by H. J. Cronin
Ardag thought for a moment, stroking his moustache. 'I imagine that although Darkool has most likely taken all of Wilmurin, he will be nervous and paranoid. He is smart enough to fortify the coast.'
'Do you know of anywhere that could possibly have been overlooked?' Finnvid asked.
'No,' Ardag said, still thinking. He looked at his companions with a strange expression as an idea came to him. 'I don't know anywhere. I think Darkool will be quite thorough. My suggestion is to attack Selarmus – there is a harbour there as well as a beach, a perfect place to land an attacking force and run a land operation.'
'Are you mad?' snapped Bry. 'That town will be heavily fortified. Are you forgetting that I was there with Palar? The Black Widow runs the town.'
'Exactly,' Johan said, now understanding Ardag’s suggestion. 'If we take out the Black Widow, the north will be ours for the taking. By the time Darkool amasses a counter attack, we would have half the north back under our control.'
Ardag nodded with approval but Bry still protested, 'You think six thousand warriors are enough to accomplish such a task?'
'Bry,' Ardag started, 'you have seen these people fight and train. They can accomplish a lot more than a normal human being. I'd have one Mjorn warrior for every ten of the enemy.'
'I have trusted you this far, Ardag, I just hope it goes to plan,' Bry said, closing the matter.
'We will do our bit all right, Bry,' said Finnvid, 'We won't let you down, the Mjorn are made for war.'
Bry smiled and nodded, but before she could respond, the door to the hall burst open and two warriors came running in. They looked terrified and went straight to the chief.
'What is it?' Chief Folkmar demanded.
'Chief, there are demons by the boats, thirty or even forty of them,' one of the men said; the other looked down, afraid to look up.
'Assemble some men,' the Chief ordered. He picked up his warhammer and motioned for the others to follow.
A party of fifty Mjorn and the companions ran down to the boats; through the forest they thundered and then past the tree line and down to the pebble beach. None of them expected what they were about to see. The bay and the beach were full of longboats, ready for the long trip across the sea. Between some of the beached longboats stood a party of alvarians, Lady Lalo noticeable amongst them as well as Emperor Alantuas.
The Mjorn were brought to a standstill by the sight. Then Chief Folkmar bellowed, ‘Men! Form up – shield wall!’
Ardag held his hand up and looked to the chief, ‘Chief, I don’t think they are hostile to us. Allow them to speak. We know the female elf that stands with them, she is Lady Lalo, mother of Larko.’
‘Aye,’ the chief said cautiously. ‘We will grant them audience.’ He looked around at his men and whistled one of his captains over. ‘Tell the archers to prepare to fire if anything goes sour. I will take a dozen men along with the outlanders to meet these blue creatures.’
The small party left the Mjorn shield wall and approached the small cluster of alvarians. The mer people had not moved or prepared for combat, they stood there motionless in their bronze armour as the Mjorn approached them.
Larko was quick to embrace his mother, but the two parties stood apart. Chief Folkmar spoke first, ‘Greetings, outlanders, I am Chief Folkmar of the Mjorn, what is the reason for your arrival?’
The alvarian emperor stood forward, ‘I am Emperor Alantuas, the lifelong emperor of the alvarian race. I have come to speak to Johan the Night Hunter and Ardag the druid mage.’
The chief nodded and the two men stepped forward. ‘Greetings once again, Emperor,’ said Ardag, bowing.
‘Greetings, Ardag. I have a proposition for you and your people.’
‘Go on,’ Ardag said, intrigued.
‘You say the whole world is in danger?’ Emperor Alantuas asked, and Ardag only nodded in response. ‘After much thought and debate, it has been agreed by the higher council that the alvarians will play a part in this war.’
Ardag was clearly shocked by the revelation; he didn’t know what to say so Johan spoke in his place, ‘In what way?’
The emperor smiled, ‘For the first time in our history, the grand army has been assembled and will invade Wilmurin, with you at our helm.’
‘How is this possible?’ Ardag said, dumbfounded. ‘How can we ever repay you?’
Lady Lalo then spoke, ‘We have entered into an alliance with the alvarians, their interests lie with the safety of our world and if this means going to war, they’re willing to give their lives.’
‘It’s true,’ Emperor Alantuas added, ‘We have an army of three quarters of a million troops, battle readied and armoured. We move when you are ready. It will take our numbers to change the course of this war and make a stand against High Count Darkool.’
Bry clapped her hands together, unable to contain her excitement. ‘With this army by our side we can now truly be a threat to Darkool.’
Johan looked at the emperor cautiously, less enthusiastic than the others. ‘May I ask, Emperor, what you will achieve from a victory on our side?’ The others looked at him questioningly.
‘What do you mean?’ the emperor asked curiously.
‘I mean to say, Emperor, before, you were adamant that you would not take part in this war. What has changed?’ questioned Johan.
‘After speaking intently with Lady Lalo, I came to the conclusion that an intervention by my race could change the course of this war,’ replied the emperor, not dropping the smile on his face. ‘You need my people, Johan.’
‘If we are victorious and Darkool is defeated, will you return home? Or will you stay and just become another overseer of the druids,’ Johan spoke without blinking; the emperor returned his look with intrigue.
‘You fear a betrayal?’ enquired the emperor.
‘I am curious as to your motive for coming to our aid – a victory on our behalf will leave us in your debt.’
Ardag decided it was time to intervene, ‘Come Johan, the emperor and his people mean well. Why do you question their purpose?’
‘Because Lady Lalo was his prisoner, now she stands by his side,’ responded Johan, looking at Lady Lalo.
Lady Lalo looked up at him. ‘Johan, if I may,’ she started. ‘The emperor and I have had many discussions, and I have shown him the impending danger. How do you and a handful of these warriors plan to overthrow an enemy that numbers more than one hundred times your force? Johan, put your trust in the emperor as much as you have me.’
‘Johan, I am on your side,’ added the emperor.
‘I do not doubt whose side he is on,’ Johan answered Lady Lalo without looking at the emperor. ‘I only doubt his plans after potential victory.’
‘My plans are to return to the sea, should a victory be won,’ the emperor said, holding his hands up.
‘You see Johan,’ Lady Lalo said with a smile, ‘The alvarians are our salvation. Without them, there can be no victory.’
‘She’s right, Johan,’ said Ardag, patting his friend on the shoulder. ‘Put aside your doubts, these people fed us and looked after us, they are not the enemy.’
‘I suppose you are right, though I am still not convinced’ Johan responded grudgingly, and bowed. ‘Thank you, Emperor, for your offer, we need all the help we can get.’
‘Well thank Drugar!’ Bry said happily.
Over the next day or so the alvarians and the Mjorn became acquainted, and Lady Lalo was ecstatic to be reunited with her son. Plans were made for the invasion. They all agreed upon Selarmus being the target. The alvarians soon returned to the sea to prepare. The six thousand Mjorn prepared their armour and weapons, and the army began embarking on their ships; sixty longships in total were to travel across the sea.
The companions stood with Chief Folkmar, Lady Lalo, Finnvid, and Larko. Ardag stood before them and smiled at each of them. Johan was aware of the change in Ardag – he didn’t seem the same man that Johan had known all this time. The magic was growing inside him and Joh
an feared it would one day take over.
Ardag spoke to them all in a loud, clear, proud voice, ‘So we have it, the Night Hunter has his army, we embark on a crusade against Darkool. A force that doesn’t quite match his in number, but is superior to him in courage and strength, takes the fight back to him. No longer will the druids be enslaved and the world be in danger. Together, unified, we sail for Wilmurin and to war!’