XVIII
The small white horse raced across the plains, bringing Link closer to the castle. He had to move quickly; the army would be upon Rauru soon. There was no time to stop them, and how could he? The Triforce had great power, but it was divided still. Before Link could fully claim it, Ganon must be destroyed. Stopping the army could not be done with Ganon enforcing it. But Rauru town was still in great danger. The Triforce showed Link the army they would face, and it was quite formidable. There was no chance for Roam's forces to push them back; they could only delay them. And so Link urged the horse to move faster, as time was running out.
"They will enter the town in roughly five minutes sir. Too many to count. There were darknuts, goriyas, moblins, stalfos, armos, and lynels among them. No sign of any wizrobes, or any of the larger monsters. But the army is large enough."
Roam nodded. "Thank you. Now, take off towards the cave." He shouted out so that the rest could hear him. "Five minutes! Wait for my signal."
Eighty knights drew their swords in response. Their horses paced restlessly in the empty streets of Rauru. The evacuation was completed in time, Queen Zelda and the townspeople were safe in the caves. Roam knew where Link was going, knew of what happened. With any luck, this battle would not last long. But he had to give Link all the time that he could. Their battle plan was a retreat, but a slow one. These eighty knights were the only ones left in Hyrule; the rest of Roam's militia consisted of young soldiers and other men willing to fight.
A shout came from Ganon's army. They were spotted. Roam gave the signal, and the knights disbursed throughout the town. Let Ganon's soldiers be wary; don't let them know where we are. They will have to sweep throughout the town to insure they would not be flanked. Roam dashed in with a yell, swinging his sword. Numerous other knights followed, from all directions. The army roared in response, and attempted a counterassault. But Roam's men melted away, retreating to the safety of the alleyways and back roads. Arrows flung in from unknown locations, courtesy of some well hidden archers. Shooting from windows and crevices, they never allowed Ganon's men to learn where the arrows came from. Roam's knights continued to fade in and out; drawing out a few soldiers and then destroying them.
It's working. Ganon's men were slowly gaining ground, filling more and more streets. Yet they were off balance and cautious, still unsure just how fierce their opposition was. Surely Roam was doomed if they realized just how few his forces really were. So they needed to keep this attack going, needed to keep Ganon's forces afraid. But it wouldn't last for long. Already the arrows were slowing down, as many of the men found themselves surrounded by Ganon's army and thus simply hid. It was their only chance of survival, and Roam worried for their safety. But he kept his attack up, bitterly giving ground.
At last, Roam called for a retreat. The arrows had stopped flying, and only thirty knights remained. They waited on the edges of the town only to be certain the main contingent saw them, and then they raced off. Into the woods, and into the second phase of their defense. Sensing victory, the horde charged after them, barely giving a second thought. Yet shortly after entering the woods, arrows came flying towards them. Men jumped up from around them, yelling and brandhishing whatever weapons they could find. Realizing they were surrounded, the army ignored their initial prey, and charged the flanks.
But Roam had expected such an instinctive move, and had chosen his path wisely. His men retreated into the woods, quickly fading from site. As they did, they raced backwards, towards the mountains. Up the hill they all ran, as Roam surveyed the area. Many of Ganon's men paused, expecting another trap. Those that charged were met by the remains of the knights and the soldiers in the woods. As fast as possible, the Hylians retreated up the hill, past a hidden point. As soon as Roam saw that they were all accounted for, he gave his signal.
Immediately, a dozen burning arrows shot out, scattering across the forest. Trees and underbrush, soaked in oil the night before, ignited immediately, separating the two armies. By now, a messenger should have told the citizens to move through the caves, towards the Parapa desert. The flames shot upwards as Roam and his army backed off. Before long, the entire forest would be ablaze.
Ganon's army looked unsure of what to do, and backed away from the fires around them. Yet an order rang out, an order to charge through the flames. They would have to move quickly, while there were still pockets of space left in the inferno, and they charged. Many did not make it, collapsing from the heat and flames. But some of the monsters made it through, determined to slaughter Roam's pathetic band. Yet Roam's soldiers met them as they cleared the flames, and those that made it through were quickly cut down.
It was a costly battle, and Roam lost many men before the army stopped charging through the flames. They were all singed and exhausted, finding it hard to breath through the smoke. Roam called for a retreat, and those that survived gathered around the caves entrance. Roam scanned the area, attempting to discover the horde's next plan. At last, he noticed some men moving along the edges of the fire. They were trying to get around it, moving up through the mountains. It would take them awhile before they would reach the edges of the forest, and Roam guessed that he had no more than an hour or two before they would be overrun. With a sigh, he gave a signal, preparing for his last line of defense.
Two citizens of Rauru scrambled up the mountain. They were chosen due to their mountain climbing skills, and had a dangerous task in front of them. Bombs were placed above the entrance of the cave, ready to start an avalanche. If it became clear that Ganon's men had crossed the inferno separating them, Roam would retreat into the cave while the climbers detonated the bombs. The resulting avalanche would then seal the cave entrance. With any luck, the army would not be able to uncover the entrance before the flames would be on top of them, destroying them completely. Unfortunately, it would also trap the citizens of Rauru in the desert, with virtually no supplies. It was a desperate, last-ditched effort, and one Roam was not looking forward to.
His only hope left was in Link.
