“Nice,” states Ceadric approvingly.
“Get them distributed among the packhorses,” Illan tells them. “We can’t afford to linger here.”
“Yes, sir,” the rider says. Then he and the wagon move to the center of the column where the packhorses are kept for safety. With the help of others they begin the transference of the crossbows and bolts.
“That’s going to come in handy,” states Jiron. Having come up behind James while they were paused on the road, he saw the wagon load of crossbows as it headed for the packhorses.
“More is always better,” agrees James.
By the time they’ve been transferred, the men who were left in camp finally join up with them. While waiting to resume their progress toward Korazan, James goes over to Brother Willim and the rest of the Hand.
“The force from Al-Zynn rides a few hours behind us,” he says as he draws close.
Two members of the Hand nod as Brother Willim replies, “That’s not going to leave you much time at Korazan.”
“I know,” states James. He glances from Brother Willim to the others and then his eyes settle back on Brother Willim. “I have an idea of how to slow them down.”
“Oh?” says Brother Willim questioningly.
“Are you game?” he asks.
“What do you have in mind?”
Illan continues with the rest of the force while James, the Hand of Asran, and Jiron with his fighters from The Ranch stay behind to set up a few surprises. James was at first annoyed by the lack of help from the Hand when he first began to lay down what he wanted. He saw what they did against the warrior priest back at Lythylla and expected them to do something similar now.
“We do not kill men,” Brother Willim states adamantly when asked if they could do something against the approaching force. “The warrior priest was an entirely different matter.” But they work out a few things they could do without compromising the sanctity of life.
Now, two hours later, they wait just within visual distance of the section of the road where the caravan lies destroyed. Jiron figured the Empire’s men would take a few moments to examine the wreckage before they continue the chase on the off chance someone was left alive.
“Here they come,” says Stig as he returns from his lookout position by the road.
The force comes into view with the three mages riding in the lead. Coming up behind the mages is a force of cavalrymen over a thousand strong. Their foot soldiers are still hours behind, following as best they can.
When the mages take notice of the destroyed caravan and the dead bodies of those who fought back, their approach slows. Moving closer to the wagons, soldiers begin dismounting as they search for survivors.
“Any time now,” whispers James under his breath. To Brother Willim he says, “When it begins, that’s your cue.”
“We’ll be ready,” he replies. He and the rest of the Hand gather together, a subtle green glow springs into being around them. James can feel the unmistakable tingling of nearby magic as the Hand makes ready.
At that time, one of the mages suddenly sits erect in his saddle as he gazes in their direction. “One senses the magic,” he tells them. “I just hope he…”
Crumph! Crumph! Crumph! Crumph!
All along the road in the vicinity of the wrecked caravan, crystals which James had secreted earlier, respond with violent explosions when they detected the mage casting a spell.
James glances over to Brother Willim and gives him a nod indicating it’s time.
The green glow surrounding the Hand intensifies tenfold as they summon the power of Asran. Cries are heard from the horses as ants, millions of ants, swarm out of the ground and up their legs. Green shoots also spring out of the ground from the seeds which the brothers had sowed earlier, causing even more confusion and panic.
Horses try to run but their legs become entangled in the rapidly growing thorn bushes. Men scream as their horses rear and throw them into the carpet of ants covering the ground. No sooner does a man hit the ground then the ants are upon him, crawling inside the armor and begin biting. Nothing lethal but these are fire ants and each bite brings pain.
The dust which had been thrown into the air by the explosions begins to dissipate. One mage lies on the ground, the one who had initiated the blasts in the first place, and it doesn’t look as if he’s getting back up. The other mage who was near him at the time of the explosion is rolling on the ground, his hands flying fast as they try to get the ants off him.
The remaining mage was bucked off his horse when the explosion happened and managed to land without injury. He now stands safely just outside the perimeter of the ant swarm. James can feel the tingling spike as he works to counter the magic wielded by the Hand.
“How long can you keep this up?” James asks Brother Willim.
“His power is not nearly as great as ours,” he replies. “As long as you require.”
Jiron comes to him as he continues watching the events unfolding by the road. “Are you thinking what I think you are?” he asks.
“One mage down, another incapacitated by the ants, and the third locked in a duel with the Hand,” he says and then turns his attention to his friend. “We may never have a better chance.” The enemy force is in total chaos. Between the ants and the thorn bushes which continue to grow, most of the force is out of action.
Jiron gives him a grin and turns to the rest of the riders. “Mount up!” he yells.
“Yeah!” shouts Potbelly as he jumps into the saddle and draws his sword.
“We get in, take out the mages and then retreat,” James says to the others when he gains his saddle. “Now ride!”
With a whoop and holler, the fighters from The Ranch break into a gallop and charge. The enemy mage is quick to take notice of their attack and halts his attempt to counter the Hand. Turning his full attention to the attackers, he raises his hands and a greenish black globular substance forms before him. Moving with incredible speed, the substance flies toward the approaching riders.
