Lord Sal'zar approached Jack and his companion. As small and humble as the older Lord remembered the human being, astride the back of a wolgen, even a runt wolgen, he was far more imposing than their first meeting. But, of course, such a thing was only befitting the kind of male who'd done the impossible in saving Sal'zar's village. He was undoubtedly a thing out of legend.

However, as imposing as Jack was, his companion standing beside him, the tall metallic 'goddess,' was more so. Sal'zar might have mistaken her for a statue if she wasn't adjusting her gaze to follow the approach of the Lord. He found her movements unsettling, but maybe that was simply because of how easily she could overpower Sal'zar's guards if she so chose...

However, despite his thoughts about the subject, Sal'zar found himself utterly without fear as he approached. It wasn't just that he doubted Jack was the type to attack someone willing to negotiate in good faith. He and his whole village would already be dead if not for this male and his magics in the past. Sal'zar had no intentions of betraying his oath of loyalty to Lord A'ngles and would seek to end this war to his sworn Lord's benefit, but he couldn't help but feel that should Jack or S'haar require Sal'zar's life here and now, he'd happily lay it down in payment for the debts he owed. Such conflicting motivations were hard to reconcile, but sometimes that was just the nature of being a village Lord.

Seeing the proud Dek'thul bound to a sled behind the metallic female brought a slight grin to Sal'zar's face. Not that the hunting chief had ever been overly antagonistic to the Lord, but his constant air of superiority definitely rankled Sal'zar from time to time.

Finally, having approached within an appropriate range, Lord Sal'zar halted and bowed respectfully to Jack before speaking. "Welcome, Wizard Jack. So much has happened since we last spoke, and given recent events, I was concerned about your safety. I am pleased to see my fears were misplaced and you are doing well."

Jack bowed as well as he could, given that he seemed to be strapped to the wolgen he rode. Sal'zar remembered that the human had trouble walking when he'd visited due to injuries sustained in his notorious battle against the raiders. Of all the solutions the Lord would have contemplated, taming a wolgen to use as a second pair of legs would never have been one, but apparently, Jack didn't bother with small things like impossibilities when it came to problem-solving. Finally, after his bow, the human responded with his companion translating, much as S'haar had before. At the thought of the female leader of the camp, Sal'zar couldn't help but wonder where she was during these negotiations, but his concerns were quickly forgotten as he settled for the coming negotiations. "Lord Sal'zar, I am also glad to see you in such good health. I'm sure chasing a band of rebels around the wilds must be challenging for a former village Lord. I hope we've not made life too difficult for you."

Sal'zar grinned and shook his head. "Not so much difficulty as I'm confident we've caused you."

Then turning and addressing the imposing metallic female, Sal'zar continued. "I must apologize. In my eagerness to greet a friend, I forgot to properly introduce myself. I am Sal'zar, Lord of a small forest village that owes its survival to Jack and S'haar. You must be the Dragon, Lady Angela, I've heard so much about. Though, I must admit, when I first heard your title, I hardly imagined someone so... refined."

Judging by the slight grin on Jack's face, the human had caught the little joke at the end, but Lady Angela's face hardly showed any reaction. In fact, when it moved, it had more of the odd stiffness that bothered the Village Lord before. It was almost as if she was imitating life rather than possessing it naturally. But perhaps that was simply the way of dragons. Sal'zar certainly had no basis of comparison. At least the Lady's voice seemed to express mirth as she responded. "A pleasure to meet you, Lord Sal'zar. Though I must admit, it's not often my brother's friends negotiate on behalf of armies seeking our destruction."

Sal'zar sighed and shook his head. "It's true. If it were up to me, I'd happily leave you all be, but we are all bound by our respective responsibilities and oaths, and this choice is not mine to make."

Turning back to Jack, Sal'zar continued, sticking to a more formal tone of address as if in formal negotiations with a Lord of equal standing, which in many ways he was. "To that end, I must apologize for the absence of Lord B'arthon. Unfortunately, he is currently...indisposed, and the council elected me as the negotiator in his stead. I hope my services will prove adequate in that regard."

Sal'zar noticed Jack grin slightly at the mention of B'arthon being indisposed. Was he just amused by the thought of his opponent experiencing difficulties that prevented him from being present, or did the human know something? Ultimately, Sal'zar decided it didn't matter. He was here to negotiate with and delay Jack and his army, nothing more. To that end, Jack seemed perfectly willing to play along as the human responded. "Well, I suppose that depends. Precisely what authority do you possess in these negotiations? Can we be assured that B'arthon and the counsel you spoke of will honor your word?"

