Chapter Eleven

The Final Assault

Dar kneels on the roof of the hut of one of the villagers. He has a light crossbow in each hand, aimed at the oncoming Jun horde. The hooves sound like thunder as the barbarians charge forward. The Beastmaster fires the crossbow bolts into the attacking Juns. His aim is off, as these weapons are not designed to be used with only one hand. But luck is with him for the twin bolts both strike their targets, wounding them grievously enough to knock them from their mounts. Dar tosses the crossbows aside and picks up another one, which was laying next to him loaded and ready. This one is a heavy crossbow, designed to punch through heavy metal armour with lethal force. The Beastmaster takes careful aim and lets fly at another Jun. The bolt flies true, piercing the barbarian's heart and throwing him from his horse.

Just as Madmartigan had done just moments before, Dar leaps from his perch and tackles a passing horseman from his mount. The two men land in the dirt, punching and kicking one another. The Beastmaster draws a dagger from his belt and stabs his opponent repeatedly. He then flips the weapon over, gripping it by the blade, and hurls it at another of the oncoming Juns. The blade of the dagger buries itself deep into the Jun's throat. The barbarian grasps his throat as he topples off of the back of his horse. Dar draws his bastard sword from its scabbard and opens a gash on the side of a passing Jun. Another Jun rides past, and Dar cuts his leg off at the knee. Another Jun horseman charges The Beastmaster, whirling a heavy spiked flail above his head. Before the Jun could even get close, he's buried under a mound of orange and black fur. Ruh pounced on the Jun, clamping his jaws on the barbarian's throat while his claws rake at the Jun's chest and belly. Another Jun horseman comes riding towards the tiger, his spear held poised to strike. Before he can bring the weapon down into the tiger's flank, Sharak swoops down from the sky and tears into the Jun's face with razor sharp talons and beak. The Jun warrior drops his spear and raises his arms in a desperate attempt to protect his face and eyes. The eagle takes off back up into the sky just as the Jun is riding past The Beastmaster. The second that Skarak is clear, Dar cuts the horseman down from his mount.

A large and powerfully built Jun, mounted on a massive black warhorse, and wearing spiked shoulder guards and a horned helm which covers his face with a steel visor, charges at Dar while whirling a heavy spiked flail over his head. Both Ruh and Sharak are too far away to give The Beastmaster any assistance this time. The last of the Emurites stands his ground, holding a ready stance until the last possible second. As soon as the Jun is almost upon him, Dar dives to the side while simultaneously slashing the horse's forelegs. The horse tumbles into the dirt, throwing its rider and sending him to plant face down in the earth. Dar winces as the horse's agonized screams echo in his head. But before he can put the poor creature out of its misery, or finish off its rider, The Beastmaster is set upon by several Juns on foot.

A Jun youth attacks Dar from behind with a great-sword with a scalloped edged blade. The Beastmaster instinctively ducks under the clumsy strike, pivoting and driving the point of his sword into the young man's back. Another Jun footman comes at Dar grasping a battle ax in both hands and holding it high while screaming a battle cry. Dar reverses the grip on the hilt of his sword, pulling the blade out of the back of the first Jun and delivering an upward slash across the torso of the next Jun. A grey haired Jun veteran charges The Beastmaster with a spear levelled at Dar's chest, while a second Jun armed with a sword and shield comes at him from the opposite direction. Dar sidesteps the spear thrust, grabbing the shaft with his off hand and adding to its momentum, driving the spear tip into the younger man's chest. At the same time, The Beastmaster pivots and slashes the veteran Jun across the neck, severing the grey beard's head. While Dar is distracted by the other Juns, the horseman that was thrown from his mount climbs back up to his feet. He pulls the horned helmet from his head, slips a heavy bronze shield onto his arm and draws his broadsword. "BEASTMASTER!" he screams.

