Location: Isaiya Pass
Year: 1768
Time: Noon(12:00/Four days after destruction of Oribes Bridge)
Chapter 11: Looming Misfortune
"Jacob, take a look at this," said Maya looking over the cliff.
Jacob wormed his way from the bushes and crawled up next to Maya. He looked back and noticed that his apprentice, Eric, was trying to follow him. "Stay there Eric," said Jacob.
"But-
"No buts," Jacob cut him of. "You're still pretty new to all of this. I would rather you escape then get spotted. Anyway, what is it Maya?"
"Take a look over there," said Maya motioning her head. "Ilana and Salem Bridge have fallen and Oribes' gate has been toppled. Do you see the flood of troops crossing? The situation is worse than I thought."
"And take a look at all those tents," said Jacob. "There must be thousands."
"One hundred," said Maya suddenly.
"What does that mean?" questioned Jacob.
"While you guys were setting camp in the pass hour, I've been counting how many men have crossed. If about a hundred can cross in an hour, then we can assume that about twenty-four hundred cross in a day. Then, if we consider how long they've been crossing for…"
"I get it. There's a lot of them. Victory just continues to feel more and more impossible."
"Then let's make it feel possible again," said Maya now looking at Jacob.
"What do you mean?" asked Jacob now looking worried.
"The camps only two miles away. Scaling down the cliff should only take a couple oh hours. We could be there by early afternoon."
"There you go again!" said Jacob frustrated.
"What's the matter?" asked Maya.
"You say things without any thought of consequences. The way from here to there could be guarded by beast scouts."
"What of it?" asked Maya. "We'll just clear them out and hide the bodies. If we're lucky, we might be able to steal some uniforms if there are Branded with the scouts."
"Do you know how ridiculous you sound?" said Jacob frustrated. "You do this all the time!"
"Then I'll go without you…"
"Fine. But this time, I won't be there to save you if something goes wrong."
"Then what about-
"Don't even think about it," Jacob cut off Maya as she looked at Eric. "He's not going with you."
"As you wish," said Maya as she began to work her way down the cliff.
"That's it?" questioned Jacob. "No preparations, you're just going to leave now?"
"If your not going to save me if something happens, then you don't need to worry about me." Maya then continued to climb down.
xxxxx
Upon reaching the cliff's base, Maya quickly dove to the nearest bush as she saw a scouting party heading her direction. I didn't think they' would go this far, she thought. She readied her bow and took aim just in case she was spotted. The group neared her position and every step they took made her heart race faster. There was no way she could take all six of them down, her best bet was to stay hidden. As the two tigers in the group neared her hiding spot, they looked directly into her eyes. Damn! she thought. A wave of relief quickly folowed as they turned around. She was not spotted after all.
"Enough," the lone Branded in the group finally said. "There is no one here." One of the cats then reverted back to human form. He quickly approached the man and said, "If you wish sir, we will begin to scale the cliff. After all, it is the perfect vantage point."
"Very well," replied the Branded. "Take the other two cats with you, the tigers and I will return to base."
"Affirmative!"
This made Maya's face light up. She waited until the cats were an ample distance up the cliff, then she quickly ran after the Branded's group. Jacob alone should be able to handle those guys, she thought about the cats. Guess that uniform plan is the best way to go after all.
As Maya ran she drew her bow and readied an arrow. Finally catching up with the Branded's party, she let the arrow loose. She was surprised to see the Branded reveal a shield underneath his cloak. He blocked the arrow then pointed the two tigers towards her. Maya quickly pulled out another arrow and shot the first tiger in the eye. She then rolled out of the way of the second tiger and drew her bow once more. As it prepared to charge yet again, she fired another arrow right into it's gaping maw. The tiger fell swiftly and she stared down the last man. As the Branded charged, Maya drew two arrows. She fired the first one at his chest then the second one at his leg in quick succession. The man blocked both shots and continued to charge. He swung his sword then followed up with his shield which were both dodged by Maya. She then blocked the next attack using her bow all the while breathing a sigh of relief that it was made of metal. Not wasting any time, she raised her leg and kicked the man's shield. It caused him to spin in a circle which upon facing Maya once more, had her bow drawn and aimed at his head. She did not spare a thought and shot him without hesitation.
"Nice try," said Maya to herself. "But you're a hundred years to young to beat me."
