Kaladin Shadowheart's POV.
The three-man group was not the only one; another group of three was on the other side of the clearing with some kind of animal, which sounded like a dog, making themselves known. They weren't acting overtly hostile as each rested their hand on the pommels of their swords, yet they were clearly not part of the Holy Kingdom forces.
The ones in front wore green armor and were distinct yet showed a completely different attitude. Each was a slightly different version of a similar design, yet each piece seemed old and worn, yet still very well maintained. Marks pocked the armor from blows; the leather straps seemed to have been replaced independently of each other. Their chain mail had been relinked with different metals. There was clearly a great deal of care in their maintenance, despite their armor's clear age.
More importantly, they all bore a striking resemblance to the ghost knight from the dungeon. It was evident that these were the Wardens we were seeking, and King Maxwell's opinion on them was not a mistake. Based purely on their souls in my eye, each and every one of them was above average, and the leader with the white winged helmet had a bright soul on the lower ends of a War God.
I could feel his gaze linger on me for a moment before he yanked the chained bandit to his knees. "Was this your camp?" he asked.
The bandit stuttered for a moment before clasping his hands as if pleading. He said, "Ye—yes, yes, it is, good sir. Er—what is left of it, yes."
"Are you aware of any other camps that may be close by?" the knight asked.
"Er—not that I am aware of, Sir," he said nervously.
The knight remained silent, and it seemed the pressure was too much as the bandit crumbled and tried to save the moment. "Ah—but we received supplies when those paladins rounded us up! Yes, so, there must be! I mean, they have to, right?" he offered.
"Obviously. But you don't know where it may be?" he asked again.
The bandit's bloodied face went paler as he tried to come up with an excuse. The knight merely adjusted himself, and the man flinched, and whatever went through his mind indicated that lying would do him little, so he dropped his head to the floor.
"Then that's that. You can't possibly know what you don't know," the knight said with a shrug.
Some hope returned to the bandit as he thanked the knight. "I—I'm sorry I can't be of more help, but I did what you asked! I listened and guided you wi—without problems! So you'll release me, right?" he begged.
"Of course, you'll be released. A promise is a promise," the knight said.
The man released the heavy chains, letting them fall to the dirt with a clank of metal. The bandit's smile was short-lived, however. It was fast, clean, and efficient. The black long sword left the scabbard, and in a single arc, the bandit's head was cleanly separated from his shoulders in a spray of blood.
"May God judge your soul as you have lived, heretic," he said calmly before re-sheathing his sword.
The knight turned his attention to me. "Is this your work?" he asked.
"It is," I answered.
"Take it they weren't friends of yours?" he chuckled.
"Furthest thing from it," I said.
His gaze drifted to Durak as he nodded to himself. "We meet again, Sir Durak," he said in a more friendly tone.
"Durak will do as I said before, Leonardo," Durak muttered.
Leonardo, if it was his name, seemed to come to a certain understanding as he looked back at me. "And you might be who?" he asked.
"Kaladin Shadowheart," I answered.
Leonardo made a fist and hit the palm of his other hand. "Ah, the Dragonslayer?" he asked.
"Some call me that, yes. Surprised such a title has made its way this far," I said.
"We may be a rather close-knit community, but we are not entirely separated from worldly affairs. But what brings someone of your bearing to this neck of the woods? Highly doubt it's for sightseeing," Leonardo said with a light shrug.
"I see, and you would be correct. I just happened to be looking for a group of warriors that goes by the name of the Wardens. Perhaps you are familiar with them?" I asked with a grin.
What I hoped would be a lighthearted question did not go as well as I hoped. The two knights around Leonardo went from resting their hands to actively gripping their swords. At the very least, they didn't show an immediate intention to draw them.
Leonardo waved them back as the second group approached. And it was indeed a dog, or perhaps more like a wolf-dog mutt of some type. Their dog locked onto me like a missile, and although it kept its distance, it didn't stop barking. Naturally, its grievances were only seemingly directed at me.
What exactly did I do to piss animals off so much?
"Duchess, come," a new voice ordered.
The dog instantly obeyed its master as it went to her side, and silenced its barking. Two of the three newcomers looked much like the rest, but it was the one who commanded the dog that had a unique appearance. It was a Beastmen wolf woman from what I could tell by her armored ears. Her gear was different in color, being primarily black instead of green.
Not only did she have the winged sword on her tabard, but her breastplate was also engraved with an intricate depiction of a Human man holding a book and a shaft of wheat. Perhaps she was from a different order within the Wardens?
Either way, Leonardo turned his helmeted gaze to me. "Can't say that I've heard of that group; I apologize," he said in a friendly way, but one clearly indicating he had no intention of elaborating.
That's fine. Perhaps his words will do better than mine?
"A shame. Well, I have this. Would you mind taking a look? Perhaps it could jog a memory or two from you?" I said as a scroll appeared from thin air into my hand.
I tried to hand it to Leonardo, but the Beastmen grabbed it first and inspected it. She opened it as well, brought it close to her face to sniff it a few times before deciding it must have been safe, and handed it to him. Leonardo opened it seemingly uninterested at first, but after a brief moment, he let out a chuckle.
"Wow, this changes some things. Can't believe I'd read something written by that guy. Hey, take a look at this," he muttered to his companions.
That guy happened to be King Maxwell, according to the Queen at least. Whatever was contained in that scroll was apparently enough to let me meet with the Wardens with little to no problems. Having friends in high places sure was a nice thing.
