Chapter 30
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During that time, things were quite peaceful for Cat, up north.
She was leading 50 hunters and 40 scouts to protect the lumberjacks and gatherers in the forest. The water carriers did not have to be escorted as they did not come too close to the forest, this meant that Cat and her troops were stationary.
Especially since the gatherer and lumberjacks remained in the same area after the latest Gnoll attacks. It was easier to protect them and easier to spot Gnolls that way.
The downside was that the Gnolls did not dare get too close now, and Cat was getting quite bored.
Her second in command noticed this and she started to have cold sweats.
"Boss, our orders are to protect the workers." She said as if warning Cat against her current thoughts.
"Sure." She answered.
"We can't leave here." She insisted.
"Right."
"I mean it." Years of following Cat told her that she was not listening at all. This got her even more worried.
She knew Cat was getting antsy. After all Chris and Mia were leading men to fight off who knows how many skeletons while she was stuck here, firing off the occasional arrow to take down a little Gnoll. If things did not pick up, Cat would not be able to resist and go off chasing after Gnolls. And sure enough, after a few minutes...
Cat jumped on her feet picked up her weapon and shouted : "Alright! I know what we should do. Let's scout a little to see where the Gnolls camps are!"
And just like that, Cat picked 5 scouts left her subordinate to guard the workers and went scouting.
"..." Her subordinate sighed. [Boss...]
***
The first Gnoll camp was easy to find. It was very close to the workers. All they had to do was follow the direction the previous attackers fled to and do some light tracking. This camp was located north east of the forest, near its edge.
"This is most likely the camp responsible for the attacks." Commented Cat. "Take note of its position."
"Boss, this is a big camp, I've never seen so many Gnolls in one place before." Said a scout.
Cat nodded. [That's true. The most I have ever seen in one camp was maybe... One hundred Gnolls."
That many Gnolls in one place is very dangerous, Cat and her scouts would be in a dangerous spot if they were found out. Luckily Gnolls had low intelligence and depended mostly on their nose. For once, the human boon came into full effect.
[Hm?] Cat spotted a few gnolls leaving camps, they were all carrying stuff. "Look over there." She said in a low voice as she pointed to the Gnolls.
"No way. Are they... Carrying goods to another place?" Said a surprised scout.
Such a big camp was already a rarity, coordinated actions like transport of goods to another camp was even rarer for the Gnolls. They were, after all, closer to wild beasts than anything else.
Cat thought for a while and instructed: "Alright. Let's follow them and see where they lead us."
This group went south of the forest, and sure enough, another Gnoll camp was there. This one was close to the edge too. Its size was roughly the same as the previous one.
"Let's wait a little." Instructed Cat. "Let's see if there are other 'caravans' leaving for another camp."
Sure enough, an hour later, another group of Gnolls left west of their camp. Cat and her scouts followed them to a third Gnoll camp, this one was also of the same size and close to the edge of the forest.
They waited a few more hours, but no Gnolls left in a new direction, they only went back and forth between that camp and the other two.
"This should be the last." Confirmed Cat after an another hour of reconnaissance.
"Boss, that's three camps for a total of six hundred Gnolls. I've never seen so many Gnolls in a forest." Said one of Cat's subordinates.
Six hundred Gnolls... This would be a heavy toll on their own forces.
"Luckily each camp is pretty far from the others. One if north-east of the forest, the other south-east, and the last one south-west." The scout paused and continued. "I guess they have no camp north-west as they are covered by the mountain range there."
"You are speaking as if they are protecting their own territories with outposts." Laughed another scout.
They all laughed, but Cat was not in the mood. The scout was right. Why did they choose to camp on the edges of the forest? Gnolls typically lived in the darkest region of any forest.
[Were they chased out?] She wondered. [If not... Why are they here? And what's in the middle of the forest?]
She quickly made up her mind and gave orders. "We are leaving for the forest center. Be on your guard!"
*** ***
The road to the forest center was much more difficult and tense as very dangerous beast inhabited the inner forest. And the human boon wasn't such a big advantage against them as they had keener eyesight and hearing.
But they had to do it. At first, Cat only wanted to blow away some stress as there was no real danger now that they had close to a hundred men defending the workers. But her sense told her that something strange was happening here.
Gnolls making huge communities, trading and camping near the forest edge? What nonsense was this? It was too unnatural.
