“Welcome home,” she said just a little breathless as he gently placed her back on her feet.
Gwaynn was still smiling. “You look wonderful,” he said, his eyes alight with happiness as they traveled over her attire.
“Why thank you kind sir,” she said and performed a little curtsy, but when she straightened her face became suddenly serious. “It did not go well?”
Gwaynn shook his head. “That’s an understatement. The Cassinni will not come to our aid, and the Tars of Noble Island nearly kept us prisoner until the conflict was over.”
Samantha gapped at him. “Prisoner?”
Gwaynn nodded again. “If not for Tar Nev, I believe they would have succeeded…they would have had to kill me,” he added off handedly.
Samantha shivered against him, and when he looked down at her he could see she was holding back tears.
“What is it?” he asked surprised, for she was rarely weepy. He glanced around but Bock, na Gall and Monde were already moving away, heading down toward Manse.
“There was an…Executioner,” she whispered and Gwaynn felt his stomach knot up with a fear so strong he became terrified it might overwhelm him. The coward he’d been for most of his life seemed to be lurking over his shoulder, and drawing ever closer since he learned Samantha was carrying his child.
“An Exe…”
“Cyndar killed him…she’s badly hurt,” she added in a rush. “Gwaynn…I’m afraid…I’m afraid for our baby.”
Gwaynn was silent for a moment.
‘Cyndar,’ he thought and his heart fell. She was by far the best of his new Captains, most assuredly the toughest fighter in the army aside from Krys and himself. Her loss, on top of the disappointment of the recent trip, threatened to tip Gwaynn over the edge and into despair. But he was torn from his dark thoughts when Krys rode into the courtyard on a large Bay. He spotted Gwaynn and cantered toward him pulling up the horse at the very last minute.
“Good to see you,” Krys greeted Gwaynn with a frazzled look. “The Gap is clear. Wynth reports the Rhondono have been defeated on their march to Cape.”
Gwaynn smiled. “Good…we needed some good news.”
Krys frowned. “Tanner was killed. His horse broke a leg in the charge and he was trampled. I’m sorry.”
Samantha gasped but Gwaynn was silent for a moment, breathing rapidly from this new blow. He was quickly running out of Captains…and options.
“Gaston is currently leading the cavalry. They are heading back to Manse.”
“No!” Gwaynn said quickly and much louder than he intended. “They must continue to engage and occupy the enemy. The Knights must have no reason to march on Manse. You know it will fall if they do, and if Manse falls…so does Massi. Tell Gaston he’s Captain of the cavalry now…that he must decide how and when they will fight the enemy…but fight them he must.”
Gwaynn and Krys looked at each other without saying anything, but both knew that things were going badly. They would need a miracle to survive attacks from so many directions, from so many enemies.
Krys took a deep breath. “The Deutzani have crossed the border. They are marching on Lynndon.”
Gwaynn sighed and rubbed his forehead, then closed his eyes for a moment, attempting to marshal his thoughts. Such a move was not unexpected, though secretly Gwaynn hoped the Deutzani had lost heart and would remain out of the coming battle. Finally he opened his eyes.
“Inform Captain Marcum that he’s alone and that he must hold,” Gwaynn said. “We can’t afford to send anymore men to Lynndon.”
Krys nodded, well aware that they were stretched very thin. With Tanner dead and the bulk of the cavalry on the plains and the main army moving south to engage the Palmerrio at the Aleria Pass, they had few reserves. Captain Vosser would be leading the defenses of Manse with little more than a hundred true soldiers, the remaining five thousand were made up mostly of old men and women. It was hoped that with the new defensive lines, all Vosser would have to do was give the impression that part of the Massi army was hold up behind the new battlements. It was a risk, but the civilians of the city would do their best to look formidable and discourage the Temple Knights from attacking the city. They all knew that if they failed and the Knights attacked, the cities defenses would fold up like a house of cards and all would be lost.
The only other force they had available was under Captain Kommidi, who was leading fifteen hundred cavalry up on the Plateau. They were green and untested, and were primarily charged with guarding the Scar itself. Captain Hahn suggested watch towers be placed all along the Scar, keeping an eye on the natural boundary in case any army decided to climb the cliff face to gain access to the Plateau. The watch towers…though there were few actual towers, were positioned three miles apart and manned with only three men each, not enough to pose any threat to an ascending army but enough to light the signal fires and call the cavalry under Kommidi.
“Tell Bock to hold off on his plans to leave and join the army for now,” Gwaynn said shaking his head. They must continue to fight…in the end they would win or lose and that was all there was to it. “I may send you to Lynndon,” he added looking at his Weapons Master. “But I’d like to know what Lonogan thinks.”
Krys nodded then signaled for a messenger. “We must defeat the Palmerrio…if they have the run of the Plateau…if we lose the battle in the south.”
“I know…I know…” Gwaynn snapped, then immediately put his hand on Krys’ shoulder in apology. “I need to kill someone,” he whispered with a shake of his head. “I need to fight.”
“Let’s go,” Samantha said quickly, though for the first time she was afraid, afraid for her baby and afraid for herself.
“I’m ready,” Krys agreed.
Gwaynn smiled. “Give me twenty minutes. Have Bock meet me in the hall,” he said then reached out and took Samantha’s hand. “Come let’s go see Cyndar.”
ǂ
They sat on horseback just out of arrow range and watched as the first assault of the afternoon collapsed under a hail of arrows and boulders from the Massi defenders above.
Ja Brude waited anxiously next to Arden, the young Deutzani King, without commenting on the events taking place before them. Ja was nervous. A spot on his back, directly between his shoulder blades, itched and twitched without reason and he had to fight the overwhelming urge to turn and glance behind him. He did not like being back in Massi. It felt like death, and deep in his brain a nagging notion kept bubbling up to the surface, the thought that this was all another trap and once again the Deutzani army had unwittingly walked directly into it.
‘Ah, but that is not correct,’ he thought. ‘We did expect a trap in Manse…but Arsinol, bold and confident, had entered anyway…well Arsinol was no longer bold and the fool robbed me of most of my confidence.’
“We’ll get started on the shield houses tonight,” Captain Bodwin said sounding extremely confident as he watched the first of his retreating soldiers pass by their position. Of course the Captain was with Arden, sitting safely in Solarii during the battle of Manse so still had the luxury of confidence.
Brude lost his mental fight and glanced briefly behind him. The town of Lynndon, what was left of it, was still smoldering, most of it nothing but black ash blowing in the wind. The destruction was not the doing of the Deutzani. The town had nearly burned itself out by the time the lead elements of their army arrived. The citizens of the town, having destroyed their own homes, had undoubtedly moved up to the relative safety of the Plateau.
The burning of Lynndon bothered Brude; to him it was a clear sign of hope in the people of Massi. A few years ago they meekly accepted defeat and occupation, but now the ruins of the town virtually smoldered with palpable defiance. He did not like the thought of having an entire country bent on his destruction. Fortunately, Brude knew that most of the fighting people of Massi were occupied with the presence of the Temple Knights, and soon they would be even more distracted by the arrival of the Palmerrio and Rhondono.