Dream II - Chapter 35

- - - - -

Race: Draconian

Bloodline Powers: Improved Strength+, Rending, Firebreath+
Greater Mysteries: Fire (Noble) 5, Wind (Noble) 3, Sound (Advanced) 2
Lesser Mysteries: Heat 4, Oxygen 4, Embers 4, Pressure 4, Current/Flow 4

- - - - -

They saw the smoke before they saw Vereton.  Hanging on the horizon like a smudge of menacing black air it guided their column home.  The guard was leagues behind them, unable to keep up with the mounted contingents’ breakneck pace and the Knights’ horses were frothing and heaving for breath.  The hundred elite warriors and practitioners would likely have to dismount and fight on foot as soon as they reached the city, but it was better for them to arrive on time and exhausted than not at all.

Still, they galloped onward, Sam and his siblings running or flying at roughly the same speed as the horses.  Their new bodies didn’t have nearly as much stamina as the mammals, but a number of the Knights had potions of endurance.  The soldiers didn’t even grumble when Adam demanded that they turn their supplements over to the draconians.  Everyone was already in shock from the losses in their contingent’s leadership and the gravity of their betrayal, so obedience was automatic.

The potions did the trick.  Every hour or so, Samazzar had to quaff a new one, and after the second or third potion he swore that he could feel the alchemical toxins beginning to build up in his body.  Once he got a moment to rest, he’d likely need to detoxify himself while suffering from the mother of all hangovers.  Still, they didn’t have any trouble keeping pace with the horsemen and before long Vereton was growing on the horizon below a dark storm cloud of soot and magic.

Even from a couple leagues away, Samazzar could feel the magic pouring off of the city.  It was impossible to tell which mysteries were being used, but merely looking at the steadily churning pillar of ash and smoke made his scales tingle.

Whatever was taking place, there were at least a dozen practitioners involved, all of them as strong as a company of soldiers.  Ultimately, the addition of their Knights would help the equation, especially if they could retain the element of surprise, but with every flap of his wings, Sam couldn’t help but worry that their small force was in far over its head.

The feeling didn’t change as the City grew larger.  They were within a league of its walls, and the mystery of sound was beginning to relay explosions and shouts to Samazzar.  If anything, the fighting was more intense than he had estimated from his approach.  Really, the only silver lining was that the battle clearly wasn’t already over.  Whatever the attackers were up to, they were still fighting.

Then, as Samazzar was trying to comfort himself with that thought, the walls fell.  There was a flash of magic, he couldn’t pinpoint the mystery, and a segment of the stone curtain simply dissolved, opening the way for a mass of bandits to pour into the City.  Worse, they weren’t welcomed by the guard.  Instead there was a small group of soldiers and practitioners protecting the breach from Vereton’s defenders while their reinforcements rushed through.  Evidently, their expedition wasn’t the only spot that the attackers had plagued with traitors.

By the time the guard arrived, Samazzar and the Knights were barely a half league away, but it was already too late.  Over half of the attacking army was inside and the disorganized defenders didn’t stand much of a chance against the concerted push of ‘bandits’ backed by magi.

Magic quickly overwhelmed the squares of spearmen, killing dozens if not hundreds of people in a matter of seconds.  Unsurprisingly, the guards fell back under the swirling onslaught of spells, making way for even more of the attackers to swarm inside the walls.

Archers managed to claim a couple of the attack force.  Not enough to make a difference, but only the lead elements of the ‘bandit army’ had practitioners and heavy armor.  The rest were equipped with a motley assortment of boiled leathers and scrounged weapons, leaving them vulnerable to the brave soldiers that stood their posts on the wall even after the attacking magic users had torn it asunder.

Shouts went up from inside the city as the attack force finally noticed the galloping Knights when they were almost five hundred paces away.  The rear ranks shuffled themselves into formation, using the fallen rocks from the walls as cover to try and break the charge, but the spellcasters amongst Sam’s team were having none of it.

