moira hooman

Chapter
Three

First Encounters

Timeline:

This story begins a few hours after
A Day After.

Well, at least we won’t be dealing with that arse, any time soon!”, Bremorel Songsteel sneered with spite.

Bremorel was a striking young woman with a deceptively slender figure. She had dark, coarse hair running freely down either side of her beautiful face and back, and she gazed upon the world around her through deep green eyes, though her ‘pretty’ was somewhat marred with a seemingly permanent mark of petulance.

“Which arse is that?”, her cousin, Laila Wolvesbane asked amusedly.

Laila was perhaps an inch shorter than her cousin and had a decidedly supple figure that hinted at the wood elf side of her heritage, with long, dark brown hair that she’d pulled up and bunned into a ponytail. She had fair skin, though slightly tanned, and beautiful blue eyes. Unlike her cousin, however, Laila asserted or had perhaps adopted a calm and cool aura.

“That Aager-guy.”, Bremorel hissed.

“Good to know where we stand, Ranger Morel.”, growled a voice and Aager Fogstep appeared from behind the trees at the edge of Ritual Forest..

The man, Aager, was a lean, almost ‘gaunt’ figure and an edge above average. He was in his dark leathers again and he wore a low hood over his head and had a half-mask covering his face just below his black, soulless eyes.

He carried several daggers on his person and a shortsword that he’d chosen to hide under his tattered cloak. In all his tenure in Serenity Home ever since the sheriff had brought him from Drashan, no one had really seen him in anything other than his current outfit and very few had actually seen his face.

The two cousins had asked what the sinister-looking man actually looked like to the sheriff’s son, Udoorin, who had been trained by the very same man in his dark leathers. The burly young man had simply refused to make any comments on the matter and always seemed to have this haunted look on his face whenever Master Aager was mentioned.

Also, no one had ever heard him say a word without his growling voice. One might even say, if not very charitably, that the growl was his actual voice and he wasn’t going out of his way to make himself appear more intimidating, not that he needed it. Hence, when he stepped out from behind the trees, Bremorel’s face went bright red, then turned black when she came to a few, immediate conclusions..

One; he had heard what she’d thought about him.

Two; he was here, meaning he would be coming with them.

And three; she hadn’t heard nor felt his presence.. in the woods.. and she was a ranger, dammit!

“Master Aager.”, Laila said coolly and quite seamlessly. “What brings the sheriff’s right hand all the way out here? I would have assumed you’d be in the town, looking for possible clues there.”

“You should never assume what you do not know, Ranger Laila Wolvesbane”, Aager growled. “It is a bad habit to adopt and harder to lose. I am here on Sheriff Standorin’s orders. Seeing as you are here as well, I can safely say, his plan to put a team together late last night has born fruition.”

Laila stared at the growling man in the dark leathers. She tried for a moment to stare into his soulless eyes and stubbornly refuse to look elsewhere, but failed. She wondered, but for a moment, was this man truly soulless as they said he was and already dead inside? Or perhaps he was merely a corpse that didn’t know it was dead. She averted her eyes, fearing she might be pulled into the depths of his bottomless pit, fumed once, then gathered her cool around herself and breathed..

“Your orders, Master Aager?”

“What?”, exclaimed Bremorel, first gaping at her cousin, then at the man in dark leathers.

“Apparently, Sheriff Standorin was a few steps ahead of us, the mayor, and our respective ranger masters, Bree. And has appointed Master Aager as the leader of this company. Would have been polite of him the have mentioned it in the council meeting, though.”, her cousin said coolly, even though she was quite angry about the way the sheriff had totally ignored protocol and ‘man-handled’ everyone in the group.

“Well, shit!”, Bremorel spat. “I knew it was too good to be true.”

“A bit crude, but essentially accurate, Ranger Morel. Though I find it an odd assessment, calling the burning of your town and the death of your townsmen a good thing, particularly coming from a rank ranger. I suppose congratulations on your promotions are in order, here. Well earned..”, he growled.

Bremorel glared at him as her face flushed.

“Now, if you will..”, Master Aager continued. “..I would appreciate it if you two started following the tracks you found this morning. Ranger Morel, I want you to take point and as far as two hundred yards and I want Ranger Laila to be no more than half that range. Should either of you encounter anything, I want Ranger Morel to stay hidden and Ranger Laila to warn us.”

“Why am I taking lead?”, flared Bremorel.

“Why am I staying behind?”, asked Laila, though less belligerently than her cousin.

Master Aager stared at them both for a silent moment. Then spoke in his gravelly voice.

“I have been following your reports for over four years now. And thus far, both of you have adopted a certain pattern where you, Ranger Morel, prefer close combat and like to make good use of her greatblade and you, Ranger Laila, would rather use your longbow. Thus I have put both of you in a position where each one of you can best utilize your habits. Unless the reports you have been giving are false.. or maybe you would rather change your habits?”, he said.

“Why didn’t the sheriff just tell us you were coming?”, Laila asked, though more out of curiosity now than any belligerence.

The man in dark leathers paused for a moment as if considering whether he should tell or not, or perhaps decide on how much he should tell. He and the ranger girls had a history and not a very good one, though admittedly, it hadn’t been anyone’s fault, really, but merely the culmination of circumstances at the time.

Then he shrugged.

It was possible their journey would take them far, and even to unexpected places. He didn’t really care whether they liked him or not, much like didn’t feel the need to trust them, which wasn’t really saying much since he didn’t trust anyone, but they did have to learn to trust him. At least enough not to question his judgment or orders at the wrong time.

“Should you give it but a mere moment’s sentient thought, I believe you would be able to figure out as to why the sheriff did not bring up my involvement in the council, Ranger Laila.”, Master Aager said steadily.

Both the ranger girls stared at him, but it was Laila who grasped what he meant.

“The sheriff does not trust the council!”, exclaimed Laila.

“You seem surprised, Ranger Laila. Which is surprising all on its own, seeing as how your respective ranger masters do not share all the information they gather with anyone, let alone the council, or even the sheriff himself. Suffice to say, the security of a town that harbors over ten thousand souls is not on the priority list of certain people.”, Aager said in his growling voice.

“Haradin!”, spat Bremorel.

“I believe you have already filled your quota for blurting things you shouldn’t for one day, Ranger Morel. I dearly hope you are better at tracking than you are otherwise.”, Aager said coldly, as he gave her a very frosty stare, nodded curtly at them, and then stalked past them to assess the rest of the company..

I so hate that man!”, flared Bremorel as she ran past her cousin while keeping an eye on the tracks, some one hundred yards away.

“Can’t say I like him either, but he was right, you know. And apparently, very observant. We never mentioned our weapon preferences in any of our reports. Yet he’s managed to deduce the fact that you like bashing things and I prefer pinning them.”, Laila mused. “Perhaps there is a side of him we are missing?”

“I don’t bash things, I cut them!”, her cousin said hotly, then added with a nasty grimace, “And whatever side he’s got, I’d rather he just dropped dead, already!”

“Bree..”, Laila said reprovingly. “That’s not nice. Yes, he is irritating the way he is, and I did not appreciate the way Sheriff Standorin handled things either, but I understand why he did them. Whoever these people were, they had intimate knowledge of how to enter the town, who to hit, where he lived, and get out unseen.”

“I know that. I just dislike that man, that’s all. Ever since Bane-Song operation. And what’s with the growling, anyway? I mean, who talks like that?”, Bremorel fretted.

“Maybe that’s his actual voice.”, her cousin shrugged. “A bit like Missus. You know, the innkeeper’s odd cat?”

“That cat doesn’t growl, she caws like a crow!”, Bremorel objected with a snort.

“That’s what I mean. Maybe it’s something like that with Master Aager, too.”, Laila said, looking down at the tracks they both were following. “One of these guys is really dragging his feet.”

“Yeah. Maybe he’s tired.”, Bremorel said, pinching her face. “Missus dropped on a rake and had her throat punctured. Poor thing. Lucky she survived. You think that Aager-guy dropped on a rake and had his throat poked as well?”

“I don’t want to know. C’mon. Let’s pick up the pace, shall we? Take point, Ranger Bremorel Songsteel!”, she said with a grin.

“Will do, Ranger Laila Wolvesbane!”, her cousin grinned back and took off..

Uhhmm.. Master Aager?”, Udoorin stumbled when he saw the man in his dark leathers, hood, and half-mask stalk their way.

Udoorin Shieldheart was a large young man. Large in height, large in width, and large in depth! A largeness in bone and hard-packed and earned muscle, rather than mere bulk and a height to go with it. He had dark brown hair, dark brown, puppy sort of eyes that hadn’t quite seen full maturity, and for whatever reason, he was entertaining a scruffy looking patch of beard, possibly to make himself look older than his eighteen years and perhaps be taken more seriously by his elders.

Aager had never commented on the boy’s facial preferences, but had preferred to reserve his opinion on the matter even though he thought the boy looked ‘silly’ with it, a word he seldom used, possibly because he had never cared what others thought about himself. He also preferred to never get involved in other people’s private lives or their issues. And now, the boy also looked like a walking armory; a heavy chainmail showered down his bulk, all the way to his knees, two very big battleaxes were strapped on his back along with a shield, another battleaxe in one of his large fists, and his father’s longsword hung on his belt. There were at least five or six knives and daggers tucked into several other belts and a like number strapped around his legs and in his boots! He looked very much like a kid who had been given free rein at a candy store!

