Night had come over the Borial camp. Garek sat alone at the outskirts of the camp, around a small fire he had made. He was taking the time to examine the weapon that the Borials had given him to use.
It was a combination of a quarterstaff and double edged sword. In the middle of the weapon was a one and a half foot piece of metal, wrapped in a type of leather to hold on to. The ends of the handle were attached to two and a half foot long double edged blades. Each one sharpened to perfection. Garek watched as one of the Borial blacksmiths sharpened the weapon for him to use. Now, Garek faced another dilemma. How to carry this weapon?
Garek had watched another man carrying the same type of weapon he had before. Each end of the weapon was put in a leather sheath. Then, it was inserted into a long wooden shaft, which was then capped off. Apparently, it was used as a walking stick while not used in combat.
Another Borial explained to him that this weapon was usually only used when they were going into a battle which was planned, like a strike. The warrior usually always wore a sword. Garek was pleased to find out, however, that only the strong men of the group were allowed to use the idej, which they called it.
Garek stood, and placed his hands at opposite ends of the handle as his "instructor" of the idej told him. With a quick thrust, he brought the left end of the weapon forward, then he brought the right edge of the weapon up into an arc, bringing it straight down on a log. Removing the idej from the log, Garek smiled. He could get used to using this thing. Hopefully he would be able to keep it after this ordeal was over. He then sheathed his weapon, and sat back down by his fire.
One of his pet peeves about this place was the attire. The armor they used was fairly simple, composing of a metal breastplate, and a type of "skirt" composing of a leather, with metal strips attached to it. On their heads, the Borial soldiers wore a type of ceremonial cloth, and then a crafted bronze helmet on top of that. The regular, everyday clothing, however, composed of type of leather "kilt" for males with a cloth lining. A cloth undergarment was worn under the kilt. The female's clothing was very diverse, as opposed to the male's. They ranged anywhere between from what Garek could only describe as a bathing suit, to light weight linen dresses which skirts went up to about the mid thigh area. They obviously wouldn't want to wear anything heavy do to the hot climate of this region. That was the one thing that Garek picked up as he, and the rest of the "Virgos" ended up here.
Garek slumped himself up against a tree, and watched the fire burn. One thing that caught his fancy here was the tranquility. Aside from the war that was going on between Borials and the Horde, the land was quiet and serene. Garek heard a moving in the bushes two his right, and quickly unsheathed his idej. Scanning the area in front of him, he noticed nothing. Then he quickly turned to his right, and saw it. A small, three-foot-tall creature.
"Away with your weapon. Harm you I won't. Please tell me, who are you?" The creature was, needless to say, strange looking. It was a bipedal creature, with four toes on each foot. Its skin was very dark, probably a blue from what Garek could tell. There were three fingers on each hand, arranged with two fingers positioned where a normal person's index and little finger would be, and the other finger coming out of the "heel" of the hand. The head was proportional to its body with two eyes, a nose, and a mouth positioned just as a Human's would be, and two ears similar to that of a horse sat on top of its head. They twitched from side to side, presumably taking in the different sounds around them.
"Why do you ask that?" Garek said, still pointing one end of the weapon at the creature.
"Here you are not from. The Borials, you are not like. From where are you, hmm?" The creature looked up attentively.
"I'm Garek of the Virgos. I'm not from here." Seeing as though the creature wasn't becoming a threat, he stood the weapon up on one blade like a staff, and then sat down on a rock.
"Why then are you here?"
"Myself, and my people were...travelers, on a mission of exploration. We then ended up in the Borial camp." Garek was trying to find a viable explanation for why he, and his crewmates where here, trying not to reveal their true selves to another species.
"Travelers you are. Warriors you must be. Deliverance you will bring, yes."
"Deliverance?" Garek asked, slightly confused by the puzzling little creature.
"Yes. Deliverance you help bring from the Horde. Borials bring deliverance they will of our people, from the Horde they must."
Garek tried to interpret what the creature had just told him. Finally piecing it together, he then asked, "The Borials are helping to save your people from the Horde?"
"Yes. Help they bring. My people, tall, they are not. The Borials, big, they are. Weapons, they have. Freedom, they bring."
"Freedom from what?"
"Slavery. Worked, we have, for the Horde. Brought, despair, they have, to our people. Deliverance, the Borials will bring."
"So, your people are slaves of the Horde, and the Borials have agreed to help you get out of slavery?" Garek hoped he was getting this right.
"Yes. Messanger I am. Bring news from slave camps, I must. Borials, I must see."
I'm going to have to bring this guy to the captain. "What is your name?"
"Gori I am."
"All right, Gori. Come with me. We're going to go see my leader, and the Borials."
Garek started off towards the main part of the camp, with Gori following him, hopping along. Apparently, the main way for his people to move was to hop on their hind quarters. Garek was astonished by one leap that Gori did, where he hopped nearly seven feet.
"Gori, do all of your people move by hopping?"
"Jump we do. Transportation quick, it is. We walk too, however. Slow, it makes us though."
"I see." The two of them made it towards the inner part of the camp.
Maruu sat with Nori, Lataro, K'Lara and Neklus around another fire in the middle of the Borial camp. They were discussing what would happen in the next couple of days.
"The people we are fighting, the Horde, are very cunning, yet savage, people. They are great warriors, especially when it comes to the sea." Neklus started to explain.
"Great, Vikings," Maruu said. "Tell me, Neklus, do your people have any boats?"
Neklus didn't get a chance to answer. A three-foot-tall blue creature hopped up in front of the group. Nori yelled out slightly, and fell behind Maruu. K'Lara put her head on Jon's shoulder. Maruu drew a sword and pointed it at the creature.
"Away with your weapons, I mean you no harm," Gori said.
"Relax, Stephen. This is Gori. He is an informant to our tribe." Gori waddled walked over to Neklus and took a seat next to him. Garek followed a second later, with his idej sheathed.
"Sorry I'm late, Stephen. Gori's people are excellent leapers." Garek caught his breath, and sat down on an unoccupied log.
"I see," Maruu said, sheathing his sword.
"My apologies for not explaining before, Stephen. Gori is a type of spy for us. He heads over to the Horde cities and works along with his people to blend in and gather information." Neklus gave Gori a pat on the back.
"What do you mean 'works with his people'?" Maruu asked.
"I will explain," Neklus started. There, the group sat as Neklus explained the tragedy of what happened to Gori's people, the Aody.