Dar turns to face the Jun lieutenant. Ruh begins to circle around behind the Jun, but The Beastmaster subtly shakes his head "no". He silently tells the tiger to just keep the other Juns from interfering. He wants to face this challenge alone. He grips his bastard sword with both hands and charges the Jun. The Beastmaster leaps up into the air and comes down with an overhead slashing attack. The Jun lieutenant deflects the attack with his shield, and then counters with a horizontal slash across Dar's belly. Dar just barely manages to keep from being disemboweled, moving far enough out of the way to only receive a narrow gash across his abdomen. The Jun retaliates with a sword thrust aimed at The Beastmaster's belly. Dar parries the thrust, sweeping the broadsword aside, and then slashing at the Jun's neck. Once again the Jun blocks Dar's sword with his shield. He then attacks with a downward slash. Dar parries the sword strike with his own blade, then counters with a low slash aimed at the Jun's knee. The lieutenant parries the attack with his sword, and then delivers a shield punch to Dar's face. The bronze plated shield connects solidly with The Beastmaster's skull, knocking him back onto his heels. The Jun delivers another downward strike with his sword, which The Beastmaster once again parries.

However this time Dar is off balance and the force of the impact knocks him down onto his back. The Jun lieutenant straddles The Beastmaster, preparing to drive the point of his sword blade down into Dar's chest. In desperation, The Beastmaster brings his knee up to his chest and then thrusts his foot out as hard as he possibly can, driving his heel into the Jun's groin. The force of the kick is enough to lift the Jun up off of his feet and stagger backwards. However the Jun is wearing a bronze plated codpiece, offering him protection from such attacks. Thus he is more surprised than hurt. The kick does allow Dar to get up to his knees and retrieve his sword though. The Jun lieutenant raises his broadsword and attacks. The Beastmaster thrusts his blade forward. With his lower position, he is able to slip the blade in under the Jun's shield, impaling him through the belly. He drives forward with his legs, shoving the blade of the sword all the way up into the Jun's gut, right up to the hilt. Dar stands nose to nose with the Jun. Then he pulls his sword out of the barbarian's abdomen, and then severs the Jun's head. He then turns to see Madmartigan cutting his way through the Jun horde with Deathstalker's sword.

"Deathstalker?" asks Dar, even though he is already certain that he knows the answer. Madmartigan holds up the mercenary's enchanted sword and sadly shakes his head. "And the berserker?" asks The Beastmaster.

"Turned to stone," replies the Lord of Tir Asleen, "A gift from a Nelwyn wizard I know."

"Come on," says Dar, "Let's join the others. The battle is still far from being won."

So The Beastmaster and Madmartigan rush off to the battle, Ruh following close behind them with gore dripping from his muzzle and paws. Elsewhere in the village, set between two houses, Shad has organized the remaining Akira into a fair approximation of a phalanx formation. All of the remaining farmers are now armed and armoured with the weapons and equipment dropped by the slain Juns. Those who can't get used to the equipment are positioned on the rooftops, armed with crossbows and ready to rain death down upon the Juns from above. The Juns come on as predicted. They slam into the shields of the defending Akira, who drive them back with their spears. The Akira at the back of the group are armed with long pikes, adding their own spears to the wall of death that the Juns keep running into. And as predicted, in such narrow quarters the Juns' greater numbers mean little. On and on the Juns come, both mounted and on foot. And more and more their bodies begin to pile up.

At the edge of the town square, Red Sonja stands waiting with a light crossbow in each hand. As the Jun cavalry charges towards her, she levels the twin crossbows at the two leading horsemen, takes aim, and shoots them each through the heart. She tosses the crossbows aside, slips her toe under the heavy crossbow which is laying at her feet, and kicks it up into the air. She then snatches it out of the air, takes aim, and shoots a crossbow bolt into the armoured face of an oncoming barbarian. The bolt strikes him with enough force to throw him from the back of the horse and send him flying into another Jun horseman just behind him. The horse stumbles under their weight and collapses, throwing its rider. Sonja throws the crossbow at another mounted Jun, knocking him from his horse. She then draws her bastard sword and starts cutting down every Jun barbarian that comes within reach.

