L. Modesitt - Mage-Guard of Hamor

Rahl had managed to get out his riding truncheon just before the first line of lancers neared Third Company.

In the moment before their lances would have struck, Rahl extended his shields, this time anchoring them to the ground. All but one of the front line of lancers pitched from their mounts, and several mounts went down as well. Rahl immediately contracted his shields, then rode past a fallen lancer and toward the next rebel, who did not manage to level his lance before Rahl swept past it and struck with the long riding truncheon. The lancer reeled and dropped his lance, then toppled out of the saddle.

Beyond the second lancer were regular mounted troopers, with their sabres out. Using the gelding's weight and motion, Rahl disarmed the nearest by breaking a wrist.

With rebel troopers surrounding him, Rahl just concentrated on holding on to his truncheon and inflicting damage upon as many rebels as possible.

Whssst! A firebolt flared against his shields, followed by a second one.

He turned the gelding to face the white wizard, conscious that, of the two rebels who had been attacking him, one was horribly burned and the other was backing away.

A narrow chaos-lance slashed toward Rahl, and he let it slide off his shields, even while he tried to figure out how to turn the chaos against the white wizard. The greenish blue tip of a second chaos-lance pressed into his shields. Rahl contracted his shields ever so slightly, then expanded them to fling the chaos back at the wizard. The greenish blue point flared into a brilliant white that cascaded across the wizard's shields, destroying the two rebel troopers behind and flanking the wizard.

Although the wizard remained untouched, Rahl could sense both anger and desperation, and he urged the gelding forward, toward the thin-faced and long-haired white wizard. Rahl leaned forward, gathering order around and within the riding truncheon.

Whssst! The firebolt was aimed at the gelding's legs, but Rahl caught it with his shields and hurled the chaos back at the white wizard, now alone on his mount, as the others in the rebel companies struggled to escape the energies created by the fight between mages. The wizard's shields shivered under the impact but held.

Rahl struck those shields with the order-reinforced truncheon, and chaos flared, lines of fire streaking in all directions as the white wizard's shields disintegrated. With the next move of the truncheon, Rahl managed a short slash up at the wizard's right arm.

The wizard opened her mouth-and Rahl understood that he had been fighting a woman just as the order and chaos exploded, giving her figure an incandescence that lasted but a moment before a whirlwind of ashes whipped around Rahl and the lancers. Stars flashed before Rahl's eyes from that burst of brilliance, and it was several moments before he could see clearly. When he could, he and Third Company held the area. The remaining rebels were riding back to the east, and Rahl had the feeling that many would not be trying to return to the rebel lines.

"Back to position!" ordered Drakeyt.

As Third Company re-formed and turned, Rahl rode toward Drakeyt. Just as he neared the captain, a massive chaos-bolt flew toward him-and it had come from the west. Rahl managed to extend his shields just enough to slide the fiery mass of chaos more to the rugged southern side of the hill. It struck, and a massive column of flame surged skyward, then subsided.

"That was close," said Drakeyt.

"Closer than I would have liked," Rahl replied. Had that been an accident, with one of the Triads reacting late to the attack? Or had it been an attempt to get at Rahl and Third Company? Whichever it might have been, Rahl didn't relish having to watch for chaos from all directions. But then, did he have any choice?

During the time that Third Company had been fighting off the two companies attempting to reach the headquarters area, another regiment had joined Third Regiment on the slopes below the earthworks. The troopers were already pouring through and over the weaker spots in the defenses, and slowly pressing back the defenders. Rahl thought that someone in charge had realized that the sooner the Imperial forces were locked in combat with the rebels, the less effective firebolts and archers could be. But then, Taryl had probably known that all along. It just took time and enough weakening of the defenses before that tactic could be implemented.

Just as Rahl thought that, a firebolt arced down from high on the ridge, smashing down into one of the gaps in the earthworks through which and over which Imperial troopers were attacking, pushing back defenders. The chaos fire-storm cleared the gap, incinerating Imperials and rebels alike, and leaving swirling ashes and blackened stone and earth.

The gap did not remain clear for long as another squad of troopers charged uphill and through the space, unimpeded by defenders until they were a good ten cubits uphill of the earthworks. As the Imperial forces pressed uphill, firebolts continued to fall into the individual melees, flaming Imperials and rebels alike.

Rahl had never seen so many chaos-bolts in one place and time. Were Golyat's mages so desperate that they had no choice but to kill their own troopers in their efforts to slow or reverse the Imperial attacks? The desperation suggested that Commander Muyr's forces had not made similar headway on the south side. But had Muyr even attacked, or was the role of his forces merely to hold and keep the rebels from escaping? Since Rahl had not heard the entire briefing because he'd had to deal with Commander Hyksyn, he had no idea.

What he did know was that it was now midafternoon, and the ridge was wreathed in smoke and the stench of burned flesh, and that the approach slope to the rebel earthworks was littered with the bodies of men and mounts.

An undercaptain rode toward Rahl and Drakeyt, reining up. "Sers.. the overcommander requests that, as soon as the Second and Third Regiments clear the earthworks, Third Company move forward on the flank as far uphill as possible without being in the front rank of combat."

"Third Company hears and will obey," snapped Drakeyt.

The undercaptain looked to Rahl.

"You heard Captain Drakeyt. Tell the overcommander his orders are being carried out."

"Yes, ser."

Drakeyt turned in the saddle. "Third Company! Forward!" Once they were headed up the slope, he looked to Rahl. "Thank you, Majer."

"You're in command," Rahl pointed out.

"Mostly." Drakeyt laughed.

The brief conversation brought home to Rahl how comparatively few words were exchanged in the course of a battle. With a shake of his head, he went back to scanning the battlefield for possible uses of chaos against him and Third Company, but the nearest concentrations of chaos were those near the center of the ridge, still a third of a kay or more to the southeast, and those of the two Triads.

He frowned. The Triads were moving. He glanced back over his shoulder. Although it was difficult to determine, he could see and sense that the entire headquarters force was following Third Company, including the Triads, and presumably Taryl. Was Deybri among them? He knew she'd accompanied Taryl earlier. He hoped she remained well in the rear. Although she had training with a staff, as did all healers from Recluce, he didn't know whether she'd kept up with it-or even if she had a staff with her.

He forced himself to concentrate on the swirling eddies of rebels trying to hold back the advancing Imperial forces. There was something about the pattern of those forces, and there should have been more defenders, rather than a thin line of rebel troopers giving ground, almost as if to delay while a counterattack of some sort was being developed. Yet with all the swirling chaos, and the chill rushes of widespread death, Rahl was having trouble seeing where or what that counterattack might be.