Hope Sundered

“I can’t take it anymore,” Sollin confessed over breakfast. His battle council now included Commander Iraden. “If we don’t see some Azzies soon I’m gonna lose my mind.”

Bayse Avernol grinned. “I think you lost your mind a few battles ago.” They’d become close friends.

The others chuckled, but the mirth carried with it an unspoken respect and admiration for their fearless, clever, and slightly crazy leader. His soft midsection had melted away, leaving behind a torso of lean, hardened muscle. His arms and shoulders were also larger as a result of swinging Morlo’s axe in battle. A full beard now covered his face, giving him a savage appearance.

“I’m serious,” he insisted. “Something’s wrong.”

“We’re at war, Captain,” Riak pointed out. “Everything’s wrong.”

“What are you thinking?” Iraden asked. He’d learned much in his short time with the untrained miller. His instincts were sharp and his ability to improvise was unlike anything the veteran soldier had ever seen.

“I can only think of one reason for the Azzies to stop hunting us.” Sollin looked around to see if the others had come to the same conclusion.

“Perhaps we’ve thinned their ranks so much they no longer have the men to commit to the open field?” Bayse suggested.

“No, they’re reversing their strategy,” Riak said. “Now they want to draw us into a trap.”

Then Crenshaw spoke up. “It’s possible they’ve finally breached Wyndham’s walls.”

Sollin pointed at his friend. “That’s what I’m afraid of.”

Later that evening, Sollin and his battle council crept as close as they dared to catch a glimpse of Wyndham, but remained just out of sight. Much to their relief, the city had not been breached, but the construction of the scaffolds made the enemy’s plan clear.

“Suggestions?” Sollin asked the group.

Iraden shook his head. “Ambushing smaller units is one thing, but without Dioria we just don’t have the numbers for a frontal assault.”

“Then we continue to draw them out,” Riak replied. His resigned tone made it clear this was their best option.

“We can’t let them finish those scaffolds,” Sollin said with determination. He frowned in thought for several moments while rolling the shaft of his axe across his shoulder. The others sat in silence, wishing they had good ideas to offer.

With a gasp of enlightenment, he snapped his fingers. “I’ve got it!” He held the axe in front of him, smiling at it in appreciation. “Morlo you lying dog, you’re brilliant!”

“What are you talking about?” Crenshaw asked with obvious concern. He knew his friend well enough to realize something reckless was about to come out of his mouth.

“Tonight, I’m gonna join the Azrahteran ranks!”

Everyone groaned or scoffed in response.

“I think you’re going a bit too far now,” Iraden said.

“No, listen! We’ve killed a bunch of Azzies, so we have the uniforms. There’s gotta be one I can wear. I’ll sneak past the sentries and set the scaffolds on fire! I call it Morlo’s Reversal!”

“That’s suicide, Captain!” Bayse exclaimed.

Sollin shrugged as if it didn’t matter. “I’ll try to make it to the river once I’m done. If I do, you can fish me out at the bend south of here.”

“No one questions your courage,” Iraden began, “but there’s an efficiency to warfare we must consider. We need to maximize our effectiveness while minimizing our losses.”

“I’d say stopping the Azzies from taking the city at the cost of one life is fairly efficient,” Sollin replied with a stern gaze leveled at the Segatian.

“But it shouldn’t be you,” Riak pleaded. “We need you. We’ll have no trouble finding another volunteer.”

“I agree,” Crenshaw said. “This sounds personal.”

“Of course it’s personal! Morlo rode into my camp and offered me his friendship! And I took it, no questions asked! My ignorance killed a third of our men, some barely older than boys!” He took a few steadying breaths and wiped his nose before continuing in a calmer tone.

“I can’t think of a greater blow to their morale than to do to them what they did to us. Please, my friends; grant me this one last insult to our enemies so they’ll know invading our homeland was the greatest mistake in history.”