In the end, "Thank you" and "Be safe" were the only words the family exchanged that morning as her parents walked her to the square within the outer walls were the caravan was set to gather.

Heran waved to a team of six individuals she often encountered and work with at one time or another. She was a part of their group as a second line vanguard with her flexibility with throwing knives, slings, two-handed swords and shield and sword.

"Hmmm. No luck was it?" The eldest-looking member of their party asking Heran which had replied with a sigh and a shrug. "Well its good to have you with us young lady." He said with respect. The gentleman was about half a head taller than Heran and already had a few strands of silver in his greying hair which had been raven black in his prime. He would have been several years older than her own father but treated her as that of a younger subordinate and comrade. He was geared like that of soldier was, which wasn't far off as he had been one in his younger years, plate greaves and vambraces were on his limbs, a surcoat split at the hips covered the top of his torso all the way down to the middle of his shins. A whole suit of mail extended from the ends of his vambraces to the tip of his greaves and even sabatons over his leather shoes. To his hip was a short sword with a handle that could fit both hands and stapped to his back was a heater sheild which was the same dirty cream color of the surcoat and had the same light grey trim.

"Elo there girly. Don't let the old wrinkled sack get to ya." A bright and hearty greeting a squat and smaller man gave her which lightly bumped a fist with hers. "I tell ya Dren, the lass is still young and a little bit of travelling would help her find that elusive lad that might help her settle down." The smaller man was similarly decked out with the older man which was called Dren, one difference being that instead of a surcoat he had a doublet covering his torso and what looked like a heavy cloth skirt which covered up to the shorter man's knees. Another difference was that the vambraces had a fingered gaunlet which allowed more protection to the fingers while not inhibiting dexterity in the Polearm that was strapped to his back and a conical-styled helm with a mail veil for the back of the head hung from the pole's end.

"You know what I mean Veren." Dismissing the banter the dwarf made and turning to Heran. "I trust you already know the rest of the team." The older Erun, Drendle Glover gestured with his bare hand to the other four members of the party as the other one held an open-faced basinet.

"Mala, Oleg, Gale, Renas." Heran named each and they in turn nodded and smiled or made a welcoming gesture as their names were called. "Good to see you all. Nice bow Mala, is it new? Oleg you have to lay off on the food and drink your armor looks a little tight over your previously loose robe. Gale you finally bought that crossbow you were eyeing for so long. Renas, I see that your scales are a bit more glossy now, have you gotten taller again?" She addressed her kitted out comrades on by one.

Renas went first "Thank you Lady Heran and yes this body of mine seems to have lengthened a bit more." He said with pride in his voice and happily swishing his tail from the praise with a soft, muffled clink of mail. Renas himself had much little armor compared to the previous two as the scales oh his body were enough to glance blows at the right angles and he opted for a mix of mail and plates which were sown into a shirt to cover his chest vambraces for the arms and half greaves for his reptilian lower legs.

He had a lot exposed of his body unarmored and covered only by plain clothes though he did have a padded mail coif for his head which had much thicker scales and bone. This was not a problem for the scaly man named Renas for his style of fighting with his curved swords were more in lines of agile dodges and quick, exploiting cuts rather than the hard trading of blows that the previous two clrealy prefered.

"Yes Renas we ge' 't. More of you' scaliness to admire isn't it?" Oleg sarcastically remarked as the target simply considered it as additional admiration. "Aye lass, I have been putting it on and sadly enough the only way for me to ge' all refitted is back 'ome on dwarven lans, even me robe and such has to be replaced 'ere." The grinning Oleg dismissed the worries of his tightening attire with a wave of his muscled arms as the robes sleeves hardly concealing their outlines. Heran nodded to his reply, already used to the quite thick accent of her comrade in vocation.

Oleg was slightly thicker than a Veren covered in armor and he was just wearing a robes which hid a shirt and pants of mail and finally with a large on his head which concealed a padded skull cap underneath. His role was in the rear as to provide healing and strengthening with the occasional offensive spells and the armor only really served as a last line of personal protection with the help of a mace as his not so delicate staff wasn't exaclty suitable for brawling.

"I got the old one replaced cause of a misstep on an extended quest. Broke a string and bent the stave but the wood was still good so I just split it into a few more bits and hardened them for tent stakes." Pointing to a set of several stakes in a bundle on the side of her pack a few noticeable newer one with no signs yet of being hammered on one end.

Mala, herself was clothed in loose enough clothing which concealed her slender, womanly figure which was then accentuated by the a leather jerkin with shaped plates on the outside. She also had splits of plate covered in leather over her forearms and lower legs.

"Gale. Gale?" Mala having to call to her friend's attention by giving her shoulder a few taps.

"Oh. Sorry Heran." Gale broke her coddling over the new weapon. "Just excited to finally having my own crossbow." She said smiling and a little embarrassed. Gale was identically dressed as Mala save for the difference in colors as Mala had a more leaf green toned set as she had one closer to browns of tree trunks.

All three ladies had an open-faced helm with a bit of a tail that extended over the back of the head.

"May both your new tools serve you well." Heran addressing both Mala and Gale with the two nodding in affirmation and the others sharing her sentiments.

