Side Story 1 - Rory Ingara - (Part 1)

My name is Rory Ingara, City lord to the city of Ingrian. The city its self sits to the south of the Mala desert. While I am addressed as lord, the title is little better then a mayor the only difference being that Ingrian is a free city not ruled by a nation. Ingrian Hosts a wide variety of trade from rice, grain, and rock lizard eggs for food to saber boar's pelts and cotton for trading. More recently noodles have gained popularity as it is easily made by mixing flower and rock lizard eggs and after strips are cut the noodles are left to dry. The country that Ingrian trades with is Ganna kingdom to the northeast. Merchants run the cliffs to the Ganna thunder planes where rain is abundant eventually to reach the trade city Telvan. 

Ingrian is kept safe from invasions from other nations due to its location. Any invasion would need to follow the cliffs to the valley entrance in the north which is easily defended. Ingrian and the jungles near it are located on a peninsula covered by the broken sea on both sides. To the Southeast of Ingrian lies the tropical jungles and forests where tropical fruits grow in abundance. The depths of these jungles are avoided as the creatures reported in those areas are often times as big as a house and harder to take down. Most of the time they are content to avoid Ingrian as their territories are more suitable for their living environments. The occasional appearance of such creatures often requires a swift retreat from the hunters and issuing a request of the town guards for subjugation. One such request came today.

Rory: "A hydra?"

I glance over to the messenger who arrived in my office worn out of breath after he delivered the news that a hydra attacked the hunters not far from the camp. I can only assume that most of the hunters did not survive the encounter. Rarely do we ever have to deal with a stray Hydra. Not only are the beasts themselves rarely give birth to new broods but they also are extremely long-lived and territorial. There are rarely ever any disputes between hydra for territory but when they happen usually the hydra just end up taking up nesting in a new cave deep in the jungle. Our scouts have located their nests before which is a vast cavern network spanning across most of the jungle running north to south. So this brings the question, since the cavern network is so large and there is no shortage of space for the hydra why would they ignore the caverns for new territory and head here?

Rory: "Gather a unit of 30 spearmen and 15 archers we will set out for the camp.

Soldier: "Yes my lord!"

We arrived at the camp when assessing the situation the hunting party arrived bringing news of the beast being driven off.

Rory: "Hmm... Didn't realize Garm was strong enough to drive off a hydra! I should try again to recruit him.

I remembered my first encounters with Garm and his family, Out north in the Bismuth forests his tribe had switched leadership to a new chief. Garm was a follower of the old chieftain and did not think the new chief was worthy of his loyalty. Despite all my attempts to recruit the warrior they all ended up in failure. Fortunately Garm needed a new place to stay and when I brought up how Ingrian needed new hunters he accepted to follow my expedition back home. I had made several attempts to recruit the man afterward but he usually laughed it off and said something along the lines of "I am through being a warrior, I just want to retire with my wife and daughter! Besides if I left those no good hunters to themselves wouldn't the city starve!? Bwahaha!"

Marsh: "From the hunting party's report they said that Garm was also injured and that a new beastkin they were unfamiliar with had shown up and driven it off!"

This man is Marsh... one of the spies I keep to monitor other nations activities. He mostly keeps track of Rumors from other nations while posing as a peddler with his family. While he handles very little of the spying himself he has a number of operatives to keep track of any troop movements or bandits that may threaten Ingrian or its trade operations in other nations.

Rory: "A new beastkin? hmm..."

I quickly wonder what a beastkin stronger than Garm would look like picturing some 8-foot tall Ursa-beastkin capable of pushing away trees with a brush of his shoulders.

Rory: "Maybe I can see if this new beastkin would join up?"

Marsh: "Possibly I had met her on the way back to Ingrian this time. She seems amenable and rather free-willed. She may not enjoy strict soldier's life though."

(Rory: "She? The new beastkin is a woman?" 

My perception of an 8-foot tall Uras-beastkin only this time female... That's... I can't really imagine it!...