Chapter 8- An Apple a Day Keeps Highland at Bay
"This," Viktor grabbed a spear from the rack, "is a Fire Spear!"
Riou, Jowy, and Nanami looked on raptly as Viktor held the spear out for all to see. At first glance, it didn't appear much different than a normal spear. Flik, though, had seen them in battle and knew that any one spear could generate a stream of fire out almost one hundred yards in front of the holder.
The mention of Fire Spears always brought a twinge of pain to his heart. Odessa had spent much of her personal fortune researching documents from the Fire Bringer War that mentioned the use of Fire Spears. Her death had come just after the fruition of those plans, indeed, at the end of the mission to deliver the plans to the secret factory. Yet, those spears had ultimately been instrumental in the defeat of Teo McDohl's Iron Cavalry during the Toran Liberation War.
"Unfortunately, they're rusted and useless to us," Viktor concluded.
"And we all know who's fault that is," Flik muttered, just loud enough for everyone in the room to hear.
"Hey!" Viktor slammed the spear down onto the table and, knowing full well that he had promised several times to see to the maintenance of the spears, shot Flik an aggrieved look.
"Enough!" Apple interjected, and then gestured for Viktor to continue. Apple, of course, had already chewed both of them out for their failure to keep the Fire Spears maintained.
Viktor continued. "We need you to find a man called Tsai of the Divine Spear who should be able to fix the Fire Spears so that we can defend the fort. Will you help us?"
Flik could almost see Riou rolling his eyes and wouldn't have blamed him if he had said "no." Riou, modestly enough, answered, "Of course."
Flik walked around the table, carrying a bag of money. "Good. This," he handed the bag to Riou, "is two thousand potch. That will be his payment, so don't spend it on the way, okay."
Apple stood up from her chair. "You'll find Tsai in the forest east of Ryube. Also, don't dawdle, as the Highland Army is likely to push south as quickly as they can." She smiled. "Good luck."
After they left, she immediately collapsed back into her chair. Viktor, having appropriated the other chair, also sat down, leaving Flik chairless. Soft morning light filled the room through the window and the sky beyond was blue and cloudless. Apple closed her eyes and, given the serene look on her face, almost seemed to fall asleep.
"You okay?" Flik asked, after she said nothing for a few minutes.
She sprang upright. "Yes, yes. Just…collecting my thoughts. Viktor, I need you to collect some trustworthy men, we're going to move the strongbox to a new location."
Viktor frowned. "You think we'll lose the fort, even with the Fire Spears?"
"Better safe than sorry," Apple answered, crisply.
The two of them departed. Flik almost immediately jumped into a free chair, relaxing out his stiff legs. He'd had only a moment's respite, though, before he realized that he had his own duties to attend to. Regretfully, he got out of the chair and left the room.
As each hour passed, the day brought more and more signs of Highland's advance. Refugees, at first a trickle and then a steady flow, began to pour into the area of the fort, obviously seeking protection under the arms of Muse. But rapidly they began to overwhelm the fort, and Flik had to detail men to get them organized into a camp just outside the walls. The refugees also ended the recruiting shortage, as Flik found himself nearly inundated by eager men, both young and old, who were prepared to do almost anything to get their vengeance.
In the afternoon, the winds shifted around out of the north, bringing with them a pall of smoke. Scouts confirmed the obvious, that Highland was burning every farm and field that their forces could reach, slowly turning a large swath of East Muse into an ashen wasteland. Evening brought a red sky not only to the west, but also from the east. Flik spurred the scouts out, riding towards Ryube, only to discover the White Wolves already there. Dejectedly, the scouts herded the few escapees towards the fort, listening to their stories of massacre and atrocity all the way back.
The red glare of the burning town continued into the rising of the evening dark. The two moons, nearly touching as both waxed towards half full, stood sentinel over the flames, high in the night sky. The night brought better news than the day when Riou's company returned with Tsai. Flik, Viktor, and Apple, along with Riou, Jowy, and Nanami watched in the planning room as he examined a rack of rusted Fire Spears.
His eyes seemed to be in a perpetual squint as he ran his fingers up and down the carefully banded wood and iron of the seven-foot haft. "Tsk, tsk." His voice was subdued, but full of professional authority. "It is a terrible shame to see such fine weapons so poorly treated."
"Gah!" Viktor spat, "blame me for everything."
