A Mission of Import

[Alandauron]

Khadrul:

He grumbled to himself at the mention of the other Orsimer in their group.  The oaf was hardly anyone of note, nonetheless his muscle would definitely come in handy if things turned that direction.

"I imagine he hasn't gone far, likely trying to find someone to brawl.  I will go and find him at once."

Khadrul bowed his head gently and dismissed himself.  He didn't have to look very long before he saw the lumbering giant smiling and laughing with a pair of guards nearby, after getting his attention they both returned to have their discussion with Katriel.  Khadrul had also motioned to his Argonian accomplice and Davis in case they would also be needed.

He once again bowed his head in respect to Katriel as he approached with Gogron.

"Here we are ser Katriel, Davis and my companion are also nearby if you need them as well."

 

Iniana:

As Katriel set to work on informing the party Iniana took off to figure out what she could about the mercenaries and their captain.

[AngelofDance5613]

Katriel would nod, before squirming ever so slightly at all the attention before she began to explain the situation and what had been discovered. She instructed them all to keep their eyes open and be on guard, in case something came to a head suddenly. 

 

"I am open to suggestions also, on handling this...i am not the most experienced in caravans of this type and know not what's common or the ilk"

[Alandauron]

Khadrul:

He pondered the information for a few moments before responding, making sure to consider all the variables he could think of.

"Well it sounds like we won't be able to take it quite as easy as I had hoped.  We still owe four of our members for guard duty each night, I was going to exclude you and our scouts from that, Katriel, but may need to rethink our role now.  We have two very well trained scouts with us that I suggest we utilize at night.  They can keep an eye on things from outside the camp, that will put extra strain on the rest of us though."

He began to rub his chin while he was deep in thought once again, if the mercenaries completely left they could definitely negotiate for better pay but with just the seven of them it wouldn't be easy to cover all parts at all times.  They would need to enlist some of the personal guards into their ranks to be effective enough, especially if Davis and Tsarubi were to be fully rested when night fell.  Suddenly he wondered something.

"What is it Iniana specializes in?  Combat?  Stealth tactics?  We might be able to utilize her during the day for scouting to ensure the other two are plenty rested when night falls."

 

As Khadrul was talking he heard something from Gogron but wasn't paying him much attention.  Something about preparing for the upcoming festivities and excitement.

[AngelofDance5613]

Katriel would raise an eyebrow before sighing and nodding

 

"Indeed, and iniana was my best pupil, she's a sneak like myself, but better, its a situation where the pupil clearly has outdone the master"

[Alandauron]

Khadrul:

He grimaced while he ran things over in his mind, they were all going to be exhausted in order to maintain the role they agreed to as well as additional concerns that were presented with the risk from the mercenaries.  If they leave that will give a sign to anyone looking on to attack immediately, having already lost three likely led to a preparation phase with any potential threat.  This meant that his group would need to keep an eye on the mercenaries as well as any external threat.

"Alright, it's settled then, Gogron and Tsarubi will alternate keeping an eye on you at all times, Tsarubi during the day and Gogron at night.  Since you have been presented as leader that puts you at extra risk so I will have no argument from you about this, not to mention you are our mission.  Iniana and Davis will do scouting patrols during the day, while Tsarubi does them at night, to keep an eye out for trouble as well as to watch for any movement from the mercenaries.  The rest of us: my Argonian companion, Davis, Iniana, and myself will work alongside other private security to create a watch at night.  Davis and Iniana will obviously have shorter shifts at night than others so they are able to get needed rest for their daytime activities.  After Iniana returns and shares what she has learned we can discuss how much we share with the other groups in the caravan."

He thought to himself for another moment and realized that there was an important piece of detail that he needed to tie everything in together.

"Oh, we also need to know how many mercenaries there are and identify them.  Someone needs to go to their camp and get this info."

[AngelofDance5613]

Katriel would listen to everything, however one thing stuck out to her and she grimaced when he said that their mission was her.... it bothered her that al had basically hired her baby stirrers and didn't trust her enough to do this alone.... however she let that point be, though she was sure her frustrations were clear on her face

 

"Although there are points that i wish so much, too disagree with what you said.... time is not on our side, so i will drop them for now....i believe it would not be a wise choice for me to go to their camp either.... since i diiiiiiid threaten to spill their leaders blood the next time i saw him..... whoops"

 

She gently scratched the back of her neck, looking a little sheepish about her former outburst

[Alandauron]

Khadrul:

He smiled as she mentioned threatening the mer and thought to himself that Alandauron's description of her was spot on, she did indeed have quite the temper.

"Very well, I will go as a representative and attain the information myself.  When Tsarubi is done resting I will need someone to inform her of what we have discussed.  Davis go with my Argonian companion and report for night watch, when your period is over you will retrieve myself and Iniana.  Gogron, stay on Katriel's heel no matter what she's doing or where she chooses to go.  Ser Katriel, I wouldn't presume to give you any sort of commands but I would like to request that you remain in friendly territory."

Without waiting for a response from Katriel he turned and headed off to fulfill his role.

 

Iniana:

It didn't take long for her to find someone willing to gossip about the mercenaries accompanying the caravan.  She came across a group of five made up of two Khajiit and 3 Bosmer that had traveled from Grahtwood with a different caravan.  These same mercenaries had actually been with them for part of their trek and had acted in similar fashion.

"Oi dats right, dees ere merks were quite greedy fer us as well."

"So they did the same thing?  But you made it to your destination safely?"