"Are we certain it's real? It just smells old and dusty now," the beastmen asked.
"How many people do you think have seen the Watchmaster's sigil enough to forge it to this level? And they sent probably the most famous person in the kingdom as well? Can't really fake that appearance either," Leonardo asked in return.
She just shrugged as Leonardo chuckled to himself and began to take off his helmet. He rested it in the crook of his arm and beamed a seemingly genuine smile at me.
"I apologize for the stiff greeting, but it's just in our nature to be cautious of who we trust. And giving a warm reception to a group in a deadly forest that just slaughtered an entire camp of people, albeit a group of heretics and bandits, is a bit much for a first meeting," he said with a grin as he extended a hand to me.
"Understandable, I too would be cautious if I were in your shoes," I said.
Leonardo was a young Human man in his early twenties. His wavy blonde hair and stubble, coupled with his slanted blue eyes, gave him a slightly wild, but friendly appearance.
Leonardo turned his group and told them to relax. The group responded with nods of understanding and called him a "Vice-Watchmaster," which didn't tell me much, as I knew next to nothing of their ranks. But if his power and clear authority were anything to guess on, Leonardo may rank rather high in their order. Or perhaps the entire group had hidden War Gods amongst them, and he was just one of many.
"With your letter, I take it you would like to have a conversation about some things, but this is hardly the place for it. So please, allow us to guide you to our home. It's just a little over a day's hike, and moving with such a group will make things much safer," Leonardo offered.
"Then will do that," I said before turning to Durak. "This is technically a completed mission. If you desire, you can return," I offered.
Durak shook his head and said, "Ain't done to you come back with me, Kaladin. We'll stick around, but just consider us shadows. Pay us no mind."
"I appreciate it."
—
We only made camp for nightfall after making good time toward the Warden's base, which was indeed nestled into the mountains. The group of knights was all young, mostly in their early or late twenties, like Leonardo. They were friendly enough, with Leonardo the most outgoing.
The Beastmen woman was named Tuvani and seemed to hold a secondary leadership position, but out of the entire group, she was the most revered. However, there was a very clear barrier for each of them, one that they would not let break down.
Personal questions, or questions about their order or even religion, were either politely ignored or the topics changed entirely. They showed that firm resolve many times to the point that I simply stopped trying to inquire further, so as not to be rude. I figured I would have my answers soon enough when I met their Watchmaster.
Durak had told me that from the side, he had indeed met Leonardo and a few other Warden patrols throughout the years. They never worked together and simply greeted each other and parted ways peacefully. When Durak attempted to report the group to his higher-ups, he often received orders to "not to pay them any mind" or "they are just a group of reclusive adventurers." What must have been orders from the Crown itself not to interfere with them unless absolutely needed.
Regardless, despite all of them being in plate armor, the group moved quickly and showed a deep familiarity with the forest. I'd like to say that we haven't run into a single monster so far because of them, but that wasn't the case. Something was very clearly wrong by the time we were a few hours into our final morning stretch, and everyone went on guard in preparation.
Even Leonardo, who hadn't stopped chatting with us, hardened his expression before putting his helmet back on. Going nearly half a day without a single monster in sight was borderline impossible in this forest. Normally, if that happened, it meant another group had actively killed them, which didn't seem to be the case, or a particularly powerful monster was in the region and was in full control of the territory.
But Leonardo assured us it was neither. We were nearly in Warden-controlled territory, but monsters always lurked in these parts, according to him. Nothing powerful enough to silence the forest should have been anywhere close enough, or a group large enough to silence them without them knowing.
Our concern was accurate as Elowen rushed through the forest toward us, worry etched into her face. "It's a stampede! Into the trees, too many to fight!" she yelled.
If there was even a moment of hesitation, it was gone as the ground began to shudder and the sound of a horde sprouting began to get faintly audible in the distance. No one needed convincing to begin climbing the trees closest to them.
Almost everyone had a little problem doing so. Almost.
"Damn, just lift me!" Thrak shouted at Ingra in worry.
Ingra attempted to haul her "brother up" but was red in the face with strain as she tried to haul him up. "Th—then lose some weight, you fat bastard!" she huffed.
"I'm not fat, I'm wide!" Thrak shouted back.
At the very least, Durak had little problem as Santer kindly helped him without a word, and thankfully, Ingra, with the help of Geoffrey, did manage to haul Thrak high enough into the canopy.
The entire forest rumbled as the monsters encroached ever closer to us. It was impossible to make out what was making the noise or even get a rough estimate; it just sounded like an endless row of drums beating against the ground.
Finally, the head made itself known. It was a monster that looked almost like a deer, if a deer were twice as big and instead of the usual antlers had veins growing out from its head. With weapons in hand and mana gathering, we waited cautiously as the group passed underneath us, kicking up a trail of dirt.
The stampede was massive, and after a moment, the entire forest floor was engulfed by monsters. But oddly enough, they didn't seem to even notice us, let alone care that we were there. They just kept running, which was either a blessing or a deadly curse.
After four minutes of waiting, at the back of the group, a large deer with radiant blue fur and a giant crop of thorns for antlers passed underneath us, but just like the others, it ignored us and endlessly ran behind its herd, leaving us behind without even a glance.
Everyone exchanged confused glances, and everyone silently agreed that something was very wrong.