The Iron Teeth

Queen of Swords 5

The air in the closet was dry and stale, and with the door closed it was almost pitch black inside. Only the tiniest hint of light managed to slip in under the door. Deep at the back, behind a pile of crates and a heap of musty old sheets, there was a quiet muffled shuffling sound as a shadowy figure stirred.

Two long arms that ended in long jagged nails reached out and carefully retrieved something from under one of the sheets. There was then a sinister chuckle, as Blacknail the hobgoblin brought the wheel of cheese up to his mouth and took a luxurious bite out of it. It was so tasty and yummy!

He'd hidden his cheese wheel here several days ago, and now he was enjoying a quick snack. No one would ever think to look for his tasty treat here. As he happily chewed the strong tangy cheese, his revelry was suddenly broken by the sound of raised voices.

Last night he'd followed Saeter out into the city, but nothing interesting had happened. Herad had ordered Blacknail to look out for his master, so he had carefully shadowed Saeter through the streets. The old scout had just wandered to the nearest tavern though, and spent the afternoon drinking.

Blacknail had slipped into the tavern as well, and sat down at a table. He'd chosen a spot across the floor from Saeter that was tucked away in a dark corner. When anyone had tried to approach him he'd simply hissed at them until they had gone away. If they hadn't got the message then he'd drawn his dagger.

It was now the next morning, and Blacknail's ears perked up as he detected unusual activity. Not only were a group of people discussing something rather loudly, but the sound of hurried footsteps now filled Herad's base. Something was happening...

The hobgoblin carefully placed his cheese back in its hiding spot, and then stealthily crept out of the closet. He was curious about what was going on, but also cautious. It was entirely possible Herad was just in a mood, and had decided to put everyone to work. It was also possible she'd simply started to kill everyone she saw. In either of those cases, Blacknail wasn't planning on going anywhere near her.

He silently made his way down the hallway and towards the speakers, until their voices got clearer. One of them was definitely Herad, but she didn't sound angry. Rather, she sounded excited and cheerful.

Blacknail flinched as he was suddenly overwhelmed by an urge to run back to the closet and crawl under something. If Herad was happy then bad things were about to happen to somebody, and Blacknail didn't want it to be him.

"...just a few hours away. They weren't all that easy to count, but there are about a hundred and a dozen of them. They're definitely a foot company; only a few of the officers were mounted," a familiar sounding bandit was saying.

"They're a little early, but we're ready for them," Herad replied.

"They were moving pretty quickly, and seemed organized. Whoever these guys are they know how to march," the other bandit explained.

"Did you get a good look at their equipment?" Herad asked him.

"Not really; they're transporting it in covered wagons. I don't think there was enough room in them for all too many pikes or crossbows, though. They had shields on their backs so most of them are most likely planning on fighting with sword and shield," he replied.

"I would prefer it if they didn't have shields, but crossbows would have been a bigger threat. You didn't ambush or raid them at all?" the chieftain inquired.

"No, as per your orders we held back and remained out of sight. The mercenaries didn't give us an opening to go after. Their officers and supplies were always well protected," he answered quickly.