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Dramatis Personae:
The Child
Gael Goldpine, A half-elf, Lieutenant Commander.
Huck Murengis – Private, Aide to G.G.
Dark.Cold. Where Ma… WHERE MAMA!... Cold, Where milky?
Want Mama….
What's all 'round me? It's not rocks. (She remembered getting lost in a nearby "Cay-ve" and the rocks, till Da came to find her).
Gael Goldpine (Angry commander) examined the area, his expression Grim.
"Explain to me, just one more time how the civilian train ended up isolated enough for no-one to be able to respond in time, and what was wrong with the damn sentries?"
Huck Murengis (Faithful Aide) managed to keep himself from wincing this time. "Well Lieutenant-"
"Lieutenant COMMANDER, Private."
"Excuse me Lieutenant commander Goldpine Sir, Apparently the squad on guard duty got ambushed, while er- distracted by the doxies in the train,and the second squad on guard duty had their throats slit and the third got eaten by centipedes".
"Centipedes?"
"Er, yes sir, no doubt a mage of some sort.We believe that they were aiming for the supply train but missed it".
"Any survivors?"
"We don't know yet sir, we're still er, un-piling the bodies".
"Monsters."
"Well we did manage to track them down to the rough area they're based in, and we've been assigned to it".
"Excellent"
"As soon as we finish another sweep for survivors, of course".
The Child remembered Mama waking her up, in the dark. She'd been scared but at the same time sure that Da could deal with anything (Just like that Snake that had slithered into her room, that Da had spotted and Smushed with his fighting sword.
Then she remembered!
Ma had rushed her off and hidden her under the… Cloaks! That was it, the rag pile where everyone kept all the rags and spare cloaks n' clothes n' stuff.
But where was Ma? She'd stood over the pile and told her…
"Don't get out no matter what happens, until your Father gets back… Or till its dark and gets quiet again".
The noise had stopped, but was it dark yet? She couldn't see anything through the (Increasingly damp & wet) heap of rags & Shirts covering her.
She decided to wait, hoping for Da to come & sweep her up like he would always do before Sleepy-time.
After waiting lots, n' lots of time she decided to go out, so very slowly she started to dig her way through the (Now positively sodden & damp)rags.
Gael was not in a good mood.
"Clean-up duty" He muttered, "Who do they think I am, a Scout? A forest ranger? One of those underfed lightweight show-off forest acrobats who jump off leaves?
I'm a full Commander, those pompous old –"
"Sir!"
"Yes, private?" He snapped.
"I think I can hear something"
"What!, survivors? , Well what are you slacking around day-dreaming for, step to it man!".
They ran towards the increasingly loud screams.
She was screaming.
She'd dug her way out of the pile and had found out why they were damp.
And where her mother was.
Gael Goldpine, commander (and father of one) ran, his cobalt blue longsword held out of it's sheath in front of him. Until he came to the source of the screams.
She saw someone coming, and blurry as it was through the veil of tears, snot & blood stains covering her… It looked like Da, with his Sword (That "Only hurts the bad people, n' snakes")and the same height and cloak!
She started to run towards him.
Gael Goldpine, Commander noticed that Huck had caught up with him.
"Well, what was it sir?"
"A goblin brat" He said, while wiping the flecks of blood and brain off his blade with his recently acquired cloak.
"It must have hidden here after we wiped out the base in this cave system".
"A fine Blade sir".
"Yes, I got it off the Hob Chief's corpse".
"Damn monsters", he grunted wiping the last fleck of blood from the sword.
FIN