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Sal'zar had to be careful here. Underplaying his role or overstating his position could end this opportunity here and now. So he had to strike a balance between the two. "Well, that depends on what you're hoping to accomplish here. I'm unable to negotiate the movements of the army or any end of the conflict short of your surrender, but I'm sure I could arrange an exchange of supplies or similar concessions for the return of our master hunter. As valuable as he is, I don't think Lord B'arthon would agree that he's equal to the prize in this valley."

Jack nodded as if that about met his expectations. "I suppose that'll have to do. But, to that end, and in the name of good faith, I should warn you we're not returning your master hunter in perfect condition. I'm afraid both of his legs are broken."

That surprised Sal'zar, who turned and looked at the master hunter again. Both his legs were bound in odd-fitting boots that almost reached his knees. The Lord had assumed the odd boots would make it difficult for the hunter to flee should he free himself, but now he wondered if they didn't serve a different purpose. Dek'thul only grinned in return.

Turning back to Jack, Sal'zar couldn't help but raise an eye ridge. "That is most unfortunate. Such an injury likely means the end of his hunts and greatly diminishes his value. Though I can't help but notice master Dek'thul doesn't look as if he's in the kind of pain that comes with a broken leg, let alone two."

Jack nodded before replying. "Well, in this case, his injury isn't quite as severe as you're probably thinking. Indeed, he won't be able to hunt until after summer has passed, but with our treatments, he's likely to make an almost full recovery by the end of the year, and he'll be able to resume his role as a hunter unabated next year without issue."

That surprised Sal'zar again. "A full recovery in less than a year for two broken legs? If your claim proves true, you're certainly living up to your wizard title!"

Jack smiled but shook his head no. "In this case, his recovery isn't my doing. My first aid knowledge is probably better than average, but my sister, Lady Angela, far surpasses me in her healing knowledge and skill." With that, Jack nodded to the metallic female doing the translating.

That claim surprised Sal'zar in several ways. The flesh and blood Jack claiming kinship with the metallic goddess was hard to grasp, but more so was the insistence on her healing proficiency. Looking at the tall female who nodded back in acknowledgment, it was easy to imagine her wading through a battlefield, striking down her foes like the goddess she resembled. But to imagine her kneeling over an injured child, tending to his wounds like some village healer, bordered on the absurd. Still, while Sal'zar had no doubt of the claim's validity, it ultimately made little difference at the moment. His job was only to delay them as long as possible.

The surprising thing was how content Jack seemed to be in playing along. It was almost like he, too, was buying time for something, but what? It's not like his army could be surrounding the camp; the majority of them were clearly here, at Jack's back, as evident by the many torches Sal'zar could see just beyond the treeline. Squinting into the darkness, the Lord could see the many torches still in place.

That was when Jack cleared his throat, getting Sal'zar to return his attention to the human before Jack spoke. "So then, now that we've established the value of Dek'thul still holds for your people, both in his hunting skill and what he can teach the hunters of your growing empire, let's negotiate the price for his return. Given that he can feed the better part of a reasonably sized village all on his own, I'd say it's reasonable to expect a dozen kovaack in exchange."

A dozen kovaack? Setting aside the absurdity of an entire herd being exchanged for one male, no matter who he was, it's not like they'd brought a herd with them. To outpace the survivors of the dragon's outpost, they'd only brought what each argu'n could carry with them. They'd have to send runners back to the villages to get them, and by the time they'd returned, if they were even able to get a herd through the mountains unmolested, the standoff in the valley would be long over. Of course, the first offer was never meant to be the actual goal in negotiations like this. Still, demanding something so impossible hardly made sense.

Then again, that just meant these negotiations would take a little longer, which suited Sal'zar just fine.

-

Hal'dek was leading his half of the army through the valley as ordered. They were to approach the enemy from behind, forcing them to fight while surrounded or surrender. He was a little surprised such a patiently determined enemy had allowed itself to be so thoroughly outmaneuvered, but he supposed hunger might have pushed them into a state of desperation.

Halfway through the valley, he passed over the ground that must have been the enemy's camp. It seemed as if they'd picked everything up with them when they'd left, as if they had no intention of returning to this place. Perhaps they realized their struggle was at an end and decided to negotiate their surrender? Though, he supposed it didn't matter. His job was to assume otherwise and be prepared for a fight. He could see the torches through the trees in the distance. One way or another, this standoff was about to come to an end.