Chapter Eleven: In Which I Don't Get To Use A Ballista
Lyn—Chapter 8: Vortex of Strategy
We passed into Caelin territory some time around midday. The sun was shining and I was actually starting to get a tan from all this traveling. I didn't even know I could tan.
"What's wrong with your arm, Nora?" asked Wil, walking beside me on the dirt road.
"What?" I dropped my arm back to my side.
"You keep staring at your arm," said Wil. "Did something happen? Did you get bitten by a bug? I once got bitten by a pesky horsefly and my arm swelled up two twice its normal size and—"
"It not a bug bite," said Serra. "It's this awful sun. Poor Nora's getting burnt just like me. I hate the outdoors; it doesn't suit my fair complexion."
"Ah, yes," said Matthew. "That's why I see blotches on your face…"
"What?" gasped Serra, clasping her hands to her cheeks. "You lie!" She spun around and grabbed Erk by the arm. "Erk! Erk! Is there something wrong with my face? Has the sun ruined me?"
"It's not your face that's the problem," muttered Erk, pulling out of Serra's grasp.
"You mean…" said Serra slowly. "My face looks as it always has?"
"Yes," said Erk. "But your personality…"
"Matthew! You liar!" Serra slapped Matthew on the shoulder. "Don't make up lies about my beauty fading ever again!"
Matthew laughed and rubbed his shoulder, slowly inching out of Serra's reach.
Determined to avoid Serra's constant chatter, I sped up my walking pace so that I was next to Lyn and Florina. When she noticed me approaching, Lyn beamed and said, "Look, Nora! The mountains seem so far away now. We've come such a long way."
I glanced over my shoulder at the faint outline of the Bern Mountains. Somewhere at the base of that mountain range was my home in Rion. I wondered if Lloyd was still there, still living in that house. Probably not. I didn't know what lies Sonia had told him about me, but I was certain he wouldn't want to remain in a place that held so many memories of us together,
"Milady Lyndis! Nora!" cried Sain, turning around in his saddle. "We can't be very far from the castle now!"
Kent nodded. "By my reckoning, we can reach Castle Caelin in two days if we hurry."
"Two days…" murmured Lyn, a haunted expression crossing her face. "Hold on, Grandfather. Please…"
I grimaced—if I'd known that Lyn would be fretting over her grandfather's illness, I would've stayed at the back of the group. Better to listen to Serra's loud voice than have to try to comfort Lyn.
Thankfully, my services weren't needed. Florina said, with as much energy as she could mister, "Cheer up, Lyn. If they see you looking so sad, the entire company will lose heart."
"Florina…" Lyn managed a smile. "You're right. There's nothing to be gained by worrying. We just have to press onward."
"That's the spirit," said Florina.
I was really coming to appreciate the pegasus knight's presence—after all, she had just saved me from having to come up with some encouraging words for Lyn. I smiled at Florina, a gestured that surprised her so much that she almost fell off her pegasus. By Eckesachs, I wasn't that cold on a regular basis…was I?
"Lyn!" Nils came running up the dirt road, his face pale and his sister limping after him. "Danger approaches."
"What did you say?" asked Lyn, looking around wildly.
Sain's grip on the horse's reins tightened. "I don't see anything. Are you sure?"
"I feel it, too. I'm sure of it." Ninian's eyes suddenly widened. "Ah! Milady, don't move!"
"Hm?" Lyn stopped walking.
Ninian's warning couldn't have come sooner as a large arrow embedded itself in the ground just in front of where Lyn stood. The entire troop stopped walking, and all eyes fixated on the arrow with its head buried in the dirt.
"What in—where did this bolt come from?" cried Lyn.
Kent steered his horse closer to the arrow, and after a moment, he said, "They have a ballista!"
Sain gritted his teeth. "Lord Lundgren is getting serious. Deploying siege engines is no mean feat."
"What's a ballista?" asked Lyn.
"It's a weapon designed for long-distance attacks," explained Kent. "Only archers can use them, but they can be devastating."
"Really?" I had heard of ballistas, a new type of war machinery, from my parents, but I'd never seen one before. It'd be interesting to see it in action…maybe Wil knew how to use one.