“Perhaps you are planning on rolling over the enemy in hopes of cutting them down to minced meat with all the sharp and pointy things you are carrying”, Aager grated amusedly.

Udoorin’s face flushed.

“I just want to be sure I have spares, Master Aager. You know, in case one of them breaks..”, the young man mumbled.

“Just how many of them are you planning on breaking?”, Aager asked.

The young man flushed some more.

“Lady Moira.”, the man in dark leathers then said, nodding at the tall, young woman in her shining plate armor.

Lady Moira Hooman was indeed a tall girl, almost matching the young man she was walking next to in height. She certainly wasn’t as packed as him, but the tight straps of her armor and the ease she showed in her step in her fifty-pound sheer steel she was carrying said she likely had some serious muscle and a lot of battle training to go with it. She wasn’t a beautiful girl in a conventional sense, but with her light green eyes, her quite generous mouth, and her long, reddish-brown hair bunned up the way she had, her beauty glowed with a sunny and honest appeal. It was clear this young woman liked smiling and laughing at silly things, rather than adopting a more somber or perhaps scowling glare at the world around her. Considering what she was, it totally ruined her high status as a paladin.

“Master Aager Fogstep.”, she said as her sunny face lightened as she returned the polite nod. “So nice to finally meet you.”

Aager paused, for he got the distinct impression that the young woman had actually told the truth, rather than made a polite or even passing comment. True, he was a Drashan and that stinking island of thieves, cutthroats, lechers of all stripes, whores, and pirates had never harbored a paladin, yet he’d heard of them. Particularly after the sheriff had brought him to Serenity Home. And one of the few things he’d heard was, that they always spoke the truth; the girl had actually meant what she’d said!

“Is it?”, he growled.

“Indeed it is, to finally meet the man skulking outside my room back in the guest house I was staying.”, she replied with another sunny smile.

Aager paused again.

For he had also come to the intimate conclusion that this young woman was not merely sunny and honest, she was sunny, honest, observant, careful, and knew how to disarm a man without using her base femininity or a sword.

And apparently, she was not some mindless knight in shining armor.

Well, she certainly was not stupid.

How had she heard him though? No one heard him coming. Not when he didn’t want them to. And the guest’s inn had carpets.

The girl grinned at him. It had a pretty grin, really.

“No mystery there, Master Aager.”, she said happily as if reading his thoughts. “We humble paladins have certain existential senses, hence we can, at times, feel when evil is abound.”

Aager’s dark eyes became even darker than they already were.

“Well, at least she knows something I do.”, he mused silently.

“I have sent the rangers, Laila and Morel, out to find the tracks of the people we suspect to be responsible for last night’s attack and to follow them. Should anything happen, I have told them to fall back and warn us. I want you and young Udoorin here, to face the enemy while the rangers do what they do best. Is that acceptable with you?”, he asked aloud though his tone gave the impression he wasn’t really asking but merely being polite.

“But of course, Master Aager. That is what we knights and paladins do best. To face the enemy head-on.”, Moira said happily. “I would, however, have it made clear; has the good sheriff assigned you as the leader of this company? Rank and status should always be made clear to avoid confusion, particularly in battle.”

“The sheriff has assigned me to make sure everyone here comes back alive and functional. I believe he gives me more credit than warranted for such a harsh endeavor, particularly with so few battle-tested, sounds unrealistic at best.”, Aager growled.

Udoorin gave him a side-long glance.

“A dour but reasonable assumption, Master Aager. I shall follow your command, then, and do my best to make sure all your townsmen return safe and sound.”, she said with another sunny smile.

“Huh.”, Aager grunted. “Will a paladin willingly follow a man she can sense coming at her in the dark?”

“I try not to judge people at their worst, Master Aager.”, Moira replied happily, then asked, “Curious though, are you perhaps related to an Aager Farstep? He was a well respected and quite a pious man.”

Aager Fogstep stared at her for a bare moment then growled.

“No.”

Then looked behind her and at the temple guardian, Lady Magella.

The she-dwarf, Lady Magella, was a blocky sort of dwarf. Although she was known for her care, back at Serenity Home, and the temple, her kind of care was not always as tender as could have been. She had a comfortable weight, and if one could get past her perpetual scowl, they might reach her kinder side. And when she spoke, her words tended to be as ‘bludgenous’ as the mace hanging at her side.

For many reasons, Aager had avoided her and her master, the Senior Temple Guardian, Demos Lightshand, even though she had accompanied him, along with the sheriff, and the two ranger masters, Davien and Moorat, on several troublesome occasions in the past. He had been strictly polite and politically correct with all the Temple Guardians, then stayed as far away from them as possible. And now he was going to be stuck with the she-dwarf for an extended period, who was even now, scowling up at him.

“Temple Guardian.”, he growled politely and nodded at her.

“Master Aager.”, she responded, almost in kind. “We never see your happy presence at the sermons.”

“As a matter of fact, I have been inside your temple, and attended to your sermons. Twice.”

Lady Magella cocked an eyebrow at him.

“Once to see what kind of security risks your temple might present.”, Aager said blandly. “The other was to actually listen to your oration. Turns out, your sermon was wasted on me.”

“Didn’t like what you heard?”, she frowned at him and even though she opted to ignore it, she had not missed the underlying reasons for his first visit.

“No, ma’am. It was about the Heavenly punishments pertaining to theft and murder. I thought I got the gist of your calling at that point.”, he replied with a grin, though it was lost under his half-mask.

Lady Magella made a huffy sort of snorting noise.

“You missed the sermon the week after.”, she said.

Aager did not nudge her to continue.

“Yes. It was about kindness, compassion, and the beauty of love shared with others.”, she scowled.

“I doubt I missed much then, Temple Guardian. I do not even know what those words entail and it is unlikely I ever shall.”, he growled at her.

“Perhaps you will, someday, Master Aager.”, Lady Magella said, squinting up at him.

“People like me deserve what the Heavens have in store for us, Lady. Suffice to say, I do not live for your standards.”, he grated from under his mask.

“You must be a wise man, Master Aager. Seen the future so thoroughly, have you?”, she said angrily.

Aager didn’t know what the Temple Guardian was getting at nor did he understand why she was suddenly angry. People seldom got angry with him. Feared him, yes. Hated him, certainly. Angry? Not so much, for the man in his dark leathers seldom left angry people alive in his wake.

He fumed a bit, then spoke.

“Lady, should we encounter anything during our journey to find the miscreants that burned Serenity Home, I would rather you stay at the back by at least fifteen yards. I would also like you to keep a base watch to your rear as well. Now, if you will excuse me, I need to be elsewhere.”, he growled and took off without waiting for her reply.

He had just been reminded why he had thus avoided the town’s temple and her guardians so thoroughly.

Psst!”, hissed someone and Ranger Laila froze, her longbow half drawn with a red and white feathered arrow cocked on the taught string.

“Psst!”, came the sound again, and Laila breathed from her nose.

“Gnine..”, she fumed as she turned around to see the little gnome hiding under some bushes. “..what are you doing here?, she fumed.

Gnine Tinkerdome was a mischievous little gnome, slightly on the stocky side. Mischievous, proactive, curious, intelligent, obsessively observant about queer and bizarre things, highly creative, yet insusceptible to his surrounding, and mostly up to no good. He wore immaculate clothes consisting of a pair of trousers tailored to his size, a somewhat flamboyant, colorful shirt, a similarly colorful vest, knee-high soft leather boots, a shoulder bag, several small pouches on his belt, a jarring cloak, and the only things he had on him for a weapon was a little knife and a wooden, hand-crafted sling. It appeared like he had gone out of his way to be spotted and become the sole focus of attention under any circumstance. All he seemed to need was a sign that read;

I AM HERE.
PLEASE SHOOT ME.
PREFERABLY SOONER
THAN LATER!

“Getting away from Master Aager.”, the gnome replied with a broad grin. “Saw him grilling you and Bree. Then he filleted that oaf, Udoorin, which was a happy thing, really. Was fun watching him squirm like a little girl.”

“Gnine..”, Laila fumed again. “It isn’t nice of you to say such things about Udoorin, considering he saved your uncle from the fire just last night. Got his hands burned for his efforts too. Had Lady Magella not worked on them, it would have taken months for him to make any good use of them.”

“I am grateful that he saved my uncle. Really..”, the gnome said honestly. Then added, “Doesn’t disqualify him from being an oaf, now, does it?”

“What is it with you and him, anyway? What’s he done to you that you would treat him like this? I mean, me and Bree fought with him once but that was years ago and he was honest and mature enough to come and apologize and decide to be our friend rather than hold a grudge, considering what we did to him after the things he’d said about me.”, Laila said a bit angrily.

The little gnome shrugged.

“He’s my outlet!”, he replied impudently.

“You could be mean sometimes, Gnine. Do you know that?”, the ranger girl frowned. “Now go back. You should be with the main group, not out here.”

The little gnome shrugged again.

“Nah.. I’ll hang around with you two. I don’t want to hear Udoorin babble all day, and I certainly do not want any preachings from Lady. Although I must admit, the paladin chick is kinda hot and she has a very pretty smile!”

Laila glared down at him.

“You have no idea what is going on or what we are doing, do you, Gnine? I’ll tell you what, you are going to turn around and go back to the group, or you are going to turn around and go back to town. It’s up to you.”, she said, still fuming down at the little gnome.

“You can’t tell me what to do.”, Gnine objected.

