In from the cold
9th Cylus in Rharne
Continues from here
Continues from here
Yrmellyn and her small escort had left Storm’s Edge on the 7th of Cylus. Another party, tasked with getting supplies, had left the same day. But, Yrmellyn had spent time on persuasion to get the mission. Then she had spent time on the preparations for the journey. She hadn’t been ready to start when the others had departed. Thus, the two groups travelled as separate parties, toward Mistral Village. But, if Yrmellyn had got it right the others might support the recruitment campaign there.
For a start, her own group had decided to not take the exact same route as the party which had gone before them. An experienced old soldier the others called “Josh” had decided this. He had said that though it could be an advantage with a bigger group, it could also be good to “spread out the risk”. Having seen a great deal during his long military life he had reasoned that it was best to be on the safe side. To “Josh” it had meant taking a separate route through the forest in the hopes that an assault on one of the groups would mean free passage for the other.
The grizzled man had seemed averse to explaining to Yrmellyn why he thought so. When she had continued to ask nonetheless, out of interest, he had answered with a deep sigh. “Because I'm making this trip with one nagging dauber lady and a few green lads who aren’t dry behind their ears yet. Expendable people, they told me. I guess they find me expendable too. Or not. Anyways, we are going for low risk. The others are bringing wagons and stuff so they are more likely to be assaulted. More things to steal. A simple business calculation.”
At that point, Yrmellyn had begun to wonder exactly how Josh’s career had begun. He was a knight now, but knights didn’t use to make simple business calculations to decide whom to rob. Or, did they? From a tactics point of view, it was possible that they did it to foresee what enemies might do. There was that. Still, she had found it best to not ask more. She was fine with being cautious.
A quick glance at the three very young knights who also travelled with her as an escort told her that they didn’t have any objections. They weren’t hotheads who were eager to use their weapons. They were people military training and a high degree of discipline. The "old grizzly” might call them “green lads” but Yrmellyn felt that they were trustworthy.
The tactics had worked out well, as far as she knew. Their only challenge had been the Cylus weather and darkness. The group had arrived in Mistral Village in the evening. It had been too late to begin to search for the other party from Storm’s Edge. They had found housing and something to eat and then they had gone to bed.
Early in the 8th of Cylus Yrmellyn had met people from the other party travelling to Rharne via Mistral Village. They had spoken and made some agreements. The other group would try to recruit on the side of getting supplies. Yrmellyn would encourage people to donate supplies on the side of her recruitment work. That way they wouldn’t stumble over each other, they had said.
After this, Yrmellyn had spent time trying to recruit people in Mistral Village and spreading the word. She had spoken with those who had been open for it and avoided to nag at those who weren’t. Her view was that only the people who volunteered would be reliable. People who got pressured into things tended to take the first chance to sneak away. Deserters were the last thing Storm’s Edge needed. Those who got second thoughts after her departure could still get the information from other villagers.
In the morning the 9th of Cylus she had started the next part of the trip early, heading to Rharne. It had only been half a trials ride from Mistral Village but due to the weather of Cylus it had felt very long.
Old “Josh” had shown his tactical brilliance by getting the small party to Rharne without any troubles. The young knights in the party had felt intimidated by his bossy style and bored by not getting to fight. To them it felt like the meaning with the trip should have been battle all the way to Rharne. The trip had so far been way less “glorious” and “exiting” than they had hoped. Yrmellyn didn’t share their disappointment. She liked the grizzled man’s skilled leadership. It was good that he had kept them safe.
Once they were in Rharne, the group dissolved. Yrmellyn asked “Josh” and the youngsters to speak with their contacts in the Lightning Knights. She figured that they must know a lot of people there who would listen to their own fellow soldiers. She knew that people from the supply team she had met in Mistral might contact the knights too.
Well ... she would look out for those she had met in Mistral Village. They might meet again! But, meanwhile, Yrmellyn was going to do her own job. She could coordinate with the others when they turned up. Sitting around waiting seemed like a bad idea.
