Even Gods Must Fall - Christian Warren Freed Page 0,6
overrun was the difficult part.
Each soldier harbored individual demons. More than one held doubts about his ability to attack his own people. Civil wars were vicious acts of desperation from all angles. Fears of returning home only to find relatives or loved ones opposing them threatened to bring the army to a halt. More than one soldier considered desertion, but pride and discipline kept them in place. They were the very best of Delranan’s sons. Each languished under the combined weight of tradition and family.
Piper looked back on his soldiers. They were his source of pride, having conducted themselves professionally from the moment the Wolfsreik invaded Rogscroft to their exodus from King Badron’s service. While consecutive campaigns were successful, the second in command of the north’s most powerful army couldn’t help but wonder how many of his soldiers weren’t going to live to go home again. It was a sobering feeling.
“Sergeant at Arms! Deploy the scouts. Double screen. Just because we can’t see the enemy doesn’t mean he isn’t there,” Piper ordered.
The veteran scout saluted crisply. Flakes of snow peppered his beard. Flint-like eyes took in his commander with a measure of approval, as if saying it was about time. Harnin One Eye went disliked by nearly all of the army. Piper hoped it would make his job easier.
It was near dusk by the time the scouts returned with curious news. Harnin had no forces deployed along this stretch of the Murdes Mountains, having little to no knowledge of the Pell Darga’s secret passes. Several teams of scouts rode as far west as the line of freshly constructed fortresses running from north to south.
Piper took the news with casual interest. Static defenses always held the same inherent weakness: they could be ridden around and totally avoided while the invading army continued towards the exposed capital. The risk of leaving active combat forces behind the advancing elements was practically negligent considering most of the soldiers garrisoning the forts were ill-equipped infantry. They’d be ridden down and wiped out without causing much hassle to the invaders. That sickening feeling in the pit of his stomach returned at the thought of invading his own kingdom.
Delaying served no purpose. Piper regretted what needed doing, but saw little point in avoiding the inevitable. The time for action was once again upon him. He listened as the scouts went into detail, drawing maps with sticks in the fresh snow. Piper recognized many of the prominent land features. Wheels began turning. He knew Rolnir trusted him implicitly so the slender man started forming plans for attack. The maneuver was risky, but might prove beneficial if his forces were able to claim the first fortress before Harnin caught wind of their presence.
“How large is the garrison?” he asked, suddenly impatient.
The scout cocked his head and gently stabbed the bowed stick into the snow repeatedly. “Can’t be more than a hundred, sir. Shouldn’t be an issue if we hit them in the middle of the night.”
“A night raid on unfamiliar ground? The end result may not be what we’re looking for,” Piper countered. He didn’t want to dismiss his scout’s suggestion, knowing that in doing so he would effectively severe the free-flowing line of communication through the ranks. “What about pickets? Roving guards? What kind of defenses do they have emplaced to halt our progress?”
“Didn’t see any pickets or anything,” a second scout said quietly. “We ran into a bunch of trenches and pits, though. Ought to prove troublesome for cavalry and such.”
“We can’t risk an open charge anyway. The thunder of hooves will alert the defenders well enough in advance for them to reach their positions and open fire with whatever they have. Arrows and scorpions I’m assuming.” Piper paused. His mind reeled through various options available to him. A spark ignited. He turned to the lead scout. “Sergeant, bring me the engineer captain. I’ve got a job opportunity for him.”
Nodding at his subordinate, the sergeant folded his arms across his chest and continued studying the crude map. “Got something devious in mind, commander?”
“Perhaps. That all depends on if our wonderful engineers can bridge the defenses and blow a hole in the outer wall,” Piper said.
“Light skirmishers or heavy infantry for the assault?”
Piper thought for a moment. Both had advantages and disadvantages. Skirmishers weren’t designed for lengthy battles in confined spaces. Their lack of armor and limited selection of weapons reduced nearly fifty pounds from their fighting weight, however, giving them a distinct advantage over more cumbersome infantry.