The air is still acrid with the smell of smoke, though most of the fires were extinguished the day before yesterday (or was it the day before that?) and the enemy troops driven back roughly to the positions they held a week ago.  The war here is being won, so far, but at what cost?

From the hilltop, Aaron looks down at the new scar on the face of Arden, a swathe of ash and charred trees almost a mile wide.  It could have been much worse, if not for the near constant rain.

The enemy is somewhere beyond the burned area.

The most recent reports place them around a hill about a dozen miles to the west.  But that report was from yesterday.  There's no guarantee that it's accurate - the enemy troops, not quite human, have proven themselves surprisingly mobile and adaptable.  The burned area is the result of one of their newer tactics.  Aaron lost five men because of it - two trying to keep the fire from speading, and three more, volunteers all, to crossbow quarrels as they tried to cross the open ground after the burn was controlled.

Things might be better if Dorian were here - with extra troops and a few tricks of his own - but there's been no news of his whereabouts for almost a week, save for unconfirmed reports of fighting to the south.

"Sir?"

It's Callan, one of the Rangers and Aaron's lieutenant.  Another man stands behind him, dressed in greens and browns, with dye on his face to match the colours of his clothes.  "Sir.  One of the scouts returned early.  He says there is something new coming.  Something he's never seen before."

Aaron turned, seeing Callan standing there and the even more welcome face of one of his scouts. They were good men, dedicated and ready to fight for Amber, but this battle had taken a lot from them. Even then, despite their setbacks, they had proven time and again that they wouldn't let a single inch of land be taken without consequence.

Still, this scout had returned far sooner than he'd expected. He leveled his gaze at the scout, taking his measure.

"Scout, what is your name? What did you see?"

"Name's Daley, sir." the scout replies, raising a hand in a sort of half salute.

"I was away over south, round 'bout a day out, and I ran across a dozen of those big buggers, you know, the ones with the red skin what we've been fightin' a lot lately?  They was all sittin' round 'avin' a bit of grub, an yammerin' away in that strange lingo of theirs.  Now I don't really know it, but I could see they was a bit scared 'bout somethin'.  So normal like, I'd just note where they was, an' 'ow many, an' I'd move on, but on account of them bein' jumpy, I reckoned I'd see if'n I could see why."

"Anyways, I 'id out near them for a bit, an' kept an eye open, an' after a bit longer, another one came into the camp an' jabbered somethin' about 'ow someone were comin'.  Not long after that, this... thing walked in on them.  It were bigger than any of them, about a man an' a 'alf tall, with shoulders about so wide... "  The scout shifts his hands to indicate a width of about four feet.

"Looked like a man, it did, only it's 'ead 'ad a 'orn on the front, right 'ere."  A finger taps to indicate a position just above the bridge of the nose, "An' the eyes was like some wild beast.  An' it 'ad a tail like an ox.  So it jus' strolls in, carryin' a big axe, an' grinnin' like it'd 'eard the best joke ever, an' all the redskins is down on the deck, kneelin' with their faces in the dirt."

"So the fellah, 'e says as 'ow they all needs to be ready, on account of 'ow an 'undred of 'is brothers is comin', an' when they gets 'ere, then the war will start again.  Only now 'im an' 'is brothers will win it."

The scout shrugs, "An' that was pretty much it.  A bit after that the redskins starts movin' about, an' the new fellah sits down for a bit to eat, so I decided it were time to bugger off."

Aaron got a good image from Daley's description and motions, closing his eyes to let it all sink in. "Great. Just what the men need. A giant cousin to Tim Curry's Devil from "Legend"..."

When the man finished, Aaron opened his eyes and nodded.

Aaron patted him on the shoulder. "To say you did well is an understatement, but I need more from you. I want you to take me to the area you spotted that thing in. What you've provided is invaluable, but if our enemies are going to throw some specialized units our way, I want to see what they can do with my own eyes."

He gestured to the nearby tents. "Take a break, Daley. We've still a bit before we set out, but you and I are moving soon." Aaron then turned to Callan.

"We need to notify the other scouts of this as soon as possible so they know what to look for. We don't know what these things are capable of yet, but I'm trusting that since Daley was able to exfiltrate without much trouble, they might not be as sensitive as I generally anticipate." Aaron's eyes narrowed. "Still, our red enemies showed much deference to that thing. Anything that causes them to cower gets me interested. After you notify the scouts, see if you can get the word around the rest of the troops, see if anyone else has heard anything about giant, horned, axe-wielding demonoids or their ilk. However, keep it to the other Rangers and those on a need-to-know basis, and do it quietly. The grunts will learn of these things eventually, but I'd rather they stay focused on our current targets."

