North West of Axe Bite
Pass is a sparsely populated wooded area where only a few hardy souls live.
They subsist by burning the forest to supply charcoal for the Empire to the
West and for the Brettonian lords to the north. The stretch of land farmed by
the charcoal burners itself is fairly lawless despite being wedged between
these two human land.
Old Blackfingers Krevan had been living and burning charcoal
in this land for more years than he could remember. Though his wife had died
some dozen years ago, he and his young daughter Ondine still survived by making
sure that when outlaws and roving bands of Orcs ravaged the local area that
they hid in a secret cave whose entrance was just obscured by a series of
boulders in the local stream. This
hiding strategy had seen the two of them survive a series of attacks which had
recently changed in nature. Where previously, they had been attacked by roving
bands who made plenty of noise and were focused primarily on pillage, now
increasingly the charcoal burners, especially those living close to the waterfall, were just completely disappearing in the
night, leaving only their blood and a sign of struggle in their hovels.
Blackfingers Krevan was preoccupied about the safety of his
daughter and was increasingly considering taking her north to find her a good
serf-family to marry her into in order that she could be safe from this life in
the woods and would guarantee that she could at least have a good bowl of onion
soup to drink on holy days.
It was because Blackfingers Krevan was these mulling on
these concerns while burning down some stumps for the best charcoal that he
missed the sound of horses moving through the forest. On hearing the snort of
horses and smelling the sweat of unwashed men that Blackfingers dropped to the
ground and tried to make himself as small as possible. Where was Ondine? The
last time he had seen her she was undertaking the weekly wash of the cooking dish
in the stream. Hopefully, he thought that she would have time to get into the
cave, if only she could hear the horses over the sound of the stream.
The sound of the horses came closer and closer. Blackfingers
realised that he was going to get caught if he did not move now. Maybe he could
make the cave if he moved fast? He shambled to his feet and bolted for the
stream. Too late…. The riders must have
spotted him and he heard shouts as several of the riders reined in their horses
to turn and pursue him.
Blackfingers Krevan ran as hard as he could towards the
stream. But it was futile, it seemed that this was no ordinary raiding band
there were dozens of mounted figures chasing him. A mailed fist smashed his
face breaking his nose and several of his remaining teeth. Blackfingers Krevan slipped
to the ground unconscious.
He awoke when a bucket of water was tossed into his face. He
ached all over and his nose was all pain. As he struggled to focus his bruised
eyes he realised that he was surrounded by mailed figures, covered in blood and
water he was completely at the mercy of the invaders.
One of the armoured bedecked men moved to interrogate him.
“Serf, before we hang you for fleeing from your liege lord Bois
de Lyon and the Knightly Order of the Rose, you had better tell us everything
you know about the disappearances in the dark…..”
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