around the nearest campfire. Bart shook his head at the ineptness of the sentries. If something were to happen, it would take crucial minutes before their eyes would readjust to the dark.
He remembered back to when he had ruined his night vision during the time he was learning his trade from his father. They were about to enter a house that his father said was owned by a rich merchant. Before they had a chance to enter, one of the city guards passed by with a lantern. In a moment of carelessness, Bart stared directly into the light.
His father had been furious at him. It had taken his vision almost ten minutes to readjust sufficiently after the guard passed for Bart to see again. As a lesson, the next day his father had him stare into the flame of a candle, then immediately threw him into a dark room with three, strap wielding men. By the time his eyes had readjusted to darkness and was able to avoid the blows, he had welts from head to toe. Never again would he allow his night vision to become ruined by an act of carelessness.
Coming back to the here and now, he continued working his way closer to the tent area. The Tribesmen he saw wore a variety of color patterns, indicating that more than just the Orack Tribe was there. Before he reached a suitable place from which to observe the tents, he had observed five separate color patterns. Again he wondered just what was going on.
Now that he was further to the north, he was able to see a makeshift corral that was almost as large as the area where the Tribesmen were staying. More horses than he could count were tied in lines stretching out of sight. Near the horses were two score wagons. Each had goods stacked high beneath a tarp to shelter them from the weather. A couple nearest the camp had their tarps removed and Bart could see barrels stacked within. Most probably contained food of one type or another.
From his position, he could see through the outer rings of tents and observe the comings and goings from the large tent in the middle. In his mind, Bart thought of it as a command tent, which is what it most likely was.
One of the first things he noticed was that in the tent area, things were much calmer and more orderly than the rest of the camp. Men moved with a purpose, often singly or in twos. Few went to the command tent. Of those that did, none were Lord Kueryn the River Man, or the magic user.
Minutes passed as he watched. Bart was coming no closer to figuring out why they were there. That they were an attack force was clear. He had overheard boasts from the Tribesmen of their prowess and of the battle to come. Unfortunately, none had spoken of where the battle was to take place. Bart wasn’t an expert in military matters, but even he realized that this amount of men and horses couldn’t remain in one place too long. Already, the smell from the open trench jakes was appalling.
Finally, the tent flap to the central tent opened and the magic user which he had encountered back in Hylith emerged. He was followed a moment later by Lord Kueryn and four other Tribesmen, all of whom were boasting a different color pattern. The six walked to one of the tents situated in the inner ring and entered.
Bart stared at the tent flap they had just passed through for a minute, then turned his eyes back toward the command tent. Despite his formidable skills at being able to pass unnoticed, he realized he had little chance of reaching the tent undetected. There were simply too many people in and around the tent area.
Deciding he had seen enough, he made his way back to where Soth waited. Bart almost gave him a heart attack when he stepped from the trees, but the sudden fear of being found quickly turned to relief.
“Did you find him?” Soth asked.
Bart nodded. “He’s there. Along with the magic user.” Swinging into the saddle, he added, “I’ll tell you about it when we get to the inn.”
Returning to the path they had followed on their way in, they quickly left the gathering of Tribesmen behind.
Chapter Twenty-Nine
Back at the inn, Bart and Soth found the others gathered together waiting for their return. “Found them,” Bart announced as he walked through the door.
“Were there many?” asked Riyan.
“Oh yeah,” he replied. “Must have been over a thousand.” A pitcher of ale sat on the table and he went over to help himself. As he poured a mugful, he said, “The River Man is there.” Taking a deep, satisfying drink, he set the mug back on the table. “And it’s not just the Orack Tribe, but four others as well.”
“Four?” asked Chad.
Bart nodded. “I saw four other distinct tribal patterns,” he stated. Then he glanced to Kevik. “I saw his magic user too.”
“Great,” Kevik replied. From what Bart had told him of their encounter, he didn’t want to have to test his skills against such a formidable foe.
“Now…” began Bart, but was interrupted by Riyan.
“We have our own news,” Riyan said, then nodded to Seth.
Bart and Soth turned their attention toward him.
“While you two were gone,” Seth told them, “I spent some time in the common room and overheard a conversation between a soldier and a woman. The soldier must be part of the group to the east. Anyway, the soldier told the woman that he wouldn’t be able to see her after tonight. That he would be moving on.”
“Moving on?” Bart asked.
“That’s what he said,” explained Seth. “She pressed him for why, but he wouldn’t give any explanation.”
Bart sat in a vacant chair next to the table and thought for a moment. “From what I saw of their camp, they won’t be able to sustain such a force in that area for much longer,” he stated then returned to contemplating the situation.
“An army on the move is easier to infiltrate than one in a fixed location,” offered Chyfe. “They’re more disorganized. This may be the break we need to get the last segment.”
“True,” agreed Chad.
Bart glanced to Riyan who had a thoughtful look on his face. “What are your thoughts?” he asked.
“I was thinking about the object of their attack,” he replied. “Shouldn’t we warn someone?”
“Who would we warn?” countered Bart. “The only people between here and the border are small border towns used to having hostile forces passing through. After that, our soldiers will spot them soon enough.”
“Maybe they’ll run into Captain Lyrun,” mumbled Chyfe. He still hadn’t forgotten the name of the soldier supposedly responsible for atrocities against innocent civilians.
Bart grinned at him. “Maybe.”
Over the next hour, they discussed various strategies they could employ to further their aims. When no consensus could be reached, they finally decided to follow the River Man’s forces in hopes an opportunity presented itself. With that, they turned in to get what rest they could before morning.
The town of Sterrith was quiet the following morning. Arising before dawn, they found few about as they headed south out of town. Bart led their group back to the trail he and Soth had followed the night before.
“They may have rear scouts,” Chyfe told the others. “Best if we keep vigilant.”
“And no talking unless absolutely necessary,” added Bart. He glanced back to where Chad and Seth were in a whispered conversation.
The flow of words ceased coming from Chad as he met Bart’s gaze. “Sorry,” he said.
Turning back to the fore, Bart scanned the road ahead as well as the forest to either side for movement. Behind him, he heard Chad say a few more words in a barely audible whisper before finally becoming completely silent.
The place where the trail diverged from the road was easy to find. It didn’t look as if anyone had used it since he and Soth had passed back through last night. Turning onto the trail, Bart led them into the forest.
Birds chirping with the coming of the dawn accompanied them as they moved ever closer to the clearing in which the soldiers’ encampment lay. After hearing what Seth had reported overhearing last night, Bart fully expected to find the camp breaking up and getting under way.
When Bart figured they were getting close, he had them move off the beaten trail and into the trees. Taking Riyan with him, he left the others with the horses as they moved to investigate the situation.
