Army of the Dead (27 page)

HawkShadow leaped onto the choka and raced northward with StormSong alongside him. They passed the mouth of the canyon and saw that only a few Motangan troops were trying to get through it. Moments later Goral raced towards them riding Bertha, his oversized choka. He was leading another choka behind him.

“What is the spare choka for?” asked StormSong.

“For SunChaser,” answered Goral. “I was above Romero’s position when he was overwhelmed. The only chance of stemming the tide at the north end of the ridge is to take out the officer leading the charge. The Motangan soldiers have attempted to retreat several times, but he keeps goading them onward. It will be up to us to get that officer. He has been keeping himself out of the battle and in a position that our archers cannot reach.”

StormSong nodded as the three Sakovan warriors rushed towards the conflict. Flashes of light in the distance let them know that the fight was near. The three warriors halted behind the line of archers where SunChaser was directing the battle.

“We can’t hold them,” announced SunChaser. “We keep killing them, but they keep charging. They have more soldiers than we have arrows.”

“Mount up,” ordered HawkShadow as he scanned the enemy lines looking for the officer.

“Near the base of the ridge,” Goral said as he watched the assassin’s eyes move over the enemy.

“What do you three have in mind?” asked SunChaser.

“We must turn this attack,” explained StormSong, “or we risk losing the entire battle. If these Motangans get past us, the ridge will be surrounded.”

“I thought we were supposed to break off the battle after we bloodied them?” frowned SunChaser.

“That was before we saw a chance to make them retreat in defeat,” replied HawkShadow. “All of the other fronts belong to us. This one must as well.”

“We need to kill that officer,” Goral pointed to the man leading the attack.

“We will never get near him,” frowned SunChaser. “He is out of range for our archers.”

“Then your people must open up a corridor for us,” retorted StormSong. “Let Romero handle it. Your skill will be useful in reaching the officer.”

“Romero is dead,” SunChaser replied as she waved LifeTender over. “LifeTender, I am placing you in charge. We need a corridor opened up to get to that officer. Can you do it?”

LifeTender followed SunChaser’s finger and saw the officer who was staying out of the thick of the battle. She frowned heavily and sighed, but she nodded.

“I will try,” replied the healing mage, “but it will be risky. We will have to move some of our forces forward, and that will harm our defense.”

“Do it,” replied StormSong. “If we don’t kill him, the battle is lost.”

LifeTender nodded and started sending orders through an air tunnel. A small group of Sakovans gathered in front of the chokas and began concentrating on the enemy between them and the officer. After a few minutes, a noticeable bulge in the enemy’s lines appeared. The small group moved forward a few paces and continued their assault. They repeated this procedure several times until they started taking fire from enemy groups alongside them.

“Now,” HawkShadow said to his partners.

The four chokas raced forward into the enemy’s bulge. HawkShadow led the way with the other three following in his wake. The assassin swung his blade from side to side as he sliced his way towards the officer. The choka’s sharp fore claws and beak tore into the Motangans who failed to yield to the attacking Sakovans

Goral urged Bertha forward until he was right behind HawkShadow. His long maul reached out to smash Motangans that were beyond HawkShadow’s reach. When the group reached the edge of the rise, StormSong and SunChaser moved off center to clear the Motangans away from the face of the cliff. The Sakovan archers on the ridge above the charging chokas saw what was happening. They directed their fire into the enemy around the chokas.

HawkShadow locked eyes for a moment with the officer who had been watching the charge. There was hatred evident in the man’s face, but there was also fear as he watched the Sakovans coming for him. He began to back away, pushing soldiers between the chokas and himself. Suddenly, SunChaser fell from her choka, an arrow lodged in her back. StormSong turned and saw some of the Motangans turning away from the front lines and pursuing the chokas.

“We have followers,” shouted StormSong. “SunChaser is down.”

