Blood, hot and sticky sprayed forth from the jugular of the beast and as it sank to the floor Ausan noticed something…<br/><br/><span style="font-style: italic">Silence</span><br/><br/>The familiar roar of battle ended and in its place stood the sounds of those who struggled to make a hasty retreat. But, it was over, just as soon as they had entered the fray it ended and Ausan was left in that hazed state where the mind came back to the present. Everything had moved so slow before, as if the whole world had chosen to slow down as they fought. Now, it all sped back up and she had to contend with that brief moment when she was still caught up in that slowed time.<br/><br/>It was the pain in her forearm that caught her attention and roused her from her thoughts first. A grunt of pain left her lips while she pulled off her heavy shield. The weighted metal was allowed a chance to fall to the ground with a thud, soon to be followed by her gauntlet which revealed the start of a bruise that she knew spread up onto her forearm. Numbness had already begun to set in, so she shook out her hand to try and alleviate it while Barth tended to the others. One of her Shield Sisters was questioned, Krista, if she recalled properly and the woman looked like she had held her own well enough.<br/><br/>Her shield and gauntlet were retrieved with the idea to walk over and speak with her, when the same insufferable prick from earlier spoke up once more. The look in Barth’s eyes mimicked her own, though instead on holding her tongue she voiced what she knew her Prince could not.<br/><br/>So, as he walked passed she extended her arm and caught him on the shoulder with her hand, her strength able to hold him in place despite the bruise.<br/><br/>“When a Tutar is about to rape your women and butcher your children, remember this moment when you have need for this<span style="font-style: italic">ragged kin</span>,” she spat back at him, gaze on his own which never wavered even as he was ushered away by the other man.<br/><br/>“Sister,” another voice drew her attention and the glare she held was replaced with a soft smile.<br/><br/>“Sister,” she greeted Krista as the other woman approached. The wound on her face more evident now and Ausan figured she would have a similar scar to the one she herself bore. “Naiya keep you safe,” she said as the two embraced in a warm hug, two fingers brought to her lips were kissed as she touched the scar below the other woman’s throat upon her burn and Krista did the same to her.<br/><br/>“What did you say to that bald jackass?”<br/><br/>“I told him he better guard the poor excuse of genitals, least I cut them off and choke him with it,” she snickered and Krista followed suit. “What of the others? How did the other Sisters fair?”<br/><br/>“Well,” Krista said with a glance back over the battle field. “They held their own and fought as well as the men with the fire of Naiya to urge them on,” she sighed and hung her head though in the end. “Still, many live on now with the Goddess.”<br/><br/>Ausan swore under her breath and lowered her own head, the guilt of whether or not she should have left Barth’s side to protect those who followed. Perhaps, things would have been different then?<br/><br/>“Gather the Sisters that remain and form up into a single unit,” Ausan instructed, her gaze cast back to the insufferable bastard who thought himself above her people. “We head back to camp now, but I want our Sisters to stand out and be a show of power within our forces.”<br/><br/>“Of course, Sister,” Krista said and saluted her the same way she had done to Barth before she ran off to do as she was asked.<br/><br/>That done, Ausan gave a sharp whistle and waited with some concern until the familiar gallop of her steed was heard.<br/><br/>“Symas,” she cooed to the horse that snorted and tossed his head in greeting to her. “I thought I had lost you,” she whispered to him as she stroked his head. “Let’s get back to camp,” she said before she secured her gear to his saddle, hoisted herself up and then rode him over to where Barth stood with one of the Lebi knights. No words did she have to share with Barth, both knew what must be done now, so they did not have to bother talking.<br/><br/>A victorious though dejected group returned to camp and dispersed to get what needed to be done, done. Ausan rode with her head high and loved the looks on many faces when they caught sight of her Battle Sisters as they marched into camp. It warmed her heart to see the shock and even more so to see the look of interest on the faces of some of the Lebi women. She would have to make it a point to go and see them later and speak with them about how important they were to the protection of their nation.<br/><br/>In her personal tent, Ausan stood and allowed her squire to remove her armor…carefully. Bruises and wounds that she had not noticed during the heat of battle showed up now with vengeance, mostly that of her arm that would have likely been broken had the fight lasted much longer. On a simple wood stool she sat, as cold water from a bucket was used to wash the filth of battle from her body. Eyes closed, she sent a silent prayer to Naiya and hoped that this alliance helped them rather than signed their death warrant.<br/><br/><div><hr style="height:2px; width:100%; border:0; color: black;background:black;"/></div><br/><br/>The chieftain Grishnakh stared down at what had once been his favorite spawn, Varduk. Though that name would be stripped from him as well, for the disgrace he was now. The only reason he still lived was for the information he had and even that had not spared him the beating he suffered at the hands of his Creators males.<br/><br/>“Say it again,” he growled from the throne he sat upon. “I want to make sure you are clear and truthful with me.”<br/><br/>Varduk’s face was swollen, one of his tucks was broken clean off and the other was cracked in what could be assumed in a very painful manner. Two of the four eyes were swollen completely shut and Grish doubted if the others saw much better. This was all just his face, his body looked like he had been used for practice dummy, kicked and used like he was lower than low. Which at this moment, he was.<br/><br/>“The…men…” he began, his face grimaced from the pain in his jaw at being made to speak. “They have…joined forces. The polished-steel have allied with the dead-eyes,” he grunted as he shifted his weight to try and find some margin of comfort where he knelt before his Creator. “Together they fought and defeated us…”<br/><br/>“Defeated you!” Grish snapped and rewarded his spawn with a kick to the face that sent his final tusk off into the darkness of their dwelling. “They united against you!” He roared and those about him coward away, worried that they would be his next target. “HAD YOU NOT ATTACKED THEM! HAD YOU STAYED BEHIND AS I TOLD YOU! WE WOULD HAVE THEM WHERE WE NEEDED THEM! NOW!” he stalked over and backhanded the whelp as he tried to pull himself up. “YOU ARE A DISGRACE TO MY BLOOD!” he spat in his face and kicked him yet again.<br/><br/>Varduk breathed in more dirt than air at this point and was not fully back in the present world when a dull and rusty knife was thrown to his feet.<br/><br/>“With what bit of my blood still resides within you,” Grish began as he walked away. “Make your suffering last and ensure every drop of blood is spilled.”<br/><br/>The screams that followed lasted long into the night and well into the next day, though Grish could little enjoy it. His next spawn Karduk was brought forth to try and equal that of his fallen sibling. “The other Chieftains must be….made aware…”<br/><br/>Even if he did not want to do this, it was something that had to be done. For now at least.