Chapter 381: Ashen Wood

 

  Hungry.

  That was the only thought that kept bouncing back and forth in Plum’s mind. They hadn’t eaten since morning and the sun was already beginning to set. Stryg had decided to not stop to eat because they were nearing the border, or so he claimed. After two days of trudging through the forest the ashen trees had begun to blur and all look the same. Plum couldn’t tell if they were getting closer to the border or marching straight into the heart of Vulture Woods. In either case, Stryg promised they would stop and rest once they reached the border. 

  The rumbling in Plum’s stomach complained impatiently.

  “Can we just stop, for like, 5 minutes? Please?” Plum groaned loudly.

  “The forest will soon be behind us. It’ll be much safer to rest and eat then,” Stryg said.

  Plum glanced at her beautiful orc companion pleadingly.

  Tauri smiled sympathetically and nodded in understanding. “Stryg… We’ve been walking all day. Not all of us have your stamina or endurance. We could use a rest, even if our destination is nearby.”

  Stryg stopped walking and stood quietly still. His pointed ears twitched.

  “Thank the gods!” Plum cried out in relief and sat on the ground where she was. She lay back and closed her eyes, happy for the respite.

  “Any chance you could cook something up? I’ll start the fire.” Tauri channeled a small flame in the palm of her hand.

  Plum smiled wryly. She had almost forgotten she was the only decent cook among them. “Fine, but you chop up the last of the onions.”

  “You like seeing me cry, don’t you?” she said skeptically.

  Plum batted her eyelashes, “What? Me? No? Why would I enjoy seeing a pampered daughter of a Ruling Family cry while cutting a couple of mere vegetables? Preposterous, I say!” 

  Stryg suddenly scampered up the nearest tree and crouched atop the tallest branch in the scarlet canopy.

  “It’s still weird how he climbs up a tree like a damn squirrel, right?” Tauri asked.

  “Definitely,” Plum answered without hesitation.

  “So, what do you think Stryg’s doing now?”

  “Funny, I ask myself that question every day,” Plum said. “My best guess is he’s searching for some prey for dinner.”

  “Ooh! Maybe he spotted a deer. I’d love to have some venison,” Tauri said hopefully.

  Plum narrowed her eyes. “...No, I don’t think it’s a deer.”

  “What do you mean?”

  “Look at Stryg’s expression.”

  “What expression? His face isn’t moving.”

  “That’s my point. He isn’t making an expression. And he’s quiet, too quiet.”

  Tauri furrowed her brow, “Your point is?”

  “Stryg gets like that when he’s considering…”

  “Considering what?”

  “How to kill someone.”

  Stryg climbed down the tree and jumped down from the lowest branch. He landed on his feet heavily, and his boots left a deep impression on the ground.

  “What did you see?” Plum asked forebodingly.

  “The forest’s border is close, just past that hill over there,” Stryg said in a quiet voice.

  “That’s good… right?” Tauri asked.

  “There are soldiers over the hill. Undergrowth soldiers. About a hundred of them I think.”

  “What? Here? What are they doing in Vulture Woods?” Plum frowned.

  “It looks like they’re running some kind of logging camp,” Stryg said.

  “Ashen wood,” Tauri muttered in realization. “Ashen trees are prized for their incredible strength and their ability to retain a flexible nature.”

  “It’s why the Sylvan like to make their spears from ashen wood,” Stryg said. 

  “So they're here to make weapons… for the war,” Plum guessed. 

  “Yes, but why would they risk carrying out an entire logging camp near Vulture Woods?  It’s dangerous.” Tauri said. “There is a reason why there are so few ashen weapons in Dusk Valley. No sane lord would send their soldiers out here just to cut down some trees for a couple of spears.”

  “I don’t think any of us would describe Lady Thorn as sane at this point. She declared war on all the other Great Cities,” Plum said dryly.

  “True, but maybe the ashen wood serves a different purpose?” Stryg thought out loud.

  “It’s possible…” Tauri muttered. “Siege weapons perhaps? They’d be useless against Hollow Shade’s magical defenses and there’s no way they could carry a siege weapon through the mountainous paths to Frost Rim. But against Murkton? It's possible.”

  “In any case, I’m not going to let any of those soldiers drag a single tree away from this place,” Stryg said.

