Alutar: The Great Demon

by Tuttle, Richard S.

“Because I am not Colonel Rhio,” answered the captain. “I suspect that he rubs you the wrong way, and you might say things to him to anger him.”

  Mitar smiled. “I could be tempted to,” Mitar confessed, “but I have not. Everything I have said is true. There is even more that I have not said yet, but your colonel has little time for listening to others.”

  “What else can you share?” asked the captain.

  “King Boric is willing to let your men settle in Karamin if they want to,” replied Mitar. “They will have to give up their weapons, but they would be welcomed as workers or farmers. There would be no grudge held against them for their service to the Federation. Many of the men of the 30th Corps have accepted his offer.”

  “I suppose that is better than the dungeons,” mused the captain.

  “None of the soldiers of the 30th Corps have been sent to the dungeons,” stated Mitar, “at least not because of their service in the Federation army. If the men choose not to settle in Karamin, they will be allowed to leave the country, but without their weapons. King Boric is not about to allow soldiers to regroup and cause trouble for his citizens.”

  “You had better return to your army, Captain,” Randi said with a nod towards the 31st Corps. “It appears that Colonel Rhio is intent on driving further into Karamin.”

  “You have given me much to think about,” Captain Hahn said to Mitar. “I hope that I have the chance to speak to you again.”

  Mitar Vidson gave no promises as the captain turned and rode off to rejoin his column.

  * * * *

  It was high sun on the Calusa-Waxhaw road and Colonel Rhio’s column was in disarray. Three times the Rangers had struck since the last flag of truce, but none of the attacks were large scale. In each attack, the Rangers seemed content to kill just twenty men of the 31st Corps and then disappear. Attempts by Colonel Rhio’s men to chase after the Rangers and engage them had been futile. The Alceans seemed to be able to attack and then vanish completely. Even the trackers had reported that the tracks just halted, as if some magic had swept up the Rangers and their Occan mounts and carried them on the winds. The colonel was angry and frustrated. He knew that he outnumbered the Alceans, yet he was forced to suffer their attacks whenever the Rangers chose to engage them. It was not the kind of fighting that the colonel had been trained for. Everything he tried failed to produce a single Alcean casualty, and the men of the 31st Corps looked as if they were on the verge of desertion. Colonel Rhio would give anything for one solid encounter with the enemy so that he could at least bloody them, but that had not been possible.

  The colonel had ordered the men of the outer files to use their shields on the forest side of the column. He had hoped that the tactic would cause the Rangers to linger, trying to get their quota of kills, but the Rangers had adapted instantly. Instead of firing at the nearest file, the Alceans had shot over the shields, killing the men in the inner files. The colonel had tried designating attack teams to immediately charge into the forest when the Rangers began sniping, but they had been unable to locate the enemy. The attacks were too quick, and the Rangers did not linger.

  “You seem deep in thought, Colonel,” Captain Hahn said as he pulled in alongside the colonel.

  Colonel Rhio glanced at the captain with annoyance. “What do you want, Hahn?” he asked.

  “I have been timing their attacks,” answered the captain. “If they stay on schedule, we should expect another attack soon. Have you thought of anything else that we could try against them?”

  The colonel sighed and shook his head. He had expected to hear from the captain about surrendering, but the captain had surprised him with his thoughts about timing.

  “If only we could engage them,” the colonel replied softly. “That would not only raise the spirits of the men, but it would also cause the Alceans to be more cautious, and that would mean less sniping.”

  “The trackers are perplexed,” nodded the captain. “I have questioned each one of them, and they all tell the same story. The riders and mounts simply disappear, leaving no tracks to follow.”

  “So I have been told,” scowled the colonel. “They must have a mage helping them. If only they hadn’t gotten lucky and killed all of our battle mages in the first battle.”