Moments later, StormSong’s choka took an arrow to its neck. The warbird stumbled and fell, throwing StormSong to the ground. Her sword skittered away from her as she rolled into the base of the cliff, the wind knocked out of her lungs. HawkShadow slowed and let Goral pass him. He sheathed his sword and reached for several Sakovan stars as Goral’s maul continued clearing the way towards the officer. HawkShadow tossed one star at the officer, but a Motangan soldier unexpectedly stepped into its path. HawkShadow fisted another star, his eyes scanning the movements of the soldiers around the retreating officer. He waited patiently for an opening as Goral and he charged forward.

HawkShadow saw his chance and let his Sakovan star fly. The whirling metal disc with sharp teeth slammed into the back of the officer’s head. The officer stumbled forward and clung onto a Motangan soldier for a few seconds before falling to the ground.

“Retreat!” HawkShadow shouted to Goral. “Pull back now!”

Goral slowed his choka and turned it around. He shook his head as the Motangans continued to run towards him when they should be charging away from him. He grinned broadly when he realized that many of them had heard HawkShadow’s call to retreat. The Motangans did not charge at the maul-wielding giant, but rather pushed the soldiers alongside them in an attempt to get out of his way. He urged Bertha onward and caught up to HawkShadow. Together they fought their way through the enemy soldiers towards the area where StormSong fell from her choka.

“They certainly do not appear to be fearing an attack,” observed Galantor “The sentries are not alert, and there are far too few of them to be effective.”

“At least the ones that we can see,” replied Princess Alastasia. “I will not underestimate their defenses. According to the information we got from the Torak, Sudamar has three thousand soldiers defending it. I wish we knew how long the sentries have been here. I do not want to take them out only to discover that it is time for a shift change.”

“They have not eaten yet,” smiled Galantor. “Look closely. Each sentry has a food sack with him, and the sacks are not empty.”

“Good observation,” nodded Princess Alastasia. “That makes the decision easy. Send our teams out. I want all of the sentries eliminated around the same time.”

Galantor slid into the darkness and passed the princess’s commands to the advance teams. He returned quickly and informed the princess that the teams were on their way. They watched the sentries in silence for a few moments as the elven assassin teams got into position.

“What is your plan of attack?” asked Galantor.

“The first step is to get some of our archers high over the city,” answered the princess, “particularly near the city center where the barracks are. I want archers on every rooftop that can be accessed without awakening the city.”

“And then we surround the barracks compound?” asked Galantor.

“Exactly,” nodded Alastasia. “I assume that there will be soldiers not in the barracks as well, so once we surround the barracks, I want teams at every major intersection. I want Sudamar taken with a minimum of bloodshed.”

“You plan to take the Motangan soldiers hostage?” frowned Galantor. “That is rather risky. It would be safer to kill them all. Why take such a risk?”

“I do not mean for our archers to hold their fire,” explained Princess Alastasia, “but there is no need to annihilate the Motangans either. If we get into a prolonged battle here in Sudamar, word will spread that the elven invasion is underway. That will increase our losses elsewhere on the island. Our goal is to conquer the Island of Darkness quickly, and that requires stealth. Besides, I think that many of the Motangans might be glad to no longer be controlled by a dictator who thinks only of himself.”

“You think there is hope of rehabilitating the Motangan soldiers?” questioned Galantor.

“I do,” nodded Princess Alastasia. “History tells us of at least one other time that the Motangans rebelled against Vand. That last rebellion resulted in the invasion of the mainland. Truthfully, I do not know the disposition of the average Motangan soldier, but we are about to find out. As soon as the sentries are neutralized, I want our forces to enter the city quietly. We will try to attain the high ground by controlling the rooftops and then we will surround the barracks and control the major intersections. Those are the instructions that I want given to the troops.”

“Then that is what I shall pass along,” replied Galantor as he turned to leave.

“There is more,” Princess Alastasia said before the elven officer could leave. “I want a dozen mages to come with me. I also want a dozen of the best warriors to accompany me.”

“To protect you,” nodded Galantor.

“No,” Alastasia shook her head. “I want to neutralize the Motangan mages before they can get word out of the attack.”

“Do you know where they are?” frowned the officer.