That was a tough call to make at this time. Aaron didn't want the morale of the troops to be affected any worse than it already was, but he was just as concerned about getting solid intel on their new enemies. Knowing they were in Amber was one thing, but knowing what they could do was quite another. More importantly, Aaron didn't want their enemies to know that they knew.

"I'm hoping to not be gone long. Callan, keep the our sights on our current targets, especially more bands of redskins intent on smoking us out, as well as an eye out for anything new. Refresh our scouts as necessary. We're not going to give them Arden without them paying a heavy toll, and I'm sure as hell not going to let them burn it to the ground around us."

"Giant, horned, axe-wielding demonoids," Luke mused, looking out over the devastation from beside Aaron.  "Sounds and looks just like my second home, or so they say."  He glanced to the side, studying Aaron's profile.  "And where do you plan on haring off to, Aaron of Auld Thiriel, San Anyn, Amber, and...well, the list does chug along at times, doesn't it?"

Leaning back, he studied the weary warrior. "Nothing missing, I see." One eyebrow quirked.  "Yet."

Aaron was already stowing most of his gear when he sensed Luke approach. His sarcasm only made Aaron snort.

"I," he said, checking Ilse in her sheath. "...am off with one of my scouts, to try to get a better eye on inevitability."

He extended a hand towards him. "And you? I assume you've been busy?"

Daley nods in confirmation, "I can get you there, sir.  Like I were sayin', it's 'bout a day out from 'ere.  I'll just get some supplies for the trail, an' I'll be good to go, soon as you are."

He moves off and Aaron gives instructions to Callan, "Best I can say is that we'll let them know as they report in.  They're good at hiding, and they have instructions which let them move freely through the forest.  The only time I see any of them is when they come in to tell us what they've found.  I was born and raised in Arden, and I couldn't find one of the scouts if he didn't want to be found."

"Rumour says they can turn themselves into trees and animals."  And a grin, to show that the doesn't believe in that nonsense.  Trouble is, that grin isn't entirely convincing.

He glances at Luke, a puzzled look on his face, like a man who is sure he recognises a face, but isn't sure where he knows it from.

Aaron seems to know who it is though, and now he thinks of it, Callan is sure he's seen the man a number of times over the last few days.

"Oh, been around here and there.  Everywhere."  Luke grinned, his teeth breathtakingly shiny (and currently normal).  "Helping Cyan for a bit, but she doesn't need it right now.  I'm probably the worst person to have with her, given how I tick everyone off."

He accepted Aaron's hand without hesitation, his own grip firm (without being crushing), dry, and oddly warm, almost as if he were running a fever.

"So I finished up some projects I've had in the works, then sat down and thought for a bit," he continued.  "And I realized I hadn't seen you in a time.  'What better way,' I told myself, 'to amuse myself than to inflict my presence upon Aaron.'"

He chuckled at Callan's words.  "Shapeshifters?  Good thing you have her with you, Aaron.  Should help with that sort of thing.  Me too." A quick breath on his nails, then Luke buffed them on his shirt.  "Got to keep those scouts from getting too uppity, eh?"

Then the amusement faded, and he studied Aaron with his dark, dark eyes.  "Who do we fight here, Aaron?  What do they seek?"

Chuckling, Aaron nodded. "Yes, yes. Seems to me you're up to your usual."

His mirth left him then as Luke probed further. Aaron couldn't hide the seriousness of the situation. He turned to stare out at blackened, scarred Arden.

"In all honesty, I do not know what or whom we fight here. The Archons, I am used to, and these red ones as well. Yet this battle is an odd one. We hold them off from Arden, but for how long? It is clear they're willing to step up the battle, as the most recent reports of their reinforcing attest, but the enemy seems more focused on exhausting us than killing us outright. Pretty standard if you've got an entrenched defender, but I came into this... expecting more, I suppose."

He shook his head. "I don't understand it. That's why I'm going to see what's next. Maybe then I can answer your question."

"Archons?"  Luke's frown deepened. "That isn't...that should be over."

His dark eyes stared out over the burn before him, and his senses expand, searching for the enemy. "Cyan has brokered a truce," he explained.  "As of now, Harbonah's archons - the nephillim -" he snorted, sounding amused "- are holding off.  The war has ground to a halt.  Whatever happens here, whomever is in command here, they're doing this against Harbonah's wishes."

