Caedre

October 2008 Westfinder Bootleg written by Katya D'Andrea.
==Overview==
==Teaser==
Lit and heated by cheery but dignified firelight, the room seemed smaller than it actually was. The heavy curtains were drawn firmly shut, denying the white world without and adding to the feeling of cloying closeness within.
Seven or eight men and women perched excitedly on an assortment of couches, sipping wine and arguing.
“No, no, you have it all wrong,” one man was saying as he gesticulated wildly with his wine glass. “We need to humor them! As distasteful as it may be, there is no denying their, ahem, abilities. Clearly, we have no choice in the matter! Otherwise we shall all be overrun and murdered in our beds, I shouldn’t wonder.” He glanced around furtively, as if they were all about to be ambushed that very instant.
Immediately there was an outburst of voices, some expressing hearty agreement, some shouting their disapproval. Finally one voice rose above the chaos, and the others paused to refill their lungs and prepare themselves to resume the outcry.
“They’ll kill us all in any case! We should strike first, while we still can; how long do you think until our own people rise up against us? The world is on the edge of disaster, and we sit about twiddling our thumbs! We need to act, decisively, immediately, not attempt to reason with them. Do you hear me? They mean to kill us! It is my opinion — ”
But no one quite felt like listening to what his opinion was just then. Having sufficiently regained their breath, everyone launched straight back into proclaiming their own take on the issue at hand, for the most part completely ignoring the people around them or listening only when it pleased them. They talked and talked, right up until breakfast was announced, at which point they hurriedly broke off and rushed off to a warm and elegant meal quite removed from talk of death and politics, as was only civilized.
***
Kana lifted her head to the wind, flaring her nostrils slightly. She breathed deeply of the dry air, sifting through the various scents, searching for that taint of metal, sweat, fear. The smell she sought was distinctly out-of-place in this wild land.
Nine people watched her from short distance away, leather packs slung across their shoulders. They all carried weapons, mainly knives, and were watching her intently. The seconds stumbled by. Finally she lowered her head and turned back to the others to answer their unasked question.
“Nothing. I don’t smell them.”
A tangible ripple of relief spread through the group, and everyone relaxed and turned to their leader, a lean and scarred man with an aura of dignity and power resonating in his every move. He nodded, and immediately the group sprang into action, adjusting pack straps, covering the smoldering remains of last night’s fire. In a surprisingly short amount of time, they had erased all evidence of their passing.
The ragged group departed nearly silently, maintaining a steady pace until they had left the site far behind, hurried along their way by nightmarish visions of returning to find their village slaughtered, their homes pillaged and burned to the ground. With each step an anxious knot formed in each of their stomachs, a twisted lump of dread, which could only be relieved by the sight of their home, safe.
It began to snow.
==Flow==
==What Really Happened==
==Cast==
Category:Games