Sons of Ironstorm - Book 1: Griffon's Rise

Chapter 4: Ge'e Darien

                                    "In creating the Ge'e Darien, I was forced to copy

                                    many of the training techniques of both Talemon's

                                    Rangers and the Cliffhammers.  I wanted shock troops

                                    both capable and skilled and utterly without fear."

                                                - from Tas Grimnor's memoirs, 'Making of the                                                                                                    Hawk'

"Do you know where this creature is leading us, general?" the ranger captain asked softly as he drew up beside Stylles, both men leading their horses on foot.  Here, beneath the shelter of the river valley forest, the rain was held off them enough that he could speak without shouting.  Behind them the dark company trailed, open looks of doubt and mistrust on many of their tanned and weathered faces.

Staring hard at the cloaked back in front of them as it carefully and silently wove its way through the thick trees in front of it, Stylles could only shrug.

"To the river by the looks of it, captain,"  he said quietly in reply, "but that's only a guess based on the fact we're back down in the river valley and heading west."

"If it means for us to ford, there's no way, general," the ranger quickly returned, glancing down at the ground beneath his feet.  Already a hand span of water stood there, his horse's hooves sloshing through it.  It was testimony of the Hadron's breech of its banks, the river swollen by the unholy rain summoned by the sorcerer's storm.

"If you're asking if I can divine its thoughts, captain, that is beyond my power."  The Kevan general frowned, catching the captain's downward glance.  He too had noted, almost as soon as they had stepped down onto the flood plain, that the river had crested out of its bed.

"I know not what it intends."

"Then why are we following it, sir?  From dubious shelter to sure destruction?"

Stylles threw a quick and hard look at the ranger officer.  And just as quickly he reconsidered the rebuke that nearly leapt past his lips. 

The ranger wasn't questioning his orders, merely questioning the validity of following a stranger into what appeared to be certain danger.  If the positions were reversed, Stylles himself would've made similar inquiries.  Frowning as his thoughts chewed the situation over for what seemed like the hundredth time, he carefully considered his next words, weighing them beside the odd emotions he had been feeling since the mysterious stranger's appearance.

"A good question, captain.  And I'm not sure I've a good answer for it.  Only that I've a sense the stranger means us no harm.  In fact, I feel it wishes to assist us in our task to reach Tal Morun with the scroll.  There are larger things are work here, things we cannot see.  Yet I can feel their power working on me as surely as if they were forces of nature, pushing me to and fro."

The big general looked back over at the ranger captain, having turned his gaze away for a moment to think.  It was a good thing the stranger's dancing mote of light of a companion was no where to be seen, or it would've been even harder to convince the rangers to follow the stranger down into the river valley.  They too have had their fill of magic over the last few days, despite being magic users themselves.