Wielder's Rising (37 page)

Blaize smiled.  Apparently the wielder really couldn’t stop them on his own.  The pullback in troops would allow the rest of the Kalian Army to focus on repelling the main offensive in their center.  He also knew that on the other side of the battle, a large contingent of foot soldiers was making its way around the flank and heading towards the wielder.  If they could divide the wielder’s attention in enough different places, hopefully Kadrak wouldn’t be able to do enough damage to determine the outcome of the day’s battle.

He concentrated and brought his focus back to the task at hand.  His cavalry would soon be in the thick of the battle.  He veered right and set a course directly into the center of the waiting Balthan soldiers.  He laid low on his steed as he raced towards battle.  The wind whistled in his ears and stung his eyes as he closed in.

He could make out the Balthan wielder in the distance above the heads of the ranks of nervous foot soldiers.  The wielder was the target of their attack.  The foot soldiers were merely obstacles in the way.  He braced himself for the impact and whipped out his swords.  The blades had been waiting patiently for four days to see action.  Their wait was over.

31

Kalista saw the smoke rising above the battlefield long before she heard the cries.  As soon as she saw the smoke, she picked up her pace.  She wondered why there was so much of it coming from the battle. The lead guard tried multiple times to convince her to turn around, but she kept refusing.  She had come this far and was not about to stop now.

As she got closer she began to faintly hear the sounds of battle.  At first it was just the dull sound of commotion but soon it turned into sounds of clashing metal, cries of battle, cries of anger, and cries of pain.  She faltered in her resolve for a moment.  The sounds reminded her of what lay ahead.  Perhaps she really didn’t want to go all the way.

However, her fears were soon overpowered by her concern for Gavin.  She had to find him and convince him to stay out of harm’s way.  She continued along the road that led straight towards the smoke and the sounds of battle.  The army’s camp soon came into view.  Her guards became more alert and tightened their positions around her.  The camp seemed eerily silent as they approached it.  They carefully made their way through the empty camp.

Ahead of them the highway slowly rose until it disappeared over the slight rise where she remembered the command area being located.  As they reached the base of the small rise, two of her guards broke away and ascended the hill while the rest of them remained.  Kalista waited anxiously for their return.  She hoped all was going well and that she would be able to easily approach the command area and fulfill her purpose.  The two guards were soon on their way back down towards them.

“It’s utter chaos on the battlefield,” one of them said quickly.  “There’s no command area left to speak of.  The entire top of the rise is covered in scorch marks and gouges.”

Her heart missed a beat.  No command area left?  Was she already too late?  She needed to see Gavin and know he was safe.  If he wasn’t in the command area, how was she going to find him?

“Our troops have abandoned their defensive positions, and the battle is raging all over the field in several different large groups of soldiers.  I’m not sure what’s going on.”

“Is it safe to go up on the rise?” Kalista asked.  The guard who had been speaking looked at her for a few moments before answering.

“All of the fighting is taking place below the rise and out on the field towards the mouth of the pass,” he replied.  “I think you can probably take a quick look without any harm coming our way.”

The guard, having made his assessment, nodded to the head guard and moved back to his place.  Kalista motioned for the head guard to lead them to the top of the rise.  He shook his head in disapproval but complied with her request.  She took a deep breath as they reached the top, steadying herself for what she might witness.

The sounds and sights of battle assaulted her senses as her party crested the small rise.  The clanking of swords and shields was much louder.  The cries of rage and pain were much sharper.  The acrid smell of smoke stung her nose.  The stench of burnt hair and flesh was almost overpowering.  Motionless bodies, many of which appeared to have been burned, littered the rise all the way down to the field of battle.  Kalista quickly covered her nose with the back of her hand.  The sight and smell were almost more than she could handle, but she willed herself to stay detached and aloof.

