Shades Of The Past Part 40

An hour into the desert, they see the dust rising from the marching feet of thousands of soldiers. They slow when they come within visual range of the soldiers. At least seven thousand strong, they look to mainly consist of foot soldiers. Only a fraction are cavalry, maybe less than five hundred.

"Do you sense a mage?" Jiron asks.

Shaking his head, he says, "No. I haven't felt any other doing magic since before Kern." Pulling out his mirror, he brings his horse to a halt.

"Do you think that's wise?" asks Jiron. "If there is a mage with them it could get dicey."

"I realize that," he states. Glancing at his friend he adds, "But we need to know the situation. Where are Illan and the others? Are there any other forces converging with this one?"

"Alright, I understand," concedes Jiron.

Summoning the magic, James has the mirror show an overhead view of the army ahead of them. He scrutinizes the leading edge of the force and finds no sign of a mage among them. Holding the image, he waits for a moment to see if the tingling of magic comes to him. When it fails to materialize, he scrolls the image further east.

Ten miles further ahead of the army lies a river running north and south. Just to the east of the river lies a major road running alongside of it. The road is packed with people. Whole families riding in wagons, pulling wagons, or even carrying their belongings on their backs are in an exodus to the north.

"Illan's to the south," he concludes. When Jiron comes closer he shows him the image of the fleeing people.

"That means this force is moving to work ahead of him and cut him off from Madoc," Jiron reasons.

"Looks that way," agrees James. He scrolls along the road to the south and it isn't far before they find what's left of a bridge. The center span is gone. James smiles when he sees more evidence that the seeds he planted within caravans have worked. He scrolls as far as he can and still the road is packed with people. Before he reaches the point where the draw of magic is too great, he discovers another bridge destroyed.

Scrolling back north, he continues to scan the road and finds a bridge that is still standing. "That's where this force is going," he says as he shows Jiron the image in the mirror. "All the other bridges south are destroyed and this is the only way for them to get across."

"So if that bridge wasn't there they would have to move even further north in order to cross," reasons Jiron. Glancing to James with a grin he says, "That would delay their encounter with Illan."

Nodding, James says, "We need to work our way around this force quickly. Their advance units may already be closing on it." Turning back to the mirror, he scans the area between here and the bridge and discovers a score of riders making for the bridge. He then scrolls across the bridge and to the east.

"Oh, man" he says as a force of over two thousand foot soldiers appears coming from the north. "Another force is on the way from the north. Looks as if they plan to meet the ones ahead of us at the bridge."

"Then launch an attack at Illan and the others," concludes Jiron.

Putting the mirror away, James says, "We can't let that happen."

Kicking their horses in the sides, they break into an all out gallop as they angle to the north. Staying just out of visual range, they work their way around the northern flank of the enemy.

Ta-too! Ta-too!

Off to their right an enemy scout spots them and alerts the rest of the army. No longer worrying about avoiding detection, they aim their horses directly toward where they believe the bridge to be.

Another horn sounds ahead and the force of twenty riders James had spied in his mirror earlier appear. The riders are coming straight for them with the undeniable intention of attacking.

Crumph! Crumph! Crumph!

The ground erupts under the leading edge of the riders. Horses and men are thrown into the air as the charge falters. When the dust clears, only six riders are continuing the attack.

James slows his horse while removing a slug from his belt. Glancing southward to the other force, he sees their hors.e.m.e.n coming fast. Turning back to the six ahead of him, he looses the magic as he throws the slug. Moving at the speed of a bullet, it strikes the lead rider and knocks him from his horse. Removing another slug, he again drops a rider to the ground.

Crumph!

Letting loose the magic once more, three of the remaining hors.e.m.e.n are thrown into the air. The last man still astride his horse manages to keep his steed from faltering. With sword in hand the rider rides directly at them.

Jiron moves to intercept before the rider has a chance to engage James. With knives out, he closes with the rider. The enemy horseman strikes out at Jiron as he pa.s.ses him on the left. Jiron blocks the blow with the knife in his right hand as he strikes out at the rear of the rider's horse with the left. Opening a deep gash along its hind quarters, the horse rears up in pain.

The rider manages to remain in the saddle as he works to steady his mount. Jiron quickly moves in and closes with the rider. Lashing out with a knife, he almost connects with the man's side before his sword blocks the attack.

Again, Jiron lashes out at the horse and scores another deep wound, this time in its flank. The blow severs several muscles and the horse cries out again in pain as it collapses. Vaulting from his horse, Jiron hits the ground and moves to finish the rider who has one leg caught under his horse.

Working to extricate himself from the fallen horse, the soldier tries to defend himself when Jiron closes for the attack. His sword easily blocks one knife but the other finds an opening and sinks into his side, puncturing a lung. Moving away from the trapped, dying man, Jiron catches a flash out of the corner of his eye. Turning to look, he realizes the flash was another of James' slugs on its way to take out a horseless rider that had survived the earlier explosions.

