
The walk back to the town – Carrick – was slow but satisfying. Naturally, I had my character sheet before me:491Please respect copyright.PENANAbvqPkTn40D
491Please respect copyright.PENANAYfM9XsCEUh
Sean de Courcy, king of Greyland491Please respect copyright.PENANA02d4yBedTo
491Please respect copyright.PENANAeZ4XNHQ3dn
Fighter, Level 2 HP 16 AC 0491Please respect copyright.PENANANAJ2yMOVed
491Please respect copyright.PENANAi2R4Tf168g
Str 7491Please respect copyright.PENANAF8k1QQK4W5
Dex 4491Please respect copyright.PENANARz7HkjALPN
Con 8491Please respect copyright.PENANA1N8GA2DyCJ
Int 16491Please respect copyright.PENANAfUrfKzjlRU
Wis 16491Please respect copyright.PENANA4B38ohFJKO
Cha 4491Please respect copyright.PENANArPkxaxuUli
491Please respect copyright.PENANAOtzUMfxMa1
Skills491Please respect copyright.PENANAd888QHq9le
Lunge 5491Please respect copyright.PENANAKn4wGbXsxX
Parry 5491Please respect copyright.PENANAZJvnG2ROB9
Wield Shortbow 3491Please respect copyright.PENANA8N0AHdK79E
Wield Rapier 5491Please respect copyright.PENANA2H9cFb1twF
491Please respect copyright.PENANALyexEKNIgo
You have 1 attribute point to assign.491Please respect copyright.PENANAVU1VlaSOIF
You have 5 skill points to assign.491Please respect copyright.PENANAAmcsKkXuOG
491Please respect copyright.PENANAR38c2nGU7V
XP 110/200
491Please respect copyright.PENANA1KlHNkuLtq
491Please respect copyright.PENANAjiYLjuLRT6491Please respect copyright.PENANA7FlWB9leGy
491Please respect copyright.PENANALZDCajC13g
I was heartened that the system awarded a new attribute point on levelling: one that further justified my risky decision to be a Fighter. The immediate question was not what attribute to increase but whether to spend it at all. If it proved relatively easy to get attributes to move up from very low scores, but very hard to say, train Strength from 17 to 18, then I should save all my level points until I'd achieved as much as I could from exercise.491Please respect copyright.PENANApunDjyKoRn
491Please respect copyright.PENANAiPGSl4ExmC
Then there was the question of skill points. From the speed at which skills increased, I might have made a mistake in my Min-Max approach. I tapped Carlena on the back and asked that she wait with me while I took a breather. The cleric, however, I gestured to continue towards the town walls, which were less than a mile away.491Please respect copyright.PENANAyTZ66QPmQs
491Please respect copyright.PENANAu9KBBcE3X2
'Can you tell me about how to improve skills?'491Please respect copyright.PENANALbWgvSqINM
491Please respect copyright.PENANAMVyFvQf8ZR
'I don't have access to the menus that you do, so anything I can tell you is conjecture.'491Please respect copyright.PENANASiYZwl53HQ
491Please respect copyright.PENANAA6QuYJeM22
'I understand.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAW8JlLe1Z5j
491Please respect copyright.PENANAAzP8G8GEXo
'I believe that every time where you are in a situation where you have a chance to use a skill in earnest, there's the possibility you will increase your expertise in it. But you have to use a skill many times before you will be successful.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAuPfa3f4Zkd
491Please respect copyright.PENANAHzpVj22DPj
'Mine seemed to go up fairly rapidly.'491Please respect copyright.PENANATQKU2vX50O
491Please respect copyright.PENANACpQ5Rfwdd9
Carlena looked at me thoughtfully. 'Tell me my stats.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAtOwXc3Mf4j
491Please respect copyright.PENANAwhh6lZNBV1
It took a moment to find the right menu, then I reported them to her: 'Strength five; Dexterity eleven; Constitution nine; Intelligence seventeen; Wisdom seven; Charisma eight.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAzsrdaaVcFD
491Please respect copyright.PENANAh0Ou0RVF9V
'Much as I thought. Although my Intelligence is slightly disappointing. Now, what are yours?'491Please respect copyright.PENANAqivH4YP9le
491Please respect copyright.PENANA2MMCEHjg97
Although I felt reluctant to share this information for some reason, I reminded myself she was on my side after all. 'Strength seven; Dexterity four; Constitution eight; Intelligence sixteen; Wisdom sixteen; Charisma four.'491Please respect copyright.PENANA0wCFtp5LZF
491Please respect copyright.PENANAaGqOvdQYG1
