Even Gods Must Fall - Christian Warren Freed Page 0,116
compared to the western flank. Morale remained high despite their losses, boding ill for the infantry grinding forward.
Wolfsreik infantry crashed into the Goblin trenches. Dozens were killed before reaching the wooden spikes. Goblin crossbows were murderous and highly effective against even the most heavily armored infantry. Infantrymen dropped as fast as the Goblins could reload. This was the danger moment, when the attackers needed to decide whether they had the resolve to see their task through. The defenders fought with everything they had. Wolfsreik continued to fall, leaving an armored landscape covered in red.
Swords reflected sunlight as they rose and fell. Vajna took hope as several squads appeared to have breached the outer defenses. They dropped into the trench, spreading quickly to enable follow-on forces in. The sound was sickening. The deeds being conducted in the trench were akin to cold-blooded murder.
Small fires sprouted up and down the line. Deadly quarrels slashed down from the Goblin towers. Without any magical attributes, Rolnir was solely reliant on the hopes of his catapults knocking the towers out. Thus far only one was in ruins. It wasn’t enough. Frontline commanders ordered all fire directed on the towers. Though hastily constructed, the towers were well protected from rising fire. Rising fire, but not from the scorpions.
Iron spears slammed into the towers once it became clear they were the focal point of the assault. Battery commanders barked orders as their weapon systems shifted aim and reloaded. Several towers burst apart in showers of bodies and debris from lucky strikes. Most remained standing. Infantry continued to fall. Vajna felt the strain from his mounted position. Waiting for the orders to advance left his stomach crawling. His instincts demanded he join the battle. Perhaps his actions would save some of those infantrymen being shredded by Goblin fire. More than likely I’ll just get more people killed by getting in the way. Calm yourself, you old fool. We’ll attack when the moment is right.
Soon dust obscured his view. Vajna cursed. He needed to be able to see the battle to make the necessary adjustments. Snatching the reins, he quickly mounted. A veteran captain stepped in front of him with a firm glare etched on his face.
“Sir, that isn’t going to happen,” he said.
“Get out of the way, captain. I need to be able to see,” Vajna warned.
Others soldiers came to help bar the way. “General, we need you here, ready to lead us. Getting yourself killed won’t do us any good.”
“Which is precisely what’s going to happen if I can’t see the gods’ damned battlefield! Now, step aside.”
“No sir,” the captain replied with authority. He tilted his head to a young sergeant. “Take a squad forward and report back with actionable intelligence. Move.”
“Yes sir!”
Satisfied, the captain turned back to his general. “Now sir, if you would please stand down. We’ve got this under control.”
Fuming but knowing it was the right call, Vajna finally relented.
The wait felt long. He slid from his saddle and paced up and down the line. Whispered bits of conversation among his cavalrymen reached his ears but were blocked out by his worry. Catapults continued to fire but at a reduced pace. The scorpions were so far forward he hardly noticed the deadly whiz of projectiles being fired. Smoke and dust billowed in great clouds now, preventing any of his soldiers from seeing into the trenches. However infuriated Vajna was, he knew that Rolnir and Aurec were positively livid.
Soldiers eventually began returning, walking wounded and others being carried back on makeshift litters. It started as a slow trickle before the volume increased. Vajna was threatened with dismay. His only hope was that the amount of wounded far outweighed the dead. In just a few short minutes well over one hundred wounded returned to the marshalling area. Medics and surgeons rushed to meet them, desperately trying to save life and limb.
Clearly the assault on the trenches wasn’t going well. Vajna finally spied the squad returning. Each of the young soldiers bore grim looks and had almost blanched skin. His worst fears were about to be confirmed. The squad sergeant offered a dull salute. His eyes bore horrors no one should ever be made to witness.
“General, the first wave is ineffective. Goblins still hold the outer trench. We’ve got a small breach established but are threatened with being pushed back. The enemy is moving massive amounts of reinforcements into their lines and are cutting our infantry down with those damned crossbows.”