Kingdom Alliance: Chapter 25

 

Chapter 25

Fort Applatch was a rustic outpost nestled in the foothills of the Dragon Back Mountains. Normally, it was populated by traders, soldiers, and people who are looking to get away from society. The primary trade for the fort was in fur. Trappers would come to the fort and sell their goods and then buy supplies before heading back into the woods. Merchants were more than happy to trade goods for fur as they would then send the furs to La Hana where the demand for animal fur was high. It was good money, but living in Fort Applatch was not for everyone. It was very rustic. Many people that moved there soon moved back to the city.

The military presence was small, as their primary purpose was to protect the residences of the fort from raiders and wilds beasts. The population of the fort was usually only a couple of hundred people but that would swell to almost 1000 during rendezvous. This was how Captain Jeremiah Walch liked it. He was in charge of the small garrison. He got command of the post four years ago. Most officers had considered the post a dead end for a career and none wanted the isolation. Jeremiah, however, wanted the post. He had grown up in the woods and spent many days hunting and hiking the forests. He felt best among the trees and animals. He was not fond of people because they tended to frustrate him. When he was drafted as a young boy he at first dreaded the idea of serving in the military. Being forced to bunk and work so closely with so many people was not his idea of a good time. His first assignment was with a patrol that worked the Saber Mountains. He was hooked after that. He quickly worked his way up command by always accepting the less desirable assignment in the mountains. When the leadership of this post came up, he jumped at the opportunity. The assignment was for one year and the outpost had seen a different commander every year. That was until Jeremiah got command. His commanding officer was shocked when he requested to stay in the post after the first year. After the second year, the commanding officer figured out that Jeremiah liked the post and was well suited for the job. Where some officers struggled to deal and understand the people who lived in and around the fort, Jeremiah had a knack for it. He was starting to get a reputation among the ranks of being a mountain man in an officer's uniform. Through patrols and talking with people than came through the fort, he obtained a good knowledge of the area. This knowledge came in handy when looking for lost people or tracking down raiders. Even the locals and those living in the mountains were gaining a respect for the Captain. Jeremiah's biggest concern was how to keep the post. He knew that eventually the military would promote him and then he would not be able to be in command of the fort. It was something he was always thinking about in the back of his mind.

At least it was until the war broke out. With the army of the Emos marching through the Rohan Valley, people had come flooding to the fort. His once peaceful and manageable fort was now a mass of chaos with over 5000 refugees. He was also getting an influx of soldiers. Although they were fleeing from the marching Emos army, he was glad to see that they did not just run away. They were reporting to the fort, looking for leadership and a chance to get back at the Emos army. This also included officers, and soon he was no longer in charge of the fort.

Feeding the mass of people that were coming to the fort as refuges was a huge concern. Since he knew the area the best, Colonel Kittle, the highest ranking officer and now in charge of the fort, put Jeremiah in charge of how to feed everyone. Normal supplies were wiped out in a day. He was glad that he had made good connections with the people that trapped fur in the woods. He sent messengers to them requesting they bring in animals they killed to help feed the fort. He made it clear that they got to keep the fur, he was only interested in the meat. Soon, he had a daily inflow of meat. When combined with the daily hunts he organized with the locals, there was just enough food to feed everyone. However, he knew it would not last. Since it was harvest season in the valley, he sent raiding parties, consisting of solders and farmers, to raid the fields along the woods. The soldiers would stand guard while the farmers would harvest the crops. It was not long before fort's storehouses were filling up and new ones had to be built. The Colonel did not know what to think of the Captain when she came to the fort but she was now impressed and glad to have such a man who knew how things worked at the fort.

When Colonel Kittle received word that a joint military patrol would be coming through the fort and that the Captain was to be assigned to that patrol, she had mixed feelings. She knew that the Captain was a great asset for the fort and she would miss his knowledge. The colonel knew there was no one who knew these woods better and the Captain would be an asset to the patrol.

Captain Walch assumed the colonel just had more questions about the fort when he was called into her office.

"At ease Captain," the Colonel said when she saw him standing at attention. "And have a seat."

Jeremiah liked the Colonel as she was a fair commander who was more concerned about getting things done than regulations and ceremony. To Walch, that is how things worked in the frontier and many officers just did not understand that. He sat down and said, "What can I do for you ma'am?"

Colonel Kittle picked up the communique from off the desk. "I just received this communique from command. It seems that the three kingdoms have joined forces to fight against Queen Hellicus."

"That is great news ma'am. We are no longer alone in the fight."

"Yes it is a good thing." She took a deep breath. "The communique also says that there is a joint task force that will be coming through here. They are heading for Emos and intend on crossing the Dragon Back Mountains to get there."

Jeremiah's eyes got big.

She continued, "That is where you come in. You are to be assigned to the task force. They are looking for you to guide them through the mountains to Emos. Your reputation about knowing these woods seems to have reached the highest command."

The look on the Captain's face told her something was wrong. "Is this a problem Captain?"

"Sort of ma'am." Walch took a deep breath. "Although I do know these woods pretty well, I do not know the way over them to the Kingdom of Emos."

The Colonel had an unhappy look on her face. "Are you saying there is no way over the mountains?"

"No, I have heard there is a way. It is past Lake Luka but there must be over 20 different routes you could take and only one will get you there.  The rest are dead ends and box canyons. I can get the patrol to Lake Luka, but I just do not know which route to take from there. "

"So then the patrol is hopeless?"

"Not completely, ma'am." She could see the Captain was thinking. "There is one man that is said to know the way. He is a recluse that lives out in the mountains. I have received word from my network that he is in this area. With your permission I would like to take a small patrol to retrieve this man."

The Colonel thought for a second and then said, "What is this man's name?"

"As far as I can tell no one knows his name. He's just called the Woodsman. The information I have been able to gather on him is that he lives in the woods and travels all over these mountains. It is said there is no one that knows these mountains better than him."

She thought again and then said, "Granted, but be quick about it. According the communication, they are supposed to be here in a couple of days."

Jeremiah stood up and saluted. "Yes ma'am, I will leave right away."

The Colonel returned the salute and dismissed the Captain. There was a lot she did not understand about these mountains but she decided to trust his judgment on this issue.