Stars' Light, page 37
Sarannya could feel and see the scars against the light following the archers. She could feel the change in the light around her. She took a deep breath, filled with a certainty that they were going to make the wall. This is going to turn into a real fight, she realized, and then almost laughed at herself at the stupidity of her thoughts. Of course this is a real fight.
“Fallen behind the archers,” Masamiria sent to only Kiril and Sarannya. “They will probably make the wall, so be prepared to face those using the Essences against you. This will be just like what Asenath and the General taught you. Do not draw your War Blades early. Wait until the enemy is close before you let them feel the terror of facing a Rimerian.”
“We must protect our units from them. They will try to destroy the archers,” Kiril answered.
“We should have the archers move back, then,” Sarannya sent.
“No. We need them hammering away at the other units, so they do not just send in a wave of troops to overrun us.” Kiril looked at Sarannya from his section of the wall with a ‘do you understand’ look on his face.
Sarannya nodded back, but immediately turned towards Lubos. “There will be Fallen warriors making the wall. You must not engage them. They will destroy you and the archers. Make sure to make room and to pull back enough for me to engage them, but not so far that you cannot support me. If they are dealing with both of us, maybe we can stop them from taking this section of the wall.”
“Understood, Colonel.” Lubos quickly began to organize the archers and their unit. He was not going to leave the Colonel to face the enemy alone. She was just damn crazy if she thought that he would actually follow that order.
The humming of bowstrings suddenly sounded all around Sarannya, and she looked out to see that the enemy had made it to the center of the field. This was it, from here on out, it was going to be a running battle.
Chenda watched from the tree line as her forces made the center of the field, and her archers began to fire. The crunch of arrows hitting metal shields, and the dull chink of metal hitting rock, drowned out the noise of her marching troops.
“Have the archers begin firing. Move the heavy infantry forward. Get to the wall and kill those knights, then destroy their archers,” she ordered.
“As you order, General.”
Chenda watched impassively as her forces began moving forward, albeit slowly, trying to protect themselves from the onslaught of arrows that were falling from the sky. Her swept back horns only turned slightly as she surveyed first one end of the battlefield, and then the other, as she waited for them to make the wall. She was waiting to begin her own move forward. She did not want to waste her Mara on protection against arrows. Let the humans and her lessers soak those up for her.
Sarannya knelt down and peered out occasionally as arrows were landing around her, but she was focused on changing the wind around her group of archers. So far, she had been successful. No arrows had actually made it to her group. They were able to fire without ceasing. Most of them were not even shooting from behind cover. The light she was using was only a trickle, but it was enough. She was trying to save as much as she could, and still protect her soldiers.
She could hear the heavy infantry getting closer by the sounds of the arrows hitting armor and the cries of the men who were wounded or dying. She could feel that Kiril and Masamiria were also protecting their people. When glancing out, she could see the Fallen were protecting only themselves, and leaving their fellow soldiers to get hit and die by each arrow barrage. They were saving their Mara for when they made the wall.
This was what the history books mentioned when they talked about generals using their mass of soldiers to gain a foothold, while taking a staggering amount of casualties. Their opponent greatly outnumbered them, so they would wear down the defenders until they could break through, and then the real slaughter would begin.
Her hand brushed the wrapped hilt of War Bringer. Confidence moved through her. “Not today,” she whispered to herself. “We will not break or fall today.” Sarannya took a deep breath. Nervousness coursed through her body as Lubos yelled out, ordering the archers back. He drew his sword and looked down at her.
“The enemy has reached the wall, Colonel. You will not stand alone.”
Raw emotion watered her eyes. Here was a man who had probably raped, murdered and pillaged, standing with her; even though she had ordered him not to; even though she was just a girl. Lubos stepped back, but stayed standing near her protectively.
Sarannya turned as men with curved horns made the wall in a single bound. Her archers had moved back to higher ground on the sides of the pass, and were showering the enemy with arrows, but to no avail.
“Now is the time. Unsheathe us, and let us bring war and retribution to the enemy.”
Sarannya surged to her feet, War Bringer and Retribution in her hands. Light blazed around her. The enemy turned towards her in surprise and fear, having been focused on the archers shooting at them from the rocks and the steep side of the pass. They flinched back as Sarannya moved forward rapidly, her eyes turning a luminous silver.
Sarannya’s movement was fluid. The first two of the Fallen cascaded into ash around her before they had time to even react to her presence. The third attempted to defend himself, but he was so focused on Sarannya that his defense against the archers disappeared. Klara and Danica sent arrows into his side and back. And as his body recoiled in pain, Retribution finished him.
“Lubos. Take command of the archers and support me.” Her voice vibrated the air around him. He immediately dropped down on the backside of the wall, and began to make his way up the steep slope. He joined the unit of archers that were giving close support to the spearmen and swordsmen rapidly filling the top of the wall to repel the heavy infantry and the Fallen.
The Fallen were focused on the middle and Sarannya’s side. All of the archers had moved back from those sections and fierce fighting was raging. Kiril, much like Sarannya, was a beacon of light. Kiril’s Rimerian, Wrath, was a brilliant blur as it moved among the enemy, dealing death with every streak. He was completely encased in a storm of ash as the enemy fell all around him.
