Isaac pushed forth through the cold tundra east of the town of Imil. He
had left town about twelve hours before, and he regretted it very much. He
missed Mia tremendously, but he couldn't bring himself to return. Instead,
he tucked his head lower to thwart the icy wind of the mountain. The path
he took was uphill all the way, and there was a fair amount of powder on
the ground. Normally, he would've covered at least three times the ground
he had made today; he had only marched twelve miles from the town limits.
Isaac pushed his Earth Shield in front of him to further protect him from
the tearing wind, and he was less than a mile from the summit of the
mountain. The mountain wasn't tall, but the path was sloped enough to make
it rough going. Isaac ignored the aches in his mind and heart; pressing
forward, more determined than ever. After a long, arduous march, he
reached the peak of the mountain, and rested next to a large boulder. He
set his equipment down and sighed, sitting on his shield. Looking down on
the horizon, he could see the smoke rising from the chimneys of Imil. He
turned away, not wanting to think about the town. He rested his head
against the giant rock behind him. He closed his eyes and prepared to
sleep when a voice boomed from behind him.
"COMRADES!" A deep, booming voice sounded. Isaac leapt from his dozing and peered out from the rock. There was a huge camp in the gully below him; the camp was infested with hundreds upon hundreds of ice centaurs. They were the same type that attacked him before he arrived in Imil. There were tents and campfires everywhere, not to mention the sheer number of centaurs poised around each of them. The largest of the creatures stood on a small stone spire on the other side of the campsite. Isaac guessed he was the leader, but was scarce to identify much else in the site. "HEAR ME!" All of the centaurs pitched their heads in the direction of the elevated one.
"My comrades, we stand upon the hour of our victory! For decades, the humans have destroyed our lands and our people. We now sit upon the hour of our revenge. For as soon as our trump card is laid, we shall rule over the humans with an iron fist! The first of the human villages to fall shall be the one that is the biggest eyesore in our beloved continent! Now, what was the name of that village?!" The leader bellowed in a thunderous voice, shaking the ground under Isaac.
"IMIL!" The crowd shouted back.
"That's right! Then we shall march to the Mercury Lighthouse and take back what is ours! The power of Mercury shall lay in our hands, not the hands of the foolish Mercury Clan! They shall be the first to taste our swords!" A huge cheer arose from the crowd. Isaac's heart jumped into his throat. Mia was the primary descendent of the Mercury Clan, and Justin and Megan were members too! He wanted to take off and warn them, but he held his position. "Yes! That's exactly what we want from you! The warrior spirit; especially after the defeat of our greatest champion just days ago by the hands of a human! Rest assured, whomever killed him shall meet a gruesome fate!" Isaac's expression further tightened. He was the one who had slain their greatest warrior; it only could've been him. "However, I know you all thirst for the blood of the humans, but we must await our trump card; it should arrive in two days. Though, I know how much you want to attack, so if it doesn't arrive, we shall strike in two days anyway! The people of Imil are not warriors, but they have been known to be uncannily resourceful, especially their healer, Mia!" Isaac jumped again. The leader knew about Mia and her healing powers! That meant she was in even greater danger than before! "However, our attack will catch them completely off guard. Though, we do have a contingency plan; the attack will proceed in three waves, each a day apart. The Imilians will believe we've been defeated each time, and we can surprise them each time. We do not expect the attack to take more than one wave, but we are prepared. Should the attack take all three waves, I shall join you in our joyous slaughter! VICTORY IS OURS!" The creature shouted.
"SIRIUS! SIRIUS! SIRIUS!" The crowd shouted, but their leader put a hand up to silence them.
"Our prize will be worth the sacrifice! Let the blood of the humans flood the rivers and lakes!" The leader shouted again. "Remember! 48 hours! I bid you farewell until then!" The leader leapt from his perch amidst the cheering of his people. Isaac slumped back, taken completely aghast. He couldn't fight them all by himself, but he had to do something; he only had one option. Return to Imil and evacuate the town before the attack struck! It would take him hours to get back down the slope on foot, leaving maybe 40 hours at most for total and orderly evacuation, not to mention travel time to get away. Odds were, it wasn't going to happen; the closest town was Bilbin, and that was quite a substantial journey on a normal person; let alone a child or an elderly person. Enough of that; he tried to think on how he could get to Imil faster than on foot. He didn't have any other way. He stood from the ground and picked up his shield. Isaac brushed the snow off the front of his shield and continued thinking. Wait! Isaac looked at the front of his shield; it was smoother than a sheet of glass. Perfect!
