Red Scar

THE BARBARIAN'S BARROW(2)

The strong wind at the top of the mountain set shivers to my skin, despite my wool sweater and the natural resistance to haunting chills of the Northern forests. The peak's edge overlooked the crowd of hundreds of rebels camping beneath on the valley floor in the dark of the night, waiting for the procession to continue. Some were sleeping too. The lights of dim campfires with soft sounds of men and women came through the long distance.

After catching my breath from the climb up the valley, I ran the perimeter of the edge of the mountain, searching for signs of a fort encampment beneath in the pass. Soon I saw a soft white light coming from bottom. An electric light. A few steps off I stopped, and watched the camp of fort soldiers beneath.

The camp was at least one Reynan away from the camp of rebels. It was well lighted and had a complete electric connection, which was rare in the valleys. There were stray torches away from the camp too, most probably scouts or individual soldiers walking around. Judging by the size of the encampment, I expected fifty- somewhat soldiers in the camp. And of course, I should have expected the new weapons fort soldiers made use of. Nonetheless, my plan was plain and time tested- I was quite quite confident that it would work.

I decided to set traps for the soldiers.

The fort soldiers were , in a way, the perfect soldiers. They had undergone rigorous training in the barracks of the fort from experienced seniors, were intelligent in several situations demanding intelligence and presence of mind, had good Armor and best of class equipment. I had heard rumors of fort weapons even in the farway villages- frightening weapons that shot little balls of metal and killed a man straightway. It was frightening - and effective too, no doubt. But in the end they were never accustomed to the forests. They had nothing to do with the wildlands of the Northern ranges- the most dangerous place an inexperienced soldier could set foot in. It was a place filled with dense trees, and dangerous animals. Most dangerous were the tribals who roamed the forests free- the republic technology had no control over the mountain tops of northern ranges. In the end, as an experienced forest- dweller, I had an advantage in terrain over the soldiers. With my years of working and hunting and encounters with tribals , I knew more about tribal customs, tribal techniques, poison skills, strategies in forest fight and camouflage than most. The forests were mine. So a plan bloomed in my mind.

I pattered off to the deeper reaches of the mountain - forest, searching for a suitable place. A nice, shadowed clearing, a tall tree, with dense forest all around it. I set to laying  pit traps  and after toiling hard for few hours digged a pair of them, enough to trap at least thirty men. It was hard work, but I was accustomed to the process, my practiced hands finding the best spots to dig through and the exact depth needed. Afterwards,I snared the bottom of the traps with sharp , poison laced blades , so that anyone who fell inside will be instantly put to sleep. In the end, I  tinkered a bit with the whistle till it sounded like a tribal whistle used for signals and prepared a few darts from the forests around me, carefully choosing wood and embedding them in poison cautiously, till I had a sack full of darts and the sun had rose. I quickly dusted my hands and prepared myself for what was to come.

                                              👁️👁️👁️

I stood a few metres off from the camp, watching the mountain landscape and humming to an obscure song about love in the valleys. The torch light shone to the softly shaking pines ahead in the road as a chilly northern wind blew into my ears and made me feel homesick. I did prefer the fort's walls and it's endless comforts to the wild , poor valleys of North. But I also didn't want to leave this place.. yet. The moon here was clear and untouched, the skies dotted with stars I'd only read about in books, and the smell of earth so strong and soft I wanted to bury my nose deep into the soil and take a sniff. At the fort I'd my family and friends and a big wall to protect me, but here I somehow felt .. free. Unshackled of all the responsibilities and of free of all looming opportunities. Here, it was as if I could choose myself over anything else.