She looked out from her vantage point on the top of the rise and surveyed the battle in the light of the late morning sun.  The field, from the eastern base of the rise all the way to the opening of the mountain pass, seemed covered with large groups of both Kalian and Balthan soldiers.  She was glad to see that there appeared to be more soldiers with the Royal Kalian Army uniform than the mismatched uniforms of the Balthan Army.

Although there appeared to be numerous pockets of heavy fighting throughout the field, one spot in particular drew her attention.  Towards the far end of the field, near the opening of the pass, she could see infrequent bursts of fire emanating from an individual that sat alone in the center of a large ring of battling soldiers.  It could only be one person, the Wielder Kadrak.

She glanced around the charred command area.  There was no doubt the destruction had been caused by him.  She was grateful that although there were several bodies at the top of the rise, none belonged to Gavin.  She tried searching the field below for a glimpse of him but soon decided it would be impossible to locate him among the chaos of battle.  She would be forced to anxiously wait until the end of the day to verify that he was safe and convince him to stay out of harm’s way.

Her attention was drawn back to the Balthan wielder in the distance as a bright bolt of lightning struck into the center of a group of Kalian soldiers.  Somehow he needed to be stopped.  It appeared that only foot soldiers and cavalry were trying to get to him.  She wondered where all of the archers were.  It would be difficult for a soldier to break through the Balthan ranks surrounding the wielder, but a well placed arrow could easily put an end to the man.

If she were close enough, she could do it herself.  The thought lingered in her consciousness.  Why couldn’t she get close enough to do it?  She surveyed the field of battle once again.  If she skirted the battle and snuck up from the north, she thought she might be able to get close enough to take a shot at the wielder without getting too close to any of the Balthan soldiers.  She turned to the lead guard and mentioned the idea.

“Are you crazy?” he replied.  “While I admit that your idea has merit to it, there is no way that you will be getting any closer to the battle than you are now.  I have gone along with your wishes until now only because we are still a safe distance from the fighting.  We should now return to the army’s camp and wait for the battle to end.”

“You just admitted the merit of my plan,” she said.  “And yet you refuse to act on it.  Would you pass up the opportunity to stop the wielder and save the lives of countless Kalian soldiers?”

“If any of my men were skilled with the bow, perhaps the chance of bringing down the wielder would be worth it.  However, they are all swordsmen.  Besides, we are here to protect you, not fight in the battle.”

“I could make the shot,” she said confidently.  “I just need your guards to continue protecting me while I do it.”

“Let’s stop this nonsense,” the lead guard said firmly.  “You’ve seen the battle, but you’ll have to wait until tonight to see your fiancé.  You will now move off of this rise and return to the camp.”

Kalista stared as the guard turned his horse and began heading back towards the camp without a backwards glance.  Did he really think he could tell her what to do?  She glanced at the other guards angrily as they began to follow.  How dare they?  She did not have to follow them.  They had to follow her!

She clenched her fists tightly on her reins and took a deep breath.  She realized she was being irrational.  The guards were merely trying to do their duty.  She glanced over the battlefield with anxiety.  How many soldiers were giving their lives for their country?  How many would never return home to their families?  They were willing to sacrifice their lives for those they loved.

She scanned the field again, hoping that she would somehow be able to pick out Gavin.  He was willing to sacrifice his life for her, could she do any less?  She turned from the raging battle and looked around the rise.  She soon located an abandoned bow and some discarded arrows.  She glanced from the guards to the battlefield below.

Fear welled up inside of her.  She turned her horse as if to follow the guards but veered along the top of the ridge as if inspecting something.  She got down from her horse and quickly grabbed the bow and two arrows.  She then hopped back on her mount as her heart began pounding.

She flashed a nervous grin at the surprised guards and raced off down the rise towards the battle.  Behind her she could hear the guards yelling for her to stop, but she paid them no heed.  As terrified as she felt, she had made her decision.  She would risk her life in order to save those she loved.