'By Miya's breath! Sixteen Intelligence and Wisdom? I never would have believed it!' Then she laughed. 'No offence, Sean, but I see the body of King Carlos and I see a very slow-witted man. It affects my perception of you.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAqD0syujj0T
491Please respect copyright.PENANAObo8TeYHUA
'None taken,' I smiled. It was the first time I'd seen the sorceress laugh and it all of a sudden, my doubts about her retreated.491Please respect copyright.PENANAdQrN66HaJ9
491Please respect copyright.PENANA8f6c74Ic2D
'That's the explanation: you will learn fast with those two attributes so high. They are extraordinary, I doubt there are more than a handful of people in the world with both Intelligence and Wisdom over fifteen.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAGPqZpXhuTR
491Please respect copyright.PENANAaZzYeaWjuJ
'What's the maximum an attribute can be at?491Please respect copyright.PENANA6EsUEx7n8V
491Please respect copyright.PENANAnTGvc4jb0t
'Again, this is conjecture, but I think for a human, twenty.'491Please respect copyright.PENANALmTkQUo8yp
491Please respect copyright.PENANAhPEztWtswq
I resumed my slow walk back to the safety of the town walls. It was hard to force my thick legs into motion, but my morale was high and the aches didn't trouble me. If I could get my core fighting attributes to increase, to at least to around eleven or twelve, then I could bump them up with my level gains. Meanwhile, I had a very advantageous situation in regard to skills. Obviously, I should spread my points widely, trusting to my Intelligence and Wisdom to bring them up fast. In time, I would be a very versatile warrior, capable of using a wide variety of weapons and actions at a high level, instead of a specialist in just one or two.491Please respect copyright.PENANARNfeK7qWAY
491Please respect copyright.PENANA72RlKdnFgR
I put a skill point into each of Bash, Block, Deflect, Defensive Stance and Dodge, which would get me started in those. And I saved my attribute point for now.491Please respect copyright.PENANAiBkDVDZKha
491Please respect copyright.PENANA1yg8w7cwt1
By the time we reached the eastern gate of the town (a large metal portcullis that was already mostly down, I had to duck to go through), nearly four hours had passed. I hadn't forgotten the fact that the smithy was turning out pickaxes and as soon as the iron was all used up and I had twenty-four new pickaxes, I assigned them to the miners.491Please respect copyright.PENANACBDaOcUOjB
491Please respect copyright.PENANAKG7Pkw3Dxk
The Cleric was just beyond the gate, waiting for us. My instinct was to thank her, but conscious of the looks of the guards and the townspeople, I simply said, 'be ready to do the same tomorrow.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAR2SaGQjnzN
491Please respect copyright.PENANAnzqR9YGoYp
'Yes, sire.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAFL7RtSwi6v
491Please respect copyright.PENANA06iqHdFp2n
With a promise she would join me for dinner, Carlena bid me farewell soon after and set off towards her tower, the one I had arrived at just two days ago (though it felt like I'd been here a week at least).491Please respect copyright.PENANAT83tuU00TL
491Please respect copyright.PENANAYOVm4Ua36e
As I entered the keep, my thoughts were entirely on a bath and even a nap before dinner, when they were jolted into focus by the presence of Chancellor Parrin. My scout had been waiting in one of several chairs that were set outside of the solar for that purpose. My heart leapt. So much depended on his report. What did his face convey? Bad news, I thought, there was unease in the way his eyes caught mine.491Please respect copyright.PENANAdDCo2tWGnr
491Please respect copyright.PENANAKh29gURjk9
After taking my throne and ordering the servants to leave, I called the chancellor close.491Please respect copyright.PENANAINaQq6OURS
491Please respect copyright.PENANAdnT73mJrAn
'Well?'491Please respect copyright.PENANAd5SSaMUYPL
491Please respect copyright.PENANA9oYqVLVf6c
'They are moving an army towards us.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAerCNWz5ngG
491Please respect copyright.PENANAZ4k163hTM8
'How many troops?'491Please respect copyright.PENANAWhEy3cIwNv
491Please respect copyright.PENANAjc3UaGFilV
'Sixty spearmen, twenty axemen, forty archers, thirty light cavalry, ten heavy cavalry…' he paused, 'with them are two commanders, one from each faction, and a Shaman with a sabre-tooth tiger pet, I couldn't determine their levels.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAvDJUIuKYUq
