Rocalla's Saga: Arrival

30: High Ridges —

1054 Kyabalaka 11

The sudden arrival of Clavius and Dierdra is alarming. Having just completed the journey along the rock shelf, I am exhausted. But fear grabs me, and I rush to my feet, swinging my pack once again into place.

Dierdra reaches me, her breath ripping in and out of her mouth. “It’s good to see you,” she says.

“Much sooner than I expected,” I say. “Do you need to rest?”

“There’s no time,” she says.

“Okay,” I say, “Let’s go.”

Dierdra and I lead the way, setting a brisk pace. The twins follow next, along with Elanor, who struggles to move through the knee-deep snow.

“Clavius says we need to find a place with some cover where we can set an ambush,” Dierdra says.

“How many of them are there?”

“You don’t want to know.”

“I probably don’t, but I need to know what we’re facing.”

“There’s a squad of eighteen.”

“That’s not good.”

“What’s really bad is that four of them are armed with crossbows.”

The terrain around us is open, rising and falling on a gently rolling track just below a ridge. Large boulders are scattered about abundantly, but there are only occasional trees and infrequent bushes.

After close to an hour of strenuous effort, the trail twists to the left and then the right, entering a copse of short trees on the side of a larger peak. The copse soon grows into a forest of conifers, which block out the wind and weather. Quiet drapes over us, and thick flakes of snow drift down lazily between the trees. Now that the wind is gone, I am warming up from the brisk exercise.

“It’s so peaceful,” I say. “I wish that we could find a place under the trees, curl up, and rest.”

“That would be nice,” Dierdra says. “I feel like I’ve been running nonstop for days now.”

“We can’t stop. With all the snow, they’d track us down.”

“Where are we going to set the ambush?” she asks.

“It’s too open here. They could split up and surround us.”

We keep walking, pushing our way through the knee-deep snow. Two rabbits cross our path, and a large deer stands off to the side watching us carefully. We ignore all of them and continue going forward.

Half an hour into the forest, the side of the mountain steepens and the trail narrows. Up ahead, a jumble of large boulders lies on either side of the path.

“Continue through that gap in the rocks,” Clavius shouts from behind. “When you get past them, stop.”

“Okay,” I say.

Passing through a gap between two brown boulders that reach twice my height, the trail narrows until we are forced to walk in a single file. On the left is a boulder the size of a small cottage. Inside the jumble of stone, the path widens to five meters or so, almost entirely surrounded by rock. The way through the stony passage leads perhaps thirty strides before coming out on the other side.

Just past the far end, I call a halt.

“Finally, some rest,” Elanor says.

“It’s as good a spot as we’re likely to find,” Clavius says.

“It would be a great spot to camp for the night,” says Elanor.

“What do you want us to do?” I ask Clavius.

“We need to get Dierdra up on those rocks, along with a couple of the wizards who were flinging fireballs during our last battle.”

“All four of us are able to do that sort of thing,” Borojs says.

“We also need a way to trap them, and keep them pinned in here until we pick them off. Rocalla and I could try to hold the exit between these last two large boulders, but I’m not sure that the two of us are enough of a barrier.”

“Elanor, when we were in the castle, you blocked a hallway with magical fire,” I say.

“It doesn’t last that long,” she says. “Only a minute or two.”

“Even a minute would be a big help, Elanor,” Clavius says. “Can you do that here?”

“Theoretically, yes, but there’s a problem with that plan.”

“Like what?” he asks.

“The spell doesn’t have much range, and I need to see the area that is affected.”

“So?”

“I’d have to be right in there within the rocks, waiting for them to enter the trap. If the spell fizzles, I won’t have a chance,” Elanor says.

“Can you cast it again?” Clavius asks.

“Yes, but will I have time?”

“You’ll have someone with you,” he says.

“There’s one other thing,” Elanor says.

“What?”

“I’ve never used magic against someone who wasn’t immediately threatening me. I’m not sure that I can bring myself to cast fire amid a bunch of people who are just walking by, even if they are soldiers.”

“Once they see you, they will be plenty threatening. Keep that in mind,” Clavius says.

“I’ll try.”

“Elanor and I will hide in the rocks,” Clavius says. “I saw a wide gap between two boulders on the right side as we came through. It will provide us some cover. Dierdra, Nassandra, and Feneksia, I want you to climb up onto the top of the relatively flat boulder on the other side.

“Sure,” Dierdra says. The twins nod when Dierdra explains the plan to them.

“Borojs and Rocalla, I guess it’s up to you to hold the exit gap.”

“I can’t possibly hold off eighteen armed men,” I say.

“If Elanor can fill the space with fire, you won’t have to.”

“And if I can’t?” Elanor asks.

“It will be a very short and decisive battle,” Clavius says. “And it won’t be in our favor.”

“What about me?” Xerxes asks.

“Stay here, out of sight behind this rock, and render aid if you need to,” Clavius says. “Does everyone understand their position?”

We all either answer or nod our head.

“We’ll wait until they are well inside the gap and Elanor casts the fire. I’ll give the signal for the rest of you to come out. Now let’s take our places.”

We pile our packs behind the jumble of boulders where Xerxes is assembling his first aid supplies. Dierdra comes over and gives me a hug. “Take care of yourself,” she says.