The guards would have no choice but to follow her and protect her.  She headed for the north as she made her way down the rise at an angle.  She didn’t want to be anywhere near the battling soldiers.

When she reached the base of the rise, she glanced back over her shoulder.  All twenty guards were giving chase.  She slowed down slightly so they could catch up.  However, she didn’t slow down too much.  She was afraid if she went too slow or stopped, the guards would try to force her away from the battle.

She turned her attention from the guards to where she was heading.  Her adrenaline was pumping and her stomach was in knots.  She couldn’t believe that she was actually planning on taking a shot at the Balthan wielder.  What was she doing?  A princess did not ride into battle.

This wasn’t an archery match.  It was a war.  She could be killed.  The thought was almost enough to cause her to stop her horse and turn around.  Maybe this wasn’t such a good idea after all.

The guards finally caught up to her.  She spurred her mount to move faster to keep any of them from getting in front of her.  She took a deep breath and tried to forget about the danger.  Her idea seemed slightly less dangerous with the royal guards flanking her.

She would be careful.  As long as they stayed a safe distance from the battling soldiers they should be fine.  They were on horses while most of the Balthans were on foot.  If any moved in their direction, they could easily outrun them.  She gave the battling soldiers a wide birth.  Wide enough that she hoped her small party of twenty guards wouldn’t even be noticed.

She continued around the battle until she was directly north of where she had seen the wielder.  It was hard for her to tell from her lower vantage whether or not he was in the same position, but she supposed he likely hadn’t moved much.  She pulled up her horse and studied the empty field between her and the large clump of soldiers battling around the wielder.

“I underestimated you Princess,” the lead guard said as he pulled up next to her.  His face was flushed with excitement.  “I can see that you won’t be deterred in this endeavor.  I can’t believe I am considering going along with this, but may I offer a suggestion?”

“Proceed,” she replied as she pulled the bow over her head and inspected it.  It was much larger than her own bow, but she thought she could manage it.  The positive thing about its size was it would allow her to shoot farther.

“I think we’ll have a better chance of getting closer without being noticed if we continue a little farther before we cut south towards the wielder.”  He pointed at the foothills of the mountains.  “If we ride all the way to the foothills and then work our way south, I think we can use the rise and fall of the land to conceal ourselves.  We also might have a better chance at surprising the wielder if we attack from slightly behind him.”

Kalista supposed the lead guard was right.  They would be safer in the foothills.  Since it appeared that he was now willowing to help her, she decided to let him lead the way once again.

“I agree,” she replied.  “Lead the way.”

They continued forward at a quick pace until they reached the foothills.  They then worked their way south towards the opening of the pass at a slower pace, staying in the lower parts of the hills to keep out of sight as much as possible.  Kalista became more nervous as they got closer to the battling soldiers, but it appeared that as of yet no one was paying them any attention.  The lead guard finally pulled up when they were still a safe distance from the edge of the fighting soldiers.

“How close do you think you need to be?” he asked her.  “I could lose my life for letting you go through with this and don’t want you any closer than is absolutely necessary.”

She glanced towards the large group of soldiers.  She was quite certain she could hit the edge of them from her current position.  However, she would need to be able to shoot into the center of the group where the wielder was.  She would also need to be high enough to see him.  She looked around at the small hills between her and the soldiers.

“If we can get to that hill,” she said while pointing, “I think I will be able to take a clear shot.”

The lead guard glanced at the hill and then at the nearest battling soldiers.  He glanced back and forth several times, judging the distance.  He turned and looked her directly in the eye.

“Can you really take an accurate shot from that distance?  I don’t want to get any closer, but I also don’t want to draw attention to us if there really isn’t any chance of success.”

“I’ve never shot with this bow before,” she answered honestly.  “But I am almost certain that I will be able to get a good shot at the wielder from that hill.”

“Perhaps you should take a practice shot or two first,” the lead guard suggested.  “If you can shoot as well as you claim, we’ll try our luck.”