Distant Forces

We've had a quiet night, and that make a bit of a change.  We awoke to a little bit of frost, but the sky was cloud-free.  It stayed cold until the sun peeped over the mountains to the east.  I dislike this frosty cold, the chill hits deep inside, stabbing like a blade unlike the sodden cold of yesterday in the rain.  Strangely the others seemed to be refreshed by it.

It didn't help that we had a cold breakfast, but Barr told me that he cannot hunt for food for a while - he's trying to preserve his arrows.  I mentioned my snare that had been successful several days ago, he said he'd never really liked using them before - they're a bit hit-and-miss, and he prefers to kill his prey without any suffering.  In the circumstances, though, he's quite happy to use them for the time being; he doesn't like the idea of eating badger though, how odd.

Mullory seemed especially cheered by the weather, especially once the sun reached us.  He was humming somewhat tunelessly as we walked along.  I suspect that what the Hznaman take as being music isn't anything like the expressive, deeply thought-provoking stuff we enjoy in the under-land.

We strode over a rise in the hills and there before us was a level plain, stretching away into the distance.  It falls away from here into the west, and rises to the south, rolling and tumbling over this high moor as it goes.  It's very green, and is dotted with woodland and seems to be crossed haphazardly by rivers and streams fed by the mountains behind us and off to our left.

We took a first proper look at the lands ahead of us, the low cloud of yesterday meant we couldn't really see well.  We can see now far across the wide rolling plateau, and many miles away we can see the smudge of a line - and it seems to be moving.  Our best guess is that its a large force of soldiers, but it's hard to see it clearly.  It could be fifteen miles or more away.  Its hard to say from here but it seem to be heading mostly west and a little south.

We aren't sure if its safe or not - it could be Gurgam, and I'm pretty sure that's what Barr thinks it is, the look of greed that flowed across his face when we saw them was unmistakable, he sees it as income.  If they are Gurgam then we have a problem with their numbers.  Personally, I'm hoping they're Dzarraf who can lead us back to the lands of the Gnaeblin in safety.

We set off after them, though.  Elenhugh asked us all to up our pace.  I think he wants to try and catch them up before they reach the civilised lands of the Gnaeblin.