"We'll, with all of us here, let me tell you all our posts for this escort job." Dren stated in a formal and professional manner that the rest were already accustomed to. "We are given the middle of the line and we have a total of a 6 merchants with 10 wagons and 6 other teams and with a total of 57 members not counting the personal guards of the merchants at 20 strong and other travelling companions of 10 more people. "

"Will we be riding then or just walking?" An unamused Oleg asked and a well armored Veren just shrugging to the question tough he was considerable more weighed downvas he was in a kit of mail with a plate gauntlets, greaves and a solid front chest piece which was segmented in the back to allow mobility. The fact was that both dwarves were the shortest of the bunch with all three ladies at the close second with a head taller than the two.

"We are in luck, as it stands one of merchant is in line with the mount breeders and has allocated 2 mounts per group and the rest can ride along with some of the wagons as the pace they aim to take is more than brisk walking but just at a steady trot." Dren answered eliciting a sigh of relief from all members.

"Let's move out." were Dren's last remark that got the group to move to the gathering point outside the city walls

Later they were given the assigned pair of mounts. One was a large flightless bird with a beak as large as its head, a long muscular neck, a body with a pathetically small pair of wings and thick, powerful legs with talons that could pierce and grasp a piglet or other dog-sized prey. The plumage was in interesting shade of yellows and oranges with highlights of blue and red on the head, neck and tail feathers. The other mount was a large warhorse of great physical condition of lean and rippling muscles that allowed it to carry a fully armored rider along with gear and supplies. Both mounts displayed great discipline in allowing the party members to ride them with little fuss after an introduction and feeding by their would be riders.

The mounts were to be delivered to a different stable in the destination of the caravan and a few groomers were there to tend to them every morning and night.

And so they had set of for their journey. It was rather uneventful for the first week on the road and they encountered a couple of Erun farming villages by the road along their route where they had spent a night each in. The start of their second week was the beginning of their change of pace.

The morning of the start of the second week of travel the caravan head had met a pair of broken carts with no beasts pulling them as the lashes and reigns were empty but intact. The carts had damaged coverings and were each missing a pair of wooden wheels and those which remained were lacking the metal bands, bolts and axles.

The sight itself was a curious and unsettling one as the lead merchant, the leaders of each party and the head of the security group of the merchants moved ahead of the column and convened to investigate the seen as the whole caravan was made to wait just before the scene. The heads of each group looked, prodded, sensed and pondered the scene and afterwards shared a few words and after an hour of wait had decided to let the caravan move on until they set camp.

That night the whole column was informed of the findings of the different leaders.

"Okay. As you all can see, we have gone of the road and set up camp below and out of the line of sight of the road where even our fires could hardly be seen." Dren began as the other members were listening intently. "There was a distinct lack of all the bits of metal on the wagons even the buckles on the reigns, no blood, no bodies and the damage to the wagon could be likened to a large mass barrelling straight into the side of each wagon." Every one nodding as they all noticed it upon passing by the wrecked things

"Come on now out with it." Veren eagerly coaxing the words out of Dren's mouth

"That group was attacked and there are evidences that it was used by a few groups of laborers as both carts had a lightly faded etch of the Adventurers guild branch of Gravitas." Dren letting his words sink in for a moment and continued before anyone could ask. "We suspect the ones which had used the carts were the coop job of two parties sent to investigate a report of aggressive encounters made by local peoples of the mountain mining village, half a day down from where we are and a few days off to the forking road to the left."

"Mana signatures f'r identity." Oleg stated rather than asking.

Dren nodded. "Two mages and 3 mages, 2 combat types and a healer, and a warrior caster were part of the group. They were all fairly known and were even familiar to most of the everyone here and the other mages confirmed the distinct "flavor" of their power was there. Another strange bit of it was how clear it was just as though you were standing beside them and they were preparing to cast spells. The thickness of it was even like they were still there even though there were no signs of bodies, armor, gear nor blood."

"We turnin' back?" Oleg asked.

Dren shook his head. "No. But a servant from the merchants is being sent back to bring the news along with a letter explaining the findings and the marks of each of the merchants and party leaders. We continue with the travel and bring the news to the next villages and towns and to the set destination. So all of us are on alert and the night guards and to be doubled beginning tonight and that makes us pair up so Oleg and Gale, Renas and Heran, Veren and Mala and I'm paired up with a guard from the merchants' group. Any other question?"

Another three days ride went by till they reached the next settlement and this one was less Erun and had a mix of a few humans and Khar. They informed the village elders to be watchful and ready to send for help if need be. This went on for the next 3 villages in about 2 weeks and they were able to reach their caravan's destination.

"Well nothing overly interesting disturbed our travels. Now I ask you all any plans before going back?" Dren asked his party members as the conversation was held in a tavern with only a few patrons as it was only an hour after noon.

"Looking to restock on supplies and maybe get a job in before setting back home." Mala had gestured to herself and Gale.

"Apologies brother, I will be joining Oleg back home on a group going Breakers Keep in a weeks time." Veren stated as Oleg was grinning fiercely from beneath his well kept beard.

"I too will be visiting a relative in the city and shall join ladies Gale and Mala in their seek for employ afterwards." The earthy green and scaly Renas stated matter-of-factly.