Twilight was falling in the Steppes, and Moliira was on the hunt.  Not for any creature this time, but for those who hunted.  She was up in a tree for the moment, carefully observing the poachers' camp through the eyes of an elemental creature hidden in the grass.  She had to be careful, they kept a guard posted to avoid the roving orcish bands.  And Moliira had seen what those bands were capable of.  She admired them, great hunters with their own sense of honor.  There was a city some distance away, perhaps the poachers had started there.  But that part did not matter.  It was where they had ended up, and what they were doing which had drawn her anger. 

It was a careless slaughter, and the prayer of an orcish shaman that had brought her to this place.  The band had come across an entire herd of the native wild cattle slain and left to rot under the sun.  The hides and horns had been harvested, but the meat was left alone.  The orcs salvaged what they could from the carcasses, but were horrified at the waste.  They were still at their camp, working to preserve the meat and organs for later use.  The drow goddess had gifted them with extra salt to hasten their work, and then started following the trail.

Now, she watched the camp, deciding on the best course of action.  From what she could tell, there were two bands of humans who had joined as one.  The poachers themselves, and the people hired to guard them.  That was interesting.  The drow wondered if the guards could be reasoned with.  Her true target was the poachers, but their guards would either be collateral damage or smart enough to step aside once the fighting started.

Her disguise was a simple one, an injured human hunter.  Her face had a nasty, bleeding cut over one eye, and Moliira made herself look competent but still learning.  Leaving behind most of her weapons, she kept a simple longblade at her side and a war bow in her hands.  Her clothing became simple but practical, with tears to make it appear as if she had been out in the wilds for some time.  Approaching the camp on foot, she hollered at the guards as soon as she was in earshot.  "Thank the gods, human faces!  I need shelter, please!  Those damned wargs got my horse, and the rest of my crew," she said.  A simple story was best, the details could come later.

The Steppes, oh a really dangerous land! Home of many orchish and human tribes, and naturally, home of a major clan… The Fratis. This clan is known by few people, since it's hidden in the very heart of the big forest. The Fratis live inside a garrison, well, it coulf be even be considered a city, since hundreds of people live there. The place has two walls, a stone one, and a small wooden wall surroinding it. Next to it, another campo can be found, however, this one is smaller and serves only to the army of exactly 600 men that fight under the clan's banner… Today, the commander and senator Silanus will seek to have an agreement with the smaller tribes of the Steppes…

 Silanus was walking around the forest with seven companions… His body guards Braltak, Marcus, Gaius, Decimus, Raldok and Morak, and Illia, a dignitary.  This time, they were going to try to negotiate with a very small human clan of nomads, it was said that this tribe often produced leather and artefacts with fur and horns; perhaps buying some of their merchandise would be quite useful for the Fratis…

Silanus and his crew finally found the tribes' settlement… It had fifteen guards protecting the place, bah, if a tribe of orc looters attacked, those men would stand no chance! A woman was in the gates, she was crying and asking to the guards to let her in… She looked quite suspicious… Or perhaps, it was only the paranoic man's imagination…

The guards were persuaded by the woman's words, and allowed her to enter… As soon as they accepted, Silanus and his companions approached; Silanus glared at the mysterious woman… Something was a little ambiguos about her, he could feel it…  Silanus frowned and said, in a neutral voice tone: "Greetings, now move. We are from the Fratis, and must talk with the head of your clan."

The two guards looked at each other, and one of them saud to Silanus: "First this woman asking us to be allowed in the camp, and then a bunch of people saying that they want to talk with our chief, what a boring day…. Well, yes, you can." The two guards moved, allowing them to come in.

As soon as Silanus and his crew entered the camp, the guards unsheated their weapons, and the archers aimed at them… Oh, this was all a trap, now, they were going to be ambushed! One of the archers said: "What a wonderful day! This is truly an excellent prize, boys! We will not only mug them, but also sell them to the slave market, ha ha!* One of the mercenaries walk towards Moliira and said: "And that includes you, heheh."

