"My lord, the quakes … are … not … naturally … created," stammered the spent dwarf. He was shaking uncontrollably from the effort of running the extreme distance coupled with the fact that his trek had been entirely uphill.
"Obviously these quakes are not natural; continue," he urged the messenger a little impatiently. He motioned for water to be brought to help calm the overexerted dwarf. The poor soldier took the water gratefully with his shaking hands and downed it instantly.
"Thank you. My lord, our spies have determined that the noises that started a day ago are being made by an army," he explained. Chills ran down the spine of the stout leader as he stood there silently. "We have been able to catch a glimpse of a massive army of goblins and rock trolls heading directly for us. We estimate that they will arrive in two days' time."
"What is the reason for the rumblings being less intense during the daylight hours?" asked the king in a forced calm.
"We have determined that the goblins and rock trolls above the ground are traveling by night only."
"What do you mean by the goblins and rock trolls above the ground?" The king felt his heart sink down to his nether regions.
"We sent several spies through the tunnels leading from Mount Carrick into the Sheldon Mountains. They ran into an innumerable army of goblins and rock trolls making their way through the escape tunnels we had created. They appeared to be making no effort to hide their approach. Only one of the spies returned to report their findings. The rest were pulverized by rocks."
"Summon General Havrak at once. Also, fetch Lord Kromnog to join the general and me in my quarters. After you have completed these tasks, you may rest for a while. I will have further need of you in a few hours. That is all." King Jarvis smiled to show his appreciation for the information and the diligence his soldier had shown.
"Yes, my king," snapped the dwarf as he came to attention and did an about-face. He bolted as soon as he had turned away. He knew that haste was of the utmost importance in this situation. His body screamed at him to stop, but he would not slow until the tasks were completed.
As the messenger ran off to find their general and the warrior druid, the king turned to look to the west from his secluded balcony that was on the highest point in the mountain city. He had placed his hands behind his back as he stared out across the green slopes of the Sheldon Mountains. Smoke filled the air where the king knew that this above-ground army was camped. What have we done to provoke this attack? Their banishment came from the gods, not us. We have tried to make peace with them over the years and have had an unspoken agreement not to interfere with one another's affairs. What changed this?
As the king stood on the balcony, his thoughts continued to whirl with unanswerable questions. He shook his head sternly to stop this barrage; he needed to focus on what his people would need to do to be prepared for the impending assaults from above and below ground. As he cleared his mind of all thoughts, General Gideon hailed him. His general was panting slightly from running from the lower levels to this impromptu meeting. As he stood there attempting to catch his breath, Lord Nariko walked calmly toward Jarvis as if he had been expecting the summons. He did not appear out of breath, but that was not unusual considering his magical abilities. The warrior druid smiled knowingly at the king and gave a slight nod. The druids did not believe that they were subject to any ruler, so he did not prostrate himself before Jarvis. They believed that the guardians were responsible for nature and his kin were the protectors of the peoples of Tuwa.
"King Jarvis, I see that you have finally figured out what the unnatural rumblings are," Lord Nariko said knowingly. The general laughed heartedly at the coolness the druid displayed as he spoke to the king.
"You must forgive my druid friend; they have no sense of propriety," said the general ruefully. "He probably could have told you what the sounds were the instant they began." He gave the secretive magician a sideways glance and a quick smile as he said this.
"So, it was you that spied out the army above ground," replied King Jarvis with a widening smile. He enjoyed the playful banter with his best warrior and the most feared druid in all of Tuwa. They were old friends, which made the circumstances feel less insurmountable. Between the three of them, they would be able to devise a plan that would protect his people against this invasion. They would outlast their enemies and would restore the proper order of things in the end.
"Of course I did," replied the druid. "There is something you do not know yet, however. The army below the ground is moving day and night. They will be here tomorrow at midday unless we delay them. Their plan is a simple one: attack from below to distract us from the army above. They do not care that we know they are coming; they believe that the assault below would draw the majority of our army's attention and leave our topside defenses weakened."
"So you believe that they will surround us above the ground while they attack us from below?" queried General Gideon.
"Yes, that is my contention. I also believe the army above and below the ground are equal in strength. As a result, we will not be able to leave our defensive posture for quite some time. If we hold our defensive positions, we will win this war by attrition," explained Nariko.
"Your suggestion is to hunker down for the long haul and outlast these vermin? How will that be accomplished?" asked the king. He agreed with the druid's assessment of the situation and thought his ideas were spot on. However, the implementation of such a plan would require extraordinary communication between the ranks.
"We will have our oldest and most reliable friend, Mason Bardomli, set numerous underground traps for our unwanted guests below. This should slow the approach just enough so that we could set traps above ground as well. By doing this, we should be able to delay the assault for a couple of days, which would allow us to be better prepared. My only concern is with the channels of communication. How will we coordinate our efforts so that we shore up the appropriate weak points?" asked General Gideon. He was a brilliant strategist and knew that if they could not communicate well that a weak spot would be found by their enemies.
"I share your concern. I believe that we can use sparrow hawks for the most urgent communications, and the rest of the correspondences will have to be run by messengers. We need to organize a team of runners who do not tire easily and can run fast," the king explained. "The hawks can also be used to eliminate enemy spies."
"So, your sparrow hawk will carry the most vital messages while runners handle the less-urgent reports? I think that is the best we can hope for," replied General Gideon.
"I will send an envoy to brown bears and their army. They will assist us in defending our home," said Lord Nariko.
"Hopefully your furry friends arrive in time to help us. How will you relay your request? We will need you here, so you cannot go in person," the king said.
"You are correct. I have a reliable friend that will convey the message for me. He will be able to deliver the message faster and with greater persuasive powers than I could. He will not fail us," said the warrior druid confidently.
"A guardian would never fail us," replied the king confidently. His druid friend smiled slyly at his friend's ability to read his mind.