Tsai's head turned slightly at Viktor's comment, but then swung back to continue the examination. Reverently, he placed the spear back into its place on the rack before he stood up and, sandaled feet slapping the floor, took a few measured steps back. He bowed his head, as if in thought, revealing that his short black hair had been pulled back into a little bun, on which sat a small red cap.
After several moments, Flik felt his patience begin to wear. "Can you help us?" he prompted.
As if deliberately ignoring him, Tsai tugged at the green smock he wore over his long yellow tunic. He shook his head and sighed. "I retired to Ryube just to avoid situations like this and now you ask me to make weapons of war again." He was not a small man, indeed, he was fairly powerfully muscled, but he did not project his size well. He turned to squint directly at Flik. "I would say 'no', but after witnessing the things that I saw today, how can I not say 'yes' and help you stop this madman?"
Flik worked this out in his head. "This means that you'll help us, right? Thank you, I assure you that you will be well rewarded."
Tsai shook his head emphatically. "I don't care about any monetary reward. My reward will be peace and never again having to look on while helpless men and women are butchered like hogs. Now, if you'll excuse me, there is so very little time and I must get started." He nodded and walked quickly from the room to begin the task.
Viktor now turned to face Riou, Jowy, and Nanami. "You three deserve thanks, too, for bringing Tsai to us. Now, you should go and pack your things, for tomorrow I'm sending you off to Muse, out of harm's way."
This got an immediate reaction. Jowy stepped forward, shouting, "I want to stop Highland, too. We want to help, isn't that right, Riou?"
The room became very still as all eyes turned towards that particular young man. Somehow, in some unconscious part of his head, Flik understood that the wheels of destiny had ground to a halt, waiting for Riou to make his choice. It was terribly unnerving.
Riou stepped forward, up next to Jowy, nodding almost imperceptibly as he did so. "I want to fight by your side."
Nanami frowned slightly, Apple sighed in her chair, and Viktor's mouth fell open, sputtering on a suitable response. Flik forestalled any of them, though, stepping forward and unsheathing his sword. "I'll tell you what," he began. "If you can so much as touch me in a duel, I'll declare you fit to fight alongside us."
"Flik, what are you playing at?" Viktor asked, eyes flitting back and forth between Flik and Riou.
Nanami seemed about to speak, but Flik overrode her. "Do you agree?"
In answer, Riou's hands slipped down to his tonfar, readying them for battle. Jowy and Nanami backed away towards the wall where Apple sat, opening a space for the duel. Flik felt his breathing hasten as he brought the point of his sword up. He took one step forward, attempting to provoke a move.
Riou closed the intervening space with one tremendous leap, bearing down on Flik almost before he realized what was happening. Shifting to a two-handed stance, Flik's arms vibrated as he warded off Riou's first two blows with his sword. He pushed forward, trying to knock Riou off balance, but the boy nimbly backstepped away and sprang back into the attack almost as soon as his back foot touched the wooden floor. Again on the defensive, Flik reversed his grip, pointing the blade towards the ground, so that he took the next two blows just below the cross guard of his blade. Using his size, Flik broke the resulting stalemate, shoving Riou backwards. Following through, he swung his sword low, trying to sweep Riou off his feet and finish the fight. Instead, Riou neatly flipped away, balancing for a moment on his two tonfar, and then flipped back up onto his feet, sprinting to attack Flik as soon as his feet touched down.
Instinctively Flik brought the point of his sword forward, legs tensing to lunge towards the charging Riou. Then Flik faltered. Something in Riou's eyes -not desperation, but utter calmness- told him that the youth would continue the attack, heedless of the risk of injury, even to the point of death. Riou was prepared to risk everything, and Flik was not prepared to make him pay that price. Instead, he allowed Riou to swat the point of the blade away with his left tonfar. Then, turning his shoulder slightly, Flik stepped forward into a collision.
Unprepared, Riou caught Flik's shoulder hard on his sternum, sweeping his feet off the floor. However, this did not stop Riou's right tonfar from making contact with Flik's ribcage. Ignoring the sudden pain, he bashed Riou onto the floor, knocking him hard against the map table, spilling lead figurines all over the floor. Then, just for completeness sake, he pulled his sword around and tapped the flat of the blade lightly against Riou's neck. Only after that did he acknowledge the bruise forming on his right side, rubbing his free hand against it. Riou looked up imploringly at Flik.