  “You’re saying you want to fight them? Wouldn’t it be safer to just go around them and go on our way?” Plum asked.

  Tauri nodded, “She’s right. We don’t know how many more enemies might be around the area. If you attack their camp you may alert an entire battalion of a thousand soldiers. If that happens there is no way we’ll be able to reach Hollow Shade undetected.”

  “In that case, I’ll just kill them all before they get a chance to alert their allies,” Stryg said matter-of-factly.

  “This is a terrible idea,” Plum groaned quietly.

  “I think we all know how stubborn you can be, Stryg, so I’m not going to bother stopping you,” Tauri shook her head. “But that doesn’t mean I’m letting you go out there alone.”

  Stryg grinned, “Wouldn’t have it any other way.”

  “Yeah, I think I’m just going to stay back and watch our gear,” Plum said.

  “It’s for the best,” Stryg nodded.

  Plum frowned, “Wait. What is that supposed to mean?”

  Stryg and Tauri glanced at each other then looked at Plum pitifully.

  “Oi! I can fight too, you know! When I want to!” Plum yelled angrily.

  “No, you can’t,” they replied in unison.

 

~~~

 

  The campsite lay sprawled below Tauri. She waited, crouched behind a tree at the top of the hill. Several drows dressed in officer’s armor walked about the camp, overseeing the operation. Dozens of drows were hauling logs of wood onto large wagons, each strapped to teams of six centaurs. Another ten or so drows were busy hacking away at the thick bark of the ashen trees. The sounds of their axes drowned out whatever noise Tauri made as she made her way through the underbrush.

  She had never been one for skulking about and had little to no training in forestry or sneaking through the woods. Still, no one seemed to have noticed her. She debated her method of attack. The sun was beginning to dip over the horizon, soon night would cover the forest. Her flame magic would only attract unwanted attention. Even if she could burn most of them, there was a good chance at least one soldier would escape and possibly alert any nearby allies.

  This is harder than I thought… she thought frustratedly.

  One of the guards patrolling the perimeter of the campsite began towards her hiding spot. From his unsuspecting gaze, it didn’t seem as if he had noticed her, but Tauri tried her best to not move nor make a sound.

  The guard drew closer until he was only 15 paces away. 12 paces. 9 paces. 7 paces—

  The guard was suddenly yanked into a nearby bush. He opened his mouth to scream in alarm but his cry was cut short. 

  Tauri frowned. Stryg…?

  But that didn’t make sense. He was supposed to be on the other side of the hill.

  A second guard disappeared into the underbrush 20 paces to her left. Then another 30 paces to her right. In a matter of seconds, nine guards walking around the edge of the campsite disappeared without so much as a cry for help.

  Stryg was nowhere to be seen.

  Tauri carefully made her way to the bush where the first victim had disappeared. A small puddle of blood had begun to pool around the bush. With slight hesitation, she pushed the branches aside. The guard lay buried underneath the bush, thick thorny vines were coiled around him like a snake. The thorns had dug into his open flesh and torn his flesh apart, leaving his skin in bloody tatters. His lips had been torn apart from where a thorny vine had pierced his mouth and shredded his insides. 

  Tauri grimaced and covered her mouth, trying her best not to gag. She had seen death, but not like this. Flora magic was usually used in a defensive manner, at worst to restrain an opponent, but this… this was gruesome, monstrous even, and an incredibly effective way to silence your victim.

  Tauri looked down at the campsite and confirmed her suspicions.

  Stryg emerged from the shadows behind a pair of axemen. He drew his relic sword silently and dashed at them. His sword flashed in a wide arc and sliced the unsuspecting drows’ spines in two. Their upper bodies slid off before their legs collapsed a second later. Before their bodies had even fallen, Stryg had melded back into his spell-bound shadows.

  Was this really Stryg? Tauri wondered shakily.

  She had seen him fight before, she had seen him kill countless valley tribesmen when they had attacked her family manor. But back then there had been rage in his eyes, the bloodlust of battle in his heart.

  This was different. This was efficient. This was cold ruthlessness. This was… Stryg. It had always been Stryg, she realized.

  Tauri began to wonder if it would have been best to simply have waited back behind the hill with Plum.