[Vfw-times] MK: Counterstrike part 9

[COkane8116 at aol.com]

   It was a dark night, one of the darkest Misha had ever seen. There was no 
moon up and there were no stars in the sky. The only illumination seemed to 
come from the snow itself. It's whiteness adding a faint white glow to the 
night sky. He knew that was simply because the clouds were overcast but he 
couldn't help but remember an old childhood fairytale about a demon who ate 
the stars. He shook his head slowly to try and rid himself of that thought. 
There was far too much to do.

   Slipping past the outer line of pickets had been easy even if they had to 
crawl through waist deep snow to do it. A line of sentries standing outside 
of a shallow ditch surrounded the camp. Behind that was a barrier made of 
vines and branches woven into a wall some two feet high. Behind that was a 
second line of sentries. A seemingly formidable set of barriers that should 
have made things very difficult for the Longs to penetrate.
 
   The sound of snow crunching underneath him as he moved seemed to boom out 
into the night. In reality the sound was a faint squeak as the snow was 
compressed under his weight. Still even a soft noise like that could betray 
their presence to any guard who was doing his task and quietly listening and 
watching. Their big worry was the tracks they left in their wake. With the 
snow so deep and wide any fool could follow it. But there was no helping 
that, the Longs had no other recourse. Moving in single file would at least 
disguise who had made the tracks making look like a deer trail. The rest of 
the remaining Long Scouts trailed closed behind him. Each spaced some ten 
feet apart, close enough to protect the others but far enough apart so that a 
spell would not catch all of them. The white cloth that covered them from 
nose to tail made them invisible even at this close range but still Misha 
worried.

   Lucky for Misha there seemed to be no one listening or watching. The outer 
picket line had consisted solely of Lutins, most of whom cared little about 
guarding. Some had been drinking, others eating or gambling many had been 
sleeping. The fox had even stepped over the sleeping forms of two Lutins 
without waking them. Being dead drunk Misha had little worry the two sleeping 
sentries would wake up. He doubted they'd wake up if the entire Metamor army 
marched past.

   The deep ditch had been filled in by thick, heavy snowdrifts and was 
really nothing more then a shallow depression. The two foot high fence behind 
that was covered in many spots by more of the same snowdrifts that filled the 
ditch. It was just as easy to cross.

   Once past the picket line they had skirted the edge of the camp looking 
for some unprotected entrance. The camp itself was eerily quiet, nothing 
moved among the tents, hovels and lean-tos that composed it. Only the 
sentries surrounding it and the occasional lutin sentry wandering about were 
to be seen. All as bored and tired as the outer picket line had been. And 
just as easy to get past. The difference was this time they wouldn't do it 
without shedding blood.

   They found a spot where three Lutins were drinking and playing dermok, a 
gambling game of sticks, rocks and coins. The three were huddled around a 
small fire in front of a lean to made of wood and hides. There was no one 
else around them for quite some distance.

   The Longs grouped together a mere twenty feet away flat on their stomachs 
in the biting cold snow. The white cloth that covered them from nose to tail 
made them invisible even at this close range.

   "It's a pitifully small group," Misha thought to himself. "Barely a month 
the Longs had fourteen members and now we have half that number and one; 
Padraic wasn't really a Long scout but merely a candidate. No," the fox 
corrected himself, "the rabbit IS a Long scout. He'd passed the harshest test 
if all - combat and not been found wanting. When this was all over they would 
have to give him a proper initiation." Misha gave a silent chuckle to himself 
as he imagined what Padraic would look like dyed a nice shade of pink with a 
huge pink bow tied to each ear. Putting that last pleasant thought aside he 
returned to the business at hand. 

   "The camp looks empty," he signed. "Except for some guards it seems 
empty."

   "It is empty," Rickkter replied using the same hand signs. "I can sense no 
one in the camp besides the sentries around the tent."

   Misha nodded. He was glad to have the warrior/mage along. His magic was 
already coming in handy.

   "No one?" Caroline asked. "That doesn't seem right. There should be at 
least a few people."

   "That has me worried, too," Rick added. "Just the guards on the perimeter 
and walking patrols. The tents and everything else are empty."

   "They can't have cleared the whole camp," Finbar argued.

   "They would if they were expecting an attack," Rickkter explained. "Put 
every soldier on the line to fight." He made a gesture with his paws to 
indicate a shrug. "I can't tell you for sure. It's certainly possible. It 
could also be a trap, or simply that they're trying to bluff their numbers 
for any force considering attacking them. All I can tell for sure is that 
those tents are empty."

   "Agreed," Misha added. "But the only way to find out is to go in. And 
there must be something inside or they would not have guarded the camp."

   "Padraic, Caroline and me will kill the three sentries with arrows," the 
fox ordered using hand signals. "Rickkter will cast a silence spell to make 
sure no one hears anything."

   The raccoon nodded in response for once not arguing with Misha. No matter 
how obstinate he could be Rickkter was always dependable when things got 
nasty.

   Finbar held up a small, hand sized crossbow.