A Jun horseman rides by with his battle ax raised high, prepared to strike. Sonja slashes open his belly as he rides by. Another of the Juns' cavalry charges at Sonja, levelling his spear at her heart as though it was a lance. She cuts the shaft in two and stabs him through the lung. Another horseman rides by, swinging his sword at Sonja's head. She cuts off his sword arm at the elbow before he can make contact. More Juns come at her on foot. An inexperienced youth charges her with a spear. She parries the attack, sweeping the spear aside, and drives the point of her sword through his heart. A white haired veteran comes at Sonja with a sword and shield. He swings his sword at her head, which she parries with her own weapon. She counters with a downward slash, which he blocks with his shield. He thrusts his sword at Sonja's exposed belly, but she brings her sword down to parry the attack just in time. She sweeps his sword aside and tries a horizontal slash across his chest. Once again the old man blocks it with his shield. He tries an overhead downward slash. Sonja ducks under the attack, stepping past the Jun while at the same time opening up his abdomen. Then she steps in behind him and slashes him across the spine.

An inexperienced young Jun barbarian gripping a battle ax in both hands charges at Sonja, screaming wildly. He raises the ax over his head, intending to bring the weapon down and bury it in Sonja's skull. Sonja thrusts her sword forward, and the foolish boy virtually impales himself on her blade. Two Jun warriors help the Jun lieutenant who was knocked from his mount with a thrown crossbow back to his feet. He leans heavily on the handle of his weapon, a heavy spiked mace, but waves them away. The two Juns approach Sonja cautiously, their swords drawn and ready. They both attack her at the same time, both gripping their swords in two hands and bringing them down in identical downward strikes. Sonja brings her own sword up into a horizontal parrying position, blocking both attacks at once. She then counters with a horizontal slash across both of their bellies. Both Juns lower their weapons, grasping their wounded abdomens to prevent their guts from spilling out. Red Sonja takes advantage of the distraction and slays them both with two quick strokes, taking the head from one and driving the point of her sword through the heart of the other.

The Jun lieutenant grips his heavy spiked mace in both hands and strides towards the redhead. Red Sonja moves to meet him, gripping her own sword in both hands. Steel rings out against steel as the two warriors clash. Sonja brings her sword down in a overhead slash, which the Jun parries with the handle of his mace. He retaliates with a horizontal swing at Sonja's head. She ducks, thrusting her sword at his abdomen. He sidesteps the attack, punching out with the handle of his weapon, connecting solidly with her jaw. Red Sonja staggers back, blood running from her mouth. She wipes the blood from her lips with the back of her hand, glaring at the Jun with new respect. The Jun lieutenant swings his mace in front of him in a figure eight pattern. He grins wickedly with renewed confidence.

The Jun lieutenant comes at Sonja with a flurry of attacks. Downward swing. Downward swing. Horizontal swing. Upward swing. Horizontal. Downward. Each time, Sonja manages to duck, dodge, or parry the attack. He breaks off his attack, taking a step back. Sonja stands patiently with her sword in a ready stance, while the Jun is breathing heavily and can barely lift his arms. He nods his head as he comes to understand her strategy. She is trying to get him to wear himself out, swinging his heavy weapon and hitting nothing but air. He comes at her again, this time going low, aiming for her legs. Sonja dives over the attack, going into a forward roll and coming up into a crouching position. The Jun raises his mace up over his head in an attempt to bring it down into her skull. The move leaves his torso exposed, and Sonja slashes him twice across his abdomen, then drives the point of her sword through his heart as she stands up and pushes forward. Red Sonja places a boot against the Jun's chest and pulls her sword free from his body. A terrified scream draws her attention, and she looks to see a Jun warrior getting mauled by Ruh. Madmartigan and The Beastmaster soon join the tiger, both of them cutting down any Juns that stand in their way.

"Need any help?" asks Madmartigan.

"No," replies Sonja, "But that doesn't mean that I won't accept it when it's offered."

"You really do remind me of my wife."

"Come on you two," says Dar, "The fighting's not done yet." And the three of them head off after the Juns, with Ruh following close behind.

