Chapter 64: Burned

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They finally made their way to the enemy camp, and Guiltare watched from the distance. It wasn't much unlike a war camp, with a sea of tents before them. It was stationed atop a plateau, with the entrance being a short natural wall, cliffs on either side, with a gently sloping hill that connected the camp to the ground. At this point, there had been a small gate constructed, sealing the camp inside, along with walls that crept along the cliff face to prevent others from simply bypassing the gate entirely.

She sighed."Gem's there somewhere..." She said, mostly to herself.

Morz, beside her, stayed silent, though he reached a hand beneath his mask. She looked, and when he retracted it, the tips of his glove were damp. She frowned."...Morz, are you-"

"I'll get started on the food." He stated, walking back to their camp, a bit deeper in the woods.

She looked and sighed, shaking her head. She'd learned long ago not to question Morz too deeply about his past beyond Black Griffin, but she could not help but wonder. He'd been even more sullen, more distant, since this mission began. She'd originally just attributed it to the banishment of Narra, but now...she couldn't help but wonder if All Sons was somehow related. Had he been a member once?

...Well, it was no matter, she supposed. He'd been focused, if nothing else, and that was better than shutting down over some trauma of his past. If the time ever came that she needed his story, she was sure he would tell it.
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She walked towards the gate slowly, keeping a hand on her sword. She'd done things like this in the past, but it always made her worry. Ethics or not, some would jump at the chance to slay an enemy leader.

She had Vaussten and Morz walked alongside her, Giles having been left behind to keep an eye on the camp. Vaussten held a white banner in the air, and with his free hand, tapped metal to metal in anticipation."Geez...Never thought they'd have so many damn guys. Be rough going through there...Though the Gate'd be hard to fix, considering the distance from the woods, give us a nice advantage. Could always wait them out, if it came to it.

Morz shook his head."A poor idea." He replied, pressing on his mask to make sure it was secure.

Vaussten glared."Use my full name. And why the heck not? Take time, but it's not like we have any big jobs that-"

"Gem." Guiltare cut in."We could wait them out, their supplies would dwindle. They'd come out to face us, dwindle their numbers to make the food stores last longer. But if there's a shortage of food, who do you suppose they'd cut off from the rations first?"

Vaussten sighed."The prisoners....right. Wasn't thinking."

Guiltare nodded and continued her trek forward, not replying to Vaussten's comment.
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Mar didn't like the man he saw.

Mar was normally a tolerant person, or at least, he had few reasons to hate any group of people, but this man gave him worry. He carried himself with an air of confidence, and walked as one might expect a lord to, as though the peasants on either side of the road should be grateful for his presence.

He shook his head. By the curled brown hair he saw, the man was clearly a Vraiman. Any Vraiman who carried himself like that these was one of two things. One who had succumbed and accepted Fauxmen terms to regain lordships, or a Vraiman who had been a traitor from the start, had aided in overthrowing their own king.

Either way, it meant they supported those who had ousted Savir, forced her to live in fear.

And so, Mar did not like the man he saw.

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