Borne of Fire

Chapter 33

They slept fitfully for the next few hours. Dreams of caverns filled with wargs and being chased with nowhere to run being one of a number of shared nightmares they endured. Screams in the dark and fighting for their lives, night sweats and grinding of teeth, not one of them rested soundly despite the potency of the brew McSween had fixed for them.

Eventually they decided they had rested enough. One by one, waking and stretching, checking and cleaning blades before searching for and applying a healing balm to various cuts and abrasions they had picked up over the last few days. They spoke in hushed tones, not wanting to acknowledge or comment on the haunted looks they all wore, on dark eyes, sunken cheeks and furrowed brows. Gradually, and in no small part helped by a mug of another one of McSweens brews, they began to shake the ill feelings that waking had failed to dispel and tentatively began readying themselves for the day ahead.

McSween himself was nowhere to be seen but his occasional expletives followed by an assortment of bangs and whoops told anyone concerned that he was in the room next door, presumably continuing his study of the Ulrogg weapon. They left him to it and ventured outside intending to explain the situation to the villagers who would no doubt be grateful that an organised stand was being made before joining their army accordingly.

It quickly became apparent that this was not to be the case.

"They're like a bunch of ossolitches!" cried Ja'aris.

"A what?" asked a confused Braxter. Ja'aris spat in the dirt and so it was left to L'non to explain.

"It's a creature from the south. A large bird with a long neck. When it's threatened it has been known to bury its head in the sand until the threat is gone."

"Or it's eaten." added Randyl. Braxter raised his eyebrows in understanding.

"And that's exactly what's going to happen here. These people - these cowards - are burying their heads in the sand and kidding themselves that the Ulrogg won't be back. But they will be back. And soon! And then this lot will be slaughtered...or worse." Ja'aris sat on a low wall, fidgeting with one of his blades while he ranted. Braxter was shocked, not only by the revelation that an animal as stupid as an ossolitch could exist but that Ja'aris had been moved enough by the villager's behaviour to speak at such length.

They had all given up any hope of recruiting an army from Heldaro but the idea that not a single one of its people would be joining their cause was proving a hard thing for them to accept.

Braxter had run out of convincing arguments soon after they had left McSween that afternoon. He had presumed that self-preservation would have been enough to turn them to their cause but it appeared not.

"They're scared. It shows on every face we see. They can't imagine we'll be able to stand against the might of the Ulrogg so they prefer to convince themselves that there is no war to be won." L'non reasoned from where he sat on the ground in front of Ja'aris and Braxter. His words were spoken calmly but in truth he felt as frustrated as his watcher brother by the attitudes with which they had been met. "They seemed more scared by the presence of two watchers within their precious village boundary than by the possibility of the Ulrogg returning to finish the job they started. In hindsight it may have been wiser to allow Randyl and Braxter to go and talk to them."

"Are you kidding?" Ja'aris wasn't convinced that was such a good idea. "You saw how he was. He would have killed everyone in that tavern if we hadn't been there...not sure that wouldn't have been doing them a favour in the long run as it goes."

The three of them turned their gazes towards Randyl who stood alone, a short distance away. His hands were clenched together behind his back and his head held high as he looked to the southern edges of the village. There was nothing of note to be seen there but that was believed to be the direction the Ulrogg had come from when they attacked and so it was presumed, perhaps naively, that they would come from that direction again.