He grimaced.  "Not that we're all best pals with him now, but Harry has decided to let bygones be bygones if we can just fix the archons problems.  No more killing on either side...hopefully."  Another snort.  "I'm skeptical, but if they can pull it off, faaaan-tastic."

His arm waved out over the battlefield. "So if that's the case, what is this?"

Callan answer's Luke's question, "We've been fighting the enemy forces all through here for weeks.  Every time we drive them back, they come back at us with a new tactic.  Three days age we pushed them hard, and they responded by setting fires to stop us pursuing them.  You can see the result of that."  He waves a hand, a gesture that encompasses a vast swathe of still smouldering woodland.

"It would have been worse, if not for all the rain we've had.  As it was, the fire was contained just to this vale."

"Hrmph."  Luke listened quietly, for a change, his dark eyes thoughtful. "Pretty smart of them, all things considered, and they're burning enemy territory.  No great loss for them.  This isn't a war of conquest, after all." He snapped his fingers. "Of course.  Time, lines of communication, all of that.  When you live outside of that kind of thing, you tend to forget it.  It hasn't been that long.  The Seraphim here don't know."

He faced about to Aaron.  "If you can hold here, word will eventually reach the enemy that things are shut down for the moment.  That's not to say you shouldn't push, or whatever it is you're doing -" this with a little wave of the hand "- but this won't last.  I don't know how long it'll take the message to reach here, is all."

A thought came, and he paced in a circle, mulling it over. "I suppose we could take message to them ourselves.  Mountain, Museylamah, all of that." 

Aaron couldn't help but look surprised at Luke's admonition of the current state of affairs. He had, after all, been mostly held up in Arden and focused entirely on its defense. It had been... a necessary distraction.

But he couldn't afford to be distracted, now. With the Archons removed from the board as potential threats, Aaron was able to narrow his thinking.

"Alright, Luke. Yes, I agree with you. I want to know what's going on out there," he said, gesturing towards the blackened green. "But I would prefer to have reinforcements just in case. I can hold, but I don't think we have a whole lot of time."

He placed his hands on his hips and was quite for a few moments, obviously considering.

"Fine. We'll go tell them ourselves."
This message was last edited by the player at 00:56, Tue 13 Aug 2013.

"What?" the sudden shocked  outburst from Callan is followed by a stammering apology, "I- I'm sorry, Sir.  I just thought I heard you say you're planning to go and talk to the enemy."

"The same enemy that has neither given nor asked quarter since coming to Arden, and who think a flag of truce just means you brought a napkin for him to use when he eats you.  You do know that some of those red creatures that Daley reported devoured most of my predecessor, just two days before your arrival here?"

The man's face has grown visibly paler.  But at least when he speaks agai he sounds calmer, though more determined, "As your second in command, Sir, I am duty-bound to advise against any course of action on your part which I believe to be foolhardy.  This plan would fall into that category."

"Man has a point.  These people, maybe they're not the sort you want hanging around in your neighbourhood."  He grinned, and now his smile was edged, both figuratively and literally.  "I know the sort."

The smile faded and Luke pondered the distant enemy lines.  "If we annihilate their support...well, the Archons won't care about that.  They're just using these creatures as cannon fodder.  Alternately, we get to the Seraphim and let them know the state of affairs, then without their commands, maybe the invaders fall apart."

"I'm sure showing them a bright new world to play with will help...thank you, James."  He snorted.  "Destruction is easy.  But James made a great play on Hosk and got the Seraphim to sit up and listen for a bit.  Turns out Harbonah is less of an insane monster and more of a 'nobody matters but my Archons' type.  Who'd have thought he and I would have so much in common?"

"Either way, I can show the Seraphim here what happened on Hosk.  They might think it a trick, but...I was there for all of it, and the old bastard isn't the only one who can replay events directly." He pursed his lips in a moue of annoyance.  "Family trait, I suppose."

Aaron loudly snorted and spat.

"It was so much easier when it was just us avoiding or facing the Archons. Holding point isn't really my strong suit, but I've already been at this for a while, so I might as well grind it out."

He waved a hand at Luke.

"Go do what you think is right, Luke. I'll stick around and see what I can find out about this new wrinkle." The short man frowned, cast a dark eye sideways at Callan. "Thanks for the reminder."

