Richard Knaak - The Citadel

Cadrio had told his second about the black cleric who had served Valkyn, the fearful fool who had evidently died in the making of the floating edifice. Eclipse reminded Zander of that cleric and pointed out once again the folly of defying the mage. If Valkyn offered the young officer the position of general, and perhaps later puppet emperor, then Zander would gladly accept it. The riches and power would certainly assuage his feelings at being at the beck and call of the spellcaster.

To his dismay, however, it proved to be Cadrio rather than Valkyn who suddenly appeared in the midst of battle preparations. The tall, vulpine commander was oddly subdued as he materialized.

Zander quickly saluted the illusion of his commander. “Sir, I took the liberty of advancing as per the mage’s instructions, but we dare go no farther, for the defenders’ troops have been spotted just beyond the hills. They mean to take us when we approach the high ground, keeping the battle far from Gwynned. I have a plan to draw their right flank out and eat away at their lines from there.”

Cadrio blinked, at first not responding. After a moment, he sighed, then said, “You’ll march the men straight ahead, Zander. Keep everything according to Valkyn’s battle plan. No deviations.”

Zander, who had tried to keep his deviations within reason in order not to anger Valkyn, frowned, then nodded. “I understand.”

The general hesitated, as if listening to something. The young officer swallowed. Now that he had been able to study his superior, he saw that Cadrio looked haggard, beaten.

“Hold your lines and keep advancing regardless of the forces you face. Draw out their cavalry if you can, but remain in the open.”

“Sir?” This hadn’t been a part of the black mage’s original battle plan. Zander didn’t like the thought of placing his troops in such a precarious position. With the defenders already settled in, his men would suffer heavy casualties.

From what Zander read in Cadrio’s eyes, the veteran commander clearly thought much the same. Zander finally realized that Cadrio spoke Valkyn’s words, not his own. All pretenses of an alliance had been flung aside. The general lived only with the wizard’s permission.

“When dark clouds cover the battlefield, Zander, you must be prepared. Atriun will strike, but you must be there to purge the land of any remaining resistance. Is that understood?”

Zander swallowed. Saluting, he shouted, “Yes, General!”

“That is all.”

The lanky figure vanished in the same unsettling manner that Valkyn always had.

Putting on his helm, Zander turned to the other officers. “You heard the general! Regroup all forces! Alert all subcommanders of their new instructions. See to it that order is maintained so that this adjustment doesn’t turn into a rout before we’ve even begun to fight. Go!”

The men scattered to obey. Zander, his anxiety and fury masked by his helm, stormed past two minor officers who served as his own aides. He did not stop until he came face-to-face with Eclipse. The dragon eyed him, then looked away, clearly lost again in some inner world.

“Eclipse! Damn you, dragon! Look down here!”

Slowly the behemoth acknowledged him. “Go away, human.”

“I have orders for you and you’ll obey them!”

“I don’t listen to you. I don’t listen to Cadrio anymore.” Eclipse puffed some smoke his way. “Murk is dead.”

Zander bristled. “You’ll be dead, too, if you don’t obey!”

The dragon snorted. “And will you kill me, puny human?”

“No, but if you do not follow Valkyn’s plan, then Valkyn will have no use for you, and you know what the wizard does with those he has no more use for.”

Now he saw fear in the dragon’s eyes, fear drawn from Eclipse’s vision of his twin dropping lifelessly from the sky. The leviathan might be mourning his brother, but he still cared something for his own scaly skin.

“I will obey! I will!” The sight of the black dragon cringing from the distant citadel looked so pitiful that Zander lost some of his fury. Neither he nor Eclipse desired Valkyn’s wrath, even if it meant marching everyone straight into Gwynned’s bristling defenses.

“All right, then. Stick by me. You will be my mount. We’ll coordinate matters with the general and the citadel.”

As he spoke to the dragon, Zander mentally prepared himself for the upcoming battle. Though alive, Cadrio clearly did not have Valkyn’s favor. If Zander could prove himself, then surely the wizard would see who could serve him best, who could be the most useful commander. Why keep untrustworthy Cadrio around when loyal and earnest Zander would do better? Perhaps he could still convince the wizard that he was worthy of the same offer that Valkyn had originally given to the general.

Emperor Zander … he liked the sound of that.

* * * * *

“Now that’s better, isn’t it, my general?”

“Yes, Valkyn.”

The mage smiled at his companion. “Don’t be so sullen, General Cadrio. After all, I did let you live, didn’t I?”

He saw the soldier shiver and knew that he had made his point. The executions of some of Cadrio’s men had been necessary and, at the same time, had allowed Valkyn to test the level of power of Castle Atriun. Yes, Tyros would do well, outlasting not only the taking of Gwynned but also perhaps the next Northern Ergothian city as well. By that time, Valkyn would have made more adjustments in his spellwork and kidnapped another wizard, ensuring that the massive citadel would continue to fly.

The people of Gwynned could have saved themselves much horror if they had surrendered rather than resisted. It would have saved the mage some time. Still, Valkyn looked forward to the upcoming battle, eager to see how Atriun would fare.

At some point, Valkyn would have to turn on his former masters. The Orders of Sorcery would move against him in force, as much out of jealousy as fear, the renegade mage believed. For that, he would need at least two more citadels, one of which he knew he could find in Gwynned.

Valkyn and Cadrio now stood upon the outer wall of Atriun, peering down at the tableau opening up before them. Cadrio’s men-now Valkyn’s-moved with the swiftness and efficiency that had been the essential reasons the wizard had chosen them in the first place. The officer in charge, Zander, seemed particularly adept in his role as ground commander. Perhaps Cadrio would need to be demoted after this battle.…

Ahead, they could make out the defenders’ movements. Valkyn knew that the male gold dragon lived, and because of him, Gwynned would have some notion of the might arrayed against them. In addition to their previous positions, Ergoth’s soldiers had spread out into the hills and valleys, choosing locations wherever they thought they might escape the fury of Valkyn’s castle.

Those new positions would work against them. Where Valkyn could not strike the foe, he would strike at the ground around them. Hills could be turned into weapons, especially when shattered by lightning.

“The regions to the north are hard rock,” Cadrio suddenly commented. “Can your bolts break them up?”

Valkyn’s smile grew genuine. Cadrio had seen what he had in mind. “Of course.”

“That will wreak some havoc on the northern lines,” the commander conceded. He pointed south. “But the soldiers there are entrenched in that rift, and I don’t think your magical lightning will give them much to worry about.”

“You have a suggestion?”

“Use the gargoyles. They fly better than draconians, and their hides are much tougher. Even if they’re hit, there’ll be less damage, less loss. Give them something scalding or heavy to drop on the enemy.”

The wizard looked over the region in question. “And you open up a hole in a very vulnerable part of the defenses! Of course, I could just sail over everything and attack Gwynned myself. That would save time.”