After two hours of trekking, they were getting close to the forest's center. Luckily this was not a jungle, and it only took them so long as they had to be careful. Fighting off dangerous beasts was one thing, but alerting Gnolls would be even worse.
Soon, a scout pointed in one direction and motioned to be silent.
They found a dozen there or so Gnolls in primitive but elaborate clothing, they were wearing feathers, bones and beads as they were kneeling in front of strange ruins.
"Are they... praying?" Asked Cat. But she gave another order before she could get an answer. "Spread out and scout if there are any more Gnolls in the area. Come back in 10 minutes here!"
The area was clear, and Cat gave the orders to discreetly deal with the Gnolls. A dozen gnolls against six humans was a fair fight, but Cat and her scouts were warriors and had no trouble dispatching a bunch of surprised Gnolls.
Cat looked around. The ruins were a bunch of broken down stone walls, there was nothing noteworthy about them. What attracted her gaze, however, were stairs going into the ground, this was what the Gnolls were kneeling to.
[They were praying to... stairs? No, there must be something down there.]
"Wait here!" She ordered. "Wait for my signal."
She carefully walked down the stairs. She went down roughly one hundred steps before she reached the bottom. Her steps were echoing in the room, the noise mixed with a low rumble coming from a room at the end of that corridor.
Cat thought she was ready, but what she saw stunned her.
She immediately left and gave orders to her scouts to return to camp right away.
Was this good or bad news? It could be both but she didn't know. One thing she was sure of.
[That idiot is going to love this.]
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During that time, things were quite peaceful for Cat, up north.
She was leading 50 hunters and 40 scouts to protect the lumberjacks and gatherers in the forest. The water carriers did not have to be escorted as they did not come too close to the forest, this meant that Cat and her troops were stationary.
Especially since the gatherer and lumberjacks remained in the same area after the latest Gnoll attacks. It was easier to protect them and easier to spot Gnolls that way.
The downside was that the Gnolls did not dare get too close now, and Cat was getting quite bored.
Her second in command noticed this and she started to have cold sweats.
"Boss, our orders are to protect the workers." She said as if warning Cat against her current thoughts.
"Sure." She answered.
"We can't leave here." She insisted.
"Right."
"I mean it." Years of following Cat told her that she was not listening at all. This got her even more worried.
She knew Cat was getting antsy. After all Chris and Mia were leading men to fight off who knows how many skeletons while she was stuck here, firing off the occasional arrow to take down a little Gnoll. If things did not pick up, Cat would not be able to resist and go off chasing after Gnolls. And sure enough, after a few minutes...
Cat jumped on her feet picked up her weapon and shouted : "Alright! I know what we should do. Let's scout a little to see where the Gnolls camps are!"
And just like that, Cat picked 5 scouts left her subordinate to guard the workers and went scouting.
"..." Her subordinate sighed. [Boss...]
***
The first Gnoll camp was easy to find. It was very close to the workers. All they had to do was follow the direction the previous attackers fled to and do some light tracking. This camp was located north east of the forest, near its edge.
"This is most likely the camp responsible for the attacks." Commented Cat. "Take note of its position."
"Boss, this is a big camp, I've never seen so many Gnolls in one place before." Said a scout.
Cat nodded. [That's true. The most I have ever seen in one camp was maybe... One hundred Gnolls."
That many Gnolls in one place is very dangerous, Cat and her scouts would be in a dangerous spot if they were found out. Luckily Gnolls had low intelligence and depended mostly on their nose. For once, the human boon came into full effect.
[Hm?] Cat spotted a few gnolls leaving camps, they were all carrying stuff. "Look over there." She said in a low voice as she pointed to the Gnolls.
"No way. Are they... Carrying goods to another place?" Said a surprised scout.
Such a big camp was already a rarity, coordinated actions like transport of goods to another camp was even rarer for the Gnolls. They were, after all, closer to wild beasts than anything else.
Cat thought for a while and instructed: "Alright. Let's follow them and see where they lead us."
This group went south of the forest, and sure enough, another Gnoll camp was there. This one was close to the edge too. Its size was roughly the same as the previous one.
"Let's wait a little." Instructed Cat. "Let's see if there are other 'caravans' leaving for another camp."
Sure enough, an hour later, another group of Gnolls left west of their camp. Cat and her scouts followed them to a third Gnoll camp, this one was also of the same size and close to the edge of the forest.
