As I promised, so shall it be. Damn, so many people that I had to split the update into several bits! Be ready for a battle (maybe
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Remember, everyone with a dwarf in the military is here. You're all here, don't worry.
1 mile from designated goblin patrolsThe dwarves trudged on. The 11th royal swords and the 2nd royal spears (or The Hounds of Hell, as they liked to be known) were 20 minutes out from the last known goblin patrol. They were to sweep the area in an attempt to track down any patrols in the vicinity. If they discovered any, they were to engage and terminate with extreme and excessive prejudice. Most of the dwarves were bored out of there skull. They had been out here for at least a week, searching for patrols, in which time the two companies had managed to integrate with each other. It wasn’t too hard. The 2nd royal spears had been a misnomer since the beginning of the war. There were very few speardwarfs left in the army. Beakdogs had been driven to extinction in the first goblin massacre and most dwarves considered spears an attempt to distance yourself from the enemy, which was undwarven. Crossbows were an exception to this due to there necessity and the lives they saved. Because of this, 2nd spears was an all purpose group. Dwarves with every skill with every weapon were part of it and it gave the company fantastic tactical flexibility. There were dwarves for every situation.
Forrest was on point. He had been congratulated for killing the goblin two weeks earlier but received no award. He didn’t care, he just loved doing what he did. He listen carefully for any sign of hostiles, eyes constantly searching the area ahead and to the sides. Behind him…
Humaan, the self proclaimed swordmaster, was swinging his weapon of choice around in a complicated movement. He was eager to encounter some goblins as despite his boasts and proclamations, he had yet to engage another living creature. He couldn’t wait. He holstered his sword and glared at the distant figure of Forrest up ahead. He just did not understand that dwarf. Who would choose to fight with a crossbow? It was akin to a spear, a cowardly weapon, with no honour to be gained by killing someone with it. He did not dislike the dwarf, but took every opportunity to ridicule him, just for fun.
Kogan, commander of the Hounds of Hell, was trotting along, in the middle of the group. He was a very quite, secluded dwarf. Everyone knew why. He carried the name Truebasments. That had elevated him to something of a legend in the dwarven world and his amazing proficiency with an axe helped too. He currently had it slung over his shoulder, ready in a moments notice, should the goblins show up. He couldn’t wait to show them he was a worthy opponent.
Behind him, Labs walked along, slapping his good luck charm into his hand every other step. It was a preserved carp body. He had wrestled it from the river in his late 20’s. His whole town was astonished and the local garrison had immediately started sparring with him, though he had no interest in joining the military at that time. It was not until the war started that he decided that it would be a good career. He had joined up when the 2nd spears, at that time quite a small outfit, had bedded in the town. He loved it but the Hounds had yet to see combat. He wondered how he would deal with it.
Tamunshin had been recently rotated into the 11th swords, after rejoining the military several months ago. He slept on his own at the camp and didn’t converse with the other dwarves. He had become the center of discussion around the campfire. All had seen him spar and all were amazed at his prowess. Humaan considered him his own personal hero. Everyone was slightly afraid of him, but there was no-one they would rather have on there side in a fight. Not to mention the fact that his sword was engraved with glowing runes and was almost as big as he was! His hair covered his eyes, preventing anyone seeing them, but it didn’t seem to impede him in any way.
Raptor was conversing with Vilien at the back. He was the sword’s medic, and damn good at it too. If anyone could keep a calm face whilst delving into the bloody mess of a wounded comrade, it was him. His cold visage was perfect for combat, terrifying any goblins foolish enough to fight him. So far he had ended the life of two stupid enemies. He was eager to increase that number.
Limul Thak was chatting with a macedwarf next to him, laugh and talking about small, unimportant things. His was an important job. Once the site had been cleared, they needed to inspect the area, test the rock, fortify the site… Without him the two companies would have a much harder time. That wasn’t to say he was only there for the mining (which he frequently insisted he wasn’t all that great at anyway) as he could easily handle himself in a fight. His axe was the envy of all the dwarves in the camp, gilded with silver and decorated with a gold locket that he did not know how to open. He was eager to give his axe its first taste of blood in years.
Quote didn't want to be here but apparently if you killed a goblin in a combat zone, you
had to join the military. And so now, he was part of the 2nd royal spears. Despite his proficiency with a spear, he had decided to train with an axe to make the men respect him more. He still carried his spear around with him. Oh well, he thought. At least father will be pleased.
Ryan, recent addition to the 11th royal swords, was loitering at the back. He was nervous. He didn’t want people to rely on him; for fear that he might fail them. He was the youngest dwarf in the group and whilst he was a crack shot, he was unexperienced and with inexperience comes nervousness. He just hoped he could do what he needed to do, when the time came.
Forrest stopped, turned and raised his hand. Humaan saw his gesture and turned and did the same. Bardbeard and Kogan pushed to the front. Kogan motioned for Forrest to come back, before turning to Bardbeard and nodding. Bardbeard was acting commander for a short time. Barbarossa had reasoned that this mission was all about exterminating the goblins and if a leaders only major fault was a burning desire to exterminate goblins, he was a good enough leader for this mission. He raised his voice to be heard by the now quite dwarves.
“Lads, you all know the deal. We sweep the area. Take a partner and move off. If you find a goblin, you call out. Loudly. Go.”
The assembled men nodded and began to move off. They doubted they would find anything today.
(There’s no animals because animals aren’t dumb enough to stick around. Animals are pretty genre savvy)
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Topic: To venture north, into Hell: Othtar Noloc, world at war (Read 106412 times)