“I am a full ranger now, Gnine.”, she almost hissed at him.

“Yeah, so?”, the little gnome asked, sticking his chin out.

“It means, I am the law in the wilderness, Gnine. I have the legal power to command anyone short of a major, and certainly any civilian. Anyone who does not comply is subject to heavy fines and serious jail time.”, Laila said frostily, pretty much losing all her cool.

True, the little gnome and she were friends but they were not inside the safe walls of Serenity Home now and this was not a game. Last night had proven that. Apparently, Gnine’s point of view of the world around him made him somewhat impervious to certain, quite deadly realities. For him, this was, perhaps, something of a challenge, or perhaps even a dare.

“Chill, girl, it’s just a stroll through the forest. Nothing’s going to happen here—”, he said..

..but his words got cut when they heard a crash through the woods and something huge smashed its way right through a fallen tree trunk just fifty yards away!

Large, shattered splinters of half-rotten bark showered all around them. One landed merely a few feet from Laila just as she took a few smart steps to her left and behind a tree, as another, foot-long splinter clipped the little gnome on the shoulder and promptly dropped him spinning on his arse..

“How rude!”, the little gnome said angrily, holding his shoulder.

Then he looked up to see a giant of a wild boar, some five feet high hoof-to-hunch and perhaps four feet wide, its coarse fur matted, its eyes red and blind with fury, its twenty-inch tusks bloodied, and it was foaming and grunting at the muzzle as it came charging at him!

“What the—”, he spluttered, as he ogled at the beast.

“Gnine!”, barked Laila from behind the tree, but the little gnome just continued to stare at the beast with stunned and somewhat disconnected admiration as if it were some kind of a memento on display.

“BREE!”, she shrieked!

With a shrill shriek of her own, Bremorel burst out of the bushes almost on top of the wild boar and took it by total surprise. The boar squealed in recognition of the danger coming at it from its flank and tried to swirl but its massive momentum worked against it and it skidded sideways some fifteen feet before it lost its balance and tumbled over once, twice, then crashed dead, right before the little gnome!

Standing behind him was Ranger Laila, her longbow stretched taut with a second arrow cocked and ready..

And she was fuming balefully down at the little gnome.

“Good shot, cuzz.”, Bremorel said appreciatively as she dashed up to them.

“Good distraction.”, Laila nodded. “Worked like a charm.”

“Yeah. That’s me, Bree the Charming Distractor!”, her cousin smirked.

“I think I soiled my pants.”, Gnine mumbled in awe as he stared at the monstrosity that had piled right before him.

“You must be. Poor Thomas tripped and fell on his face when we were leaving the mayor’s office while ogling at you.”, Laila said with a bemused expression.

“And you just had to spoil the moment by bringing him into this, didn’t you?”, Bremorel scowled at her.

“Just saying. You do know someone else is interested in that boy, right?”, Laila said.

Bremorel’s face turned pure black.

“What? Who?”, she snarled.

“You sure you want to know?”, her cousin asked, sort of offhandedly.

“I will need to change my pants, I think.”, Gnine mumbled.

“WHO, DAMMIT!”, Bremorel hissed.

“The mayor’s eldest daughter.”

Bremorel ogled at her.

“How do you know?”, she asked, a bit freaked.

“My father..”, she said with a shrug. “She came to his workshop last week to put in an order for a new hope chest. Father offered her some tea while he started drawing some sketches and they gossiped.”

“What the bloody hell is a hope chest?”, Bremorel asked.

“It’s a chest for girls to put their dowry.”, Gnine prompted!

Both the girls stared down at him.

“Whot?”, he said. “It is! Hey, can I have one of these tusks? Looks like an awesome bit of memento.”, Gnine said eagerly, staring at the steaming boar.

And now Bremorel was really freaked.

“That.. that woman is like twice Thomas’s age!”, ‘eeped’ Bremorel.

Laila stared at her like she did when she was staring at an idiot.

“What?”, Bremorel asked, her face flushed a bit. She knew that look.

“The hope chest wasn’t for her, cousin, not to mention, not only twice his age, but she is already married. It’s for her daughter, Janith, obviously.”, Laila said.

Bremorel’s face deflated.

Quite visibly.

And her shoulders drooped.

Janith was a very pretty little girl. She was also kind and well-liked by the townsmen. Always smiling and always polite. She had silky, auburn hair, soft, baby-pink skin, and lovely brown eyes. And she was the granddaughter of no other than Mayor Arthandos Yuleman. Bremorel, on the other hand, was only a ranger and that’s all she had to offer. True, being a ranger had its privileges and was nothing to sneeze at, and she, herself, was a pretty girl with coarse black hair, beautiful pale-green eyes, fair skin slightly tanned under the sun, and a striking figure to go with them all. She was also a troubled girl and trouble. She was abrasive, she was angry all the time, she scowled at everyone, and she was sullen at her best behavior. Not to mention, she was gone most of the time due to her duties and her household skills were next to none. Her best cooking was over a campfire and somewhat charred quail, though, admittedly, she could make a mean rabbit stew! She also had the bad habit of starting a fight at the drop of a hat, which explained why she was also banned from pretty much every public place in Serenity Home other than, ironically, the temple itself, where the young, well respected, very polite, caring, and pious young man, Thomas, lived and worked as a Temple Guardian. And a match between him and Janith would very much appeal to the whole town, as opposed to her.

“Hey, can either of you girls gimme a hand with these tusks?”, Gnine asked as he tried to pry them off the beast’s snout.

Laila smacked him over the head!

“Ouch, girl! What was that for?”, he glared up at her.

“What were you thinking, Gnine, standing right in front of a charging wild boar?”, she hissed down at him with an angry frown.

“Whot? It was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity! When else was I going to ever see a boar this big and charging at me?”, he asked.

Laila just stared at him.

“She can have him..”, mumbled Bremorel in a barely audible, defeated voice.

“You are an idiot!”, Laila said with exasperation.

“Who? Me or her?”, Gnine asked.

“Both of you!”, she flared, glaring at both of them. “You, for standing in front of a charging boar, and you, for folding the moment you hit a snag.”

She glared down at Gnine and fumed at him.

“Did it ever occur to you that you might be trampled by an eight hundred pound animal, if not outright gored?”

Then she turned to her cousin and fumed at her as well.

“And did it occur to you that the boy just might have a say in this, much like you do? It is clear he is interested in you, much like you are interested in him. He is also very much afraid of you and you are acting like a stubborn mule and insisting that he should man up!”

“Ow, you are talking about Thomas!”, Gnine piped. “I like Thomas. He’s smart, reads books all the time, and he is excellent at debates. Horrible at hog-ball, though. He can’t seem to play without getting knocked out! But I agree with Bremorel on this matter. He really should man up and ask her out. Not the other way around.”

“There!”, Bremorel said, grinning at Laila triumphantly. “Gnine agrees with me!”

Then she smacked him over the head as well!

“Whot? I just agreed with you, girl.. What was that for?”, whined the little gnome, cowering from the ranger girl.

“That was for standing in front of a charging boar, you idiot”, she hissed.

Good kill, Laila.”, Udoorin said with a broad grin as he stared at the great beast.

“Excellent shot indeed, Ranger Laila. You do your calling justice.”, smiled Moira.

Laila’s face flushed a bit.

“Yeah. She shot it right in front of my eyes —literally!”, piped Gnine.

“That’s my cuzz, Laila Wolvesbane. She could shoot threads through needles.”, Bremorel beamed.

Lady Magella didn’t comment, though the expression on her face showed she was clearly impressed as well.

Aager did not comment either. He had knelt beside the beast and was carefully studying it. After a long moment, he rose.

“Young Udoorin. Perhaps you could help turn the beast over.”, he growled.

Udoorin walked up to the beast, stabbed his battleaxe into the ground, grabbed the boar by the hind legs, and heaved. His trunk-like arms bulged and his face turned red. It took him a full minute until the beast finally budged, turned over, and fell onto its other side..

..to reveal a thick, broken shaft of a spear sticking out of its flank!

For a moment, everyone just stared at it.

Only rangers Laila and Bremorel made any noise.

“What the..”, Bremorel exclaimed.

Laila hissed.

“How did you know?”, Udoorin asked finally.

“Didn’t. Just a hunch. As great an archer Ranger Laila is, a beast this size downed by a single arrow seemed unlikely.”, growled Aager.

“What? You think Laila can’t bring down a boar?”, flashed Bremorel.

Aager stared at her for a moment.

“I have little to no doubt about the archery skills of your cousin, Ranger Morel. A single arrow to the head, or through the neck would have brought down an average boar. But one as large as this seemed improbable. Hence it occurred to me that the animal might have been previously wounded.”, he replied calmly.

Bremorel glared at him.

Laila, however, reached down and pulled at the shaft but it didn’t budge. She tried some more, but she was unable to pull it out. She gave her cousin a look and Bremorel grabbed hold of the broken shaft, and with the use of the whole of her supple figure, she managed to wrench it out of the boar.

“This isn’t a ranger’s weapon.”, she said, looking at the broken shaft, then at the long, sharp, jagged blade of the spear. “It is too heavy to make a good throw. I don’t recognize the make of the blade either. And no ranger nor any self-respecting hunter would purchase a spear with jagged edges like this one and hunt with it. It would be good if you have a rope of some sort tied to the other end of the shaft, I suppose, but it is a cruel way to kill an animal. Not to mention, it would be a rather short throw, and should you fail, you would have a wounded beast running around and slowly dying of gangrene. Again, a cruel way to hunt. We kill for food or when an animal has gone rabid. Either way, we make sure we get the job done and swiftly.”