Masamiria had repositioned his archers to be able to shoot the length of the wall. He stood with them in the open. His own Rimerian, Light’s Truth, was held lightly in his hand, shedding its light in what looked like mist. It became difficult to see him or his archers clearly.
“Fire.” He spoke, the Essences enhancing his voice. His eyes shone with a silver brillance that had not been seen since the Second Darkening, for a true Tracian Knight was on the field.
Arrows struck the enemy from the side. So distracted were they by Kiril and Sarannya, they were completely surprised by the barrage. The entire left wing of the heavy infantry went down. The center bogged down as they turned to face this new threat. And from behind their shields, they began to advance on Masamiria and his archers. Their shields were holed, dented, and starting to break, but they advanced anyway as they were ordered.
Chenda sucked in her breath. The spy was still here! She thought that he would have ascended by now, and moved on. He was like a brillant sun to her eyes, and she squinted when trying to track his movements. Excitement filled her. “Move on him with everything we have,” she ordered the heavy infantry. She turned to a small group of her elite Fallen. “Come with me.”
Masamiria smiled as the enemy marched towards him. This would take some pressure off of Kiril and the center. It might even draw the enemy from Sarannya. “Stay behind me, and begin the withdrawal. I will engage the enemy and destroy them. Shoot at will.” He moved forward, bringing Light’s Truth up in front of him.
Kiril felt the push on his position lighten, and then slag completely off. Ash settled around him as he looked down to see Masamiria advancing on the enemy. His archers were starting their withdrawal back up on the wall, and two units of eight were covering the withdrawal, sending arrows into the enemy as Masamiria advanced ahead of them. He turned back to Sarannya, who was still heavily engaged.
Sarannya moved fluidly around one Fallen’s sword to cover another Fallen while cutting the first one. It was like a dance with multiple partners. She was focused on what she was doing at that moment, but she was also aware of the changing tide around her. She was getting tired, and burning Mara like a crazy girl. She had never burned so much before, and she did not understand how she had not used up her well yet.
“We are augmenting your well. But remember, you still can’t burn light indefinitely,” Retribution told her.
She stumbled over the body of one of her own, exposing her to a thrust from a snarling Fallen, and she corrected by sweeping aside the stab and cutting back across the man’s neck. His horned head fell back and away from her before his body crumbled and sifted into ash at her feet. She grimaced in pain, feeling the sting of another cut on her arm. She sent light into the wound to dull the pain and stop the bleeding. A spear went past her from behind to stab one of the enemy, who had just climbed up onto the wall. Blood welled up along the spear point, and the man groaned as he fell back into his comrades, who were climbing up behind him.
“Colonel, you need to pull back and rest for a moment,” Lubos yelled in her ear over the sounds of combat, screams of the wounded, and the groans of the dying. He had ordered the spearmen and swordsmen to repel the enemy.
Sarannya turned, not realizing that he had come down from the archers. Time in battle moved strangely. It felt as though she’d only been fighting for a few moments, but the ache of her muscles told her it had been much longer. She nodded, and pulled back into the cluster of her men and looked around. None of the Fallen had made it past her. She had lost count of how many she had killed, but she was smudged and dirty with ash and blood.
She took a deep breath and noticed that the fighting was slacking off in the center. She could actually see Kiril as he pulled back from the fighting, able to take a moment to get his bearings. Foreboding welled up inside of her as an enemy unit of eight just appeared on her end of the wall. A Fallen was leading them with golden horns that swept up above her head.
Sarannya stood in shock for a moment as this new threat scythed through her swordsmen and came heading straight at her. The bodies of her men just fell away from this new Fallen and her unit. She had horns much like Asenath’s. Sarannya knew what this meant, thanks to Asenath’s teachings. This was a Fallen who had been shaped for command.
Lubos bagan to move forward, but he was stopped by a slender hand on his shoulder.
“There is nothing you can do against her. If you go against that one, you will die.”
Lubos felt the truth hit him, and he paused as Sarannya’s silver eyes settled on him for only a moment before she moved past him. He could see the weariness in her, and he remembered how she had protected him in the caves, and how she had used the Essences to keep the enemy arrows from hitting them. He was torn, and for the first time in his life, he contemplated not helping himself. He meant to follow her, but a gust of wind pushed him back. All the hair on the back of his neck stood on end. She had not even looked at him, because she was still advancing on the enemy.
Sarannya knew that she was no match for this new Fallen. Just by the grace in her movements as this woman closed on her, Sarannya could feel that she was outclassed. She surrendered to the outcome and flow around her. She gave in to the Essences in full, and the fight that was left in her. There was a humming that started inside of her. A vibration, and then she moved. War Bringer and Retribution flared to life, silver runes burst into being with light along their blades, dripping brillance.
Ash floated about her as Sarannya dodged the first flurry of strikes not only by Chenda, but by her unit. Sarannya had become earth, water, fire, and wind, cutting down several of the Fallen as she moved around Chenda, who was at the center of the storm. Nothing could quite get to her.
