Rats Among Beasts

The road next to Lunatic's Spires is ghastly quiet. Neither the song of birds or the Sun can pierce the unnatural canopy above us. Even the wind seems to steer clear of this forest. The usually rowdy knights stay silent keeping a grave vigil on the trees. I wonder how fast that carriage can move. Will we be able to escape if necessary?

This must be that anticipation the knights were talking about. I've felt it before when brawling in New Town, but now it suddenly seems far more dreadful. Fuck, I hope they attack soon.

The carriage wheels squeak and the dreaded silence continues.

Still nothing.

Where are they?

Naz and Maheed's ears perk. Naz starts clicking, and Maheed begins sniffing the air. Naz softly says, "I can't find 'em as easily as in the caves... But they're here. Above us an' moving to surround us. Ser Gallien."

Naz turns to warn the nearest knight. Above us? The forest's canopy conceals the sky and hangs low. Surely this would make it near impossible for gryphons to fly. Unless they're not using gryphons?

The knight, Gallien, leans towards us and whispers. "When they've stopped moving, tell us dwarf."

Naz only nods. Our envoy continues moving, albeit more slowly than before. Less than a minute later Naz quickly says, "They've stopped."

Gallien says, "Cover your eyes."
Then immediately shouts, "Now!"

The carriage doors slam open and the Chosen of Sol soar out of both sides and scorch the canopy above in a blinding light. Even with my eyes closed and looking away, the immense flash is burned into my vision.

Shouts of pain shower us shortly before a few people fall from the trees. Certainly not beasts.
The cavalry roar and charge straight into the brush, Stoler and his two friends charge straight after them all through scattered arrowfire. What the fuck are they doing!? Summer thankfully keeps the trees above blinded with an impossible ray of light. 

Though I'm eager to join the fight, our signal hasn't arrived yet. We watch the trees and listen to the sounds of battle just beyond our sight. I can't help but clasp my hands over my ear when the clarion cry of a giant bird pierces the air!
Where did that come from!? I swivel around, scanning for the gryphon, when a large pack of jarcoba flow out of the woods, straight towards Summer and her two guards.
Without removing her skyward spell, she extends an arm and blasts the hoard of dogmen with the power of the Sun! 

While she's focused on the group assailing her another, smaller, pack swarmed the ballista to our left. The soldier operating the weapon fends them off, but that means he's unable to shoot down the two gryphons swooping to attack Summer.

Beasts of pure black fur and feathers dance between the trees, bouncing off the branches like a ball. As they propel themselves off the trees, Summer removes her skyward light and focuses both hands into a sudden gale, halting the gryphons' progress.

At the same time, a stray jarcoba rushes up to us and begins cutting our binds. "Quickly! Come with me, we'll get you-"
As soon as he begins on Wal's binds, the massive lizard clamps one hand on the dog's jaw and another around his throat. Wal releases a clicking hiss as he slams the dog into the ground and tears out his jugular with his teeth!

Perfect timing. A lance formed of pure water, launches from the carriage, impaling one of the gryphons. A cry escapes its beak and the other hesitates to move before deciding this battle isn't worth it and flies off. As it took flight, the other ballista finally had a clear shot. The giant crossbow groans and howls as the bolt flings through the trees after fleeing gryphon.
The beast flows around the bolt, losing a few feathers but remaining unharmed.

At the same time, I rush for the trunk, fling it open, grab my shield and spear, and call out, "Wal, Maheed, help the ballista! Naz, with me!"

At the sight of another wizard joining the battle, the pack of jarcoba, flees into the trees like a tide of fur. Summer marches after them.

Naz and I reach Aroura and I suggest, "We need to help the-"
An arrow glances off her helmet! "Fuck!"
My shield blocks another two arrows as I wrap my arm around her and slam us into the carriage. I knock out her knee to bring her to the ground so Naz can protect us. "Can you reach the trees above?"

While panting, she nods. "Good. Get as much water as you can. You're going to knock those fuckers outta the trees."

Obviously scared, she nods and whimpers, "R-Right."

Guess she didn't get those scars from combat then. Under the 'thwips' of arrow rain I pull her closer and assure her, "Don't fret Aroura. I'm going to keep you safe. Your rangers won't let any harm befall you. Got it?"

Naz joins in with, "Aye Tavi. No one'll lay a finger on you as long as I breathe."