491Please respect copyright.PENANA58hozOTGME
They had about twice the number of troops we did. And strangely that gave me some hope. Given Greyland's tiny army, it could have been a lot worse.491Please respect copyright.PENANAuuzOhJeZTP
491Please respect copyright.PENANAftn28ep9E9
'How long have we got?'491Please respect copyright.PENANAl5JnWAQYWX
491Please respect copyright.PENANAzz7PcC7tsN
'They will arrive at Three-Ways tomorrow, probably near enough to noon.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAoHnzD4kMRH
491Please respect copyright.PENANA3wa50Vjfd2
This was happening too fast. If I could have even had just a couple more personal levels, I could make a real difference to what happened in the melee. It was unfortunate too that the tower machicolations wouldn't be in place for this battle, one day and eighteen hours remained on that timer.491Please respect copyright.PENANAeNy51fDDXc
491Please respect copyright.PENANAIzS5s3mJ64
Perhaps I was looking worried, because Parrin asked, 'can we stop them?'491Please respect copyright.PENANAUtiCzZNWzL
491Please respect copyright.PENANAMqMkcnbsZf
I smiled. 'Of course we can. In fact, I think they've made a mistake. They didn't bring their full army?'491Please respect copyright.PENANAO8CzqJ3uqX
491Please respect copyright.PENANA3dFYLE4mh9
'No, this is about half.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAz91EWVWDwR
491Please respect copyright.PENANAmULTVBbU9l
That really did feel like a mistake. If they had risked everything on overwhelming us, that would have been far more dangerous. Perhaps they were worried about losing control of our farmland in the event of being thrown back. Or perhaps the two rulers were not entirely of the same mind. Whatever the reason, the encouragement I offered the chancellor was not at all bluster. 'A lot will depend on how you, Lord Arval and Carlena perform, but this will be a battle we can win. We have a ballista, they don't have anything with the same range?'491Please respect copyright.PENANAiQDTs9Kh1P
491Please respect copyright.PENANAHeqgPyUVWQ
'No.'491Please respect copyright.PENANA9sBp9pWrRA
491Please respect copyright.PENANAe3HYUv6UXt
'Because of that, they won't be able to mass their archers to eliminate ours and then drive us from the walls. They will have to come on fast and try to storm the fort while we are on top of them. And that's a big advantage to us.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAm4wTx47jXZ
491Please respect copyright.PENANA9osbbuaw4S
'True enough sire.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAHH14dRz4Do
491Please respect copyright.PENANAueu0pLvbSB
'Send a messenger on a fast horse with those figures to Lord Arval and tell him I'm coming; order a horse and cart big enough to carry me; let Carlena know to meet us at the fort tomorrow, early, and the cleric too, and any of the archers in the hospital able to fire a bow.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAKR15AC9Gja
491Please respect copyright.PENANAuKg7D1zwAp
We shared a look – for my part I tried to convey confidence and determination – and then he was striding out of the hall, his rapid footsteps echoing in the empty room. One day I would lead my armies from the front. If we survived this attack. But even if I couldn't fight in a battle effectively, I could be there to encourage the soldiers and give orders.491Please respect copyright.PENANAd9pjvWRV2I
491Please respect copyright.PENANAHFW2e8t7iu
After a wash and change and a meal (fish again) I went outside the keep to where a man sat on a long cart, which was drawn by two horses. I was going to have to travel through an uncomfortable night on those bare planks and over a bumpy road.491Please respect copyright.PENANAmMmcJ3KtsW
491Please respect copyright.PENANABmmRLGtQ6B
It really was a painful journey, several times I was jolted so badly even my bulky body rose off the planks. As best I could, I distracted myself by reading up on the game menus, giving particular attention to the stats on the soldiers. It was possible to get details on each soldier type, so our 33 archers, for example, read as follows:491Please respect copyright.PENANAJmokTM9wRJ
491Please respect copyright.PENANAYkeRlNig5c
Greyland Archer491Please respect copyright.PENANAyj9VqQvqZj
491Please respect copyright.PENANAkZPorX3sw1
Fighter level 0491Please respect copyright.PENANAMT12X7enmO
491Please respect copyright.PENANANvYCV00q7K
