The Great Defeat (Part 1)

A young man was rushing across the hallway, his steps bold and loud. The long cloak was swaying around his ankles in high black boots. Under it, the brown leather pants were held in place by a broad belt. The white linen tunic was loose and simple, missing the flamboyance of the usual wardrobe preferred by aristocrats.

Once the guards standing to the sides of the door leading to the audience chamber saw him, they hesitated. Usually, they would cross their spears, blocking the entryway, but the person standing before them was an important member of the royal court, although there was no blue blood flowing through his veins.

“His Majesty is occupied,” said one of them.

The young man did not listen. He pushed through and stormed into the audience chamber, shutting the door behind him.

The audience chamber was empty around this time of day. The red rays of the setting sun were shining through the tall windows, long tapestries flowing in the soft wind. His steps echoed in the air, even though the stone floor was covered with woven mats.

His Majesty was sitting on the throne in the back of the audience chamber, at the raised platform. Dressed in pants and a tunic from soft fabric, his clothes were decorated with beads and embroidery. A big robe of rich red sat fastened around his shoulders with a neckline of high-quality fur. A golden crown adorned with big jewels was sitting on his head, not only a symbol of his power, but also of heavy responsibilities.

Before him, the High Priest was standing, supporting himself with the golden staff. His hunched body was hidden in red, flowy robes, decorated with golden embroidery. He also had a crown on his head, but his was more of a circlet. A thin golden metal without any gemstones.

“Your Majesty,” the young man quickly dropped onto his knees, with head bowed.

“Raise, Soren,” the king gestured to him.

Soren raised, his dark, sharp gaze eyeing the high priest standing next to him. He did not hesitate.

“Your Majesty, we cannot go into this war,” he said firmly. “I am afraid that if we go, the only thing awaiting us will be the great defeat.”

“Why do you think so?”

“It has been months since we summoned the hero. It has been months since he started training, preparing to lead the army in the upcoming battle. But… Today, I visited the training grounds during the day to see how our hero is improving. He was lying like a dog there, breathless. How can we expect such a weakling to lead the army in the great siege? Once our enemies see him, they will surely fall from their horses of laughter.

“Soren, that dog you are talking about, is lying right there,” the king said.

Soren whipped his head around. Only then did he notice that on one of the wooden benches near the platform, the summoned hero was lying down. His blood boiled over.

Making three grand steps, he was right next to the hero.

“How can you dare lie down in the presence of His Majesty? Can't you see that even an old priest is standing, although he needs to support himself? Get up! Right now!”

Leonard turned over on the bench, looking at him. He barely managed to push himself off the bench. He stood for a while, his legs shaking. Then his knees gave up, and he tumbled onto the floor.

Soren was looking at him, with his eyes and mouth wide open.

“You… weakling…” he howled like a hurt dog.

He turned around to face his king. “Your Majesty!” he cried out. “This man is even unable to stand after the day of the training! This is proof that my words are right! How can we let such a person lead our army?! The morale of our troops–”

“Soren.”

The young man immediately went quiet.

“You are too young, and your head is still full of ideals. I respect your knowledge and guidance, otherwise, I wouldn’t make you a royal advisor. But Silgorod needs to go to war.”

“Your Majesty, but why? Because of the prophecy spoken by this priest? One whose truth we cannot even prove to be truthful?”

The old high priest turned to him. His face was full of wrinkles, but his blue eyes were still crystal clear. He was neither angry nor defiant. He understood the concerns of this young man. He was worried about how they were going to win the war, too, if the hero he summoned was supposed to lead the army.

“Although I believe in the prophecy of our head priest, my reason is different,” the king said. “The Lunaria Kingdom has a saintess. We don’t. This saintess is supposed to be the greatest weapon in the whole world. If we don’t attack, we will be attacked. If we don’t take, we will be taken. I want to protect my land and my people. And the sooner we try to obtain the Moon Princess, the better.”

“I gathered my brothers and sisters and tried to do the summoning ritual again,” said the priest. “It has failed. Thus, it is clear. We have already summoned our true hero, the chosen one. There is no certainty that if we executed him, we would be able to summon another one.”

“But this good-for-nothing hero…”

“Will go to the war with us but will not lead the army,” the king said. “As you said, the morale of our army would suffer tremendously, seeing a man like this leading. Instead, it is you I wish to lead the army with.”

