“What are those?” Adam asked. He had gone ahead with a few of the meraries, and as the sky darkehey expected to find other visitors. The bourers screamed and shouted as they rushed towards the heavily armed and armoured warriors, who readied themselves within the small fenced outpost. They were a half day away from town and had beguing the small outpost needed by the baron to assist in defence of the nds.

  “Mandogs,” a basped, clutg at their hammer tight against their chest, their eyes wide.

  Emerging from the wood all around them were wild dogs. Their fur thid jagged, a dark grey which melted into the shadows. Adam frowned. Dogs were awkward to fight, sihey were man’s best friend. However, these things were…

  Their faces were torted wickedly, but most unnervingly, each wore human faces. Human heads upon a dog’s body.

  “They strong?” Adam asked, hearing his party shuffling, readying themselves for the fight.

  “What?”

  “Are they strong?”

  “Yes?”

  Adam slowly nodded his head, donning Strong Shield, and raising Wraith ahead of him. “I suppose I’ve got to beat my annoyao them then.”

  Battle OrderD20 + 1 = 5 (4)

  Health: 78 -> 7th SaveD20 + 8 = 21 (13)Pass!

  The monstrosities leapt towards the bourers, though found the meraries ahead of them. They didn’t seem to mind, however, as the mandogs leapt up to cw at their foes, regardless if they wore leather or metal.

  Adam pulled up his shield, and though he was forced back by a heavy cw, he mao keep upright from the heavy blow. ‘Alright, they are a little strong!’

  Fighting Spirit: 3 -> 2Health: 70 -> 75

  Attack - WraithD20 + 10 = 12 (2)D20 + 10 = 29 (19)Critical hit!Mana: 21 -> 20Ability: Divine Smite4D6 + 4D6 + 9 = 35 (1, 2, 3, 6)(1, 4, 5, 5)35 damage!

  Attack - WraithD20 + 10 = 14 (4)D20 + 10 = 20 (10)Hit!Wraith: 3 -> 2Mana: 20 -> 19Ability: Divine Smite2D6 + 2D6 + 2D6 + 9 = 30 (1, 2)(2, 4)(6, 6)30 damage!

  Onward Soar: 1 -> 0

  Attack - WraithD20 + 10 = 14 (4)D20 + 10 = 16 (6)Hit!Wraith: 2 -> 1Mana: 19 -> 18Ability: Divine Smite2D6 + 2D6 + 2D6 + 9 = 22 (1, 2)(2, 6)(1, 2)22 damage!

  Attack - WraithD20 + 10 = 17 (7)D20 + 10 = 20 (10)Hit!Wraith: 1 -> 0Mana: 18 -> 17Ability: Divine Smite2D6 + 2D6 + 2D6 + 9 = 24 (2, 3)(2, 4)(2, 2)24 damage!

  Adam’s axe bisected the first mandog which had struck him, but he didn’t spend much time thinking about it. Instead, he swiftly moved towards another which had tried to slip around him. His axe fshed white hot with divirength, but the air turned cold as his cool steel ran through another, causing blood to spray out.

  If it wasn’t for the fact there were is all around him, he wouldn’t have revealed the magic which fshed from his axe. His axe cut through a seandog, before he leapt over its dead body a another, dropping it dead. A fourth tried to snap its maw around a bourer nearby, who swung his axe, which crashed against a dead mandog’s face, its guts already spilling across the floor from an axe wound.

  Adam turned, watg as Jurot killed another nearby, while Kitool and Jaygak had moved away to support the other meraries, killing the st mandog which had cmp around a metal leg, trying t them away into the dark forest.

  Victory!XP Gained: +200XP: 11 700 -> 11 900

  The bourers stared at the four, who had so easily cut down almost a mandog with each swing. The other meraries had mao barely kill a couple between themselves, whereas Adam’s group had averaged over two individually.

  “I hope we won’t be eating mandog today,” Adam said, gng towards the cook, who held a butcher’s ko defend herself.

  “No,” she assured, slowly nodding her head towards the young leaf eared Vor.

  As the evening passed, the rest of the army appeared, the entire group now numbering a huhough half were bourers.

  “I hope it was…” The baron’s eyes fell across the mandogs which had been piled to one side, and were in the process of being butchered. “Mandogs?”

  “That’s right,” Mikael, the merary leader, said. “We took care of them.”

  “Well dohe Baron said, his brows raised in surprise. He gnced around once more, ting that the bourers that had bee ahead were all ated for. “You slew the mandogs without any casualties?”