   Misha understood the ferrets question and answered him with a shake of the 
head. The Hushpuppies poisoned bolts would make short work of any one guard 
but it was slow to reload. When the first guard was killed the other two 
would run screaming, alerting the whole camp. All three had to be killed at 
the same time. 

   More orders ideas passed back and forth silently between the Longs and 
their commander. Then just as silently they moved into their proper places, 
each moving especially slowly making sure of the placement of each hand and 
paw. Each long moved with slow practiced skill of experts with no doubts or 
hesitations. Finally no more orders were needed and everyone was where they 
needed to be. Now it would all come down speed and skill.

   Misha, Caroline, Padraic and Rickkter lay flat side-by-side in the snow. 
The Long scouts each held a bow in one hand. One either side of them were the 
other scouts. To the left was Finbar, to the right was Georgette. Danielle 
and Jotham crouched low behind watching and waiting.

   The fox looked towards Caroline and stroked her muzzle with his hand for a 
moment. She tenderly kissed that hand and smiled at him. It was a long moment 
before she reluctantly let go.

   Looking away from her Misha focused on Padraic. The eyes that looked back 
at him were full of doubt. The fox grasped the rabbit on the shoulder trying 
to get him to relax.

   "Ready?" the fox asked with his hands. Both the rabbit and the otter 
nodded in answer.

   Misha grasped his bow tighter and shifted until he was standing on his 
hands and knees. His bow was in one hand and two arrows in the other. He 
looked at his companions and saw that they had followed his motions.

   He gave a short nod of his head towards Rickkter. He watched as the 
raccoon's hands and lips moved in silence as he cast a spell.

   Misha took two deep breaths and then pushed off the ground and into a 
kneeling position. He caught sight of his target; a small lutin who was in 
the center of the trio. The creature was taking a drink from a bottle. In one 
swift motion the fox knocked an arrow onto his bow, bent it and released it. 
Seconds later another arrow followed the first. 

   The lutin put down the bottle and spotted Misha. In that spilt second 
before the first arrow hit their eyes locked. Keeper and lutin stared at each 
other in surprise. Then the arrows struck destroying that surprised face and 
the brain behind it.

   In an instant Finbar and Georgette crossed the open space between them and 
the three dead Lutins in moments. They grabbed the still warm corpses and 
propped them back into a sitting position as they themselves crouched down 
low. Misha, Caroline and Padraic all dropped back down into the snow.

   Anyone looking at the scene would be hard pressed to see anything out of 
place. The fire still burned and the three figures sat around it. Seemingly 
asleep or just quiet. One would have to get close to see that all three were 
dead.

   For five long minutes no one moved. They lay still and quiet, listening 
for any sign that their attack had been spotted. There were no shouts of 
alarm or surprise. No one came running and no alarm horns or bells split the 
night. It remained calm and quiet.

   Finally Misha gave the signal and Caroline, Padraic, Rickkter, Danielle 
and Jotham moved swiftly across the open ground and into the camp. Misha came 
last kneeling down next to the lean to, using it's shadow to disguise his 
outline. Again the eight keepers watched, listened and waited for any sign of 
alarm. Silence was all that greeted them.

   The easy part was over.


***


   Along the river a quiet battle raged. Darkness had settled in and it was 
long past midnight. At midnight two hundred and seven of Metamor Keeps scouts 
had crossed the river and fallen upon the pickets who stood guard on the 
opposite bank. Short, desperate fights raged the length of the river as 
Keepers and Lutins each tried there best to kill each other.

   It was an uneven fight. The keepers had all lost so much. Homes destroyed. 
Friends and family dead or maimed during the hideous attack during the Yule 
season. They had no reason to run away, hesitate or to show mercy. All they 
wanted was blood. They wanted revenge. The Lutins simply wanted to escape. 
Most had no stomach for a hopeless fight for an overlord all hated. The 
picket line was overwhelmed in minutes and the combined army charged towards 
the river sweeping all before it.


***


   The fox stepped slowly past the collection of canvas, hide, bones, sticks 
and scraps of cloth that were loosely tied together into the vague shape of a 
tent. A careful glance inside showed that all the rest he had passed, was 
empty. Inside were a few burnt embers on a floor of dried mud. Empty. Misha 
crouched by the tent for a moment then rushed forward to the next one. Behind 
him Caroline rushed up to take the place he had just left. Behind her was 
stretched Rickkter and the rest of the Longs.

   "This is getting very, very bad," Rick quickly signed.

   "But there's no one here," replied Carol.

   "Exactly."

  "Enough arguing," Misha commented. "Keep a close watch but we need to keep 
moving."


***

   It was only at the ford that there was a fight. Here a hard knot of humans 
and Lutins stood their ground supported by a dozen ogres and four tall 
giants. Three times the cavalry and infantry charged across the icy water and 
three times they were thrown back after bitter fighting.

   Lord Bidwell ordered the five hundred archers forward and showered the 
ford and it's defenders with arrows. Then four hundred of his finest knights 
charged across. This time on foot. It was five long minutes before the 
attackers withdrew to their side of the river. Behind them the bodies of 
humans, Lutins and keepers floated on the water turning it deep red with 
their blood.