Flik gritted his teeth as other parts of his abused body started hurting. "He's passed the test; he can join us."
Viktor frowned at first, but suddenly burst out laughing. "Are you sure you didn't go easy on him? You're going soft, Flik."
"I didn't go easy on him, Viktor. He can fight."
Viktor regarded Riou carefully as the boy got back on to his feet and dusted himself off. To Flik's consternation, Riou looked no more winded than if he'd just come back from an evening walk. Finally, Viktor said, "All right, I'll give you a company and we'll see what you can do. For now, you should go to bed; we'll all have a long day tomorrow."
After they had left, Apple stirred in her chair and said, "Are you really going to let them fight? What if they get into trouble?"
Viktor shrugged his shoulders. "I'll assign them the unit with the best sergeants. That will cut down on some of the risks. As for the rest…well, we all know about how hard it is to keep young men out of trouble when they are set on finding it."
There was a moment of reflection as the three of them remembered the Toran Liberation War and Tir McDohl. Then Apple stood up. "I'm borrowing some of your men, Viktor. We'll dig some traps to thin their numbers and keep our flanks clear, hopefully." Without so much as waiting for Viktor's permission, she walked from the room.
Flik would've done so as well, but Viktor reached out and grabbed his shoulder. Flik turned back to look at his friend, who was glancing conspiratorially around the room. "What's up?" Flik asked.
"I need your help with something," Viktor whispered, which struck Flik as absurd, given that the room was empty. "Meet me on the balcony." With that, Viktor walked out of the room, all the while attempting to creep stealthily. Flik rolled his eyes, but walked to the front of the fort and the second story balcony. Whatever it was that Viktor wanted, no matter how silly it was, Flik knew that it would be important to him.
Stepping out into the night air Flik came face to face not with Viktor, but instead with the largest squirrel he'd ever seen. Well, it looked something like a squirrel, if squirrels wore little red capes, stood more than a foot tall on their hind legs, and wore little brown booties on their feet. Flik stared at it for a long moment, trying to decide whether to flee or draw his sword.
"Mukumuku! Mukumuku!" The squirrel -Mukumuku- turned towards the sound of the voice and, to Flik's astonishment, bounded into the air, gliding downwards. Cautiously he walked to the balcony railing and watched as Mukumuku settled into Nanami's arms. "There you are, you silly little boy," Nanami cooed as she rubbed its furry belly with one hand. Then she sat down on the steps leading out of the fort, almost directly under the balcony where Flik was standing. He heard her sigh. "Why did he go and join up like that? Doesn't he realize what would happen if something went wrong?"
Flik mused; did he already regret allowing Riou and Jowy to fight alongside them? No, that right had been earned, it was up to them to decide if the responsibility was too heavy.
"I'll just have to go along with him," Nanami continued. "He'll need his big sister to keep him out of trouble. And then, after this fight is over, we can all go away somewhere: me, my brother, Jowy and Pilika, too. We could all live on a farm, far, far away from all the wars and fighting. Wouldn't that be nice?" Flik sighed, as softly as he could. Once he, too, had dreamed of a quiet future, side by side with Odessa. That dream had died with her, swept away like her body on the tides of war. If there truly existed some place far from conflict, Flik had yet to find it. In the distance, he could still see the red glow of Ryube burning. He closed his eyes, letting a cool night's breeze play across his cheek.
"Potch for your thoughts," Viktor's voice suddenly blurted out, close at hand. Flik, startled back to awareness, surreptitiously looked back to see if Nanami was still there. She was not, apparently having departed while he had been lost in thought. Viktor waited, something folded under his crossed arms.
Half a dozen suitable responses bounced around in Flik's head, but he said, "Nothing important. Why'd you call me out here?"
Viktor tilted his head slightly, as if to suggest he knew more than it seemed. Then he unfurled the cloth that he'd had in his arms. "This. We need to display the fort's battle flag."
"Battle flag?" Flik squinted; in the darkness he could make out little more than some sort of animal's face. "Where did you get this?"
Viktor chuckled. "I made this myself. I'm more talented than I let on, you know? Now, take this end and we'll nail it into position."
Flik complied. There were worse things than humoring Viktor on this night, especially given the tragedy that the following day was sure to bring.
The following morning dawned overcast, but dry. The soldiers were still assembling by companies when Pohl returned with some of the scouts.