  “One of ours was wounded in the fray.”

  “Oh my. Then, to reward you all, you may split the mandogs between yourselves, and we will take none of the spoils.” Baron Kegan Rockcastle fshed a charming smile.

  “How are we splitting them?” Adam asked, sipping some of the salty soup. His eyes slowly turo meet Mikael’s eyes.

  “Fairly,” Mikael said, feeling the gaze seep into you. “You killed most of them, so you have most of them.”

  Adam, almost stuhat the merary wasn’t trying to rip them off, tilted his head slightly. He then turowards the baron, noting the way he was judging the pair of groups, processing what was happening.

  “I don’t really feel fortable with the mandog spoils. If you want, you buy our share for half price, in .”

  “We buy it at half price?”

  “Yeah.”

  Mikael didn’t really want all the spoils, but he go the side, towards the rest of the soldiers, who were ready to step in to accept the deal. “Alright, we’ll pay half for it.”

  “Do we want a cw from each?” Adam asked, looking towards Jurot.

  “Yes,” Jurot said.

  “Then we’ll take a cw from each too,” Adam said, frowning slightly.

  “Alright.” Mikael wasn’t going to look a gift horse in the mouth, and ohe group gathered the twelve cws, they ha to Adam’s party. He wasn’t sure if Adam waen, one from each they had sin, or twelve, one from all the creatures total, but he decided to repay the young man for his kindness.

  “You slew ten of the mandogs?” Baron Kegan asked.

  “Yeah.”

  “…” Baron Kegan wasn’t sure if a group of his freatest knights could kill ten of twelve mandogs while peting against a merary group. Seveainly. Eight, perhaps. Ten? It was borderline impossible. ‘Is it luck?’ The baron thought back to what he had seen of the group, who had held bad had still passed his tests with flying colours. ‘No.’

  Adam and the group, who had been whispering in Iyrish before the baron had arrived, fell silent for the rest of the evening. Sihey had figured a way to do that, Adam felt more fortable with his ces of survival.

  “It would be untoward of myself to not pay you appropriately,” the baron said, having caught Adam as he was about to start watch. “Two gold a day is too little, so I will pay you each five gold daily for your services.”

  Adam’s brows raised in surprise. ‘What is going on this year?’ “I appreciate yenerosity, Lord Kegan.”

  “I hope you all tio do good work.”

  “Thank you.”

  The baron smiled, w if the young man was shirking him on purpose. ‘Do they address one another differently iher nd?’

  Over the few days, they tio make their way out, creating a series of outposts in a line, with Adam’s group leading the frontier force, while the baron’s force would arrive ter in the evening, or the evening after.

  Eventually, they formed a rger outpost, more closer to a fort, one which could house a rger army more permaly, rather than the small outposts which could house half of them easily, and their full one hundred far more awkwardly. Days passed as they formed this rger outpost, which was build with several fences within to form walls, but a much rger wooden wall outside with a rger ditch surrounding them.

  Adam smiled as he heard the screaming from the bourers all around them, and he dorong Shield, and grabbed Wraith. ‘I khings were going too smoothly.’

  The bess emerged from the forest. The torch’s fmes flickered angrily, and then they fell still, barely illuminating the area. The bess was a sky made of pure bess, not shadows. It was certainly something greater, something wicked, than what they had faced previously.

  Wisdom SaveD20 + 4 = 22 (18)Pass!

  The bess cast a great shadow across the entire area, and the temperature dropped all about them. A cold sweat ran through the entire group, and even the normally steadfast Kitool, fell still, her heart thundering within her chest.

  “Haa!” came a wild, terrified shout, and the meraries darted forward, striking towards one of the dark figures. Yet, as their bdes pierced through the darkness, they found it to be formless, like air. They tio frantically swing their bdes, trying to destroy the darkness which had crept into their hearts.

  The baron’s knights stepped all around him, ready to defend their liege lord.

  ‘No!’ Baron Kegan stared at the darkness he had only heard about when he was but a boy. The Encroag Darkness, which he swore was just a myth to make him behave when he was a boy. A darkness which would e all within its sight, with ons of iron, steel, and silver rendered pletely useless against the impedih.

  ‘Has the Sun Father abandoned me? Moon Mother, what have I doo earn your wrath? What is this most ill fortune as I finally set out to civilise the dark safety to my people?’

  “I guess we gotta earn our pay,” called a voice through the darkness, cutting the baron’s dark thoughts.

  The baron's paying well so might as well help out.