It was slightly before dawn a couple of days later. We had been passing by a lot of farmsteads during the nights we had travelled north. However, they had all been too close to the waystation, for me to want to risk the chance of robbing it. The farmstead I was observing now was also a bit too close for my taste.
Nevertheless, it was necessary. While we had found some rations in the waystation and even a couple of fruit trees during our travel, we were running low on food. So the farmstead in front of me had to be the first official raid we went on.
It was a rather large one. There was what looked like the main building, and a couple of smaller houses, probably for the workers or lesser family members. There were also four barns, and a large paddock for a larger number of animals. A mix of sheep and oxen it looked like. Noticed a few dogs in between the sheep, mostly sleeping but once in a while, taking a little walkabout.
The first people on the farmstead were already up and about, fetching water and so on. It seemed that they preferred to eat outside because there were a couple of cooking fires going, as well as long tables and benches. If I had to make an estimate I would say there were around thirty people or more.
There was no way around it, I would need to raid the place. My men had already encircled the place, hiding in the forest or in the crops. We had already laid out the plan for the different squad leaders. Each squad, except those belonging to 6th Platoon, were assigned two horses, while I kept the other three for the grand entrance. In total, we had acquired fifteen horses. So far we had only used them for carrying supplies, but we needed some riders, in case someone made a run for it.
I swung into the saddle, pulled my hood up and started riding forward, followed by Yathanae and Siphanien. The two elves did not carry a hood, so it was clear to see their origins. As we approached within fifty metres of the farmstead, they became aware of us, revealed by the little light provided by the dawn.
A couple of elves grabbed pitchforks from nearby, while another three darted off to somewhere. The pitchfork wielders flanked an older elven woman, the first portly elf I had seen. She was also incredibly old, her hair white from age, her body bent, and walking with a cane. When we came within ten metres, we stopped. Moments later the three elves returned, carrying bows while a lot of other elves followed them. None of them carried any obvious weapons.
“Greetings this fine morning, we apologize disturbing the peace,” I called out, bowing slightly in the saddle.
“Greetings strangers,” the old elven matron replied in a steady voice that portrayed strength, will, and pride. “Who comes this early, with a covered face? One might suspect ill intentions.”
“Alas, it was not because I wanted to be rude, but simply exchange a few words before things devolved into unpleasantness,” I replied. At my words, the elves in front of me tensed up. Hands gripped the weapons a bit tighter, arrows were drawn.
“And why should things devolve into unpleasantness?” she asked, with a dangerous tone.
“Because of who I am.”
Her eyes narrowed, and she demanded, “Remove your hood.”
“I have every intention of doing so, but I would warn your family not to attack me. The end result would be atrocious,” I replied and moved my hand up to grab the edge of the hood. I created links with each of the arrows, creating a repulsive link that would send the arrows up and above us. Taking no chances I poured a quarter of my mana into each link.
One of the young males with the pitchforks stepped forward, threatening. “You think you scare us? We’ve killed bandits before!”
“But I’m not a bandit—” I started to say, but then stopped. Cocking my head to the side. “Well, what’s about to happen can seem like banditry, but really in a war, it’s just called acquiring supplies. Or if you want to get really nasty, raiding.”
As I said the last part, I removed my hood, which led to gasps of shock from the elves. Shouts of dismay rose up, all containing the word “Human!”. The archers immediately released their arrows at me, but the links did what they were supposed to do, and the arrows sailed harmlessly above us.
I immediately pulled one of the dragons and aimed it at the old woman. In a stern voice, I barked, “One more stunt like that, and I’m forced to kill people!”
“You only have one shot!” the angry young elf screamed, taking a couple of steps forward, putting himself between me and the old woman.
“True,” I conceded. “But I do have over a hundred men surrounding you.”
The elves started looking around and saw my men who were approaching the farmstead from behind and the sides. I was merely the distraction.
The old woman pulled the young man back, took a few steps forward before fiercely saying, “We’ll fight you to the death if you try to enslave us with your accursed collars. If you hope to gain slaves, you’ll be sorely disappointed.”
“I do not wish slaves, nor do I wish to rape or kill you,” I said, putting the dragon away. “What I will do is pillage, but without the destruction.”
