Brian Pratt - Warrior priest of Dmon-Li

“You too, son,” replies Commander Eathan. “Ride fast, the Empire has patrols on this side of the river but no main forces north of here. So far, we’ve kept them on the west side of the river but that’s not going to last for long.”

“Move out!” he hollers to his men as they begin pacing the soldiers who are moving south on the other side of the river.

James and the others watch as the commander and his men move south, keeping the enemy from crossing over. Then they turn their horses north, following the river. They don’t get very far before they hear horns coming from the east. Answering horns sound from the army across the river.

From the east marches the army that Captain Alerin had been trying to slow down. “They’re going to catch Commander Eathan and his men against the river!” he exclaims.

“They’ll be cut to bits!” cries out Fifer.

They watch as the army moves toward the Madoc defenders. Commander Eathan forms his men to meet the charge, but from where James is sitting, he doesn’t stand a chance of surviving it. The army across the river has stopped its southern advance and its crossbowmen have come to the edge of the river where they fire a volley at the men caught between them. The bolts fall short, but if Commander Eathan is pressed backward much further, they’ll soon be in range.

“We’ve got to help them!” Fifer says to James. “They’re dead if we don’t!”

Jiron watches as James ties himself to his saddle as he’s done several times before. That can only mean what he’s got in mind is going to be rough. “Stay close to James,” he tells the other two. “We’ve got to protect him and get him out of here once he’s done.”

They begin moving toward the advancing force. At first, they’re not noticed, so intent is the army on the trapped men at the river. When they get within a mile, a force of twenty men break off and head in their direction.

James glances to Jiron and says, “I’m already very tired.”

“I know,” he replies. “Do what you have to, we’ll get you out.”

Nodding, James tightens the rope binding him to his saddle before closing his eyes.

Crumph!

The ground under the men explodes upward in the biggest explosion James has done so far. When the dust clears, none of the attackers are moving.

Fifer gasps as five translucent floating balls appear before James. As if propelled by a strong wind, they fly toward the Empire’s men. Barely seen, they reach the army and begin moving among them before they’re even noticed.

Arrows from Commander Eathan’s men begin felling the attackers as they come within range. Their longbows have a greater range and force than their counterpart’s crossbows.

As the enemy notices the orbs floating among them, they begin stirring and move away from them as best they can. The tightly packed formation doesn’t give them room enough to avoid them.

Suddenly, the enemy force is lit up as red lines flare between the orbs. The men begin crying out, all thoughts of attack forgotten. They see one soldier run and accidentally run across one of the lines. After he passes the line, he stumbles for a moment and then the top half of his body slides off the lower. The red line had cut him in two. Unable to move, caught within the boundaries of the lines, the bulk of the army comes to a standstill.

The arrows from Commander Eathan’s men begin taking a terrible toll.

As the balls move, so too do the lines. Jiron watches in fascination as two lines come together and the men trapped between them are agonizingly cut in half before his eyes.

James is slumped over his horse as he tries to hold onto consciousness long enough to complete what he’s got to do. He gives one last surge of power as he brings the balls together in the middle of the group of men. Every last one of them is cut in half, their cries abruptly silenced. Then he passes out and the balls disappear.

A cry goes up from Commander Eathan’s men as they surge forward to attack the remaining enemy soldiers who hadn’t been caught between James’ lines of death. Arrows fall as they rush forward to close with them.

The enemy turns tail and retreats, but is soon overtaken by a hundred horsemen that strike them down as they run. Some stand and fight, but don’t last long.

Jiron sees the commander waving at them. He waves back and then says, “Let’s go. We’ve got to get him someplace safe for a while.”

“What’s wrong with him?” asks Fifer as he comes over to the unconscious James.

“It’s what happens when he does too much magic,” he explains. “If he uses too much, he passes out and it takes some time before he can even do simple things again.”

“Oh,” he says.

They move down the road and quickly catch up with the wagons bearing the wounded and the men escorting them. “How far to Colton?” Jiron asks one of the soldiers.

“About an hour,” he replies. “It’s not too far.”

“Thanks,” he replies as they pull away, leaving the wounded behind.

By the time the town of Colton appears ahead of them, James has regained consciousness, although the dilly of a headache makes him wish he was still out cold. The scene before them reminds James of an anthill he’d stuck a stick into long ago, people are swarming everywhere.

Carts and wagons, along with a multitude of people are making their way to the north along the road. As they approach the town, a rider comes out to meet them.

“Is Lord Pytherian still here?” James asks when the rider nears.

“Who are you?” the man replies.

“Name’s James,” he says. “These are my companions, we’ve just come from Commander Eathan.”

Shaking his head, the man says, “He left some time ago for Lythylla. Captain Kurk is in charge of the evacuation.”

James laughs in spite of his headache, and says “Where can I find ‘Captain Kirk’?” His friends exchange glances, thinking maybe he’s getting a little too light headed.

“You can find the Captain over at the Seasoned Ham,” the man replies, slightly annoyed at the way James is acting. He points into town, “You’ll find it further in.”

Still grinning, James holds up his right hand, spreads his fingers and says, “Live long and prosper.”

“Uh, you too,” the man replies. As James and the others ride away, the man continues watching them, and just shakes his head.

Once past the first buildings, Jiron says to James, “What was all that about?”

James glances over at him and begins to grin, “I couldn’t even begin to explain it to you.” And then he starts laughing once more. His friends look at him, worried.

Down the street they find several soldiers who are helping a store owner with packing a wagon. James pauses a moment as he asks one of the soldiers, “Where’s the Seasoned Ham?”

The soldier points further down the road and says, “Go down two more streets, then turn right. It’ll be the fourth building on your right.”

“Thanks,” says James as he gets his horse moving in the right direction. They continue down two streets and then turn to the right. Sure enough, four buildings down on the right they find a sign depicting a ham with steam radiating off of it.

They stop in front and he leaves Jiron and Miko with the horses as he and Fifer enter the building. Inside the main room, they find several soldiers there gathered around a map laid out on a table before them. A soldier stationed by the door stops them and says, “No one’s allowed in.”

“We’ve just come from Commander Eathan,” James says to him, “and would like to talk with Captain Kurk.”

“It’s okay,” a voice from inside the inn says. “Let them come in.”