[center][h1][b][color=lightblue][u]Cormag Ruunsten[/u][/color][/b][/h1][/center] 

[hr]

The march to Somerset was uneventful, if perhaps a bit unusual. The weather held up well, barely, and progress was relatively fast. Marching on foot was typically not the ogre way- typically they travelled via their great landships, but Cormag's strides were longer than most humans, and his heavy footfalls left a constant thundering echo across the plains. He hummed a little marching tune as he went, Gomie plodding patiently behind him. The devastation that was currently ravaging the Empire was starting to rear its ugly head even in a place like this: withering crops and barely any sunlight, as if the plague had taken hold of the sky too. 

Perhaps in contrast, the owl was a strange, yet not unwelcome companion on his travels. An Agni'lighten Owl, according to the book of birds his father had given him ages ago- though it was strange that it was out and about during the daytime.

[color=lightblue]"Wot sart of creature are you?"[/color] Cormag rumbled, more to himself than to the bird as he held out a hand. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the bird did not deign to land on a stranger's outstretched hand. It [i]did[/i] follow him the whole way though, so Cormag made peace with the bird's company. Occasionally calling out to it as he marched. He of course, never received an answer.

He saw Somerset's surroundings before he saw the city itself. The sight didn't bode well. An Imperial garrison had been deployed to the city for a while now, as news of the plague had spread. Cormag expected to find Imperial soldiers milling about, and the plan had been to find the commander and ask them if his father had arrived and for what purpose. It seemed Cormag wouldn't be asking anyone much of anything anymore. The ruined army camp was a grim reminder of what the plague could do. 

Cormag and Gomie came to a stop just outside the Imperial Army camp, a safe enough distance away that he would see things coming out of the wreckage if anything untoward remained. He could see the giant gates nailed shut, and he didn't have to see the runes in the dirt to know they were there- army mages taught him that lesson many a time, and as resilient as he was, Cormag didn't fancy accidentally blowing himself up from a missed step. 

[color=lightblue]"S'pose we'll get set up here, won't we, Gomie?"[/color] Cormag rumbled as he began fiddling with the Ox's packs, pulling out what armor pieces he'd previously doffed to make travel easier.