They ran for the whole night. By the time the figure began slowing down, it was already early morning.
He turned. The shadows following them had dropped off but he knew they were still on their tail.
There's no chance they would give up the chase. Not with the kind of information they have.
The figure let Gerrod down. It spoke gruffly, "Go back to the camp with this, now."
It dropped a medallion with the engraving of a wheat field on it.
Gerrod bite into it and took off.
He glanced back with the feeling of needing to say 'thank you' but by the time he turned around the figure was already long gone.
He ran as fast as he could without hurting himself. Then he hurt himself and rand even harder.
He couldn't hear anyone around him but he didn't slow down because of that. He had experienced the figure's soundless steps.
Panting, he arrived the camp. The soldiers were swarming like bee's who'd just had their nest poked.
He shifted through the soldiers rushing legs. Soon he arrived at the tent from the night before. The guard in front pointed his spear but paled as soon as he saw the medallion.
He opened the tent, "Guardian of the Fields... has fallen."
"What?!" A vigorous male voice shattered the silence.
Gerrod limped in with the medallion in his mouth. He looked around and found Avisazi at the head of the table.
'A strategy meeting.' He leaned on his other legs as he walked.
All the running had caused his broken arm or forward right leg to relapse. He couldn't put pressure on it. He also had his chest in a pretty bad state.
"Don't come any closer, mutt." Gerrod ignored the voice of the large man and passed right by him.
He flicked the medallion out of his mouth and to Avisazi who caught up masterfully using only two fingers.
"You-!"
"Silence." Avisazi glared the man down coldly, "Dradir, did you see the Field Guardian fall?"
He shook his head.
She nodded and poured a beautiful white aura into the medallion. The events from the last twenty-four hours played out in the silence of the tent.
It showed Gerrod appearing from the dark. It showed him leading the way. And it showed the chase all the way till this very moment.
The shouting man trembled, "Please, let me lead the attack!"
"Baron Gascomer, that is enough." A lithe man said coldly, "Have you not made enough of a fool of yourself by trying to harm the Queen's messenger?"
"The Princess' messenger defiled my honor, it is within my right." Baron Gascomer replied coldly. As he raised his foot a cold blade too was raised to his throat, "W-what?"
A lone figure stood behind him. An aura of sadness permeated the tent but the blade held steady.
The princess waved her hand and the dagger, as well as the figure, disappeared.
"This is outrageous!" He cried. Immediately he stormed out of the tent.
"Count Azifirat, that might have been a bit too much." A posh looking man said.
"Merchant's should not be involved in military affairs." Count Azifirat replied coldly over his shoulder, "You, Mozimati, should not be involved in military affairs."
Mozimati smiled graciously and bowed to Avisazi, "Then, I will be excused from the presence of your grace, I have numbers to tally for this week's deliveries."
He walked out leisurely. As he closed the tent behind him his one eye dropped to Gerrod.
He felt a chill at the glare that Gerrod sent back and quickly left.
'He's corrupt. I can feel it.' Gerrod rolled his eyes and laid down at the side of the tent.
Count Azifirat and Princess Avisazi beagn talking.
"We need the merchant's on our side, Azifirat." Avisazi said with a sigh as she leaned back in his her commander's chair.
He frowned, "Can't you just call me uncle? Is it so hard? And we won't need them for much longer. As for that Baron Gascomer... we should have him dealt with in this next battle."
Gerrod's ears perked up as he felt something bad pooling in his stomach.
"Baron Gascomer is a headache, but after that stunt he will likely pull his troops out of our forces." She said lightly.
"Even more reason to kill him right now. Say it was poison meant for you." Azifirat said ruthlessly.
Gerrod watched him take a sip of his water and wondered how a man who spoke of poison so easily could drink so flawlessly.
She rolled her eyes, "His son would revolt. And we cannot afford a civil war right now, not to mention he is at the forefront of the Military Faction, if he dies the entire army might rebel at once."
Azifirat stayed silent for a moment. He understood her words. But he didn't like them.
"We could assassinate all the heads of the Military Faction." He proposed such a scary thing with a straight face.
"It would throw the military into disarray and there would be rebels cropping up everywhere." She dismissed it with an equally straight face, "We will win this war first and then assassinate their advisors and influencers but not them, not until we have enough power to do so."
"Tch." Azifirat pushed up his glasses and sighed, "If not for my damned brother we wouldn't have so much trouble ascending you to the throne."