Yrmellyn would instead focus on spreading the call or reinforcements. By now she had new ideas about new methods ... Being an artist, Yrmellyn was able to create painted messages. She would put them up on the walls of the taverns that allowed it. That way she could reach many people. Why hadn’t this occurred to her from the start? She guessed that the general chaos at Storm’s Edge must have confused her. People had been running around like panicking hens after the frog-monster attack.
But, first, she had something else to deal with...
After she had parted from her small escort she went home to her apartment and atelier in the Earth Quarter. She felt exhausted. It was bliss to get indoors. Riding from Storm’s Edge to Mistral Village in the cold of Cylus has taken a whole trial. She had only partly regained her body warmth during the night in a simple inn. Then she had been outdoors in the village, getting colder again. The trip to Rharne had been short but still felt very taxing. Yrmellyn had been freezing from the start.
She had endured it, but her physical endurance was low. Yrmellyn had no physical prowess to speak about, except for being able to ride. The journey had been an ordeal. But, she had relied on self-discipline and abstained from complaining. Now, when she was in her own home, she allowed herself to admit how tired and cold she was. She kicked off her boots and threw her outerwear on the floor right inside the door. Then she walked straight to the bed, with her clothes on. Soon, she lay under a thick duvet, still freezing so much that she was shaking. But, there were fires in the tiled stoves. The apartment was warm. She could feel her body warming up too and after an uncertain time, she was only trembling a bit.
What had she imagined when she had offered to ride from town to town in Cylus? She hadn’t been thinking of herself. She had only thought about Rharne and about doing what she could to support Storm’s Edge. Now ... she realized that the call for arms might become a way more dangerous challenge than she had counted on. She had been thinking of monsters and flame-beings, attackers and whatnot, but overlooked the danger of the cold.
A bit later her partner Ha’zel returned home. She heard him put the key in the lock, open the door and step in. For a moment it was silent but then he called out. “Yrmellyn? Are you back?” She didn’t get time to answer before the sev’ryn man barged into the chamber.
“Yes.” Yrmellyn felt surprised that her voice was so low and tired.
“I was on the verge of going to that cursed keep to look for you.” Ha’zel walked over to the bed and sat down beside her. “What happened? Are you ill?”
“I was only freezing. I rode from Storm’s Edge to Mistral and then to Rharne. It was tough.” Yrmellyn was happy that she wasn’t trembling anymore. Ha’zel was skilled at medicine and could sometimes be overly concerned about her health.
“You’re still feeling cold,” he told her after putting a hand on her brow. “Too cold. Good that you had the common sense to use the duvet but it doesn’t suffice. I’m going to put more fuel in the stoves and then I’ll make hot tea for you. Soup will take a bit longer time. “He paused. “Have you been sleeping?”
“No. I felt a bit drowsy but it’s still only noon ...”
Ha’zel shook his head. “No. It’s afternoon. Almost evening. I’ve been working until now. How long time have you been here?”
Yrmellyn realized that she had no idea. “It was noon when we arrived...so I guess several breaks must have passed. I don’t know.“ She was feeling like she had wasted time and must begin her work at once. “I’m helping out with the recruitment of reinforcements for Storm’s Edge. I have to get up and ...”
“Yrmellyn. The cold of Cylus can be deadly. The danger is real. Whatever you are doing, you need to let it wait until you have recovered. ”
Her first thought was to object, but Ha’zel’s serious tone made her oblige. There was nobody else she trusted as much as she trusted him. She would do as he said, stay at home and get warm again. Besides, she had already been planning to paint messages. When she explained her plan to her partner he nodded in agreement.