She then ripped off the bandages on her shoulder to expose her Brand. Taking her opponenets armor off, she was relieved to know that his brand was in the exact same position as hers which was revealed through the whole in the armor's shoulder. "Perfect," she said to herself. "At least I won't look suspicious when I go to their camp."
Maya then quickly drew her bow once more and aimed at the shrubbery. She was surprised to see Eric reaveal himself. "What are you doing here?" she asked.
"I just couldn't sit there and let master treat me like a child," he said. "I came here so I can prove myself."
"So you snuck away from him?"
"Yes… Please don't tell him!"
"I won't. Besides, if I know him, he's still contemplating whether he should come save you or let you learn your lesson by making the mistake of accompanying me right now."
"If that's the case," said Eric now with a smile. "We should get a move on."
"Hold on one second," Maya replied.
"What's the problem?" questioned Eric.
"You don't have a brand…"
"So what's the problem?" said Eric. "We find another scouting group and take their uniforms."
"You don't get it," said Maya. "Branded scouts are always asked to show their brand after finishing a shift to make sure they have not been captured or replaced. Even then, the only reason this plan will work is because this man's brand is on a spot on his body similar to mine. Branded armor is custom built for each soldier and desinged to expose their brand."
"Does than mean?" asked Eric.
"Yes," said Maya. "I'm one of them."
"Then why do you fight with us?"
"I have my reasons which you do not need to know. All you need to know is that the very blood that runs through my veins, is the reason I know this plan is going to work. I know the enemy, and I wish for you to trust me."
"Who else knows about your secret?"
"Only the Laguz Kings, Ike, and the other higher ups including Jacob. If anyone else learns, I might be sentenced to death and the Kings' loyalties will be questioned. It could lead to much civil turmoil."
"Well, if they trusted you, then I guess I can too."
"Good," said Maya with a smile. "Now let's get to work."
"So what do we do?" questioned Eric once more.
"Simple," answered Maya. "I'm going to use the original plan I had for Jacob on you."
"Which is?"
"Something you're not going to like…"
xxxxx
"This is ridiculous," said Volke as he leaned against the chair in his tent. "I've never had a job that paid so much but took so long."
"What are you talking about," said another man sitting across from him. "You didn't sign us up to a job, you signed us up to slavery. You've become co-leader of this army along side that man who's part of 'The Nine.' In truth if you haven't realized though, you're actually being treated like you're under him. Damn Senator…"
"I know," said Volke. "We could always attempt to escape, but with all these men around, the timing would be very ill advised."
"At least they allowed for your request of me being your second in command," said the young man.
"Young Valentine," said Volke. "Wherever I go, you're going with me. After all, how am I suppose to pass all my teachings if you weren't around."
"You have a point," said Val.
"Anyway, don't let me down," said Volke. "Once I pass on everything to you, you'll be the new 'Fireman' and I can finally retire."
"How much longer is that gold draught you have going to last anyway?" asked Val.
"No matter how much gold I have, the potion's strength still seems to be fading," answered Volke with a hopeless tone in his voice. "I'm guessing maybe another one hundred years. If only I knew all the secrets of Alchemy… "
"That's plenty of time," said Val. "You should stop worrying about it. After all, none of us were born to learn everything in this world."
"You're right," said Volke getting up and moving towards the map on the table. "So what does that bastard Ivan have planned for the battlefield when all the men have arrived?"
"After taking your place in today's war meeting, here's all you need to know," said Val now drawing figures on the map. "First, tomorrow when roughly about ten thousand of our soldiers have crossed, we will form and armada known as 'The Central Army'." Any other troops who cross will be used to replace the wounded and dead who will be sent home and given proper burials or treatment. Our division is a small covert group consisting of the most elite beast warriors and branded. We were also given the captured feral hawks for diversion purposes."
"I see," said Volke. "So we're not even allowed to lead half the army. Just a hundred of the ten thousand…"
"Ninety-six actually," corrected Val. "But they're suppose to be the best of the best. I also heard commander Tanner will be under our division."
"You mean 'Tanner the Razor?'" asked Volke. "Goddess help the enemy if he is. That just made this war that much easier to win. Anyway, what is our role?"
"Given the size of our group and the units in it, we will only mobilize when ordered," answered Val. "As expected, we will be doing all the dirty work behind enemy lines to ensure victory."
"Perfect," said Volke. "What of supplies and sieges?"