“Yes.”, Laila agreed, musing over the blade. “This isn’t one of ours. I do see some runes on it though.”

“It isn’t dwarf make.”, Lady Magella declared and everyone turned to look at her, probably because it was one of the rare times she had actually said anything.

“What? It isn’t. Dwarves mark their weapons to take responsibility for their craftsmanship. Those runes are not dwarven. They do seem to be a derivation of orcish, I think.”

“Orcish?”, Moira asked. “I wasn’t aware there were orcs in this region.”

“There are orcs in every region.”, Laila said sourly, avoiding looking at her cousin. “We watch them when we see them. Sometimes they merely want to pass through. Sometimes though, they want to raid. Those, we kill.”

“You let orcs live here?”, Moira asked a bit surprised.

“As much as I dislike them, Lady Moira, yes, we let them be because they have as much right to live as we do. We have many communities and races living in Ritual Forest. We even have ogres here. Hell, we have an orc in our town who works for Master Gurk Larson, the blacksmith. Came out of nowhere some fifteen or sixteen years ago and said he was tired of the blood spilling and wanted to work for his bread. Many people objected but Mayor Arthandos agreed to let him in, saying anyone who came in peace, worked and sweat for the peace was welcome in Serenity Home.”

“That is amazing.”, Moira said. “I am afraid we have no such luxuries at Durkahan.”

“So this is an orc weapon.”, Aager said quietly.

“Likely.”, Lady confirmed with a scowl. “Dwarves know orcs very well for our history is full of conflicts and confrontations with them. This spearhead, however, seems a bit too perfectly cast and sharpened for your average orc. They are not mentally equipped to care for their weapons and armor. If this did, in fact, belong to an orc and has access to similar quality weapons, we are in trouble because that thing will penetrate a shield and even plate armor.”

“You seem well educated on weapons and armors, Temple Guardian Magella.”, smiled Moira.

“Call me Lady. That is my name, not a prefix.”, Lady said.

“Oh, I apologize, Lady. I was not aware of that.”, Moira said sincerely.

“Tis alright.”, she shrugged. “My mother had strange ideas when I was born, I guess. And yes, I do have extensive knowledge of weapons and armors. After all, I wasn’t born a Temple Guardian, nor was I even consulted on the matter, which is beside the point. Suffice to say, a raiding party of orcs is a serious matter to consider. A raiding party of orcs with weapons of this quality is altogether a different proposition.”

Everyone mulled over that.

“Thank you for your insight, Lady.”, Aager growled a bit stiffly, took the broken shaft from Ranger Morel, and handed it over to Udoorin. “Put this into your pack. We might want to show it to Master Gurk’s orc apprentice when we return back to town. Now, rangers Laila and Bremorel, take point, if you will.”

Laila didn’t say anything. She nudged Bremorel, who seemed like she wanted to snarl something, possibly in way of retaliation to the man in dark leathers for ordering them around. She gritted her teeth instead and took off with her cousin.

“I so hate that man!”, she flared again, when they were several hundred yards away..

Not you, Master Gnine.”, Aager said in a low voice just as the little gnome was about to take off after the rangers.

“What? Why?”, piped Gnine innocently.

Aager Fogstep gave the little gnome a stone-cold stare, but the little gnome was a bit too hard-boiled for his own good, and he stared back at the man in dark leathers, hood, and half-mask, with the same innocent eyes.

“Master Udoorin, Lady Moira, and Lady Magella.. I would like a private word without esteemed master gnome here if you will”, he growled, not taking his eyes off the little gnome.

Udoorin grinned and didn’t bother to hide it. He pulled his big battleaxe from the ground and started after the ranger girls, followed closely by Moira.

“I want to see him in one piece.”, Lady said ominously.

“That will be up to him.”, Aager replied.

Lady Magella gave him a long, steady look, then she too started after the ranger girls.

Aager waited for the duration of perhaps a sixty count, never taking his eyes off Gnine.

Then, slowly he spoke..

“You are a distraction, Master Gnine. When Sheriff Standorin suggested we might end up looking for possible criminals who might have started the fire in your uncle’s workshop, he offered me to lead the company. He asked me who I would pick for such an extended hunt and I told him I wanted the ranger novices, Laila Wolvesbane and Morel Songsteel, but only if they were promoted to full rangers before we left. I asked for them specifically because they had proven their mettle many times before. I asked for his son, Udoorin, as well, because I thought him to be ready and that he couldn’t keep him locked in a town for the remainder of his life, and that it was time for him to see the real world. I asked him to speak with the Senior Temple Guardian, Demos Lightshand, so he would lend us Lady Magella because I believed we would need her wisdom, if not her skills. I then asked him to convince Lady Moira to come with us, because a paladin would be more useful to us than help dig through the rubble. You, however, I never asked to be burdened. Would you like to know why?”

“Uhhmm.. Is this a trick question?”, mumbled Gnine, for as hard-boiled as he was in his insolence, an extended conversation with this man was a bit too much for him.

“Do I seem like a man who does levity, Master Gnine?”, the man growled at him, still staring into his eyes and the little gnome saw, really saw the bottomless pit of his dark soul.

Gnine gulped.

“No?”, he said as he swallowed something crawling up his throat.

“I never asked for you, because you are a distraction, Master Gnine. You were a distraction to everyone around you back at Serenity Home, and you are a distraction now. You endangered the lives of both the rangers with your distraction, and we just got started. Of all the people in this company, only you are here of your own volition. That means, everyone but you, are under my protection. I am responsible for everyone here. I am not, however, responsible for you. And should you put the lives of those under my protection in danger with your distraction one more time, one of two things will happen. Either I shall tie you into a knot and leave you behind for someone to find you, if at all, or I shall kill you and tell your uncle why, then face whatever punishment I am to suffer..”, the man in dark leathers, hood, and half-mask grated.

Gnine ogled at him, his face going pale.

“You must understand, Master Gnine, this is not a game and we are not here to have fun. How you see the world and the people around you is something I care not. But everything we do has its consequences. This, you must accept even if you do not understand nor comprehend. Now, I shall share you, and perchance, learn you, something I have shared with no other..”, he growled, stressing each word.

And slowly, he pulled off his dark half-mask, then his dark hood to reveal a face to go with his soulless eyes; scarred and stitched, with short, black hair plastered on his scalp. And finally, he opened the front of his dark leathers..

“What.. what are you doing?”, yelped the little gnome.

..to present a lean, somewhat gaunt chest toned with spring coil muscles.

“I am showing you the consequences of stupidity, Master Gnine..”, he growled in disgust, for it was a chest mauled with dark, ugly whip scars.

Gnine just stared at his chest, and at his scars, for there were so many of them and they looked horrible. The little gnome turned around and dumped the content of everything he’d eaten that morning! Aager Fogstep did not smile nor did he show any signs of satisfaction at the after-effects of his lesson over the irresponsible, indifferent, and impulsive little gnome.

“If this is not to your satisfaction, Master Gnine, perhaps you would like to exhibit the other side. The best ones are there..”, he grated almost savagely.

“No, no.. I think I got the gist..”, Gnine spluttered, then hurled again, and only after gulping down many deep breaths.

“It is good that this is gist enough for you. Otherwise, I might have had to grill you.”, Aager said.

“No, no.. No grilling is necessary.”, the little gnome said hastily.

“I am happy to have lived up to your expectations, then, Master Gnine. I would hate to have to resort to the other two options.” Aager growled as he covered the crime scene of his scars, and soon enough, he was the man in dark leathers, hood, and half-mask, again.

Young Gnine Tinkerdome peter pattered after the group with Aager Fogstep silently ghosting behind him.

The little gnome held his silence for as long as he could, then inevitably blurted..

“I was tempted to say, chicks dig scars, Master Aager, but yours are a bloody landscape!”

Chapter
Two

The Day After

Timeline:

This story takes place the day after
The Hubris of Men

The old man stared out the window of his office and at the choking haze; the clear evidence of the terrible fire that had burned down eight homes and shops, killed nearly twenty of his townsmen and wounded three times as many. He coughed as the sulfurous smoke seeped inside and clawed at his throat.

He watched in quiet contemplation as a pair of children, a boy and a girl no older than ten, struggling with heavy buckets of water, push past under his window followed by men and women with shovels and rakes making their way in the same direction. He felt sick when he saw two guardsmen carrying a half-covered charred corpse on a makeshift gurney towards the temple in hopes of identifying who he or she was to put a name on their gravestone.

His old, pale blue eyes blurred and a sob escaped him.

Mayor Arthandos Yuleman had not taken this job for this..

In fact, he had never wanted the job and neither had he applied for it. He had been a man with little dreams and no aspirations. Not since his wife had died, leaving him to father three daughters. In time, he had lost what little was left of his already depleted motivation and even his base drive to live. To simply put, Arthandos had simply let go..

..and become the town’s drunkard.

Or ‘that gutter rat!’

And then something unexpected, and quite unprecedented had happened. The former mayor of the town had died in some silly construction accident and the seat of what power his office had held was suddenly left vacant, yet no one had wanted the job.