A young Jun barbarian, who is barely into his teens, bursts into the barn that the Akira have been using as a hospital and morgue. He sees the building is full of those who are too injured to fight, too young, or too old. An Akira farmer, his arm in a sling and his leg in a splint, approaches the boy with sword in hand. He thrusts the blade at the young Jun, who dodges to the side and comes back with an attack of his own. He smashes the farmer's good knee with a heavy wooden club. The farmer drops to the ground clutching his knee, screaming in pain. The Jun stands over the farmer and begins to bludgeon him with the club. The farmer's skull splits open, his brain splatters on the barn floor, his screams silenced. An old man strikes the Jun across the back with a wooden rake. The old man was once strong and able, but too many years of labouring in the fields have left him hunched over and nearly crippled. The Jun, while still very young, had been training for battle his entire life. He had learned to accept pain as a way of life. He accepts the painful hit, and then counters with a heavy clubbing blow to the face. The old man falls to the floor, and then the young barbarian beats him to death as well. The young boy, Sawa, attacks the Jun, flailing away at the boy's belly with his fists. But Sawa is too young and too small to really hurt the older boy. The young barbarian slaps Sawa of the Akira across the face, knocking him to the floor. He raises his club in order to beat the child to death as well, when he hears a girl scream "Don't you touch my brother!"

Sawa's sister, Kura, bravely runs to her brother's defence. The young barbarian steps away from the little boy and moves to meet the oncoming little girl. He swings his club, driving it hard into her belly. The girl doubles over in pain, and then the Jun brings his knee up hard into her face. Kura flies backwards, her nose bloodied, to sprawl on the barn floor. As she lands on her back, her skirt flies up revealing her naked pelvic region. The Jun gets a cruel look on his face. He had seen how his father and older brothers use the women abducted from the farming villages that they were extorting. They never let him join in. They said that he was too young. But they weren't here now, and this is the perfect opportunity to see just what he had been missing. Kura looks up at the Jun with a horrified look on her face. She had witnessed Karak's brutal rape of Shad's sister Nanelia. She didn't know why men do that, but she knew that she didn't want it to happen to her. She gets to her hands and knees and starts crawling away as fast as she can. The Jun walks up behind her and hits her hard in the ribs with his club. She collapses on the dirt floor, clutching her side. The boy grabs her by the ankle and forces her onto her back. He kneels between her thighs, forcing them out wide as he lays down on top of her. He braces his left forearm against her chest, leaning down with all of his weight and pinning her to the floor, while he reaches down with his right hand to hike up her skirt and pull down his loincloth. Kura reaches for something, anything, that might help her out of this. Her hand slips under a blanket and rests on something metal. She grabs it and pulls it out. It's Malak's dagger. The Jun is just about ready to penetrate Kura with his still developing manhood when he looks her in the eyes just in time for her to drive the blade of Malak's dagger into the side of his neck. His eyes widen in shock. He rises to his knees, his hands grasping the dagger in his neck. Kura scoots away from him, and then gets up onto her feet. She stands over the young Jun, and then spits in his face. Then she grabs hold of the dagger and pulls it out, watching with satisfaction as the boy's life's blood pours out of the wound and soaks into the dirt floor. The Jun collapses onto the floor, his life quickly fading. Then Kura runs over to check on her little brother.

Karak and his remaining Juns charge into Akira's town square. There they find Conan, Atlantean sword in hand, horned helmet on his head . He stands there, sword at the ready, waiting for them to attack. Karak waves his men forward, and they charge the lone Cimmerian. An ax wielding Jun heads straight at Conan, who cuts him down off of his horse. Another Jun, this one armed with a spear, charges Conan. The Cimmerian grabs the spear shaft with his left hand, then stabs the horseman with his sword in his right hand. He throws the spear at another Jun, impaling him through the chest. Conan ducks under an attack from a mounted Jun, who tried smashing his skull with a mace, and then cuts him down off of his horse. Conan punches a horse in the side of the head as it is being ridden past him, knocking the beast to the ground and throwing its rider. Just as the rider gets to his feet, The Cimmerian takes his head off with a single stroke of his sword.

On come the foot soldiers. A Jun charges Conan with a spear. Conan sidesteps the attack and cuts the barbarian's head off. Another Jun tries a similar attack with his own spear. Conan cuts the shaft in two and then slashes open the Jun's belly. The Cimmerian parries a sword strike from a Jun and then cuts off the attacker's head. A Jun charges Conan with an ax, but gets the point of the Cimmerian's sword for his troubles. Finally, Karak gets down off of his horse, ax in hand, and strides forward. "You fight well," he says, "I could use a man of your skill."

