Red Fang Chapter 19

It was late in the evening before the road lifted from the misty marsh and entered a forest of pine trees. Sunshine broke through the canopy and the mood lifted as they left the marsh behind. The column stretched out as the forced march showed its wear.

“Sam, what do you say to calling a halt?” Toli asked. “A bit further, I think,” Samuel said, and pointed up the hill. “Let’s get over the rise and get an eye on what awaits us.” An armed rider crested the ridge, coming to a stop in the road, and watching them as they came closer. He turned to study the trees on either side of the road but made no move to acknowledge them. “Easy people, we don’t want any trouble,” Toli said as they slowly closed the distance. Toli raised his hand in greeting, but the rider turned and trotted away before stopping once more to watch them. He did this a few more times, always keeping a hundred yards between them. Toli quickened his pace, but the rider swung his horse around and took off at a canter. “Ah,” Toli said, lowering his arm. “Bugger more like,” Samuel said. “He’s sniffed you as a fiendish intruder and gone to warn the others. I give it only a short while before he returns with his mates and sticks us with those spears.”

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Nestled in the shadow of the Intraana mountain range is a vast land of marsh and forest. Rivers pour in from both the north and south flooding the region until it's more lake than land and yet it is home to more life than any outsider could imagine. Hidden among the reed beds are villages and farms, not all sited on dry land, some float. The villages of the marsh elves drift with the seasons, following the migrations of birds and fish, ignored by the humans as long as they don't get too close. A human king claims dominion and is ready to shed blood to prove it, not his but those of his men, marching them into the swamp to kill and needlessly die. But there are still places where people can hide from tyrants and create homes and communities of their own.

Parent Plot

The Red Fang

Related Characters

Related Organizations