Evidently, people had better things to do than to deal with the foolishness and the stupidity of a whole town, as peaceful as it was. The only person who did want the job was the rich merchant, Master Haradin Franderson, who, in all likeliness, would have turned the town into his personal agenda.

The townsmen didn’t want the job, but they did not want Franderson to have it either. The only problem with that was, no one really had the monetary power or influence to stand up to him, and neither could they produce an alternative candidate, as in, someone foolish enough to apply for the job..

..until some overtly smart guy, whom Yuleman dearly wished to find someday and have a very ‘fistful’ chat, had placed his name as a candidate, possibly as a prank to throw at Haradin’s face.

Well..

If it had been a prank, it had certainly worked; Franderson had been, quite, but not quietly incensed when he had seen the final count of the vote!

And likely made him the laughing stock of the town, particularly when ‘that gutter rat’ had come out as the winner of a job he hadn’t even known he had applied by a ninety-eight percent majority!

It was at that point his daughters, ages varying from eight to sixteen at the time, had decided to step in, quite strenuously, that it was time their father, and the newly appointed mayor of Serenity Home, should come home and sober up!

Arthandos Yuleman snorted bitterly.

He had, in fact, sobered up, and given his all to the job, and, as it turned out, he had made a surprisingly efficient mayor and prospered the town, its surrounding lands, and brought her dwarven, gnomic, and elvish neighbors even closer in terms of relations in the past twenty years or so.

Yet, all his accomplishments had died, along with many of his townsmen, in the strange and creepy fire last night.

“Perhaps I should just resign and go back to being an old drunkard again. Apparently, I am not up to the task..”, he mumbled as he stared out the window, just to see another burnt corpse being carried off on another gurney.

“Perhaps you should stop with the self-pity, Arty..”, came a low, rumbling voice from behind and Sheriff Standorin Shieldheart stepped into the room.

Arthandos Yuleman turned around and stared at the big man.

For someone who was past his prime, the sheriff was quite a large man with broad shoulders, powerful arms, a massive torso, and still standing upright. His hair was tousled and he was covered in dust and soot He also had a bloody bandage on his right leg and he was limping.

“What happened to your leg?”, Arthandos asked with his somewhat wheezy, smoke-choked voice.

“Got curious.. and paid the price..”, Standorin said with a grimace. “Wanted to see if there was anything I could find that might tell us something in the burning workshop of Master Nimbletyne.”

“Did you?”, the mayor asked.

“Yes. Stupidity is painful.”, the sheriff replied.

Yuleman grunted.

“You should have that checked.”, he said.

“The Temple Guardians have their hands full as it is.”, Standorin replied, running one of his calloused hands through his hair. “They don’t need to deal with a cracked femur.”

“A cracked femur? Good Heavens man! You are walking around with a busted leg?”, the mayor exclaimed.

“The workshop exploded when I was peering inside and a large bit of debris sort of slammed on the leg and sliced it open. I applied some bandages. Should be fine as long as I don’t run around on it for a few days.”, the sheriff shrugged.

“You just don’t want to end up being treated by Demos Lightshand. Or worse, Lady Magella.”, Yuleman snorted.

“No, I don’t. I also don’t want a long, agonizing preach coming my way for missing out on their sermons. One stupid for one day is my quota.”, the sheriff said irritably. “Are you really thinking of resigning? Because if you are, you do know who will want to replace you, don’t you?”

Yuleman did not reply.

“And when he becomes the new mayor, it is likely I shall also resign.”, the sheriff continued with a grimace as he shifted his busted leg. “I have no desire to help Haradin dismantle this town and turn it into his personal warehouse.”

“You will leave the town to his mercy?”, Arthandos said a bit appalled.

“I can’t stand stupid, Arty. What’s your excuse?”, Standorin replied, looking at the old man with deliberate belligerence.

Arthandos sighed.

“I let this happen, Stan..”, he said, pointing at the forlorn scene outside his window. “I should at least take responsibility for it.”

“Don’t be daft, Arty. You didn’t let this happen and you know it. But I agree that you should take the responsibility for it. Just not the way you plan to.”, Standorin said harshly.

Arthandos Yuleman stared at him.

“What do you have in mind, Stan?”, he asked after a long moment.

The look Standorin gave him was quite grim. He took a deep breath and rumbled..

“Order us to put a team together and find the real perpetrators.”

Order, please.”, wheezed the mayor of Serenity Home town, Arthandos Yuleman, a man well past his prime with white, thinning hair and brows, pale blue eyes, and many worry-wrinkles. He reached for the canteen on his table, uncorked it, took a long pull, gargled his mouth, then spat into the bucket sitting next to his table. “Damn, this smoke! I apologize for that, gentlemen, my nostrils are clogged and my throat is still burning. Now, shall we get started?”

There was a pause of assent, as the mayor stared at the people gathered in the room. Sheriff Standorin was there and there was a determined expression etched on his face and although he was standing, he was favoring one of his legs. The one with the bloody bandages. The town’s council members were there too, each a standing member of the society; Thokan Silversong, a handsome man in his early fifties and was the town’s bard, Gurk Larson, a burly man with bulky shoulders and black, spiky beard and mustache, the blacksmith, Yarvel Stratler, a somewhat slender, wispy sort of man, also past his prime, the baker, Viranes Heidi, a tall, blocky, no-nonsense sort of woman in her late forties, the butcher, and Haradin Franderson, a man in his fifties and in custom-tailored shirt, jacket, and trousers, a very successful merchant.

They all had similarly grim faces, though Council Member Haradin’s expression was a bit on the haughty side as if it was his usual stance.

“We are missing Master Tinkerdome.”, Viranes said with a surprisingly soft voice.

“Yes. He was still at the Temple the last time I checked.”, Sheriff Standorin rumbled. “He was quite severely wounded last night, though he did say he would try and make it.”

“Very well.”, Yuleman said. “I would rather he be here and give us his side of the story.”

“What is there to give? Him and his silly experiments.”, very nearly sneered Haradin Franderson. “Who is to say this wasn’t all his fault?”

“Yes.”, agreed, Standorin. “Who is to say?”

Yuleman gave the sheriff a barely discernible glance just to see him staring at Haradin.

“We do not accuse people without proof, Master Haradin. If we did that, I am afraid this town would be quite empty, wouldn’t you agree?”, the mayor said mildly.

Haradin grunted.

“Now, sheriff, do give us an update of everything you have learned thus far if you will please.”, Yuleman said.

“There isn’t much to give, Mayor. It is simply too early to make any assumptions at the moment, or any decisions, for that matter.”, the sheriff rumbled.

“It’s been hours and you haven’t gathered any information yet?”, Haradin asked incredulously. “Perhaps you are not up to the task, after all, sheriff.”

Standorin leveled his gaze on the council member. He didn’t scowl nor frown at him. He merely stared at him.

Very steadily.

“Priority dictates town guards secure the area while we find and rescue the injured to avoid further deaths, Councilman. Not run around blindly seeking unknown culprits in the woods, which is what the rangers are for.”, he said quietly.

Haradin grunted again and mumbled something about the inadequacy of the town’s guards and the people leading them.

Yuleman carefully shook his head at the sheriff, but the sheriff chose to ignore it. He fumed from his nose as he spoke in his low, ‘warning’ voice.

“I saw many townsmen out helping last night, Councilman. In fact, I could vouch for the presence of almost everyone trying to put out the fires, digging through the rubble, and carrying the dead and the wounded. Even the town orphans were out carrying water. They all are still out there, still digging through the rubble, still carrying the dead and the wounded, and no one has really slept. I did not, however, see you nor your son, Lucious. Not last night helping or even lending a hand, not today, come sun up. Talk to me about inadequacy one more time, and I shall gladly call you upon your word.”

A choked sort of silence settled in the mayor’s office as Councilman Haradin glared at the sheriff.

Thokan Silversong, however, was grinning, though he did a good job hiding it behind one hand. The burly Gurk Larson was also grinning, though he didn’t bother hiding it. Yarvel Stratler was staring at the ceiling as if counting the candles up, on the chandelier, and Viranes Heidi was frowning at Haradin with a look that seemed to say;

“Sir, just how stupid are you?”

“Ehem.”, Arthandos Yuleman cleared his throat once more. “Perhaps we can talk about what we do know?”

“Yes, Sir.”, Standorin said, not taking his eyes from Haradin. “As of late last night, an unexpected explosion of unknown origin occurred in Master Nimbletyne’s workshop. We do not know what actually caused it. What we do know, however, is that it happened when he was asleep and so was his niece, young Gnine Tinkerdome. We do not know the nature of the fire other than it was unquenchable.”

“Unquenchable?”, asked Gurk Larson.

“Yes. Quite unquenchable. The amount of water we dumped onto what remained of Master Nimbletyne’s workshop was unprecedented, yet, whatever the fire was, it was bright green, and it just kept on burning. And spreading. In the end, we didn’t put it out, it snuffed itself out. From what young Master Gnine told me while his uncle was unconscious, it must have run out of whatever fuel it was running on, though he did admit he knew not of any chemical or alchemical compound that would be so indifferent to water. He also mentioned someone had hit him over the head while he was sleeping.”, Standorin reported.

“Did anyone else see anything? Or anyone?”, Thokan Silversong asked.

“Other than what Master Gnine’s claims, no.”, the sheriff admitted.

“Then it is possible this was, after all, Nimbletyne’s fault and obviously his niece is covering for his uncle.”, Haradin said and this time, he did sneer.

