Chronicles of Ilandri - Volume 1

A Shadow in the Forest (Pt.2)

The path continued to weave through the dense forest, the only sunlight now reaching them was what managed to bleed through from the treetops high above. The ground was damp and soft underfoot for the men and horses, making it easier to move silently through the forest. The rum from Buron had helped to settle Nathaniel's nerves but it was unsettling at the same time that he had brought it with him. Nathaniel had served with the Buron for several years now and not once had he ever been drinking on patrol. It was totally out of character and showed the severity of the situation. The people of Ollorath would be going about their daily business, blissfully unaware of the dangers lurking about the lands. The city guard ensured that life in the city was peaceful and protected, and it was their duty to ensure the people within the walls never made contact with the enemies who skulked about, hidden in the forests and mountains surrounding the city.

The company trudged on down the small winding track, between the tall, straight pines of the forest. Soon Nathaniel could hear the sound of running water, although just a slow trickle. It would be one of the many brooks that carried water down from the mountains to the great Orin River. The river carried trade ships from the coast, inland to the city of Ollorath and cut its path deep inland to the Orinbald Mountains far in the east. It was the longest and widest river in the north of the continent and many of the smaller towns of the republic had founded themselves on the banks of the Orin. Nathaniel had once travelled on one of the guard ships up river to some of the smaller towns, but they rarely ventured far as the towns had their own guards to protect the people and their prosperity.

The path they followed ran parallel with the brook for a time before crossing over at a shallow, gravelly point and winding back through the trees to make its way slowly up the hillside. As the path wound on soon the pine began to be interspersed with a few deciduous trees, mainly oaks and elm. Another track diverged from the one they were on taking a more northerly route. Buron stopped the company and looked hard through the trees at something in the distance. He dismounted and Nathaniel followed suit leading his horse by the reins in the direction Buron was going. As they drew near it was apparent what Buron had seen. Fragments of bones lay on the ground and a smell still lingered in the air. A goblin camp had been there not long ago. Judging by the smell it had probably moved away a day or so ago by Nathaniel's reckoning. One thing he knew he could always trust was his nose. He had almost a gift at sniffing out goblins and also danger. Something foul was in the air, not like the smell of goblins though and it was probably this that caused them to move away from where their camp had been set up. Searching the surrounding area it seemed the Goblins had moved down hill, deeper into the valley. Surely they would now track them and follow them down; after all, the mission was to drive them back into the hills away from the valley road and the city.

The march continued up the hillside away from the goblin tracks and Nathaniel began to doubt the nature of their mission was truly to evict the goblins back into the hills. Perhaps this was why captain Buron had brought a canteen of rum with him. What he had not noticed was the small plume of smoke in the distance floating up into the sky, since he was too transfixed watching the goblin track, longing to follow it down the valley. Whatever else lurked in these hills was clearly far worse than goblins and Nathaniel wished for nothing else at that moment than to be locked in combat with the slimy creatures, rather than to be where he was now, hunting an unknown foe. He would have even preferred to fight a goblin mounted upon a venbeast than to suffer the anticipation of whatever impending doom awaited him on his patrol, but these matters were out of his hands. All he could do was follow the lead of his captain and defend himself to the best of his abilities, but he had the niggling doubt that whatever they were facing would be able to overpower them all.