Surprised, Luke laughed, a short, sharp bark.  "Ah, no, Aaron.  You misunderstand.  Or you're being amusing.  I'm not sure which."  Bitterness tinged his lopsided smile.  "Are you seriously suggesting that I go and speak to the Archons?  To parlay with them?  ME?  Can you imagine how that might play out?  I assure you, I can."

He paced in a circle.  "There was a time when I was considered possibly the most honey-tongued negotiator ever to exist...but honestly, that was mostly stories, and long ago besides.  I'm not the same as I was then, just like any of us.  Outside time, but not immune to its endless weight.  Wearing a mountain down with a handkerchief will take a while - and a bloody awful lot of handkerchiefs - but the universes have a tendency to do just that."  Holding out his hands, he stared down at his splayed fingers.  "I'm not the being you want for peace negotiations; these days, it seems I'm much better at inciting."

Swinging around, he faced Aaron once again. "No, I was more thinking you could do the talking and I could do the showing.  You're good at talking, Aaron.  That's not an insult, by the way; I would have said something like 'you're all talk' and, tempting as it was, you're not.  You're good at it.  You remind me of one of my brothers."  A brief hint of sorrow entered his eyes, there and gone.

"I'd just come along as your Powerpoint presentation."
This message was last edited by the player at 12:25, Mon 19 Aug 2013.

Daley shuffles his feet nervously and clears his throat.

"Beggin' your pardon, sirs, but if you's wantin' me to lead you to them there red buggers an' their new mate, we should set out a bit sharpish like.  I'd be wantin' us to get to a little 'idey-'ole what I know afore dusk.  Arden's got a bit... strange like since all this business started."

He shrugs, "If not, then I'd as soon be 'eadin' off any'ows."

"Ugh." Aaron sighed, shaking his head. "Look, let's focus on one thing at a time here."

He gestured to Daley. "I'm going with Daley, here, to do exactly what I intended previously. Once I know what I'm looking for, THEN we'll go visit our 'friends' and I can give them the full story on just what in hell's blazes is going on out here in Arden."

Aaron cocked his head to the side. "So, again, do whatever you want, Luke. Come with me or don't, I don't care. I don't have time to be distracted."

With that being said, he looked to Daley. "You've got point."

Callan dispatches a man to fetch supplies, and before too long a somewhat impatient Daley is leading the way out into Arden, following the boundary of the burned area but staying a good ten yards from the open space, for the most part, to lessen the risk of archers.

The air is tainted with smoke, and there are places where the embers still smoulder, in spite of the general dampness of the woods following weeks of almost constant rain.  Blackened skeletal trees, denuded of all foliage, jut up from the field of ashes.

At one point Daley takes a brief diversion to study the burned remains of a massive tree, more than ten yards around.  A few minutes work with an exe brings a satisfied grunt, and a comment, "There's still live wood under the burned stuff.  The ol' girl might get through this."

When the boundary turns westward, Daley continues south, leaving the burn behind as he finds an animal trail to follow deeper into the forest.

At noon they pause to eat.  The air is filled with dim greenish light, filtering through the dense foliage above, making the forest seem like some sort of enchanted cave.  Daley explains roughly where they are, some thirty miles from Kolvir, though the mountain itself is invisible through the dense growth.  For the most part he listens though, head tilting at every sound, no matter how distant it seems.

Finally, as he stands after eating, and stretches, he announces, "We's alone, I reckon.  The only birds an' beasts what's disturbed is the ones as are near to us."

They journey on through the day, and there is more rain.  Water trickling constantly from the canopy above.

And shortly before sunset, with the already dim light fading, Daley leads the way to a cave on the side of a low cliff, mostly hidden by ivy.  Inside are signs that somebody has been living in there, but not recently.

"We can rest in 'ere 'til mornin'.  Arden's too risky jus' now to be walkin' about at night."

As if to confirm the scouts assessment, there is a howl from outside.  Not a wolf, but something else.  Something that sounds bigger.  And the howl twists into laughter at the end...

"That's fair, Aaron," Luke sighed.  "Could end this bloody conflict, but I understand priorities."

The travelling wasn't an issue for him.  Perhaps he was there for it, perhaps not; hard to tell, really.  Certainly he was in the cave when the beast howled.  "Pleasant," the man grunted, settling himself down on the rocky floor of the cave.  There was a faint clank as he settled a long, heavy-bladed sword beside himself.  "So, Aaron.  Why don't you regale me with the tale of what you've been up to for the last while.  It's been a time since I've seen you."