A Tale From The Deep Woods, Chapter II

Chapter II:

Tur'geis ravenously tore into the leg of boar he held in his hands, savoring his first meal of the day. Die'tra sat at his side, feeding the red haired dokkalvar baby girl in her arms. A white-haired dokkalvar boy sat across from Tur'geis, likewise eating his portion of roast boar. Both dokkalvar children shared the light blue eyes of the Am'saag, and their facial features showed the likeness to their parents present with them at breakfast.

Die'tra smiled as she recognized the similarity between Tur'geis and his son Krui'adh as they both ate in the same manner. They were so alike to each other! She held Rox'elana close as she fed the toddler from a bowl of porridge with mashed fruit. Die'tra felt a bit sad that they had to leave her yet again, at least for the next few hours. Goddesses willing, they'd all be safe by the end of the day. Die'tra was no coward and never shied away from a fight, but she was glad she and her family were away from the hell of Chel'el'sussoloth.  Out of the corner of her eye, Die'tra saw Tur'geis turn in their direction and give a slight grin. Rox'elana was just old enough to eat solid food, and witnessing her take one of her first meals of the kind was a proud occasion.

“Dad, are you sure you don't have time for sword practice now?” asked Krui'adh, after finishing up his current helping of food.

“I'd love to Krui'adh, but I've got some colonists to find. How about when I get back?” said Tur'geis, flinging a bone out the window to his and Die'tra's wolves Bodark and Asena. Tur'geis couldn't help but feel irked at his inability to spend some more time with his children; he'd spent nearly all day yesterday tracking down Black Sun raiders and had scarcely time to personally train Krui'adh then.

“Awww, dad...” grumbled the male child. Krui'adh had even wanted to show his dad his latest ability at archery in addition to his skill in swordplay.

“You know...we've still got about an hour before we're to meet with the others, Tur'geis. Why don't you help out Krui'adh while I deal with packing and getting Krui'adh and Rox'elana to the Raider center,” purred Die'tra as she picked Rox'elana up.

“Alright then...enough time for a short session,” spoke Tur'geis with a grin to Die'tra and their son. A man who didn't spend time with his family wasn't much of a man, after all.

Krui'adh gave a whoop of joy and beamed a wide smile. “I'll show you how well I can shoot, and then you can teach me more sword fighting!” he added before dashing to his room to grab his wooden sword and bow.

Die'tra draped her arms around Tur'geis' great shoulders and nuzzled the back of his neck, getting a kiss on her lips for her trouble. “Krui'adh's waiting for you, go show him a few new tricks!”

“Heh, you're the one who's the better shot,” replied Tur'geis teasingly.

“True, but your son would love it even more if you helped train him with sword fighting yourself!” Die'tra purred into her mate's ears.

“You act as if I needed any more convincing,” replied Tur'geis, giving Die'tra a kiss before getting up from the table. He took up a wooden training sword and bow and then made his way out after Krui'adh.

---

The Megha'garjana River was as a thin blue ribbon through the dark forest, the boughs of the trees closing in oppressively close to those close to the river's shores. The sun had not yet risen above the cover of the trees and the long canoe thus made its way down the river in near darkness. Such dark was of little concern to the underground-raised pilots of the boats, however.

Vana'sadra had enough familiarity with the river to know her way through the rough rapids, and she was confident in the abilities of her peers. All five of the additional members of the search party were rough-handed colonists, Nal'sarkoth and otherwise, who had learned woodcraft through pure necessity. They were dressed in hide and rough silk, and carried sword, axe, crossbow and spear. But there was something about the two Am'saag that set them apart from the colonists. The colonists had learned stealth and wilderness survival, but the two barbarians had been born into and formed by those things.

A few hours of travel later, the search party made their landing at a shore about a mile from the reported Black Sun camp. Before departing, the party had been informed that any hostages would have been brought there. By this time of the day, most of the Black Sun braves would be out on patrol or hunting. A stealthy group could be able to sneak in and liberate any prisoners if there were any. Vana'sadra gripped her sword, mindful of the effectiveness of her earth sorcery out here in the wilderness. The two Highland Raiders and the colonists had likewise prepared their weapons, fanning out as they made their way quietly through the rough bush.

Suddenly, one of the colonists gave a startled cry and fell to the ground, a black shaft protruding grotesquely from her chest. Vana'sadra spun in the direction of the offending arrow just as the piercing cry of a multitude of Black Sun warriors reach her ears. She and the others gave their own cry as they charged into the fray, arms raised to strike. Vana'sadra hacked at the painted body of a Black Sun fighter, feeling her sword taste flesh. The air about her was full of the sound of clashing weapons, war cries, and the screams of the dying. A quick visual survey revealed that the raiding party was vastly outnumbered by the Black Sun defenders.

Vana'sadra pulled her sword from the dying Black Sun and turned in time to meet another charging at her, axe already falling in a lethal arc. Like a flash of lighting, a long curved blade swept down and messily severed both head and arm of the assailant. Tur'geis stepped in and roughly motioned for Vana'sadra to follow him. The Nal'sarkoth Explorer didn't need to be told twice. The death rattle of another Black Sun beside her heralded Die'tra's return by their side.

The three broke into a run, screaming Black Sun hot on their heels. Vana'sadra lost track of how far they had ran, but by the time they stopped they had left their pursuers far behind them. She took cover behind a tree, and the only sound that reached her ears was that of her deep panting.

“We've lost them,” muttered Die'tra after what seemed like an eternity. She then shook the blood from her sword and returned it to her scabbard, watching the brush before them intently for any sign of Black Sun scouts.

“Did anyone else make it?” asked Vana'sadra, likewise sheathing her sword and leaning against the tree's trunk as she caught her breath.

“I only counted us three. We can't go back to the canoe, they're going to watch it to catch us should we try to escape. They may not expect us to continue on to their encampment,” grunted Tur'geis.

“If they captured anyone they'll be back at their camp, along with the other prisoners,” explained Die'tra, passing around a water skin.

“Just keep quiet. The last thing we need now is another war party coming down on us while there's only three of us,” uttered Vana'sadra before taking the water skin.

“Then let's get going. They're not going to stop until they find us, and I want some payback,” growled Tur'geis as he led the way back into the depths of the silent forest.