Ranged attack: 15491Please respect copyright.PENANASzK63d8RgY
Melee attack: 8491Please respect copyright.PENANAe9zYgwsdlG
Armour Class: 2491Please respect copyright.PENANAHqERKVuu4Z
Hit Points: 5491Please respect copyright.PENANAM2uB3MidFg
491Please respect copyright.PENANAk8qQSMaKOb
Skills:491Please respect copyright.PENANAANYjjbV9ZQ
Wield Longbow variable, according to experience491Please respect copyright.PENANAe1usaWMUJu
Wield Shortsword variable, according to experience491Please respect copyright.PENANA1MqzcAv2aL
491Please respect copyright.PENANAk2iKDrQvxP
Monthly Upkeep: 4sp
491Please respect copyright.PENANAe7LeOFDDKa
I had also been keeping an eye on the town menu and just after dawn, 4 iron ingots appeared in the resources area. That was excellent, it showed that applying steel pickaxes to mining really was an effective way to increase production. I allocated the ingots to the smithy, meaning I would have 48 new pickaxes in due course. Assuming we survived the day ahead.491Please respect copyright.PENANArPQSVHz96N
491Please respect copyright.PENANAJIFY8lu5Sy
Lively birdsong accompanied the spread of grey light across the sky. Because we were making our way down a valley, I didn't see the rising sun, only a pink glow that became a bright yellow sun by the time it rose high enough to cross the shadows of the horizon. It was a beautiful day and I was struck by the realisation that it might be my last. Unlike a game, this could be the end for me. I was placing myself in proximity to 160 or so enemy soldiers who wouldn't hesitate to kill me if they could. And there was no possibility of escape if it all went wrong, not with this body.491Please respect copyright.PENANAUKTLIyJz8X
491Please respect copyright.PENANAOcHwu3T9xc
Did every soldier feel the same, the morning before battle? A heightening of all the senses? An appreciation of the sky, the breeze, the birdsong? Even of the breaths I was taking. Yes, I felt a certain amount of fear, but it was very much in the background. I had to do what I had to do.491Please respect copyright.PENANAPWwf0QDveP
491Please respect copyright.PENANA1L20h0yY2z
Three Ways was the area at meeting of two valleys at the confluence of two small mountain rivers with a bridge over the emerging river. The fort was a wooden tower on a rocky outcrop to my right, the river I was following was on my left. Extending from the tower and all the way to the riverbank where there was another, much smaller, tower was a wooden palisade. There was a gate where the road passed through the wall.491Please respect copyright.PENANAg4oX5ZNjkv
491Please respect copyright.PENANARime3NPsSP
My first impression was positive. We had control of the main route up towards Carrick. In theory, you could march along the other side of the river, in the narrow strip of rocky ground before the hill began to rise steeply. That would let you bypass the fort, but it would be slow going and we could harass the enemy from our side of the river. The walls of the hillside were even steeper near the main fort tower, including slaps of sheer rock in places. There was no way an army could skirt around us.491Please respect copyright.PENANAQOfiIj1oGn
491Please respect copyright.PENANAGD1QGMinKI
A picket of a dozen light infantry called on the cart to stop and as soon as they saw me, they stiffened to attention. With some difficulty I got myself out of the cart and over to the soldiers who looked at me with solemn expressions.491Please respect copyright.PENANAQ6hkzpCJAD
491Please respect copyright.PENANAegcSEulKge
'Show me to Lord Arval.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAwbPQCRFJ7X
491Please respect copyright.PENANAc5JDi4fcgj
A guard saluted and led the way towards the main fort tower; before we were half way there, a cluster of soldiers came out of it, Lord Arval at their head, body armour shining silver in the morning light.491Please respect copyright.PENANAcV71W0Xfkp
491Please respect copyright.PENANAcJzZf6dHiJ
'Well met, sir, well met!' Lord Arval offered his hand and shook mine earnestly. 'I have made my dispositions, but I'm glad you are here to check them and lead us in the battle.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAO1GNuJ7vAz
491Please respect copyright.PENANAkjBeT9byRQ
'Thank you, Lord Arval. I don't suppose this world has invented coffee? No. Some hot water then if you can, while you explain your set up.'491Please respect copyright.PENANArla5b7bmff
