Sorcerer… Cyborg???

Chapter 84: Summit

"Halt stranger! You may pass no further. These stones mark the Hallowed Circle, no foreigner shall step within so long as I live!" A brash young warrior of the tribes, with a mane of fiery red hair and a short pointed beard, stared at Tam and his lieutenants with dark eyes, filled with fury. The young warrior was dressed in the traditional quilted armor of the tribes, and his hand rested on the hilt of a curved sickle shaped blade.

"Step aside, boy." Tam gave the young man barely a glance, before spurring his horse onward, right toward the young man. There was a sudden gust of wind, and the young warrior was swept aside, in his place now stood a tall elderly man. The young warrior frowned from behind the elderly man. 

"Excuse my grandson, Tam of Balin, or shall I say Grand Marshal Tam? You seem to have grown much since our last meeting. I must ask you and your companions to leave your horses and weapons here. If you truly seek to parley with us." The man who spoke only wore a simple cream colored robe, his skin darkened by years under the fierce sun of the plains. His face was lined and weathered with age, and his bushy eyebrows almost obscured his sharp gray eyes. He was clean shaven but an enormous braid of thick white hair hung down his back, and was woven with silver trinkets that sang as he walked towards Tam.

"I remember you well, Master Vaya of the Crow." Tam dismounted and gave the man a complicated smile, the hair was now pure white, with none of the gray that he had seen the last time they had met, but the hooked nose and permanent smile would be a face he would never forget. After all, he had been the man who had made Tam the Last Hawk, sparing him after slaughtering the entire Hawk Brigade.

Serena and Boson followed suit, stowing their weapons on their mounts, before following Tam to where he stood a few meters from Vaya.

"Follow me, please remember, there are to be no raised voices, threats of violence or insults within the Hallowed Circle." Vaya spoke in a solemn tone. Walking with slow deliberate steps towards a gap within the weathered stones. 

"Do not betray my trust, Tam. This is the first time one not of our people have stepped within the stones. If you have come to do war, let it be known now, and you can expect a battle with men. If you intend to attack us within the circle, then prepare yourself to face an army of demons, who will all fight to their final breath." Vaya turned to face Tam before he stepped within the circle, giving Tam a firm look.

"I would never look to defeat the Tribes by treachery Vaya, my honor would not allow it. And I'm sure you remember, I must repay a debt I owe you." Tam replied, stepping past Vaya, into the circle of stones. 

Tam stopped short, he felt an invisible pressure descend upon him, it was as if there were an icy claw within his chest, gripping his heart. It squeezed slightly, but sensing no ill intent, it disappeared.

"You thought our Hallowed Circle would be a place of tradition, no Tam, treachery is punished here by forces we can only hope to understand. Otherwise, those tribes with blood debts would have long broken the peace here." Vaya gave Tam a pat on the shoulder, before walking ahead, toward the large circular rug around where various tribal chiefs reclined on piles of cushions, sat cross legged or took a severe kneeling position.

"Grand Marshaaal, so nice of you to join usss." A tall woman hissed at Tam as she lay reclined on a series of cushions, her long legs stretching out to the side. Her exposed skin tattooed with dark green scales, extending even to her face.  She lazily blew out a cloud of smoke toward Tam, before giving him a wink.

"Mistress Ajyha." Tam nodded, and took a seat at one of the empty piles of cushions. 

"Why the army, Grand Marshal, you worried about a few tribesmen?" A gravelly voice grumbled, it was the voice of the man who rarely spoke below a shout, struggling to talk quietly within the circle.

"Master Bhal, would you have taken me seriously otherwise?" Tam gave the heavyset man a smile. Unlike Vaya, Bhal looked as if hadn't aged a day, his thick black beard hiding much of his face, his beady eyes squinting at Tam.

"Hahahaha. Of course not, you would have had to battle the chiefs in their own domains for even a chance. I'm sure Vaya is kicking himself for letting you live all those years ago. He should've tied you up and brought you to live amongst the tribes." Bhal laughed raucously, his many silver bangles clashing and jingling around his thick hairy arms.

"Enough chatter. Tell us, Grand Marshal Tam of Ursten. If not for revenge, for what reason have you brought this vast army into the very heart of these plains. This is hallowed ground, do not speak falsely." A stern-faced man, who appeared much younger than the others, knelt across from Tam. He wore many tawny feathers woven into his hair, and a cloak of feathers to match.

"Asss impatient as always." Ajyha hissed at the younger man.

"Straight to the point, he'd be a disappointment to his namesake otherwise!" Bhal guffawed, sending himself into another fit of laughter.

"Come now, chieftains of the tribes, let the man speak. He has travelled far. There will be enough time for jokes after." Vaya's solemn yet mirthful voice cut through the rest, and the chieftains settled down.

"Thank you all, for welcoming me to your Hallowed Circle. I'm sure word travelled ahead, I am not here for war, or for revenge." Tam paused a moment, looking each of the gathered chieftains in the eye.

"I am here for conquest." At Tam's words, many of the chieftains rose to their feet, some growled, or hissed, while Bhal went so far as to bare his teeth at Tam.