Chapter 14: Witness
The next morning, unbelievable scenery. A wooden wall is raised. People dig moats. The lord is guiding people to build their line of defense along with that elder from last night.
Who was that old man?
Was he a general or something greater?
I am just a merchant who sells tools and weapons for this village. I don't need to know who he is.
"ALL HUMAN MERCENARIES, MEETING AT THE CENTRAL HALL. THE REST, GO AWAY IF YOU DON'T WANT TO INVOLVE WITH THIS HUMAN MATTER." The lord thunderously announces his words from his mansion.
I am kind of curious to see what kind of meeting is. I should have a glance or a peek.
****
I see that all human mercenaries are there, a few elves, dwarves and drakes.
They are there to fight for money, fame and favors.
We are at war with orcs so all of the orcs were dismissed or banished away from all human towns weeks ago.
"What will you give us for payment if you don't have gold coins? Lands? We don't want that! Beer? That is too cheap! Perhap no tax for ten years for all of us who survived this rampage." A human stands out as a representative for the humans.
"This is outrageous. To us drakes, money and fame mean a lot. If there is only fame then how do we live the rest of our lives with what? No tax is a joke. We need money to buy meat, drinks and maintain our gears. Even if we get food, we still need to buy materials from our own kingdom. Your metal quality here is really bad except for those weapons from that desert human." The biggest drake clenches his hand.
"I hav' ta agree with dat drake dere. Most human craftsmanship are inferior to ours. Even though they 're cheaper than imported weapons, we dun want ta use dose things" A dwarf stomps
"I stay here just to witness this ruckus? A waste of my time. Money or not. That we get rewarded matters the most for us, elves. Can we leave this meeting now? We don't want to witness anymore of this
"I have to agree with that elf" The biggest drakes crosses his arms
"I agree with dat" The dwarf raises his axe
"WE MIGHT NOT HAVE MONEY NOR FOOD NOR THE BEST TOOL AROUND. WE ASK YOU TO LEND US YOUR POWER TO DEFEND THIS VILLAGE. WE WILL BE GRATEFUL IF YOU HELP US. IF YOU DEMAND NONSENSE AMOUNT OF MONEY, IMPOSSIBLE TOOLS OR TAX EVASION, THEN LEAVE THIS VILLAGE" the lord yamps and sway his arm
"Then we must leave this hopeless village!" A human raises his sword
And others raise their weapons up. Axes, spear, shield, swords and dagger
"YOU DON'T REALISE THAT WE ARE AGAINST BLACK FANG TRIBE? WE ARE SURROUNDED. ANY OF YOU WHO WANT TO LEAVE THEN BYPASS THAT LINE. YOU WILL DIE FOR SURE," the lord stomps his foot and the crowd murmurs ",YOU WANT TO LEAVE AND DIE WITHOUT ANY FAME THEN GO TODAY, MAYBE TOMORROW, THEY WILL CHASE YOU AGAIN. UNTIL THE END OF THE WORLD, YOU WILL LIVE AS COWARDS, SELFISH BEINGS, ARROGANTS LIVINGS. IF YOU WANT TO LIVE HONORABLY, THEN WORK WITH ME. IF OUR KING REWARD ME ANYTHING, I WILL NOT TAKE IT. THOSE THINGS BELONG TO YOU."
I walk away from that meeting. I still hear the cry from a distance
"FAME, HONOR, MONEY"
The cry shows the true nature of mercenaries. They live with honor, by fame and money. If one of three is lost, they will lose everything.
I guess this Nakitel has some hope after all. Maybe I should prepare my items to have some profits.
****
Next dawn, the people here train with mercenaries. Basic spears, swords and shields, having some good militias can give a town a better chance to defend themselves and perhaps their family. The lord was right yesterday. Last night, I made a bird body to see things myself. I saw this village was surrounded by Black Fang tribe's three armies. Another thing I saw was that human merchants were killed last night, immediately, as soon as they stepped near those camps. They were ambushed by orcish patrols. Nakitel will have food shortage in the next few days and I will be asked to provide food. Or worse is that I will get my food confiscated. If I struggle, the lord has a reason to put me in jail. If I do not, I will be a suspicious individual.
****
In the afternoon, I see that people are building fences, stakes, pikes and making caltrops. A thing that I see as a potential problem is resource depletion.
I remember another detail is the fact that Black Fang tribe has quite a power in orcish politics due to their large populations and their military power. Other four tribes have to follow the policy that Black Fang demands. Even if they don't want to fight, then they aren't allowed to trade nor negotiate with humans. They however see humans in the desert as a different kingdom so they still allow trade with those humans. If we want to get orcish goods through desert humans, it would be ridiculously expensive due to transportation and their greed too. And vice versa.
And it also reminds me that there were no desert humans merchants coming here too.
****
When I close my shop and get on my bed. There things keep me thinking:
One is if humans win against Black Fang marching, they will have an upper hand in peace treaty. That is Black Fang must give up their claimed land in human territories and compensate an amount of money. How much humans will demand?
Two is the aftermath of this war, how other tribes will look at Black Fang if they lose? To be humiliated, or to be looked down as an irrational tribe? A gloomy future for Black Fang if they lose.
Although I don't need to sleep as a sandfolk, this kind of activity gives me irritation
****
CLAAAANG
What was that noise?
I grab my thunderstick near my bed and quickly take my dagger on my belt.
In this night time, I witness a horror right after opening the door.
Burning houses, people fleeing and pools of blood.
No! No! No!
Not again
"Phew, it is just a dream" I suddenly sit up.
My thunderstick and dagger are still there
****
The next morning, I take a stroll. People are still preparing as usual. It has been 6 days or more that orcs haven't made a move. This must be one meaning. Luring small reinforcement from the nearby villages to weaken force one by one. When I was Hiwan, I had been dealing with a lot of dwarven small skirmishes along with their village lockdown tactics. It was a headache to think when to attack or retreat or even to hold the ground. Evacuation was not an available option since dwarves can take down any drake flying in the sky. The most fearful weapons of dwarf at that time were thundersticks from Hell Fire tribe and fangs from Iron Tear tribe. Marksmen from Red Beard tribe were one of the factors that drove me insane.
"Hey desert merchant, do you have spare food for our army?" The lord points his finger at me
"Well, to be blunt. I only have a few days left for my goats and ten days for a group of ten people. I can spare some with a price"
"How much?"
"700 Quinks" I smirk
"700 QUINKS FOR THOSE CRATES? YOU ARE A DEVIL" He pulls his sword out
"But hey, I can't go out of this village. Expect me to do what? Going out there and giving my neck to those orcs?"
"You are a desert man, they wouldn't kill you"
"One point you are missing, I have only one life and so do you. If you were me, would you risk your neck to uncertainties?"
"I feel like I am talking to a drake lord more than a merchant. You have a fair point"
"Thanks for your compliment," I bow ",Let's make a deal out of this food shall we?"
He buys the amount of spare food I have with 700 Quinks. I have ten day worth of food. Thank god, he didn't buy goat food, otherwise, I would have to even sell my wagon goats if I can't keep them alive.
"ORCS, ORCS, ORCS. THEY ARE COMING"
Damn it, they are here already. I hope that I don't have to fight any orc. If they try to flood into my shop, I have no choice but to slaughter them all.
I guess time to close the shop and have some break time.
I go upstairs, I grab some tea leaves and hot water. Sitting in the bedroom and near the window. The people are gathering near the gate. I can see some black dots from a distance. I can hear the war drum from here. It sounds intimidating and warlike.
Let's watch the battle unfold