"Come on!" shouts James. He indicates the riders closing rapidly behind them.

Moving to his horse, Jiron leaps into the saddle and they again race for the bridge. Still several miles away, their horses are quickly becoming fatigued. The hard pace of the last two days has definitely taken its toll.

Staying low in the saddle, they keep the pace quick. The riders behind them gradually close the gap, their fresher horses able to maintain a quicker speed. When the riders have closed the distance to within fifty yards, they begin to see people moving across the horizon. It's the road to the bridge! It's the road to the bridge!

"Not much further now," Jiron shouts. In minutes they've reached the road and race alongside, the refugees fleeing the approach of Black Hawk line the road so thickly, James and Jiron are unable to use it. When the people who are on the edge of the road see them coming fast, they quickly get out of the way.

Behind them, the riders continue to close the gap, now only thirty yards away. Fortunately they are as hampered by the ebb and flow of the refugees as James and Jiron are so are unable to gain any faster.

Then all of a sudden the river appears ahead of them. James looks with horror at the jam packed bridge crossing over the river full of women, children and the elderly.

Jiron sees it too and yells, "You have no choice!" When he sees James hesitating, he shouts, "Do it!"

No! Focusing on the ground to either side of the bridge, he lets the magic flow... Focusing on the ground to either side of the bridge, he lets the magic flow...

Crumph! Crumph!

...the earth erupts in two ma.s.sive explosions. The refugees scream in fear as they flee. Tweaking the dust from the eruptions, he forms it into a humanoid figure twice the size of a man and has it begin to stalk toward the bridge. That's enough for even the bravest of those still upon the bridge. At the sight of the twelve foot tall creature walking toward them, they turn tail and race for the other side.

By the time James and Jiron reach the bridge, the area is in total chaos. The creature has reached the edge of the bridge and is beginning to walk across. James aims for the bridge and races right through the dust formed creature. As he exits through the creature and begins to cross the bridge, he cancels the spell. Hooves thundering, they race across to the other side. A gathering of people has formed a little ways from the beginning of the bridge and he has to slow in order not to run them down. With Jiron right behind, he clears the bridge and turns to the right.

Behind them, the enemy riders have already gained the bridge and are crossing fast.

Crumph! Crumph! Crumph!

Three explosions rip through the center span of the bridge. The people cry out in fear as horses, riders and stone erupt into the air. James slows as he gazes back. With a crack, the center span of the bridge collapses into the river below. On the far side of the river, the enemy riders who had yet to begin crossing over come to a quick halt. None made it to the other side.

"James!" Jiron cries out when he sees several of the riders on the other side of the river remove crossbows from behind their saddles. Turning their fatigued horses from the river, they break into a gallop and head for the open desert. The people on the road part quickly to avoid being run over. Soon, they are out of crossbow range and the river is disappearing quickly behind them.

Chapter Twenty Seven.

Since leaving Korazan behind, Illan has led the Black Hawk Raiders along the road north. With a wagon train stretching out over a half mile, not to mention the freed slaves that he's brought with him, they have moved at a crawl.

From the weapon stores of the slavers and the dead bodies of the enemy soldiers, they were able to equip most of the freed men with armor and weapons. Those who had never wielded a weapon before were given crossbows and formed into squads. The women, children, and the few elderly stayed within the center of the column as it marched northward toward Madoc.

Among the freed slaves, jubilation reigns. When before all they had to look forward to was a life of misery and servitude, now they are free with the hopes of remaining that way. Surely if anyone can bring them forth out of the Empire alive and well, Black Hawk can.

The rest accompanying him have a more realistic appreciation of the situation. They know there are still forces that yet lie between them and Madoc. None believe they'll simply be allowed to walk to safety. It's simply a matter of time before sufficient forces gather to strike.

Scouts are out in every direction and so far haven't reported sighting any other sizeable force. When a patrol or caravan comes within striking distance, Ceadric takes several hundred Raiders and takes them out. Whenever the enemy is destroyed, they strip the dead of their armor and weapons. They then take them back and arm what freed slaves that are still without.

During their trek northward, the towns they encounter are quickly taken. Soldiers are killed, slaves are freed and given the opportunity to join them, and the shops are raided for much needed supplies. A force this large goes through food quickly. Illan gave the order that civilians are not to be accosted under any circ.u.mstances. Any who give them problems were to be brought to him for judgment.

So far the process has worked fairly well. The first town they raided after Korazan, a couple of the new, younger raiders took advantage of a young woman. When brought before Illan, the young men pleaded their innocence but too many had witnessed them taking her into the building. Illan p.r.o.nounced them guilty and left their bodies hanging from the eaves of the building where the woman was attacked as an example to the rest. Since them, there have been no reports of any molestation of civilians by any of his men.