James summons the magic and forms one of his protective barriers around the airborne mass, completely encompassing it. Nudging its trajectory slightly with another burst of power, he has it hit the ground far to their left. Once the barrier encased goo comes to rest on the ground, he releases the spell and sets the goo free where it sizzles and burns upon the ground.
He feels another spike when they are halfway there and this time the ground shakes violently, their horses begin to lose their balance and footing.
“We got company!” Shorty hollers out as a force of several score enemy riders appear riding hard from the rear of the force around the edge of the ant swarm.
A memory comes to mind and rather than attempting a direct confrontation with the mage, he selects a point within the swarm of ants.
Crumph!
Letting the magic go, the earth erupts in a massive explosion sending dirt and a cloud of ants into the air. A portion of the flying mass of dirt and ants is headed directly for the mage. Just then, Scar’s horse loses its battle with the shaking ground and stumbles, sending him to the ground.
When the mass of dirt and ants hit the mage, James feels the tingling stop as hundreds of ants begin crawling and biting all over the mages body. No one could possibly maintain concentration while beset by hundreds of stinging fire ants.
Their horses once again pick up speed as the ground quiets. Potbelly slows and glances back to his friend Scar who’s already off the ground and has his horse’s reins in hand. “You okay?” Potbelly hollers back to him.
Swinging into the saddle, Scar yells, “Of course!” Kicking the sides of his horse, he’s soon caught up to Potbelly and together they ride to catch the others.
“Uther, Jorry,” James yells to the pair. “You two stay with me.” Then to Jiron he says, “Take out those mages, we’ll slow down the riders.”
“You got it,” Jiron replies.
Turning to face the onrushing riders, James reaches into his po
uch. Pulling forth one of the two remaining crystals, he makes a conduit from the darkly glowing crystal to himself. Feeling the power rush into him, he immediately sends it forth to a point directly before the oncoming riders.
Ka-Boom!!!
An explosion of massive proportion detonates under the leading edge of the force. Riders, horses and debris are thrown into the air, their screams and cries only silencing when they slam back into the ground.
James glances back to Jiron’s force and find them already at the mages. Unable to defend themselves with magic, they fall quickly. Many of the soldiers, covered in hundreds of welts from the bites of the fire ants, have managed to disengage themselves from the thorns and are beginning to engage them.
A quick glance back to the settling dust of the massive explosion, he doesn’t see anything moving. “Let’s go and help our friends,” he says.
With a cry, Jorry and Uther turn their horses and the three race back to the growing battle. More and more of the soldiers are extricating themselves and are moving to engage Jiron and the others.
All three of the mages lie still upon the ground, their heads severed from their bodies. There can be no doubt now as to whether they will pose a future threat. When James comes within shouting distance, he cries out, “Disengage! Retreat!”
As he slows down and pulls a slug from his belt, Jorry and Uther race past him. Scar and Potbelly are faced off against six opponents and they race to their aid. Seated upon their horses, they are able to keep the enemy soldiers at bay but are unable to disengage without grave risk to life and limb.
Just as Jorry and Uther reach them, a slug flies past and takes out one of the enemy soldiers. Charging through the enemy, they allow Scar and Potbelly the opportunity to disengage. Scar strikes out at his remaining opponent with his sword and severs the man’s left arm.
“Let’s go!” Jiron yells.
James launches three more slugs and then the rest of his men are able to break away safely. A quick count shows no one was lost, many have wounds seeping blood but nothing that looks life threatening.
“Think that will slow them down?” Yern asks with a laugh.
Behind them, the scene remains one of confusion and chaos as horses and men continue in their attempt to rid themselves of burning, biting ants.
“I would think so,” laughs Shorty.
Back at where they left the Hand, they find them already in the saddle and waiting for them. The green glow that was present when they left is now gone.
“Where did all those ants come from?” Stig asks Brother Willim.
Indicating the ground he says, “In the ground beneath our feet are countless insects and animals. They are Asran’s creatures and will do his bidding.”
“Fascinating,” remarks Jorry. Uther nods in agreement.
“Let’s save this for later,” Jiron announces. “We better catch up with the others before too much longer.” With that, he kicks the side of his horse and breaks into a gallop. The others are quick to follow.
Behind them, the enemy riders decide not to give chase and begin giving aid to their comrades.
Chapter Fifteen
“You’re really something you know,” Illan says when they finally rejoin the main force and tell him what happened.
“Actually most of the credit should go to Brother Willim and the Hand,” replies James. “It was the ants that caused the mages to be unable to focus well enough to control the magic.”
He barks out with laughter. “I know that to be true,” he says, still chuckling. “When I was a young lad I fell asleep in an area swarming with them. I must have moved in my sleep for they started biting me. By the time I made it to the nearest pond and dove in, I had welts from head to toe. Miserable buggers.”
From behind they can hear Scar and Potbelly recounting the events to the rest of the men. Of course from their version you would think they had killed the mages all by themselves, not to mention the hundred or more soldiers they had slain. James just grins and shakes his head, by this time no one really takes what they say as fact. He still wants to call them on one of their wild claims but so far hasn’t been able to.
