[b]Castle Mura[/b]

"May I come in, cousin?" asked a small, diminutive man standing outside a door. The door was ornate, with expensive jewels embedded in it every few inches. Even the doorknob was made of some crystal or other. It's meaning couldn't get more obvious if a sign reading "here is the Kaiser's room" was hung on the front.

"You will address me as Mine Kaiser!" shouted a deep voice on the other end. 

"My lord, please. If we could get through with the-" a second voice chimed in.

"SILENCE! Can't you see I'm speaking with my family!" shouted the first voice.

"Of course, your Excellence," replied the second.

The man just rolled his eyes, and pushed the door open. Inside, the Kaiser Mura XVI knelt, in front of the Pontiff of Muragenn. The Pontiff was about to pour holy water upon his head, and perform a ritual body cleansing. Unfortunately, kneeling didn't seem to bring his ego down one bit. The Pontiff was so nervous and sweaty he looked like he was made of wax.

"Get out, Verrk, can't you see I'm busy?" Mura groaned, getting up from off the ground. Verrk just nodded, slowly.

“I’m sure your daily abusing of our holiness can wait until the evening, cousin.” Verrk responded. He then gestured to the Pontiff. “This is a private matter. You are dismissed.” The Pontiff seemed relieved to escape the room. He quickly shuffled out of their sights, and the clacking of boots running across stone floor resonated through the hall.

“Very well then. You’ve interrupted my cleansing, sullying myself in the eyes of God and the Stars. Whatever it is you’re about to say had better be important.”

“Yes, Mine Kaiser. It is,” Verrk said, stumbling over the words. He sighed, and began piecing together the case he had made the day before. “Your men are ready, Your Excellence. They await your orders at the city’s outskirts.”

“Excellent, tell them to break camp immediately. We shall strike first at the Sevanne Trail.”

___________________________________________________________________________________________

[b]Somewhere on the Sevanne trail[/b]

The rain came on in sheets, falling on the already wet mud, leaves of trees, and the heads of the Muran raiders. It was nearly impossible to see more than 10 feet ahead, and the Grii commander expects them to shoot people? Avas rubbed his forehead, feeling the mixture of rain and sweat that has decided to roost there. Hold on . . . the commander was saying something. He could barely hear, with the rain, and the distance, it all sounded muffled.

“Ready . . . . on the left . . . . glory and victory . . . . may be promoted . . . “ the commander shouted, trying in vain to get over the din of the falling drops. At least, that’s all Avas could make out. Another noise invaded the sanctity of the muddy ditch everyone lay in. A sort of steady thudding sound. It seemed to gradually get louder, and then someone next to him buried his head in the dirt.

“Get down!” whispered the guy next to him. “The merchants are going to see you!”  Avas didn’t know who he was, but already he hated him. The commander was relaying orders now, in a chaotic mix of hand gestures and whispered phrases. No one knew what he was trying to convey.

“Now!” someone shouted, and everyone began peppering the caravan with shot, arrow, or stones. The military funding was still low as ever. The merchants were in anarchy, running this way and that, bumping into each other or cowering behind their carts. That was supposed to happen. What wasn’t supposed to happen was a few brave merchants getting up and grabbing pistols, then shooting right back. Wait is that one aiming at Ava- CRACK!

And then everything went black.

[hider=Summary]
Kaiser Mura gives the go-ahead for a merchant trail raid.
[/hider]