Destiny No More

Chapter 64

The Branwen Tribe was an odd sight to see, let alone one to be led through. Colonel Aurelian took the lead, walking only a few steps behind the man who had come out to bring them inside. With Pyrrha walking a few paces behind him while Winter was the last in line. It hadn't been intentional, but as she was led through the camp, she was grateful for it.

More than once she found her attention wandering to their surroundings and the small groups that gathered to watch them. When one heard the term 'bandit tribe' many things were brought to mind. Villages in ruin, piles of hoarded loot and valuables, rough and dangerous men; one thing that certainly didn't come to mind was organization.

According to the Colonel, the Tribe was self-sufficient, or as far as any bandit group could be called such. They had just about everything someone might need to live out in the wilds far away from the established cities. Cooks, healers, blacksmiths, teachers for children, and a host of other jobs she never pictured a tribe having. The Tribe was a village in and of itself, larger than the few small frontier towns she had visited in her life, and far better protected than all of them.

While the walls weren't anything special, simple trees cut down and carved to create a wall of spikes around the camp, they were at least sturdy. The real defense came in the way the various tents were laid out. Towards the edge she could see people who looked similar to those who had challenged them at the gate, many with weapons either in hand or within reach, and it fit her expectation of them perfectly. That changed as they moved deeper into the temporary settlement however.

Groups of armed thugs guarding the walls gave way to rather ordinary looking people doing work she would expect to see anywhere else on the frontiers. There was an odd sense of organization and orderliness to it. Those waiting in line for food did so patiently, never threatening or demanding those handing it out to do so quicker. Those having their wounds tended didn't curse at the ones helping them. Rather than being held hostage, those who didn't fight seemed to almost be respected.

It didn't fit what she was told, that the Branwen Tribe respected strength and little else, though she figured it made some kind of sense. What good were strong fighters if they couldn't eat? What good was personal strength when faced with a disease you couldn't simply cut down? The Tribe had survived for decades, and it clearly knew how to do so.

"Raven is in there." Their guide gestured to a tent sitting central to the camp and on a raised platform. The path they had walked from the entrance leading directly to the large tents entrance. Around it she could see three other paths all leading off in different directions, but each being centered on the same tent. "She knows you're coming, so don't get any bright ideas. If she doesn't kill you for it, the rest of us will."

He didn't stick around for them to approach, moving off back down the path they had come.

"Does he really plan to just leave us with their leader?" Winter asked, raising an eyebrow.

"From what our intelligence has gathered, it's not unwarranted." The Colonel replied. "Raven Branwen has cut down plenty of talented Huntsmen in her time, and she's unlikely to have let such skills slip. At the very least, she'll be able to hold off until her men come crashing down around us. Have you seen any sign of this Maiden yet?"

"All existing records of her appearance were destroyed by Lionheart, so I'm afraid we have very little to go on shy of seeing her actively using said power." Winter answered.

"She's here." Pyrrha stated.

"How can you tell?"

"I..." Pyrrha began before realizing she didn't know how to explain it. She hadn't seen any sign of magic, yet she could feel it radiating faintly in the area. It was an odd feeling and not one she would call pleasant. It felt like an itch underneath her skin, as if there was something warm surrounding her on all sides and causing her to sweat. She wiped a hand against her brow, and it came away dry. "I can feel the magic."