The people of Wendle River didn't need convincing that they were all in danger. They had seen first hand what Malkor was capable of. He had declared war on them - just as the minotaurs were trying to raise an army to stop him. If Kuerolong and the others hadn't been around when Wendle River had been attacked, they would surely all be dead by now. Nylin seemed all too aware of it. He thanked Riser and Kuerolong several times each but he never spoke to Ranno.
What was left of the settlement's population spent most of the morning gathering their dead and injured. They cleared up endless blood and guts, shovelling them into shallow pits that they dug into the ground. Body parts had been scattered far and wide. Riser found several cleric heads with their deranged features still intact. He did his best to help with the clean up operation, as did the minotaurs. Ranno stood guard, endlessly watching the horizon.
The sun was now high in the sky, casting long, pale shadows across the bloodstained ground. The people brought offerings of food and supplies in thanks for everything that their guests had done for them. Nylin assured King Kuerolong that the people of Wendle River would make their way to Los Verion as soon as the wounded were well enough to travel.
The settlement had existed in the same place for centuries, but Nylin was well aware that times were changing beyond their control. They couldn't stay as they were anymore. When the need was so great it was their duty to answer the call of the sky lords.
The minotaurs gathered their belongings and cleaned their halberds in a nearby stream before leaving to continue with their onward journey.
'Do you think they'll really go to Los Verion?' Riser asked Ranno when they were a few hundred metres beyond the last mud houses.
Ranno frowned in his direction. 'Of course they will. They have given their word.'
Riser raised his exoskeleton's forearms in supplication. 'I was just saying. They seem settled here. What will they do with all those sheep?'
'They will keep their word,' Ranno said, shaking his head. 'To consider otherwise shows your own weakness.'
Riser shrugged. Ranno could be a real asshole sometimes.