It wasn’t long before William and Echo were near the treeline adjacent to Greenwell’s logging area. William glanced at his [Party Interface] and saw his companions’ names greyed out along with their MP, SP, and HP values. It was just him and Echo from this point on. William was about to keep going, but heard a noise from behind a small stack of logs. Small was relative however, as the seven logs were a few meters in length. From behind it came a pair of voices and William took that as his cue to sneak closer and see if he could hear anything. He took the time to have Echo look from the air to make sure he isn’t taken off guard. William took it slowly to make sure he was as quiet as could be. He didn’t want to step on a twig or something similar and give himself away.
It didn’t take long for William to find himself on the other side of the log and to hear the conversation.
“I’m telling you, this operation is hasty. The Baron is obsessed with getting revenge for his son,” said a scratchy voice.
“And I’m telling you, Jalle, We aren’t paid to question the orders we get. What the Baron wants, the Baron gets,” followed a deeper, gruff voice that carried chastisement.
“Well obviously, Kam, I’m here aren’t I?”
“Yes, so why question our orders if you are following them?”
“Because I would rather be back at Fort Boulder. Just because I’m here doesn’t mean I want to be.”
The one that William assumed was Kam let out an amused snort and replied, “You mean you’d rather be trying to win Sayla’s affections. I’m telling you, she’s already interested in one of the new captains.”
“You see, Kam, that’s the really annoying thing. The new transfers to Fort Boulder already have mostly senior rank to us locals. They aren’t even here. All us local lads have been sent here. It gives that bastard more time to win Sayla’s affection.”
William felt some empathy for Jalle. The struggle of romance that most people deal with. He was still an enemy soldier though so it was what it was at the end of the day.
“Jalle, if you’re that worried about Sayla’s affections, then why are you holding out hope? We’re gonna be here for who knows how long. The Baron is adamant that it wasn’t the late bandits that killed his son.”
“Yeah, but the father is little better than the son in this scenario. I guarantee that his son made some wild assumptions, fucked around, then found out quickly. All this making me stuck here for however long it’ll be.”
William had to force his amusement down. Jalle was bang on the money. It royally pissed William off that once again, the region was put in danger as a consequence of his actions, but the trouble always found him, so he had to make do with the cards he was dealt.
Kam spoke again, this time sounding more tired.
“I get your disdain for the nobility. Let’s be honest, nearly all of them are greedy and self centered, disregarding the worth of their people to satisfy their own needs. Now what I said and what you implied earlier are both treasonous and would see us both hanged.”
“Yes they are, but it’s the truth, regardless of whatever the top brass say to the contrary. I understand why the Foundation do what they do.”
Kam let out a small laugh and replied, “Now that’s treasonous. Please don’t tell me you’re gonna go back after this and join those freedom fighters. It’s not a fight they can win, otherwise they would’ve done so after all these years.”
It was Jalle’s turn to laugh then.
“Oh by the four hells, no. I understand why they do what they do, but I can’t risk association with them. If I was caught, me and my parents would be publicly executed.”
William was getting a better idea of of Stonegate and how it ruled. At least there were some amongst the people fighting back in this ‘Foundation’. It may be worth a look if he was ever in that area, but he had no intention of visiting any time soon. The continued conversation pulled William’s attention back to the situation.
“For what it’s worth Jalle, I do disagree with the approach that our top brass are taking with this operation. It’s not like the citizens in this region did anything to warrant this. I’d rather be home with Rand. Still can’t believe my little boy is almost seven now. I also find it stupid why they don’t just send a bunch of our level forty knights in to see the work done. Just because of their pride, they won’t set foot here thinking it’s beneath their presence. It would cost our men less lives, but maybe they wanted a show of force or something.”
“Yeah, I just hope beyond hope that they don’t make us execute any prisoners. I would do it so that my family’s safety were assured, but that shit would haunt me. I’m glad for a posting like this. The two of us alone, able to talk freely, and away from danger, even if its a supposed snub against our character”
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William’s presence was the opposite of safety for his enemies, but maybe these two didn’t have to be foes. He peaked his head around the corner ever so slightly And noticed a small fire, dimly lighting the two men. Both had swords and shields. The garb was typical Stonegate armor, yellow fabric and all. William decided to use [Identify].
{Ascension_Protocol}
Jalle – Human Level 18 – Fighter Level 16
------------------------------------------------------------
Kam – Human Level 19 – Fighter Level 17
{End}
He would probably be able to fight them if it came to blows. William decided to try talking. He stepped out and held his hands out in a gesture of peace. The two men immediately sprung to their feet and drew their swords.