"Florina!" Sain called out. "You must stay aground. Do not take to the air. The ballista would target you in an instant."
My interest in the ballista vanished when I realized that we had a pegasus knight with us. Damn it. That was going to be a pain.
"Is there a way to combat it?" asked Lyn.
Kent frowned. "The safest course is to use someone with good defense as bait, so the enemy wastes arrows."
"Then you can walk up and knock the fool on the head," added Sain with a nasty grin.
I didn't like Kent's plan. If the archer wasted all the arrows, then I wouldn't get to see the ballista in action. Of course, the safety of our troop should be my priority, but well, it wasn't every day a girl got to see a ballista on the battlefield.
"Wil," Lyn called over his shoulder. "Can you use a ballista?"
Wil considered it for a moment. "I've never tried, but…it's just a really big bow, right? I should be able to figure it out."
Lyn turned to me. "You ready for this, Nora?"
"Does it matter?" I asked. "We're going to have to fight no matter what. I'd better be ready."
Lyn grimaced. "Yes, I suppose that's true. I have faith in you, Nora. You've led us this far. I don't believe you will falter now."
"Ah, Lady Lyndis! Nora!" Matthew, being his usual sneaky self, materialized behind us. "I have some minor…business…to attend to. I'm unable to join you. But if you need any of my possessions, I might be able to part with them for your sake."
Lyn blinked. "What? Matthew? You're leaving us now?"
"Aw, is someone afraid of the ballista?" asked Wil, grinning.
Matthew just smiled back and said nothing.
My eyes narrowed. He was most likely attending to some Ostian business in a nearby village, but still, Matthew had rotten timing. Or perhaps select timing. He didn't want anyone to follow him, so he chose a moment when we would all be occupied with fighting.
"I don't need anything of yours," I said. "Go."
"I'll be back as soon as I can," said Matthew, before running off in the opposite direction.
"Huh," said Serra. "How unreliable."
"There's a village to east," said Lyn, turning to me. "Should we warn them that there's a battle going on nearby?"
"I suppose so." I glanced over at the village saw that an enemy shaman and mage were keeping watch outside the wooden gates. After some deliberation, Lyn and Erk headed in the direction of the village, careful to stay low so that ballista wouldn't target them.
I examined the rest of the landscape. Descending from the mountains, we had the high ground with some uncrossable rocky terrain to the east and a river to the south. I spied twelve enemies south of the rough terrain—nothing we couldn't handle.
"Kent, Sain," I said. "The passage between two cliffs is narrow here, if the two of you form a line, the enemy won't be able to get through. You'll be in range of the ballista, so keep an eye out."
Taking out their lances, Kent and Sain maneuvered their horses into position. I kept Florina to the far side of the cliff, out of the ballista's reach and then had Wil, Rath, and Dorcas, with their long-range weapons, back up Kent and Sain. An archer, a swordsman, two cavaliers, and two soldiers were advancing from the south. Serra, Nils, and Lucius stayed back near me, where arrows couldn't touch them. Ninian promised to watch the ballista and warn us if there were any more arrows fired.
The cavaliers and swordsman arrived first. The swordsman accidentally entered Florina's reach and she stabbed him in the back with her javelin. Kent managed to dodge the first cavalier's attack and landed two quick blows with his lance. Rath's arrow finished off the enemy. The second cavalier managed to stab Sain, but Sain retaliated with a fatal lance through the chest. The cavalier tumbled backwards off his horse and lay, unmoving, in the grass.
The ballista sent another arrow in our direction, but with Ninian's warning, Wil managed to dodge it.
"That was a close one," said Wil, yanking the thick-shafted arrow out of the dirt. "It looks deadly."
"Look up," I snapped. "Soldiers!"
Just as the two spear-wielding soldiers approached us, another arrow flew from the ballista, this time catching Sain in the shoulder. He gasped in pain and grabbed the wound, watching in horror as blood poured over his fingers.
"Sain, pull back!" I shouted. "Let Serra heal you! Dorcas, take his place next to Kent!"
Barely managing to stay on his horse, Sain turned around and cantered out of the ballista's reach. Serra immediately started muttering healing spells, holding her staff over Sain's wound. Together, Lucius and Nils managed to pull the arrow out of Sain's shoulder and he groaned in pain.