Adam thrust his sword up into the air and it flashed in the afternoon light.  He turned the blade slightly, shining the reflected light across the scrambling bandits even as he enhanced its power.  Men and women screamed.  Most dropped their weapons to clutch their faces as the Knight’s magic boiled their skin.  Others collapsed entirely, unable to cope with the third degree burns that were sprouting from every span of exposed flesh.

Samazzar exhaled, splitting the cone of fire into two streams that he launched at a cluster of enemies wielding long spears.  A twitch of magic kept the flames from fading, and another push of will fanned the wind behind the fire to speed it across the gap.  By the time the streamers of red and orange landed, Sam was able to pull them tight with his mind, creating a burning curtain across the gap and forcing a large chunk of the invaders from their cover.

Seconds later a ramp of stone burst from the ground, creating a highway over the bandits’ defensive positions and into Vereton itself.  A half dozen or so invader corpses exploded, their ribs flowing like tentacles as they jabbed and slashed at the rest of the defenders.  The bandits that had survived Sam and Adam’s attacks screamed and dropped their weapons, scattering away from the charging knights.

The Vereton forces ignored them, pushing past the fleeing bandits to thunder through the breach in the wall.  Then they crashed into the trailing edges of the bandit force.  If the attackers had any discipline, it had disappeared the moment they entered the City.  Armed men and women had scattered everywhere, kicking in doors to loot and burn their way through the outskirts.

Here and there, squads from the City Guard were engaging the raiders, and those were really the only spots where the attacking force retained any cohesion.  That said, Samazzar couldn’t help but notice how isolated those battles were.  Given the huge size of the guard and the passage of time since the attack began, even with some deaths from the wall collapsing and the difficulty of maneuvering their way through Vereton’s winding streets, there should have been at least a thousand of the soldiers on hand to fight the bandits.

Adam didn’t give Sam much time to think about this revelation, directing the knights into a charge that crashed into one of the pockets of combat.  Samazzar did his best to ignore the flames and screams that were consuming the rest of their district and swooped down, sizzling his claws through the chains and leathers of an invader with a particularly tall hat while the knights’ lances did their grim work beside him.

A couple of the guards watched with wide eyes as Dussok rammed into a gaggle of mismatched humans before the ‘bandits’ could realize that they were surrounded, shredding them like wet paper with his huge claws.

Then, it was over.  Blood spattered the surviving guards and they watched in numb shock while Adam and a trio of the knights dismounted. The captain approached the defenders alone, singling out a scared looking man with the red triangle of a lieutenant on his pauldron.  Samazzar landed nearby folding his wings in on themselves as he watched Adam smile at the guard officer.

The nervous guard paled as the other dismounted knights began killing the wounded amongst the bandits.  Adam followed the man’s gaze and shrugged, slightly sheepishly.

“Sorry about that lieutenant, we don’t have the time or manpower to take prisoners.  To be perfectly honest?  I’m a bit unsure as to whether we should anyway.  There have been enough betrayals today.  I don’t want to risk an untrustworthy guard releasing an enemy force in our rear.”

“Y-yes,” the guard replied uncomfortably.  “Especially after the unit at the gate let in a team of practitioners and elites.  I don’t even know where they found that many elixirs and magi.  They were just supposed to be bandits.

“They’re more than that,” Adam said, his voice grave.  “I don’t know who the attackers are yet, but they have the resources to infiltrate deep into Vereton’s government.  Our expeditionary force should have been enough to take them by surprise and crush them, but their army knew we were coming.  It turns out that wasn’t an accident.  A couple of knights had betrayed the city and warned the enemy of our arrival.”

“Oh,” the lieutenant whispered, eyes widening even more.  “Oh no.  This can’t be happening.  No one is getting orders.  All I have are rumors and what I can see.  They’re attacking the neighborhood so I stop them.  No no no-”

“You’re doing fine soldier,” Adam cut him off, putting a gauntleted hand on the guard’s shoulder.  “If you don’t have orders, throwing yourself at a concentration of warriors with an elixir or two in them when you only have recruits is the height of folly.  You’re doing the right thing by staying here and protecting your neighborhood.  The people of Vereton need you, and you are absolutely helping out.”