"I know! I'll use this like a sled to get down the hill fast! I'll be back in Imil in an hour!" He mumbled to himself. He set the shield on the threshold of the curve, and sat down on it again. He peered over the ridge; it was a straight shot to Imil, but he'd have to dodge objects along the way. He was beginning to have second thoughts, but he pushed them away with the thought of what would happen if he was too late. Using his feet, he pushed the sled past the threshold and then could feel gravity making its point.
"Whoooooooooooa!" Isaac clutched the top of his shield and held on for dear life. The slope was steeper going down than up; he accelerated to easily 40 miles per hour. The pine trees ahead came up quickly. Isaac gasped, pulling his renegade sled to the right, swerving to barely miss a tree. The conifers continued coming up on him, but he used his feet as brakes and pushed himself left and right to avoid crashing. After dodging the final tree, he could feel his shield wobble beneath him; if he didn't pull his ride back into a straight path, he'd crash. Grabbing the front of his shield, Isaac yanked back hard, trying to slow the makeshift runner sled to a controllable speed. Isaac noticed the terrain ahead and gasped. Moguls! Isaac used his feet in a vain attempt to slow himself, but the upcoming moguls threw him all over the slope. Isaac now knew; he probably just made a big mistake by choosing to sled.
****************************
"Miss Mia, why did Isaac leave so soon?" Megan asked.
"He didn't say. He just said he had to leave."
"I wonder why." Justin remarked, lightly glaring at Megan.
"Couldn't tell you." Mia sighed, gazing out the window.
"You miss him already, Mia?" Justin asked.
"He came as quickly as he left." She sighed again. Still gazing out the window, she noticed a streak of kicked-up snow from the mountain to the east, heading straight for Imil. "What the?"
"What is it, Miss Mia?" Megan asked, joining her at the window. "It looks like something's coming down the mountain, and fast!"
"That's the way Isaac was headed! I wonder what's going on?" Mia asked. Megan and Justin glanced at each other, and Megan ran outside giggling, while Justin followed with out making a sound. "Hey you two! Get back here, it might not be safe!" Mia chased after them, following them all the way past the town gates. "What do you think you two are doing? It could be dangerous!" She exclaimed, catching up to where they had stopped. The missile coming down the hill was heading straight for them, but with all of the kicked up powder, it was impossible to discern what they were dealing with. As it closed within 20 yards, it began to slow to a stop. "What?" The projectile stopped just short of them, kicking up snow into Megan's and Justin's faces.
"Fancy meeting you here!" Isaac nervously joked, still sitting on his shield.
"Isaac?! What are you doing here?" Mia asked, surprised to see him return so soon; she didn't expect him to return at all. The nervous smile faded from Isaac's face, and a look of extreme concern and fear. "What is it?"
"There's danger! I need to talk to the mayor right NOW!" He shouted, leaping up, shield in arm.
"What kind of danger?"
"I'll explain when we get there. Justin, Megan, go on home; this is important, and please listen to me! Come on, Mia!" He said, grabbing her by the wrist, surging back to town through the snow. Justin and Megan obeyed and headed for their home. Isaac continued tearing through the town, Mia still trying to keep up.
"Isaac, what's going on?!"
"No time!" Isaac replied, reaching the mayor's house. He rapped on the door heavily, while panting just as hard. The door swung open, and a middle-aged man answered.
"Mia? What's going on?"
"Don't ask me. Ask Isaac." She said, in-between breaths.
"Mayor, the town's in serious danger! I must speak with you, alone with Mia, if possible!"
"Well, come in. Let's move to the parlor." The mayor said, concerned. Isaac and Mia stepped in, making sure to clean their feet off; a strange gesture by one in such a hurry. They followed the mayor into the parlor, and he took a seat at his desk, while Isaac and Mia sat in the two seats in front of it. "What is it that's causing the town to be in danger, Isaac?"