491Please respect copyright.PENANASjc2phrGB6
'Certainly sire.' He gestured an aide to obtain my drink, then began his account. 'Our light cavalry, twenty-four of them, are scouting further down the road. They will bring us word of the enemy advance.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAtUqGw7EGtZ
491Please respect copyright.PENANA71P21XEOiU
I nodded.491Please respect copyright.PENANAtILdzSnvU5
491Please respect copyright.PENANAGB6MhmrXYq
'The ballista is on top of the main tower.'491Please respect copyright.PENANA3burcrQP36
491Please respect copyright.PENANAWPf8dD5uKD
'What's the maximum range for it?'491Please respect copyright.PENANAw2Pk72YBS7
491Please respect copyright.PENANAjTItcc27SK
'I can show you, if you'll come up to the palisade walkway.'491Please respect copyright.PENANALSa5jjRh7Z
491Please respect copyright.PENANAGSO7A66mlW
It took some effort, and I nearly had to ask for a push from behind, but I got up a narrow wooden staircase and stood with the Paladin above the gate. Ahead of me, the road turned left to cross the bridge and then follow the river downstream on its left bank. That valley was where our opponents would arrive from. From here I could see the other stream and the mouth of the other valley, which was around the corner to the right of our main tower, with the stream running across the ground ahead of us to the main river about four hundred yards from where I was standing.491Please respect copyright.PENANA1hT6ylAaIZ
491Please respect copyright.PENANA8xrC8GLK52
'See that reddish rock beyond the bridge?'491Please respect copyright.PENANAvj5qCrBtN8
491Please respect copyright.PENANASJlJe9nAyU
'Yes?'491Please respect copyright.PENANACnTaFI0DAw
491Please respect copyright.PENANAjUMYhSz42r
'The ballista can hit that. I know, I had them fire at it.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAFm9qN38H16
491Please respect copyright.PENANAsqQiADviPf
While it was good that we could be shooting at the enemy as they crossed the bridge, I wasn't sure about placing the ballista crew in a position where they could be fired upon once the enemy was over the crossing. Not at all.491Please respect copyright.PENANAGpx8rKb4px
491Please respect copyright.PENANAgCOArlIeBu
'All along the palisade will be our light infantry. They have been hauling rocks up ever since we heard the news. Also about half the archers. Only fifteen can fit alongside the ballista crew on the top of the tower.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAFf2SNHU6pe
491Please respect copyright.PENANAx5BNEwBCaR
Lord Arval looked at me and then continued.491Please respect copyright.PENANAf1ZFUHaJU1
491Please respect copyright.PENANARbgnMsJ5BM
'I was thinking that the twelve heavy infantry and four heavy cavalry should be there on that rise, as our reserve.' He pointed back the way I had come from.491Please respect copyright.PENANAVbMWduYjLR
491Please respect copyright.PENANAPjjTPun79X
'And what about you and the Sorceress?'491Please respect copyright.PENANA7R7TcAb998
491Please respect copyright.PENANAg3hwZJ9zAN
'It seems to me, she should be on the small tower, nearest the bridge, and myself with the reserve.'491Please respect copyright.PENANASc5ukz8pez
491Please respect copyright.PENANAsLVQr1VwR3
For a while I studied the position and everyone waited silently, the only sound that of our flags flapping in a light breeze.491Please respect copyright.PENANAy2tWUaz3qJ
491Please respect copyright.PENANAjy8LGBKgb7
'Suppose you were their general, what would you do?'491Please respect copyright.PENANAXml05ew6ro
491Please respect copyright.PENANAxHHy9cduPy
Lord Arval looked thoughtful and rubbed his bald head slowly as he considered the ground ahead of us. 'I'd probably rush my archers to the main tower and try to silence the ballista, maybe having prepared screens first, so as to protect from incoming arrows from the walls. If I succeeded, I'd clear the palisade next, as much as I could.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAhciBhvl1Ux
491Please respect copyright.PENANAMMsqmRSUCm
'I think the same. So would you consider putting our ballista with the reserve? Too far for their arrows to reach but within range of them?'491Please respect copyright.PENANANrFNW3mMVn
491Please respect copyright.PENANAtUUgK8BDwI
'We'd lose the opportunity to fire when they are crowding the bridge.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAfNc3pBo656