"The Highland Army is advancing this way! They left Ryube earlier this morning." A ripple of nervous anticipation spread through the assembled men. Flik watched silently as some of the more experienced sergeants moved among them, quashing any murmuring as they went. Viktor also seemed jumpy this morning, eyeing the new battle flag as it ruffled slightly in the breeze. At that moment, the doors to the main building opened and Riou, Jowy, and Nanami hurriedly walked out into the sunlight.
Apple, meanwhile, was calmly questioning Pohl. "What are their numbers? And did you find out what units they were?"
"They seemed to be only from Solon Jhee's Second Army," Pohl answered. "Maybe about five thousand men. It'll take them nearly four or five hours to get here."
"Hmm," Apple mused quietly. "Where are the White Wolves and Luca Blight?" For a moment, she looked utterly dazed.
"Is something wrong?" Flik asked, stepping up towards her.
"No, no," Apple replied, wiping away some sweat from her face. "I just wish that…well, no, what I wish is unimportant. We have to deal with the threat in front of us."
All of the conversation in the assembly area quieted as Tsai came in, leading several wagons full of Fire Spears. He sounded tired as he spoke, "The Fire Spears are ready, thanks to everyone who worked through the night to fix them."
Apple nodded and then addressed the soldiers. "Gentlemen, the Highland Army is now coming for us. In the past few days, they have taken and burned both Toto and Ryube, as well as destroyed countless farms along the way. They may very well seem invincible, but they are not! They are tired and far from their supplies. With one good push, we can bloody their noses and force them to move cautiously. Then we just hold until reinforcements from Muse arrive and trap them between us."
Flik nodded. She certainly seemed to have their attention. Hopefully, the men were thinking more about that one good push and not too much on the fact that they were going to be outnumbered almost five to one. Now he spoke. "If this fort falls, all of East Muse will fall with it. Remember what Highland did to Ryube and Toto. Look at those refugees who are crowded outside our very walls." He took a breath. "This battle must not be lost!"
The soldiers gave a hearty cheer, some of them even pumping their fists into the air. Viktor gestured towards Apple. "Okay Apple, explain the plan."
Apple cleared her throat. "The battle will take place outside the fort, about two miles to the north. Normally, we'd fight closer to the fort, but the refugee camp makes that impossible. Viktor will have the largest unit, eight companies of infantry, which he will take north to a slight rise that the scouts have identified as a worthwhile defensive position. The width between the forests there is about a thousand yards. It's tough, but with the Fire Spears, we should be able to hold it." Viktor shrugged; Apple turned to Flik. "Flik, you will take your two companies of horse around to the forests on Viktor's left flank; Kinnison will be your guide. Once there, you'll wait until Viktor's infantry is engaged and then launch a flanking attack. Riou's company will do the same on Viktor's right flank. Rikimaru is your guide." She looked towards Tsai. "Tsai, what is the situation with the Fire Spears?"
Tsai looked much the worse for having worked without a break through the whole night. He rubbed his hands together and said, "I've done what I could. We have about five hundred Fire Spears that should work as they are supposed to."
Flik frowned slightly, but Apple's face betrayed nothing as she continued, "Each man in Flik and Riou's companies should receive a spear. Viktor," she looked at him again, "you'll have to make do with the remainder. Are there any questions?"
Viktor, knowing better than to complain about the spear situation, asked, "What about a reserve? You're not leaving us with much of a margin of error should things go bad."
Apple shook her head. "We don't have much of a margin for error anyway. We have to put all of our efforts into stopping them here." That answer was little comfort to Flik.
Viktor, on the other hand, stepped forward to address the men. "You've heard the situation; we're outnumbered, so we have to give it our all. If we do that, then we can win and crush the Highland Army and bring peace back to Jowston. I swear, by the great lion that flies on our battle flag overhead, that we will win this war!" He was nearly roaring by the time he finished.
Flik looked up at said flag. There was certainly some…animal's face on it.
"That's a lion?" Apple asked.
"Huh?" a soldier from somewhere in the ranks offered.
The men began queuing up to receive their Fire Spears. Viktor strolled over in the general direction of Riou's company. Apple carefully sat down on the steps and began fanning herself.
As Flik walked towards her, he noticed how flushed her face was, as if she'd just run a marathon. "Are you okay?" he asked.