"Long story short, I was in the mountains less than an hour ago when I ran into a centaur camp; I overheard them planning to attack Imil and storm the Mercury Lighthouse in two days! They're going to try to wipe out the town!"
"What?!" The mayor exclaimed.
"Ice Centaurs; they've been continually more aggressive on caravans coming from Bilbin in the past months." Mia replied. "What do they plan to do at the Lighthouse?"
"They say they're going to take the power of Mercury for themselves. To make matters worse, their primary target isn't just the Lighthouse and Imil, it's the Mercury Clan itself!"
"What?! You mean they're out to kill the Clan and the town?! We need to call a town meeting right away!"
"I agree, but we need to devise a strategy first." Mia replied.
"Evacuation was my first thought; until I heard about the Lighthouse. Then I knew we couldn't up and leave." The mayor replied.
"How are the odds, Isaac?" Mia asked.
"Not good. There's at least four hundred of them, probably more, possibly reaching into the thousands. I had trouble defeating ONE out in the boonies before you found me."
"That is bad." Mia frowned.
"Sounds like we have but one option." Isaac sighed, believing the only option was retreat, even factoring in the danger of the Lighthouse.
"Defend our home!" The mayor shouted. "Imil had fought one war against the ice centaurs in the past; shortly after our town was founded! We will not surrender to them! I'm calling a meeting!" The mayor stormed out of his office and his voice could be heard talking to his aide.
"Mia, I didn't bring this up to the mayor; their primary target here in Imil is you." Isaac said, sadly.
"I anticipated as such." Mia sighed. "I just wish I wasn't such a burden to this town."
"Mia, I want you to know that I stand ready to defend you with my life." He whispered, extreme meaning in his voice. "I won't let them get you even if it is beyond my power to stop them."
"Isaac. . ." Mia returned heartfully returned. Before she could say more, the mayor returned into the room.
"Let's go to the town square; my aides are rounding up everyone as we speak. Move!"
"It sounds like you have a plan, mayor." Isaac stated, following the mayor out to the town square.
"I do. Luckily, the original walls of our town remain in place and in great condition; we have fortification; now we need warriors."
"You have one." Isaac responded, gesturing to himself. "My sword is yours."
"Excellent, but we have plenty of people ready to fight, I'm sure." The mayor responded. They reached the town square, and climbed onto the large wooden stage where the people could see them all clearly. In a few moments, all the people of the village of Imil were gathered beneath the stage.
"Citizens of Imil, we are facing a crisis! For decades, the people of Imil have lived in peace nestled in this mountain region, now we must prepare ourselves. The one invader force who have dared to attack us in the past is now planning to attack us again! You elders will know instantly know what of which I speak. The ice centaurs have returned, and they seek to destroy our fair town once again! The town needs your help to fight them!" The crowd looked on, stunned. No one spoke a word; a breath was hardly heard. "We already have one brave warrior who will stand against the might of the enemy! As strong as he may be, he couldn't save us all. We need your help." The crowd remained silent and motionless, until one man raised his hand.
"You have my allegiance, Mr. Mayor!" The man said. Slowly, more hands began to raise.
"I'm ready to fight!"
"I stand ready!"
"We're not going to let a few horse-men shove us by the wayside!"
"Let's hunt some centaur!"
"Yeah! For Imil!" The shouting continued until just about everyone in the town volunteered their hand in defending the town. Isaac, Mia, the Mayor, and the small guard force of Imil breathed a heavy sigh of relief.
"The enemy will be here within 46 hours; you have that long to prepare for the fight. All those who have volunteered who have no military training shall be given a crash course in archery. All who wish to defend, form one line to the right. All who wish to heal, supply or otherwise help out, stand to the left. All those who wish to do nothing, you have no business here; get out of my sight."
Every able-bodied man in Imil stood to the right, along with several women. Isaac descended from the platform and joined his fellow soldiers, heading the line. Whoever in town was left, stood to the left; no one had left the town square; no one wished to do nothing. Mia walked from the stage and stood at the head of the left line. She stood directly across from Isaac, who gave her a look of hope and determination. She smiled back, showing her appreciation and care. The mayor then followed Isaac's lead, and joined him on the right side.
