Commissioned from FortunataFox
Jarolom and Niala Foxtrot take a stroll through Gholand, coming across the odd culture of Markem's horde
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Jarolom and Niala walked through the busy gates of Gholand, Niala looking around at all the packed in vermin and the busy scamper of hordebeasts running about. To the seasoned fox mercenary like Niala, it was truly a sight to behold in Gholand, and even more so for some of the warlords. The hordebeasts were happy of sorts, many of them diligently working on various tasks without the cracking whip of their captains or overseers. Vermin happily aided one another in bringing in boxes of food and feasting material, with a weasel from Jusbrag being helped by a Gholand rat picking up turned over silverware captured in a raid. Slave laborers worked alongside their captors, many were busy reinforcing the walls and tidying up the barracks. Niala was shocked when a group of mice in rope collars ran past her, playing with some of the ferret children. The youngsters had no even thought ill of each other, and it was truly a sight Niala had never seen. She had been to many hordes, many miserable places where the adultish bandits and former pirates would settle down. She had known all her life of the old traditions, and of how the warlords and chiefs treated them. Yet, to see what Jarolom and his boss had been building, was truly a strange sight to her.
“Yer boss, Jarolom. Ya built all this? Ya see those youngsters runnin? I saw mice en’ em. Shouldn’t the taskmasters be around?”
Jarolom shrugged “Aye, I did. Thankfully that be Gutan’s job, not mine. If I were taskmaster, things be different around here to be sure.”
“These creature be diligent, like goodbeasts.” Niala commented. Jarolom smiled, it was perhaps the one thing he and Markem could agree on with the way the rat ran things. If anything else, besides the perceived weakness and lacking brutality, Markem had made his horde very diligent indeed.
“Aye, not needin a whip or stick to get dem useless maggots an’ bird feed in line, Niala. Markem treats em’ well, even if half of em deserven half rations. They workin to help, an help to work. I be thinkin we not even needin slaves if we keep it up.”
“It ain’t unheard of. Lot’sa slaves I see.”
“Aye, we raidin in Mossflower, always a lot to take. Nearly all of north eastern Mossflower an’ the lower highlands are ours to pillage an’ burn. However, we don’t kill’em as often as other warlords do. It be borin if ya can’t stick an’ prod them dumb work beasts with a spear from time to time, but Markem insists we don’t. So we obey. We got’s lots of mouths to feed now, and casualties be so low we growin by the season. Our not-slaves do most of the work of feedin this horde, although I wish Markem didn’t rely on em.”
“Not-slaves?”
“Aye, he be callin them ‘tributaries’ or sumthin. He heard the term but once, an’ all of a sudden he actin like he an expert on the subject. He let slaves go who farm, mine, an’ chop em’ wood. In return, the horde protects their communities an’ villages from other hordes, collects a nice amount of food, metals, an’ other resources from em. If they don’t pay up, we punish em.”
“Ya kill them I imagine.”
“Nay, actually. Markem just takes a couple of der’ yung beasts or chides them, he sends me out to investigate em’ sometimes. They give dem the dumb excuses ya know. ‘Oh the harvest be poor this season’ or ‘Nay, the quarry be filled wit snakes’ or somethin like that. Lot of time it be true, but if not, I tak’er yung uns first back to the fort. Never complain again after that. Markem chided me once fer doin so, but he relents eventually.”
“Why he chide ya brother? Is he a weak one? Ya the real brains, I imagine.”
Jarolom shook his head “Nay to that too, sis. Markem be stronger than most I come to know, an’ got a real brain fer himself. He just meek about treatin creatures poorly, poor vermin material if ya ask me, but it be workin out.”
Niala and Jarolom entered a small tavern, a makeshift little thing busy with various vermin thugs, bandits, and eastern pirates who were visiting the fort. Several larger and fierce vermin were in a corner, two warband leaders who had come to pay Markem their respect, and maybe make room for them to join in. The two foxes sat at the bar stool table, a ferret tender approached them and upon seeing Jarolom, quickly poured him a drink of grog. He offered it to his sister who greedily drank it. “So whatcha think. When I be hearin ya came down here, first thing I thought to meself was ‘I’d like to have me poor sis might wanna join on in.’
“Whats the catch, Jarolom. Fox’s honor.” Niala raised an eyebrow “Ya didn’t send out a messenger all the way here just to recruit from family.”
“Aye. Let's just be sayin that things are gonna heat up, an’ a good ally on me side in a horde like ya would go a long ways. Partners an’ siblings?”
Niala took a swig of the rotten drink, surrounded by the noise of the tavern. She gave him a greedy smile “Aye. Partner an’ Siblings. Where do I sign up?”
