Chase waited in the tent, glancing up as Sikadi returned from the medical facility where Muthroth had been rushed to after he collapsed. Raising an eyebrow in curiosity, he met the dokkalfar’s gaze as she relayed what the medics had determined.

“It is the result of whatever poison was on the darts that the two of you were struck with,” she began. “But the medics are unsure of the precise mechanics of the poison. Their best guess is that the reason it affected him so much faster than you, Lord Newell, is due to humans being a Rank L race, unlike us.”

Chase blinked, “Dokkalfar aren’t Rank L?”

She shook her head, “We start at Rank M, many were fortunate during the Tutorial to have the opportunity to receive the benefits of a ritual to improve them to Rank L, while a select few were improved to Rank K. Heir Svalgalti was one of them, it was one of the reasons why we were given to him.”

Chase reluctantly nodded. He hadn’t told them that he’d upgraded his race to Rank K, he didn’t feel the need to share it with them, but if they were right, then it was likely that his body would resist the effects of the poison for quite some time. At the very least, it would hopefully be long enough to deal with the Uchmute.

Sighing, Chase ran a hand through his hair before asking, “Will any of the other scouts be able to provide his report? We still need to make sure that we’re prepared.”

“The new head scout will be ready to report within five minutes,” she said, moving further into the command tent and sitting down next to Chase.

Nodding, Chase stood, saying, “Then I'll leave you to prepare for the meeting.”

As he stepped out of the tent, he stopped when a figure moved in front of him. The tall, lithe form and white skin was a dead giveaway.

“You must be the new head scout,” he said, looking at the female dokkalfar before him.

“Scout Ingawa reporting,” the woman replied while slamming her fist against her chest, her voice smooth and even. “I am the one Head Scout Muthroth was training to be as his replacement.”

Chase nodded, gesturing for her to follow him into the tent, where Sikadi was looking over reports. Ingawa strode past him, her long legs allowing her to keep pace with him as he walked. Chase couldn't help but let his eyes wander, taking in the shapely rear end barely contained by the leather pants she was wearing, before shaking his head. He’d been alone for too lone.

As they reached the table, he took his seat and watched her take her own. Ingawa didn't seem to notice his earlier gaze, or simply didn't care, as she sat. Tahlia entered, moving to stand behind Sikadi, and Chase clapped his hands, making sure that he had everyone's attention before speaking.

“Ingawa, Muthroth was incapacitated before he could finish giving his report, so we’ll start with you. I need to know everything that the scouts have found,” Chase said, looking at the elfin woman.

“Yes, My Lord,” she said as she stood, placing a number of what looked like etched bone shards on the table.

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A mist rose out of the shards, coalescing into a faintly glowing green image that resembled a topographic map of the region. A few sections were glowing different colors, their current location a bright red, the frek'idh valley a pale yellow, and beyond them was a massive section that was a deep blue.

“Our scouts have found several Uchmute hunting parties and small scouting groups, but no sign of a major force,” Ingawa began, pointing to several smaller blue dots outside the main force. “They appear to be moving slowly, almost as though they are waiting for something. The closest group is roughly twenty miles to our east, and are moving along the ridge line, staying out of sight of the valley. It is likely that they are preparing for an ambush. The majority of their forces are beyond the frek'idh, but we do not have a more detailed map at the current moment.

“Upon Head Scout Muthroth and Lord Newell’s return from negotiating with the frek’idh, we began avoiding them and instead concentrated our scouting efforts in determining the full expanse of the Uchmute as a force. Thus far, we have found several settlements possessing a slave force composed of a mix of dokkalfar, frek'idh, and humans. We do not have an accurate count of how many Uchmute there are, however, the size of these settlements implies a force that is far larger than we have the ability to repel.

“In short, My Lord, they have us at a severe disadvantage. Our scouts have determined that we can only assume they have us surrounded, and the size of their forces is greater than what we have here. Even potential additional reinforcements from the Othgar Clan would not be enough to even the odds.”

Chase considered her words, and looked at Sikadi, who frowned before looking at him with a somewhat concerned expression.

“I would advise against sending out more than we already have,” she said. “If the Uchmute were to attack, they would be too far away and unable to reinforce us.”

Chase nodded, and Tahlia asked, “Do we have a rough estimate of how large their forces are?”

Ingawa hesitated for a moment before replying, “Our scouts are still out trying to determine an accurate estimate, but based on the size of the villages, our best guess is that their forces are at least two hundred thousand. Not including their slave population.”

“Fuck,” Chase swore, thumping his head against the table. “We need some way to bridge the gap or put them into disarray. Any ideas?”

“Assassination,” the three dokkalfar said in unison.

Chase lifted his head, raising an eyebrow, and Sikadi was the one to elaborate, “From how you described the Uchmute who spoke to you, it sounds like they have a single ruler, one that is very much mortal. If you assassinate him, then his lieutenants will either kneel to you as a civilized people would, or more likely they will fight each other for the leadership position. Either one benefits us.”

“What do we know about him?” Chase asked, leaning back in his chair and stroking his chin.

“Very little,” Sikadi answered, looking over her notes. “His name is Isushi Riniki, from what Advisor Ricardo has said based on your description, he resembles a common chimpanzee, he calls himself Oni King of the Infernal Gates, wears armor, and wields a…na-ghi-na-tah.”

“Naginata,” Chase corrected, considering what they knew. Sikadi was right: they knew very little.

“What is an n-ag-i-n-a-t-a?” Ingawa asked, her brow furrowed in confusion.

“A Japanese polearm, with a blade more like a sword's than a spear's at the end. The ones I've seen tend to be around six or seven feet long,” he answered.

Ingawa nodded, and Chase returned his thoughts to the situation. They needed more information. If they were going to avoid a full blown war that would wipe them out through sheer weight of numbers alone, assassination was really their best bet, and attempting an assassination when all you really knew was the target’s name was a recipe for disaster.

Chase sighed, and asked, “Can you possibly slip someone into the Uchmute capital? We need information, and we won't get that without taking some risks.”

“Easily,” Ingawa nodded, making Chase look at her in confusion. “We’ve repurposed some of the draug you didn’t render completely inoperable into aerial scouts, and a few of the deaths we’ve had have allowed us to make shaeds, incorporeal scouting units. Shaeds are capable of riding in the bodies of the living and experiencing everything that they sense.”

“Right, necropunk, I almost forgot,” Chase muttered to himself, before more loudly saying, “Do it. Have some shaeds make their way into the Uchmute capital and gather as much information about this ‘Isushi Riniki’ as they can and get it back to us as quickly as possible.”

Ingawa nodded and made a note on her tablet.

“How many scouts do you have currently?”

“Roughly fifteen living dokkalfar, one hundred scouting draug, with a half-dozen shaed. All of our living scouts have been equipped with a set of draug-bones and can use them to contact the others and return. In the event they are captured, we can recover their bodies and turn them against their captors.”

“Good,” Chase nodded. “Once we have our intelligence, we'll decide on how to proceed. Let's just hope that we're prepared before they decide they’re tired of waiting and attack us first.”

Chase looked at the map Ingawa had put together, noting that the Uchmute seemed to be moving toward the frek'idh valley as well. He considered his options, but before he could begin to make a decision, the flap of the tent opened, admitting a panting Ricardo who looked like he’d been running for a lot longer than he was used to.

“Examined…poison…” he panted, holding up one of the darts from the ape assassin’s bag. “No…antidote…”