“Good,” he said. “Rest now. “We will speak later.” He left to make the tea. Yrmellyn closed her eyes. She heard his steps on the wooden floor, stove shutters opening and closing and the small commonplace sounds of kitchen utensils. In her mind, the mutation of enriched impression turned them into a tune. It was a lullaby for grownups who had long ago stopped thinking that Idalos offered peace and safety. For a moment, only a moment, she allowed herself to listen to that tune and believe in it.
For a start, her own group had decided to not take the exact same route as the party which had gone before them. An experienced old soldier the others called “Josh” had decided this. He had said that though it could be an advantage with a bigger group, it could also be good to “spread out the risk”. Having seen a great deal during his long military life he had reasoned that it was best to be on the safe side. To “Josh” it had meant taking a separate route through the forest in the hopes that an assault on one of the groups would mean free passage for the other.
The grizzled man had seemed averse to explaining to Yrmellyn why he thought so. When she had continued to ask nonetheless, out of interest, he had answered with a deep sigh. “Because I'm making this trip with one nagging dauber lady and a few green lads who aren’t dry behind their ears yet. Expendable people, they told me. I guess they find me expendable too. Or not. Anyways, we are going for low risk. The others are bringing wagons and stuff so they are more likely to be assaulted. More things to steal. A simple business calculation.”
At that point, Yrmellyn had begun to wonder exactly how Josh’s career had begun. He was a knight now, but knights didn’t use to make simple business calculations to decide whom to rob. Or, did they? From a tactics point of view, it was possible that they did it to foresee what enemies might do. There was that. Still, she had found it best to not ask more. She was fine with being cautious.
A quick glance at the three very young knights who also travelled with her as an escort told her that they didn’t have any objections. They weren’t hotheads who were eager to use their weapons. They were people military training and a high degree of discipline. The "old grizzly” might call them “green lads” but Yrmellyn felt that they were trustworthy.
The tactics had worked out well, as far as she knew. Their only challenge had been the Cylus weather and darkness. The group had arrived in Mistral Village in the evening. It had been too late to begin to search for the other party from Storm’s Edge. They had found housing and something to eat and then they had gone to bed.
Early in the 8th of Cylus Yrmellyn had met people from the other party travelling to Rharne via Mistral Village. They had spoken and made some agreements. The other group would try to recruit on the side of getting supplies. Yrmellyn would encourage people to donate supplies on the side of her recruitment work. That way they wouldn’t stumble over each other, they had said.
After this, Yrmellyn had spent time trying to recruit people in Mistral Village and spreading the word. She had spoken with those who had been open for it and avoided to nag at those who weren’t. Her view was that only the people who volunteered would be reliable. People who got pressured into things tended to take the first chance to sneak away. Deserters were the last thing Storm’s Edge needed. Those who got second thoughts after her departure could still get the information from other villagers.
In the morning the 9th of Cylus she had started the next part of the trip early, heading to Rharne. It had only been half a trials ride from Mistral Village but due to the weather of Cylus it had felt very long.
Old “Josh” had shown his tactical brilliance by getting the small party to Rharne without any troubles. The young knights in the party had felt intimidated by his bossy style and bored by not getting to fight. To them it felt like the meaning with the trip should have been battle all the way to Rharne. The trip had so far been way less “glorious” and “exiting” than they had hoped. Yrmellyn didn’t share their disappointment. She liked the grizzled man’s skilled leadership. It was good that he had kept them safe.
Once they were in Rharne, the group dissolved. Yrmellyn asked “Josh” and the youngsters to speak with their contacts in the Lightning Knights. She figured that they must know a lot of people there who would listen to their own fellow soldiers. She knew that people from the supply team she had met in Mistral might contact the knights too.
Well ... she would look out for those she had met in Mistral Village. They might meet again! But, meanwhile, Yrmellyn was going to do her own job. She could coordinate with the others when they turned up. Sitting around waiting seemed like a bad idea.