The man relaxed slightly, only to freeze up completely when Samazzar stepped up to Adam’s side.  Almost immediately, the guard started hyperventilating, his eyes wide as he took in the tall, well-muscled draconian.

“You said you were hearing rumors?”  Samazzar asked, trying to appear as unthreatening as possible.  “What is it you’ve heard?’

“Well, I don’t, well-” the man stammered only for Adam to squeeze the shoulder where his hand was resting.  The guard looked up at the knight captain.

Adam nodded back, and the lieutenant closed his eyes, sighing deeply before continuing.

“Sorry,” the man mumbled.  “I’m a little jumpy at the moment.  First of all, don’t take anything I’m about to say as a given.  We’re in the middle of a massive battle and no one is getting clear information.  That said, it sounds like the core of the enemy army didn’t break up.  Only the poorly trained and armed levies are looting right now.  It’s enough to keep people like me busy, but it sounds like all of the magi and most of the elite warriors have stuck together and they’re still trying to do something.”

“Do you know what it is or where they are?”  Sam questioned, barely able to keep the impatience from his voice.  He understood that the man was probably half out of his mind, but at the same time, the City didn’t look like it had the time needed for the jumpy officer to calm down.

“No one knows for sure.”  The guard shifted slightly, casting his eyes downward as if not looking at the draconian would change the fact that there was a large muscle bound winged lizard standing in front of him.  “But I heard from a sergeant that got separated from his unit that they had been driven out of the market district by a magus using the mysteries of pollen and poison.  He died in the most recent attack-”

The man’s expression tightened as he inclined his head toward an unmoving figure leaking blood onto the paving stones.

“-but it sounded like the attackers were moving quickly through the market district in the direction of the city center.”

“The Patrician!”

“The Academy!”

Samazzar and Adam blurted out simultaneously.  The guard hopped back a step, shuffling his feet nervously as the Knight and the Draconian shared concerned glances.

“By the fallen gods,” Adam growled.  “It could be both.  Either would be a meaningful target and make sense, and their entrances are barely a half league apart.”

“I need to go to the Academy,” Samazzar said, a hint of nerve leaking into his voice.  “Pothas and Rose are there, and the last sneak attack almost made it to the gates.”

Adam waved with a free hand, calling Jamise over.  The other knight dismounted, patting his horse’s heaving flanks before joining the two of them.  Adam nodded warily at his companion before speaking.

“Captain, it sounds like the core of the enemy force hasn’t fractured.  Instead, they are using their common soldiers as a distraction to cover an attack on the city center.”

“Just like last time,” Jamise said with a frown.  “We strongly suspected that it was the same group.  I suppose this just goes to confirm it.”

“I am going to dispatch you with the draconians and magi to the Academy,” Adam replied.  “If the last attack was anything to go by, the Academy will be their target.  Still, the information we have is inexact.  It’s possible that they mean to assault the Patrician’s Palace.  I cannot in good conscience ignore a threat of that nature.”

“Even if it is nothing,” Jamise agreed, his face troubled, “you have no choice but to respond.”

“Then we should return to the horses and-” Adam began, only for Jamise to cut him off.

“The beasts are spent.  The journey here drained them.  This final charge was nothing more than adrenaline and willpower.  Look at them Captain Joosen.  They can barely move another step.”

Samazzar turned his focus to the animals.  Unfortunately, he had no choice but to agree with Jamise.  The horses were heaving for breath, sweat coating their sides and froth dotting the corner of their mouths.  A half dozen or so of them were shaking, their bodies completely devoid of nutrients and energy.

Adam opened his mouth to reply only to catch himself.  He looked the knights over somberly before curtly nodding his head.

“Then we continue on foot.  The roads will only grow more treacherous and crowded from here anyway.  I doubt it will even slow us that much once all factors are considered.”