"Aye, we paid em."

There were a few other groups that she talked to along the way and they had differing experiences and levels of knowledge with mercenaries but most of them had heard similar stories.  Only the group from Grahtwood had actually worked with the mercenaries on a different occasion but they were all open to worry that something wasn't right about this group.  She made sure to express her desire to be discreet and kept from sharing which group she traveled with just to be on the safe side.

As she got back to camp it looked as if her mentor was angrier than usual, she walked up to Katriel with a wide smile on her face.

"Everyone agrees that they're scumbags."

[AngelofDance5613]

Katriel would huff in aggravation as she was told she'd be baby day, he crimson eyes narrowing. She'd flip a very vulgar sign at the orsmers back as he walked off before turning to iniana

 

"That's no surprise dear.... but I'm glad that we're not the only ones seeing it."

 

Katriel would then fill iniana in about what was talked about and the plan from there

[Alandauron]

Iniana:

Her smile faded quickly as she was informed of her extra duties.  A deep frown formed on her face and she let her shoulders droop showing her discontent with the agreed upon duties.

"That's gonna be sooooo exhausting and we're at least three days out from the caravan destination.  If you agree it's for the best though then I'll go along with it."

She paused for a moment considering her responsibilities and then shock took her face.  She groaned obnoxiously and then said something to her mentor that was barely audible.

"I guess I'm off to bed then, before my night shift."

She looked up and saw the fist moon was starting to peek it's head out, still a bit too early to wake Tsarubi.

"Don't forget to wake Tsarubi when the moon shows it's face."

[AngelofDance5613]

Katriel will wave inianna goodnight, and to acknowledge the reminder, she set off to work on sharpening all her weapons, thoroughly losing track of time and letting Tsarubi sleep in

[Alandauron]

Tsarubi:

She awoke with the feeling that she had slept longer than intended and darted out of the tent.  She was relieved as she exited to find that the moon hadn't risen further than she hoped.  Her first thought was to seek out Katriel and ensure everything was good with her.  She turned to gather her things and saw Iniana nestled up against some of the gear in a corner of the tent.  The Bosmer slept with daggers in hand, this one had been through something terrible and Tsarubi felt remorse that one so young that seemed so pure had been forced to mature so quickly.

"Rest well little cub, Tsarubi will watch over your Katriel this night."

She spoke quietly but even her low tones stirred the Bosmer slightly.  She gathered up all her gear and headed out to find Katriel, it didn't take her long to find her mark on the outskirts of their camp using a whetstone to sharper one of her blades.  Close by was the giant Orsimer looking bored, that was until he heard Tsarbui and turned drawing his weapons.  This was was very alert despite his demeanor just a moment before, Tsarubi always made very little sound when moving around due to her diligent training over the years.  Her cruel masters from before she was freed whipped her when she made noise, they used her for the most distasteful of tasks.

"Easy Orc, this one is no threat to Katriel or any in this camp."

Realizing there was no threat brought a frown to the face of the giant, Tsarubi could tell he yearned for the next fight.

"Serjo Katriel, this one is sorry for sleeping in.  Is there any new information that you wish to share?"

As she spoke she lowered herself into a kneeling bow before her charge.

[AngelofDance5613]

Katriel would look up from sharpening her weapons and shake her head once tsarubi was done speaking

 

"Do not apologize, it was my job to wake you, i decided to let you sleep in, the gods only know how much you needed the rest"

 

She would stand and stretch before placing a hand on the girls shoulder

 

"And just call me katriel.... no serjo or anything needed"

[Alandauron]

Tsarubi:

After a simple nod and Katriel caught her up on the goings on of the camp Tsarubi nodded once again, this time in reply.  If she was to not present the honor Katriel desreved verbally then quiet gestures would be her way of showing respect.  General Talbor had given her direct instruction to watch over those in the caravan and Katriel was in the most senior position.  Not only that but Tsarubi had learned well the exploits of Katriel, though she didn't seem now to be more than a simple Dunmeri sneak.  No, Tsarubi had studied every member of General Talbor's original party, their leadership and every member that had participated in the General's exploits.  Katriel had been there from nearly the very beginning and lived through the worst of their fights and expeditions.  She was no simple mer, she was a monster ready to be unleashed.

"This one had best be off and see to those night patrols.  Tsarubi will report anything unusual at first notice."

With that she quietly jogged off and quickly vanished from sight.

 

Khadrul:

It had been as awkward as he assumed it would be.  The mercenaries didn't seem to have a cohesive system of leadership which led to Khadrul walking around damn near the entire camp before being satisfied with his count.  He knew this was just for show and to ensure that it was difficult for him to get an accurate read on their numbers, even so they were quite convincing in their claims.

By his count the mercenaries made up at least three times the amount of his own party.  He could also tell that they had some experienced warriors among them, though not to the extent of both Gogron and Katriel.  Tsarubi would likely be able to dispatch a few before being noticed but wasn't sure of her head to head capabilities.  As for the rest, they were each reliable in a fight except his Argonian companion.  The Bosmer was a variable to which he had not been able to gauge yet but she was at least as capable as he and Davis.

When he returned to the camp he shared the information with Katriel before waking his Argonian friend so he could go relieve Davis from his watch.  Tonight was going to be the roughest with the sudden schedule change.  What was the caravan leader thinking telling the mercenaries that this small group could replace a group that was three times their size.  In an outright battle, maybe, but this was a jog, not a sprint.