Behind them, the riders continue to close the gap, now only thirty yards away. Fortunately they are as hampered by the ebb and flow of the refugees as James and Jiron are so are unable to gain any faster.
Then all of a sudden the river appears ahead of them. James looks with horror at the jam packed bridge crossing over the river full of women, children and the elderly.
Jiron sees it too and yells, “You have no choice!” When he sees James hesitating, he shouts, “Do it!”
No! Focusing on the ground to either side of the bridge, he lets the magic flow…
Crumph! Crumph!
…the earth erupts in two massive explosions. The refugees scream in fear as they flee. Tweaking the dust from the eruptions, he forms it into a humanoid figure twice the size of a man and has it begin to stalk toward the bridge. That’s enough for even the bravest of those still upon the bridge. At the sight of the twelve foot tall creature walking toward them, they turn tail and race for the other side.
By the time James and Jiron reach the bridge, the area is in total chaos. The creature has reached the edge of the bridge and is beginning to walk across. James aims for the bridge and races right through the dust formed creature. As he exits through the creature and begins to cross the bridge, he cancels the spell. Hooves thundering, they race across to the other side. A gathering of people has formed a little ways from the beginning of the bridge and he has to slow in order not to run them down. With Jiron right behind, he clears the bridge and turns to the right.
Behind them, the enemy riders have already gained the bridge and are crossing fast.
Crumph! Crumph! Crumph!
Three explosions rip through the center span of the bridge. The people cry out in fear as horses, riders and stone erupt into the air. James slows as he gazes back. With a crack, the center span of the bridge collapses into the river below. On the far side of the river, the enemy riders who had yet to begin crossing over come to a quick halt. None made it to the other side.
“James!” Jiron cries out when he sees several of the riders on the other side of the river remove crossbows from behind their saddles. Turning their fatigued horses from the river, they break into a gallop and head for the open desert. The people on the road part quickly to avoid being run over. Soon, they are out of crossbow range and the river is disappearing quickly behind them.
Chapter Twenty Seven
______________________
Since leaving Korazan behind, Illan has led the Black Hawk Raiders along the road north. With a wagon train stretching out over a half mile, not to mention the freed slaves that he’s brought with him, they have moved at a crawl.
From the weapon stores of the slavers and the dead bodies of the enemy soldiers, they were able to equip most of the freed men with armor and weapons. Those who had never wielded a weapon before were given crossbows and formed into squads. The women, children, and the few elderly stayed within the center of the column as it marched northward toward Madoc.
Among the freed slaves, jubilation reigns. When before all they had to look forward to was a life of misery and servitude, now they are free with the hopes of remaining that way. Surely if anyone can bring them forth out of the Empire alive and well, Black Hawk can.
The rest accompanying him have a more realistic appreciation of the situation. They know there are still forces that yet lie between them and Madoc. None believe they’ll simply be allowed to walk to safety. It’s simply a matter of time before sufficient forces gather to strike.
Scouts are out in every direction and so far haven’t reported sighting any other sizeable force. When a patrol or caravan comes within striking distance, Ceadric takes several hundred Raiders and takes them out. Whenever the enemy is destroyed, they strip the dead of their armor and weapons. They then take them back and arm what freed slaves that are still without.
During their trek northward, the towns they encounter are quickly taken. Soldiers are killed, slaves are freed and given the opportunity to join them, and the shops are raided for much needed supplies. A force this large goes through food quickly. Illan gave the order that civilians are not to be accosted under any circumstances. Any who give them problems were to be brought to him for judgment.
So far the process has worked fairly well. The first town they raided after Korazan, a couple of the new, younger raiders took advantage of a young woman. When brought before Illan, the young men pleaded their innocence but too many had witnessed them taking her into the building. Illan pronounced them guilty and left their bodies hanging from the eaves of the building where the woman was attacked as an example to the rest. Since them, there have been no reports of any molestation of civilians by any of his men.
Another item the scouts were on a lookout for were bridges. The sack of crystals containing the explosive ones James had left him is now all but empty. Only two crystals remain. Whenever a bridge was sighted, he sent Ceadric with the sack of crystals to take out the bridge. He and his men would ride up to the bridge where he would toss a crystal onto the center span. Ten seconds later the crystal would explode leaving a large hole in the center. A few were made more sturdily and required two of the crystals to destroy it.
Earlier this morning while they were on the move, scouts reported the fortress of Al-Ziron was but two days ahead of them. A force of over a thousand men was estimated to be garrisoned there. Unwilling to tackle a fortified fortress, he makes the decision to leave the road and head cross country to the northeast. With any luck he and his men will be too large for them to attack, and those soldiers will remain where they are, allowing them to pass by.
The wagons rolling along behind him are filled to brimming with water and food for the horses and people. It’s unlikely they will be able to forage for anything else from here on out. No more towns lie between where they are and Madoc. Any that used to be here were destroyed when the Empire came through last year.
