Fifty li northwest of Otter City stood a newly built tribal camp. It was no small settlement, stretching across the heights of the hills, with two rings of wooden palisades dividing the inside from the out. An inherited red crow banner was fluttering among the camp's stockades.
As dusk drew near, cooking smoke rose, and the camp was filled with bustle. Red-hair Hunters with bows on their backs, tribal warriors carrying spears, and elite Militia gripping long pikes all moved through the camp, preparing a simple dinner to fill their bellies. Wisps of smoke rose everywhere, figures came and went, and a rough count showed four or five thousand warriors. And a force of such scale, in the sparsely populated land of the Huastec, was truly a large tribe rarely seen!
At the center of the camp stood a spacious great tent. Inside, the furnishings were extremely plain: weapons and leather armor hung on all four sides, simple hide rugs covered the ground, and a lighting campfire burned in the corner. The campfire crackled and popped, ringing through the tent together with a firm, powerful female voice.
"Father, the Aztec warriors have gone north again! They're sweeping through the southwestern tribes. They probably set out from around Xilotepec and Suiqiu City!"
Alan carried a great bow on her back and stood straight in the tribe's great tent. She looked at her father, sitting cross-legged in the seat of honor, and spoke urgently.
"The warriors of Suiqiu City are spread out very wide, plundering villages and taking captives everywhere. Give me two thousand tribal warriors! I can lead them in an ambush against the tiger-head warriors, and in the mountains, forests, and marshes, defeat them all!"
"Mm. Alan, the scouts have already reported this news to me. The legion from Suiqiu