EliteCommander

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"And how could we 'deal' with him anyway?" Lorag added, looking at Janius. "Can't attack him here; the whole city guard would be on us." He pointed out. Even as they moved out of the tavern, they were just rushing into the crowded city streets. That alone would make it even more difficult to follow the raven.

"We cannot split up, and we cannot leave the sight of the crowds." Meesei said firmly. "Not all of us are armed for a fight, and there is no guarantee it would not be a trap. We can't do anything about that Nord, and he knows it. But the same applies to them. Just keep following the raven as best we can, but if it leads us somewhere isolated, we will stop."

Even with there only being a single raven in the entire city, the raven was far from easy to follow. It could fly in a straight line over the buildings, while the pack was limited by both structures, and the people in the streets. They were already getting strange looks from the people they were rushing past. It was difficult to get more than an occasional glimpse of the bird to keep them going in the right direction.

"Don't suppose you know how to turn into one and fly after it?" Ahnasha commented towards Sabine in her growing frustration at the crowd slowing them down.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

It did not take long at all for the pack to put together the pieces to form the same conclusion about the mysterious bird outside their window. They had been forced to stay in one place for a while, and Do'rhajul could have very well tracked them to Sentinel. The raven noticed Sabine looking at it just as easily as Sabine had spotted it watching them, so it quickly started to fly away.

Meesei did not allow for much of a a pause to think. She stood up quickly from the table. "We cannot simply allow ourselves to be tracked, hunted. We have to try to follow it and find Do'rhajul ourselves. I will not allow him the chance to attack us on his own terms."

Meesei was quick to start out of the inn, scanning her eyes across the sky for the bird. She did not necessarily intend to engage the General in a fight at the moment, but she did want to find him. Any advantage that they could remove from Do'rhajul could be valuable. If this raven ended up leading them to wherever the General and his team were hiding, the pack may have been able to use that. Even if they were spotted, it would at least remove the General's preferred hiding spot as an option for them. Not to mention, the pack might be able to learn more about who they were facing. If the raven ended up flying somewhere secluded, where they might be attacked, then Meesei realized she would likely need to end the search.

As the pack was leaving the inn, someone from another table stood up. He was an older Nordic man wearing a similar type of Hammerfell-styled garb as the pack. He had a bald head covered by a hood and a long, greying beard. He started to walk after the pack, seemingly making no effort to hide the fact that he was following them.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Eventually, the rest of the pack made their way down to join them at the table. Out of a concern for safety, they tended to stay together when in the city, so those who had already finished their breakfast simply waited and conversed while the others ate. Kaleeth and Fendros continued to talk about their children for some time, with Ahnasha quickly joining in once she arrived.

The tavern was not empty, and there were others around them, but the pack avoided discussing anything particularly suspicious. They spoke mainly about more mundane matters, and references to the "war" could easily be interpreted as referring to the Thalmor. Despite the treaty that technically had ceased the fighting, most in Hammerfell still considered the Thalmor to be the enemy.

However, near the end of their meal, something happened that might draw a sharp eye out of a nearby window. There was a gust of wind, and the brief fluttering of some sizable wings. On the edge of a rooftop across a narrow street outside, there was a rather large raven, looking into the window at them. Most notable was the fact that ravens did not naturally inhabit any areas close to Sentinel.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Meesei nodded in agreement. "He means well, but I feel that he does not truly grasp the severity of the situation we are in. It is understandable, considering his limited experience. I cannot say that I did not feel the same way at one point in my life. If you will allow me to forego humility, he has exceptional teachers, but that may only contribute to his confidence."

Kaleeth let out a sigh, staring at the last remnants of the duneripper steak. "Honestly, I don't know if I want them to be like us. I mean...I don't want to tell you how you should raise Rhazii or anything, but for Julan at least...him wanting to be like us really scares me. We've been in this war so long, and they were born into it. I don't want Julan to have to risk himself like us, or go kill people. I doubt he'll ever be satisfied just staying at home, but there's a lot of a difference between hunting animals and killing people. We didn't choose to have this war in the first place, but...I'm just really hoping we can end it all before they get old enough to be able to help."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Kaleeth grinned. "Hmm, you would not believe how difficult it was to convince Janius of it. He seemed so afraid of starting a family back then. Though if I'm being honest, I don't know if I was really thinking everything through back then either. I have to admit that having hatchlings, at that time, was a really big risk. We didn't really know how the war was going to go, or if we were going to be able to take care of a child. But, obviously, I'm really glad we did it, and I'm really glad it worked. Can't be afraid to take risks, I guess. And I'm glad that he had a brother to grow up with. I know I would have hated to grow up alone as a hatchling. Rhazii has always looked out for Julan too, and not to mention been a good challenge for him. Julan's the little brother, so that means he always has to try to be better than his big brother at something. Right now, it's magic. He's practically been begging Janius to train him whenever he can. I just like seeing him so motivated."