Jarolom and Niala Foxtrot take a stroll through Gholand, coming across the odd culture of Markem's horde
____
Jarolom and Niala walked through the busy gates of Gholand, Niala looking around at all the packed in vermin and the busy scamper of hordebeasts running about. To the seasoned fox mercenary like Niala, it was truly a sight to behold in Gholand, and even more so for some of the warlords. The hordebeasts were happy of sorts, many of them diligently working on various tasks without the cracking whip of their captains or overseers. Vermin happily aided one another in bringing in boxes of food and feasting material, with a weasel from Jusbrag being helped by a Gholand rat picking up turned over silverware captured in a raid. Slave laborers worked alongside their captors, many were busy reinforcing the walls and tidying up the barracks. Niala was shocked when a group of mice in rope collars ran past her, playing with some of the ferret children. The youngsters had no even thought ill of each other, and it was truly a sight Niala had never seen. She had been to many hordes, many miserable places where the adultish bandits and former pirates would settle down. She had known all her life of the old traditions, and of how the warlords and chiefs treated them. Yet, to see what Jarolom and his boss had been building, was truly a strange sight to her.
“Yer boss, Jarolom. Ya built all this? Ya see those youngsters runnin? I saw mice en’ em. Shouldn’t the taskmasters be around?”
Jarolom shrugged “Aye, I did. Thankfully that be Gutan’s job, not mine. If I were taskmaster, things be different around here to be sure.”
“These creature be diligent, like goodbeasts.” Niala commented. Jarolom smiled, it was perhaps the one thing he and Markem could agree on with the way the rat ran things. If anything else, besides the perceived weakness and lacking brutality, Markem had made his horde very diligent indeed.
“Aye, not needin a whip or stick to get dem useless maggots an’ bird feed in line, Niala. Markem treats em’ well, even if half of em deserven half rations. They workin to help, an help to work. I be thinkin we not even needin slaves if we keep it up.”
“It ain’t unheard of. Lot’sa slaves I see.”
“Aye, we raidin in Mossflower, always a lot to take. Nearly all of north eastern Mossflower an’ the lower highlands are ours to pillage an’ burn. However, we don’t kill’em as often as other warlords do. It be borin if ya can’t stick an’ prod them dumb work beasts with a spear from time to time, but Markem insists we don’t. So we obey. We got’s lots of mouths to feed now, and casualties be so low we growin by the season. Our not-slaves do most of the work of feedin this horde, although I wish Markem didn’t rely on em.”
“Not-slaves?”
“Aye, he be callin them ‘tributaries’ or sumthin. He heard the term but once, an’ all of a sudden he actin like he an expert on the subject. He let slaves go who farm, mine, an’ chop em’ wood. In return, the horde protects their communities an’ villages from other hordes, collects a nice amount of food, metals, an’ other resources from em. If they don’t pay up, we punish em.”
“Ya kill them I imagine.”
“Nay, actually. Markem just takes a couple of der’ yung beasts or chides them, he sends me out to investigate em’ sometimes. They give dem the dumb excuses ya know. ‘Oh the harvest be poor this season’ or ‘Nay, the quarry be filled wit snakes’ or somethin like that. Lot of time it be true, but if not, I tak’er yung uns first back to the fort. Never complain again after that. Markem chided me once fer doin so, but he relents eventually.”
“Why he chide ya brother? Is he a weak one? Ya the real brains, I imagine.”
Jarolom shook his head “Nay to that too, sis. Markem be stronger than most I come to know, an’ got a real brain fer himself. He just meek about treatin creatures poorly, poor vermin material if ya ask me, but it be workin out.”
Niala and Jarolom entered a small tavern, a makeshift little thing busy with various vermin thugs, bandits, and eastern pirates who were visiting the fort. Several larger and fierce vermin were in a corner, two warband leaders who had come to pay Markem their respect, and maybe make room for them to join in. The two foxes sat at the bar stool table, a ferret tender approached them and upon seeing Jarolom, quickly poured him a drink of grog. He offered it to his sister who greedily drank it. “So whatcha think. When I be hearin ya came down here, first thing I thought to meself was ‘I’d like to have me poor sis might wanna join on in.’
“Whats the catch, Jarolom. Fox’s honor.” Niala raised an eyebrow “Ya didn’t send out a messenger all the way here just to recruit from family.”
“Aye. Let's just be sayin that things are gonna heat up, an’ a good ally on me side in a horde like ya would go a long ways. Partners an’ siblings?”
Niala took a swig of the rotten drink, surrounded by the noise of the tavern. She gave him a greedy smile “Aye. Partner an’ Siblings. Where do I sign up?”
Category All / Fantasy
Species Unspecified / Any
Gender Any
Size 2215 x 1664px
Listed in Folders
Nice to see your content again!
This commission turned out rather well and is very detailed :D
This commission turned out rather well and is very detailed :D
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