--the foothills near the coast--
to ALL
: Day three started well for us, we broke camp at first light under cover of heavy cloud, a few more hours when we wouldn’t have to worry about being observed from above. To vary our tactics, we split into two groups, one to circle east then south, the other west then south, hoping to forage for food as we went. Our intent was to join up again late in the day. We could not spare time to hunt, hoping to scare up game as we moved though it was scarce in the hills. The main purpose of dividing our forces was to force the pursuers to divide theirs and possibly confuse them with multiple sightings, we weren’t going to remain undetected much longer, I knew the calibre of the men on our trail
(17:18:11 )
Krane
--the foothills near the coast--
to ALL
: The second stroke of luck came later that morning, my group happened upon the hut of a herder who, in return for coin a pair of knives and a leather belt gave us verr meat, milk and cheese. Even better, he showed us a trail not marked on our maps, mostly following defiles that would lead more directly to our destination and for most of the way provide excellent cover. This was much needed now as the cloud was clearing, soon the tarn patrols would be in the air and we would have to worry about enemies ahead of us as well as behind
(17:29:06 )
Krane
--the foothills near the coast--
to ALL
: We did indeed spy tarns overhead at regular intervals throughout the day, I would have to suggest a less rigid approach to the leader when the exercise was over. We had no difficulty concealing ourselves and I hoped the other group was just as fortunate. Moving more cautiously now the point man no longer roaming so far ahead, we were necessarily slower and the travel was more fatiguing, the heightened tension adding to this. Caution paid off though when the point man came back having spotted a patrol ahead of us, crossing the path we had taken. If this had been real I would have set up an ambush and attacked them, but as we couldn’t kill them all an attack would do was reveal our position and, cheating or not, they would signal the next tarn they saw
(17:39:22 )
Krane
--the foothills near the coast--
to ALL
: Instead, we retreated along the path we had been following and waited until the point man signaled they had passed out of sight then waited a little longer in case they had a man trailing behind. We were fighting men and it was frustrating to be hiding from equal numbers but I reminded the men that the longer we stayed out, the greater our bragging rights. Id wasn’t that great an incentive but it cheered them up for now and we continued on our way. I ramped the pace up a little, reasoning that there was unlikely to be another patrol nearby. I wanted to make the rendezvous point early, in time to lay a few traps before darkness fell
(17:48:21 )
Krane
--the foothills near the coast--
to ALL
: Maybe it was imagination, maybe instinct or maybe the verr milk that herder had given us had turned but my gut was telling me that we would have trouble tonight and I wanted to be as prepared as possible a camp set up with traps on the approaches and escape routes scouted and learned so we could fade away in the darkness if we had to. If my worries were the product of a fevered mind at worst we would use up energy and probably have a sleepless night but I had learned not to discount such instincts, they might not always be right but they’ve never been completely wrong. It seldom turns out the way it does in the song
(17:58:48 )
Krane
--the foothills near the coast--
to ALL
: As we grew closer to the agreed rendezvous we spread out, keeping the next man in line in sight at all times as we looked for a place to camp that met my very specific requirements and of course, here was where our luck ran out , the terrain was flat and although there were trees and rocks to provide cover there were no vantage points where we could command a view of the surrounding area. Then when did things always go right on a campaign. Making the most of what we had, we chose a camp site the spent an ahn setting up a series of trip wires on the approaches to the camp. I had sent two men beyond the perimeter to meet the second group and guide them in
(17:59:29 ) Krane : sorry, kind of short on inspiration tonight
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