Rise of the Horde

Four days after they passed one of the Burning Fields of the Burning Sands, Khao'khen was busy staring at the map of Ereia on his table. He needed to make some adjustments in his plans as their enemies are no longer in the dark about their presence. He stared absentmindedly at the map in front of him, he was trying to come up with some elaborate plans in his head but he can't seem to get his mind into it as his attention is always being pulled towards one certain mark on the map like an incapacitated ship towards a whirlpool.

Khao'khen let out one frustrated grumble as he slumped down on his chair, he was trying to steer his attention away from the map but something seems to be always attracting his eyes towards it. Confused and irritated, he stood up once again and carefully studied each detail of the map that was available to them based on the information that was provided or known to them.

They are about half a day's march away from the closest settlement of the Ereians which he doubted would be useful to them since the place was already a ghost town according to their scouts and it wasn't just a normal ghost town but one that was razed to the ground. Not a single soul around.

According to the riders that searched around the destroyed town, they thought that the place must have been raided just recently because of the still lingering smoke and embers that were present but they saw no signs of struggle, no dried blood nor corpses in sight and even the dirt roads were free from signs of conflict which would only mean that the residents of the town deliberately set the place aflame before fleeing or someone set the it aflame after its inhabitants were gone.

Khao'khen at first thought that the scouts made a mistake which is why he personally went to take a closer look at the place and all available clues' points to the same conclusion as the scouts.

"Scorched Earth Tactic…" he mumbled softly after making sure the place was indeed set aflame by those who lived within it before they made their escape. He never expected that he would encounter this tactic in this world and if it is what he thought it is that their enemy employed against them then there would be nothing left in here that they could make use of. Only the wells in the town were with almost negligible damage but he doubted that the water in it would be safe. With water as one of the important basic resources, he doubted that their foes would be nice enough to leave the water untouched for them to make use of.

"Ah! That idiot just had to send his cavalry towards us…damn it…what bad luck." He complained as he helpless laid back the map on his table before letting out a dissatisfied sigh. A groan of annoyance escaped his lips as he started massaging his temples. No one knows if he was complaining about the bad luck of their enemies who suffered a disastrous defeat or their own as they were discovered rather quickly through a coincidence and had to change things up a lot.

After giving out one heavy sigh, Khao'khen brought back his attention unto the map again. There were a few more settlements along the way but after giving it some thought, why aim for the smaller targets that he wasn't sure if they are still intact if he can just aim for a juicy target that he was certain that won't go up in smokes. His sights focused on the Merchant City of Alsenna which according to Adhalia and the other Ereians was the former capital of Ereia before it was moved to Ishtar.

"I doubt you would have the guts to set a city aflame…" he mumbled in annoyance before heading out. Outside his tent, Khao'khen was surprised to find out that all his commanders and the warriors that was close to him were gathered together.

"Your orders, chief?" Sakh'arran stepped forward as he gave a salute towards their chieftain who have been isolating himself inside his tent for almost an entire day after his personal trip at the ruined settlement ahead.

Khao'khen breathed out calmly as he observed the faces of those who present around.

"The Warg and Rhakaddon Cavalry along with the Troll Hunters will be moving ahead of the horde. Your job is to reach Alsenna, the faster the better and cause as much chaos as you can possible can around it. Haguk…"  he turned his sights at the chief of the Warghen Clan who was more trustworthy than Dhug'mhar or Skorno in following his exact orders.

"Yes, chief." Haguk responded as he stopped combing the fur of his warg and faced their chieftain with all seriousness as he waited for the words of the chief.

"Make a beeline towards Alsenna, it shall be marked on the map that will provided to you later. Ignore all settlements along the way and restrain yourselves from assaulting anyone or anything less they proved to be a threat to you and your companions' safety. When you reached Alsenna, in its surroundings, you can attack to your hearts content but the city itself."

Khao'khen began informing Haguk and the rest who would be moving ahead of the horde the details that they needed. The riders of the Warg and Rhakaddon Cavalry started making their preparations as the trolls also did their own. Troll Hunters may not be as fast as the two cavalry units of the horde but they can still move faster than others and they have the stamina to keep up with the two cavalries.

It was already dark when those tasked by Khao'khen to move ahead were done with their preparations. The chieftain personally sent them off as they too would soon move at the break of the first light. Darkness wasn't a problem for the members of the horde and they can continuously march during the night but since they have some Ereians in their company, they had to adjust.