  Captain Hahn did not respond to the colonel’s words. He felt confident that the Rangers left little to chance. He doubted that the deaths of the battle mages had been a stroke of luck for the Alceans. In fact, he suspected that the mages were targeted precisely because the Rangers had no mage of their own to counteract the black-cloaks’ magic. He was not about to mention his theory to the colonel. It would solve nothing and it would only serve to further irritate the colonel. Unexpectedly, Colonel Rhio raised his hand to halt the column. Captain Hahn had not caught the signal and he was forced to turn around and come up alongside the colonel again.

  “Why are we stopping?” asked the captain.

  “Look ahead, Hahn,” pointed the colonel. “It might not be much of a gully, but there are ridges on both sides of the road. It is just the type of terrain the Rangers have been using to attack us all morning. I will not ride into another trap.”

  “Then what are we to do?” asked the captain. “Do you want the column to leave the road and traverse the forest?”

  “Certainly not,” scoffed the colonel. “The Rangers would love to see such a maneuver out of us. Those of our men that the Alceans didn’t kill would run away while we could not keep an eye on them.”

  “Then we just sit here?” frowned the captain. “What are the alternatives?”

  “We attack them while they are waiting for the column to approach,” answered the colonel. “I want the 1st regiment readied for battle. While they get ready, the column will take a short meal break. This way we ruin the schedule that the Rangers are anticipating, and we get to strike them before they strike us.”

  “I don’t understand,” admitted the captain. “How will the 1st Regiment attack them?”

  “After the meal break,” explained the colonel, “the column will form up and proceed slowly towards the ambush zone. Just before the vanguard is due to enter the zone, the 1st Regiment will gallop through the zone and peel off into the forest on both sides. The Rangers’ timing will be destroyed, and we will finally get to bloody them. Everything must be planned in advance, though. There will be no signal to attack. The 1st Regiment will merely time the vanguard’s entry into the zone and act independent of the column. That way there will be nothing to tip off the Alceans until it is too late.”

  “It is risky,” frowned the captain, “but it might work.”

  “What is the risk?” retorted the colonel.

  “Instead of losing twenty random men,” the captain replied, “we might lose the whole 1st Regiment.”

  “Nonsense,” scowled the colonel. “Their attacks today are small scale. They are only using twenty men to snipe at us. Wherever the rest of the Rangers are, they are not watching this column. They are probably resting for what they expect will be a great battle tomorrow when we refuse their third chance to surrender. Order a short meal break. I will notify the 1st Regiment of their mission.”

  Captain Hahn notified the column of the meal break, and the soldiers fell out of the column. Unexpectedly, the soldiers did not seek the shade of the trees at the sides of the road. They took their meal break in the direct sun, in the center of the road. The captain had never seen such behavior before, but he knew the cause. The column was on the verge of mutiny. The men were scared, perhaps scared enough to refuse to battle the Alceans, and that put all of them in a very dangerous situation. While the captain did not expect the Alceans to kill men who were refusing to fight them, that would change after the third flag of truce. Mitar had been very specific on that point. If the third chance to surrender was rejected, every single soldier would die. There would be no exceptions. Captain Hahn knew that he could not let that happen, but he could not figure out a way to inform the men of the situation without scari
ng them even further. He was still dwelling on the problem when the meal break ended. As the men formed up the column, the captain rode forward to ride alongside Colonel Rhio.

  “Now we shall see how the Alceans like being toyed with,” the colonel said with a grin as he waved his hand in the air to start the column moving.

  The officers rode on in silence for a few minutes before Captain Hahn spoke. “I am worried about the morale of the men, Colonel,” he said softly. “Did you notice that they had their meal break in the center of the road?”

  “Did they?” the colonel asked distractedly as he gazed at the road ahead. “Don’t worry about it, Captain. Their morale will rise dramatically in the next few minutes. The 1st Regiment should start their attack momentarily.”

  The colonel was accurate in his timing. A few minutes later, the 1st Regiment unexpectedly broke from the ranks of the column and galloped forward, a thousand Federation riders intent on engaging the Alceans. The cavalry regiment split in two as the ridges rose alongside the road, each half taking to the woods on their side of the road. The captain expected them to find nothing, but he was wrong. As soon as the cavalry regiment entered the woods, twenty black-clad riders surged out of the forest and galloped southward.

