A Storm is Brewing

My armour is heavier today. Not because it’s any heavier than the suit I trained with, but now I actually have to use it. To survive. I glance around at the others with me awaiting orders. All the demi-humans are here, although I can’t see too many
humans. They better be on their way. Or at least close by.

One of the generals comes out to address us. Sir Daniel, I believe. “Attention!”
We bark back ‘Yes sir!’ He continues. “I am here to discuss the basic battle plan. All
archers will stay upon the wall until further notice. The rest of you will patrol the
walls as the situation progresses, it is expected of your captains to adapt. The
Karvithian siege starts this morning. They will be constructing their siege machines
while prodding our defenses. Your job is simple. Deflect their prods as they come
and when they breach the gates, kill all the bastards who come through and make
sure they don’t get further into the city. Your captains will answer directly to me.
Questions? Good.”
He walks off.

My unit looks to me for orders. For now, there’s not anything for us to do except wait and prepare. I order some of them to help with construction and the others to patrol the walls with the jarcoba unit in shifts. If they see anything the jarcoba will run back to us and my unit will be the first responders.

Solaris is set on the bank of the Skecargi river, one of the widest rivers around and
we’re the only access across for months either way. That’s where the city gets most
of its income and the reason it’s grown to the power it's at, despite being relatively
young.

Toross motions for me to join him and I follow him to the wall. The other captains
weren’t called, but they followed us anyway. We make it to the top of the wall and
my stomach drops. The Karvithian army. I don’t think I have the words to describe
the size of their army. Its like an entire city, all armed and aiming to kill us. It’s
daunting. Absolutely daunting. Toross smacks my shoulder with a tube of metal and glass. “It’s a viewing device. You look into the small end and are able to see a great
distance.”
Sure enough, I can see the army as though I were only a few yards away. “Look to
the back near their wagons.”
I scan their wagons in the back. They’re filled with boulders and logs, but I don’t think that’s what he wants me to see.

“Who are they? The commanders?” I spotted five men, four free of armour and all of them wearing some strange headgear. One wears a mask resembling a bird on fire. There’s one who wears a stone mask with a skull forged into it. There’s a mask that
resembles the Sun and the Moon, and a pointed hat with a brim so large it covers
the man’s chest. The only one wearing armour has an intricate pattern of blade
erupting from every surface of his armour. His helmet wears blades like a bull wears its horns as well as two bladed towers.

“Perhaps. But they’re also wizards.” We all stare at him. Naz wears a face of surprise and Maheed’s smile finally left his face. Wal remained unfazed.

Naz speaks next. “They, ye say? How many is they?”

Toross looks down on him. “Five. If my knowledge of magic serves correctly, they can each erase entire armies with a spell.”

Wal speaks with moral unbroken. “They could. If they were ancient masters who had all unlocked the secret to lichdom."
He takes the viewing glass from my hands and finds them. “They’re not. They’re still mortal and very killable. A good strike from any weapon will fell them like any other. And they don’t even wear armour.”
He hands the glass to Maheed who looks for himself.

After he searches for a bit, his smile returns. “Easy targets.”
He goes to hand the glass to Naz but stops when he sees that he’s too short to see
over the wall.

Naz grunts. “Stones. Gimmie that! Aye, I’m short an' old, but I can still.”
He grunts as he struggles to crawl up the wall. “Manage.”
He hops back down and wipes pebbles from his ridiculous beard. Honestly. Why do dwarves let their beards grow so long? “Aye, they’re mortal. A good bite o' the axe’ll
send 'em back to the stones.”

Toross is the only one who still looks concerned. I put my hand on his shoulder.
“Imagine this. When we kill them, they’ll tell stories about the unlikely demi-human
captains who felled wizards with the power to topple armies.”

Maheed does his best impression of a girl. Hands clasped together at his chin, one
leg raised, batting his eyes and all. Well. I assume he’s batting his eyes. The hair in
front of his eyes is waving so. “Our heroes.”
I know you shouldn’t tell someone who doesn’t talk much to be quiet but…

We all stare at him for a good second before all saying “Please. Never again.”
We all continued to say something different at the same time.

Naz threatened to ‘Send him back to the stones.’ Toross placed his hand on his face, going on about his immeasurable disappointment. Wal said something about us
needing to focus on the battle, not stupid jokes. I simply said what we were all
thinking “Creepy, you’re just… Too creepy.”

Maheed slowly looks to the ground before mumbling “I thought it was funny.”
I’m not sure why, but that got a chuckle out of me. He looks like a scolded puppy.

Wal readjusted our conversation. “Back to the matter at hand. While, I’m certain they can be slain, the mages still pose a major threat. We should develop a strategy
around them.”

Naz strains his neck to look up at the hulking lizard. “While I agree, what do we
actually know about mages?”

I feel like a fool. I let such a valuable opportunity pass me by. I hadn’t considered
that we’d be fighting mages, so I hadn’t asked anything about them. I spent an entire night with one, and have nothing to show for it.
Toross is the next to speak up. “I know nothing except what I’ve heard from the
legends. If they’re still mortal a barrage of arrows would surely fell them, no?”

No that wouldn’t work. “No, if they can see an attack coming, they can no doubt
avoid it or destroy it.”

“Then assassination.” Maheed hissed.

As simple as that sounds... As the others continue on how to actually accomplish
assassination my thoughts run through last night with Aroura. In one of her
experiments, she said that she was attempting to make a ‘mana potion.’
Apparently mana is the energy wizards use to cast their spells and the bigger the
spell, the more mana it uses. So, they wouldn’t waste a large unavoidable spell on a
few targets. They would save that for the army. A small strike force might work.
I interrupt Naz. “Assassination will work.”