She pulled off her glasses and proceeded to clean them on her coat. "I'm fine," she replied, a little curtly. "Just a little faint, that's all." She adjusted the glasses back onto her face, pushing them up with one finger until they were comfortable.
"Well, be careful out there," Flik offered.
She smiled. "Don't worry about that. I don't intend to get any closer to the fighting than I have to. But, I hope you two will be careful. You're both so gung-ho about these sort of things; I expect that both of you will end up right where the fighting's the thickest."
Flik shrugged; he had no good answer to that. Viktor, meanwhile, was speaking with Riou, Jowy, and Nanami in his big, booming voice. "So, are you ready to go? You won't get a chance to go the bathroom again for quite some time." He directed this last comment mostly towards Nanami, who replied with an aggrieved "Hey!"
All Riou said was, "We're ready anytime."
A warm wind stirred the new leaves of the forest as Kinnison led Flik and his companies single file down a game trail. The white wolf Shiro darted in and out of the cover well ahead, causing some of the horses to whicker nervously whenever they caught his scent. Through breaks in the foliage off to the right, Flik could see Viktor's infantry marching into position. There was still no sign of the Highland Army, but that was expected, given that they were still more than an hour away.
Eventually, Kinnison halted and said softly, "This is the spot. Deploy the men from here, along the edge of the forest." Flik studied the area; there was nothing that set this particular stretch of forest apart from any other.
"Why here?" he asked.
"Any farther north and you'll start losing men to all the pits that were dug last night," Kinnison answered.
"Oh." Flik paused. "Are you going to be fighting alongside us?"
Kinnison shook his head. "I won't be able to keep up in a field battle. Besides, your horses don't really care much for Shiro. If any of the Highland soldiers do come into range of my bow, I will shoot them."
Flik nodded and set about organizing the men. A few of the men were sent forward, dismounted, to the edge of the forest to serve as scouts. The majority waited deeper in, alongside their horses. Flik went forward with the scouts to survey the field. He could see Viktor's infantry, off to the right, working on building a hurried earthen breastwork. Riou was, hopefully, already in position in the forests directly across from Flik.
After that, there was little to do but wait. Flik lay in the undergrowth and listened to the sound of a bee droning somewhere in the distance. The clouds rolled by overhead, without a break, and he spent a few moments worrying about the possibility of rain. Then he dismissed those thoughts; whatever would come, would come. Some of the men near by were speaking in hushed whispers, but Flik chose not to intrude on the conversation. Instead, he dozed off.
After an indeterminate amount of time, one of the scouts came and gently pushed Flik awake. He sat up, rifled through his hair, and listened as the scout said, "We've sighted the advance guard of the Highland Army. Both infantry and cavalry. The infantry's in a marching column, with cavalry on both wings."
"Fine. Keep them under observation." Flik jumped up to his feet and walked back towards the bulk of his forces. They seemed to already know what was coming as he returned, the four senior sergeants coming forward to meet him. "The enemy is coming; we'll face cavalry and then infantry. The plan will be to approach as closely as we dare and then use the Fire Spears to burn as much as we can. Since the enemy greatly outnumbers us, we'll have to keep a careful watch on our exposed flank, the left. Tarrance," Flik turned to the senior sergeant in question, "your half company will have that duty. You are to refuse the flank and hold the enemy out of our rear at all costs. Understand?"
"Sir, I do."
"Good. We'll bring the men forward to the edge of the forest now. Then we'll advance in open order towards the enemy at a trot on my signal. Then halt on the next signal and initiate a simultaneous attack by the Fire Spears on the third signal. Understand?"
He received nods from the sergeants.
"Right, then let's get this started."
As they were riding forward, some of the scouts came back with a further update. The enemy infantry, in the blue and white of Highland, appeared to be advancing into the fight without stopping to change from column to row. Coming to the edge of the forest, Flik paused while the rest of the men formed up. It was now about an hour past noon. Across the field, he could see that the cavalry closest to his position contained horse archers, who were peppering Viktor's lines with arrows. The column of infantry was mere minutes away from crashing into the defensive line.
He could wait no longer. Unsheathing his blade, he pointed it towards the enemy cavalry and started forward at a trot. He did not need to look back to see if the men were following, for he could hear the noise made by nearly two hundred horses as they began the advance. For the moment there was nothing to do but to continue the ride forward and wait as the enemy cavalry reacted to the move. Their reactions were good, Flik grudgingly conceded, as he watched the cavalry change their facing without any visible problems.