"Hold still, you baby," said Serra.
With a sigh of relief, I realized that Sain was going to be all right. There was no time to fret over him—Lucius was doing that, and he was pretty enough that Sain would be satisfied. I turned my attention back to pass, where the soldiers were still attacking. Both Dorcas and Kent managed to avoid the lances, replying with strikes of their own. Rath and Wil were quick with their bows and two arrows sent the soldiers into the grass with their comrades.
"Look out!" cried Ninian.
Wil looked up just in time to see another arrow from the ballista flying towards him. With a yelp of surprise, he leapt backwards and the arrow landed in the ground where he had just been standing.
"Wah!" Wil gawked at the arrow. "They're really trying to kill me."
"It's a battle," I snapped. "What do you expect?"
Serra's healing spell had done the trick; Sain was sitting upright in his saddle again, rubbing his shoulder. There was nothing but a white scar to show where he'd been pierced by the arrow.
"Are you all right?" I asked.
Sain grinned at me. "O fair and married one, were you concerned for my well-being? Were you worried that you would never see your brave, handsome knight again?"
"You're fine," I said, immediately turning away from him. "Go join Kent on the front line. We're going to advance down the slope."
"Nora!"
Lyn and Erk were running across the grass, returning from the village. I turned just in time to see another ballista arrow soar through the air, aimed at Erk.
"Look out!" cried Ninian.
Erk turned at the last second and narrowly avoided being skewered by the bolt. He let out a gasp of surprise before straightening and hurrying after Lyn, throwing glances over his shoulder in case the ballista decided to target him again.
"The villagers gave us a lancereaver," said Lyn, holding up the sword, specially designed to take down lances, for me to see.
I examined the jagged edge of the blade and then said, "I wish Matthew was here—he would know how much I could sell this thing for."
"Nora," groaned Lyn. "These villagers didn't give us this to sell."
"I took care of the mage and the shaman," said Erk quickly. "And Lyn killed the brigand who was trying to attack the village."
I nodded. "Good."
"Nora," said Lucius. "Soldiers are coming out of the southwest fort."
I rushed forward and peered down the hill, sure enough, two soldiers had emerged from the fort and were running up the hill towards us.
"The ballista must be out of arrows," said Kent. "Nothing's been fired at us in awhile."
"Hm…" If I were the person in the ballista, I would take a break from firing arrows to lure the enemy into a false sense of security. However, I didn't know the enemy, so I couldn't predict what they would do. "Nils," I said, finally. "Play for flute for Florina, something to make her faster. Florina, I want you to fly to the mountain range and see if the ballista is out of arrows. Kill the archer inside if it is out. If not, fly back here as quickly as you can."
Florina looked hesitant to fly over the mountains, but with Nils reassurances that his music would help her, she prepared to take off.
I listened to a few notes of Nils song before turning to face the rest of the troop. "We're going to move south, advance further into Caelin."
With Kent and Sain in the lead, we moved down the slope, pausing when we sawtwo soldiers approaching. Rath and Wil killed the soldiers with two arrows each and our descendent continued. Florina joined us not long after, her iron lance bloodied and clutched in her right hand.
"The ballista's out of arrows," she said. "And I…killed the archer before…before he could see me." She glanced nervously in Wil's direction as if he might be offended by the death of another archer.
I allowed myself a moment to grieve the uselessness of the ballista—I wouldn't get to use it to today—before turning to face the remaining four opponents on the other side of the river.
"Yogi," said Sain with disgust. "He's one of Lundgren's men."
I stared at the moustached man in full body armor. So he was the one who had brought the ballista. He may have chosen to back the wrong side but at least he had good taste war machines.
"There's a swordsman and a soldier," said Kent. "I could easily overcome both of them with my lance…"
"Wait," I said. "Do you see the heavy head of the lance? And the jagged side of the sword?"
Kent squinted across the river. "Ah."
"What is it?" asked Serra loudly. "I don't see anything."
"The soldier has an axereaver and the swordsman has a lancereaver." I frowned. "And the brigand behind them has a swordreaver. What a pain." I turned back to the troop. "All right. "Lyn, I want you to draw the soldier and swordsman over here. Step into their line of sight."
