Against the Empire: The Dominion and Michian (55 page)

On their fourth day past the bridge a west-bound rider in a hurry approached them early in the morning along the road, then slowed when he unexpectedly encountered them. “Are you coming from the battlefront?” Nathaniel called as he came within hailing distance.

“I am,” the rider agreed. “I’m carrying dispatches for the commander in South Harbor. Who are you?”

He rode up and stopped among them, seeing the Bondell soldiers who accompanied them. “Who are you?” he asked at the same time Alec asked “How far to the front?”

“We’re the first portion of the relief that is coming to give support against the invaders,” Alec said.

“We’re glad to have any help, but you’re just a drop in the bucket compared to what we need,” the messenger said. “I’m riding to South Harbor to inform the commander that the invasion is picking up speed. They’ve been pushing hard against us the past two days; if we weren’t cavalry, they would have taken us all by now.”

“How far have you ridden?” Nathaniel asked.

“I left Rashrew last night. He has about a score of fighters left, and all they can do is try to stay alive and in front of the invasion,” the man responded.

“Would you like anything to eat or drink before you go on?” Moriah asked. “Will we just need to follow the road to find Rashrew?”

The man gratefully accepted the meal in the saddle. “Just follow the road, and you’ll find them. You won’t have to go more than four or five hours I imagine.”

“Are there any hills or valleys along the road where we could set up an ambush to slow them down? Maybe we could hit their lead units hard,” Rubicon asked.

“The road goes through a valley about two hours back,” the rider affirmed. “But you’ll only be a mosquito on a horse,” and with that he was gone.

“Let’s hurry to that valley and see what trap we can mount,” Rubicon suggested. “Maybe we’ll be able to mount something there before the arrival of the front.”

The riders spurred their horses forward and began riding at a rapid pace until mid-morning, when the road followed a small stream through a bending, falling valley. “This is the place,” Rubicon said appraisingly as he looked at the trees and rocks on the steep hillsides lining the road. “Everyone dismount and take your horses back to around the bend out of sight.”

“I’m going to ride up ahead to find Rashrew and Imelda and let them know what we’re doing,” Alec volunteered as he grabbed extra arrows to place in his quiver.

“You know we can’t let you go alone,” Nathaniel said. “We’ve been over this before.”

“Let Rander and Rief come with me,” Alec said. “Rander has a sword, and Rief might recognize something about the Michian forces.

“They need to know that help is on its way. They need to know that this ambush is being prepared,” he added.

“Rander, you know you can’t let him do anything foolish, right?” Nathaniel said. “It does make sense to send someone forward to contact them. Make sure you try to get the Michian forces bunched up in a solid mass when they are inside the mouth of the valley,” he instructed.

Alec rode over to Bethany. “I’ll be back soon, I promise. Stay safe here, please,” he said as he leaned over to kiss her.

“I know you have to do this, because you’re Alec. Just be safe. Don’t be a hero, please,” she said as she hugged him.

With that he and Rander and Rief rode forward, out of the valley, Alec’s hand throbbing with additional pain as they moved forward to find the last remnants of opposition to the Michian invasion. Within thirty minutes they heard the faint sounds of battle, and Alec pulled his bow off his saddle, and slung his quiver over his shoulder. As they trotted forward the sounds grew louder, and he engaged his warrior powers.

He heard the sounds of the battle more clearly, and as they turned a curve around a clump of trees, they saw the dozen remaining riders trying to fight their way free of two score attackers. Alec recognized Imelda’s long blond hair, and Rashrew’s thickset torso. He pulled an arrow out and took careful aim as Walnut advanced, with Rander and Rief beside him. They were too far from the battle for either to help without the enhanced abilities Alec had.

Alec let the first arrow fly, and automatically notched the second one, shifted his aim, and let it fly, then pulled forth a third and shot again, and again and again, so that six arrows were in the air simultaneously. “Give me one of yours,” he told Rander.

Rander gave him several as he held his hand out, and the first flight of arrows began to hit their targets. Imelda watched two men in front of her fall from their horses, as did Rashrew, and two other Bondell riders saw their own attackers slump forward with arrows in their chests. Both sides paused monetarily as they tried to understand what had happened, and then more arrows fell among the Michian riders, while Alec fired off his extra supply of arrows.

“Imelda, Rashrew, fall back!” Alec screamed as he rode forward.

“Tarnum! Don’t you go any closer!” Rief shouted at Alec.

All heads from the Bondell contingent swiveled to look around upon hearing Alec’s voice.

“Alec! You’re almost a welcome sight!” Imelda shouted. “Forces retreat to the protector!” and all the riders started pulling their reins to ride back to Alec.

He strung another arrow from Rander’s supply, and shot it at the first Michian rider to begin to pursue the flight.

“Alec! Aim for their horses!” Imelda shouted. “They don’t have many!”

Alec notched another arrow, and swore under his breath. At the moment he felt more guilt over the death of one of the innocent animals than he did the death of the soldiers on top of them. Lowering his aim, he shot at the horse of the rider he had just aimed for, then he strung another arrow and shot at an animal still back on the pack. His hand felt awash with pain now, and he was relieved to cease shooting.

