"No birds?" Marius asked dubiously, looking up at the overcast sky and squinting as he gazed around. The land was sparser here in a sense, though the forest was thick on all sides, the riverway left them in a relatively open space. "Perhaps there are just less birds near the mountains?" 

He asked in a fashion that was more hopeful than sound in logic. She did not look his way, gripping the haft of her lance more tightly. Marius suddenly felt Dagbhert stepp with agitation, and he felt a quickening pace in his pulse. Somehow even he knew there was something wrong with where they were, and it for once it wasn't a dissatisfied customer. 

"Should we turn back?" The merchant asked, but even as he spoke the brush behind them exploded in movement as mutants with the heads and feet and fur of beasts appeared. Their eyes were white and wide, with lolling tongues and frothing, fanged mouths. Marius almost vomited from the sight of their twisted forms, swallowing his disgust to gird himself. Even as he and Natasha spun their steeds around, another dozen beastmen appeared across the river. With antlered heads and wicked axes in their hands, they charged out of the treeline with roars and undulating cries to their false gods.  

"We should have turned back!" The merchant screamed, fear gripping him even as Natasha spurred her mount toward the closer warband, crying out like an amazon out of legend and holding her lance out as she bore down on them. Marius did not quite know what to do. He was a better fighter on foot but he didn't want to be caught without his horse in case he was overwhelmed. 

When it doubt? Charge. That had been the advice a Reiksgard had once told him when Marius had asked him how the man had survived so many years of combat. Bravado and the bulk of your horse would never fail you. So the merchant paid heed to it and drew his ribaldo, the sharpened sword gleaming as he set Dagbhert into a gallop just to the flank left of the screaming Natasha. Her black braid flowed in the wind as she rushed headlong into the throng. 

Her warhose leaped to surprise the first spear wielder, reaching the goat-headed beastman and crushing it under its great weight before the thing could bring its short pole arm to bear. Natasha's lance skewered another elk-headed beast, pinioning its tall neck and ripping the spear point out to enhance the wound, blood spurting. Even as she spun her lance to strike a glancing blow against another, Konya kicked out with its rear legs and sent a smaller beastman flying. 

"Sigmar!" Marius cried out desperately, hoping beyond hope the lord of men watched over him. Had Natasha not been so ferocious, they might have easily cut the legs off of Dagbhert, but as it were most of their attention was on her except for a smaller beast with the head of a dog-creature, its little sword and wooden shield pitifully small compared to Marius's new stallion. It dropped the shield it carried and ran, but it was trampled by the dark haired horse, Marius managing to stab the shoulder blade of another distracted mutant in the process. It bleated madly and swung its mace wildly, but Marius stabbed a second time and pierced its chest, ending its life before it could strike him with a true hit.