Perry Plants A Seed

Not so easily spooked, Zhahn ambled up but had to jump back as Kannish whirled about threatening all about with his dagger, looking for the 'vervolf!'

"No, no," cried Mensa. "There is no werewolf. Perry! Where is Wolfe? We need him."

"Oh dear," groaned Perry, as his horse pranced away from Kannish, who had not yet come out of Red Alert mode. "Wolfe is on the way to Khazan with Dominick. Running some errand for the Count. What is going on here?"

The hyenaman had now recovered his breath and spoke with a wheeze. "My friends, I went today to visit my sister and her mate and their children. They are hyena folk, like me. They live on a farm in the woods near here. When I arrived I found my friend dead. He had been tortured before they kill him. My sister dead too, raped and tortured before they kill her. The pups are gone though. None of their blood there. House is looted. Slavers do this! I found dead slaver in house. I know slavers. They bring me and my sister to Kazgrad years ago where Count Rasulki buy us. The dead man one of them. I know his scent. There are many tracks- eight, nine, maybe more.

Nalki has sworn to find the children...I am their godfather. And I have sworn to kill the kidnappers and murderers. I go to get my gear, my armor and weapons. It will be a hard journey, a hard task. I cannot ask you to go but I would love your help."

A vicious rumble answered him. Kannish growled, a sound to make strong men weak in their knees. "My people value our pups. And we value our freunds too. Your folk are much like mein. Kannish is bored hier. Und we wolf folk love the chase, with blood at the end! I vill go vith you, Nalki. I go to get my bow and axe, and pack. Don't leave vithout me." And the big wolf man ran off at speed.

Nalki grinned, "I am good tracker and have good smeller too. And if Kannish come, he spend his whole life in woods. And he has wolf smeller too. Ten people and many children leave trail you could follow, Mensa-friend. We will be glad for you to join us on this quest. There are many deadly enemies and we are yet few."

Being outnumbered was not perturbing to at least once of the group. The maths did not worry him one bit. Mensa howled, causing Kannish spin about, searching again for the werewolf. "I have heard of this atrocity. Lavabreath made toys for those children, as you see." He pulled one from his bag. "And he found the place as you describe it. For this purpose have I sought Wolfe because I am certain the trail is cold. We need a good tracker to find and kill these human monsters, so never this can happen again!"

Reining in his now nervy mount, Perry thumped his fist to his breast. “I was made to be a nursemaid to greedy women. If my lady friend is content to stuff herself silly and not care about her figure going to pot, I’m certainly not going wait on her, hand, foot and finger when there are wrongs to be righted and noses to be tweaked. Get your fighting trousers everyone, the Fellowship rides again!”
He took out a poniard and nicked his wrist and offered the knife to Kannish.