Chapter 26
Signs of twenty six
Freeman was awakened in the morning and had a meal with his men. After the camp had been packed the reavers smoothly got to their feet and continued to travel to the north.
Freeman walked with his men and talked with them about what to expect.
“We have to be prepared that this is a trap,” He told them, “but it does not feel like a trap to me. I think that this undead army is a threat to both our lands and the corrupted lands. We have to see where the reavers lead us and react from there. I suspect they are bringing us to someone who can parlay with us.”
The men accepted this. Freeman was sure that this was a peace offer from the creatures of this land.
Freeman listened as the men talked about what they had learned about the undead. He was impressed as the men spoke of tactics tat would exploit the weaknesses of the enemy they faced. Several defensive formations were discussed that would limit the undead's strengths and give the humans a clear advantage. The men all talked about defeating the enemy. None of them were talking about how they could beat the enemy if they got more men, or were reinforced. They were planning to defeat this threat with only the men the had now.
He even heard a plan on how they could defeat the minions of the corrupted lands and then defeat the undead. Freeman thought that was more positive thinking than any strategy that could be used.
Freeman noticed that the reavers had stopped. He took a handful of men and moved forward to meet them. One of the reavers simply pointed to the north and turned and walked away. Freeman got the men moving to the north and watched the reavers as the moved off.
“Okay, keep your eyes and ears open.” Freeman said. “I want to make sure we see what is coming before is sees us.”
The men formed into groups and kept moving north supporting each other. The men watched for what was coming. They were not prepared for what came.
A short squat man was standing in the grass in front of the advanced group.
“Greetings, strangers.” The man said. “The brothers of the claw have told us of your coming.”
“Greetings.” Freeman answered. “We are hear to look for our undead enemy. Can I assume you are our ally in this battle?”
“You are rash, but from what we can tell you are a string battle leader. Please join me and we will discuss undead and how we can cleanse he land from of this plague.”
Freeman looked at the creature judging whether he could trust the thing. It was not something they had seen or heard of from the corrupted lands. The small man seemed to read his thoughts.
“You can trust me in this battle leader. If you feel it necessary bring a guard.”
With that he turned and disappeared.
Freeman ran to the point he had last seen the creature and discovered that there was a small opening in the ground with a tight stair leading into the ground. Freeman called for a guard he selected three men to take with him. The rest were to make a camp within site of this spot.
He descended into the earth down the stair. The stair slowly curved in on itself and after dropping nearly a hundred paces the stairs lead to a landing with a hall opening, leading into darkness. Freeman was starting to wonder if this was a good idea. He paced down the hall and eventually entered a small conference room. The room was a fair size but was built for the stature of his hosts. His head nearly scraped the ceiling. He found himself facing four of the small creatures, they motioned for him to join them. They had provided him with a chair that was over sized for them but rather tiny for Freeman.
He sat and the man he had spoken to greeted him again. “Welcome battle leader. We have followed your exploits. We are impressed with your success against the legion of the dead. We hope you will be willing to work with us to defeat this threat.”
Freeman looked about the room to buy him some time before he had to answer. The paneling was some type of stone but it had patterns like a old growth tree. The men he face sat in small chairs. The chairs were placed precisely to fit into the pattern on the floor. Except for his chair. There seemed to be a flow to the room. The ceiling had a soft glow, it was bright enough to allow you so see the entire room but not harsh enough to cast stark shadows. The natural patterns in the walls complemented the artistic patterns of the floor. The men themselves even seemed to fit the pattern. The only thing out of place seemed to be himself and the three guards standing awkwardly behind him.
Freeman addressed his men “Wait for me outside. You should be able to wait for me at the foot of the stairs.” he waved away a protest, “If an attack is coming it will come with you here or not.”
The men walked slowly from the room and returned slowly to the stairs.
Next he addressed his hosts. “I mean no offense, but what are you? I have been in and out of the corrupted lands for years and I have never seen nor heard of any creature like you before.”
“We are the guardians of the land.” one spoke.
“We are the saviors of the people.” another continued.
“We are the enemy of death.” the third finished. This was the man thing that had spoke to him on the surface above. “we have always been here but we do not enter the lands above often. The brothers of the claw are very strong and we are not. We do not like to control them unless absolutely necessary.”
“We are an old race. We have rested here below the world for a very long time. Long before the border to your world was put in place. We strive to keep peace in our lands but we allow the natural order to take its course. We regret that some of the creatures form the surface enter your world and cause harm, they are not evil they are simple creatures searching for food.”
“The creatures you know as reavers were guardians of a land that is forever lost to them. They strive to enter your land and find what was lost to them. They are warlike and not friendly. I understand that you have become very adept at battling them. I fear that they are nearly lost. I do not think they will return to their former glory, they are lost I think. Lost for all time.”
All three seemed to share a moment of extreme sadness. Like a parent who had just seen a child dragged of to prison for crimes they did not commit.
“We ask you again. Will you work with us against the threat form the dead?”
Freeman knew that he had to commit to a course of action and follow through to the end. He did not have the men to confront this menace directly so he knew he had to accept any ally that approached him.
“Yes.” He told them, “I will join on your battle against the dead. What do we do to defeat these creatures?”
“Welcome Freeman, brother of the sun. We are gladdened that you have joined us in our quest. We know of the source of the undead. We can show you where the threat began but it will be up to you to destroy the source of the corruption.”
“When do we start?” Freeman asked.
“We already have.” One of them answered. “We can provide you with a fighting force of claw brothers but you mist first learn the source of your enemies power. You will also learn why our lands are tied together like they are. Only once you have master that knowledge will you be able to defeat this enemy.”
Freeman felt like he had just signed a deal with the powers of darkness. But it was deal he would accept if it cleansed the land of the undead army attacking his homeland.