Yrmellyn would instead focus on spreading the call or reinforcements. By now she had new ideas about new methods ... Being an artist, Yrmellyn was able to create painted messages. She would put them up on the walls of the taverns that allowed it. That way she could reach many people. Why hadn’t this occurred to her from the start? She guessed that the general chaos at Storm’s Edge must have confused her. People had been running around like panicking hens after the frog-monster attack.
But, first, she had something else to deal with...
After she had parted from her small escort she went home to her apartment and atelier in the Earth Quarter. She felt exhausted. It was bliss to get indoors. Riding from Storm’s Edge to Mistral Village in the cold of Cylus has taken a whole trial. She had only partly regained her body warmth during the night in a simple inn. Then she had been outdoors in the village, getting colder again. The trip to Rharne had been short but still felt very taxing. Yrmellyn had been freezing from the start.
She had endured it, but her physical endurance was low. Yrmellyn had no physical prowess to speak about, except for being able to ride. The journey had been an ordeal. But, she had relied on self-discipline and abstained from complaining. Now, when she was in her own home, she allowed herself to admit how tired and cold she was. She kicked off her boots and threw her outerwear on the floor right inside the door. Then she walked straight to the bed, with her clothes on. Soon, she lay under a thick duvet, still freezing so much that she was shaking. But, there were fires in the tiled stoves. The apartment was warm. She could feel her body warming up too and after an uncertain time, she was only trembling a bit.
What had she imagined when she had offered to ride from town to town in Cylus? She hadn’t been thinking of herself. She had only thought about Rharne and about doing what she could to support Storm’s Edge. Now ... she realized that the call for arms might become a way more dangerous challenge than she had counted on. She had been thinking of monsters and flame-beings, attackers and whatnot, but overlooked the danger of the cold.
A bit later her partner Ha’zel returned home. She heard him put the key in the lock, open the door and step in. For a moment it was silent but then he called out. “Yrmellyn? Are you back?” She didn’t get time to answer before the sev’ryn man barged into the chamber.
“Yes.” Yrmellyn felt surprised that her voice was so low and tired.
“I was on the verge of going to that cursed keep to look for you.” Ha’zel walked over to the bed and sat down beside her. “What happened? Are you ill?”
“I was only freezing. I rode from Storm’s Edge to Mistral and then to Rharne. It was tough.” Yrmellyn was happy that she wasn’t trembling anymore. Ha’zel was skilled at medicine and could sometimes be overly concerned about her health.
“You’re still feeling cold,” he told her after putting a hand on her brow. “Too cold. Good that you had the common sense to use the duvet but it doesn’t suffice. I’m going to put more fuel in the stoves and then I’ll make hot tea for you. Soup will take a bit longer time. “He paused. “Have you been sleeping?”
“No. I felt a bit drowsy but it’s still only noon ...”
Ha’zel shook his head. “No. It’s afternoon. Almost evening. I’ve been working until now. How long time have you been here?”
Yrmellyn realized that she had no idea. “It was noon when we arrived...so I guess several breaks must have passed. I don’t know.“ She was feeling like she had wasted time and must begin her work at once. “I’m helping out with the recruitment of reinforcements for Storm’s Edge. I have to get up and ...”
“Yrmellyn. The cold of Cylus can be deadly. The danger is real. Whatever you are doing, you need to let it wait until you have recovered. ”
Her first thought was to object, but Ha’zel’s serious tone made her oblige. There was nobody else she trusted as much as she trusted him. She would do as he said, stay at home and get warm again. Besides, she had already been planning to paint messages. When she explained her plan to her partner he nodded in agreement.
“Good,” he said. “Rest now. “We will speak later.” He left to make the tea. Yrmellyn closed her eyes. She heard his steps on the wooden floor, stove shutters opening and closing and the small commonplace sounds of kitchen utensils. In her mind, the mutation of enriched impression turned them into a tune. It was a lullaby for grownups who had long ago stopped thinking that Idalos offered peace and safety. For a moment, only a moment, she allowed herself to listen to that tune and believe in it.