Riding behind his banner are still over five hundred Raiders, those are all that’s left from the many battles fought since they first entered the Empire. The slaves number close to a thousand; three hundred crossbowmen, five hundred bearing weapons of one type or another, and the rest is made up of the women, children and elderly. The elderly are suffering the trip the most. So far he’s had to leave close to a dozen on the side of the road in a shallow grave after they died from the exertion of the trip.
His mind wanders while he rides, wondering where James is and if he’s even still alive. Did this crazy plan work? Are Madoc’s forces even now pushing the Empire out? But what’s most on his mind is the threat of attack. They’ve been extremely lucky so far. How long is that going to last though? The closer they come to the border, the more likely that they will be hit and hit hard!
“Sir!” a scout cries as he rides up from the south.
“Report,” Illan says as the man draws near.
“A score of riders comes from the south,” reports the scout. “They don’t look like soldiers, rather civilians.”
From where Miko rides next to Illan he asks, “What were they wearing?”
“Most had on robes of one kind or another,” he replies.
Illan glances to Miko, he understands the significance of that. “How far away are they?”
“A day, maybe more. They are moving only slightly faster than we are,” he explains.
“Very well,” replies Illan. “Return and keep an eye on them. If they should begin moving faster, return to let us know immediately.”
Giving a smart salute, the scout says, “Yes, sir.” Then he turns his horse and gallops back to the south.
“Mages you think?” Miko asks though he already knows the answer.
“Would think so,” Illan states. “Moving slow though, that bothers me.”
“Why?” questions Miko.
Illan glances to him and says, “It most likely means they’re pacing us until other forces arrive then all will attack together.” After a moment he adds, “Tell Ceadric and Delia I want t
o talk to them. Oh, and have Brother Willim come too.”
Miko gives him a nod and then goes to find them.
Ceadric is the first to make his appearance. “What’s up?” he asks.
“Tell you when the others join us,” replies Illan.
They wait for several more minutes before first Delia joins them then Miko returns with Brother Willim in tow.
Continuing to ride, Illan has them move ahead of the column so he won’t be overheard. “Scouts have reported a score of mages approaching from the rear,” he tells them.
“A score?” asks Ceadric in surprise. “They’ve never committed that many at one time.”
“You must be causing them difficulties for them to commit so many,” suggests Brother Willim.
“Indeed,” replies Illan.
“Are they close?” Delia asks.
“Right now they’re about a day behind and are pacing us,” he replies.
“We think they may be waiting for reinforcements before attacking,” pipes up Miko.
Illan nods. “That’s right.” To Ceadric he says, “Send scouts further out. We need to know what’s on the way. The scouts currently behind us are keeping an eye on them and will let us know if they make a move to quicken their pace.”
“That would mean whatever they are planning is about to happen,” comments Ceadric.
Illan nods to Ceadric who moves to get the scouts underway then turns to Miko and Brother Willim. “Can you handle them in the event of an attack?”
“Twenty?” considers Brother Willim. “I don’t think so. It would depend on how strong they are.”
“I’m not sure what I can do against magic,” admits Miko. “The Star works well against otherworldly creatures, but flesh and blood?” He pauses a second before continuing, “I just don’t know.”
“Whether or not we can readily defeat them is immaterial,” states Brother Willim. “If we wait for other reinforcements to arrive the situation will only get worse. I say we turn back and deal with them now while our chances are the highest.”
“I agree,” says Delia. “The longer we wait the worse it will become.”
Glancing to the sky, Illan says, “It’s still an hour before noon. Let’s wait a couple hours to see if Ceadric’s scouts find anything. If not, we’ll turn around and attack.”
“And if they do?” asks Miko.
“Then we’ll adjust our plans accordingly,” he replies. “Return to your people and be ready.”
They break up and return to the column. Illan resumes his place at the head while the others rejoin their groups to inform them of what’s going on.
With a possible attack imminent, Illan has the column tighten up and posts Raiders on either end. They stop at noon for a brief rest and lunch break, can’t afford to have everyone tired and hungry if the battle should begin soon.
They no sooner come to a stop and begin handing out rations than a rider comes galloping from the northwest. At the sight of the fast approaching rider, Illan and the other leaders move to greet him.
“Milord!” the rider cries out as he comes to a stop before Illan. “There’s a force of foot and cavalry on the other side of the river to the west. They were about to cross over a bridge when it suddenly exploded and collapsed!”
“James!” cries Miko in jubilation. “It has to be.”
“Did you see three riders racing away from the bridge on this side?” Illan asks.
Shaking his head the scout replies, “No. The whole area was so packed with refugees fleeing your approach that I didn’t notice, we weren’t that close. I left Gouric to keep an eye on the army across the river. When they could no longer use the bridge, they began moving north.”
“This changes things,” observes Miko.
Nodding, Illan says to the scout, “Return and let us know when and where that army makes it to this side of the river.”
Giving Illan a salute, the scout turns and races back the way he came.
