13 Day War (75 page)

Several soldiers did not hesitate. They immediately threw their swords and bows into the whirlwind, drawing cries of outrage and scorn from other soldiers. One of the offended soldiers drew his sword and ran towards one of those surrendering, shouts of vengeance on his lips. Theos raised his arm and sent a ball of fire into the sword-bearing soldier. The stricken man screamed in pain and fell to the ground, the flames devouring him. For a brief moment, the entire 17
^th
Corps remained frozen. No one stepped forward to help the burning man, and no one else tried to threaten those surrendering.

“The most despicable act known to man,” scowled Theos, “is to kill a brother who only wants to live to see his home and family again. I will not see harm come to those who wish to surrender. If you think a soldier should fight to the death, you merely have to hold on to your own weapons. You will get your chance to die in the service of the Federation.”

The Tyronian’s words seemed to break the frozen mood of the 17
^th
Corps. A few soldiers stepped out of the shield wall and threw their weapons into the whirlwind. Those few brave men seemed to open the faucet of reality. Within seconds, entire sections of the shield wall broke, the men tossing their weapons into a constantly growing whirlwind. General Kozinski watched helplessly as his army fell apart. He thought briefly about berating his men to get them to comply with his orders, but he sighed instead. His words alone would never overcome the hold that the Alceans held on the 17
^th
Corps. With a heavy sigh of resignation, he drew his own sword and held it high over his head.

“The 17
^th
Corps of Spino surrenders,” he said loudly. “Each and every man will throw his weapons into the whirlwind. I will stand for no exceptions.”

The general walked towards the whirlwind and threw his sword into it. As all of his men began to mimic his move, the general returned to face the Alcean leaders.

“We are surrendering honorably,” he said to Alex. “I demand just treatment for my men as prisoners.”

“And you shall have it,” promised Alex. “As was said before, your men will be fed and cared for until their eventual return to Spino.”

* * * *

Colonel Shellard slid off his horse and stood next to the fire. He was not sure how the horse had managed to move closer to the burning barricade, but he was thankful that it had. The ice had taken a long time to melt, and he was now drenched with wet clothes, but the warmth of the flames felt wonderful. He watched as steam rose off his clothes and wondered about drying the horse. He looked at it and shook his head, fearful that the exposure to ice might have harmed it. Beyond his horse were several others belonging to men of his regiment who no longer needed them. He tore himself away from the warmth of the fire and snagged one of the other horses. He pulled himself up and kicked the horse to life. Galloping southward along the Coastal Highway, the night breeze chilled him like it never had before. He pushed the discomfort from his mind and concentrated on reaching General Bledsoe. When he finally saw the Baroukan general, he sighed with relief.

“What happened to you?” called out Colonel Sawar. “Fall in a river?”

Colonel Shellard ignored the questions. He halted his horse and dismounted, issuing a sharp salute to the general.

“The 17
^th
Corps is in danger, General,” Colonel Shellard said with a sense of urgency. “I need your reserves to save them.”

“General Kozinski can take care of himself,” scoffed General Bledsoe. “He is a fine general. Did he send you here?”

“No,” Colonel Shellard replied.

“I thought not,” stated General Bledsoe. “Explain yourself.”

“My regiment was destroyed earlier,” reported Colonel Shellard. “I alone survived, and that was only because of a freak occurrence. General Kozinski has the remains of the 17
^th
Corps in a circular shield wall, waiting for the Alceans to attack, but has no idea what is heading towards him. I overheard them talking. They plan to use their mages to eliminate the entire 17
^th
Corps.”

“Preposterous,” ridiculed General Bledsoe. “General Kozinski knows how to fight against mages. They die just like any other man.”

“Or woman?” retorted Colonel Shellard. “The people I heard talking were Alex and Jenneva.”

“Are you serious?” gasped Colonel Sawar. “I thought they were mythical?”

“They are real,” replied Colonel Shellard.

“Who are these people?” demanded General Bledsoe.

“They are Knights of Alcea,” answered Colonel Sawar. “The stories told about them in Tagaret appeared farfetched and exaggerated. That is why I thought they were mythical. According to one story, Jenneva used her magic to split a mountain in half, forcing half of it to fall on a goblin army.”

“And she is not the only mage they have,” interjected Colonel Shellard. “There is red-headed man who was with the Alceans opposite the northern perimeter. When I arrived there, he was using magic to burn the barricades. Our people could do nothing to stop him. Their arrows were blocked from reaching him somehow.”