  “I told you!” exclaimed the colonel. “Look at those cowards run.”

  The captain watched as the 1st Regiment quickly returned to the road and gave chase to the Alceans. He watched as first the Alceans disappeared in the distance and then the 1st Regiment disappeared as well.

  “I wonder if our boys will catch the Alceans,” pondered the captain. “They all appeared to riding Occans.”

  “The 1st Regiment will catch them,” the colonel replied confidently. “Occans or no, our boys are cavalry and they are good at what they do. Besides, I told them not to let any of the Alceans get away. It may take us a while to catch up to them, but I guarantee there will be twenty black-clad bodies on the road when we do.”

  The captain was not convinced, but he held his tongue as the column moved into the ambush zone that the Rangers had fled from. Without warning, hundreds of arrows streaked out of the forest, and chaos ruled the column. Some men dropped to the ground and tried to cover themselves with their shields. Some tried to return fire, and others merely stood and stared into the forest, seemingly incapable of reacting. Captain Hahn leaped off his horse and stood between his horse and the colonel’s horse. A moment later, he found Colonel Rhio standing beside him.

  “What treachery is this?” snarled the colonel.

  “The twenty fleeing Alceans were a ruse,” answered the captain as the attack faltered and died. “It is almost as if they knew exactly what we were planning.”

  “What are you saying?” asked the colonel. “Are you saying that we have a spy in our ranks?”

  “No, Colonel,” answered the captain. “I do not believe that to be the case, but I do find it curious that their tactics changed the moment that ours did. I wonder if they do have a mage after all, a mage with the ability to hear what we are saying.”

  Chapter 22

  Fear and Pride

  Captain Hahn was walking towards Colonel Rhio when he saw the 1st Regiment returning. He halted next to the colonel to hear the report.

  “We couldn’t catch them,” reported the commanding officer of the 1st Regiment. “Our horses are no match for those Occans. What happened here?” he asked as he saw the bodies littering the road.

  “They attacked right after you left,” Colonel Rhio replied wearily. “We have five hundred more dead and nothing to show for it. Give your horses a rest. We will be moving out within the hour.”

  The 1st Regiment officer nodded and led his men towards the center of the column. Colonel Rhio turned and saw the captain alongside him.

  “Is it wise to continue along this road?” asked the captain. “We are just doing exactly what the Alceans think we will do, and it is many days yet before we reach Calusa. When we do arrive, we will not be of much help to General Salaman, if he still commands an army.”

  “What are you saying?” scowled the colonel. “Our orders are to get to Calusa and help annihilate the rebels.”

  “So we are to die for the Karaminians?” questioned the captain. “Besides, it is not rebels that we are fighting. It is Alcean Rangers. Either Despair is unaware of this, or they are deceiving General Nazzaro. Either way, we cannot achieve what our orders were meant to achieve. We should return to Waxhaw.”

  “And admit failure?” balked the colonel. “I would become the laughingstock of the 31st Corps.”

  “But you would be alive,” the captain pointed out. The colonel frowned and opened his mouth to speak, but the captain held up his hand in a plea to continue. “I am not a coward, Colonel, and I know that you are not, either, but these Alceans have us beat. We can not even bloody them while they have their way with us. If we continue towards Calusa, the Rangers will once again raise the flag of truce. You will refuse to surrender because your pride will not allow it. In doing so, you will have condemned every single man in this column to death. Dead men do not serve the Federation very well, Colonel. The only way this portion of the 31st Corps can serve the Federation is to turn around and make haste towards Waxhaw.”

  “You want me to retreat in the face of the enemy?” scoffed Colonel Rhio.

