The Eyes of Fire

Three Birds, One Stone

Astria and Dalet were now just starting on their third day on the road, along with the remaining members of their people. They literally picked the bushes empty of any food, and drank from creeks that were already struggling to flow. They camped far from the road each night, and retraced their steps each morning to continue their way east. Progress was slow, they weren't used to traveling such long distances every day and it had certainly taken a toll on everyone. They met very few travelers on the road, those they did meet would step to the side of the road and wait for them to pass. An older man, whose back was so hunched that his grey beard dragged along the ground, had asked them if they were also refugees from the war. Astria and Dalet never gave him an answer, in fact it lead to both of them wondering aloud about which war and if it was close by or not.
The long days had given everyone a chance to get to know anyone they hadn't met already and get the hang of using their magicks. It seemed everyone knew, the words to creating light and fire spear, Astria was even afforded the opportunity to tell others about Clementius and the things she'd been taught by her. Most of them respected Astria and would follow her, but there was a few who, wouldn't listen and laughed at her and she hoped it wouldn't lead to trouble later on.
On either sides of the road, there was a young forest on one side and a grassy plain that went on seemingly forever. The road had progressed to mainly dirt, speckled with ruts and crusty mud, some grass peeked out from under the mud. Astria could suddenly smell, an rotting odor and she stopped, halting the everyone.

"What is that horrid stench?" Astria exclaimed, pinching her nose in disgust.

"What stench? I dont smell anything?" Dalet had stopped a few feet in front of her, peering through the trees and sniffing his nose audibly.

Several complaints from the back reached their ears, groans and yells.
"Why are stopping?" And "Its hardly midday, keep going."

"Astria, we need to keep moving, me and Jason can scout ahead." Dalet said, aware of the complaints from the back.

"Okay, but dont go too far." Astria responded, starting to move forward, motioning for everyone to keep moving.

Dalet stepped off the road, and waited for enough people to pass him, before he could spot Wilhelm and his friends, standing shoulder to shoulder. Dalet waved Wilhelm over, and his friends followed.

"We're going to scout around ahead of the group, we'll start on both sides of the road, and dont stray too far from the group." Dalet briefed the group quickly.

Dalet and Wilhelm raced ahead of the group, on the grassy plains side of the road, and Wilhelm's two friends on the forest side of the road.

The current path the road headed in, curved north suddenly at the top of a small hill. An iron sign indicated a few cities in each direction the road forked off toward. Jason was the first one to notice the rotting stench, he gagged and covered his mouth. Only a moment later, Dalet tasted in his mouth as he opened his mouth to take a breath, an stench of death. Cresting the small hill, that topped the crossroads and the iron sighpost, Dalet and Wilhelm found the source of the smell.
A grisly battlefield stretched, many league's into the distance, the earth was blackened with mud and blood, corpses of all manner were strewn all around. Colors and banners hung from still hands and were trampled into the ground. The stench of rot and blood, hung in the air much stronger over the hill, and Wilhelm took a few steps back, holding his arm of his mouth and nose, trying not to breath in too much.

On the other side of the road, Jaques and Martin, in the forest had also noticed the stench. However after stumbling across multiple small clearings, marked by battle, they still hadn't found the source.

"Its getting even worse, over here." Martin said, pulling his shirt over his nose.

"Its much worse over here, I bet." Jaques replied, his shirt already pulled over his nose.