Allowing a look of relief to cross her face when she was allowed in, Moliira took quick stock of the camp.  It was clear these were the people who had slaughtered the animals on the plains.  The hides and horns were in clear sight, being cured to sell at some marketplace.  She was formulating a plan when a voice called out, and other joined in.  This complicated matters more than she would like.  She eyed them as they passed into the camp, and glanced at the camp's residents.  There was an uneasy tension growing in the air, and Moliira started to slink to the side.  She wanted to play the helpless victim as long as possible.

She only stared at the mercenary who approached her, adopted a blank stare of shock.  When he dared lay a hand on her, she let out a banshee screech.  The toe of her boot quickly connected with the soft flesh between his legs, and she sprinted into a tent.  Chaos was starting to break out, and Moliira wanted to see just what would happen.  She was more than a little curious to see just how this little fight would come out.  Mercenaries were good, but the small group looked to be hardened soldiers.  Peering out of the corner of the tent after a moment, she considered joining in the fray.

When Silanus saw how the woman kicked the mercenary, he began to laugh as the madman he is… "Ahahaha! Marcus, did you see where that woman over there kicked him? Yes! Right there!" Now, enough laughter; it was time for this unit to fight, and show these mercenaries what is the meaning of being a soldier.

The captain of the mercenaries said to one of his comrades: "You there, go and call the others, and do NOT let that damn woman escape" The grunt ran towards one of the buildings and said to the rest of the poachers that there are some "victims" here, as soon as they listened to him, they grabbed their weapons and joined the battle.

The captain of the mercenaries was about to say something to his allies, however, Siĺanus threw his spear to him. Hah, it was a wonderful hit! The weapon penetrated the captain's chainmail armor, and pierced his stomach… His corpse fell from the wooden wall, and with him, the morale of his team… Silanus ordered to his troops: "Form round formation and defend yourselves from the arrows, you, Morak, take Illia out of this cursed place!" The orc held Illia's arm and ran, trying to take the dignitary to a safe place. Some arrows were shot, but the un-trained mercenaries could not hit anyone.

Meanwhile, the troops formed a  tight circle and raised their heavy shields, preparing for the arrows. A mercenary yelled: "Fire!" And his fellows shot their projectiles… The orcs had a leather and bronze round shield, and the humans were using a wood and steel oval one. None of the arrows pierced the soldiers' shields, so, the mercenaries were forced to continue this combat with melee tactics… 

Eleven thugs un-sheated their weapons and charged against the troopers. 6 of them had heavy longswords, 2 of them had spiked maces and the rest used axes. Not everyone had shields, and most of them had fur armor… This will be a bloody fight. 

The echo of laughter made her smile, it was a sign that these men were not wholly grim or hardened by their profession.  The men hunting her would have a very unpleasant surprise if they did try to lay hands on her.  The mixed races of the group made the drow curious, and in her human guise it was much easier to watch them.  The leader of the fighters was easy enough to pick out, and Moliira decided to act.  She waved to the orc escorting the Illia, motioning for him to get to the shelter of the tent.  "Keep that one here.  It's safe enough, I will help guard if you get me out safe," she said to the orc.  To put action to her words, the woman put herself between the tent's entrance and the dignitary. 

As if on cue, a pair of the men from the camp headed for the tent, spurred on by their now late leader's words.  It seemed as if they wanted to salvage the situation as best they could.  Drawing a blade from her hip, the curved blade quickly found its mark.  She preferred a quick, clean kill, and the first mercenary dropped dead at her feet.  The single wound to his neck was clean and expert.  The second man hung back, unsure as to his next move.  looking to the orc, Moliira shrugged.  She would let he and his companions figure out the next move.

