At dawn the next day, the party packed up camp and continued south. After crossing the river, they followed a clear path through the forest under the scouts' guidance, heading northwest. They didn't go straight to Jintha'Alor, but first made for Shadra'Alor, a Witherbark Troll village.
The Witherbark Trolls were weaker than the Vilebranch Trolls, so Zul'ra chose them as his first point of contact in the Hinterlands. Dakkalai and Lostro both agreed, while Hamia was somewhat reluctant but had no choice.
In Shadra'Alor, Zul'ra went with Lostro and the others to meet Jaka, the Witherbark Troll chieftain. He hadn't strongly opposed the restoration of the Amani Empire, but he'd made it clear that he wouldn't give up his tribe's independence.
Though they hadn't gotten the result they wanted, the two sides avoided a confrontation. Lostro politely asked to stay in Shadra'Alor, and Jaka didn't object. He only said they'd have to put up with the threat posed by the Wildhammer Dwarves.
After leaving them with those words, Jaka quickly left the Hinterlands and returned to the Witherbark Trolls' stronghold, Witherbark Village in the southern Arathi Highlands. Shadra'Alor was merely one of their outposts in the Hinterlands. Many Witherbark Trolls also seemed to have moved into the mountains to the southeast to work on something.
Whatever the Witherbark Trolls were up to, it wasn't their concern for now. Zul'ra, Lostro, Dakkalai, and the reluctant Hamia held a brief meeting to discuss what to do next. The Witherbark Trolls' resistance to unification was not a good sign.
"If you ask me, we should wipe out those Smolderthorn traitors first and show them our strength. Only then can we persuade them." Hamia made a vicious face as he proposed this, but inside he felt bitter. The Witherbark Trolls had bluntly refused the Amani, yet the Amani were still here discussing what to do. Why hadn't he simply refused Zul'jin back then?
"I disagree. The Witherbark Trolls have already refused us, and the Vilebranch Trolls probably won't accept us either. The Smolderthorn Tribe is the one we should be trying to win over," Zul'ra interjected.
"But that's not what we agreed on beforehand. Those Smolderthorn traitors have to be wiped out," Hamia said irritably.
"Why are you so determined to destroy the Smolderthorn? When did they become traitors? Hamia, can you explain?" Zul'ra asked unhurriedly.
"Do you really need to ask? Those traitors are with the Orcs. They're still allied with them, as if they've forgotten they're Trolls. How is that not treason? The Orcs broke their promise and didn't help us reclaim the forest. They all deserve to die." Hamia spoke in a near frenzy.
"True, the Orcs deserve to die. But why are you so fixated on this? Do you hate the Orcs, or is there some deeper reason? Or, after seeing the Witherbark Trolls, do you regret agreeing to stand beneath the Amani banner?" Zul'ra glanced at the stern Dakkalai and pressed Hamia until his expression changed drastically.
"I don't! You're talking nonsense. I'm angry because—because my tribe suffered heavy casualties. You know how much we endured in the Thalas Mountains and North Valley." Hearing Zul'ra's words, Hamia's face changed. He turned to explain himself to the stern Dakkalai.
"You don't need to explain yourself to me, Hamia." Dakkalai looked at Hamia, who was trying to justify himself, and gave a slight shake of his head. Then he said something that made Hamia's expression change again.
"You can go back to Zul'Aman and explain yourself to Zul'jin!" Dakkalai's words caught Lostro off guard. Zul'ra watched the big man's reaction and looked at Dakkalai in surprise. So the fellow wasn't just a simple brute after all.
"B-but what about the troops? After the war, I can..." Hamia looked around in alarm and began to speak, but he was interrupted before he could finish.
"No. I want you to go back to Zul'Aman tomorrow. Lostro, Zul'ra, and I will take charge of the troops. We'll win over the Smolderthorn and deal with the Vilebranch and Witherbark as the situation demands. No Forest Trolls can resist the Amani call." Dakkalai made the decision without expression, crushing Hamia's hopes of stalling for time.
"I..." Hamia parted his lips, but was interrupted.
"Do you understand?" Dakkalai cut off the Mossflayer leader's defense, raising his voice.
"Dakkalai..." Hamia looked at the hard-faced man, a nameless anger rising in his heart. He still hoped to explain himself.
"Don't tell me." Dakkalai looked at the helpless man and suddenly felt a rush of satisfaction and admiration. This was the awe inspired by Zul'jin.
"Dakkalai, why..." Hamia could barely contain his anger. His hands trembled as he reached for the dagger at his waist. Why wouldn't this man listen to his explanation?
"Soldiers..." Dakkalai turned toward the tent entrance to call out, but before he could finish, he felt something heavy rushing at him. Before it could reach him, though, the weight was knocked flying.
"Hamia, there's no need to be so impulsive." Zul'ra threw himself into Hamia and knocked him away from Dakkalai.
"Kill him! Kill him now, Lostro!" Dakkalai stared at the man who had been knocked away, still shaken. When he recovered, he immediately called out to Zul'ra and summoned Lostro.
At Dakkalai's shout, Hamia, who had just landed, narrowed his eyes and tried to rush out of the tent. But Lostro blocked his way. Hamia raised the dagger in his hand to force him aside, only for Lostro to catch him by the wrist.
"Hamia, there's no need for this!" Zul'ra reached out and grabbed Hamia's dagger-wielding wrist, trying to talk him down. But the Mossflayer Troll clearly had no intention of listening. He struggled to break free, kicking and tugging with all his might.
Watching him thrash around, Zul'ra lost patience. He swung his arm and hooked a foot around Hamia, then lifted him by the wrist and slammed him hard onto the ground like a sack. While Hamia was still dazed, Zul'ra snatched away his dagger.
"Just kill him!" Dakkalai looked at the man sprawled on the ground like a sack and shouted at Zul'ra. But before he could finish, he was stunned by the dagger Zul'ra tossed down in front of him.
"Why don't you do it yourself? And after you kill him, what will you do about his people?" Zul'ra tossed the dagger before Dakkalai. He had been ready to kill Hamia, but now he didn't want to.
"But if we leave him alive, he'll find a chance to start a much bigger rebellion," Dakkalai said despite himself.
"Then don't give him the chance." Zul'ra tilted his head slightly and looked toward the soldiers rushing to the tent, uncertain what to do.
"You there, keep Hamia under guard. Tie him up." Dakkalai was getting agitated. He let the Trolls enter and bind Hamia. "Tell me, what do you want to do?"
"Tomorrow morning, take a hundred men and guard him here. Lostro and I will take eight hundred soldiers, including three hundred Mossflayers, to contact the Smolderthorn Tribe. Once we've established contact with them, we'll return to Zul'Aman at once. We can't go back having done nothing." Zul'ra laid out a simple plan.
"Well, I think... perhaps I should go with you." Dakkalai considered it briefly and changed his mind. He didn't trust Lostro and Zul'ra together.
"Fine." Zul'ra smiled and readily agreed to take the man along.
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