“I don’t care how powerful she is,” scowled General Bledsoe. “Two mages are not going to destroy ten-thousand men.”

“The 17
^th
Corps is no longer ten-thousand men,” frowned Colonel Shellard. “We have already lost several thousand to the Alceans Rangers, including my entire regiment.” The colonel sighed anxiously as he gazed into the unyielding face of General Bledsoe. “General, I was frozen by a magical spell cast at me when I tried to attack Alexander Tork. My horse was frozen, too. That is the only reason I survived the carnage at the northern perimeter. Every other man died to the Rangers. These are warriors unlike any other we have ever seen. To talk of their deeds might sound exaggerating, but if you tour the battlefield, you will not find many of their black-clad bodies on it. These men and their mages are not something to be ignored. I plead with you to send the reserves to General Kozinski’s aid. I came straight here to request them because I truly believe that they are the only hope for the 17
^th
Corps.”

The general frowned. “You came here explicitly to request my reserves?”

“Yes.” The Spinoan colonel nodded. “Those three regiments will make all the difference in the world.”

“And how did you know that I had held back three regiments?” asked the general. “I never notified General Kozinski about them.”

It was the Spinoan’s turn to frown. “Alex and Jenneva knew about them,” he gasped. “I remember her saying that only those three regiments could foil their plan. She specifically called them reserves, and Alex said not to worry about them. He said that a Baroukan general would never send them to the aid of a Spinoan. How could she have known?”

“That is nonsense,” scoffed Colonel Sawar. “Baroukans and Spinoans stand together in this team. Alex and Jenneva might be great heroes to Alcea, but they have made a fatal mistake with such foolish thoughts. Our reserves will crush them.”

“You need to get some dry clothes on, Colonel,” General Bledsoe said casually to the Spinoan colonel. “You may be called upon yet again this night. Best you be prepared.”

“I will get him some clothes,” offered Colonel Sawar.

“No,” the general said quickly as he waved for a sergeant to join the group. “A lesser officer can handle such a duty. Go with the sergeant, Colonel Shellard. He will see that you get what you need.”

The Spinoan colonel nodded, and the general instructed the sergeant. As soon as the two men were gone, Colonel Sawar frowned deeply and spoke softly to the general.

“You aren’t thinking of holding up the reserves, are you?”

“Something stinks about this whole battle,” stated the Baroukan general. “How many men were attacking from the south before they retreated?”

“Two or three thousand,” answered the colonel. “The shield wall should easily hold them now that we have it properly assembled. We really can afford to send the reserves to help the Spinoans.”

“Right.” General Bledsoe nodded. “That much is obvious, so what are we missing?”

“Missing?” echoed the colonel. “I don’t understand.”

“The Alceans are toying with us, Colonel,” explained the general. “They actually want us to send the reserves northward. That is why they allowed Colonel Shellard to hear them talking, and that is why they added the part about Baroukans not wanting to help Spinoans. That comment was made specifically to make it harder to refuse the request.”

“You think Alex and Jenneva intentionally let Shellard live?”

“Absolutely. If we are to believe that the Alcean Rangers and their mages are truly capable of annihilating the entire 17
^th
Corps, why would they be so foolish as to leave an officer alive who could conveniently carry their words to me? It makes no sense. They want my reserves removed from here, but they don’t have the numbers necessary to breech our shield wall, so they should never even make it this far. What is their real plan? How are they getting through the shield wall?”

“Do you think they mean to outflank the shield wall?” asked the colonel.

“No,” answered the general. “To do so would put them between Kozinski and us. Besides, drawing the reserves north would hamper their own efforts if they meant to outflank us. Unlike the shield wall, the reserves are mounted. They can react with great speed.”

“Unless they are eliminated,” gasped the colonel. “The attack on the 17
^th
Corps is probably a ruse. The Rangers seek to take on our reserves and eliminate them. That is the real plan.”

The general nodded. “That is what I am thinking, and that is precisely why our reserves are staying put. Get back to your shield wall, Colonel. Expect a desperate attack from the south. Hold that line and crush our enemies. Bring me the head of King Arik.”

Colonel Sawar saluted and ran for his horse. In the dark, hovering over General Bledsoe, a tiny, green man also departed, but his wings carried him much faster than any horse could run. Prince Midge darted upward and soared southward. Within moments, he landed on the shoulder of King Arik.