Morak glared at the stranger that wanted to "help". Why would he trust her? She could be a poacher or a mercenary… Well, she didn't look as one, since she had no armour, but trusting her was not safe…

Meanwhile, the clash between the soldiers and the mercenaries began. The mercenaries well very bad trained and did not even fight in a formation, so they were not hard to kill… 

Decimus easily murdered to of them with his spear, and Raldok was butchering in the enemy lines with his orchish claymore and killed around 7 foes in less than 10 seconds, however, a lucky blow by a mercenary killed him. The mercenary took advantage of Raldok when he was slaying the others and thrusted his sword inside his back. Raldok was wearing armour made of leather, so it was not hard to pierce…

Braltak saw how his brother Raldok got murdered, so he began a rampage. A mercenary tried to kill him with his axe, but the orc crushed his face with his hand spiked mace. Braltak quickly slayed 3 mercenaries without breaking fornation. Oh, and of course Silanus did not hold back! In a few amount of time, the warrior killed 5 enemies, only two poachers were left, and they ran away.

Gaius did not let one of the poachers run away, as he threw his spear and penetrated his back. Sadly, the second pocher succesfully ran away… 

Morak dug a hole in the mercenary's throat, obviously killing him. He then pointed his spear at the stranger, who played to be a victim, but then killed a man as if she was a professional fighter. "You want to help, don't you? Well, we don't have time for an idiot like you. Illia is an important person, cousin of leader Silanus. You want her, you'll have to go through me!"

Silanus and all his soldiers walked to see what happened to his cousin Illia and the orc Morak, when they saw him talking with the suspicious woman from before. Illia stepped behind Morak and shouted to Silanus: "Silanus! There is a little nobody bothering me and Morak, can't we capture her and sell her as a slave to our socii allies in the Highlands? Or force her to build a new bath for us!" Silanus laughted and walked to the stranger.

"Who are you? You must have guts to approach an important dignitary AND Silanus cousin with a blooded sword in your hands. 

The glare didn't surprise her all that much, the drow was used to distrustful gazes.  Even wearing a human guise warranted it, which marked the orc as a cautious fighter.  A point in his favor.  The fighting died down quickly, fast than she had expected.  Either the mercenary crew was better than she had thought, or Moliira had overestimated the ability of the poachers' crew to fight.  An eyebrow went up when she was called an idiot.  "Suspicious, aren't you?  I assure you, my intentions have nothing to do with… whomever Illia is," she said only offering a shrug.  She had never heard of the person before, and it didn't really matter to her.

She shook her head when the supposed dignitary threatened to sell her as a slave, or to use her as one.  That would be a horrid mistake on their part.  It was clear to her that the only way anything got done with this crew was in dealing with their leader.  "My name is Storm, and I am a mercenary.  I was hired to protect a group of prospectors out of Roj, searching for new gem deposits.  But one of the… less civilized orc tribes found us first.  I was out scouting, that's the only reason I survived," she said with a shrug.  And what she said wasn't entirely a lie, she had disguised herself to have a look at the steppes first hand, and the surveying crew had been slaughtered.  Her eyes were narrowed, watching everyone around her.  If things got more tense, she would have to act.  And Moliira would rather not reveal herself here just yet.

Glaring at Illia for just a second, her dark eyes returned to the leader.  "So, is it customary for your people to threaten strangers with slavery?  You have no idea who I am, and you simply assume that I am a nobody," she said a slight grin crossing her face.  Perhaps playing the hardened hunter wouldn't hurt anything.

Poor Storm, stupid cousin Illia always menacing everyone with the slave affair. The Fratis were a clan, not slavers! Silanus HATED to apologize, but this woman was brave. She did not fear the poachers, so she deserved respect.

"Shut your whore mouth, dear cousin Illia! How many times have you done this to strangers! Oh, last time Silanus brings you with him." It was pretty obvious that Silanus was unhappy with Illia; however, Illia remained in silence. Of course, she was pretty angry. 

Silanus looked back at the stranger Storm and said: "Family affairs. Sorry about your people, unless you are a skilled and feared diplomat as Silanus, orcs and nomads will tear you to pieces. Name's Tacitus Silanus, ehm… Storm…" the orc Morak sheated his weapon and walķed towards Storm.

