Chapter 38 Peace Never Lasts

We left Kreuzhoven early in the morning and started walking. Two months later, we're still walking. I've helped forage for plants and herbs to eat, while Ashe, Kyoskay, and Bark also foraged and caught various small animals to eat. The only time I had anything else to do besides walk was when we all ate something bad. We paused in our travelling for a day, and I practiced my rather rusty medical skills, but it truly wasn't anything challenging.

Last evening, as we were setting up the night's camp, Miara came around to everyone and told us there were beastmen around. We set the usual watches.

• Kyoskay, José
• Goldrim, Bark, Sean
• Prestley, Son, Miara
• Ashe, Carmella, Me

Sometime in the night, I guessed third watch, Miara woke me up. I sat up sleepily, and saw the others being likewise awakened. It wasn't my watch: the beastmen were out there and slowly surrounding us, staying hidden in the forest.

José made sone stones glow and hid them in a bag to surprise the beastmen later. I expected Miara to lead a charge immediately into the beastmen, but instead we waited. For hours we waited while they completely surrounded us and then sat around fidgeting. Carmella took out out her zoggin rock and started playing with it. I warned her not to set the forest on fire again, but she ignored me. My rock stayed exactly where it was: hidden in my pack. Even surrounded by beastmen, I trusted the fighters to keep us safe. If all went horribly awry, there would be time to use the damned thing. Bark tried to convince Miara we could just leave and avoid a fight. I sighed: I had long ago given up trying to convince this group not fight. Just another compromised principle.

Miara, Ashe, Goldrim, and Kyoskay formed a square that the rest of us sat inside. We had Son and Sean sit down together so they were sheltered by a log, and the rest of us sat around close by. There were apparently about 40 beastmen, someone said. After a while, we threw José's glowing stones into a rough circle around us and between us and the beastmen. That way, we would see them coming. Bark got bored and went out and built some traps to slow them down a little and maybe take out a few in the dark spots between some of the stones. When the stones started fading, José made some more. José yelled out to the beastmen, warning them to leave, and then insulting them, but they made no answer.

He did something else and then said the beastmen had some sort of wizard with them. Miara asked him if he could do anything about him, and he said he could produce a fireball, but won't be able to use it until he can see the target. Miara told him to go ahead and ready the fireball and he did.

Their rustling grew louder and louder, and finally they rushed us. The four warriors held most of the beastmen at bay, causing huge amounts of damage to the things and killing them one by one. Bark and Prestley took care of any beastmen that came through into the center of the square. José watched in vain for the beastman-wizard, but he remained hidden behind a tree.

Three fire elementals appeared, and then began fighting the beastmen. Then José threw his fireball into a knot of beastmen, hoping he would catch his target. Son was hit by a beastmen, which Bark then attacked and drew away. I bound his wound, then Carmella was also hit by a stray beastman. She didn't seem to notice. José started another spell.