"This is my town too; I will defend it like any man would!" A huge cheer erupted to commemorate his statement.
"Thank you, Mr. Mayor." Isaac said.
"Please, call me Edward. Edward Giles."
"Very well, Edward. I had no idea you were a warrior." "Not a warrior, per se. I do hold the title of 'Longbow Champion of the Year' for 10 years running." He said, smiling. "Now then, we have work to do."
"COMRADES!" A deep, booming voice sounded. Isaac leapt from his dozing and peered out from the rock. There was a huge camp in the gully below him; the camp was infested with hundreds upon hundreds of ice centaurs. They were the same type that attacked him before he arrived in Imil. There were tents and campfires everywhere, not to mention the sheer number of centaurs poised around each of them. The largest of the creatures stood on a small stone spire on the other side of the campsite. Isaac guessed he was the leader, but was scarce to identify much else in the site. "HEAR ME!" All of the centaurs pitched their heads in the direction of the elevated one.
"My comrades, we stand upon the hour of our victory! For decades, the humans have destroyed our lands and our people. We now sit upon the hour of our revenge. For as soon as our trump card is laid, we shall rule over the humans with an iron fist! The first of the human villages to fall shall be the one that is the biggest eyesore in our beloved continent! Now, what was the name of that village?!" The leader bellowed in a thunderous voice, shaking the ground under Isaac.
"IMIL!" The crowd shouted back.
"That's right! Then we shall march to the Mercury Lighthouse and take back what is ours! The power of Mercury shall lay in our hands, not the hands of the foolish Mercury Clan! They shall be the first to taste our swords!" A huge cheer arose from the crowd. Isaac's heart jumped into his throat. Mia was the primary descendent of the Mercury Clan, and Justin and Megan were members too! He wanted to take off and warn them, but he held his position. "Yes! That's exactly what we want from you! The warrior spirit; especially after the defeat of our greatest champion just days ago by the hands of a human! Rest assured, whomever killed him shall meet a gruesome fate!" Isaac's expression further tightened. He was the one who had slain their greatest warrior; it only could've been him. "However, I know you all thirst for the blood of the humans, but we must await our trump card; it should arrive in two days. Though, I know how much you want to attack, so if it doesn't arrive, we shall strike in two days anyway! The people of Imil are not warriors, but they have been known to be uncannily resourceful, especially their healer, Mia!" Isaac jumped again. The leader knew about Mia and her healing powers! That meant she was in even greater danger than before! "However, our attack will catch them completely off guard. Though, we do have a contingency plan; the attack will proceed in three waves, each a day apart. The Imilians will believe we've been defeated each time, and we can surprise them each time. We do not expect the attack to take more than one wave, but we are prepared. Should the attack take all three waves, I shall join you in our joyous slaughter! VICTORY IS OURS!" The creature shouted.
"SIRIUS! SIRIUS! SIRIUS!" The crowd shouted, but their leader put a hand up to silence them.
"Our prize will be worth the sacrifice! Let the blood of the humans flood the rivers and lakes!" The leader shouted again. "Remember! 48 hours! I bid you farewell until then!" The leader leapt from his perch amidst the cheering of his people. Isaac slumped back, taken completely aghast. He couldn't fight them all by himself, but he had to do something; he only had one option. Return to Imil and evacuate the town before the attack struck! It would take him hours to get back down the slope on foot, leaving maybe 40 hours at most for total and orderly evacuation, not to mention travel time to get away. Odds were, it wasn't going to happen; the closest town was Bilbin, and that was quite a substantial journey on a normal person; let alone a child or an elderly person. Enough of that; he tried to think on how he could get to Imil faster than on foot. He didn't have any other way. He stood from the ground and picked up his shield. Isaac brushed the snow off the front of his shield and continued thinking. Wait! Isaac looked at the front of his shield; it was smoother than a sheet of glass. Perfect!