“Wait guys, I don’t mean you any harm,” William said, staying loose so he could move quickly if they attacked.
The two men shared a look, then lowered their swords slightly. They didn’t sheath them, but at least it didn’t immediately get bloody.
“I see that you’re quite high level for this area and those titles…” Kam said, suspicion plain.
“What can I say? I’m a hard worker,” William replied, trying to sound friendly.
Jalle looked worried, though it was hard to tell completely given the lighting.
“How long have you been here?” Jalle asked, clearly worried about his words being over heard.
“Don’t worry, I’m not gonna say anything about what I heard, I’m sort of local. To be honest, I had intended to sneak up and kill you both-” The two men lifted their swords up again, “-but, after hearing what you both said, I chose this option. I don’t wanna fight, only talk. From what I’ve heard, you both aren’t too keen on this whole thing either. I also understand that for lack of better words, your families are hostages to your duty.”
The two soldiers lowered their swords again, even lower than before and nodded in quiet agreement.
William didn’t want to beat around the bush so jumped straight into what he wanted to know.
“Tell me about the village to the west of here. It had wooden defenses around it last time I was there. It was small. Are the people safe?”
The two men shared nervous looks and an unspoken conversation seemed to pass between the two. Jalle decided to answer for the pair.
“Two people were killed by our troop, but everyone else had been captured alive. Were they friends of yours?”
William resisted the urge to give into anger at the loss of two of the villagers, telling himself that he had killed quite a few Stonegate soldiers, so the life tally was firmly in his court, and he still needed answers from the two men in front of him.
“I’m friends with the people of Greenwell, the village we were discussing. Where have they taken the others?” William asked, fighting to resist the anxious nerves that tried to force his muscles into shaking at the fate of his mother and the others.
“They aren’t far to the north of that village. They won’t be hurt as long as they comply to the tasks assigned in the camp,” Jalle replied, looking somewhat ashamed as he said it.
“The camps. Do they involve packing lots of people in a small area to make them work until they can’t work any more?”
It was Kam’s turn to speak then.
“They never start that way, but the powers that be eventually pump more and more people into them until they are close to bursting. At that point, new camps are made and the cycle repeats.”
William felt sick. He was getting serious world war two vibes from the government of Stonegate and the sort of policies that they push out.
“And you guys don’t say anything? No protests? No lawsuits?” William asked, stupefied at how these things came to be.
Kam continued, “We… can’t. You don’t criticize military policy in Stonegate unless a part of the nobility and at that point, glad hands take over. I and my family would be strung up for telling you that, for example. Most of us are just soldiers following orders. The worst of us however, volunteered to come here. People with morals like myself and Jalle often get dumped in situations like this.”
Kam gestured around the immediate area as he finished speaking.
William seems to have lucked out finding somewhat moral people on the side of his enemy. He didn’t think they’d help him free the others near Greenwell, but the information he could glean alone was valuable.
“Well, that does suck for sure. I know that you just wanna serve your… country? By protecting the civilians and your families. I wanna get on with my life with my friends. These politics things are a load of shit. The only people that want this drama are greedy and self serving, or evil and twisted. I’m one guy, and you lot are besieging every settlement in the region, so I’m not gonna rush in and cause drama or jeopardize you two as I get that you are just two guys here on orders. I just want some questions answered and I’ll be gone. Is that fine with both of you?”
The two men shared another look and nodded. What followed was a Q and A session with William learning patrol routes that the troops were taking, directions supplies came and went, the types of labor that people are forced to endure in the camps, and the common locations of the three toughest soldiers, above level twenty. William had said that he wanted to know the patrol routes and supply routes to avoid them as he came and went. This was true to an extent as he had no intention of running across either for the moment. It could come in handy if a mobilized effort by any force was formed. That was a future problem. He needed to take a look with his eyes at the situation and maybe come up with a prison break.
Nothing left to say between the men, they parted with mirrored nods and William vanished into the darkness once more, making his way towards Greenwell at a faster speed, given the loss of time.
It didn’t take too long to get within a couple hills range of Greenwell. He noticed several groups moving around the hills further ahead and watched as the silhouettes and tiny burning torch flame crested hills, descending down their other sides. William stayed low with Echo flying high above covering his back. No patrols were heading his way and as he moved over two more hills, he saw an unlit, unmoving Greenwell with a large, square encampment further beyond. William felt his rage surge. They had built it on the hill where his father and others were buried.
His blood was on fire and he was about to go and do something he would regret with a clearer head when the cool touch of a knife blade pressed into his neck as Echo sent a warning down the bond.
His blood had been quenched cool at the sensation and surprise and a hushed, feminine voice spoke.
“Well, look what I’ve found.”