“You think we’ll just handover all our riches?” the young man screamed and moved forward, but was stopped by the old woman’s cane.
She looked at me with an inquisitive look. “What is it that you want, human?”
“A few things,” I said as I got out of the saddle. Acting like I did not have a care in the world, I walked over to the old woman. I ignored the angry young man and gave the old woman a slight bow. “My name is Lord Karth, I’m sorry to impose on you this morning. I hope we can find a solution to my problems that do not involve robbing you and yours of your lives or livelihood. That being said, the survival of my men is my foremost concern.
“If your family would be so kind as to put down their weapons, we can get started on negotiating something that we both can live with. I give my word, for what it’s worth to you, that my men will not rape, kill, or enslave anyone here, as long as we’re not met with violence.”
She looked at me for a long time, before sighing. “I hope what you said is true. We’ll put down our weapons because even if we fought, we would all die.”
“Grandmother!” the angry young man protested.
“Do as I said, Hubys,” the old woman scolded. She then turned her attention back to me. “My name is Shalheira, will you sit and talk with me? These old bones are getting tired of standing up.”
“It would be my please, Miss Shalheira,” I said. My bodyguards and 6th Platoon had joined us by this point. I presented the two elves and Alan who had joined me. “I’d like to present Yathanae and Siphanien, two good friends of mine. Though our acquaintance got off to a rocky start, I consider them both valuable friends, regardless of their status. This is Alan, head of my bodyguards.”
She greeted them, and we moved towards the tables, where we took the seats on one side, while Alan stood behind me, while Shalheira and a couple of other older elves joined her. Her irate grandson stood behind her with a few other young elves. His arms crossed and he glared at me with open hostility.
Meanwhile, my men had surrounded the farmstead. Alrik and the 1st Squad of 1st Platoon were patrolling the courtyard we were all gathered in. Several young children were scared and cried into their mother skirts, while some of the older boys were staring fascinatedly at the soldiers in uniforms. Strange men with round ears.
A young woman, around her twenties, a young teenager in elven society came over, carrying a large pitcher of water, and some mugs. With trembling hands, she poured some kind of fruity-smelling red juice into them. I was not sure what it was, but it smelled good.
Without any concern, I took the offered mug and tasted it. I immediately set my healing magic to heal me, but there was no poison. Instead, I concentrated on enjoying the taste. It was sort of like pineapple, but with a less tangy taste. I would say it also had a bit of apple in, but I was not sure.
“This is really delicious, from what fruit is it derived?” I asked. Shalheira looked a little shocked that I had taken a taste without any hesitation.
“It’s a juice made from the nomia berry, mixed with some apples,” she replied.
“Delicious,” I said and took another drink of it. I turned to Siphanien and asked, “Would this berry grow at home?”
“Unfortunately not, Milord. It needs more heat than we got that far north,” she answered.
“What if we built a large greenhouse?”
She looked surprised. “If Milord would fund such an endeavour, it would definitely be possible.”
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“Good,” I said with a smile. I turned back to Shalheira. “My apologies. We’re being rude, ignoring our host like that. This was simply so delicious I had to know.”
“No need to apologize,” she replied. “With the risk of being offensive, may I ask why you did not force one of your slaves to drink first? We might have slipped poison in, after all.”
“No offence taken,” I said with a small chuckle. “To be honest it crossed my mind you might have done it. It would be a dangerous decision on your part, but also because you might have done it, I chose to take the first sip. I could not let anything happen to my friends. They’re only slaves because the laws require it, not because I want them to remain so.”
“But if we had poisoned it, not that we would dare, you would be dead,” she said, still confused.
“Not very likely. If you’d take my hand, I’ll demonstrate,” I said and held out my hand.
She hesitated for a long moment before she placed a shaking hand in mine. Immediately I pushed healing magic into her. There were a few old injuries and aches that I quickly managed to soothe over.
With large eyes, she exclaimed, “Curomancer!”
“Indeed,” I said with a slight smile. “No matter how pleasant I would want this visit to be, unfortunately, we have to discuss something unpleasant. I do wish that our discussion remains cordial.”
“It seems to me that you could easily kill us all and take what you want,” she replied with a tone of defeat. “Why go through this?”
