Pointless Death

Tarmen kept his pace strong, not sure where the others were and saddled with a groaning, swaying body that did little to help his balance. It was a good minute or two before Tarmen laid the man against a tree, to assess both his injuries and whether or not they were followed.
While on the surface he looked like the average, beaten-to-near-unconsciousness, sacrifice victim, there were little signs to show of internal damage. At least he wasn't hacking anything up, that was always a good sign. After confirming that they were properly separated from both friend and foe, at least for the moment, Tarmen worked at waking him.

"You still with us?”

A few light slaps stirred him enough to cough, specks of red following each heave that made Tarmen regret jumping the fence too soon on that thought. At least his eyes were beginning to open.

“You got a name?”

“Dresnick…..Scout.”, and to his credit, Dresnick tried to properly salute, only to wince and drop it back into his lap.

Made sense how they were caught then, but as far as he knew the scouts were elsewhere. THEY were the scouts for this area.

“What sent you this way? We were supposed to be the only ones in the area.”

Another fit took the man, having to lean forward with a deep grimace. It was an odd thought for him at the time, but Tarmen felt…bad about it. There was only so much he could do without dragging his pitiful carcass back to the fort in hopes of healing and he could already tell it was too late. Trying to think of something, he put his hand on the man's shoulder to attempt to be comforting. More of what he had seen Gon’yaul doing.

“Hang in there mate, I need to know your orders. Who gave them?”

“Pack…Older man. Told us there was..game. Should get…before the savages..”

Now that was surprising. Seemed that Alcuin had found a useful cover with the Pack. Their reputation was indeed the kind that warranted little effort in flaunting.

“He give a name?”

A weaker round of coughing was as good as no, though it left Tarmen wondering what was the point of sending unaware hunters straight to Zin’s arms, only to hate the man more for what he already knew.

Not only bait, but martyrs. Get rid of him and Alexis and a few more names just to stoke the fires further. Looking back to Dresnick proved his previous doubts, his eyes were lazily staring into the sky and no longer wheezing.

There was a new anger in him looking at the corpse of someone he had never met before, only just learning his name. He had sacrificed others just the same, thrown boys younger to their death if it served what he deemed a worthy purpose. Still holding Dresnicks shoulder, Tarmen felt a full shift in his view, not just knowing it was wrong, but actually feeling it. What if he had been Alexis? Voah? Gon’yaul? Wim? Hunter?
Dresnick had been that for someone. True, it seemed that Alcuin would have sent anyone out here, just happened to meet a pair of scouts looking to help their people. He would have thrown anyone's lives away for what? A shot at a couple of proper messes like him and Alexis? He found a voice in his head asking where the honor was in that?

Closing Dresnicks eyes fully, Tarmen stood and promised to find him later. Without knowing where Alexis was, he headed back to the camp. To see what the response of their attack was for one, but also get the other scout if possible. Maybe take a swing at the bastard Alcuin if the chance presented itself.