“Lieutenant.”  Adam’s voice caused the shrinking guard to snap back to attention.  “My force is going to dismount.  I need you to get our horses to a nearby stable.  Your men look battered and scared.  I doubt they have another protracted battle in them anyway.  Find a rear area for the animals and defend it until you receive further orders.”

“Thank you,” the nervous guard gushed, finally looking up to meet the knights’ eyes.  “By the fallen gods thank you.”

Adam shot him a quick smile before turning to look at the rest of his troop.  The second the guards could no longer see his face, worry creased it.  Still, he didn’t he didn’t let his concern deter him from his duty. His hands clanked together to draw the knights’ attention before he began shouting orders.

“Second company with me.  Fifth company and casters on Captain Jamise.  We’re going to dismount and turn our horses over to the guard for safekeeping before we continue our advance on foot.”

A murmur went up from the soldiers, but Adam simply raised his voice to speak over them.  “We don’t know exactly what’s happening other than that the attackers have made it into the City and that some sons and daughters of Vereton have betrayed us all.  That said, the attackers are still pushing deeper into the heart of our homeland, and Vereton needs each and every one of us.  I don’t have time for a long speech to make your blood boil and rouse your patriotism.  Just know that when the histories are told of this day, they won’t remember us as exhausted and bruised warriors.  They will remember our force as heroes.”

There was no cheer or clapping.  The knights were too exhausted for those sorts of theatrics.  Instead a handful of the soldiers responded with tired nods before the street was filled with the rasp of metal on metal as they dismounted.

Samazzar saw a fair share of grimaces as the warriors tested their legs after the long trip.  They were all experienced riders, but league after league at a gallop in heavy armor was more than enough to strain muscles and layer bruises upon bruises.

The knights quickly sorted themselves, years of training and discipline overcoming their momentary discomfort, and within a couple of minutes, about forty of the surviving warriors led Samazzar, Takkla, Dussok, and the two surviving magi back toward the Academy.

They moved slower without the horses, but with the number of corpses, burned wagons and half destroyed buildings blocking the road, it might have ultimately been for the best.  Periodically they ran into bandits as clumps of men and women clad in furs, and wielding rusty sabers and maces tried to break into shops or homes, but the brief battles didn’t slow their team much.  Each and every knight moved with the speed and precision of a sword master,easily batting aside clumsy and childish attacks before opening throats with lethal precision.

Finally, they reached the Academy gates and Samazzar’s heart leapt into his throat.  The guardpost and fortifications that had welcomed him home from any number of trips lay in ruins.  Roots had grown from the ground demolishing barriers tearing chunks from the wall that surrounded the campus.  Water covered everything, and in at least a couple of place an unknown force had blasted into the wall, leaving deep craters but ultimately not penetrating the defenses.

It was clear that the defenders had given a good account of themselves.  In addition to the heavily armored guards that were crushed and compressed into spheres of metal and flesh by some unknown magic, a dozen or so bandits and one man wearing a mask and chainmail under a green cloak lay in the street riddled with arrows.

But it wasn’t enough.  The gate itself had been torn from its hinges, and smoke was rising from further inside the campus as magic flashed back and forth.

Samazzar took a deep breath, squeezing his hands into fists as he looked past the ruined entrance into the place that had been his home.  More bodies lay in the streets, cast aside haphazardly by the practitioners that had killed students as easily as an adult swatting a fly.  Almost every building was missing windows and chunks of stone, likely aftershocks from the titanic magical clashes that were still taking place.

Several of the knights stirred restlessly, evidently not sure what they could do to help where the masters of the Academy were struggling.

“Steady,” Jamise growled, taking the first step toward the entryway.  “I don’t know what’s going on in there, but good men and women are bleeding right now while we try to find our courage.  Remember, do or die, we will do our duty.”

Then, he broke into a jog, leading the entire force through the destroyed wall and into the chaos that lay within.