Pulling out his mirror, he checks the force behind them and discovers they are still by the road where the attack occurred. From the looks of them, it doesn’t seem as if they are in any hurry to proceed. He then scans in a full circle for any enemy forces but only comes up with more desert. There are civilians traveling here and there, none likely to cross their path.
He scrolls the image as far west as he can before the drain of magic becomes too great in an attempt to find Korazan but isn’t able to reach that far. “Looks like there’s nothing close,” he tells Illan as he replaces his mirror back in his pack.
“That’s good news,” he replies. “If we move fast enough, we may be able to stay ahead of the word of our approach.”
Nodding, James rides in silence for awhile. Behind him, he can hear Jiron as he talks with Aleya.
“I took out one of the mages myself,” he boasts. Riding along beside her, he glances out of the corner of his eye for any spark of reaction to what he just said. Nothing. She simply continues riding along, pointedly ignoring him.
He never was one to boast of his deeds before. In fact, he can’t remember ever doing it before just now, at least not for the sole purpose of impressing someone. Why does this woman affect him so? He’s drawn to her but it seems as if nothing he does has any effect. Back when he and James had first encountered her in the hills near Mountainside she was friendly to him. He even felt they were growing closer. Yet here they were, separated by something completely unfathomable to him. After riding along beside her for several more minutes, he sighs and then slows to drop back.
“You okay?” Delia’s voice comes to him as she moves to ride alongside him.
“Yeah,” he says in a voice not quite convincing.
Delia takes in the way he keeps glancing at Aleya and tries to hide the grin that is threatening to come forth. She’s been watching his attempt at becoming closer to her and is pretty sure she knows what’s keeping him from achieving it. But she’s not quite sure how to tell him.
“I thought you and Aleya liked each other?” she asks.
“We do!” he blurts out with more force than he wanted. Face turning red, he turns his gaze to her and adds, “At least I do.”
“Then what’s the problem?” she asks.
“I don’t know,” he replies. “I try talking to her and all I get is silence. At first she and I hit it off, but then things began to cool until now it’s absolutely frigid.”
“What do you talk about?” she asks.
“Oh, the war. The adventures James and I have had, my time in the Pits,” he tells her.
The grin she’s been holding back is all but breaking through the barriers she’s erected in an effort not to make him feel bad. “Do you ever talk about her?”
“What?” he asks.
“Have you ever asked her a question about her life? Her thoughts?” She pauses a moment to let that sink in. “There are many different types of women in this world,” she explains. “Most of the ones you’ve been acquainted with probably have cooed and gone all mushy when you tell them of your exploits.”
“Isn’t that what women want?” he asks in all seriousness.
A soft laughter breaks through her barrier. Shaking her head she says, “Not one such as Aleya. If you want her, you need to think of her as more of an equal. She needs to feel you are interested in her as a person.”
He turns to look at her, a thoughtful expression playing across his face.
“Ask her about her life, her past, what she hopes for the future,” she goes on. “And for goodness sake, just listen when she talks. Don’t interrupt or she will think you aren’t interested in what she’s saying. Your deeds gained her interest, but alone they won’t gain her heart.”
Nodding, he begins to see where he’s gone wrong. “Thanks,” he says to her.
“Just be patient. That’s the most important thing a man can do where a woman is involved.”
“I will,” he assures her then nudges his horse to move up the line to ride next to Aleya.
“Think he’ll listen?” Errin asks as she pulls up next to her.
“We’ll see,” states Delia.
Up ahead they watch as Jiron pulls next to her and says something. Delia holds her breath in expectation until Aleya slightly turns her head in Jiron’s direction and replies. Both Delia and Errin let go their pent up breath at the same time.
“She really does like him,” Errin states.
“I know,” replies Delia. “We were talking about just that thing a few days ago. He only needed to be shown the way.”
“Just hope he doesn’t make a mess of it,” says Errin.
“Of course he will, he’s a man,” Delia says and then turns to Errin with a grin. “They can’t help themselves.”
At that they break out into soft laughter at the expense of all males everywhere.
Throughout the rest of the day they continue to push on toward Korazan. James periodically checks the surrounding area for any hostiles which may be on an intercept course. But other than the odd traveler, there doesn’t appear to be anyone around. Just after their midday break to give the horses a breather, he discovers that the force they ambushed back at the road is once again on the move after them, though half a day behind. Now augmented by the foot soldiers that have caught up with them from Al-Zynn, they outnumber them by more than two to one. On the plus size, in order to keep their two forces together, they have to travel at the speed of the foot soldiers which is greatly less than a horse and thus will continue to fall further behind.
“If they get too close we’ll have to slow them down again,” James states.
Nodding, Illan replies, “At the rate they’ll be moving, it isn’t likely going to be a problem.”
Occasionally their scouts report forces on the move which James readily finds once he knows where to look. They’re never more than a score or two and none are heading in their direction.
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