   Again the archers rained arrows down on the ford and more Lutins and men 
fell into the water. With a shout Ellingwood led the charge across the river 
with the knights at his back. Again the fighting raged as savagely as ever 
but the defenders didn't budge.

   The humans and keepers withdrew back across the river for the fifth time. 
Even as they fell back arrows hissed overhead taking a terrible toll of the 
tight formation.

   Nearby stood Lord Bidwell watching and listening to all that went on. He 
would have preferred to be in the fighting, leading the troops himself but he 
was in command. So he stood back, giving orders through messengers, blaring 
trumpets and thumping drums.

   George materialized out of the darkness trudging through the mud and snow 
to where Lord Bidwell was standing pondering what to do. The jackal was 
dripping wet below the waist. The ice on his fur crackling as he walked.

   "They're not budging," the canine commented. "We need to get rid of those 
giants and ogres. With those gone we can smash the rest."

   "We could send a group to Denders crossing and come up behind them."

   George shook his head. "It will take hours to get a decent sized group 
across."

   Lord Bidwell turned to three figures that stood near him. In the darkness 
and confusion the boy, the girl and the young dragon had seemed so 
insignificant.

   "Aisha, Colin, Drake, we need your assistance now.  I was told you could 
summon an elemental to aid us." He point towards the river and the ford. "At 
the ford are a group of humans and Lutins backed by giants and ogres. We need 
the giants and ogres killed or driven off. Can you do that?"

   All three blinked at that, and Colin said, "We'll do our best to summon 
one for you, sir."

   Colin and Aisha dismounted and joined Drake laying in a circle on the 
ground, feet facing outward, hands joined.  They stare up at the sky, at 
something only they can see.  Soon, however, there is a faint glowing high in 
the air above their heads, as a giant ice crystal starts to form.  It grew in 
size, until the three, as one, called out, "Come forth, Shiva!"  The crystal 
shattered and a woman floated down, landing next to the three who summoner 
her, who were on their feet by then.  The woman had blue skin and hair, long 
hair, which was in a tight braid down her back.  She wore almost no clothing, 
and her voice was as a winter wind when she asked, "How may I be of service?"

   Colin pointed to the army defending the ford, "They are blocking our way, 
please try to take out at least the giants, more if you can."

   Shiva bowed, "It will be done." and flew toward the ford, and hovered in 
the air.  Targeting the Giants, she raised her arms and showers of giant 
icicles propelled by arctic winds raced from her hands.  The giants were able 
to knock a couple away, but the arctic air made them stiff and sluggish, 
slowing their reactions.

  Tough skin that had easily brushed off arrows, spears and javelins were 
punctured in hundreds of places by ice harder then any steel. One giant 
caught an icicle as big as a mans body in his eye. Bellowing in a voice that 
could be heard miles away the monster staggered off into the night clutching 
the bloody, icy mess that had been its right eye.

   Another giant caught an icicle just as big in his mouth, into the back of 
his throat while he was yelling about the pain from the other icicles. The 
shaft of frozen water plowed through the roof of his mouth and into the brain 
beyond it. Without a word the creature staggered backward, killed so fast 
that his body didn't know it was dead yet. He collapsed on the far shore 
sending up clouds of snow and mud when he struck the ground.

   "Can't hold the weave for much longer," Colin thought to his two siblings, 
and shouted out to Shiva, "Thank you for your assistance, Shiva.  You are 
dismissed."  Shiva nodded, bowed, then dissipated.  As soon as she was gone, 
all three collapsed to the ground, drained.

   Lord Bidwell ordered another attack and the knights charged again into the 
ice cold water. This time Bidwell led them. Gone was the time for command. 
This was the hour of decision.

   The fighting raged for five long minutes in a bloody and savage melee at 
the waters edge. But despite their fearful losses neither side was willing to 
give ground.

   Finally Bidwell himself managed to duck under the broad sweeps of a giants 
club. In his hands was a claymore. The two handed weapon had a blade as long 
as his arm. With one powerful swing he chopped deep into the monster's right 
knee. The creature toppled over to one side sending waves of water splashing 
over everyone. Without a word the remaining giant turned and vanished into 
the night, with a speed that was surprising for something that big. With him 
went all of the remaining ogres.

   That made the opening they were looking for. They fighting had been as 
costly for the defenders as it had for the attackers. With the giants and 
ogres gone they simply didn't have the strength and numbers to block the 
whole ford. Instead they bunched together in the center fighting as 
fanatically as ever. Two hundred infantry both keeper and humans skirted 
around the edge of the fighting. Wading through water so deep that the 
shorter ones had to be carried to keep from being swept away by the current. 
They swarmed around and fell upon the defenders from behind.

   Cutoff, surrounded, attacked from all sides and hopelessly outnumbered 
they could have, they should have surrendered but they didn't. Instead they 
kept fighting. It was only when the last of them was dead did the fighting 
end.

   With the ford now clear the main army crossed the river in force. All 
attempts at organized resistance had disappeared like a forgotten dream. Then 
the true slaughter began.


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