The morning came with no disturbances. The elf was already up, peering through the morning darkness for anything unusual. She looked stunning in her outfit. She always did. But she never did show a sign. Always aloof. I didn't give one either, so that makes it even I guess.
Breakfast was lean, dry, cold and sober. Yeap. Happy days were over, and from the look of things they would not come again for some time.
We set out carefully to search the village for any survivors. "Anything standing" would be a more appropriate phrasing. Gannanath was no longer. The outer wall had but vanished. The only thing that remained of the village was rubble upon rubble. Everything that could be broken was broken. And the smell. That terrible smell. The smell of corpses. Our decapitated fellow villagers. They were everywhere. A dark reminder of the horrors that took place here just a couple of nights ago. The smell was penetrating every single pore on our bodies. I will never forget the smell.
We searched a bit, but it was soon obvious that nothing could be found. Nothing living was left living. Nothing useful was left behind. Nothing man-made was left standing. The destruction was total.
Suddenly a noise. Something coming from the forest with no want to cover its approach. Orcs! I felt the anger fill me up, but they were many. We quickly took cover as best we could.
They came from the west. A patrol of sorts. Warg riders and warriors, and in the lead a huge orc. He still carried his trophy. I could clearly discern Burg's crooked nose. His head was hanging like a pouch on the leader's belt. His milky-white eyes seemed to look straight into mine, burning forever in my mind. You will be avenged friend, even if I have to descend into the burning Nine Hells of Baator!
A warg approached the hiding place of Vadania, sniffing the air. My fingers tightened around the hilt of my sword. I was ready to leap on the foul beast. I was ready to die right then and there. The ward sniffed. I could imagine Vadania shaking. Hold on just a few more seconds my dear. The beast was satisfied and left. Soon the group moved out of the village. Out of the village, but not out of my mind. I will look out for your face orc. Soon your head will adorn my belt. I shall carry it as a banner against your foul brethren.
After a few minutes we carefully exited our hiding places. The orcs were heading towards Olthar. The only thing we could do was to quickly report to Soh Gualar, the nearest village, about a week's worth of walking away, so we set off as fast as we could.
The trail was hard, but not worth the trip. Soh Gualar was another massacre. From our vantage point we could discern the burning carcass of the village. Humans were caught completely off guard. Nothing remained, same as before. Higher authorities should be notified. Immediately!
We marched for days, avoiding the paths of the forest. No fire. No stops. Hard march. Constantly evading goblin and orc patrols. By this time they had flooded the whole forest. Nothing was able to stop the onslaught. At least, nothing right now.
The nights were broken only by sudden night sounds and the constant vigilance we had to keep. The only real event was during the fourth night of our flight. A shadow cut made a sudden attack during my watch, but was quickly dispatched.
Finally, on the eight day we reached the clearing. A small country road leading towards the highway. Apart from a Gnoll ambush which we avoided nothing else happened until the highway. I prayed to Kord for his blessing in getting safely out. A small donation to Fharlanghn, the god of travel, was fit, so I thanked him as well.
Hooves' sounds in the distance. The rogue and the ranger took cover as the highway patrol approached. This could go very bad indeed. I suddenly became aware of my appearance. "A moving, muddied, wet, unshaved rug" would be a good description. The best course of action was to make myself clearly seen, so I stepped in the middle of the road and held my hand up as a sign. The horsemen stopped in front of me, all glad in full armor. Certainly not a match if things got on the wrong foot.
- Who are you? asked their leader. A burly man, almost my size. A priest of some kind. And tell your friends to come out of hiding. Vadania and Sonia quickly obliged.
- The last survivors of Gannanath, I replied. The forest is under an invasion from the goblins and orcs.
- Invasion? Are you sure boy?
I gave him no answer. The pouch full of fresh goblin and orc ears was enough evidence. He quickly changed pose.
- My men will take you to the nearest inn to rest.
- We want to help. Our friends, people that we knew forever, died. Slaughtered. We want to participate in whatever way we can. And we know the layout.
- Good. Report to the fort towards Bravil as soon as you 're able.
By nightfall we had reached the inn. The first descent meal in weeks. And a bath! The bed was soft and warm. Not that I paid any attention. I slept before hitting the pillow. My dreams were filled with the horrors we had witnessed, but a glimmer of hope was in the air. A meadow. Vadania is there, playing with the birds. I watch from a distance. Some day. Yes. Some day...
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