491Please respect copyright.PENANAiLuV6gjI8u
'If they are smart, they will cross in single file.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAysafXFb1Vi
491Please respect copyright.PENANAkiZf2WEoSm
'What if they stand close to our walls? We might not have the elevation for the ballista to see them?'491Please respect copyright.PENANA8qmBBCmGm9
491Please respect copyright.PENANAA5rvEXFZH3
'We could put Carlena here, she has a fire dart spell that would do a great deal of damage or drive them off if they come close.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAkGbO6nzqwy
491Please respect copyright.PENANAKQYLAww74i
'Aye.' He had a distant look, probably I did too. We were trying to imagine what the battle might look like. Though as any writer on warfare would tell you, no plan survives contact with the enemy. 'Aye,' he said again, more decisively, 'I think you are right.'491Please respect copyright.PENANADXG7KqIgQW
491Please respect copyright.PENANAkUqick4PpW
'And the advantage of my idea is that we keep everyone under cover for the duel between ballista and their archers. Your way, we might win, but are likely to lose a lot of troops.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAGCJ2wEQycP
491Please respect copyright.PENANAPtgxvTbs42
'Very good sire. Shall I order it moved now, we need time.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAAPU04N89oi
491Please respect copyright.PENANAGMSeKwilzd
'Go ahead.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAoeiRMZ4O5X
491Please respect copyright.PENANAuZmGtF3jrK
It took over an hour before the ballista was set up on the rise behind the palisade, even with a pulley to lower the equipment down the side of the tower. Not long afterwards Carlena arrived with Chancellor Parrin, the Cleric and two more archers, who had recovered enough in the hospital to participate.491Please respect copyright.PENANAVwgHirAvGW
491Please respect copyright.PENANAtUtCqCyrmf
The Cleric was put in the reserve and then the four of us: Arval, Parrin, Carlena and myself went to the small tower while we talked over the plan. In short, it was to win the artillery duel and therefore be able to have the infantry throw rocks and spears from the palisade without fearing incoming arrows.491Please respect copyright.PENANAFuWXoRu6TU
491Please respect copyright.PENANAwdnW9ip4UD
Time moves slowly before battle. It was still early in the morning and I wondered if it was worth feeding our soldiers in the near future or not. I asked Lord Arval.491Please respect copyright.PENANApdvw85Dqql
491Please respect copyright.PENANAnMIDg4FePk
'Does a soldier fight better on an empty or full stomach?'491Please respect copyright.PENANA7aTZNACdJL
491Please respect copyright.PENANAoCPLaeVRl1
'No one knows sire. There is a story of an emperor who had the same question. So he took two groups of twelve soldiers and had them fight. One group did so after a hearty meal, the others with no food inside them.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAmS0bKgMyAe
491Please respect copyright.PENANAIG0CXNiy1I
'And?'491Please respect copyright.PENANAEFcK4icOTS
491Please respect copyright.PENANAO835VhM783
'Inconclusive, sire, I believe the no-food side won, but only by a man. Personally, I find a small amount of food, especially fruit, optimum.'491Please respect copyright.PENANA7z8Fsbqexf
491Please respect copyright.PENANAAAvXeH59zA
'Very good, distribute it now, in case the enemy are making good speed.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAKlelgF4lTc
491Please respect copyright.PENANAkhLuTZrN7E
Our opponents did not, however, arrive until after a long, long wait, the sun well past midday. Then time began to move rapidly, beginning with the return of our light cavalry: a distant dust rising into the clear blue sky, then the sounds of their hooves and finally the sight of them clattering across the bridge.491Please respect copyright.PENANAWQQkTFcd48
491Please respect copyright.PENANA3FwNgExvzc
When they were drawn up beside the four heavy cavalrymen, Lord Arval had the gates closed and barred.491Please respect copyright.PENANAA9N6cS932v
491Please respect copyright.PENANArZJ9520YhU
'Ready sire?'491Please respect copyright.PENANAL2wpPw2kDD
491Please respect copyright.PENANAlin2DvPkfU
'Not quite, gather the soldiers, I'll speak to them.'491Please respect copyright.PENANA44aONrBrmG
491Please respect copyright.PENANAXYMJ6a81Rx