“I doubt.”, said a harsh voice, and the door to the mayor’s door opened and a man with broad shoulders, patched green leather armor, high leather boots, and a greatsword across his back entered.

He wasn’t a tall man, perhaps an inch under average with coarse black hair and he had a very sinister-looking face.

“This is a closed session!”, Haradin spat.

“Don’t care.”, the sinister-looking man said with an unperturbed and indifferent shrug.

Yuleman sighed.

“Ranger Master Moorat. What brings you here?”, he asked tiredly.

“My feet! But that’s beside the point.”, Ranger Master Moorat snarked harshly, then looked back and almost snarled, “Don’t just stand there, you dolt! Come in. And you two as well.”

Another man entered, a rather good-looking half-elf in immaculate green and brown leathers with a longsword at his side, a longbow in one hand, and a quiver full of dark-feathered arrows strapped across his back. His steps were light and careful and he smiled politely at the mayor, nodded at the sheriff, and hailed the councilmen with a somewhat vague expression.

Two more pairs of steps followed him inside.

One of them was a beautiful, brown-haired girl, also a half-elf, with bold, declarative features. Her armor was also immaculate and seemed like she was emulating the half-elf man in her step. She also held a longbow in her hand, a quiver full of arrows strapped across her back, and a pair of long blades hanging from her belt. She entered the room and though she was quite young, she stared at the council members with a cool, distant expression on her face.

The other was also a girl, younger than even the half-elf and she had a mane of coarse black hair ‘pouring’ down either side of her striking face. She stepped into the room with a slightly diffident posture evident in her deceptively slender body that gave the impression that it needed a few more years to fully fill out. She had deep green eyes and her lips were pressed tightly together. Although she was also dressed in greens and browns, her bow was hung over her shoulders and she had opted to carry her great blade, scabbard and all, in her hand. Her careful steps took her near Ranger Master Moorat, then she stared at the people in the room with a slightly guilty expression on her face like she’d been on the receiving end of a thrashing from every single one of them.

“Gentlemen.”, the half-elf ranger master said brightly. “I apologize for Moorat’s behavior. But we were sort of in a hurry.”

“Ranger Master Davien. Always a pleasure to see you.”, Yuleman replied with a smile. “What brings you here, other than your feet?”

Ranger Master Davien stared at the mayor with a blank expression.

Yuleman sighed again.

“Never mind.”, he mumbled. “What is so important that would require the presence of both the ranger masters?”

“Ahh!”, Davien said as comprehension dawned on his face.

Moorat gave him a disgusted look.

“We are here because we believe we have witnesses.”, he said brightly.

“Witnesses?”, asked Yuleman.

“Yes, Sir.”, Davien nodded earnestly, then pointed at the half-elf girl standing next to him. “This is Laila Wolvesbane, my ranger novice.”

Then he pointed at the other standing next to Ranger Master Moorat. “And this is Ranger Novice Bremorel Songsteel.”

“The ranger novices hardly need any introductions, Master Davien. We all know who they are and their accomplishments, particularly during the Bane-Song Operation.”, Yuleman said, giving the girls an encouraging smile.

That made the young ranger girls flush and squirm a bit.

“Indeed..”, Davien continued even more earnestly. “..and as it turns out, our young and esteemed ranger novices, here, were out over on the other side of Arashkan River and in the forest during the time of the fire and they witnessed a group of men in dark leathers, hoods, and cloaks running off into the night!”

The mayor’s office fell silent once again as everyone stared at the two, young, ranger novices.

“Where exactly did you see these men?”, the sheriff asked, looking intently at the girls.

There was a moment of silence as if the ranger novices couldn’t decide which one of them should speak. Then the younger of the two, Bremorel, nudged the other to take the lead. Laila grimaced then took a step forward and spoke, her voice a bit husky.

“A day’s march southwest from First Watch, Sir.”, she said, then amended that by giving him another point of reference. “Or two hours walking distance northwest from the town’s stone bridge.”

“How many were there? Can you describe them?”, the sheriff asked even more intently.

“I counted thirteen of them, Sir. With the exception of one, they all wore dark leathers, trousers, hoods, and cloaks. We, that is, Ranger Novice Bremorel and I checked for tracks this morning to be sure. Whoever they were, they were quite light on their feet, and they gave us the impression these people were city dwellers rather than men of wilderness.”, Laila reported succinctly.

“How do you know?”, Haradin asked, squinting at her.

Laila shrugged.

“The soles of their boots.”, she said simply.

“What of them?”, he asked.

“They were made of soft caoutchouc. Suitable for cities where there are flat cobblestones. Caoutchouc is expensive. Among many of its other uses, they make soft and spry soles for shoes, and hence, they are particularly good for sneaking. Not so much for wilderness since they will wear and erode in a week or two, or purchase holes in a hurry if they step on roots or dry branches, which is quite unavoidable while running in a forest. And the tracks indicated as such.”, she explained.

“And what were you two doing that late at night out in the forest?”, Haradin countered.

Laila, however, did not reply. She opted to silently stare at him.

“What?”, Haradin squinted at her. “You can’t answer a simple question?”

Laila continued to stare at him and the others noted the ranger masters had also gone still and were staring at him as well.

“She is being polite..”

..came a soft voice and everyone except the rangers turned to the young ranger novice, Bremorel.

“Being polite?”, demanded Haradin harshly.

“Yes. You may be a councilman of this town, but you do not have any authority over any ranger of any rank. You are not even military personnel, but a civilian. You don’t get to ask impertinent questions, make demands, or interrogate rangers. Only king’s magistrates may legally question a ranger. The silent stare is our polite way of reminding you of that fact.”, she said with a deceptively calm tone.

Moorat snorted from the side, not even bothering to hide a very toothy grin, which made his already sinister features even more savage, while Davien stared at Haradin with a slightly confused expression.

Laila, however, didn’t show any visible reaction. She was used to her cousin’s abrasive quirks. She also knew of the rangers’ legal stance versus civilians. What surprised her was that her cousin knew it as well.

“You insolent little—”, Haradin began, his face flushed darkly.

“Also..”, Bremorel cut in, suppressing her fury. “..if you publicly insult a ranger, one of two things will happen, sir. Either you will be fined heavily and face jail time no more than thirty-one days, or I will take offense, in which case I shall call you to task and run you through, then face the king’s law on criminal charges pertaining a ranger and an offending civilian. Either is fine with me. Optionally, you could insult me privately and we can skip all the legalities..”

“Please.”, said Mayor Yuleman sternly. “If you will, Ranger Novice Bremorel, this is, strictly speaking, not an interrogation. We are merely trying to understand what happened last night. I have absolute respect for you and Ranger Novice Laila. After all, the peace and prosperity this town have entertained these past centuries was due to the diligence of her rangers along with all the other men and women serving her.”

Bremorel’s face flushed a bit.

“We were out camping, Sir.”, Laila said, looking at the mayor. “We had just returned from our patrol last evening and decided we’d grab some food from home and have some fun on our own as two, off-duty rangers. We do that every now and then. It was past midnight when we saw the sky light up, hence we started running towards the town. When we reached the edge of the forest, we saw a bright green fire shooting up into the sky somewhere from the center of the town. We also heard footsteps coming our way. We didn’t know who they were, but we thought it would be wiser to bring back any information we could than to pick a fight with an unknown number of men. I counted the heads, Bremorel counted the steps, and came to the conclusion that there were thirteen of them. Then we ran to the town to see what was going on and if there was anything we could do to help. And this morning, we went back to where we’d seen the men and we found their tracks heading north and slightly east, carefully avoiding the outer reaches of Elder Hills on their west and First Watch on their east.”

Everyone mulled over that.

“You said, with the exception of one, they were all wearing black leathers, hoods, and cloaks.”, Sheriff Standorin said.

“Yes, Sir.”, Laila nodded. “The ‘exception’ was wearing tight-fitting pants, high boots that had soft soles, but were not made of caoutchouc. He was also wearing a short leather jacket, and a white, frilly shirt!”

“A what?”, the sheriff asked incredulously.

“White, frilly shirt, Sir. You’d think someone who’d be sulking in the woods would wear something green and brown, or at the very least, something dark, but this one seemed like he’d joined the wrong party. He wasn’t wearing a hood nor did he have a cloak. It was too dark to make out his face though. Should ranger masters Davien and Moorat agree, Ranger Novice Bremorel and I can track them down and hunt them. We will, however, need backup.”, Laila said.

Haradin sneered and mumbled something about sending little girls to do a man’s job.

Bremorel’s eyes blazed at that and she was just about to lose all her suppressed fury when Laila pinched her to silence. She stared at Haradin and with her cool, husky voice, she spoke..

“By all means, Master Haradin, be the man and hunt them down. We are all eager to see the legendary brevity of the Franderson’s who never shy from endangering themselves for the sake of others!”

Thokan Silversong chuckled at that while Gurk Larson snorted. Yarvel Stratler had a poorly hidden grin on his face, and Viranes Heidi was frowning at Haradin, again, and she seemed to say;

“Sir, you really are stupid, aren’t you?”

A gurgling sort of snort came from the door and Gnine Tinkerdome appeared there. There was a vicious grin on his face and a merry glint in his eyes as he winked at Bremorel and Laila. Behind him, a surly-looking she-dwarf, Temple Guardian Lady Magella, stomped her way in, helping another gnome, this one limping, Gnine’s uncle, Nimbletyne Tinkerdome.

