The Secret Mission

It was the day of the stampede and the reinforcements have finally arrived. In the middle of all the battles happening, a covert team is running a special mission. Three shadows bolt from tree to tree. They move undetected amongst the multitude of beasts. They kill them effortlessly and leave a trail of dead creatures in their wake. Even the strangling high ranking beasts were no match for these assassins. It doesn't take that long for the three to kill all the monsters in the stampede camp. The adventurers have already pushed the beasts this far back. The stampede has completely failed. The highest-ranking beasts have given up and left. The remaining army is suffering from a lack of direction and have started escaping, most running south, the general direction of the Beast Nation.

The three spies scan the tents searching for any kind of information. Their objective is of utmost importance: to try and capture a high ranking official and gather information about the reason for the stampede. The last stampede 15 years ago was generally thought of as a random event. But now, it seems like the evidence points towards a concerted, intentional, and devastating attack perpetrated by the Beast Nation. This would violate the Peace Treaty between the two powerhouse sovereignties. They would need serious evidence to prove this claim to the Royal court. Going to war is not something taken lightly.

They were hoping to find out why the Beast Nation has decided to expand North. They were also hoping to find out the personages who are behind this act of aggression. This would be a grave accusation to throw at the Royal Beastman Family. The ponytail wearing leader finally reached the main tent of the enemy. It had been emptied. Burnt maps and documents are strewn about. But this special task force specializes in recovering evidence and looking for clues and interpreting signs. The masked leader in all black examines some left-over scraps and uses Light recovery to undo the damage to these documents. She could read the maps and plans. She keeps them in her crystal inventory and moves on to a different corner of the tent. Within a couple of minutes, the other two return with a giant Orc who seems to be able to speak some human.

They interrogate him to find out why they are trying to stampede through Kauven. The orc tells them that the Beast Nation has been growing stronger and is not frightened by the likes of measly humans. It seems that the Beast Nation is suffering from overcrowding, lack of resources, and needs the space to address the population density. They will try again and it is only a matter of time before Kauven will inevitably fall. One of the spies wearing the charcoal ninja outfit laughs saying that this will definitely not happen. The Orc spits and replies, "Do you really think that this is the only plan the Beast Nation has come up with?! Dearth Kingdom will fall. This temporary won is but a drop in the bucket. Who could stop the rain from falling from the sky and touching the ground?! Your filthy human blood will run this land red and, we, beasts will be the ultimate victors. There is a great war coming and you have grown tired and fat from your hubris. This world only respects the strong and your race has grown complacent and weak." A seal in his chest begins to glow. "I will tell you this human, the great darkness is returning. It is a kindness for my race to spare you from the pain and loss when the time comes." The seal is now bright red and runs throughout the orc's body. The three quickly active their shields. Once the light is gone, the orc is dead.

The leader is annoyed that they couldn't keep him alive. They weren't able to get answers to all their questions. Thankfully, the orc was very chatty and the whole event has been recorded in the video surveillance system built into their ninja outfit. They comb the rest of the camp and kill as many monsters as they could find before heading back to camp. The third spy spoke, "I don't think they will try another stampede. Look at how many lives it cost them. This has greatly diminished their forces and resources." The other two agreed. It has dawned on them that they are the very first people to find out that the stampede is but a symptom of a much greater threat. They need to develop countermeasures for whatever the Beast Nation is planning to do to destabilize and defeat the Dearth Kingdom. There is also the issue of the coming darkness, whatever that is. They quickly enter the Headquarter tent and give their report.

By the time Althea and Bryce wake up from surviving the river encounter, Mistress Juliette was sitting on a chair right next to their beds. She gives a sigh of relief and checks up on them. The three leave to go to the next tent over where Terrick, Tasha, and Ellie were recovering. Terrick was already up and the four have a lovely chat until Mistress Juliette was called away to help some grievously injured adventurer. Terrick comments, "Mistress Juliette must be so busy with all the injuries." The other two agreed. All three never realizing just how busy she was, indeed!