They waited a few more hours, but no Gnolls left in a new direction, they only went back and forth between that camp and the other two.
"This should be the last." Confirmed Cat after an another hour of reconnaissance.
"Boss, that's three camps for a total of six hundred Gnolls. I've never seen so many Gnolls in a forest." Said one of Cat's subordinates.
Six hundred Gnolls... This would be a heavy toll on their own forces.
"Luckily each camp is pretty far from the others. One if north-east of the forest, the other south-east, and the last one south-west." The scout paused and continued. "I guess they have no camp north-west as they are covered by the mountain range there."
"You are speaking as if they are protecting their own territories with outposts." Laughed another scout.
They all laughed, but Cat was not in the mood. The scout was right. Why did they choose to camp on the edges of the forest? Gnolls typically lived in the darkest region of any forest.
[Were they chased out?] She wondered. [If not... Why are they here? And what's in the middle of the forest?]
She quickly made up her mind and gave orders. "We are leaving for the forest center. Be on your guard!"
*** ***
The road to the forest center was much more difficult and tense as very dangerous beast inhabited the inner forest. And the human boon wasn't such a big advantage against them as they had keener eyesight and hearing.
But they had to do it. At first, Cat only wanted to blow away some stress as there was no real danger now that they had close to a hundred men defending the workers. But her sense told her that something strange was happening here.
Gnolls making huge communities, trading and camping near the forest edge? What nonsense was this? It was too unnatural.
After two hours of trekking, they were getting close to the forest's center. Luckily this was not a jungle, and it only took them so long as they had to be careful. Fighting off dangerous beasts was one thing, but alerting Gnolls would be even worse.
Soon, a scout pointed in one direction and motioned to be silent.
They found a dozen there or so Gnolls in primitive but elaborate clothing, they were wearing feathers, bones and beads as they were kneeling in front of strange ruins.
"Are they... praying?" Asked Cat. But she gave another order before she could get an answer. "Spread out and scout if there are any more Gnolls in the area. Come back in 10 minutes here!"
The area was clear, and Cat gave the orders to discreetly deal with the Gnolls. A dozen gnolls against six humans was a fair fight, but Cat and her scouts were warriors and had no trouble dispatching a bunch of surprised Gnolls.
Cat looked around. The ruins were a bunch of broken down stone walls, there was nothing noteworthy about them. What attracted her gaze, however, were stairs going into the ground, this was what the Gnolls were kneeling to.
[They were praying to... stairs? No, there must be something down there.]
"Wait here!" She ordered. "Wait for my signal."
She carefully walked down the stairs. She went down roughly one hundred steps before she reached the bottom. Her steps were echoing in the room, the noise mixed with a low rumble coming from a room at the end of that corridor.
Cat thought she was ready, but what she saw stunned her.
She immediately left and gave orders to her scouts to return to camp right away.
Was this good or bad news? It could be both but she didn't know. One thing she was sure of.
[That idiot is going to love this.]
During that time, things were quite peaceful for Cat, up north.She was leading 50 hunters and 40 scouts to protect the lumberjacks and gatherers in the forest. The water carriers did not have to be escorted as they did not come too close to the forest, this meant that Cat and her troops were stationary.Especially since the gatherer and lumberjacks remained in the same area after the latest Gnoll attacks. It was easier to protect them and easier to spot Gnolls that way.The downside was that the Gnolls did not dare get too close now, and Cat was getting quite bored.Her second in command noticed this and she started to have cold sweats."Boss, our orders are to protect the workers." She said as if warning Cat against her current thoughts."Sure." She answered."We can't leave here." She insisted."Right.""I mean it." Years of following Cat told her that she was not listening at all. This got her even more worried.She knew Cat was getting antsy. After all Chris and Mia were leading men to fight off who knows how many skeletons while she was stuck here, firing off the occasional arrow to take down a little Gnoll. If things did not pick up, Cat would not be able to resist and go off chasing after Gnolls. And sure enough, after a few minutes...Cat jumped on her feet picked up her weapon and shouted : "Alright! I know what we should do. Let's scout a little to see where the Gnolls camps are!"And just like that, Cat picked 5 scouts left her subordinate to guard the workers and went scouting."..." Her subordinate sighed. Boss...