The Trollish Merchants turned west and left as soon as they were presentable again. They weren’t rushing, but they weren’t waiting around for something else to find them.
That left the surrounding area clear for the Spellblade clan to finish packing up and preparing to head east through the grasslands.
First, they just needed to warn the groups coming south that there was danger ahead so that they didn’t walk right into the incident unprepared.
Karl jogged over when he saw a group coming, giving them plenty of time to slow down before reaching his team.
“There has been an incident south of here. There are Cyclops and Giant boars running rampant, and the army is trying to clear them up. We met the remains of a Trollish Merchant group this morning, and they lost everything, including half their team.
I wouldn’t recommend that you go any further down the road. My people are going east instead,” Karl warned the lead driver.
“Do you know how far east it goes?” The driver asked.
Karl shook his head. “It goes west all the way to the Fortress before it ends, but I don’t know exactly how far east or south.”
Well, he did know yesterday, but it could have been partially cleared up by now.
“Alright, we will wait here for the day, then. Once we see someone coming north with news, we will know if we can move again. Thank you for the warning, traveller.”
Karl nodded. “I lost my wagon as well. I was in the western end of it when the Giants appeared. Be safe out there.”
The merchant wagon driver nodded, and then gestured for his team to come forward as Karl returned to his group.
“Alright, let’s get a move on. The others know about the danger now, so we can let them tell anyone else who comes along.” He explained.
The Spellblades looked more than a little jealous as Rae called out her Golems to take Karl and Ophelia as riders, while Hawk landed to take Dana for the day.
His flames were ethereal, not hot in this form, and Rae had made a saddle just for this purpose. Dana, on the other hand, had not been informed of the change in plans.
“Wait, am I expected to ride on Hawk?” She asked when he headbutted her to end her hesitation.
“That’s the plan. You have ranged attack skills, he is the longest ranged attacker on the team. So, you’re well paired. Besides, Rae just made him a fancy new saddle, and he hasn’t gotten to try it out yet.” Karl agreed.
“And why is it not you, who is unlikely to suffer fall damage, who is testing this theory?” “Because apparently I’m a ground attacker. I don’t make the rules here, I just follow them. Do you need a hand up?”
Dana shook her head in dismay and used a movement skill to step up to Hawk’s neck height, then settled into the saddle and began to tie herself into the harness.
It was fairly intuitive, and it tied around her waist and thighs as well as over her shoulders, so she could move her upper body freely, but not worry about being tossed too far back and forth.
“Well, I approve of the harness. It’s solid, and made of Rae’s silk. I don’t have to worry about it breaking.”
As soon as she had finished tying herself on, Hawk flapped his massive wings and rocketed into the air at a speed that folded Dana against his back.
[I need to warn her next time, it’s not comfortable when the goes backward like that.] Hawk noted as he used [Ghostfire Body] to form a shield protecting her from the wind.
[Remember, she’s not as strong as you or me. Her body isn’t made for that sort of rapid manoeuvring, you need to give her time to get a grip.]
Over the next few minutes, the new pair got used to each other, and Dana’s narration let Hawk know what she was capable of enduring.
Watching him dive, twirl and swoop from side to side as Dana got used to flying was making Tessa laugh constantly.
Ophelia just looked happy that it wasn’t her.
The ride on the spider golems was smooth and comfortable, almost like riding on a sofa. If she had a proper cushion under her, it really would be.
The pace was casual, just a brisk walk for Thor, even though the Spellblades were doing their best to cover ground before it started to get dark, and they had to stop again.
That night found them in open grasslands, mostly unpopulated now that Hawk’s presence had scared off the smaller beasts and one nomadic tribe that only had six people.
They had spotted the bird in the air and had simply changed directions to avoid coming into what it might consider its territory.
The next morning, Dana wasn’t nearly as reluctant to board her transport for the day, and the group was moving right at dawn. Their goal for the night was to make it to the river. They could either follow that southeast to the Capital, or they could follow it as far as the road, then head northeast until they came to the trading route that led into the Beastkin Nation.
That would take them close to their destination at the forgotten temple.
It should take two to three more days to make it to the road along the river, then likely ten more to the temple, depending on how slow moving in the Jungle was.
Karl didn’t have high hopes for the speed that the Spellblades were going to manage once they were in dense trees or the marshes that they were going to get before the borders, but with their magic, they might be just as good in soft terrain as Thor was.
However, Karl was thinking too far ahead. There wasn’t much between them and the border but grasslands, marsh and one town they would use as a waypoint. But getting that far was not going to be as easy as he had hoped.