“Only one of you needs to stay up here with me,” she said quickly. “The other two should hurry and join your comrades. They will need all the help they can get.”
One of the guards nodded to the other two, and the two hurried out of the room. Kalista then spoke to the remaining guard.
“Do you have any bows and arrows?”
“Yes,” the guard replied. “There are several in our room down the hall.”
“Go and fetch them,” Kalista commanded.
The guard seemed slightly reluctant to leave her alone, but after glancing around the room quickly, he decided she would be fine while he was gone. Kalista turned and addressed those in the crowded room while the guard hurried to retrieve the extra weapons.
“May I have your attention,” Kalista said in a firm voice.
The entire room immediately fell into complete silence. The commoners not only recognized the seriousness of the situation but also recognized the significance of being addressed directly by the Princess of Kalia.
“You are no doubt aware of our situation. There are brave and skilled guards defending this building. They will keep us safe. However, any support that can be provided to them would be greatly appreciated. Are there any among you who have skill with the bow?”
Those in the room nervously looked around until two raised their hands and stepped forward. One was an older man, well passed middle age, and the other was a boy who could not have been more than twelve years old. Kalista looked around for anyone else and realized that the room almost exclusively consisted of the elderly, women, and young children. The two would be better than none.
She motioned for them to come over to her as the guard who had left returned with five bows and several quivers of arrows. The young boy hurried to her with a look of excitement while the older man gravely walked over with a sense of purpose. The guard passed a bow to each of the two and handed them a quiver of arrows.
“You two will take up your position at that window,” Kalista instructed while pointing. “Wait for my signal to begin shooting. Be selective in your shots. We do not know how many galdaks we will need to stop before the night ends. Are you ready?”
The two nodded and moved back through the crowded room to the gaping window. Kalista motioned to the guard and hurried to the window in her bedroom. She quickly grabbed a bow and a quiver of arrows. The guard followed her lead and stepped up next to her at the window with an arrow fitted to his bow.
The galdaks were now only several arm spans away from the guards. The two guards from her room had already joined the others. It was now ten against the twenty-two galdaks. The large creatures had spread out and were attempting to surround the guards. Kalista prepared to loose her arrow but waited. She wanted the monsters close enough that they would not have a chance to regroup when the arrows began slicing into them. Her heart beat loudly in her ears as she aimed at the largest of the galdaks. The large creature took another step forward. It was time.
She whistled sharply and let her arrow fly. Almost instantly, three other arrows followed. She had already strung and loosed another arrow before the first galdak fell to the ground. The guards seized the moment of confusion and jumped forward to meet their attackers. Several more arrows quickly found their targets as the two groups of warriors’ swords began to clash.
Kalista took careful aim and downed another galdak. Three had already fallen to the arrows and several others were forced to fight with wounds. The unexpected aerial attack had also left the monsters confused and disorganized. She continued shooting arrow after arrow, concentrating to make sure that not one missed its intended target.
She was not sure how long the altercation lasted, but she suddenly realized that only the human guards were left standing. She returned the arrow in her hand back to its quiver and assessed the results. There were five guards left standing and a guard who was injured on the ground but still alive and talking. All twenty-two of the galdaks lay dead in front of the inn. She hoped there would not be any more attacks on the inn that night. They had done incredibly well in resisting the attack, but she knew it would be almost impossible for the five guards to hold off another large group of galdaks. She turned to the guard at her shoulder with a smile.
“We did it,” she said with a relieved smile.
The guard looked back at her with a hint of surprise and admiration.
“I would say you did it,” he stated. “You took down a full ten of the galdaks all by yourself.”
Kalista looked back at him with skepticism. She could not have killed that many. The guard recognized her doubt and motioned towards her quiver.
“I’m quite certain you never missed,” he said. “The quiver began with twenty-five arrows.”
She looked at the quiver and counted twelve arrows remaining. She had not realized she had taken so many shots, but the guard was correct. She had not missed any of her targets. A few galdaks had required multiple arrows before they fell, but she had not missed.
Kalista shook her head and set the bow down. She returned to the crowded antechamber with the guard at her side. There was a visible sense of relief displayed on the faces of those in the room. The two commoners who had been shooting from the window were staring at her with large grins on their faces. She smiled back at them. It did feel good to be part of the victorious defense of the rest of the people in the inn.
“Good work,” she said. “You two remain on watch. “We are safe for now but need to remain vigilant.”
“Don’t worry,” the boy shouted back. “If any more of those monsters show up, we’ll teach them the same lesson.”
She smiled at the boy’s response and turned back to her room. The boy’s confidence had been swelled by the victory, but she had no illusions as to what would happen if another large group attacked them. They might be able to thwart one more attack, but that would be all. She stared out her still open window into the darkness and hoped the soldiers and city guards had been able to regain control of the city. If not, the small victory of protecting the inn had only postponed the inevitable deaths of them all.
35
Traven slowed Pennon down and brought him to a stop. Darian and Giselle pulled up their mounts as well. Traven signaled for them to be silent. He listened intently in the quiet night. He could hear it. It was still far distant, but he could hear the clashing of metal and make out the faint cries of battle. They were getting close. He turned and nodded with a smile to his two elven companions. He urged Pennon forward, and the three continued riding hard for Kavar.
It was almost midnight, but at least they would reach the battle long before the night ended. Traven had kept a close eye on the progress of the battle at Kavar over the last few nights. It had become apparent to him that the Kalian Army wouldn’t be able to hold the galdak horde at bay much longer. The ancient galdak wielder was actively participating in the fighting and causing numerous problems for the defenders of the city.