The others listen as I explain how mana and spells work. A small strike force of just a few people is the biggest threat to a mage because they won’t waste their power on small fry. We are the perfect small fry.
Naz asked “How do ya know all that, kid?”

Wal ignored the question and spoke overtop him. “He speaks with confidence. It
doesn’t matter where it comes from, it’s the best shot we have.”

Another hiss from Maheed. “I agree. I trust Kar.”

“The strike force. Who would volunteer for such an endeavor?” Toross spoke with
arms crossed. He looked worried because he probably knew the answer.

Wal lifted his tail and sat on the wall. “It’s only right that the captains take charge of
this.”
His gaze was cast to the same place as the rest of us. The centre of our circle on the ground. Despite placing confidence in their mortality, it still isn’t a task anyone could look forward to. They may be man, but they’re still legends.

Naz pointed out a problem. “That’s all well and dandy. Except what happens when
more than one shows up? We can’t just take ‘em on one-on-one can we?”

Unfortunately, he’s right. “Probably not. We’ll have to ask a select few men to step
up.”
The others simply grunt in agreement.

Wal pushes off the wall. “Then there’s no time to waste.”
Stalwart as usual I see. He continues. “One of us should explore this area and report the resupply points as well as possible strategic vantage points. One of you two
preferably.”
He points at Toross and I.

I ask, “Why one of us?”

“You’re both elves. We should have one from each race to rally everyone.”

I suppose that’s a good a reason as any. Toross brightens at the opportunity to
address the troops. “I shall address the troops. Kar, you may scout for us.”

He’s always jumped at an opportunity to speak to the men as though he would get a second meal or something. I don’t mind. But the fact that he’s demanding it. “Ross.”
His eyes narrow. “You know the men-“

He knows where this is going so he just gives in. “Fine, I apologize. Kar, will you scout for us?”

Much better. “Gladly.”

I spent a bit exploring the camp while we waited for someone to attack us. We’re set up right outside the city limits. This is the passage across the river so Solaris put its
best foot forward with the buildings. They’re mostly decorations but they’re still
impressive. They each bear the style of the human cathedrals with supportive
archways and stained glass windows. Almost all of them have some sort of statue or decoration with likeness to the Sun. I suppose that’s their tribute to Solaris. Some of them even have flags and banners.

Just beyond those, past what you could normally see, is the slums where our forces are stationed. They were evacuated shortly before the siege started so the streets
are empty of people. Save for the solders running back and forth of course. We’ve
occupied some of the outermost buildings and are using them for shelter and
bedding, as well as storage and crafting places. Blacksmiths are setting up and
fletchers are desperately making arrows. There’s even cooks here. Thank the lords. Maybe we’ll have some decent food. Finally, there’s one or two medical buildings.
People’s houses with the walls knocked out to give the medics more room.

Despite their overwhelming size, the Karvithians are only present at the
Western-most, and weakest gate. As if they plan to ram the weakest gate down with their bodies. Have they simply abandoned strategy? They could easily surround us,
spreading our forces thin along the entirety of the wall. Either they’re complete
idiots, or they have something special planned. Although, what concerns me the
most is the complete lack of human solders here. There are a few couriers running
around as well as a general or two, but otherwise they’re absent, as though they
plan to let us die out here and then come mopping up the remains. Are they even
concerned for their city? I returned to the west gate where my men and the
dwarves are setting up defensive spikes.

“Oi. Learn anything useful?” Naz was standing in front of the gate overseeing the
construction.

I pull out a map of the city and tell him the locations of the various resupply points in case our weapons break or armour buckles as well as various points that are better
than others to set up defences in case we ever end up there. The thing that pricks
his hairy ears is the mention of food. In a hushed tone I note my other concerns.
The Karvithian movements and our allies’ moments. “- and the humans are all
sitting back on the inner wall.”
He simply grunts.

“Aye, I figured as much. Never could trust them stoneless bastards.”
He hastily writes some words down on a piece of paper and calls over a jarcobian
messenger. He sends him off with a pat on his shoulder and turns back to me. “How
old are ya Kar?”

I raise an eyebrow and answer reluctantly. “I’m nearing 30. Why?”

He laughs at that. “You? Nearing 30 without so much as a scruff on yer chin?”

“Elves take longer to mature than other races you brick-headed oaf. If I were a dwarf I’d be… 20?”

He laughs harder. “And ye don’t even have scruff! I thought you were maybe 10! But even they have whiskers by then!”
He’s not even exaggerating. I’ve seen those stubby dwarven children running around with small mustaches. It's possibly the strangest sight in Solaris. He continues “That makes my next question much easier.”
He wipes sweat off his fuzzy brow with an audible phew. “You got yerself a woman? Stones, a kid even?”

He’s asking if I have a kid? And he thought I was 10 years old!? Has this geezer ever
even met an elf before? I sigh and let out my answer. “No. No kids. I’ve got a girl or
two, but no woman.”

“I ain’t surprised. You youngins always screw around when nothings set in stone.
Word o' advice. Pick one you would marry and do it. It’ll help ya get outta this alive
and save you from countless lonesome nights.”

“I can’t-“

“Can’t just choose like that, yeah yeah. I’m saying find a lass important to ya and not one extra. I like you kid. I want to see you out of this battle and with a nice busty lass before I return to the stones.”

certainly don’t owe each other anything. I start to ask when the ground collapses
behind us. “Spears! Ready up!”