Summoned to a Shattered World

Birthright Chapter 15 - Tertium

We reached the village around midday. Though plenty of the houses were still standing, many were little more than skeletal frames, blackened by flame. Despite the devastation, I could see people going about their day. Demons, I assumed, but they wore brown, all-encompassing robes that made it hard to tell. They could have been humans for all I knew, though that seemed unlikely given what I'd learnt of this world.

With my new demon pal beside me, the group went to the burnt-out houses, paying no attention to the farmers nearby. I looked around but there was no sign of the raiders still being here. "What now?"

Korzan looked up from inspecting the ground. "Now we look for tracks and try to hunt them down. I don't suppose you know much about tracking?"

"Nope, not a thing."

The demon sighed. "Yeah, I'm not much better. Spent most of my life in towns and cities."

"Me too." I wondered what someone from this world would make one of earth's larger cities. I doubted they had anything of that scale here. With nothing else to do but wait for the soldiers who looked like they had a clue what they were doing to find something, I looked around.

A few of the villagers were keeping an eye on us. None of them approached, they just kept their distance and watched. I wondered what they were looking for. Were they wondering if we'd attack them like the other demons had? Or maybe they were working as spies for the raiders' boss?

Nah, they were probably just bored. I can't imagine there's much entertainment out here. Hell, if soldiers had come to hunt down some criminals near where I'd lived back on earth I'd probably have watched too.

One of the soldiers eventually found a trail and we moved out, leaving the village and its people behind. The trail brought us to a series of rolling hills, much of which was obscured by a strange bush that grew in dense clusters throughout the area. It's dark-red leaves covered in spikes didn't look like anything I wanted to be in contact with, so I kept well clear of it where I could.

Talking amongst each other, the soldiers fanned out and went off in small groups. It seemed counter-intuitive to me when we were at risk of running into the enemy. "What are they doing? Why are they spreading out?"

Korzan shrugged. "To locate the enemy faster."

I tactfully avoided rolling my eyes, even I knew that much. "Yeah, but is it really worth the risk? What if we're attacked while we aren't together?"

"There's no need to worry so much, they wouldn't spread out that much. And as soon as someone spots the enemy we'll reform."

Her words didn't do much to make me feel better. The terrain had plenty of places to hide, perfect for an ambush. Maybe being reckless was the nature of demons. Would the demons we were hunting have enough patience to lay an ambush? Or would they charge as soon as we located each other? It was impossible to say, they might not stand and fight at all. They were only raiders after all, there wasn't any real reason for them to attack us.

The more I thought about it, the more sense it made. I still intended to remain alert but it helped to ease my sense of anxiety. The actual battles hadn't been so bad once they were underway, but the waiting was intolerable, it was enough to drive a man mad.

I felt like I'd glimpsed the constant tension that ate away at soldiers when they were at war. Being able to relax was probably essential to maintaining my mental wellbeing. Of course, that wouldn't matter if I died, but it was still worth thinking about. Even if only to take my mind off the waiting.

Korzan and I were left to bring up the rear of the dispersed formation. The plan had been to stay close enough together to help each other, but the poor visibility and difficult terrain had made that difficult. Before long we'd spread out enough that Korzan was the only demon in sight, though I still caught occasional glimpses of the others as we travelled. "Do you think this will take much longer?"