Lyn had started to cross the bridge, the river water slapping against the rocky bank as she walked overhead, when the soldier noticed her. Calling out to the swordsman beside him, the two of them advanced on Lyn. The problem with using an axereaver, was that it made the weapon heavy and slow, so Lyn's swift footwork allowed her to dodge the lance and drive the Mani Katti through the soldier's chest.
The swordsman cried out in horror as his companion fell from the bridge into the rushing river. Filled with outrage, the swordsman charged at Lyn and drove his lancereaver through her stomach. Lyn gasped in pain, but she swung the Mani Katti—once, twice—and managed to slice open the swordsman right arm. He leg go of his lancereaver and staggered backwards. Kent charged forward and drove his blade through the swordsman's throat.
"Serra," I said, unable to keep my eyes off the bleeding neck of the dead swordsman.
"Your angel is on it!" cried Serra as she hurried to Lyn's side to heal the wound. Lyn gasped as Wil helped pulled the blade from her stomach.
"Florina," I said, noticing how pale the pegasus knight had become at the sight of Lyn's blood. "Fly around and deal with the brigand." I hoped giving Florina something to do would stop her from worrying. Serra healing magic had never failed us before, and I didn't think it would now. I turned to the mages. "Erk and Lucius, I want to you use your tomes on Yogi. He's slow, so your magic should be effective. Dorcas, Kent, go with them and provide cover."
It all happened as planned. The brigand's swordreaver, with its hooked head, was too heavy to be any use against lances. Florina drove her slim lance through the brigand's chest and he fell to ground, choking on blood.
Yogi cursed when he saw his dead brigand. "The ballista must have been taken…" He turned and caught sight of the approaching mage and monk. Desperately, he looked around, searching for one of his allies. "Somebody, stop them! Stop them!"
"Who?" I muttered under my breath. We'd killed everyone else. Yogi was completely alone.
Erk cast two fire spells, muttering the incantation and holding the tome tightly. Flames burst from his hand and struck Yogi across the chest. Flames curled around the armor, causing Yogi to cry out in pain. Before Yogi had a chance to recover from Erk's magic, Lucius cast his lightning spell. Yogi gasped for air, struggling in his heavy armor, before collapsing. The skin of his neck and face was red and blistering.
"Lord Lundgren…I've failed you…" gasped Yogi. The life drained from his body and Yogi fell still, his dark eyes staring off into the distance.
"Is it over?" Lyn stood over Yogis body. She held a hand to her side, which, despite being healed by Serra's magic, was still tender.
"Yes," said Kent. "I see no more enemy soldiers. However, something is bothering me."
Lyn started to wipe down the bloodstained blade of the Mani Katti. "What is it?"
"Our opponents…" Kent seemed to struggle with the words. "They were soldiers of Caelin. I even recognized some of those we fought. I trained with many of them… And yet they attacked us without hesitation."
I grimaced. There was nothing crueler than being betrayed by those closest to you.
Sain scowled. "They're black-hearted traitors who've joined Lord Lundgren. Good riddance, I say. It also means less resistance at the castle."
Kent was doubtful. "I hope your right…"
Lyn sheathed the Mani Katti and then ran a hand through her long, green hair. "I'm just glad Nils and Ninian were with us. If that first shot had hit me, I might not have survived."
"We are honored to have served you well," said Ninian.
"We won't let you down!" added Nils.
"I know." Lyn smiled down at the little boy. "I'm relying on you."
"What's this?" Running down the slope towards us was Matthew, his hair messy from the wind. "You dealt with the ballista, too? Nicely done!"
"So the deserter has returned," scoffed Wil.
"After the battle is done," added Sain.
Lyn shot the two of them warning glares before turning to the thief and asking, "Matthew, where were you during all this?"
"Did you check the corpses for anything of value?" I asked hopefully.
Matthew answered me first, "Yes, and there was nothing. I share your disappointment," before turning to Lyn and saying, "I went to the village to sniff about for information. I got some interesting news for my trouble, too."
"Let's hear it," said Lyn.
"First, about Marquess Caelin's illness. He really is unwell. He's been abed for nigh on three months."
Lyn's face turned white. "Oh no…grandfather…"
Matthew grimaced. "I heard an interesting rumor about his condition, though. The people believe that someone's been poisoning the marquess."