“It’s simple really. No matter the course of action I take, the elven armies will hunt me,” I said and received a nod. The grandson had a big smile with excitement shining in his eyes. “However, my action will have an impact on how many men they send after me. If I murder and slaughter my way through your lands, the retribution will be swift. If I contain it to simple acquisitions of food, a bit of wealth, and accomplish it without bloodshed, I will not be a priority.”
She thought it over for a while. “I can agree with that, but where does that leave us.”
“If I take everything you own, you’ll fight me, and it all ends with blood. I’m willing to go that distance if need be, but I would rather prefer a compromise,” I replied. “Your fields are growing well, some of it might even be ready to harvest soon. So how much food would you need to survive, until you can bring in more food?”
“Why do you ask?” Shalheira asked. “Why not just take what you want?”
With a sigh, I replied, “Don’t mistake it for kindness, or an unwillingness to kill, it’s a matter of practicality. If I came to your farmstead and you had heard that there would be no raping, no bloodshed, and you would be left with food enough to make it to harvest, would you put up a fight, or surrender peacefully?”
“Fight,” the grandson growled but was quickly silenced by Shalheira.
Her reply was what I expected, “I would surrender. Any chance for my family to remain unharmed must be seized.”
I nodded. “So, why don’t we do an inventory of food, wealth, and animals you have on your farmstead. Your family can go about their normal duties but will remain under guard. Any violence will be reciprocated on all members of your family. We will leave tonight, and you can go back to your lives.”
Her face was resigned when she stood up. She led me toward the main house, her gait less troubled by the pains in her joints.
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“You need to get some more water to your apple trees in your western orchard, the variety you grow there needs a lot more water than the one in the east,” I heard Ilmadia say to one of the farmstead’s elves. We were in the middle of eating dinner, and as soon as we were done we would be heading out again.
A hand tugged my sleeve, so I looked over my shoulder and saw no one. I had to look down, and I saw it was a very young elven girl who was tugging my sleeve. She must have been around the equivalent of a four or five year old human.
“Hello there, Little One. What’s your name?” I asked with a friendly smile and picked her up. When I placed her on the edge of the table, I heard someone gasp and it was as if the entire farmstead’s population had stopped breathing.
“My name is not Little One, it is Istberia,” she said with a pout.
“My apologies. Hello, Lady Istberia, my name is Lord Karth,” I said in a very serious tone, but I could not help but flash her a smile. “What can I help you with?”
“Brother says that all humans can do is kill, are you going to kill us?” she asked with a serious look. There were slight gasps from the crowd, and one of Shalheira’s grandchildren rushed forward.
She was frantic as she went to her knees next to me, begging me, “Please, Lord Karth, don’t hurt my little baby, please. She’s only eight cycles old, she doesn’t know what she’s saying.”
“Mommy, big brother said—” she started.
However, she was quickly interrupted by her mother hissing, “Quiet, Istberia!”
“No, Lady Istberia, I am not going to kill you. You gave me what I wanted, so we will leave peacefully,” I said in a serious tone. “But your brother is right. Humans will most often kill you if they meet you.”
“But you are a human, why did you not kill us then?”
“I am not from this World. I was summoned by the human priests from another world,” I started to explain. More audible intakes of breaths were audible. “I did not want to come here, but I can never go home again. The human kings are forcing me to fight, so I do that, not because I want to.”
“They sound like bad men,” she said seriously, a face scrunched up in a cute way.
I suppressed a chuckle. “They are indeed bad men. Not all humans are bad, but it is best to be careful around us.”
She nodded seriously. “I will be careful. Gudrun said I had to thank you for the toys she gave me.”
I was surprised at that, but I gave her a big smile. “You are very welcome, Lady Istberia.”
With that, I put her down on the ground again. Her mother quickly scooped her up and rushed back into the main house.
I turned my attention back to Shalheira. “We apologize for the discomfort and grievance we’ve caused. We’d also like to thank you for your hospitality.”
“I wish I could say that you were welcome, but I do thank you for not harming my family physically,” she replied.
“I have one last request. On our way here we captured a soldier because we needed information. We gave her the choice of becoming a serf or a quick death, she chose death. I promised that I would see her ashes and her ancestral bow returned to her family. Can you see to it for me?” I asked politely.