And behind them came a venerable old man in plain brown robes, Senior Temple Guardian Demos Lightshand, followed closely by two more people. One was a serious-looking, clean-shaven young man wearing a plain jacket and trousers, Thomas Dimwood. The other was a tall, burly man, also young, Udoorin Shieldheart, Sheriff Standorin’s son, carrying something round, cylindrical, and blackened in his massive arms. Whatever it was, it must have been very heavy for the young man was sweating profusely.

I would have wished us all a good afternoon, gentlemen, but that would be quite churlish and insensitive of me to do at the moment..”, the venerable Senior Temple Guardian Demos Lightshand said with a serious expression.

Demos was more than venerable. His once light-blonde, shoulder-length hair and untrimmed beard were white and sparse and his face had many worry-wrinkles. His back was hunched and he walked with the aid of a slender, otherwise unadorned staff, but the years had not dulled his deep blue eyes which took everyone in the room with intelligent assessment.

“This is a closed session!”, Haradin said angrily.

“Ow, bite me, merchant!”, snarled Moorat. “But just so you know, I will bite back!”

“Gentlemen, please. The current crisis demands all hands on deck.”, Arthandos said wearily

“Senior Temple Guardian, please, take a seat.”, he added, rising from his own seat behind his desk and offered it to him.

“Thank you, Mayor. But that seat is yours. As are the responsibilities that come with it.”, Demos said kindly. “I apologize for the intrusion, but since Master Nimbletyne, here, insisted on coming, I thought it be wiser to make sure he can.”

Viranes Heidi did get up and with help from the surly-looking she-dwarf, they sat the limping gnome into her chair. Master Nimbletyne seemed quite battered and bruised, and he whined as he settled down.

“Thank you my dears.”, he said, trying to sound cheery, though he was sweating profusely and he had bandages on his head, his arms, his hands, and one of his legs was splintered.

Temple Guardian Lady Magella scowled at him and her scowl seemed to be a trademark of her sturdy features. She was not a pretty dwarf, but she did have a certain steady something about her. Her clothes were clean and tidy, and a cast-iron, diamond-shaped mace hung at her side.

The big, blocky Viranes Heidi, however, gave the gnome a big, generous smile.

Demos Lightshand turned to the large, burly young man and wheezed..

“Why don’t you put that thing down, young Master Udoorin.”, he said, nodding at the charred, cylindrical object. “I am sure it is heavier than it looks. Then find a few chairs for those standing. Perhaps young ranger novices Morel and Laila could give you a hand?”

“Yes, Guardian Demos..”, Udoorin mumbled, then with a great heave, he put the cylinder on the floor where everyone could see.

He might as well slammed it down.

The floorboards creaked and groaned, and several of them cracked and caved in!

“Good Heavens, boy!”, Mayor Arthandos exclaimed. You ruined my floor!”

“I am sorry, Mayor, Sir. It’s just heavy.”, Udoorin said, his flushed face turning even brighter.

Curious, the blacksmith, Gurk Larson, got up and came near the cylinder. He tried to nudge it, but failed. Then he hugged the object and tried to lift it, but he could barely tilt it. He heaved and pulled at it until his face flushed to no avail. He finally gave up and turned to stare at the young man with astonishment.

“I did say, it was heavy.”, Udoorin said, a bit embarrassed. Then he motioned at the two ranger cousins and they went out to find some chairs.

The other young man, Thomas Dimwood, was still standing next to the door, and he was entertaining a furious blush of his own. He didn’t look anywhere, certainly not at the ranger girls.

The ranger girls must have noticed this because Laila had her lips slightly pursed like someone trying to suppress her mirth while Bremorel had opted to totally ignore the young man but she had ruined it with a scowl and her cheeks had pinked a little.

Young Thomas shrank visibly and cringed as they went past him.

“What’s with him?”, Udoorin asked.

“How should I know?”, Bremorel said, snarling at him.

“What’s with you?”, he asked this time.

The ranger novice glared at him.

“Just how heavy is that thing?”, Laila asked.

“Don’t know. Must have been around twenty-five stones, I think.”, he replied as he poked his head into adjacent rooms, looking for chairs.

“What? That’s like three hundred and fifty bloody pounds!”, she exclaimed. “You could carry that?”

“Uhhmm.. Obviously?”, the young man answered a bit uncomfortably. “Look, let’s not make a big deal out of it, alright? Ow, here are some chairs.”

This isn’t iron, nor is it steel.”, the blacksmith, Gurk Larson, was saying. “I do not know what it is, but it definitely is neither. Or at least it must have something else in it besides iron.”

“I agree.”, Master Nimbletyne agreed as he coughed. “Sorry. Can’t seem to get rid of all the smoke I inhaled when I was out. And for those who are wondering, this thing, whatever it is, is not my crafting. I artifice items of certain delicacy that usually require magnifying goggles and tweezers, so to speak. Alchemy just isn’t really my area of expertise. This thing belched fire like there was no tomorrow! It must have contained a concoction of a certain complexity. Had I some of the original fuel, I might have been able to figure out what it was, given enough time but you’d have more luck by hiring an actual alchemist from Tinker Hills. As for why they brought it to my workshop, I do not know. And because the whole shop is destroyed, I can’t even say if they took something or not.”

There was a long silence as everyone mulled over that.

“Perhaps it was a former, unsatisfied customer, Master Nimbletyne.”, Haradin said, squinting distastefully at the gnome.

Everyone who was a senior in the room was seated now, with the exception of the blocky Viranes Heidi. She had opted to stand behind Nimbletyne as if wanting to make sure he was alright. She had grabbed the canteen on the mayor’s desk and kept on pushing it into the little gnome’s hand, forcing him to take a sip every now and then.

The gnome’s niece, Gnine Tinkerdome, was also standing behind him, though he was somewhat lost behind the very large Viranes.

Lady Magella and Thomas were standing behind Demos Lightshand, while Laila and Bremorel had taken their places behind their respective ranger masters, Davien and Moorat, and Udoorin was standing behind his father, Sheriff Standorin Shieldheart.

Nimbletyne did not bother glaring at him. He simply shrugged.

“I do not have unsatisfied customers, Haradin.”, he said like he was merely stating a very obvious fact.

“Whatever the reasons were, it was sloppy.”, the sheriff rumbled.

“Sloppy?”, Haradin scoffed. “Does what you see outside look sloppy to you?”

“I was out there all night, Councilman. Thought I mentioned that already. The fact that it caused so much damage and so many random casualties is not the mark of professionalism. If you want someone dead and gone, there are many other ways to do it. Easier and certainly with discretion. This..”, he said, pointing at the window, “..was a mess.”

“What are you saying, sheriff?”, Yuleman asked.

“I am saying, these people, whoever they are, wanted to make a statement. A very arrogant one. I suggest we use their arrogance against them. I have contacts all the way from here to Arashkan. I am sure the temple has contacts of their own.”, the sheriff said. “But while we are looking for answeres here, I offer we pick a few of our own people and send them after these miscreants. Sort of to harras them, if nothing else.”

“We will need rangers for that. But we will also need both the ranger masters here to make sure there are no more incursions coming our way.”, the mayor objected.

“True. I was thinking more along the lines of what Ranger Novice Laila offered. Both she and young Bremorel have proven their battle prowess and their skills in the past.”, Standorin said with a slight grin.

“Sure, you don’t have to ask.”, Davien said sincerely. “Laila is an excellent tracker and an excelling archer.”

Laila held her breath. So did Bremorel.

Moorat, however, gave Davien a disgusted look.

“Well, bugger. Now that the dolt has agreed, I can’t even say no, can I?”, he muttered angrily. “Ranger Novice Bremorel still has some training to go but I believe she can hold her end of anything that might come her way.”

Both Laila and Bremorel were grinning now.

“Father.. uhhmm.. Sheriff?”, Udoorin rumbled tentatively.

“You sure?”, his father asked, looking at him over his shoulder.

“Doesn’t matter if I am, father. This needs to be done and I’ll be more useful out there than I will be here.”, the young man said carefully.

“If Senior Temple Guardian Demos could be persuaded to part with Temple Guardian Lady Magella, that would make four. And four is better than three..”, the sheriff said and let it sort of hang there.

“Temple Guardian Lady is a strong-willed acolyte.”, Demos wheezed. “I am sure she would rather stay here and look after this old man but she needs to be out there, not wasting her life making sure I have eaten or have enough blankets.”

Udoorin almost whooped.

Lady Magella, however, did not show such enthusiasm. She just scowled some more.

“Perhaps young Lucious would like to join as well. I hear he is good with a longblade.”, the sheriff offered, smiling at Councilman Haradin.

“How altruistic of you to offer other people’s sons and daughters so callously.”, Haradin sneered at him.

Udoorin coughed.

“I offered myself.”, he said simply.

Haradin glared at both of them.

“Lucious is busy and has things to do.”, he spat.

“He must be. Seeing as, father and son, neither of you could be bothered to lend a hand in putting out the fires, nor with the aftermath. Tell me again, what do you do for this town, Councilman?”, the sheriff asked.

“Sheriff, please. This is a pointless debate.”, Arthandos said then looked at the four youngsters thoughtfully. “Four. Will that be enough?”

“I have two more candidates, Mayor, though one might require some persuading. Or perhaps not.”

“Very well.”, Yuleman said. “Five is better than four, and six is better than five. Gentlemen, I believe we have some work to do and it’s out there, not in this room.”

