Portals of Infinity: Book Five: Demigods and Deities

by John Van Stry

  "No, they're under your command, William. Apparently King Charles agrees with your assessment, and has released his troops to follow your orders."

  I nodded slowly, not sure if I should applaud or swear. Charles had just made me responsible for winning this thing for him. Of course Rachel had done that already, and Fel was expecting nothing less. Well I wasn't going home, so it was time to go big.

  "How many men does that give us?"

  "We have ten thousand of the queen's regular army, another ten thousand of the Hiland Levy, forty-five hundred cavalry, and then there are the Holden troops, they have twenty thousand regular, and thirty thousand levy."

  "I had no idea Holden had such a large army," I said surprised.

  "They're just as big as Hiland, Will," First Carso said, "And they've got all of theirs right here, were we need it."

  "Have riders been sent out to inform General Holse of our situation?" General Holse was sitting in Rivervail, with the other two-thirds of the Hiland army, in case Barassa decided to try and come farther up the river, prior to attacking. We didn't think they would, but none of us wanted to take that chance.

  "Yes, they were sent out when you left to sleep."

  I nodded again, "Carso, make sure the men are ready to go when they break camp. We'll ride ahead of the main body. I'm going to want to look around myself."

  "Yessir," He said and saluting he left to go check on the men.

  "I'd like go take a look across the valley before the sun sets," I said to First Wyland. "Could you have someone show me where your lookouts are positioned?"

  "Sure thing, William."

  He called over one of his sergeants, and he led me up a long path to the crest of the mountain we were on. It was about a twenty-minute walk.

  I looked out over the horizon, the entire river valley was laid out in front of me, and it really was quite the view. The last time I'd seen something as impressive was when I'd stood on the observation deck of the World Trade Center in New York City. Everything just dropped off and it was open for miles and miles.

  "Don't ship captains have devices for seeing across the distances?" I asked one of the men sighting off into the distance. None of them had anything beyond their own eyeballs.

  "I wouldn't know about that, Sir," he replied. The Sergeant behind me coughed.

  "Yes, Sergeant?" I asked looking at him.

  "I have heard of such devices, Sir, but I have also heard that they are rather expensive and that the quality is poor."

  I nodded, if they existed here, that meant I could get somebody to buy me a few, and then I could see about improving them. While the rules said I couldn't bring in new technology, they didn't say anything about my improving on what was already here.

  Then again, I didn't know much about lens grinding. Oh well, guess I'd talk to Sorin about it later, he was the one who dealt with ships for the kingdom.

  I turned my attention back to the view, and started to look at what I could see before me. It was late in the day, and the sun was only a few hours from setting.

  I could see the town that the Barassan army had taken, there were still a few fires burning down there, and I could see the boats crossing the river. The point where they were launching from was quite a ways off, and it was hard to get any idea of how many people were gathered there.

  I turned and looked west up the river. I could see all the towns up along the river, the farms, and even make out quite a few houses. I was fairly certain that I could even see the capitol city, but I wasn't positive, because of the lay of the land. Marland city was not on the river, it was in fact a couple of miles south and uphill from it, to avoid the spring floods.

  Over all, as look out positions went, this was a pretty good one. I could see why they placed one of the army units near it.

  "Anyone see anything up the river that looks like the main army?" I asked the others, and they all shook their heads.

  "Who has the best eyesight here?" I asked.

  "That would be me, Sir," said a younger male wearing regular army markings.

  "You are?"

  "Corporal Styles, Sir."

  I nodded, "You're attached to me for now, Corporal Styles. Go get your gear and have someone direct you to First Corso."

  "Sir?"

  "We're going to go looking for that army, Corporal."

  He nodded and saluted and ran off down the trail.

  I turned to the Sergeant. "Please inform First Wyland that I borrowed Corporal Styles. Wouldn't want to get him in trouble."

  "Yessir," the Sergeant said and nodded, giving me a salute as well.

  I took one last look, before heading back down the trail myself. Only this time I looked to the east, until I found Barassa. It wasn't hard to find, Barassa was a rather large city, and being on the river it was easy to spot.

  "Your time will come, Stivik," I growled softly, then turned and left.

  Fifteen

  Northern Holden

  It would take the foot soldiers about a day to make it to the pass that led from Holden, into Marland. From there it was another day's march to get to Marland. Holden maintained a fort in the pass; Marland did as well, so I'd have to figure out how to deal with that when we got there.

  Relations between Marland had always been good, though they had cooled a little in the last couple of decades when Marland didn't aid Holden at all in its wars with the Mulanders.

  The sun was setting when we got underway, I'd gone over a map of the area with both of the Firsts, and there were three more encampments of Hiland troops that we would pass on the way, with four more to the west of the pass. All had been ordered to wait at the entryway to the pass. King Charles's troops would be waiting outside the fort inside the pass.

  The ride there was trouble free, though twice I had the men wait while I took a few of us up onto the ridgeline, at spots that had been marked on the map for having a good overview of the river valley below.

  At the first one, we could see nothing, beyond the distant lights of some of the houses in the small towns along the river as night has already fallen.