She sighed. “I should say no, but an ancestral bow is like a holy relic for us, so of course we will make sure that it gets back to her family.”
“Thank you,” I said. “My men will leave behind the valuables we gathered.”
“Why?” she asked, clearly surprised and without meaning to.
“Because I feel like it,” I said with a shrug. The truth was that the little girl made me feel bad. When I stole from the banks I never went for the safety deposit boxes, I always went for the cash in the bank which was insured. However, if I could spin it into some goodwill, at some point my raids would be much easier. I hoped.
Also, the amount of wealth we had gathered was laughable. Though I had only taken half of what they had, it would amount to roughly five marks or something like that. So it was not a lot of money for me, but it was for them.
After the meal, we tied up everyone in their beds except for the angry grandson and left in a southeastern direction. When we were halfway through the night, we released him. I gave him a hard look. “Remember, if you attack us, we’ll return to the farmstead and kill everyone. Think about your family.”
“I know, you fucking dog,” he growled and spat the last word.
I nodded to Alrik. “Give him his bow, spear, and dagger.”
As soon as he had the items, the elf started running northwest. I slipped off the horse, and followed him for fifteen minutes, while my men took a break. When I was sure he was not turning back I doubled back and arrived back shortly after.
“Okay, pack it up, we’re heading northeast from here,” I said and got back on the horse. We had managed to get another three horses. So we had to switch between who got to use them fairly often, but since I had not gotten a break, I got the privilege of using one first.
I pulled up next to the support squadron. “Bendis, what does the food situation look like?”
“We should be able to eat for the next five days, more if we ration it, Milord,” he replied without hesitation.
“Good,” I said and moved up the column until I found Hrothgar. “How are we doing on supplies?”
“Milord, they had a lot of good quality arrows, so we managed to get a few hundred more arrows for everyone,” he replied. “Since we did not have to use any of the muskets since leaving, we’re still doing okay on shots and powder. Enough for three major engagements.”
“Anything else to report?” I asked.
He shook his head. “No, Milord.”
Satisfied, I moved further up the column, until I found my four elves. I slipped off the horse and helped Mina to get on it, before joining the four elves. Yathanae had told me that Shenerah had quietly told all the mages that she had not been raped, that it had all been an act for her mother. It had helped the worried glances that had been since the waystation.
Axina was travelling towards the rear, together with Anders and Chione. We made sure to keep a lot of distance between mother and daughter. The most infuriating part was that I had not found out exactly how she had been able to attack me while wearing the manacles. She had not tried to attack since the act we had put on, most likely cowered by the deception.
As soon as I joined them, Shenerah asked, “What are your plans, Milord?”
“To be honest, I’ve none. I have a goal, but not really any concrete plans,” I replied honestly. “I want all of us to get back home to my Hold in the north, but that won’t happen for almost another three moons. Until then, we’ve no rations, so we’re forced to confiscate supplies in this way.”
“While I can appreciate that you did not kill the family there, doesn’t it put you in more danger?”
“It might, I don’t think so. I think it’ll lessen it. At least I hope so,” I said with a shrug. “If we do fall over some military installations, they can’t expect the same treatment. However, civilians will remain unharmed as long as they don’t give us a course to harm them.”
“I guess that’s something,” she replied.
In a joking tone, I added, “And if we’re really lucky, maybe we’ll find a treasure transport. Now that would really be exciting.”
“Well, I guess we’ll have plenty of excitement in the next few moons. Definitely more interesting than what I thought I would find when I ran away from home,” she mumbled.
“We’ve got a proverb where I come from. Be careful what you wish for, lest it comes true.”
She looked at me with a furrowed brow. “We’ve something similar. Wishes are best when unfulfilled.”
I shrugged. “It’s a universal life lesson for everyone I guess. It’s why they are proverbs.”
“Well, whatever the case, I’m definitely not happy about being enslaved, but I’m happy that I’m not carrying my father’s child in my womb,” she said.
“Sorry about that,” I replied with a shrug. “I can’t take any chances. I want to be there when my child is born.”
“Children are important to you?” she asked.
I just nodded and left it at that. It would be a long three moons of travelling. Who knew what we would find? Or how fiercely we would be hunted?