" I can't do it, Furio, I can't look these people in the eye when they wave at me" Maki said as he rode his horse slowly through the Unakku valley.
After 60 years of being chieftain, Maki was forced to make the tough call of abandoning his sick troops and leaving the fort with the healthy men.
It was a decision that was sure to sully his name as a great warrior, however, he was sure that nothing but a painful death awaited him and his men should they not have left.
Had he been riding at a normal speed, the distance between his fort and the southern fort was only about 2 hours on a mount, however, with morale being low, Maki only rode a trotting speed which would take him 4 hours to reach the fort.