Moments later both animals were down on the ground with arrows in their neck, and the other Michian riders were hesitant to approach Alec’s deadly firepower.

Alec stood as a lonely sentinel on the middle of the road, as Rander and Rief joined him from behind while the Bondell force thundered towards him from the front. All forces joined together simultaneously around Alec, and Rief was surprised beyond belief when the exhausted Imelda actually leapt out of her saddle onto Alec’s and hugged him emotionally.

“We thought we were dead!” Rashrew shouted, pounding Alec’s back as he joined them. “How do you manage to be here now?”

“We’re the advance guard of the advance guard of the advance guard,” Alec shouted back. “Get your men in motion for a slow retreat. We’ve got an ambush set up in a valley about a half hour back down the road.”

“Imelda,” Alec looked into her eyes as they sat inches apart facing each other. He was awash with emotions, and could say nothing else for several long moments.

“This is an awfully uncomfortable way to sit in a saddle,” she said after pausing to wait for him. “How are you?”

“Go ahead and get in your saddle, and let’s start to pull back,” Alec directed. “We can speak as we ride.”

“In the valley there are a number of ingenairii setting up an ambush if we can lure the Michian forces to come enter in large numbers,” Alec explained as they started to slowly back up from the encounter.

“You may have put too much of the fear of God in them!” Rashrew commented. “They don’t look anxious to follow us.”

“I’m about out of arrows, and my hand hurts too much to shoot any more at the moment anyway,” Alec admitted. “Let’s get some more distance between us and them while we can.”

“Their commander won’t let them hang back long in any event,” another Bondell rider said. “They’ve been sacrificing men to keep pushing us hard these past couple of days.”

“Who are your companions, Alec?” Imelda asked.

“This is Rander, the steward of the palace at Oyster Bay, and this is Rief, my friend and companion who travelled with me from a visit to the homeland of the invaders,” Alec announced.

“You’ve been to their land?” Rashrew exclaimed in shock.

“I have. They are determined to overwhelm us and conquer the Dominion, and it’s up to us to stop them here before they can spread out and attack in all directions,” Alec answered.

“Rander, Rief, this is Rashrew, who I fought with when we defended Bondell from the forces of the Oyster Bay coup, and this is Imelda,” Alec introduced.

“Ah,” Rief said. “Is she the one you and Bethany spoke about?”

Alec looked at Imelda, whose eyes had widened at Bethany’s name. “Yes, she’s the one.

“Bethany is here with the ingenairii waiting for us down the road,” he told Imelda. “She and I are engaged,” he added hastily after a pause.

Imelda’s face showed shock for just a second. “You two were meant to be with one another,” she started to say.

“Here they come,” a trooper announced, as the Michian riders began to advance.

“Everyone keep in order, and keep pulling back,” Rander spoke up. “We’re going to be the bait for the next few minutes until we can get them where we want them.”

“You say they don’t have many mounted soldiers? How closely will the infantry follow behind the horsemen?” Alec asked. “I’d like to get as many as possible.”

“The foot soldiers don’t drop too far behind. If we could get their riders into the ambush and then slow them down so the infantry catches up, you can get your wish. And you’d make me happy!” Rashrew said. “We haven’t won anything in the past month since we killed those animals that disappear.”

“I knew that had to be you! That really slowed them down. In Michian we heard about that, and four generals were hanged for the loss of those animals!” Alec told them.

“Rief,” he suddenly said, “you ride back and tell Nathaniel that he needs to make sure he kills or captures all the Michian horses he can,” Alec instructed.

“Is there anything you want me to tell Bethany?” her eyes flickered to Imelda.

“Tell her Imelda is safe, and tell Bethany that I love her,” Alec said, as Imelda politely appeared to not listen.

Rief urged her horse to a greater speed and rode awkwardly towards the west, while the rest of the group tried to maintain the right distance to draw the invaders forward.

“They’re picking up speed!” one rider noted a minute later.

Alec notched another arrow, leaving him only two more, and fired it at the lead horse, then fired the last two as well. Three horses fell to the ground, and the Michian advance stopped.

Rashrew whistled for his riders to stop as well. “They only had a handful of horses of their own when they started to come out of their canyon,” he recounted to Rander and Alec. “But they’ve acquired a number along the way as they’ve plundered farms and villages.”

The Bondell forces began to withdraw again, and the Michian riders began to pursue them again immediately. “They’re gaining on us,” Rander observed, and Alec saw that to his surprise the invaders were apparently coming recklessly forward, not knowing that he was out of arrows.

“Let’s speed up a little until we get to the mouth of the canyon, where we can turn and slow them down to bunch them up,” Alec suggested.

“Our horses are played out, Alec,” Rashrew answered. “We can’t ride them any faster. I’m surprised they’re still moving at all.”

Alec knew they didn’t have far to go. “You all keep moving. I’ll try to slow them down,” he said as he reined Walnut in. “Go! Get going! We’re almost there.”

Rander pulled up fifty yards behind him. “I can see the mouth of the valley Alec,” he reported. “Come back here where you’ll be a little safer.”