It was about then when everyone had risen to leave, and a tiny but decisive voice was heard.

“I am going too.”

Everyone paused and looked around to see its owner, and the little gnome, Gnine Tinkerdome stepped out from behind the big, blocky Viranes Heidi.

“What are you doing, boy?”, Nimbletyne hissed.

“My part.”, Gnine said boldly.

“Boy, this is serious. Everyone who is going has had some training. You don’t. You are the only one I got left.”, Nimbletyne said almost pleadingly.

“And you are the only one I got left too, uncle. And someone tried to kill you last night. And this lot’s all brawn but no brains. Surely they will need someone with intelligence.”, Gnine said stubbornly.

“Feh!”, Haradin scoffed. “Two little girls, a boy, a caretaker, and now a charlatan, just like his uncle!”

Haradin never quite saw what hit him and to be fair, he really didn’t see what hit him!

He stumbled forward as if he’d lost his step on a run and just dropped, face down..

..and stayed there.

“Viranes..”, Yuleman said in total defeat. “Why? Why would you do this?”

“I have just about had enough of his snark.”, flared the big, blocky woman.

“Do you know what he will do to you?”

“Don’t care.”, shrugged Viranes.

“He will write a petition all the way to Arashkan and summon a magistrate here and he’s got the power to do it.”

“Don’t care.”, Viranes repeated. “This is Serenity Home. Not Arashkan.”

“My dear Viranes, Serenity Home is bound to Arashkan.”, Yuleman said in a deflated tone. “He will make sure he gets everything you own when he sues you.”

“He can have whatever he wants from me. But he’ll have to dig them from under all the rubble, seeing as my home and my shop is also burned.”, Viranes said bitterly.

“He will need witnesses to sue her, you know?”, rumbled Standorin. “I honestly don’t know what happened. I was talking with my son and had my back turned. Whatever happened, must have happened too fast.”

“Stan..”, Yuleman said with a very disapproving tone.

“I was conferring with masters Gurk and Yarvel, here, and only saw him trip and fall, and I am sticking to that story!”, Thokan Silversong said from the side.

“Hell, yeah!”, barked Gurk Larson.

“Yes. What he said..”, nodded Yarvel Stratler with pursed lips.

“And Davien was talking with me. Isn’t that right, Davien?”, Moorat said.

“I was? I mean, you were?”, Davien asked a bit vaguely.

Moorat gave him a very evil glare.

“Well, I suppose I was.”, Davien said hastily.

“This sounds decidedly like a worldly matter that the Temple should not be involved.”, wheezed Demos.

“Nice. You all seem to have gotten yourselves covered.”, Yuleman glared at them all. “What about me? It happened right in front of me!”

“Don’t look at me, I am hurt. Isn’t that right, my dear Viranes?”, Nimbletyne asked.

“Damn, right, you are hurt.”, she said angrily.

“Uhhmm.. you could be busy trashing me, Mayor, Sir.”, Gnine offered in a small voice. “I don’t mind being trashed. Wouldn’t be the first time.”

Arthandos Yuleman sighed.

“This is doomed to come back and bite us. I am sure of it.”, he said in total defeat.

Lady Moira.”, Sheriff Standorin called over the crowd of people as he limped through the debris with his son behind him.

Lady Moira was a tall, athletic young woman, perhaps in her early twenties, with a mane of reddish-brown hair. She had broad shoulders, powerful arms, and long, shapely legs, all encased in heavy plate armor, and she was busy raking through the rubble, helping the townsmen move the larger stones. Apparently, she hadn’t bothered taking her armor off while doing manual labor. A sheathed longsword and a tall, heavy shield were leaning on a wall nearby. She was covered in soot and dust, her hair seemed disheveled, and her handsome face was all smudge smeared. She looked up when she heard her name and gave a sunny smile at the sheriff.

Udoorin just ogled at her.

“My Lord Sheriff Standorin. Good to see you again. Mayhap you should be resting. Methinks that wound is quite serious.”, she said solemnly.

“All in good time, Lady Moira.”, the sheriff said with a similar, solemn tone. “When you first arrived, you said you were looking for a job. Are you still interested?”

“But of course, My Lord Sheriff. I came here in hopes of righting wrongs and bringing shy miscreants to justice. And it would thus seem I could be of some use to your once merry town.”, she said, then grimaced, lowered her voice, and whispered. “Mind I drop the archaic? I am sure it hurts you almost as much it hurts me.”

Udoorin was openly staring at her now.

“However you wish it, Lady Moira.”, the sheriff said with a smile. “As it happens, our rangers have found tracks that belong to possible miscreants running from our town, and deep into the forest. We have put together a team of able young men and women to bring said miscreants to justice. Perhaps you could be persuaded to join them in this endeavor?”

“You need not ask, Sheriff. You have the legal authority to order any knight or paladin of a certain rank. They would be obligated to comply.”, Lady Moira said seriously. “I am equally comfortable helping these townsmen dig through the rubble as I am helping you find these bashful miscreants. Good is wherever we can help.”

“Thank you, Lady Moira. I would like to introduce you to my son, Udoorin. You will be in the same company with him, along with two rangers, a Temple Guardian, and an able young gnome. Someone will meet you just north of the town. Best you gather your belongings as soon as possible.”, Sheriff Standorin said.

“Then I am ready, Sir. Sans my sword and my shield, which do rest but a few yards over, all my worldly belongings are on me.”, she grinned, tapping her plate armor.

Yesh!”, whooped Bremorel Songsteel with an elated grin. “Finally!”

They had started soon after the council had adjourned. Young Udoorin and Thomas had carried Councilman Haradin Franderson’s unconscious body to his quite expensive townhouse, and told his son, Lucious, that his father had tripped and fallen, and possibly knocked himself out during the council meeting, then hastily left. Ranger novices, Laila and Bremorel had been promoted to full ranger status just before they had left and they both were quite happy about it. After a few farewells from the sheriff, the ranger masters Davien and Moorat, Master Nimbletyne, and Senior Temple Guardian Demos Lightshand, the group had departed for the long trek that would take them through vast reaches of Ritual Forest, and as far as their query would run.

“What are you so happy about, Ranger Bremorel Songsteel?”, her cousin Laila asked with a grin of her own.

“This is our first big and unattended assignment. That’s why I am excited, Ranger Laila Wolvesbane.”, Bremorel replied excitedly.

“How come you know so much about the law? You trampled right over Haradin, back there.”, Laila said, her grinning tone changed to something that sounded like she was rather impressed.

“I told you I read when we returned from our patrols. What did you think I have been reading all this time? Silly girly books?”

“Something like that.”, Laila admitted.

“Really? Just where do you think was I going to find those kinds of books? In the Temple library? All they have there are religious scripts and books on law.”, Bremorel said drearily. “Law seemed more exciting.”

Laila chuckled.

“I can’t believe the kind of things you do just to get a glimpse of that poor kid and then totally ignore him when he was standing right there, in the same room where we were. Could have said, goodbye, at least.”, Laila said.

“The conditions of my expectations haven’t changed. If he wants me so badly, he’s just going to have to man up and come speak to me..”, Bremorel said stubbornly..

Laila sighed.

“Your D.D. Dexter wasn’t there to say goodbye, to you either.”, Bremorel said a bit waspishly.

“D.D. isn’t in town. His master, Thokan Silversong, sent him on some journey a few days ago.”, she replied with another sigh. “That’s why he wasn’t there to greet me when we returned from our patrol the other day.”

“What? Why?”, Bremorel asked.

“Master Thokan said it’s a bard thing. All bards must travel every once in a while to gain certain worldly experience and perspective. Apparently, a bard can’t be stuck in one place for too long. They must set out and travel for a few weeks, or months, or years.”, she explained.

“Well, that’s a bummer.”, her cousin said. Then she added brightly, “But at least you two will get to miss each other.”

“I am not temperamentally equipped with the whole, ‘missing’ thing.”, Laila said quietly.

Bremorel fell silent.

She wasn’t temperamentally equipped with the whole, ‘missing’ thing, either.

Then she glanced back at Udoorin, who was wearing heavy chainmail and holding a big battleaxe in one hand. He had two more battleaxes strapped across his back along with a shield, his father’s longsword on his belt, any number of knives and daggers on several other belts, and even a few tucked in his boots. He was talking with the tall, reddish-brown-haired girl in her newly polished and shining armor, Lady Moira, who only had her heavy shield strapped to one arm, and her beautiful longsword hanging from her belt. The young man’s face was a bit flushed and was using his words sparingly. The girl, on the other hand, was quite generous with her words and her comely smile. Behind them came the little gnome, Gnine Tinkerdome, ogling openly at the paladin girl as Temple Guardian Lady Magella silently brought the rear, still scowling.

“This is going to be a merry band.”, Bremorel said with a touch of sarcasm. “Do you know her? I heard she is a real paladin.”

“First time I am seeing her. I did hear she came all the way from Durkahan about a week ago, but I don’t know why.”, Laila mused, also looking back.

They walked at a steady pace for the next two hours until they reached the edge of Ritual Forest when Bremorel spoke again.

“Well, at least we won’t be dealing with that arse, any time soon!”, her cousin sneered with spite.

“Which arse is that?”, Laila asked amusedly.

“That Aager-guy.”, Bremorel hissed.

“Good to know where we stand, Ranger Morel.”, growled a voice and Aager Fogstep appeared from behind the trees..