"We orcs follow our heart; outlanders often prove to be a headache, especially those mice meat of Adeluna. Trying to negotiate with us, always begging for us to join them. Unless you are here to cause trouble to the Fratis, or ANYONE in the Steppes, you are welcome." Silanus ordered Gaius and Morak to sack the whole camp, then burn it to ashes. He then ordered Braltak to bury Decimus and Raldok.

Tacitus turned his gaze at Storm and said: "Just ignore the men looting and razing this camp, it's just to use it as example. Telk you what, if you do a small favour to me, you will be welcome to live inside the gates of our city. Silanus only needs you to use your big feet to, oh… Crush grapes and make wine! Just some bottles, what you say?"

The only show of emotion at first was the eyebrow that went up, and Moliira had to hide a smile.  It sounded like Illia was more than a bit of a handful to deal with.  She nodded to the man when he apologized, that was all she wanted.  Listening to him issue order to his men, she could tell that he was used to being in charge.  And it seemed that the men with him were used to following those orders.  "I think family affairs can get you killed as easily as orcs and nomads, it just depends on how you deal with them," she said with a shrug.  Her eyes drifted over the camp as Silanus' men looted it, but her attention quickly return to him.  Her face wore a frown as he went on. 

Her voice was calm as she spoke, and it was clear that the woman was not at all thrilled with the suggestion.  "Oh really now.  And just what makes you think that I will calmly accept such… a generous offer?  I have quite a few better things to do with my time than making wine," she said, her voice turning cold as the winds howling off the mountains.  While she kept her true self hidden, Moliira was beginning to let on that perhaps she wasn't quite how she had presented herself.  If things turned to blows, then it would get fun.  But Moliira was already determined to not make the first move.

Oh, how insolent, how arrogant… How disrespectful! How dared this damn lady-nobody speak like this to Silanus!? Oh, if he was in a bad mood he would just order his orchish allies to thrust her head in a pike, put it in the middle of the Steppes and use it as an example of what happens when you defy the almighty Fratis!!! Oh wait, now that Silanus remembers… He isn´t in his best mood…

Silanus walked out from the camp as it burned to ashes. Silanus called Gaius and said to him: "It would be best if you took cousin Illia at the settlement… Oh, the laaady is not used to walk around bushes and all!" Gaius put his fist in his own chest and answered: "Whatever you say, sir." As soon as he finished talking, he escorted Illia to the Fratis´garrison. She was not very happy with this, as she wanted to see what would happen, but after all, Silanus said the truth… Illia DOES dislike the wilderness.

Marcus and Braltak then approached Silanus and the so-called Storm. Silanus had his typical arrogant smirk in his face as he said: "Gentlemen, gentlemen… Today, you can see this oh, Stooorm. Since she cooperated to murder those damn rufians, Silanus kindly offered her to work for him as a grape crusher… JUST ONCE, and she could get to live under our roof forever! Oh, and what does she say? No… Now, my kind comrades, do YOU consider her to be a good person, one who deserves to live in OUR territory, or someone who goes camp-per-camp looking for something to live with? It wouldn´t be a surprise if this girl is some sort of criminal, if she assaults merchants and raids caravans! Who knows what affairs were her friends doing! Uh, this thug is surely a lowlife, one who deserves to be exterminated… Don´t YOU agree, fellow soldiers of the Fratis!?" If Silanus was good at something, it was at rallying, persuading and instigating people… Know, with the power of words, he incited three warriors to attack someone.

Marcus said to his orchish ally: "Most likely a lowlife, uh Braltak? Could serve to feed out wolves." Silanus un-sheated his sword and said to his two comrades: "This brigand has no affairs in this beautiful place, attack, my fellow men… Show her some JUSTICE!" As soon as Tacitus Silanus finished talking, the other two men un-sheated their weapons and approached the woman… Ready to attack!