“The reserves will not be leaving General Bledsoe’s side,” Prince Midge reported. “He is expecting your charge on the shield wall, and he is keeping those three regiments in reserve. Our plans have failed.”

“A plan has failed,” corrected the King of Alcea, “but the night is not over, and I am not out of plans. Bitsy just brought encouraging news from the north, and that brings another plan to mind. I need you to carry a message to Alex for me.”

King Arik gave the message to Prince Midge and sent him on his way. He then asked David Jaynes to assemble the Red Swords so that he could explain the new battle plan. Once the men were assembled, the king explained to them what he expected from them. When he was finished, he drew the Sword of Heavens and held it high over his head.

“The Red Swords are among the finest fighters in the world,” the king said loudly, “and tonight you will get the chance to prove it. You will be called upon to ride faster than you ever have and kill quicker than any man should be expected to kill. You will show the enemy no mercy, for if we fail this night, Alcea will die. Only your speed and expertise will win this battle, but I know that you will prevail. You are the Red Swords!”

“And you are the Warrior King!” shouted one of the men.

All of the men then shouted, “Long live the Warrior King!” The shouting was so loud that King Arik was sure that the Baroukans up the road must have heard it.

* * * *

Colonel Sawar arrived at the shield wall and tied his horse to a tree. He then walked the entire line telling the men to prepare for an attack. When he reached the end of the line, he turned around and began walking back. He was almost halfway along the shield wall when he heard the distant shouts. He stopped and stared at the road passing through the middle of the shield wall. The clouds had passed away from the moon, and he could see a fair distance, but there was nothing for him to see. The road was empty.

“They’re coming, aren’t they, Colonel?” one of the men in the wall asked.

“I suspect they are,” the colonel replied with a curt nod. “Let’s show them what a Federation shield wall can do when properly assembled.”

“For the empire!” shouted one of the soldiers.

“For Barouk!” shouted thousands in response.

A smile appeared on the colonel’s face, but it didn’t last long. As the sound of the shouting died, he heard the distant thunder of thousands of hooves. The Alceans were coming, and they were not coming slowly. They were galloping towards the shield line.

“They are coming in fast!” he shouted. “Stand firm and deliver death to the enemy! Hold this line!”

Colonel Sawar squinted into the night, focusing intently on the Coastal Highway. Far in the distance he saw shadows moving, and the pounding hooves grew louder. He watched as the shadows resolved into visible forms, Alcean riders hunched low for maximum speed. He could tell that the Alceans were planning to slam into the shield wall at full speed, but he also knew that such a tactic would fail. He had chosen a place for the shield wall that would allow for maximum exposure to the enemy with little room for cavalry maneuvering. So many archers would be concentrated on the charging column that none of the horses would even reach the shield wall.

“Tighten the line in the center!” he shouted as he watched the charging Alceans draw closer.

Suddenly, a blast of wind roared out of the south. The wind was far greater than what he had personally experienced earlier in the night. In fact, it was far stronger than any storm he had ever experienced. He immediately moved back and grabbed onto a tree. The men in the shield wall could not do so. The wind tore into the Federation line with tremendous force, and men were lifted off the ground and carried away, but curiously, only in the center of the shield wall. Within seconds, there was a gaping hole in the shield wall, and the Alceans galloped towards it. Colonel Sawar gripped the tree tightly with both arms and sheltered behind it so he could still see the road.

A sudden sound split the air. It was a sound that the colonel had heard only once before in his life, and it sent a shiver racing down his spine. It was the roar of a dragon. He swallowed hard as a flying shape appeared over the approaching Alcean column. With disbelief, Colonel Sawar watched the dragon approach. The monstrous creature glided almost silently, its huge wings nearly touching the trees on both sides of the road, but the greatest shock to the colonel was the sight of the Warrior King upon the creature’s back. Shouts of fear roared from the mouths of the shield wall, but King Arik and his dragon did not attack. The dragon soared over the shield wall and continued northward. Seconds later, another dragon appeared with the Warrior Queen on its back. As they passed over the shield wall, the queen’s arms flew out to her sides. Tremendous gusts of wind tore from her fingertips in both directions. The men of the shield wall were blown away from the road, cascading into one another like falling dominoes. A moment later, the colonel watched as flames leaped from the queen’s hands, the sheets of flames streaking, not into the soldiers of the shield wall, but rather into the trees lining the road behind the shield wall. The trees burst into flames as the vanguard of the Alcean column raced through the gaping hole in the shield wall.