Another item the scouts were on a lookout for were bridges. The sack of crystals containing the explosive ones James had left him is now all but empty. Only two crystals remain. Whenever a bridge was sighted, he sent Ceadric with the sack of crystals to take out the bridge. He and his men would ride up to the bridge where he would toss a crystal onto the center span. Ten seconds later the crystal would explode leaving a large hole in the center. A few were made more st.u.r.dily and required two of the crystals to destroy it.

Earlier this morning while they were on the move, scouts reported the fortress of Al-Ziron was but two days ahead of them. A force of over a thousand men was estimated to be garrisoned there. Unwilling to tackle a fortified fortress, he makes the decision to leave the road and head cross country to the northeast. With any luck he and his men will be too large for them to attack, and those soldiers will remain where they are, allowing them to pa.s.s by.

The wagons rolling along behind him are filled to br.i.m.m.i.n.g with water and food for the horses and people. It's unlikely they will be able to forage for anything else from here on out. No more towns lie between where they are and Madoc. Any that used to be here were destroyed when the Empire came through last year.

Riding behind his banner are still over five hundred Raiders, those are all that's left from the many battles fought since they first entered the Empire. The slaves number close to a thousand; three hundred crossbowmen, five hundred bearing weapons of one type or another, and the rest is made up of the women, children and elderly. The elderly are suffering the trip the most. So far he's had to leave close to a dozen on the side of the road in a shallow grave after they died from the exertion of the trip.

His mind wanders while he rides, wondering where James is and if he's even still alive. Did this crazy plan work? Are Madoc's forces even now pushing the Empire out? But what's most on his mind is the threat of attack. They've been extremely lucky so far. How long is that going to last though? The closer they come to the border, the more likely that they will be hit and hit hard!

"Sir!" a scout cries as he rides up from the south.

"Report," Illan says as the man draws near.

"A score of riders comes from the south," reports the scout. "They don't look like soldiers, rather civilians."

From where Miko rides next to Illan he asks, "What were they wearing?"

"Most had on robes of one kind or another," he replies.

Illan glances to Miko, he understands the significance of that. "How far away are they?"

"A day, maybe more. They are moving only slightly faster than we are," he explains.

"Very well," replies Illan. "Return and keep an eye on them. If they should begin moving faster, return to let us know immediately."

Giving a smart salute, the scout says, "Yes, sir." Then he turns his horse and gallops back to the south.

"Mages you think?" Miko asks though he already knows the answer.

"Would think so," Illan states. "Moving slow though, that bothers me."

"Why?" questions Miko.

Illan glances to him and says, "It most likely means they're pacing us until other forces arrive then all will attack together." After a moment he adds, "Tell Ceadric and Delia I want to talk to them. Oh, and have Brother Willim come too."

Miko gives him a nod and then goes to find them.

Ceadric is the first to make his appearance. "What's up?" he asks.

"Tell you when the others join us," replies Illan.

They wait for several more minutes before first Delia joins them then Miko returns with Brother Willim in tow.

Continuing to ride, Illan has them move ahead of the column so he won't be overheard. "Scouts have reported a score of mages approaching from the rear," he tells them.

"A score?" asks Ceadric in surprise. "They've never committed that many at one time."

"You must be causing them difficulties for them to commit so many," suggests Brother Willim.

"Indeed," replies Illan.

"Are they close?" Delia asks.

"Right now they're about a day behind and are pacing us," he replies.

"We think they may be waiting for reinforcements before attacking," pipes up Miko.

Illan nods. "That's right." To Ceadric he says, "Send scouts further out. We need to know what's on the way. The scouts currently behind us are keeping an eye on them and will let us know if they make a move to quicken their pace."

"That would mean whatever they are planning is about to happen," comments Ceadric.

Illan nods to Ceadric who moves to get the scouts underway then turns to Miko and Brother Willim. "Can you handle them in the event of an attack?"

"Twenty?" considers Brother Willim. "I don't think so. It would depend on how strong they are."

"I'm not sure what I can do against magic," admits Miko. "The Star works well against otherworldly creatures, but flesh and blood?" He pauses a second before continuing, "I just don't know."

"Whether or not we can readily defeat them is immaterial," states Brother Willim. "If we wait for other reinforcements to arrive the situation will only get worse. I say we turn back and deal with them now while our chances are the highest."

"I agree," says Delia. "The longer we wait the worse it will become."

Glancing to the sky, Illan says, "It's still an hour before noon. Let's wait a couple hours to see if Ceadric's scouts find anything. If not, we'll turn around and attack."

"And if they do?" asks Miko.

"Then we'll adjust our plans accordingly," he replies. "Return to your people and be ready."

They break up and return to the column. Illan resumes his place at the head while the others rejoin their groups to inform them of what's going on.

With a possible attack imminent, Illan has the column tighten up and posts Raiders on either end. They stop at noon for a brief rest and lunch break, can't afford to have everyone tired and hungry if the battle should begin soon.

They no sooner come to a stop and begin handing out rations than a rider comes galloping from the northwest. At the sight of the fast approaching rider, Illan and the other leaders move to greet him.