“Your Majesty? I beg your pardon?”

“You first appeared as a soldier in my army, yet your talents lie in logic and strategy. You are of humble birth and are loved by common folk. There is no one else who would boost the morale of our army as much as you do. You will bear our banner once we meet with the Lunaria’s army at the borders. That is my wish. The hero will be next to us, witnessing this. Now, go. We need to prepare. And take the hero with you.”

Soren looked at the hero, still lying on the floor like a broken doll. Hearing he needs to go with him, he could feel his anger rising again.

“Yes, Your Majesty,” he said.

He waited until Leonard was able to stand up. It looked like he was able to walk, although standing in one place was much more difficult for him. He did not wait, instead, he turned to leave the audience chamber. Hearing steps behind him, he confirmed the hero was following him. He sighed.

Once the door of the audience chamber closed after them by the royal guards, Leonard spoke to him first.

“You must be happy now,” he said. “You will be the hero leading the army.”

“I see your tongue is not tired as your legs,” Soren snapped. “You trained so much already, how is it possible you are still such a weakling?”

“Your training is too much, and your weapons are awfully heavy and clumsy. If you want me to build some muscle, I need food rich in protein, not to eat that terrible stuff you are giving me. I spend the majority of my life sitting on my ass,” Leonard replied. “Unfortunately, I did not have time to train back in my world.”

Soren stopped in his tracks, turning to him. “So you would expect better food from us? For nothing? You can be glad we did not let you starve! You sound like a spoiled little princess. How can you be a man and not know how to fight? How does your country prepare for war in your world?”

“Not all men need to learn to fight in my world. Only those who want to can join the army and spend their lives there. Why is it so surprising to you? Even here, you have common folks who do not know how to fight. Not to mention, our weapons are working completely differently from those crude swords and spears of yours.”

“Oh, really?” Soren asked, his voice dripping with sarcasm.

“Yeah,” Leonard said. “We use guns and drones to fight. Not to mention, some countries have nuclear weapons, which could destroy the whole planet.”

Soren started walking, cursing himself for losing time with such a weakling. He had had enough of this “hero” spouting nonsense. He did not understand at all what he was saying. He never heard those words.

“What are those weapons of yours?” he asked, irritated.

“Oh, with some of them, you can fight remotely.”

Soren stopped. “You said what?”

“That you can fight without an army present, with drones,” Leonard said. “Instead, you control them, hidden far away, and the weapon itself is listening to your orders.”

“What kind of magic is that?”

“It is not magic, only technology. We were able to develop such weapons. And here, you have only swords and bows, but in our world, guns are used.”

“What are guns?”

“Good question. Imagine a bow, but created out of metal and smaller. Instead of arrows, you put metal balls into it. You just press it with your finger, and that tiny ball is flying so fast and is so strong, you can pierce meat, break bones, or kill someone with it almost instantly, if you hit the right place.”

“Hero,” Soren caught him by his shoulder. “Are you able to create such a weapon?”

“Unfortunately, I can't. I don’t think we have such a machine here which could manufacture it, and I don’t know how to create them.”

Leonard could feel Soren's fingers digging into his skin deeply. Anger was burning in his dark eyes.

“You talk all high and mighty, I almost started to hope. But no, I was stupid for believing in you for just a moment. You are useless. You can talk about those miracle weapons of yours, but they are of no use here. And without them, you too. Such a weakling.”

“Yeah, sorry for that,” Leonard snapped. “Sorry that I am not the hero you envisioned. After all, I was a weakling in my world, too.”

Leonard went quiet. Soren was still looking at him, but his anger was slowly dissipating. He didn’t know anything about this man, and he was expecting him to lead their own army? Would he lead the army of a kingdom he had never lived in?

“Others only took advantage of me, using me as they pleased. And you are all doing the same to me.”

“No, you are mistaken,” Soren said. “People were not taking advantage of you, you let them do it. And now you are crying about it? Such a disgrace.”

They were expecting a foreigner to save their own kingdom? What kind of madness possessed them? Soren laughed at his own folly. He will save his own kingdom. No need for any summoned hero from a foreign world.

“Listen, hero,” he said. “I will carry the Silgorod banner, and you will be standing next to me. Don’t you dare to run away from the battle. If you do, I swear, even if I die in the war, I will find you and I will make you pay for it. Do you hear me?”