Freeman was awakened in the morning and had a meal with his men. After the camp had been packed the reavers smoothly got to their feet and continued to travel to the north.
Freeman walked with his men and talked with them about what to expect.
“We have to be prepared that this is a trap,” He told them, “but it does not feel like a trap to me. I think that this undead army is a threat to both our lands and the corrupted lands. We have to see where the reavers lead us and react from there. I suspect they are bringing us to someone who can parlay with us.”
The men accepted this. Freeman was sure that this was a peace offer from the creatures of this land.
Freeman listened as the men talked about what they had learned about the undead. He was impressed as the men spoke of tactics tat would exploit the weaknesses of the enemy they faced. Several defensive formations were discussed that would limit the undead's strengths and give the humans a clear advantage. The men all talked about defeating the enemy. None of them were talking about how they could beat the enemy if they got more men, or were reinforced. They were planning to defeat this threat with only the men the had now.
He even heard a plan on how they could defeat the minions of the corrupted lands and then defeat the undead. Freeman thought that was more positive thinking than any strategy that could be used.
Freeman noticed that the reavers had stopped. He took a handful of men and moved forward to meet them. One of the reavers simply pointed to the north and turned and walked away. Freeman got the men moving to the north and watched the reavers as the moved off.
“Okay, keep your eyes and ears open.” Freeman said. “I want to make sure we see what is coming before is sees us.”
The men formed into groups and kept moving north supporting each other. The men watched for what was coming. They were not prepared for what came.
A short squat man was standing in the grass in front of the advanced group.
“Greetings, strangers.” The man said. “The brothers of the claw have told us of your coming.”
“Greetings.” Freeman answered. “We are hear to look for our undead enemy. Can I assume you are our ally in this battle?”
“You are rash, but from what we can tell you are a string battle leader. Please join me and we will discuss undead and how we can cleanse he land from of this plague.”
Freeman looked at the creature judging whether he could trust the thing. It was not something they had seen or heard of from the corrupted lands. The small man seemed to read his thoughts.
“You can trust me in this battle leader. If you feel it necessary bring a guard.”
With that he turned and disappeared.
Freeman ran to the point he had last seen the creature and discovered that there was a small opening in the ground with a tight stair leading into the ground. Freeman called for a guard he selected three men to take with him. The rest were to make a camp within site of this spot.
He descended into the earth down the stair. The stair slowly curved in on itself and after dropping nearly a hundred paces the stairs lead to a landing with a hall opening, leading into darkness. Freeman was starting to wonder if this was a good idea. He paced down the hall and eventually entered a small conference room. The room was a fair size but was built for the stature of his hosts. His head nearly scraped the ceiling. He found himself facing four of the small creatures, they motioned for him to join them. They had provided him with a chair that was over sized for them but rather tiny for Freeman.
He sat and the man he had spoken to greeted him again. “Welcome battle leader. We have followed your exploits. We are impressed with your success against the legion of the dead. We hope you will be willing to work with us to defeat this threat.”
Freeman looked about the room to buy him some time before he had to answer. The paneling was some type of stone but it had patterns like a old growth tree. The men he face sat in small chairs. The chairs were placed precisely to fit into the pattern on the floor. Except for his chair. There seemed to be a flow to the room. The ceiling had a soft glow, it was bright enough to allow you so see the entire room but not harsh enough to cast stark shadows. The natural patterns in the walls complemented the artistic patterns of the floor. The men themselves even seemed to fit the pattern. The only thing out of place seemed to be himself and the three guards standing awkwardly behind him.
Freeman addressed his men “Wait for me outside. You should be able to wait for me at the foot of the stairs.” he waved away a protest, “If an attack is coming it will come with you here or not.”
The men walked slowly from the room and returned slowly to the stairs.
Next he addressed his hosts. “I mean no offense, but what are you? I have been in and out of the corrupted lands for years and I have never seen nor heard of any creature like you before.”
“We are the guardians of the land.” one spoke.
“We are the saviors of the people.” another continued.
“We are the enemy of death.” the third finished. This was the man thing that had spoke to him on the surface above. “we have always been here but we do not enter the lands above often. The brothers of the claw are very strong and we are not. We do not like to control them unless absolutely necessary.”
“We are an old race. We have rested here below the world for a very long time. Long before the border to your world was put in place. We strive to keep peace in our lands but we allow the natural order to take its course. We regret that some of the creatures form the surface enter your world and cause harm, they are not evil they are simple creatures searching for food.”
“The creatures you know as reavers were guardians of a land that is forever lost to them. They strive to enter your land and find what was lost to them. They are warlike and not friendly. I understand that you have become very adept at battling them. I fear that they are nearly lost. I do not think they will return to their former glory, they are lost I think. Lost for all time.”
All three seemed to share a moment of extreme sadness. Like a parent who had just seen a child dragged of to prison for crimes they did not commit.
“We ask you again. Will you work with us against the threat form the dead?”
Freeman knew that he had to commit to a course of action and follow through to the end. He did not have the men to confront this menace directly so he knew he had to accept any ally that approached him.
“Yes.” He told them, “I will join on your battle against the dead. What do we do to defeat these creatures?”
“Welcome Freeman, brother of the sun. We are gladdened that you have joined us in our quest. We know of the source of the undead. We can show you where the threat began but it will be up to you to destroy the source of the corruption.”
“When do we start?” Freeman asked.
“We already have.” One of them answered. “We can provide you with a fighting force of claw brothers but you mist first learn the source of your enemies power. You will also learn why our lands are tied together like they are. Only once you have master that knowledge will you be able to defeat this enemy.”
Freeman felt like he had just signed a deal with the powers of darkness. But it was deal he would accept if it cleansed the land of the undead army attacking his homeland.
posted by shaneknysh at 23:43
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