An arrow buzzed by ominously off to his left; Flik tightened his grip on the shield. Other arrows were landing along his line and he could hear the startled screams of suddenly wounded men. Those men who were now dead would give no signal, of course. Still, most of the Highland arrows were only finding the earth; the formation was too spread out for concentrated arrow attacks to do catastrophic damage.
At that moment, Viktor's infantry started to use their Fire Spears on the approaching Highland infantry. Great spurts of fire arced out from Viktor's lines, burying the head of the Highland column under a wave of flame. On the far side of the field, Flik could see some of Riou's men also using their Fire Spears. For his own part, Flik wished to approach just a little closer before using his own spears, the better to burn more of the Highland formation.
A ripple passed through the opposing horse archers; men turning to see the fiery carnage to their rear. The enemy commander, at this distance still little more than a silver haired man dressed in black and white, began issuing new orders. Flik swore; they were extending their lines, moving into a more open order in an attempt to minimize the damage. There was nothing for it but to attack, though he had hoped to be a little closer. He pulled his sword high above his head, yelling, "Halt! Ready the Fire Spears!" The men halted in a ragged line, pointing their spears towards the enemy lines. Flik gripped his sword, he would fight with no other weapons but that and his lightning magic.
"Fire Spears! Attack!"
Instantly Flik felt the heat of the closest of the Fire Spears on his face and he turned slightly at the brightness of the fire generated by more than one hundred spears. It roared through the air, splashing down in and around the blue and white Highland cavalry, obscuring them behind a great wall of flame and smoke. The fire spurting out of the spears died down; surely nothing had survived that attack.
A volley of arrows whistled through the air in answer. Up and down his line, Flik could hear the sickening impacts of those arrows on leather, flesh, and bone. He tightened his jaw against the screaming.
"Again! Fire Spears! Attack!"
The flames from the spears burned through the air again, heaping fire upon fire. Behind that awful roaring veil, Flik thought he could make out horrible wailing. Despite this, the opposing general continued to keep control of his men, as more arrows flew towards Flik, albeit in a ragged volley. Some of those arrows struck home, causing at least one of the fire spears to suddenly spew straight upwards in a towering fountain of yellow, orange, and red. The fire attack faltered as the mercenaries scattered, trying to dodge falling globlets of flame.
Flik rode down the line, carefully maneuvering between the fires, until he found the closest senior sergeant, Rossgard. He was sitting on his horse, wide-eyed in shock, with a burn mark down the leather on his left arm. Flik shook him harshly. When he was reasonably sure that Rossgard was paying attention, he yelled, "Rally your men twenty yards back! Hurry!" Rossgard nodded his understanding and heeled his horse off, yelling towards the nearest men. Flik hurried on towards the others, until the whole line was reformed away from the danger zone.
During the time he had paid scant attention to the threat of more arrows, realizing only belatedly that no further volleys had followed on the last one. He looked out across towards the Highland positions, seeing only the red of dying flames and a thick cloud of roiling smoke. As Flik was watching, a messenger from Tarrance's half-company rode up.
"What news?" Flik asked, glancing towards the man.
"Sir, Tarrance reports enemy infantry and cavalry, retreating directly away from the lines. He judges that at least some of them appear to be in good order. They are falling back towards other Highland troops that appear fresh."
"Thank you. Ride up the line and tell the senior sergeants to meet me here."
"Sir, yes sir." The messenger rode off. Flik dispatched another to ride towards Viktor with that news. While waiting, he scrutinized the condition of the men. Now that battle did not seem to be imminent, some of them had slipped off their horses to attend to the wounded, or gather the dead. The wind suddenly kicked up at Flik's back, cool and fierce, driving the smoke away from him. He sighed; at least he would not be the one who would have to smell charred human flesh.
The four senior sergeants rode up and Flik listened to their casualty reports. Tarrance's half-company was unscathed, but the other three had suffered forty-six wounded and eighteen dead, though many of the wounds were minor burns from the Fire Spear accident. Flik closed his eyes; those were appalling casualties, regardless. Finally, he opened his eyes and sheathed his sword. "No pursuit," he said, calmly. "See to your half-companies. Prepare to return to the fort. Tarrance, you will have the rearguard position. Dismissed!"