Read Online Elvenshore: 01 - The Dwarves of Elvenshore by Clark Graham - Free Book Online
Authors: Clark Graham
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that they had a semi circle of outposts around the High Mountain. As it was getting to be dusk, Sarchise found a good hillside to spend the night.
The Dwarves had lain in a large store of dried meat and cheese and bread. Most of the dwarves skipped the meat and ate bread and cheese while it was still fresh. The dried meat was still looked upon with a lot of suspicion. No fires were allowed and guards were placed around the camp. Sarchise woke at midnight and walked around the camp. ‘No spiders around tonight, even the deafest of the spiders could not fail to hear the loud snoring of the dwarves’ he thought to himself. The guards were changed as he watched. The ones getting off duty were lying down on the soft earth for a restless night. Sarchise, satisfied that the guards were doing their duty, went back to bed.
In the morning, the moaning of the dwarves that were waking was the predominate sound. They looked forward to another day without fire. Soon after their cold breakfast, they were ready to move out again. It was another long trek in the woods. The forest was getting denser the further they moved into it. The tight dwarf formations were starting to be a problem too. When one of the dwarves would trip over a tree root, three or four of the ones following him would trip over the dwarf that had just fallen. Sarchise had the warriors spread out more, so that the dwarf that tripped over a stump or root would have time to pick himself up before the one following him caught up. It made the line of dwarves snaking their way through the Westwood, five times longer, but there were less bruised and battered dwarves.
On the third day Sarchise found what he was looking for. There was a large mound of earth with a large tree in the middle of it. It was a stout tree and it still had the lookout post in the upper branches of the tree. The wood was old and had a lot of rot in it, but they could stand on it without falling through. None of the dwarves wanted to be in the tree, not even Hemlot. So Sarchise went up himself.
He could see a great distance from there. The forest had closed around most of these outposts, but this one was still mostly intact. He could not get all of the dwarf army on the mound but had them camp as close to it as possible. He would use the scouts on the outskirts of the camp to serve as guards. It would be another sleepless night for Ermort, but he was used to that. Sarchise would establish this as his base and plan the battle from his tree house, lookout tower.
The army camped without fires that night. The dwarves were tired and had all of their gear on their backs for the march. They were grumbling about the dried meat, but liked the fresh bread and cheese. They then settled down for the night.
The night went uneventful. Some Razor Bears closed in on the camp but retreated when they heard all of the snoring dwarves. They did not like their pray to be in big numbers and would only attack when there was only a few. Sarchise heard the snoring dwarves also and wondered to himself why the spiders were passing them up. He could see a great distance even at night. Somehow the mound seemed to reflect any of the moon and starlight up into the tree. He could see all of the scouts from on top the watchtower, even though some were up to a half-mile away. Every movement of the forest for up to a several miles did not go unnoticed fr om his vantage point. He saw dee r eating in a meadow, and owls flying through the air, then swooping down on field mice. Every tree that moved from the gusts of wind was observed. Realizing that having the scouts out was not needful when the watchtower was there, he brought them all in at midnight. He posted two guards in the watchtower and then climbed down and went to sleep.
Sarchise was up with the sun. The dwarves were milling around, eating dried meat, but complaining bitterly. Sarchise found Hemlot and held a council meeting
The Dwarves had lain in a large store of dried meat and cheese and bread. Most of the dwarves skipped the meat and ate bread and cheese while it was still fresh. The dried meat was still looked upon with a lot of suspicion. No fires were allowed and guards were placed around the camp. Sarchise woke at midnight and walked around the camp. ‘No spiders around tonight, even the deafest of the spiders could not fail to hear the loud snoring of the dwarves’ he thought to himself. The guards were changed as he watched. The ones getting off duty were lying down on the soft earth for a restless night. Sarchise, satisfied that the guards were doing their duty, went back to bed.
In the morning, the moaning of the dwarves that were waking was the predominate sound. They looked forward to another day without fire. Soon after their cold breakfast, they were ready to move out again. It was another long trek in the woods. The forest was getting denser the further they moved into it. The tight dwarf formations were starting to be a problem too. When one of the dwarves would trip over a tree root, three or four of the ones following him would trip over the dwarf that had just fallen. Sarchise had the warriors spread out more, so that the dwarf that tripped over a stump or root would have time to pick himself up before the one following him caught up. It made the line of dwarves snaking their way through the Westwood, five times longer, but there were less bruised and battered dwarves.
On the third day Sarchise found what he was looking for. There was a large mound of earth with a large tree in the middle of it. It was a stout tree and it still had the lookout post in the upper branches of the tree. The wood was old and had a lot of rot in it, but they could stand on it without falling through. None of the dwarves wanted to be in the tree, not even Hemlot. So Sarchise went up himself.
He could see a great distance from there. The forest had closed around most of these outposts, but this one was still mostly intact. He could not get all of the dwarf army on the mound but had them camp as close to it as possible. He would use the scouts on the outskirts of the camp to serve as guards. It would be another sleepless night for Ermort, but he was used to that. Sarchise would establish this as his base and plan the battle from his tree house, lookout tower.
The army camped without fires that night. The dwarves were tired and had all of their gear on their backs for the march. They were grumbling about the dried meat, but liked the fresh bread and cheese. They then settled down for the night.
The night went uneventful. Some Razor Bears closed in on the camp but retreated when they heard all of the snoring dwarves. They did not like their pray to be in big numbers and would only attack when there was only a few. Sarchise heard the snoring dwarves also and wondered to himself why the spiders were passing them up. He could see a great distance even at night. Somehow the mound seemed to reflect any of the moon and starlight up into the tree. He could see all of the scouts from on top the watchtower, even though some were up to a half-mile away. Every movement of the forest for up to a several miles did not go unnoticed fr om his vantage point. He saw dee r eating in a meadow, and owls flying through the air, then swooping down on field mice. Every tree that moved from the gusts of wind was observed. Realizing that having the scouts out was not needful when the watchtower was there, he brought them all in at midnight. He posted two guards in the watchtower and then climbed down and went to sleep.
Sarchise was up with the sun. The dwarves were milling around, eating dried meat, but complaining bitterly. Sarchise found Hemlot and held a council meeting
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