Her panting slows as she begins casting. "Thank you."

The arrows keep burying themselves into my shield, some managing to prick into my arm. I grunt 'fuck' under my breath. I catch glimpses of the knights and templars just beyond the trees, holding off the horde of jarcoba and other brigands. Wal, Maheed, and the ballista operator have taken refuge under the wagon carrying the ballista. Why didn't I think of that?
Too late now. Aroura yells, "Ready!"

Her arms swing wide, a torrent of water following shortly after. It flings up into the trees, violently crashing into the scorched branches. The few archers that remained, come crashing to the ground. "Maheed, finish them!"
He dashes to and fro, swiftly dispatching those struggling to recover. None of them do. I scan the trees for any more since the leaves have all been burned away. No one. Good.

I march towards one of the fucks who fell, and run my spear through his arm to keep him pinned. I pull back his animalistic hood and reveal an indistinguishable human. Looks like this isn't just a demi-human group of rouges then. That makes this easier. He spits out at me, "We were trying to free you!"

"Thanks. If you tell me where your group operates out of, I'll let you live."

"Fuck off!"
Looks like he's not spilling anything. My boot crushes his jaw, knocking him out. I hover my spear above his neck. Hesitation now, is only going to get myself killed. Even still, my spear hovers for a while before it finally plunges through his neck and squelches as I walk away.

I turn to the others. "We need to meet up with one of the chosen. They were supposed to defend the carriage, but I can see their vainglorious dogma wouldn't let them stay put."

Wal nods. "Agreed. Let us depart."

I hold Wal back. "Before that. Aroura, are you up to it? If you're unable to fight, there is no shame in keeping yourself safe. "

I can't read her face through her barbute, but she visibly takes a breath. "I can fight."
Of course she can. I was hoping against that.

"Right then. Wal, lead the way. Naz and I will stay by her side."

The soldiers on the ballistae call out, "Oi, what about us? What if the gryphons come back?" 

I assure him, "They won't."
I certainly hope they won't. They are notorious cowards, but can easily swoop any one of us away. I continue, "If you'll accept orders from me, stay with our mage. We need to protect her at all costs."
They relent and accept, arming themselves with pikes from the cart. Great. "Maheed, follow us and keep an eye on the rear."
Maheed glances through the trees, almost absent-minded. "Maheed."

His head swivels to look at me. "W-What?"

"What are you doing?"

Without moving his body to face me, he glances between the trees and me again and again. "I was watching the um, the rear."
He's not playing with his hands and he said that more assertively than anything he's ever said before. He's acting suspicious.

I can't be sure of what he's planning. For now, I'll just say, "I'm looking to get us all out of here alive. I need to be sure you have our backs, so when I give you an order, I need you to bark your acknowledgement, understand?"

He finally turns his whole body to face me. "Y-Yes, I understand."

"Good. We need to hurry."

With our distractions behind us, Wal began jogging into the brush towards the flashes of sunlight and sounds of battle. Turns out Summer hadn't marched far before she and her guards were beset on all sides by brigands. An assortment of human, elf, dwarf, and jarcoba, each wore animal skins and basic armour. But none of that matters as much as the fact, that they're organized. Who's their leader?
Summer, from the centre of her two templars, burns the surrounding forest in light and blasts away any arrows getting too close with pure force. Though her display is impressive, her magic is ill suited to dealing killing blows. The brigands can't get close, but they're not falling either.

I point towards two small groups of archers flanking Summer. "Wal. Maheed. Kill them and get back here."

While they rush towards their targets, the rest of our group assassinates the archers right in front of us. They don't even notice until my spear runs through the bandit's neck! In a panic, they draw their swords in vain. I clench my teeth as my spear runs through another. He paws at my weapon as though it will save him. Just like- Focus! Now's not the time for my sissy bullshit!

"Nice kill, heretic!" The soldier called out.

I ignore him as I check on Wal and Maheed. Wal is jogging back, his target expectantly executed. Maheed, is- What the fuck is he doing!?
Maheed is chasing after some random assholes! "Maheed! Get back here!"
Looking like he just remembered something he halts then glances between me and his prey. "Now!"