***The first Gnoll camp was easy to find. It was very close to the workers. All they had to do was follow the direction the previous attackers fled to and do some light tracking. This camp was located north east of the forest, near its edge."This is most likely the camp responsible for the attacks." Commented Cat. "Take note of its position.""Boss, this is a big camp, I've never seen so many Gnolls in one place before." Said a scout.Cat nodded. That's true. The most I have ever seen in one camp was maybe... One hundred Gnolls."That many Gnolls in one place is very dangerous, Cat and her scouts would be in a dangerous spot if they were found out. Luckily Gnolls had low intelligence and depended mostly on their nose. For once, the human boon came into full effect.Hm? Cat spotted a few gnolls leaving camps, they were all carrying stuff. "Look over there." She said in a low voice as she pointed to the Gnolls."No way. Are they... Carrying goods to another place?" Said a surprised scout.Such a big camp was already a rarity, coordinated actions like transport of goods to another camp was even rarer for the Gnolls. They were, after all, closer to wild beasts than anything else.Cat thought for a while and instructed: "Alright. Let's follow them and see where they lead us."This group went south of the forest, and sure enough, another Gnoll camp was there. This one was close to the edge too. Its size was roughly the same as the previous one."Let's wait a little." Instructed Cat. "Let's see if there are other 'caravans' leaving for another camp."Sure enough, an hour later, another group of Gnolls left west of their camp. Cat and her scouts followed them to a third Gnoll camp, this one was also of the same size and close to the edge of the forest.They waited a few more hours, but no Gnolls left in a new direction, they only went back and forth between that camp and the other two."This should be the last." Confirmed Cat after an another hour of reconnaissance."Boss, that's three camps for a total of six hundred Gnolls. I've never seen so many Gnolls in a forest." Said one of Cat's subordinates.Six hundred Gnolls... This would be a heavy toll on their own forces."Luckily each camp is pretty far from the others. One if north-east of the forest, the other south-east, and the last one south-west." The scout paused and continued. "I guess they have no camp north-west as they are covered by the mountain range there.""You are speaking as if they are protecting their own territories with outposts." Laughed another scout.They all laughed, but Cat was not in the mood. The scout was right. Why did they choose to camp on the edges of the forest? Gnolls typically lived in the darkest region of any forest.Were they chased out? She wondered. If not... Why are they here? And what's in the middle of the forest?She quickly made up her mind and gave orders. "We are leaving for the forest center. Be on your guard!"*** ***The road to the forest center was much more difficult and tense as very dangerous beast inhabited the inner forest. And the human boon wasn't such a big advantage against them as they had keener eyesight and hearing.But they had to do it. At first, Cat only wanted to blow away some stress as there was no real danger now that they had close to a hundred men defending the workers. But her sense told her that something strange was happening here.Gnolls making huge communities, trading and camping near the forest edge? What nonsense was this? It was too unnatural.After two hours of trekking, they were getting close to the forest's center. Luckily this was not a jungle, and it only took them so long as they had to be careful. Fighting off dangerous beasts was one thing, but alerting Gnolls would be even worse.Soon, a scout pointed in one direction and motioned to be silent.They found a dozen there or so Gnolls in primitive but elaborate clothing, they were wearing feathers, bones and beads as they were kneeling in front of strange ruins."Are they... praying?" Asked Cat. But she gave another order before she could get an answer. "Spread out and scout if there are any more Gnolls in the area. Come back in 10 minutes here!"The area was clear, and Cat gave the orders to discreetly deal with the Gnolls. A dozen gnolls against six humans was a fair fight, but Cat and her scouts were warriors and had no trouble dispatching a bunch of surprised Gnolls.Cat looked around. The ruins were a bunch of broken down stone walls, there was nothing noteworthy about them. What attracted her gaze, however, were stairs going into the ground, this was what the Gnolls were kneeling to.They were praying to... stairs? No, there must be something down there."Wait here!" She ordered. "Wait for my signal."She carefully walked down the stairs. She went down roughly one hundred steps before she reached the bottom. Her steps were echoing in the room, the noise mixed with a low rumble coming from a room at the end of that corridor.Cat thought she was ready, but what she saw stunned her.She immediately left and gave orders to her scouts to return to camp right away.Was this good or bad news? It could be both but she didn't know. One thing she was sure of.That idiot is going to love this.