“And you take care of yourself. Take out the crossbowmen first; if the three of you can do that, you’ll be a lot less vulnerable.”

“What about you?”

“I’ll be fine,” I say. I do not sound the slightest bit convinced.

They depart and Borojs and I start to wait in silence. The minutes crawl by. I try to stay focused, but my mind drifts. I contemplate the slowly falling snow, the feathery green needles of the conifers, the aching soreness of my legs and back. Knots in my stomach remind me that I am hungry, and afraid.

As time stretches onward, more doubts creep into my head. It is late afternoon. What if the soldiers have set up camp and are eating and resting while we freeze in the snow? What if they have sent a scout forward? Perhaps they have located our position and are planning to encircle us. Perhaps Dierdra and the twins are already under attack.

Then I hear the rattle of metal, the sound of moving men. Elanor starts chanting. It’s a low sound, barely audible from where I am standing. Someone, a soldier, says something. The chanting repeats, louder. Clavius shouts, “Arise!” and chaos breaks out.

I rush around the boulder to face three swordsmen in the gap. Fortunately, the narrow stone space keeps all but one of them from immediately threatening me. The swordsmen are encumbered and fumble as they drop their packs and draw their swords.

My opponents are backlit by the strange, otherworldly glow of purplish scarlet magical fire. Another swordswoman, and several halberdiers, are screaming within the flames, burning as Clavius engages them in battle. Elanor is slumped in a heap on the ground behind him. Beyond the flames, crossbowmen and swordsmen look about in confusion, catching arrows and fireballs.

The first swordsman that I face is taken by surprise, and I manage to knock him unconscious before he is able to draw his sword. The second man is strong, and much better rested than I. Taking a defensive position, I work hard to block his blows. Borojs helps, taking out the third swordsman with a series of fireballs that sizzle past me.

The magical flames disappear suddenly; in an instant they go from full flame to nothing. Another halberdier appears and takes a position behind the swordsman, jabbing at me with his pole arm. Faced with two opponents, I start backing up, frantically trying to block both of their blows.

It occurs to me that Borojs is no longer casting spells. I am not even sure if he is still behind me. A powerful overhand swing by the swordsman causes me to fall to my knees when I block it, and I hear the wood in my quarterstaff crack. Certain that I have failed, I continue to put up whatever resistance I can.

The halberdier groans loudly, then falls to the ground. Clavius pulls his two-handed sword from the man’s side and attacks the swordsman, who turns to defend himself.

Clavius is putting up a good fight, but he is tired, and the imperial swordsman is unhurt. I rise shakily to my feet, discarding my quarterstaff. Leaning against the rock wall, I raise my right leg and pull my gyaphla knife from its scabbard along my shin. Stepping behind the imperial soldier, I swing my weapon with all my remaining strength, using both hands. The blade cuts into his side, and redness seeps into his clothing.

The soldier swings his torso and plunges his elbow into my side, knocking me into the rock wall and then down to the ground. Seeing his opponent hurt renews Clavius’ resolve and he fights with increased intensity. The soldier reacts, striking three times to make Clavius step back, and then runs through the jumbled boulders toward Mandelbroggen.

“Are you okay?” Clavius asks.

“I’ve been better,” I say. “What about Elanor?”

“She collapsed when she created the fire. I don’t think that she was hit. Stay here, I’ll check the others.” Clavius runs up about ten strides so that he can see past a huge boulder on the right side.

“Dierdra, are you three okay?” Clavius calls.

“We’re fine,” Dierdra says.

“How many got past you?”

“One woman armed with a crossbow, five swordsmen, a halberdier, and that last swordsman who just ran by.”

“I count that as eight. Quickly, climb down and come over here.”

“Is it over?” Borojs asks from behind me.

“Where were you?” I ask.

“I was exhausted from casting spells. There wasn’t anything else I could do, so I withdrew,” Borojs says.

“You could have grabbed a club, or a dagger, or something instead of leaving me standing there alone.”

As Clavius watches the trail, first Feneksia, and then Nassandra, appears and then runs past me to where our packs are lying. When Dierdra appears, Clavius sprints over to pick up Elanor’s motionless body, throwing her over his shoulder.

“Clavius!” I scream. “They’re coming back!”

The soldiers have regrouped and they are charging through the passage, led by the soldier that I cut.

“Get out of the way,” Clavius says.

“No, run by me.”

“You can’t stop them alone, Rocalla.”

“Well, maybe this can.” I reach into the pocket of my cloak and pull out the purplish black orb that I took out of my backpack before the battle began. I have no idea what it does. But I know how to find out.

“Rocalla, no!”

It is too late. In the depths of my being, I find enough strength to throw the orb in a high arc over my head. Ignoring the approaching men, I watch the glass sphere float above us, catching a piece of late afternoon sun that has somehow broken through the clouds and trees. Then it heads earthward, accelerating toward the ground. Hitting the side of the largest boulder nine or ten meters away, it shatters as the soldiers are running by.

The resulting explosion tosses me back onto the hard ground. Clavius is thrown forward, and Elanor flies off his shoulder, landing in a snow-covered tree bough on the side of the path.