Lord Arval nodded approvingly, while Chancellor Parrin's long, bearded face was inscrutable. He probably had years of practice at hiding his feelings from Carlos. Carlena, however, was clearly sceptical.491Please respect copyright.PENANAdSLd22kqGA
491Please respect copyright.PENANAVoANpFDkHN
From a rock on the rise, with a good view of the cavalry to my left and the infantry below, whose faces were tipped up towards me, I tried to remember some of the rousing speeches I'd heard in films.491Please respect copyright.PENANAzMWh1EccWv
491Please respect copyright.PENANAOBlSBckBoh
'What day is it?' I asked Chancellor Parrin in a low voice.491Please respect copyright.PENANAJ4zvrv4aqd
491Please respect copyright.PENANAkyLN9erSZm
'Twenty-fourth of the month of Abya.'491Please respect copyright.PENANASxoV3Fvl4t
491Please respect copyright.PENANA7i3YfwqUGb
'Soldiers of Greyland!' I began, my big body proving good for this purpose, with my voice strong and echoing from the rocks. The men looked at me with hopeful expressions. 'This day, the twenty-fourth of the month of Abya, is forever going to be remembered in the history of our realm. For it is on this day that we will turn the course of this war.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAtCmFoUNC4e
491Please respect copyright.PENANAqleR3mIzAg
Lord Arval gave a roar and shook a spear, which encouraged many of the men to do the same.491Please respect copyright.PENANAweFTIVSAnX
491Please respect copyright.PENANAu2Kth4FCgP
'And you are the lucky ones. There will come a time when vast armies under my command will conquer the twenty-five kingdoms. And they will all know that it began here, with just a few of us, a lucky few. A band of warring brothers.491Please respect copyright.PENANAMJXM8WjP53
491Please respect copyright.PENANA67rBcCi6C2
'You will be able to say, with pride, I was there that day. With King Carlos, with Lord Arval, Chancellor Parrin and Sorceress Carlena, when we smashed the army that tried to invade our mountains and sent them fleeing back down the valley.491Please respect copyright.PENANAp4sPbMDRvF
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'It will be a tough battle, they have more soldiers; but we have much the better position and the advantage of the ballista. Let no one think of retreat. Either we hold this fort or the enemy capture Carrick and enslave your families.491Please respect copyright.PENANAkvdqLtGIAg
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'This is where we make our stand. This is where they will break. Fight for yourself, your comrades, and your families at home.491Please respect copyright.PENANAt9XXWrdjLi
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'Those recruits in years to come who were not here will think themselves cursed. And listen in silence when any of you speak. You who fought at the battle of Three Ways!'491Please respect copyright.PENANAdWm3aJH4jH
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Lord Arval gave another roar and this time there was a really satisfying response, one that resounded all around us.491Please respect copyright.PENANAVsHOX5kvMZ
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'Positions!' Our Paladin, now on his horse, led the troops back to the palisade.491Please respect copyright.PENANAOsS6YuVm5P
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Before she left, I called Carlena over. 'I think today might be the day for your potion.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAZ9SSvxTTFo
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'You might be right.' She looked at me with an expression I'd never seen before from her: respect. 'You spoke well.'491Please respect copyright.PENANA9K6wUCZ79X
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Passing me a small bottle of turquoise liquid, she said, 'just drink and name the creature. Make it one around your size or it might fail. You will have eight minutes.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAfEJ8zfDB5u
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'Good luck.'491Please respect copyright.PENANAt1KzPdq2gb
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'And to you.' She walked towards the gate and her position.491Please respect copyright.PENANAGzqdpDtVap
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Before Lord Arval had returned, a new sound came from the valley beyond the bridge, an ominous deep series of thuds. The enemy were coming, marching to drums of war.