"You're right, he is coming back from unknown lands." Arkin said. "The problem is that we have no idea where he is".
He then thought of something, and said. " Wait, we don't need to know where he is, because we know where he is going".
"Myrth!" Verid interrupted. "He is going there to perform the last part of the ritual, and to get Ishrath's approval". He felt that this new found solution needed to be washed down with wine, so he took the wineskin from Arkin, and took some gulps.
Myrth the City, where Ishrath the God, Protector of Agnis lives. He doesn't live there physically, but it's there that his howling voice can be heard when he blesses the descendants of the Nameless Clan with his gifts. After they pass his ritual of approval.
"We will wait for him in Myrth," Arkin said. "If we are lucky he might lend us his army. Plus the High Lord of Zo-Alvor is my Father's best friend, maybe he can also lend us his green hand" he said cheerfully. Finally seeing some light at the end of the road lifted his spirit. He took another sip from the almost empty wineskin.
"I'm not so sure about Lord Sued, him being the High Lord of Zo-Alvor. There's a big chance that he was summoned to Avanom, maybe he even signed the order!" exclaimed Verid.
Arkin nodded in agreement. "That is indeed possible. Either way if we wish to stop the invasion, we need to go north, and not checking Zo-Alvor might be a mistake. By the way, you don't happen to have any spare clothes?. I burned all of mine by accident yesterday, " he said unwillingly.
"Should I know what happened?" Verid asked.
"Better not," Arkin answered, dodging the question.
....
....
Unbeknownst to them in the far north of the country, Zo-Alvor the city that was once full of life and commerce didn't have a single civilian on its streets, mostly because the city was under attack and the people didn't want to exit their homes, especially when the winds sometimes carried the smell of charred flesh. Those who smelled it knew it wasn't the smell of roasted pork.
One such person was the High Lord of the city Sued Osar-Aren, he was an Orc around 1.80 cm in height with bok light green skin and a well built body. He was wearing a long dark blue padded vest, brown colored pants and leather boots, because his vest had no sleeves it made visible another piece of clothing underneath, it was a long sleeved white shirt made from linen.
Lord Sued was having a meeting with some of his subordinates in the Observatory tower. They stood around a square wooden table, discussing some sort of battle plan, and it didn't seem like they were going to reach an agreement soon.
The room in which they were having the meeting was very peculiar, it only had two chairs that weren't even around this table, they were placed in a corner around another smaller table, that table was so small that 2 silver cups and a jar of wine, were enough to occupy all of the space on top of it.
The room had a few small windows on the roof allowing the people below to bask in the sunlight, the table in the middle had a map engraved on it and many wooden figurines of various shapes and sizes were strategically placed on top of it, the figurines represented the troops stationed inside Avanom and the enemy troops that were holding the siege.
Lord Sued picked up a wooden figure from the table without putting it back, he kept it between his fingers as he was pondering on something.
General Oira Raosh voiced out her concerns. "My Lord, I think we should send more troops to the wall. I have a feeling that the enemy will send his Grand Knights in the next assault." Oira has fought many battles against Kadurians, and could somewhat predict their movements.
She was also an Orc, but contrary to Lord Sued's bok light green skin hers was light gray in color. She appeared to be a head taller than him with a far sturdier body, in fact, almost every other arc was way bigger and taller than him, one can even say that Lord Sued wasn't your typical representative of said race.
Hearing her concerns Lord Sued placed the wooden figure back, but didn't say anything, instead he walked to the small table, and picked up a silver cup. He then proceeded to fill it to the brim with red wine. His protruding canniness proved to be somewhat annoying, when he drank something.
Normally he had to place the cup in the middle of his mouth, and carefully avoid the canines and Voila job done. It took a bit of effort out of him to not empty the cup in one go. He liked strong beverages so much that he even adjusted his way of thinking around them. His philosophy was plain and simple. If you see no way out of a situation, then drink a cup of wine, and the way will be shown to you.
He took a few sips from the intoxicating nectar, and said. "Gha! There is nothing that stimulates the brain more than a strong beverage".
Pointing at the jar of wine he said happily. "All of you should try it. Not only will it clear all of the useless thoughts, but it also possesses a sublime after taste." He was still enticing his subordinates when a loud voice interrupted the words coming out of his mouth. The voice was so loud that everyone inside the city was able to hear it.
"Hey! , Swamp rat this is General Et-Agil Meratnas talking, surrender the City and I will let all of you leave this place unharmed, with a small condition, of course, all of you must surrender each and every single one of the spell tomes, sword arts, rune inscriptions, artifacts, in short! Everything that you have must be confiscated in order for you to leave this place alive!. Do we have a deal?." Thanks to the projection crystal that he used to amplify his voice everyone inside the city heard him loud and clear.
Hearing the voice transmission coming from inside the enemy camp, Lord Sued went to the balcony to take a look outside. His meeting was taking place inside the Observatory tower, which was high enough to tower over the city walls. Thanks to that he had a magnificent view of Zo-Alvor and the area around it. Looking at the enemy's camp, he said to one of his subordinates, "Edadick give me, the projection crystal".
Hearing Lord Sued's request, General Edadick obliged, but he still asked "My Lord is, there a need to reply to such filth?". The contempt shown on his wrinkled face emphasized his words even more. He was an old man that has been following the High Lord for many years now. He knew that he could voice his thoughts freely after so many years of service.
Passing the projection crystal to his lord he said. "They don't even deserve a proper burial let alone an answer!" The people present approved his words in silence.
Lord Sued ignored his subordinate comments, focusing instead on the blue crystal in his hand, the crystal wasn't very big only the size of a small peach. He clenched his hand fully, making almost the entire thing disappear under his fingers.
A small magic rune appeared above his clenched hand, making the crystal glow with a bright blue light, when the crystal started glowing he chanted a few strange words and then released his grip, as soon as he did that, the magic rune above his hand disappeared, and the crystal started hovering on top of his palm, but no longer glowing.
After admiring his work for a second he cleared his throat and lifted his hand until it reached the bottom part of his neck and the hovering crystal was aligned with his mouth. Seeing his actions everyone around him quickly covered their ears and as soon as they did so, Lord Sued's voice permeated all over the city, and even reached the enemy camp.
"Aaa! So you are the new dog that comes barking at my doorstep!" Lord Sued said in a joking manner, "don't worry I will give you something to eat if you behave".
Et-Agil Meratnas was swift in his answer. "Your situation is hopeless, surrender now, and this dog might not bite your head off".
"What kind of bones do you like?" Lord Sued asked. "I know that stray dogs eat everything that people throw at them, even disgusting stuff. Are you a stray dog?" He seemed genuinely interested to hear the enemy's answer.
"I'm that kind of dog that will take a piss on your lifeless body if you don't surrender. You have an hour." After that, Et-Agil Meratnas no longer bothered to respond to Lord Sued's jokes.
Lord Sued deactivated the projection crystal, and said. "Someone has no sense of humor, " he then looked at his subordinates and asked. "Do we have information on this guy?".
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