"My father was a fool. Do not speak of him. It brings back luck to the battlefield." She shot back.
Count Azifirat nodded and went silent.
The two stood thinking for a long time.
During that time Gerrod had already slipped out back to his tent to lay down. He'd done enough to pay them back.
He's also seen something good.
The map.
This kingdom of Shokan is surrounded by a vast mountain range which the Tenli people hold dominion over.
To the south there's an inlet with a massive port city, that city is the one that Count Azifirat holds dominion over.
To the west, there is another city, the merchant's city under Baron Gascomers control.
In the center is of the kingdom is the largest territory. The royal territory.
A little way farther to the north of the royal territory is the granary of the kingdom which is what they are now fighting over.
The mountains are too high and the winds too fierce to cross. On the map the only way across the mountains is through a wide pass to the northern reaches of the kingdom which leads into the marshlands of the Maali Kingdom who hold five times the territory Shokan holds which a military to match their size.
Shokan also does not control their entire kingdom. At least on the map it looks like Tenli is supposed to already be under their control.
'It would make sense.' Gerrod thought idly, 'If Tenli and Shokan joined hands into one kingdom than their power would spike and the territory would become nigh impenetrable albeit for the ocean route and the northern pass.'
Gerrod froze. A bad premonition came over him.
'Someone is meddling with this war. They don't want Shokan or Tenli to win. Maali could be it. Or that kingdom past the mountains and strait, Dayat Kingdom, it's power about equal to Maali's if my estimate is correct.' Gerrod paused and shook his head, 'Not my problem right now.'
He closed his eyes and sleep took him quickly.
When he awoke it was to shouting and the sounds of battle. He shot up straight as a spear and looked around.
Shadows danced outside his tent. It was still night time but fires blazed the images into his eyes.
He limped out of the tent but instantly backed up. A corpse fell right where he was about to step.
A man near death.
Gerrod had an idea.
The man died. Gerrod's claws were bloody.
His necklace flashed. He felt a little better but also felt how hurt he was all over again.
'So, it's true.' His eyes sharpened and he melted into the darkness of his tent.
No one paid him any attention. His body bandaged and blood-soaked they thought him no threat.
He took a deep breath-catching Avisazi's scent and immediately went through the battlefield carefully killing off any near-death soldiers. He didn't feel bad. He was putting them out of their misery.
After the tenth dead, he felt a change in his body. His aura flared. It was thicker than before. He immediately wrapped it around himself forming a small but powerful defensive formation.
By the time he arrived at where Avisazi's scent trail ended he had already killed thirty soldiers and was no longer limping but still injured.
His aura coursed through his body like blood from his heart. With its help, his injuries were healing faster than normal but not fast enough!
He turned a corner and found Avisazi and Azifirat cornered with soldiers at their feet! The figure on the other side of them with its dagger flared out!
"Did you think I wasn't prepared?" Baron Gascomer cut the tent behind them to pieces and almost killed Azifirat as a result.
His shoulder was cut deeply but he wasn't dead.
Avisazi snapped back with her twin swords cutting a long gash into his chest. The figure flashed and caught her arms tightly.
"You bitch." Baron Gascomer raised a hand.
Gerrod grit his teeth.
'Death is fine. Murder within reason is fine. But this? Harming a child?' Gerrod felt his blood boil, 'Thom wouldn't stand for this, and neither will I.'
He rushed out just as the slap landed covering for the sound of his steps even more than the fighting around him.
It was just that powerful of a slap. And it was that much more infuriating!
Gerrod lept and bite down on the back of the figure's neck.
"Aaaaa...!!!" A vicious roar spewed from its mouth and a familiar taste of blood ran through Gerrod's mouth!
He grimaced. 'A feral? Here?'
His heart burned even more, 'Ferals... you infected my brother and forced him to death... I won't stand for it!'
As the figure shook its body he clamped down even tighter. Avisazi broke free and did a full moon slash cutting the writhing figure in half and forcing Baron Gascomer who was still in shock to back away.
She didn't let up her assault, however. Swiftly she closed the distance with the hurried Baron Gascomer and jumped.
Twisting her body beautifully she brought her blades down on his head. He lifted his arms to defend himself but both metal and meat were rent from their owner.
She quickly turned back point her blades at Gerrod. This time, his aura truly scared her.
Earth-shaking rage!
Unprecedented violence!
She had never seen anything so... primal.
The embodiment of rage and violence.
"Gerrod Thom Dradir." She felt his name on her lips and smiled.