Attempting to Join the Human Forces

Khelgrath drifted along the countryside, taking day labor jobs in order to pay for a place to sleep. As she walks from town to town she passively begins to learn about the region she's in. Apparently this province was known as the Principality of Jorn, a nation established between two mountain ranges. They serve as rather effective natural barriers to the Frostfang orcs to the north, and the Sourtusk orcs to the south. Though it is a religious oligarchy the current monarch is a fair and honorable person by all accounts, despite recent harvests having rather low yields.

Khel keeps her cloak's hood drawn most of the time, not wanting to cause an incident in a place so close to orc settlements. Eventually, though, she is spotted by a recruiter for a mercenary group, the Crimson Aegis. They fancied themselves vigilante protectors of the Realm, and retained a strict code of honor. Though the recruiter was momentarily taken aback by seeing a half-orc, he composed himself and still offers the traveler a piece of parchment detailing their group. Khel smirks a bit, surprised to see someone with backbone for a change. "Alright. Lead the way." She called the man's bluff, but he delivered, leading the half-orc to an actual guild house instead of the dark alley ambush she had come to expect.

With a new sense of resolve she made her way into the Crimson Aegis HQ and, for the first time, pulls her hood down. "You're recruiting, I hear." She stated, waiting for one of the mercenaries to answer her, but they simply stared at her. They weren't quite sure whether they were supposed to draw their weapons or answer the question. "...I'm mistaken, then. Goodbye." With a huff she spun around, ready to accept this as another failure.

"Not so fast, now." Two sets of footsteps emerged from one of the hallways. The recruiter who had arrived with Khelgrath, with a silver-haired human woman in tow behind him. "Lauren, charmed." She remarked casually as she strode forward, eyeing up the half-orc like she were a piece of meat. She did so with one eye, the other covered in a patch and a grisly scar that worked its way to her left ear. "Don't let these slack-jawed bumpkins put you off, darling. They've never seen an orc, let alone a half-orc." Finally, someone with some sense!

"Piqued your interest, have I?" It was true, Khel's eyebrows raised a bit when Lauren correctly identified her... and even defended her to the other mercenaries. She nodded her head. "Luckily for you, we're being rather generous with our recruitment at the moment. The Jornian Council is stretching us thin all over the Principality, and the Orc tribes are mobilizing."

"...that's what brought me into town." Khelgrath finally spoke up, finding little room to interject. Lauren was truly not intimidated by her in the slightest, it was going to take some getting used to.

"Truly?" Lauren inquired. "Then it would stand to reason you have some insights into orc tactics?"

"I suppose so. I was their for some time, as a bastard child." The response made Lauren grimace a bit, seeming to regret the question.

"Right... Let's take this discussion to my office, shall we? Ricard, draft up the contract for..." Lauren glanced to the half-orc.

"...Khelgrath." She answered, having to spell it out for the recruiter after getting a blank stare in reply. It was certainly an appealing offer, having the protection of a mercenary group. With the endorsement of their commanding officer, the others that were milling about the building seemed to relax as well. Lauren must have garnered quite a bit of respect from them.

Though as the half-orc fighter would soon find out, this Lieutenant of the Crimson Aegis was more than she appeared to be...