“No,” the princess admitted, “but I have a good idea of where I will find them. The Motangan mages are the elite of Vand’s society. They will be housed in the finest building in Sudamar.”

“The temple?” questioned Galantor.

“The temple,” nodded the princess. “I will enter it as soon as you have the barracks surrounded. Make sure that no alert is given before that time.”

Galantor nodded and faded into the darkness. Princess Alastasia stared at the closest sentries to see if she would be able to detect the elven assassination teams. She grinned broadly when both of the closest sentries suddenly slumped and fell noiselessly to the ground. She turned and headed towards her army to gather her mages and warriors.

When Princess Alastasia reached the departure point, she was pleased to see that most of the elven warriors had already been dispatched. She saw a small group of mages and warriors standing around Galantor. She strode purposefully towards the group.

“Why am I not surprised to see you among this group, Galantor?” asked the princess.

“I am only following your commands,” grinned the elven warrior. “You asked for the best.”

“That I did,” smiled Alastasia. “Let’s go.”

The small group of elves moved swiftly towards the city of Sudamar. Princess Alastasia started when she saw the Motangan sentries still on duty, but she quickly recognized them as elven imposters and grinned.

“Nice touch,” she said softly to Galantor.

“I thought you would approve,” he replied.

The group passed the sentries and entered the Motangan city. Dark shadows flitted far in the distance as the elves secured the sleeping city. The princess’s eyes rose as they moved towards the city center. She scanned the rooftops and saw no one.

“They are there,” Galantor softly assured the princess when he saw her eyes searching the rooftops. “You are not supposed to see them.”

The princess did not respond, but her eyes returned to street level as the temple came into view. She moved past Galantor and took the lead, turning at the next intersection to avoid approaching the front of the temple directly. She knew there would be more sentries at the entrances to the temple.

The small group passed through a cordon of elven archers that were surrounding the barracks and eventually halted on a street that approached the side of the temple. Princess Alastasia held up her hand in a silent order to forestall anyone following her. She moved cautiously along the street until she came to the last intersection before the temple. She hugged the building on the corner as she peered out at the small replica of the temple in Vandamar. While Vand’s temple in Vandamar rose over a dozen stories, the smaller temple in Sudamar was only four stories high. Like the temple in Vandamar, this one had only two entrances, one in the front, and one in the rear.

Princess Alastasia could just see the profile of one of the front guards from her concealed position. The rear guards were not visible at all. The princess dashed across the open area separating the blocks of city buildings from the temple. She hugged the wall of the temple and waited silently to see if an alarm would be sounded. The city remained silent.

The elven princess studied the ground at her feet and found a small scraggly vine trying desperately to climb the side of the temple. She concentrated on it and cast her magical spell. The vine shot upward as its tiny feet lashed out and attached to the wall of the temple. The princess continued to concentrate even after the vine had reached the roof of the temple. The vine responded by growing thicker and sturdier. When she was satisfied that the vine would hold the weight of the elves, she wove an air tunnel to the rest of her small group.

“Come across the open area one at a time,” instructed the princess. “Check the guard at the front of the temple before exposing yourself. I will wait for you on the roof.”

Princess Alastasia dropped the air tunnel and climbed the vine to the roof of the temple. From her new vantage point, Alastasia was able to gaze over the rooftops of the city. Still the elven archers were hard to spot. She dismissed them from her mind as she turned and dashed to the rooftop entrance to the temple. She stood to one side of the doorway and listened intently. She heard nothing. A few minutes later her small group reassembled on the roof.

“We will take one floor at a time,” explained the princess. “Move swiftly, but silently. I would like to eliminate the mages before the battle begins.”

Everyone in the group nodded their understanding, and Princess Alastasia led the group into the temple. Inside the temple, the group split up into thirteen groups with one warrior accompanying each mage. Galantor grouped with the princess.

There were less than thirteen rooms on the top floor, so Galantor and the princess waited near the top of the stairs for the others to finish their task. Alastasia listened intently for any sound that might alarm the rest of the inhabitants of the temple, but none came. When everyone was reassembled, the princess led the way down the stairs.