"He's being poisoned?" cried Lyn.
"And this someone…" Matthew hesitated. "Well, everyone's too afraid to mention a name. However, they say that, as soon as the marquess took ill, a certain noble took control of the castle as though it were his own. I fed a hungry innkeeper some coin, and he fed me a name. The marquess of Caelin's own brother, Lord Lundgren."
Lyn's fear gave way to anger. "How can this be? How can they allow him to get away with this? The villagers know he's the one poisoning my grandfather, and yet no one raises a hand against him? Why?"
"They are afraid, and they lack proof," said Kent, trying to quell Lyn's rage. "The whisperings of the common people mean nothing to most nobles."
"That's the truth of it," said Matthew, nodding. "And of the marquess's loyal retainers who might have lent credence to these rumors, there is no sign."
"Are you saying they've been silenced?" Lyn looked mortified at the thought, as if she couldn't believe someone would murder for his own ambitions. How cute.
"It's a fair assumption." Matthew's face was grim.
"This is beyond believing," muttered Kent, gripping his horse's reins.
"The worst news is yet to come," said Matthew.
Sain started at this. "What? There's more?"
"An imposter's appeared, claiming to be the marquess's granddaughter. At least, that's the story Lundgren's telling to all who'll listen."
"What does that mean?" asked Lyn.
A shadow crossed Matthew's face as he explained, "It means that people are waiting for two traitorous knights and a baseborn child to appear and lay claim to Castle Caelin."
Ah, that was the big news. Lord Lundgren was smarter than I'd given him credit for.
"But…but that…it can't be!" spluttered Sain.
"Traitors? Us? Ridiculous!" cried Kent. His face had gone has red as his armor, rage building up at even the suggestion of him betraying Caelin.
Lyn was staring at the ground. "He says…I'm an imposter?"
"Don't you have anything that proves your lineage?" asked Matthew.
Lyn shook her head. "When my mother joined the Lorca, she brought nothing of Lycia with her."
"Milady, Marquess Araphen himself remarked at your resemblance to Lady Madelyn!" cried Sain. "Your face is your proof!"
Kent leaned forward in his saddle, burdened by the reality of the situation. "They'll say we found a look-alike somewhere. We're seen as betrayers of our knightly vows, our word means nothing."
Lyn looked from Sain to Kent, her lower lip trembling as she realized the truth that was before her—even if she reached Castle Caelin, she might not be saved from the clutches of Lord Ludgren. But rather than give in to despair, Lyn lifted her chin and said, "No, our only hope is to see Marquess Caelin himself. We must hurry. If not, my grandfather…he will…I must see him. With my last breath if need be."
The rest of the troop seemed inspired by Lyn's words. Wil and Florina were both looking at her with awe-filled eyes, Lucius had an encouraging smile, Nils and Ninian looked as though they wanted to hug her, Rath watched her with a glimmer of respect behind his stony mask, and even Dorcas had a faint smile on his usually stiff and somber face.
"But we must formulate some manner of plan," said Matthew, glancing back at me. "Even if we set out for the castle, the troops patrolling the area will cause no end of problems. You have been branded as oathbreakers, after all."
As Matthew spoke, all eyes fixated on me. Apparently, even the mention of a plan made it my responsibility.
I shook my head. "I don't understand politics. Military strategy is something I studied, but politics is beyond me."
"Basic human interaction is beyond you," said Matthew with a grin.
I didn't disagree.
Worried expressions crossed everyone's faces as they exchanged glances and tried to come up with some sort of plan. If fighting couldn't break us into Castle Caelin, what would?
The problem was that we had a group of combat-ready people rather than a group of scholars. If you placed a soldier in front of them, Lyndis' Legion would know what to do, how to eliminate the threat within mere seconds. But coming up with a master plan to devoid Lord Lundgren of allies and gain Lyn support—that wasn't something our troop could comprehend.
However, it seemed Lyn had an idea.
"I've got it!" she cried. "Eliwood!"
I raised my eyebrows. "Eliwood?"
Lyn nodded enthusiastically. "He seemed sympathetic to our plight. He should still be in Kathelet. If we can talk to him, he might help us!"