“Ceadric, send out scouts to see if they can find James and let him know where we are,” he says.
“Yes, sir,” replies Ceadric who immediately moves to comply.
“Could that have been the force those mages are waiting for?” asks Miko.
“Possibly,” states Illan. “But I’m not willing to bet on it. However, I think before we begin any attack on the mages we should wait until James rejoins us.”
“That would be a good idea,” states Miko.
As a dozen men race off to the north to hunt for James, Illan keeps the column moving ever closer to Madoc.
Ever since they crossed the river, James and Jiron have holed up in an abandoned farmhouse. Their horses were all but collapsing after the grueling race they ran to the river. Outside, the moon has risen and its light casts shadows across night’s landscape.
Before darkness set in he used his mirror and found Illan and the others already setting up camp for the night. Still several hours to the south, he and Jiron had decided to rest through the night to give their horses a chance to recover their strength before rejoining the others.
The force they left on the far side of the river had reached a bridge two hours before dusk and crossed over. They then moved south a couple more miles before stopping. When they crossed the river, a rider was dispatched to the fort. Shortly after his arrival forces from the fortress began moving to join the others. Now together, the two forces number close to ten thousand men.
As if that wasn’t bad enough, another force was sighted moving toward Illan from the east. Composed of cavalry, they numbered in excess of two thousand. The good news is that there didn’t look like a mage was traveling with either force. It would be bad enough with just that many men, but throw a mage into the mix and James isn’t sure how well it would go.
His supply of crystals is now gone. Whatever is left with Delia and Illan is all that remains from the supply he brought from The Ranch. He fervently hopes they didn’t use all of it, they’ll need it when they encounter the forces moving to intercept them.
The farmhouse they are using has been long abandoned. The roof has collapsed on one side and the walls look like they will collapse at any time. The door that once stood in the doorway has long since disappeared. Jiron stands at one of the two windows and gazes out into the night. James lies back on his blanket and stares at the stars shining through one of the many gaps in the ceiling.
“They’re going to attack tomorrow,” Jiron says. Worry for his sister and friends gnaws at him.
“Our horses should be sufficiently rested by morning,” James tells him. “We’ll rejoin them before the battle.”
“I hope so,” he stresses.
“If we get through this battle, we’re home free,” says James encouragingly.
“I just wish Tersa had remained with Roland,” Jiron sighs as he turns from the window to glance at James. “What was she thinking?”
Turning his head to look at his friend, James grins. “Who knows what girls think?” he wonders. “She’s a strong woman, in lots of way like her brother.”
“Headstrong and stubborn?” grins Jiron back.
“Something like that,” he replies with a chuckle.
From outside, the sound of a lone horse is heard approaching the farmhouse. James immediately cancels his orb as he gets to his feet.
“Stay here,” Jiron whispers as he pulls a knife and moves to the open doorway. Gazing out, he sees a horseman silhouetted by the moonlight. The man has come to a stop and is staring at the house, probably trying to figure out why the light went out. His hands remain free of weapons as he continues to scrutinize the house.
Moving along the inside wall of the farmhouse, Jiron makes his way over to the window on the opposite side. Slipping through, he lands on the ground outside silently and makes his way back around to the front. When he gets to the corner he peers around to find the man still sitting there.
Suddenly, an orb flashes into being above the man’s head, startling him. He draws his sword
and makes to flee.
“Wait!” cries out Jiron as he places his knife back in its sheath. The man is obviously from the north.
James realizes the same thing and comes out from the house. “We’re friends!” he hollers a second behind Jiron. The orb above the man’s head winks out as another appears over James’ shoulder.
“James?” the man asks.
Stepping forward, James nods his head.
Sighing in relief, the man says, “You scared me out of ten year’s growth.”
“Sorry,” he apologizes.
“No harm done,” the man replies. “We’ve had riders out looking for you ever since you blew the bridge earlier today.”
“Are you from Black Hawk?” Jiron asks.
“That’s right,” the man says. “Was supposed to let you know where he is.”
“We already know,” explains James. “Tell him our horses are exhausted and we will be there in the morning. Also, there’s a sizeable force a half a day away to the north. Another one is closing on him from the east, at least two thousand riders strong.”
“With the mages coming from the south this could get bad,” the rider comments.
“Mages?” asks James. “What mages?” He glances to Jiron and sees the worry in his eyes.
“Heard from another scout that had come from the south that there are a score of them,” he explains.
“How close were they?” Jiron asks.
“Last I heard they were a day away,” he tells him. “But that was this morning and at the time they weren’t making any effort to catch us, just keeping pace.”
James thinks for a minute then says, “Tell Illan to stay where he is and prepare for attack. We’ll get there as soon as it’s light. Hopefully no attack will come before then.”
“Yes, sir,” the scout says then turns his horse around and gallops away into the night.
Jiron hears a sigh escape James. Glancing over to him he arcs an eyebrow questioningly.
Shades of the Past: The Morcyth Saga Book Six Page 39