That morning, Traven had made the decision to leave his elven army behind and ride ahead. He was afraid that if he didn’t reach Kavar that night, the city would fall. The Kalian Army’s numbers had been dwindling while the giant galdak horde never seemed to be weakening. He hoped that by riding hard and arriving a night early, he could prevent Kavar from being overrun. His elven army wouldn’t be far behind and would arrive the next afternoon to join in the cause of the humans.
Traven had suggested that Giselle stay back with the army, but she had pleaded with him to allow her to remain at Darian’s and his side. In the course of the discussion, he had learned that she was actually rather adept at knife throwing and not afraid of a fight. He had ultimately deferred to her wishes and let her come along. Nonetheless, he was determined to keep her safely away from any fighting and would protect her from any harm. He knew Darian would keep her safe as well.
Traven had wanted to send a message to Blaize and Kalista to let them know he would arrive early but didn’t want to do anything that might attract the galdak wielder’s attention. If the ancient wielder didn’t know he was coming, there would be a better chance the wielder would be drained and unprepared to fight him. He hoped his unexpected appearance would give him one more advantage against the powerful wielder.
The tall grass of the plains flew by in a blur as the three riders hastened towards the battle. Traven couldn’t help but feel slightly guilty for all of the destruction that had occurred since he left the army in Candus. If he had been stronger or more skilled, perhaps he could have defeated the galdak wielder and prevented so much destruction and death among the people. Then again, he knew that even if he had defeated the ancient wielder, he could have only done so much against the hundreds of thousands of galdak warriors.
Journeying to the elves had undoubtedly been the right decision. He had obtained the armband of endurance, and with it, he would be able to wield the ambience throughout the entire battle. He also now had an army of elves. The fifty thousand elven warriors would double the size of the current Royal Army’s remaining soldiers. He had left in search of a symbol from his visions and returned with an object of extreme power, a better knowledge of who he was, and an entire army. The journey had been unquestionably worth it.
Pennon crested a rise and the camp of the galdaks came into view. Traven slowed his mount’s pace but continued forward. He could see movement in the midst of the camp, but it appeared that the majority of galdaks had advanced to the city and were fighting. The camp was set up just off the side of the road. He was tempted to leave the road and circle it at a greater distance but decided it wasn’t worth wasting the time. He turned to Darian and Giselle and let them know he was going to shield them while they passed the enemy camp. They nodded and continued silently behind him.
The three maintained their quick pace and soon reached the edge of the camp. Several galdak guards looked in their direction as they passed, but seeing nothing, dismissed whatever senses had alerted them of a potential threat and remained calm. Traven inspected the monstrous camp as they hurried past. It resembled a makeshift city more than it did a camp. It was gigantic in size with hundreds of thousands of tents stretching westward into the distance. They had left large avenues at equal distances throughout the camp to allow the numberless hosts of galdaks to enter and leave the camp quickly. There were also several enormous tents scattered throughout the tent city at equal intervals that no doubt housed supplies. Overall, the camp was fairly organized.
He carefully marked the locations of as many of the large tents as he could see while he continued riding swiftly to the camp’s southern border. Tonight, he planned to strike at the galdak horde on multiple fronts.
Once they had passed the entire camp and were down the road a short ways, Traven allowed the invisibility shield to drop. The fighting on the plains in front of them was now clearly visible, and the city of Kavar could be seen in the distance. He had been so focused on the galdak camp that the loud din of battle surprised him. They had finally arrived.
Traven scanned the plain. It was readily obvious the galdaks had a huge advantage in numbers. He could also see where the ancient galdak wielder was positioned near the center of the horde. He would have been able to pick the wielder out by his aura alone, but the galdak was even easier to find because he was intermittently sending balls of fire at the Kalian troops. It appeared several columns of cavalry had pierced the enemy horde and were struggling to return to the city.
“Should we try and go around the fighting?” Darian said. “I do not think we want to be stuck between the horde and their camp.”
“I agree,” Traven replied. “Let’s circle around on the east side of the battle. Hopefully, the destruction in their camp will cause them to retreat for the night. We don’t want to be directly in their path.”
“What destruction?” Darian asked.
“The burning of their supplies.”
As much as he didn’t want to alert the galdak wielder of his presence, he could not pass up the opportunity of destroying the horde’s supplies. Darian stared at him for a moment before an understanding smile spread across the elf’s face.
“Let’s hurry,” Traven said. “It looks like the Royal Army isn’t fairing very well.”
The three resumed riding towards the battle. As they grew closer to the galdak horde, Traven steered them off of the road in a southeasterly direction. He kept a close eye on the galdak wielder as they began to pass the horde. It appeared that the wielder hadn’t noticed him yet. He looked back at the galdak camp with a nervous fluttering in his stomach. It was time to announce his return.
“Be prepared,” he said as he pulled Pennon to a stop. “There might be immediate retaliation for what I’m about to do.”
“Go ahead,” Giselle said encouragingly. “We trust in your ability to defend us against the elements.”
“And we will defend you with our lives against anything else,” Darian added with a smile.
Traven was thankful for their encouragement and support. He took a deep breath and focused on the galdak camp. He could still make out several of the large supply tents and knew in general where the others were in relation to them. He concentrated and blocked out the sounds of battle. The air above the camp began to swirl and solidify. He began by creating a large fireball over each of the farthest ten supply tents nearest the road. He then pulled them into existence simultaneously. As the fireballs ignited the night sky and began to fall, he immediately formed ten more fireballs over the closest supply tents he had seen. Before the first ten had even landed, ten more balls of fire were falling towards their targets as well.
Moments later, twenty bright fires began raging in the midst of the giant galdak camp. Traven remained completely alert and focused on the galdak wielder in the distance. If he struck, Traven would be ready to throw up a shield around himself and his two devoted servants. It didn’t take long for the galdaks at the rear of the battle to notice the flames rising in their camp. Shouts and growls soon filled the air as a large number began racing back towards the camp.