"I know! I'll use this like a sled to get down the hill fast! I'll be back in Imil in an hour!" He mumbled to himself. He set the shield on the threshold of the curve, and sat down on it again. He peered over the ridge; it was a straight shot to Imil, but he'd have to dodge objects along the way. He was beginning to have second thoughts, but he pushed them away with the thought of what would happen if he was too late. Using his feet, he pushed the sled past the threshold and then could feel gravity making its point.
"Whoooooooooooa!" Isaac clutched the top of his shield and held on for dear life. The slope was steeper going down than up; he accelerated to easily 40 miles per hour. The pine trees ahead came up quickly. Isaac gasped, pulling his renegade sled to the right, swerving to barely miss a tree. The conifers continued coming up on him, but he used his feet as brakes and pushed himself left and right to avoid crashing. After dodging the final tree, he could feel his shield wobble beneath him; if he didn't pull his ride back into a straight path, he'd crash. Grabbing the front of his shield, Isaac yanked back hard, trying to slow the makeshift runner sled to a controllable speed. Isaac noticed the terrain ahead and gasped. Moguls! Isaac used his feet in a vain attempt to slow himself, but the upcoming moguls threw him all over the slope. Isaac now knew; he probably just made a big mistake by choosing to sled.
****************************
"Miss Mia, why did Isaac leave so soon?" Megan asked.
"He didn't say. He just said he had to leave."
"I wonder why." Justin remarked, lightly glaring at Megan.
"Couldn't tell you." Mia sighed, gazing out the window.
"You miss him already, Mia?" Justin asked.
"He came as quickly as he left." She sighed again. Still gazing out the window, she noticed a streak of kicked-up snow from the mountain to the east, heading straight for Imil. "What the?"
"What is it, Miss Mia?" Megan asked, joining her at the window. "It looks like something's coming down the mountain, and fast!"
"That's the way Isaac was headed! I wonder what's going on?" Mia asked. Megan and Justin glanced at each other, and Megan ran outside giggling, while Justin followed with out making a sound. "Hey you two! Get back here, it might not be safe!" Mia chased after them, following them all the way past the town gates. "What do you think you two are doing? It could be dangerous!" She exclaimed, catching up to where they had stopped. The missile coming down the hill was heading straight for them, but with all of the kicked up powder, it was impossible to discern what they were dealing with. As it closed within 20 yards, it began to slow to a stop. "What?" The projectile stopped just short of them, kicking up snow into Megan's and Justin's faces.
"Fancy meeting you here!" Isaac nervously joked, still sitting on his shield.
"Isaac?! What are you doing here?" Mia asked, surprised to see him return so soon; she didn't expect him to return at all. The nervous smile faded from Isaac's face, and a look of extreme concern and fear. "What is it?"
"There's danger! I need to talk to the mayor right NOW!" He shouted, leaping up, shield in arm.
"What kind of danger?"
"I'll explain when we get there. Justin, Megan, go on home; this is important, and please listen to me! Come on, Mia!" He said, grabbing her by the wrist, surging back to town through the snow. Justin and Megan obeyed and headed for their home. Isaac continued tearing through the town, Mia still trying to keep up.
"Isaac, what's going on?!"
"No time!" Isaac replied, reaching the mayor's house. He rapped on the door heavily, while panting just as hard. The door swung open, and a middle-aged man answered.
"Mia? What's going on?"
"Don't ask me. Ask Isaac." She said, in-between breaths.
"Mayor, the town's in serious danger! I must speak with you, alone with Mia, if possible!"
"Well, come in. Let's move to the parlor." The mayor said, concerned. Isaac and Mia stepped in, making sure to clean their feet off; a strange gesture by one in such a hurry. They followed the mayor into the parlor, and he took a seat at his desk, while Isaac and Mia sat in the two seats in front of it. "What is it that's causing the town to be in danger, Isaac?"
"Long story short, I was in the mountains less than an hour ago when I ran into a centaur camp; I overheard them planning to attack Imil and storm the Mercury Lighthouse in two days! They're going to try to wipe out the town!"
"What?!" The mayor exclaimed.
"Ice Centaurs; they've been continually more aggressive on caravans coming from Bilbin in the past months." Mia replied. "What do they plan to do at the Lighthouse?"
