeing were his line of questioning was leading, "the farmsteads are mostly goat farms and of little use to us, unless you plan to ride goats into battle" Khasia scoffed at Uri. "But there is a horse breeder that lives a little south of the village," he spat back at Khasia, "my Father took me there several times, he has at least twenty horses if my memory serves me well. He will not welcome us!" Uri continued turning back to Ghurdan. "Yes! it is likely that the elders have warned the farmsteads of your coming and of our rebellion." Khasia added. Ghurdan watch the pair , before him he saw children but hearing them speak he heard small warriors planning and contriving. He put up his hand to silence them, "First we will scout out the camp and on the return we will see if we can acquire some horses, ok!" He was a little relieved when they both nodded, and offered no more defiance.

They were just leaving the camp when a large and muscular man stood in Ghurdans path, "So where are you off to now Sandworm?" Thorgom hissed, "I am off to do something that you and the others should have done long ere I returned." he spat maliciously at the man that blocked his path, some of his pent up anger starting to escape. "But it was you that had two of our company tied up" he spat back venomously, "but that would not stop you from taking their place or did you fear running into one of your kinsmen" Thorgom reached for his axe, but Ghurdan just laughed and rode on with the two youngsters looking at him incredulously.

They rode in silence for some time. Uri was the first to break the silence "He could have killed you !" he whispered "Yes and I believe he would have if he believed that we did not need every man" "and woman," he put in seeing Khasia's cold look, "to crush the tribes warriors, he like you does not believe they will submit to the teachings of the eye."

"He is one of them, and I for one could never trust him" Khasia spat "I too have my doubt regarding him, but it is not my place to question who the eye deems fit to travel in our company, but you are wise not to trust people you have just met!" "even you!" Khasia hissed. "Yes, even me!" he laughed.

They carefully avoided the village and farmsteads as they swiftly made there way to where the two tribes had camped. As Ghurdan had expected the camp described by Jasara was deserted and from what he could see it had been for sometime, Ghurdan found many horse tracks heading back the way they had just come, "So where would they go!" he said aloud to the night air, not really expecting an answer. "The valley!" Khasia and Uri exclaimed together. "it is not far back the way we came" Khasia put in, "Yes I remember seeing it, but I saw no scouts " he said thoughtfully. They mounted their horses and headed towards the valley.

Hiding their horses some distance off, they climbed the rocky ridge to get a better look. They had narrowly avoided a few of the tribes scouts, but from the ridge Ghurdan could see the tents below on the eastern side of the stream, the numbers tallied with what Jasara and Khasia had all ready told them, they watch scouts coming and going and Uri even named a few he thought he could make out.

As they returned silently to their horses he took in the surrounding area for possible attack and defensive positions, of the latter their was not much, the Tribesmen were clever in moving to this location, he thought to himself.

They rode swiftly to the farm that Uri had told him they could acquire horses, he halted them a short distance from the farm, it was late and all the lights in the farmstead where out, "we must do this quietly" he told the other two "do you know were the horses are kept?" he whispered to Uri, the lad nodded "they are not stabled but penned to the rear of the building" "Good, then all we have to do is open the gate and lead them quietly out, do you think you can do that?" the pair nodded and like two small shadows they slopped off into the darkness. Ghurdan went to the door of the homestead in case the owners decided to awaken and interrupt them, he stood with his sword drawn and watched as Khasia and Uri successfully freed and lead the horses from the farm, without sheathing his sword he went to join them.

"Ten" Khasia said triumphantly, but Uri did not hear her he was staring raptly at the red stone that was the pommel of Ghurdans sword "Foaud" he whispered, Khasia turned and followed his gaze to the red stone shaped like an fiery eye that sat atop the hilt of Ghurdan's sword, she shrugged not knowing what Uri was getting at and turned to choose one of the horses for herself. Ghurdan too followed Uri's gaze to the hilt of his sword, "A gift from the great eye for services rendered" he grinned as he slipped the sword into it's sheath.

"Come, I wish to be back before daybreak!" It was just after daybreak when they returned, for the journey back was slowed with ten horses in tow and their efforts to avoid being seen. The company was awake and the camp was being broken and packed up. Ghurdan dismounted and headed for Sevora's tent, he heard the other two follow behind him. Sevora and Dristi were waiting for him when he entered the tent, "What kept you, my friend" Sevora asked sardonically, Ghurdan grinned and told them all that they had learnt, not omitting that together Khasia and Uri had acquired horses for them, "Ten no less" Ghurdan laughed.

He noted that Dristi eyed Khasia with a satisfied glint in her near black eyes, Ghurdan laughed internally 'if only she knew' he thought to himself. "Good" was Sevora's only reply, Ghurdan could she that she was working a plan. "go and eat" she ordered Khasia and Uri, who both started to protest, "you will be sent for when needed," Dristi assured them, though to Ghurdan it seemed that she spoke only to Khasia.

"We will camp just inside the valley then I will take an envoy to the tribe and spread the word of our great and illustrious lord" Sevora said as soon as the youngsters had left, "And who shall be part of this convoy?" Ghurdan asked.

[ August 07, 2003: Message edited by: piosenniel ]