  At the second, we could hear the faint sounds of an army on the march, and after looking for a while, Styles told me that he could make out the dark mass of an army moving east on the plains below. I guessed that it was probably the Marland army, as I didn't think the Barassan army was in the field yet. If there had been any lights or lanterns, it might have made it possible for us to figure out who it was, but we all had rather excellent night vision, and the moon was now up, so everyone traveled without lights.

  When we got to the entrance to the pass, the sun was starting to rise, and half of the Hiland army units had already reached the spot and bivouacked.

  "Well, let's go find who's in charge," I said to First Carso, and we left our mounts with the rest of our group and got directions to the command tent.

  The way things had been planned command-wise for the Hiland army detachment that had been sent here was two Firsts, each of whom would command their individual Division, with Seconds commanding each of the Companies. Wyland had been the farthest east, because his position had the best visual intelligence on the most likely invasion routes. First Young was in command of the Division to the west of the pass, and was with the group closest to the pass. He was also senior to both Wyland and Carso and very good at his job.

  "William! Carso!" He said walking over and touch palms with both of us. "I got your message and I've ordered my units to join us here."

  I nodded, "Do you know if our warning to the Marland General got through?"

  First Young made a rather unpleasant expression. "Yes, and the ass still marched off anyway. He thinks he can reverse and attack anything the Barassan generals can throw at him."

  "Well, at least he won't be surprised. Is there a vantage point around here, where we can get a good overview of the valley?" I asked.

  Young nodded, "It's about an hour up the hill from here."

  "Well, if you can detail s
omeone to show me, I'll take one of my mounts up. I'd like to have a look."

  First Young nodded, "By all means. When do you want to march on to Marland?"

  "How long a march is it, from the forts in the pass?"

  "Ten hours at a forced pace, eighteen hours if you want them to arrive well rested."

  I nodded, "And how far are the forts from here?"

  "About a three hour march, the Holden army is already encamped there, waiting for your commands."

  I nodded, "How hard will it be to get past the Marland fort?"

  First Young laughed, "The sole purpose of the Marland 'fort' is to assess customs' fees. They rely on the Holden fort for security."

  "So we'll have no problems there then," I nodded.

  "No, none at all."

  "Okay, when all of the troops have arrived here, give them a chance to rest and eat, then I want you to march them up behind the Holden troops and bivouac there. From this point forward, I want all of our movements to be at full force. We still don't have any information on the enemy."

  "When do you want us to march into Marland?"

  "I'm not sure," I said looking at both Young and Carso. "Most likely we'll leave at sunrise tomorrow, which will give all of our troops a chance to rest. I want them to show up ready to battle, so I'd prefer not to do any forced marches at this time."

  "That could be bad for the Marland army," First Young warned.

  "Yeah well, that's their problem," I sighed, "I'm not going to put our army at risk to save him from his own stupidity. Tomorrow evening the Marland forces will make it to that town, if we do a forced march behind them; we'll just show up in time to be attacked by the Barassans, instead of them.

  "Until I know where they are, I'm going to be very cautious. Our primary goal is to hold the capitol city and everything west of there."

  "Hold or take?" First Young asked with a smile.

  "Well, that depends on just how well Marland comports itself, doesn't it?" I smiled back at him.

  It only took twenty minutes to ride up to the ridgeline. I brought Styles along for his eyesight and Carso along for his advice.

  "Well, see anything?" I asked Styles as we scanned the horizon, the coastal range wasn't really all that high here, and the view was not as far reaching, but there was still a fairly good view, because the river valley was rather flat.

  "I think I see something glinting off in that direction, Sir," Styles told me.

  I looked but I couldn't see anything, there were too many trees in the way to see the river well.

  "Anyone else?" I asked, First Young had two lookouts posted up here, along with a couple of messengers.

  Everyone shook their heads, so I came around behind Styles.

  "Point to it," I told him, and I sighted down his arm. I did see a sparkle or two after a minute through the trees, but it could just have been the sun playing off of the water.

  "Sure it's not the water, Styles?"

  "No, Sir, I mean yes, Sir, it's not the water, the color is all wrong."

  I nodded and walked over to Carso, "Let me see that map."

  First Carso pulled it out and we spread it out on the ground and we both checked our landmarks.

  "If the Corporal is right," I said looking at the map, "that would put the Barassan army somewhere around here." I pointed to a spot on the map, which was about a third of the way from the capitol to the town that had been taken.

  "The next question is, what side of the river are they on?" First Carso said.

  I shook my head, "If I was their commander, I would cross tonight before the moon rises. Less chances of being seen. Then once your troops are organized, march them off to destroy the Marland army. I don't know if the general commanding for Marland will attack when he gets there tonight, or just encamp and then wait until morning.

  "In either case, I'd expect the defenders to be able to hold off for a while if they've been sufficiently reinforced."

  First Carso nodded, "Makes sense. So what's your next move, Will?"

  "My next move is to have some food and take a nap," I smiled and stretched yawning. "We'll go over this again with Young and Wyland if he's here too. We might want to involve whoever is commanding Holden as well."

