Chương 46: Chapter 43 - Encroaching Danger

The late summer sun backlit far-off clouds, threatening a monsoon season soon to come. Four figures rode on horseback ahead of the edge of a massive dust cloud kicked up by the steady motion of thousands of people and animals. The air was hot and dry, and it smelled of sweat and horses. They'd only just begun their journey, and Song's nerves were thrumming with the excitement of it all.

"I'd say about two more weeks until the rains," Jinu said, sniffing the air. He was barely audible above the galloping of their horses, and he had to yell to be heard.

"What are you, a dog?" Dami laughed.

"You can tell that from your nose?" Jinu smirked.

"No, the Patriarch told us yesterday. It means there's a lot of work to be done for shearing."

"Right in the middle of moving? That'll be hard." Song whistled. ["Song, Iseul looks about ready to pop."] Cyrus interjected. Song immediately sat at attention, his eyes focusing on the tall muscular hunter, while Dami and Jinu continued to chat. The itching feeling between his shoulder blades intensified as Iseul's head swiveled nearly all the way around, a beatific smile on her face. ["Wow, that's creepy, have you ever seen her smile like that before?"] ["No"] Song sent back.

He now had enough of a vocabulary to say a few basic words back to Cyrus. He had to wonder if this was how deaf people felt when they spoke, since he couldn't hear it himself.

"Are you having fun, children?" Iseul asked sweetly, pulling her horse to a stop. Everyone else did the same.

"Yes, Teacher!" Dami called back, her eyes bright. Jinu was a bit more savvy, and kept his mouth shut.

"Oh? I'm so glad for you!" Iseul replied sweetly.

"Would you like some rice cakes to go with your tea party?"

"Ah – " Dami had finally twigged.

"No, Teacher."

"Then shut your wagging tongues!" Iseul roared.

"You're here to scout not gossip! At least Song is properly paying attention." She snapped her reins and surged back into motion. Dami and Jinu shot twin glares at Song then followed after. ["Heh. I don't miss being in school."] Cyrus laughed. ["Always had you pegged as the teacher's pet."] ["Quiet."] ["Yeah, yeah, yeah."] Their job today was to scout ahead any time an outcropping of rocks, a hill, or anything else large enough to hide behind appeared in the distance.

The village was at its weakest while traveling, and there were plenty of unpleasant surprises that might ambush them if they weren't cautious. The Green Forest Bandits usually hit travellers closer to the Northern woods, but Demonic Beasts and blood cultists could turn up anywhere. There were also the roving remnants of the war, or displaced factions like Song's own family, who'd never found a place to settle. So they rode ahead, and if that meant Song rode straight into an ambush? So be it.

That was the duty of a scout. The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. — Song was the first to spot it. In a nook between a small cluster of boulders, there were clumps of dirt in the wrong place, with pieces of matted grasslike fur sprouting from them. Song lifted his hand in the air and made the sign for Danger. Everyone immediately went on alert. Jinu even stood high in his saddle, surveying the plains with a hand shading his eyes, and Dami backed away.

Iseul's black bow was in her hand immediately. She nodded, giving him the go ahead. Song took a deep breath, pulling out his weapon and kicking Bongbong into motion. Bongbong's nostrils went wide, snuffing the air with worried snorts. Song spoke to his horse in a gentle tone, "Do you smell them, Bongbong? It's fine, keep calm. The caravan should've scared them all off." When they got close, Song paused, considering all the nooks and crannies where a grasswolf might hide.

Instead of approaching the tramped down area between the boulders, he reached into his belt pouch and pulled out a glass orb with a viscous orange liquid spinning around inside it. Song gingerly placed the orb in his lacrosse stick, took a deep breath and kicked Bongbong into a gentle trot around the possible den. He'd been practicing his horseback 'lacrosse' as Cyrus called it, whenever he had the opportunity. He didn't plan on replicating the near-deadly mistake with his first grasswolf a second time.

["Steady ~ steady. I think I saw some motion in that back crevice."] Cyrus whispered. ["Breath in, Breathe out,"]"Head of stone. Heart of steel. Hold your tongue. Hide your thoughts." Song whispered back. When he reached the end of his mantra, he launched the orb with a Crack Shot. It flew across the distance directly into the space between the boulders, and shattered with a sharp PING! that was instantly swallowed up by the dark orange cloud that erupted between the stones.

It blocked any visibility of the area, and according to Patriarch Yu, caused terrible itching and choked the eyes and lungs of anybody or any thing that breathed it in. And it was especially deadly to grasswolves. As evidenced by the shambling shape that staggered out of the orange cloud. The grasswolf's fur was turning black before Song's very eyes, and the green light in its eyes was dim with sap that flowed like tears. It growled and stumbled, then let out a howl that broke off into hacking coughs.

It squinted at Song, and green qi gathered in its fangs. It tensed to charge – Then was blown sideways as the arrow loosed from Iseul's bow took it in the flank. It collapsed without even a yelp, and didn't rise again.

"That's some good stuff." Iseul said, riding up alongside Song with Dami and Jinu.

"We'll need to find some way other than that stupid stick to work with it. Maybe just throwing it?"

"I'm not sure you want to chance it snapping in your grip," Dami commented blithely. Iseul considered the last remnants of the orange fog as it settled.

"Hmmm… well it's a good thing I have Song to use it for me, then." She hopped down from her horse and motioned to Jinu.

"Jinu, with me. Song, keep watch and at the ready." She pulled a shortsword from her scabbard then crept forward, guarding her sword arm with her free hand and presenting a small profile if anything else came out of the den. Jinu was a step behind her, his crook out and slowly sweeping from left to right. The 'den' wasn't deep, just a loose collection of stones, and Iseul quickly waved the all clear.

"I don't like it," She said when Song and Dami were alongside. She pointed at the spoor.

"This is from at least a dozen grasswolves. Where are the rest?"

"Scared off?" Song said, getting down to see if he could guess the total number for himself. He was only able to spot maybe… eight.

"The caravan would've been visible for ages, and it makes the ground shake pretty hard even at this distance." Iseul frowned.

"This place is just outside of where we performed our regular patrols over the past month. I don't like it."

"Why would they only leave one behind?" Jinu asked.

"To ambush whoever found this place?" Dami was collecting samples into little jars, and she frowned.

"This spoor is a lot darker than the rest. What does that mean?" Iseul motioned for her to pass it over. She looked it over, then gave it a small lick, causing Jinu to gag. Dami and Song waited patiently for her to speak.

"It's strong with Wood qi. Whatever left this spoor is closer to foundation level, or already there. I need to report this to the council. You lot, go back to your families." Iseul walked out of the makeshift den and mounted her horse.

"And tell them to keep a careful watch. I think we're being stalked."