Dragon Hunter

Chapter 43: Drawing out the Enemy

Thankfully the base mess was close by, saving them a long walk. Unfortunately, it was also filled with a number of soldiers that stared at them with both suspicion and confusion, not having been informed yet as to their identity and presence. Still, in typical noriquien fashion, the soldiers said nothing, letting the three make their way to the table where food was being served, some kind of dark stew with hard black bread.

Eyes narrowed as they studied the newcomers, the stewards serving the food nevertheless ladled generous portions of the stew into wooden bowls before handing it to first Cooper, then Saddahk and Theron, each getting a chunk of black bread to go with it.

"I can't say the hospitality has improved from the healer's tent," the were-form silver dryly noted as he carefully sat down on the bench seat opposite Cooper and Theron and set his bowl of stew down in front of him. "Those looks were decidedly frosty! But the food smells good, and they were generous in their portions."

"Better than what we got in the Forest, anyway," Theron indicated as he stuck a carved spoon into his own bowl of stew. "Bugs and muddy water!"

Cooper felt his mouth twitch upward when, for a moment, he remembered the rather icky menu items that were available in Eska. Which meant there was a very good chance that stew was made with exactly that: bugs and muddy water. Then he mentally shrugged and took a big spoonful himself.

At this point there was really no time to overthink it. He was starving and needed something to fill his belly with. If that was bugs and muddy water, then so be it!

They were just finishing wolfing down the stew when a dark elf in a uniform slightly less worn than those on the soldiers around them appeared at the table.

"Forgive the intrusion, friends," the elegant female dark elf said with a slight incline of her head. "But it's come to my attention that you are guests that can assist the Noriquien people with a dragon problem."

"That's our intent," Cooper confirmed with a nod. "I'm ..."

"Cooper Jacks," the officer provided with a nod of her own. As beautiful as all noriquien women seemed to be, she had a sense of fatigue about her, a fragility that suggested she had seen more than her fair share of action against the Empire. And more than her share of death.

"The human dragon hunter Indurain told us to expect."

"Guilty as charged," Cooper said with a thin smile before standing, scraped empty wooden bowl in hand. "If you could tell us where the dragons have been attacking recently, I'll go spill some blood and lighten your load a bit."

The officer returned his smile with a tired but relieved one of her own.

"If I didn't have Sargeant Damarin's report on my desk, I'd dismiss that as bravado." The smile vanished as she pulled a number of rolled up pieces of fabric from the small of her back.

These went onto the table where, with practiced flicks, they were unfurled to become maps. Maps with red markings all over them.

"Red for any ritual or holy site currently under attack," the officer explained as Cooper stepped around the table to get a closer look, his eyes narrowed thoughtfully.

"Blue for sites under repair, and black for those damaged beyond repair."

"That's a lot of black," Theron said with a note of dismay as he joined the human and dark elf.

She looked at him and tightly nodded.

"The Empire thinks by destroying our heritage and culture, they will break our spirit," she said before sighing and looking back at the map.