Chenda moved in quickly to end this threat, but the Rimerians had come to life. A pulse emanated out from this young girl, and then those damned silver runes had come to life. Memories of the past assaulted her, slowing her and making her cautious. Her men moved in around her to get a crack at this girl. All were hoping to gain the prestige of killing a Tracian Knight. Only she knew how difficult that was, having faced them before.
Chenda frowned as several of them died, attacking with confidence instead of caution. “Do not attack her directly. We will use the Essences to pin her down and then kill her,” she sent to the remaining soldiers in her unit.
Sarannya used the wind to offset the rocks and rock chips that came at her. She could hear the grunts and screams as the men around her were knocked down, smashed, or broken by flying debris. Sarannya tried to protect everyone near her, but it was too taxing, and she was growing tired.
“You cannot save them all, but you can make the enemy wish they had never taken up arms against you.” Retribution whispered in her mind.
“Chenda is going to come straight at you while her unit distracts you. She wants the prestige of killing a Rimerian bearer. It will elevate her in the Fallen caste. We shall give her something to remember,” War Bringer said, sending light into Sarannya. He could feel that she needed a boost and was starting to falter.
“This Chenda is better than me. I can’t face her head on.” Sarannya flowed out of the way of a strike, Retribution cutting through the Fallen’s shoulder. Ash floated around her, and then she was off, moving in a manner to keep the curved horns of the soldiers between her and the command horns, so Chenda could never actually attack her.
Sarannya was also matching Essences, using earth, water, fire, and wind to protect her from the enemy using those very Essences against her. She noticed their Essences came from a different source, and seemed to melt away when they came into contact with hers. This almost made her feel like she could just walk in, but she knew better. She did not want to underestimate this enemy.
Sarannya’s own men were getting butchered around her. Some were blown off the wall by a murderous wind, others were crushed by a rock or pierced by dagger-like rock chips that punched holes through their armor, and a few were suffocated in their own blood, the Fallen using their knowledge of the Water Essence to not only use their victims’ own blood, but the blood that was all around the wall from the dead and dying.
Sarannya tried to put it out of her mind, but she knew that seeing bubbles of blood floating through the air to attack and slither into her men’s mouths, eyes, ears, and noses to suffocate them was something she would never get past.
Lubos had fallen back. There was no way to fight these things. The very physical world around them was somehow attacking him and his people. He quickly took stock of the situation and then rallied the archers, who began to harry the Fallen from a sizable distance, attempting to distract them from Sarannya, so she could kill them.
Sarannya faltered in her movement and suddenly found herself exactly where she had been trying not to be, facing Chenda Bopha. It became a whirl of blades with Sarannya breaking away, floating out of range, or flowing around the attacks. She used the rocks around her to assault and knock her enemy off balance, to trap the feet of the other Fallen surrounding her, and to deflect an attack that would have hit her while she was dealing with yet another enemy.
Chenda grimaced. This knight was good at evasion and distraction. She shielded herself as another barrage of rock daggers came at her. Chenda had crushed the stone that attempted to bind her feet, and she leaned into the wind that attempted to blow her from the walls altogether. Her sword lashed out, but was countered by a Rimerian. Chenda narrowed her eyes against the light and could feel its radiance burning her skin. She broke away, attempting to cut Sarannya’s legs. Only a couple more movements, and she woud have this young upstart. She could claim to have taken out a Tracian Knight.
Sarannya floated back just out of range, and cut down towards Chenda’s hand. Her blade was countered and there was a flash of light. She could see the Fallen squinting against the brilliance. Sarannya saw anger and raw hatred in her enemy’s yellow eyes, and then she felt it. She was trapped. She had finally been surrounded.
Kiril saw it happen before the trap was fully set, and he bolted. He was moving faster than a normal human. His men did not know what to do at first as he streaked off. They stopped and stumbled around, trying to get out of his way. Then an order burst from the air about them, and they jumped to obey as Masamiria’s forces regained the wall.
Kiril’s emotions flared, and he knew that Sarannya could feel them through the connection. But he did not care. Sarannya felt Kiril’s focus turn to her, and felt him run. She moved into a flurry of movement and cuts. She was hoping to distract the enemy while he was coming up on them.
Chenda glanced sideways down the wall to see another knight bearing down on her and what remained of her unit. She smiled. This is going to be a good day. She was going to be a hero.
Sarannya was a blur, but so were her enemies. Blades flashed about, but she could not escape them all. The Fallen were doing everything they could to keep her in the circle. She moved into them, trying to break past, War Bringer brushing aside a Fallen’s blade, and then Retribution cut him across the chest. He fell into ashes at her feet. She grimaced as the sting of a cut caused her to falter just for a second. She sent light to her hip and continued to move, but she was cut again across her back. She was thankful and aware that her armor had once again saved her.
She spun around, knowing this would be Chenda’s opening, and engaged the Fallen who was pressing her. She kept War Bringer close to ward off any attacks as she was surrounded. Sarannya could feel the scar that was Chenda closing in, but she could also feel the light of Kiril approaching.
