Andrew Hartley - Act of Will

The Greycoast infantry began a swift march towards the citadel. The duke roared at Lisha, “What the devil do you think you’re doing?”

“Trying to save what’s left of your army,” she retorted, her anger suddenly apparent, “before it is destroyed.”

“You don’t have the authority. ” began Raymon, his face red and sweating.

Mithos appeared beside Lisha, his horse steaming. “Do you ?” he shouted back. “Will you make them stand against an enemy like that? Would you dare to try?”

He had a point, and the duke could see it. The troops were breaking into a full retreat and their ranks were beginning to strain. In seconds the lines would disintegrate altogether and we would be looking at a rout.

“Make for the citadel!” shouted Mithos. They did not need to be told twice.

And finally it all made sense.

I realized why the raiders had brought us here and kept us alive over the weeks of our investigation. We were tools, pawns in Shale’s great chess game, and this was the moment we had been saved for. Under our auspices, the raiders had been tracked to this place. Here they had smashed the combined military strength of Greycoast and Verneytha. But there was more to it than that. They wanted the citadel.

Ironwall had been the first of the great fortresses in the area to be built, right after Vahlia had split into three territories. I had wondered why it had been built so far east, but now I knew why: It was out of range of Shale’s magically shifting raiders. The early rulers of Greycoast had built the citadel just far enough away from Adsine that their old enemy could not appear within their walls, but that had been long ago, and much had been forgotten since. We, the party and I, had been part of Shale’s larger plan to lure Ironwall’s defenders out onto the plains where they could hit us hard and then chase us back inside. We couldn’t get that portcullis down in time to stop them, and then they’d have it all.

“Get inside and lower the portcullis,” I shouted. It was pointless, but we would make the enemy work for their prize.

What remained of our cavalry units arrived first, charging across the bridge and through the gatehouse. It was Garnet and Renthrette who appeared at the large square window in the central tower and who set the vast iron grate creaking its slow way down. But by the time I brought the wagon to the bridge, the portcullis was less than a quarter closed and barely seemed to be moving. Most of the infantry had already passed inside and were rushing up to the walls to hide or watch what happened next.

There was no point thinking about trying to defend the place with the front door open. I swung the wagon round to block the bridge as well as I could and released the horses, hoping vainly to slow the enemy down. Then I fled into the shade of the gatehouse. I could hear the slow, grinding chains of the portcullis, but a horseman could still enter with several feet of clearance.

The citadel was in chaos. There were men running all over in the green and blue uniforms of our allies. Women cried and fled. The duke sat alone on his horse a few yards inside the walls and looked hopelessly around him. I ran up the tower’s tight spiral to where Garnet and Renthrette stood at the window and watched the approach of the enemy.

There were almost a thousand of them. At their head, surrounded by his raiders, was the one with the staff and the horned helm. Alongside him, on a chestnut warhorse and surrounded by a small escort in heavy armor and sable cloaks, was Arlest, count of Shale.

He looked ahead of him at the open gate. The copper circlet and hempen robe had been replaced by an ermine collar and a crown of gold that sparkled with precious stones. This was to be his day.

There was nothing to say or do as they rode closer and the portcullis ground slowly, too slowly, down. I watched the chains inching over their pulleys, but there seemed no way to speed them up. Perhaps, I thought desperately, if they cut the ropes or released the chains, just let it drop?. But it was just too heavy. Let it fall and its own weight would shatter it, leaving the gate open. There was nothing to be done. Around us the desperate citizens shouted pleas for mercy or ran for their homes. Then the raiders halted and dismounted. They would cross the bridge on foot, shields raised over their heads to protect them from arrows. Ironwall was defenseless and there was no need for them to take casualties now.

Arlest nodded and spoke to a grey-haired man in dark robes who stood at his horse’s bridle: Chancellor Dathel. He passed along the count’s command and the soldiers stepped onto the bridge, victorious and invulnerable, five abreast, their scyaxes in their hands and their bronze faces cold as ever before.

The bridge was no more than twenty yards long and the wagon was in the middle of it. There was no rail, so they had to negotiate it carefully, pushing the wagon to the right-hand side so that three of them could pass it abreast. As the first three approached the gatehouse, there was a sudden explosion of sound and a single white horse charged from within, its rider giving a long, defiant battle cry as he spurred his charger right at them and cut one of the raiders down with one of the huge cutting swords he brandished.

It was Orgos.

As the second man raised his scyax, Orgos kicked him squarely in the chest and brought his left-handed blade down hard across his shoulders. With a cry the raider fell bleeding. As the third, clearly astonished by the sudden assault, swung his scyax wildly through the air, Orgos led his pale steed straight at him. The raider stepped back, lost his balance, and toppled backwards into the moat. By the time his cloak had disappeared beneath the sluggish current, four more raiders were squeezing past the wagon.

There was no shout of triumph from the citadel, for everyone knew how short-lived this gesture of defiance must be. Against the backdrop of the nine hundred men waiting to enter, Orgos, mounted and alone on the bridge, was a strangely poignant sight as he shouted his challenges and brandished his swords. Renthrette covered her eyes and Garnet just stared as Orgos slid from the back of his scared mount and sent it back into the city. He glanced behind him at the lowering portcullis, and even he knew it was futile. He couldn’t hope to hold them off for the four or five minutes it would take to finish closing the gate. I wanted to look away, but I couldn’t.

The four raiders surrounded him and he held them at bay with his swords, circling watchfully. One by one they lunged for him, and each time he anticipated, parried, and cut. One came too close and fell, slashed across the throat. The others closed in and he fought them off like a caged bear tossing pit dogs aside with mighty jaws.

More of them came, pushing the wagon until it was half off the bridge. Orgos spun the great swords about his wrists and dared them to come to him, standing his ground and sweeping the blades about him like an enchanter weaving magic.

But then the raider in the great horned helm called them back: he was going to end this foolishness now. But even as I thought he, something seemed wrong to me. I stared as the raider removed the helm and shook out a head of long red hair. It was the countess.

Unmasked, she leaned in her saddle and muttered something to her husband, who nodded and barked out a short command. Three raiders readied their horses. Orgos looked again to the portcullis, which was finally too low for a horse and rider to pass through. He laughed out loud at his token triumph, that great rolling laugh of his, his head back and his mouth open. They would be able to get in, but they would have to dismount; and that, I suppose, was the closest we would get to victory today. But the raiders were mounted and ready to take him on. I knew he had no hope of holding off a mounted charge, and from our curious balcony I could only watch, my hands to my face like a child who wants to cover his eyes but can’t stop looking.