He rushes back towards us. At our reveal, the brigands began to panic and retreat. It won't be long before they notice we're only a few men and regroup, but this gives me enough time to settle Maheed. Once he reaches us, I grip the little bit of skin he has around his neck and pull him towards me. "You are too damn important to be running around the damn battlefield like a fucking moron! Stay hidden behind us. And help whoever I say to help, when I say it. Once that's done, go back to being hidden. Got it?"
He nods, clearly scared by my aggression. I point my spear to each of the rangers. "Ears, beard, tail, scars. That will be your cue to help, understand?"
He nods again. "Say it!"

"Y-yes, I understand!"

"Good, now get hidden."
As he rushes to hide in the bushes behind us, I order, "Let's get to Summer."

As we get close to Summer, only slightly out of breath and still calm, she says, "Whatever has taken your time?"

Aroura, answered with, "I must apologize, I was not anticipating-"

My spear rises as though to block her path to keep her from getting off track and wasting our time. I blurt out, "What don't we know?"

Summer starts. "The location of their commander yet remains unknown. An ever present threat the archers remain, fractured though they may be. Scattered is our cavalry."

As she spews her flowery nonsense, I study our enemy. The brigands we were fighting have gathered into a mass force in front of us, away from the road. They significantly outnumber us, but the templars are better equipped.
In the distance on the other side of the road, flashes of light illuminate the forest. Stoler is still alive, I see. That's disappointing.

I suggest, "We should press our advantage. Her majesty can break their defensive posture and they should retreat."

Summer nods. "Agreed. I will blind them, Aroura will discombobulate, and you will subsequently crush them."

"Let's get to it then."

"Ensure your eyes are averted."
I keep my eyes down as she blinds the brigands in front of us, preventing their archers from firing accurately. Her templars cover her right flank so our soldiers cover her left. 

The brigands fall into a basic line with dwarves guarding the legs of the taller bandits and archers hanging back. Even with a random assortment of weapons and shields, they look like a formidable force. That is, they did until Aroura knocked them into the air with a blast of water. As soon as the water took out their formation Summer's light focused into tight beams of pure heat scorching the backline and allowing us to attack.

I command Wal, "Smash 'em! Tail!"

Alongside the soldiers, Wal dove in, swiftly crushing skulls. Just as the bandits scramble to their feet, ready to fight, Maheed appeared behind them, ensuring they have no chance. While desperately avoiding Wal's mace and hiding behind their shields, Maheed pierces them with his dagger.
The right flank, left untouched by Aroura's water, charged forward attempting to save their friends only to be blocked by Summer's guard, Naz, and I. They and the archers behind them are promptly blinded by Summer behind me.

As soon as Summer's light erupts, a horn is sounded deeper within the forest. Before Aroura could swipe the other flank, they rush as fast as possible into the forest. Wal grabs Maheed before he chases them down then turns to me. "Kar! Those were beastmen horns!"

The templars stop in their tracks and visibly turn to face him. I ask, "What does that change? Can we still fight?"

One of his icy eyes stares at me while the other scans the forest. "I'm unsure."

"Maheed, find the source of the horn, scan the area, then get your ass back here, got it?"
He nods, then disappears into the brush. "Chosen, I recommend we halt our advance. We don't know what's waiting for us."
If the mere presence of beastmen is enough to give even Wal pause, it's something I don't want to fight.

Summer, who was blasting the fleeing brigands with concentrated beams of light, solemnly nods and shouts an order. "Retsa qui! Avert your eyes, I shall recall our cavalry."
Her templars stop and assume a defensive position. She extends a hand to where I assume the knights are at. Her hand flashes in a pattern and I have to turn away. It's like staring at the Sun dancing through the gaps in clouds.

For now, I'll ask Wal, "What can we expect? How do beastmen fight?"

As the only person with apparent experience here, everyone attentively listened despite staring deep into the forest after our enemies. Wal answers with, "They are notoriously varied. If they are without their abominations, they are reckless savages."

Abominations? I suppose it would be pointless to ask. Then we wait for Maheed's report. If he can't describe the scene properly, I'm sure I can coax it out of him. We take the time to catch our breath and survey the trees.
A short while later, Maheed returns, a fresh splatter of someone else's blood damp across his mane.

Noticing the blood, Aroura rushes to him worry plastered in her voice. "Are you injured?"

Surprised by the sudden inspection, Maheed stutters. "N-no. I don't think so?"

Naz stretches to place a pacifying hand on her shoulder. "Easy there Tavi. That's someone else's blood on pup. Let's let Segugek handle this, yeah?"