That wasn't exactly a plan, I thought, but rather a deferment of responsibility. We were relying on someone else to make the plan. The idea made me grimace. Eliwood had seemed like a decent person—he had rescued Ninian from the Black Fag, after all—but I couldn't bring myself to trust him to save us. He'd seemed too sheltered, too kind, not capable of protecting Lyn (and, by default, me as well) from Lord Lundgren's forces.
The rest of Lyndis's Legion, however, thought this was a brilliant plan.
"Of course!" exclaimed Kent. "A sound idea!"
Sain repositioned his horse so that it was facing back the way we came. "Let's hurry!"
"Yes!" Lyn started running up the slope. "Back to Khathelet!"
I watched as Florina's pegasus took off, its white wings flapping and whipping my face with wind, and Rath's horse galloped up the hillside, its hooves sending clumps of dirt flying. Wil charged up the hill after Lyn, followed by the grim-faced Dorcas and pink-haired Serra. Erk and Lucius refused to run up the hill, but walked, their robes swaying in the slight breeze.
Standing at the bottom of the hill, watching the rest of them rush back to Khathelet, I couldn't help but hesitate. Going back could all be a mistake. Eliwood might be unable to help us or he might have left Khathelet already. The time we wasted going back might be the time it takes for the poison to finally claim Marquess Caelin.
I glanced over at Nils and Ninian, who hadn't moved from their spot at the base of the hill either. Ninian had her head bowed as she whispered something to Nils under her breath. Nils was watching the members of our troop race up the hill, a nervous expression on his pale face.
Ninian caught me watching them, and she pulled away from her younger brother. "Nora," she asked. "What's wrong?"
"I'm thinking," I said.
Nils and Ninian exchanged glances. Then, hands trembling, Ninian turned to me and asked, "Do you think it will be all right?"
I almost laughed aloud at such a ridiculous question, but I managed to contain myself so I wouldn't frighten the siblings.
"I don't know," I said, honestly. "No one ever knows. We can only make the best decision we can when the time comes and hope that it is the right decision. Lyn has chosen to return to Khathelet to ask Eliwood for help."
Ninian and Nils stared at me.
"Regret is useless," I said. "What's done is done. Your decisions stay with you, but you must keep going forward no matter what."
With a sigh, I adjusted the strap of my rucksack before starting the long trek back up the hill. My legs were going to be dead by the time we reached Khathelet. My physical stamina was almost nonexistent—there was a reason I was a tactician and not a swordsman. Maybe if I looked pitiful enough, Sain would let me ride his horse.
I glanced up the hill hopefully, but before I could spot Sain, Ninian said, "Thank you, Nora."
"What for?" I asked, still searching for the green knight.
"Your words have given us heart," said Ninian.
I gave up looking for Sain and turned to stare at her. "I just said that you're going to make a ton of decisions you'll regret, but you should stop crying about it and keep on living so that you can make more decisions to regret. It's a rather depressing picture. How does this give you heart exactly?"
Ninian frowned. "What?"
"Never mind." I sighed. "Interpret it how you want."
We hiked up the hill in silence for a moment, and then Nils laughed. "You remind me of my grandfather."
"Nils!" cried Ninian, her voice sharp with warning.
"It's true," said Nils. "Nora's grouchy and likes to eat a lot. Even the blunt ways she speaks reminds me of Grandfather."
Ninian opened her mouth to protest, but then she looked at me and sighed. "There is a sort of resemblance."
"Great," I muttered. "I'm like an old man."
Ninian and Nils exchanged glances, and suddenly, they were giggling.
"What?" I asked.
"Nothing." Nils tried and failed to stop himself from laughing. "I'm going to call you Grandfather Nora from now on."
My eyes narrowed. "Don't you dare."
"Don't I dare what, Grandfather Nora?" Nils stared up at me; his red eyes were wide and innocent, but there was a demonic smirk at his lips.
"If you call me that one more time," I hissed. "I will put you in range of a ballista. The arrow will skewer you right through and we'll have roast Nils for dinner instead of bread and dried fish."
This only made Nils and Ninian laugh harder.
"Grandfather used to always make jokes about eating me too," said Nils.
"You think I'm joking?"