"They say they're going to take the power of Mercury for themselves. To make matters worse, their primary target isn't just the Lighthouse and Imil, it's the Mercury Clan itself!"
"What?! You mean they're out to kill the Clan and the town?! We need to call a town meeting right away!"
"I agree, but we need to devise a strategy first." Mia replied.
"Evacuation was my first thought; until I heard about the Lighthouse. Then I knew we couldn't up and leave." The mayor replied.
"How are the odds, Isaac?" Mia asked.
"Not good. There's at least four hundred of them, probably more, possibly reaching into the thousands. I had trouble defeating ONE out in the boonies before you found me."
"That is bad." Mia frowned.
"Sounds like we have but one option." Isaac sighed, believing the only option was retreat, even factoring in the danger of the Lighthouse.
"Defend our home!" The mayor shouted. "Imil had fought one war against the ice centaurs in the past; shortly after our town was founded! We will not surrender to them! I'm calling a meeting!" The mayor stormed out of his office and his voice could be heard talking to his aide.
"Mia, I didn't bring this up to the mayor; their primary target here in Imil is you." Isaac said, sadly.
"I anticipated as such." Mia sighed. "I just wish I wasn't such a burden to this town."
"Mia, I want you to know that I stand ready to defend you with my life." He whispered, extreme meaning in his voice. "I won't let them get you even if it is beyond my power to stop them."
"Isaac. . ." Mia returned heartfully returned. Before she could say more, the mayor returned into the room.
"Let's go to the town square; my aides are rounding up everyone as we speak. Move!"
"It sounds like you have a plan, mayor." Isaac stated, following the mayor out to the town square.
"I do. Luckily, the original walls of our town remain in place and in great condition; we have fortification; now we need warriors."
"You have one." Isaac responded, gesturing to himself. "My sword is yours."
"Excellent, but we have plenty of people ready to fight, I'm sure." The mayor responded. They reached the town square, and climbed onto the large wooden stage where the people could see them all clearly. In a few moments, all the people of the village of Imil were gathered beneath the stage.
"Citizens of Imil, we are facing a crisis! For decades, the people of Imil have lived in peace nestled in this mountain region, now we must prepare ourselves. The one invader force who have dared to attack us in the past is now planning to attack us again! You elders will know instantly know what of which I speak. The ice centaurs have returned, and they seek to destroy our fair town once again! The town needs your help to fight them!" The crowd looked on, stunned. No one spoke a word; a breath was hardly heard. "We already have one brave warrior who will stand against the might of the enemy! As strong as he may be, he couldn't save us all. We need your help." The crowd remained silent and motionless, until one man raised his hand.
"You have my allegiance, Mr. Mayor!" The man said. Slowly, more hands began to raise.
"I'm ready to fight!"
"I stand ready!"
"We're not going to let a few horse-men shove us by the wayside!"
"Let's hunt some centaur!"
"Yeah! For Imil!" The shouting continued until just about everyone in the town volunteered their hand in defending the town. Isaac, Mia, the Mayor, and the small guard force of Imil breathed a heavy sigh of relief.
"The enemy will be here within 46 hours; you have that long to prepare for the fight. All those who have volunteered who have no military training shall be given a crash course in archery. All who wish to defend, form one line to the right. All who wish to heal, supply or otherwise help out, stand to the left. All those who wish to do nothing, you have no business here; get out of my sight."
Every able-bodied man in Imil stood to the right, along with several women. Isaac descended from the platform and joined his fellow soldiers, heading the line. Whoever in town was left, stood to the left; no one had left the town square; no one wished to do nothing. Mia walked from the stage and stood at the head of the left line. She stood directly across from Isaac, who gave her a look of hope and determination. She smiled back, showing her appreciation and care. The mayor then followed Isaac's lead, and joined him on the right side.
"This is my town too; I will defend it like any man would!" A huge cheer erupted to commemorate his statement.
"Thank you, Mr. Mayor." Isaac said.
"Please, call me Edward. Edward Giles."
"Very well, Edward. I had no idea you were a warrior." "Not a warrior, per se. I do hold the title of 'Longbow Champion of the Year' for 10 years running." He said, smiling. "Now then, we have work to do."