"Not interested!" says Conan.

"Too bad," replies Karak.

The Jun Chieftain charges at Conan, his huge great-ax held high in both hands. Conan parries the attack with his Atlantean blade. The Cimmerian counters with a horizontal slash across the chest, but Karak blocks it with his ax. Karak shoulder checks Conan, knocking the mercenary back on his heels, and then swings for Conan's head. Conan ducks and slashes at Karak's exposed abdomen with his sword, but the Jun Chieftain hops back just in time. Karak comes at Conan with a downward overhead chop, which Conan narrowly avoids. Conan responds with a backhanded slash, but only manages to slice off one of the ram horns from Karak's helmet. Karak strikes back with a horizontal slash across the chest. Conan barely manages to jump back out of reach. The Jun Chieftain still manages to draw blood, as the Cimmerian was still a little too close to be completely out of reach.

The two barbarians step back and size each other up. The two men look at one another with a measure of respect. It's rare that either of them ever confronts an enemy capable of providing such a challenge. Conan grips his sword in both hands and charges his opponent. He delivers a rapid succession of aggressive attacks. Downward slashes, horizontal, thrusts to the torso, slashing the legs. Every time, Karak gets his ax in position to block it. After blocking another high slash aimed at his neck, Karak punches out with the handle of his weapon, connecting solidly with Conan's jaw. The Cimmerian staggers back, his lower lip split open. Now Karak comes on in a series of aggressive attacks. The number of possible attack combinations are far more limited with an ax than with a sword, and Karak goes through them all. Conan manages to duck, dodge, and parry every attack. Karak attempts another attack aimed at Conan's head. The Cimmerian ducks under the high swing of the great-ax and slashes down low as he sidesteps past the Jun, cutting into his right leg. Karak cries out in shock and surprise, as well as in pain. He limps back a few steps, putting a little bit of distance between him and his opponent. Conan whirls his Atlantean sword about in a figure eight pattern, swings it around behind his back, and then brings back it back around into a perfect ready stance. Karak roars in anger. He comes on once again, swinging wildly with his ax. Now with more limited mobility, Conan has an easier time defending against his attacks. Conan sidesteps another attack by Karak, this time slashing the Jun's left arm just below the shoulder. Karak drops his ax and clutches his injured arm. He glares at Conan as the Cimmerian stands before him, his sword held in a ready stance.

Karak draws his bastard sword from its scabbard, its scalloped edged blade reflecting the dying firelight. The Jun Chieftain whirls the sword before him in a figure eight pattern, showing Conan that he too has skill with the blade. Karak grips his sword in both hands, and adopts a ready stance. The two men charge one another, their blades clashing in a flurry of heavy swings. Both men slash and thrust with their swords, parrying, ducking and dodging. The Beastmaster, Madmartigan, and Red Sonja arrive just as the two leaders clash. They cut into the ranks of Juns who are left watching as their leaders battle each other. Karak and Conan are very evenly matched. Every slash is parried. Every thrust is dodged. Even with their injuries, they are able to match each other, move for move. Karak brings his sword up to parry a downward slash from Conan's Atlantean blade. The scalloped blade of his bastard sword breaks in half, the heavy blade of Conan's sword following through to cut deep into Karak's right shoulder. The Jun Chieftain cries out and staggers back. He grasps his broken sword in both hands and slashes at Conan's head. The Cimmerian ducks under the attack and slashes across Karak's abdomen. Conan steps past the Jun Chieftain and pivots, slashing across Karak's back. He then drives the point of his sword through Karak's back. Karak drops to his knees and looks out at the scene before him. The Akira are charging the town square. Even the children and the elderly are joining the fight. Most of the Juns are laying dead on the ground, and those who aren't are trying to flee. As all hope for victory dies before Karak's eyes, Conan pulls his sword out of the Jun's back and cuts off his head with a single stroke of his sword. The remaining Juns flee into the night as the Akira cheer in victory.