  "Then we'll make our plans, but make sure the men are rested and ready to go at a moment's notice, I'm thinking I might want to do a little reconnaissance in force tomorrow."

  First Carso nodded and smiled, "I'm sure they'll be looking forward to it, Will. All this riding and no fighting hasn't been much fun for the men. They're still sore they weren't allowed to go help their friends from the Mowoks last summer.

  I nodded. "Okay, let's roll this up and get some food and rest." I turned to Styles, "Corporal, stay here until we send someone up to recall you, send hourly reports, and if you see anything else of note, have someone notify me immediately." I turned to the others, "He's in charge," I pointed to Styles.

  "But I'm only a corporal, Sir!" Styles said a little embarrassed; two of the males here were sergeants. "Not anymore, you're a Sergeant, you others, don't go causing problems, or we will have words, unpleasant words. Understood?"

  The others all snapped to and saluted, "Yes, Sir!"

  I smiled, "Thank you. I'll make sure the mess tent sends up some food. Carry on."

  I yawned and stretched, I was in Fel's bar, and I was still tired. It had been a while since I'd slept well I guess.

  "So, think you found them?" Fel asked me.

  "Yeah, I think so. Can I ask you if I'm right?" I said raising my mug to my lips, more out of habit than any real thirst.

  Fel nodded, "Sure, ask away."

  I snorted and took a sip of my beer, then set it down, "So, am I right?"

  "Yes, you're right, William," Fel smiled.

  "Tantrus get a new champion?"

  Fel nodded again, "Yes, and I'm fairly certain that he's with them. He's a home grown one however. None of the freelancers are interested."

  "Freelancers?" I asked. I hadn't heard that term before.

  "If, or when, you quit my service, you'll be a freelancer. Different gods, who think you might do well for them, or any that are desperate and just don't care, will contact you."

  "Well, how do you know what kind of situation you're getting into?" I asked curious.

  "Well, you can ask the god trying to recruit you. You can also ask the other gods who are interested in you. Or if you were say, to be living in my sphere or Aryanna's sphere, you could just go down to one of our temples and ask us."

  "Huh, I hadn't thought of that." I said and took another sip.

  "It doesn't always work of course, you may not be contacted by more than one god at a time, and it may be someone too far away from both mine or Aryanna's sphere of influence to know anything about them. But if a god is rushed and desperate, well, there's probably a good reason for it."

  I set down the mug and looked at Fel and laughed. Too bad gods don't blush.

  "Yes, William, just like me. Which is why I made sure I had you stretched over a barrel first."

  I smiled, "Yeah, but we both know I'd do it again. So this guy is inexperienced?"

  "Well he's not too inexperienced; he took part in the last few weeks of the Mowok campaign. But this will be his first major war."

  "And hopefully his last," I smiled.

  "Don't over extend yourself, William," Fel warned. "Barassa isn't the only player in this confrontation."

  I sighed and set the mug down, "Don't I know it. I'm not sure what I'm going to do with Marland, but I may want to borrow Jane once we get into the city. There's only one of me, and she could be instrumental."

  "Just remember, it's going to be a long summer, William," Fel warned again.

  I nodded, "I know, I know." I paused a moment in thought, "Is there anything else you can tell me that I need to know, or might find interesting?"

  "Wyland was right about there not being any mercenaries in the Barassan army that is invading."

  I nodded,
"What about the rest of their army?"

  "There are more than a few back at Barassa. Mercenaries who do garrison duty are cheaper than actual combat soldiers."

  I smiled, "Garrison? Sounds like things aren't too easy back inside the city proper."

  "They are having problems I gather," Fel smiled, "But King Stivik likes to have some sort of home guard, and the high priest of Tantrus is concerned enough that he's tapped heavily into the temple's gold to make sure he has a well trained force protecting Tantrus's interests as well."

  I nodded, "I will keep that in mind, Fel, thank you."

  "Sleep well, William."

  I nodded and fell into a deeper sleep.

  It was late evening; all the troops were now in the pass, just south of the Holden fort that controlled it.

  "So," I said going over the map with all of the senior staff, "This is what we know currently."

  I had added the location of the Barassan army, which I suspected was crossing into Holden at this moment.

  "That would put them about a twelve to sixteen-hour march from Marland City," General Weiss, the leader of the Holden army said.

  "I would think that they're most likely going to first go after the Marland army, and come back to pick the capitol off at their leisure," I said.

  "Barassa probably has a two to one advantage over Marland. They could easily split off ten or even twenty thousand soldiers to attack the city," General Weiss said. "I advise we march at once, we should be able to get to the city and take up defensive positions before they get there."

  I looked around the room as I thought about it, all of our First and Seconds were in the tent, as well as those for the Holden troops. There were about three times as many Holden officers, but then they outnumbered Hiland's military here by almost three times.

  "How well rested are your troops General?" I asked Weiss.

  "They've been encamped here for a day. They're fine."

  I turned to First Young, "What's the status of your troops?"

  "About half of my soldiers showed up within the last four hours after marching all day. If we make this march, they'll be tired, but there shouldn't be any real difficulties."