It was not long before a few other members of the pack started to make their way downstairs. Meesei and Sabine soon joined Kaleeth and Fendros at the table. Their plan for the day was the same as it had been for much of the previous week, so they would check to see if the Orc had returned to Sentinel after their breakfast.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Kaleeth laughed. "If I didn't remember when he was first born, I would never remember how old Rhazii actually is. He is just so...big. I can kind of understand why he is so confident that he can protect himself and Julan, since he just towers over everyone. He has always been the biggest and strongest of his friends. Even with his scars, I don't remember any of the other children his age ever being mean to him about them, and that is probably why."

After another few moments to focus on her breakfast, Kaleeth gave a sigh. "Of course, we both know that size and strength can only take you so far. We would have easily defeated all of our enemies if that was all we needed. I'm worried about what Do'rhajul has planned. I was thinking about it before, and since we have been working against him for so long, he has to know what we are all able to do. I'm sure his people has just as many agents and spies as ours, and anyone who survived an attack from us could report on how we were fighting. So, if he's had all this time to plan, then he's surely planned on how to fight all of us."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

"I will concede that remaining in crowded places would be reasonably safe, and I can always create a portal in our rooms if we stay in an inn, but I cannot say if it would be worth the risk." Meesei answered. "There will be time beyond just this week for you to learn from us." She pointed out.

Kaleeth did not like to restrict Julan too much, but she also hated the thought of the General being anywhere near him. "I think they should just...wait at home for now. Maybe we can see later in the week if we can do it safely." She said, hoping to placate the children. Ahnasha quickly agreed, which seemed to place the consensus on having the children return home, at least for the moment.

---

Unfortunately for the pack, they did not uncover any more solid leads as to Cyrus' current whereabouts, even after conversing with some of his other acquaintances. Eventually, the pack decided to remain in the city for the week, or until the Orc carriage driver returned to Sentinel.

As planned, the pack returned Rhazii and Julan to the clan out of concerns for their safety. They did not encounter any trace of the General or his men during their week in Sentinel, nor did Saras' agents have any more information to give.

Nearing the end of the week, the pack was expecting the Orc to return soon, if not the same day. It was early in the morning, and the pack was waking up from their beds in the inn. They were not in any particular hurry, so they were all getting up and ready at their own pace. Kaleeth was having her breakfast in the tavern downstairs, and was sitting with Fendros across the table. After taking a bite out of her duneripper steak, she spoke up casually in a somewhat tired voice. "Me and Janius went and visited the children back home yesterday. Both of them still really want to come see us. Rhazii was still talking about those warships."

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Meesei added her own input, maintaining a calm, but serious tone. "Do'rhajul is one of the greatest threats we face, aside from Vile himself. Over a decade ago, when you were still a cub, Do'rhajul defeated me in single combat. I only barely survived." She explained. Given what Rhazii knew about her abilities, it was a potentially startling statement for her to make. Julan had been ready to argue right along with Rhazii, but even he was getting nervous about how worried the rest of the pack was about this General.

Nevertheless, Julan was not looking forward to being separated from the pack entirely for the next week, so he decided to, somewhat hesitantly, put forward some of his own thoughts that came to mind. "I...guess he does sound dangerous, but do we really have to stay away all the time? I mean...if he can't attack us when it's crowded, then can we just stay in crowded places? Maybe you can send us back home most of the time, but we can visit you for a just a few hours a day whenever you have time. And you can send us back home when we're done. That way...we can still learn about what you're doing, but not be in danger." He suggested.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

We can probably skip soon. They, unfortunately, will not be able to find anything that will prevent them from having to wait on the Orc.

Call of the Hunt [EliteCommander and Muttonhawk]

Meesei nodded to the others. "Of course, we can continue searching any leads that might produce information, but if we do not find anything, we need to make sure to watch for the Orc's arrival. If we miss her while she is in the city, then it could set our search back weeks, if not longer. I am certainly as uncomfortable as everyone else about remaining in one place for too long, but at the very least we will be reasonably safe while in the city itself. To attack us here would bring the Sentinel city guard down upon Do'rhajul, and even he would not be able to stand against them in an open fight."

"That does...bring up another point." Ahnasha began, somewhat hesitantly. "If we do have to stay here, we should make sure to take some extra precautions. I know you are not going to like it Rhazii, Julan, but it is going to be too dangerous here for you. This man we are talking about is exceptionally dangerous, and you do not yet have enough training to stand against him. It would be much more...appropriate for you to wait back home. Though, I do not know if we should keep Leaps with us."