Naz leads Aroura away, managing to keep her calm by talking. I bend my knees slightly so I'm eye to eye with Maheed. "What did you see?"

He stammers over himself a bit before settling on, "A trap I think. There were people in the trees and they had bows."

"How many?"

"I uhh... A lot."

After he doesn't continue, I prod further. "What else? Any beasts or monsters?"

He scratches his neck. "Well, um... Kinda? I think he was the leader. He was tall like you but armoured and had a head like umm... Like a goat maybe? Not a hood like the others 'cause his mouth moved... I think. But there were jarcoban scouts telling him what they saw. That's actually who I killed-"

"Focus Maheed. Did he say anything?"

"Umm... No. Yes? I couldn't hear him. Is that what-"

"What else did you see?"

"Okay umm... I couldn't fully see it."
I nod to keep him talking. "But it kind of looked like a bull maybe? But it had big arms and uhh. It's head was on it's butt? But I don't know if I really saw it. I got spotted before I could-"

I place a hand on Maheed's shoulder. "Thank you Maheed. You've done really well."

I notice his tail twitches before I look to Wal. Wal explains. "Sounds like he saw a kel-kerjj. They are bulls created for combat. Arms and horns in the front for direct combat and the head on the rear for defense. Never try to fight them straight on. All of the vitals are in the head and rear. If it is armoured, we will need lethal magic or the ballista to slay it."

Two of our mounted knights finally return to us, asking about the situation. Wal and Summer explain to them while I think.

If they have an abomination, why haven't they attacked yet? The group we attacked outnumber us even with our newly arrived cavalry not to mention their reinforcements. They have a kel-kerjj and probably more tricks up their sleeve. Maybe they were testing our magic? Or maybe they didn't prepare the kel-kerjj before hand because they weren't expecting three mages?

The faint flashes of light from Stoler's fight catch my attention. He's even farther than before... They're separating us. Ren and I have done the same thing in New Town.

I call out, "Chosen! They're buying time. They're going to overwhelm Stoler with the kel-kerjj then move on to us. We're not prepared for this. We should retreat to the carriage and abandon the fight."

She doesn't move as she calmly states, "The beastmen will continue to live should we disengage. This, a templar can not allow."

"Who said we were allowing them to live? When my liege returns with the full force of Solaris to exterminate these vermin, I won't mind stepping over your corpse."
I turn to Aroura. "My liege. Let us return to the carriage that we might escape."

I made that claim, but ultimately it falls to Aroura to approve. Even through her helmet, I can see her thoughts whirling. She anxiously says, "He makes a valid point Summer. We can return when we're prepared!"

Summer remains still, staring out for our enemies. Her armour utterly conceals any expression she could be making. After a moment of silence, I move towards the carriage gently guiding Aroura on the way and whispering. "We should leave. The chosen'll follow us when we do. Just issue the order."

Aroura hesitates. "R-Right. My rangers, my knights! To the carriage!"

All but the few templars bark their acknowledgement and commence our retreat. I explain my basic plan. "The initial arrow rain killed the carriage's horses, so we'll need to replace them with yours."
We only have two horses when we should have four, but it'll be enough to escape if we disconnect the ballistae. I continue. "When the templars decide to join us, the chosen will guard you as you, Wal, and Naz replace the horses. The jarcoba, operators, and I will keep watch over the ballistae for when the kel-kerjj attack. Any objections?"

Aroura, still worried for her friend asks, "And if the chosen don't return?"

Naz is the one to reassure her. "They will Tavi. Segugek has a knack for these things."

She nods, forced to accept the situation. Then asks, "What should I do?"

I gingerly glance at the soldiers and knights. It wouldn't do for our reputation for me to just order her around, but she's the most important person on our team and by far the most unsteady. She needs instruction more than anyone else. I say, "The kel-kerjj is our biggest concern. We need them dead."

She ponders for a moment then hurriedly says, "Then I should repeat the trick with the gryphon."

"That would be amazing, yes."
I'm so glad she understood. I would curse everything if we survived this only for Solaris to execute me for insubordination.

She nods and our group hurries to the carriage. Finally we reach the carriage exactly as we left it. Surprisingly few bodies of brigand archers scattered about the road, their identities obscured by animal skins pulled over their heads like hoods. Arrows stick into the cabin and old horses like the fur of an angry cat.
Let's get the fuck out of here.