The small white horse raced across the plains, bringing Link closer to the castle. He had to move quickly; the army would be upon Rauru soon. There was no time to stop them, and how could he? The Triforce had great power, but it was divided still. Before Link could fully claim it, Ganon must be destroyed. Stopping the army could not be done with Ganon enforcing it. But Rauru town was still in great danger. The Triforce showed Link the army they would face, and it was quite formidable. There was no chance for Roam's forces to push them back; they could only delay them. And so Link urged the horse to move faster, as time was running out.
"They will enter the town in roughly five minutes sir. Too many to count. There were darknuts, goriyas, moblins, stalfos, armos, and lynels among them. No sign of any wizrobes, or any of the larger monsters. But the army is large enough."
Roam nodded. "Thank you. Now, take off towards the cave." He shouted out so that the rest could hear him. "Five minutes! Wait for my signal."
Eighty knights drew their swords in response. Their horses paced restlessly in the empty streets of Rauru. The evacuation was completed in time, Queen Zelda and the townspeople were safe in the caves. Roam knew where Link was going, knew of what happened. With any luck, this battle would not last long. But he had to give Link all the time that he could. Their battle plan was a retreat, but a slow one. These eighty knights were the only ones left in Hyrule; the rest of Roam's militia consisted of young soldiers and other men willing to fight.
A shout came from Ganon's army. They were spotted. Roam gave the signal, and the knights disbursed throughout the town. Let Ganon's soldiers be wary; don't let them know where we are. They will have to sweep throughout the town to insure they would not be flanked. Roam dashed in with a yell, swinging his sword. Numerous other knights followed, from all directions. The army roared in response, and attempted a counterassault. But Roam's men melted away, retreating to the safety of the alleyways and back roads. Arrows flung in from unknown locations, courtesy of some well hidden archers. Shooting from windows and crevices, they never allowed Ganon's men to learn where the arrows came from. Roam's knights continued to fade in and out; drawing out a few soldiers and then destroying them.
It's working. Ganon's men were slowly gaining ground, filling more and more streets. Yet they were off balance and cautious, still unsure just how fierce their opposition was. Surely Roam was doomed if they realized just how few his forces really were. So they needed to keep this attack going, needed to keep Ganon's forces afraid. But it wouldn't last for long. Already the arrows were slowing down, as many of the men found themselves surrounded by Ganon's army and thus simply hid. It was their only chance of survival, and Roam worried for their safety. But he kept his attack up, bitterly giving ground.
At last, Roam called for a retreat. The arrows had stopped flying, and only thirty knights remained. They waited on the edges of the town only to be certain the main contingent saw them, and then they raced off. Into the woods, and into the second phase of their defense. Sensing victory, the horde charged after them, barely giving a second thought. Yet shortly after entering the woods, arrows came flying towards them. Men jumped up from around them, yelling and brandhishing whatever weapons they could find. Realizing they were surrounded, the army ignored their initial prey, and charged the flanks.
But Roam had expected such an instinctive move, and had chosen his path wisely. His men retreated into the woods, quickly fading from site. As they did, they raced backwards, towards the mountains. Up the hill they all ran, as Roam surveyed the area. Many of Ganon's men paused, expecting another trap. Those that charged were met by the remains of the knights and the soldiers in the woods. As fast as possible, the Hylians retreated up the hill, past a hidden point. As soon as Roam saw that they were all accounted for, he gave his signal.
Immediately, a dozen burning arrows shot out, scattering across the forest. Trees and underbrush, soaked in oil the night before, ignited immediately, separating the two armies. By now, a messenger should have told the citizens to move through the caves, towards the Parapa desert. The flames shot upwards as Roam and his army backed off. Before long, the entire forest would be ablaze.
Ganon's army looked unsure of what to do, and backed away from the fires around them. Yet an order rang out, an order to charge through the flames. They would have to move quickly, while there were still pockets of space left in the inferno, and they charged. Many did not make it, collapsing from the heat and flames. But some of the monsters made it through, determined to slaughter Roam's pathetic band. Yet Roam's soldiers met them as they cleared the flames, and those that made it through were quickly cut down.
It was a costly battle, and Roam lost many men before the army stopped charging through the flames. They were all singed and exhausted, finding it hard to breath through the smoke. Roam called for a retreat, and those that survived gathered around the caves entrance. Roam scanned the area, attempting to discover the horde's next plan. At last, he noticed some men moving along the edges of the fire. They were trying to get around it, moving up through the mountains. It would take them awhile before they would reach the edges of the forest, and Roam guessed that he had no more than an hour or two before they would be overrun. With a sigh, he gave a signal, preparing for his last line of defense.
Two citizens of Rauru scrambled up the mountain. They were chosen due to their mountain climbing skills, and had a dangerous task in front of them. Bombs were placed above the entrance of the cave, ready to start an avalanche. If it became clear that Ganon's men had crossed the inferno separating them, Roam would retreat into the cave while the climbers detonated the bombs. The resulting avalanche would then seal the cave entrance. With any luck, the army would not be able to uncover the entrance before the flames would be on top of them, destroying them completely. Unfortunately, it would also trap the citizens of Rauru in the desert, with virtually no supplies. It was a desperate, last-ditched effort, and one Roam was not looking forward to.
His only hope left was in Link.