  “Look over my shoulder, Colonel,” the captain said softly. “Look at the remnants of the 31st Corps. Those men are ready to bolt into the woods the moment the officers take their eyes off of them. We no longer have a fighting force. We have a bunch of scared men in Federation uniforms. The Rangers have played their hand rather well. The killing of forty sentries hit the men harder than losing eight hundred men to a sniping attack. If you try pushing these men towards Calusa, most of them will not be in the column come morning. Trust me on this. They will flee during the night.”

  “I think you are exaggerating,” retorted the colonel. “I am sure that some of them are afraid, but these lads are not deserters.”

  “They know that we will only receive three offers to surrender,” stated the captain, “and they know about the notes shoved into the sentries’ mouths. The men are not stupid, Colonel. If the Rangers show another white flag, you will lose control of your army. We must turn around and return to Waxhaw.”

  Colonel Rhio fell silent. He stared over the captain’s shoulder at the men and then turned to stare along the road southward towards Calusa. Eventually, he sighed deeply and nodded.

  “You are correct, Captain,” the colonel said wearily. “This column would be of no use in Calusa if we did manage to get it there. You are also right that I would not surrender. I would rather die than kneel before my enemy. Notify the unit commanders that we are turning around. I don’t have the stomach to face them right now.”

  Captain Hahn nodded sadly and turned to inform the column that they were returning home.

  * * * *

  Colonel Pfaff and General Forshire arrived at the Royal Palace in Waxhaw. The colonel led the general through the gates of the palace and to the office of King Daramoor. As he did so, he saw some of the Vinaforan soldiers pointing at the general and chuckling under their breath. He was embarrassed by their behavior, and he hoped that the general did not notice, but he felt as if General Forshire noticed everything. If the A Corps commander did notice, he did not let it show.

  “Report to your king as we discussed,” General Forshire said softly. “When you are done with your report, advise the king that General Forshire wishes to speak to him. I will wait here.”

  Clint sat on a bench in the corridor outside the king’s office, not far from the two guards flanking the door. Colonel Pfaff entered the office. Before he had a chance to speak, the king ordered one of the guards to get General Nazzaro. Colonel Pfaff knew enough to remain silent until the general arrived, which was only minutes later. When the general sat down, Colonel Pfaff began his report.

  “The rebels will no longer be a problem in Vinafor,” Colonel Pfaff decla
red. “I must report that we incurred severe casualties during the fighting. Fifteen hundred of our men will not be coming back to Waxhaw.”

  “Fifteen hundred?” gasped the general. “Are you that incompetent that you could throw away three fourths of your men to kill a handful of rebels?”

  “The merchant’s report was inaccurate,” Colonel Pfaff replied defensively. “The rebels numbered over three thousand.”

  “Three thousand?” frowned the king. “I had no idea that there were that many of them. What about General Blackmoor?”

  “His death was confirmed,” answered Colonel Pfaff, “but his body was unrecoverable. We managed to back the rebels up against the Lombardi River. I am afraid that the so-called general’s body was swept away with the flow of the river, but I saw him die myself. There is no doubt that he is dead.”

  “Well done, Pfaff,” congratulated the king. “You have proved to be quite resourceful.”

  “Thank you, Your Highness,” the colonel responded.

  “He lost fifteen hundred men,” objected the general. “How can you congratulate him? What are we to use for defense of the city now? We have but three thousand men left.”

  “King Daramoor,” interjected the colonel, “I happened to run across a Federation army on the Lombardi Road. They arrived at the tail end of the battle and helped us finish off the rebels. I took the liberty of inviting them to Waxhaw until General Tauman arrived with the 1st Corps. General Forshire of the A Corps is waiting outside to speak with you.”

  “Forshire?” glowered the general. “The A Corps is a bunch of misfits, not an army.”

  “He has two thousand men under his command,” retorted the colonel. “I thought that we could use the extra men until Colonel Rhio returns from Calusa.”

  “You have done well, Pfaff,” stated the king. “Send General Forshire in as you leave.”

  Colonel Pfaff saluted and withdrew from the room. He told General Forshire to go in, and Clint rose and entered the king’s office. He walked to the desk and sat in the chair next to General Nazzaro.