"As of now," said Val now pointing at the map. "Once we cross the Crimean fields, the main force will engage the army waiting for us in Castle Delbray. Our unit is to sneak in from behind the castle and assassinate the key leaders as well as their general if he chooses to hide. This will cripple morale and turn the tide to our favor. As for supplies, we have been guaranteed a shipment of weapons and recently crafted Laguz Stones as well as Demi Bands and Olivi Grass every end of the week."
"Good," said Volke. "Now please update me on the current situation."
"As you wish," said Val. "Our scouts have encountered no spies. One of them however has recently returned after being attacked by what seemed like a small strike force of Crimean troops."
"How many survivors?" asked Volke.
"One," answered Val. "She has suffered little injury and managed to capture one of the attackers."
"I see," said Volke now in deep thought. "Prepare to receive orders."
"Yes sir! General Volke, sir!" exclaimed Val now saluting.
"Kill all our feral hawks," said Volke to Val's surprise. "Best to end their misery now then later. Once that is finished, kill the captured prisoner. I'll go after the lone scout survivor. Something just doesn't seem to fit with those two…
xxxxx
"Here," whispered Maya slipping a pin in one if Eric's pockets. "Free yourself of the shackles as soon as you get in the cage. Then, pay close attention to the sky above. Remember, as soon as you see the large cloud up above us completely envelop the moon, break yourself free of the cage and rush for one of the main tents. It looks like this army has two generals, we'll try to kill one before we escape."
"What about the bridge?" asked Eric as Maya put him in the cage.
"I'll take care of that," she answered. "You just make sure you do your part."
"Okay. Good luck Maya."
"And to you as well."
Maya then ran towards the bridge and disappeared under the night sky.
xxxxx
Eric waited patiently in the cage looking at men as they passed by on rare occasions. He did not like the feeling of the shackles on his ankles or wrists even though he had already unlocked them. He then turned his head to the moon. It was now half concealed by the cloud and his adrenaline spiked. He had never been in such a tense situation. In fact, he had never been in an actual battle. Jacob had always told him that you should start small and fight a battle against a single opponent. It would keep your focus on yourself instead of your teammates as well as adjust you to the situation. From their you branch out slowly by taking on more foes and siding with more allies. This is what made a great warrior as well as leader. Someone who can confidently defend himself as well as allow his teammates to depend on him.
Eric then thought of how he had never been confident or ever been relied upon. He wasn't even sure if he could defend himself against the first soldier he would face once he exited the cage. As Eric continued to ponder, he was shaken by a large explosion. Not to far northeast of him he saw half of the bridge buckle and fall into the river. He gazed at the moon and saw that it was completely engulfed in the cloud. As he ran to unlock the cage dozens of men rushed passed him giving him second thoughts of breaking free. They were then broken as he saw two men rush his cage.
"What's he doing out of the shackles?" the first one screamed.
"Who cares!" screamed the second man as he tried to catch up with the others. "Just push the cage of the cliff. The river will take care of the rest."
As the man began to push, a fire lit inside Eric. He grabbed the man's hands and pulled them against the bars. He then put the shackles on the man's wrists and made his way out of the cage. Taking the man's sword, Eric then pushed the cage of the cliff dragging the poor man to his death. He then quickly ran towards the large tents before being halted by another man.
"Give up Branded scum," said Eric. "The bridge has fallen. You will receive no more troops and the Crimean army will slowly wipe you out."
"Correction," said the man. "The bridge is only half destroyed. This makes the damage repairable compared to the other bridges. And who ever said we couldn't deliver our supplies and troops by air? That's what the Pegasus and Dracoknights are for."
"Your bluffing," said Eric
"How would you know?" asked the man
"I just do." answered Eric.
"Good guess," said the man. "I was lying about the latter. The former on the other hand, I was not. So I give you this piece of information: My master told me to let you escape and to inform you that the bridge will be repaired in about a month. That gives you thirty-one days to fully wipe out our army and fully destroy the bridge before you are outnumbered."
"Why are you telling me all this?" asked Eric suspiciously.
"Because my master and I have our reasons. Now flee while the men are distracted."
"And what of my ally?" Eric asked another question.
"She will be killed to keep our treason from being exposed," answered the man.
"WHAT?" exclaimed Eric. "I'd rather die than leave her behind."
"So be it," said the man now pulling a knife from his belt. "I was given orders to kill you as well should you not cooperate."