Firstly, apologies for taking so long with this chapter, but there has been a lot going on for me for the last month or so, writing block for one. But not all has been bad, as my dear wife and I now are the proud owners of a little kitten named Oreo. This little ball of fuzz has taken a lot of time and energy as all three of us have to adapt to our new lives together, but it's worth it.

In any case, on with the story!

Chapter 32

Raiders

Twenty minutes had passed since the news had reached Tyroth, and since then, he had gathered certain individuals that he felt the matter should be discussed with at the moment.

Sitting in the meeting room of Dragon Hall with him, were Leonardo, as he was his steward, Jack, the second in command of the Knights, George and Splinter, being the elders and wise, and Ragnir, who was essentially the Torgalian ambassador.

Also there were Vincent, who was the witness, and Freya and Loki, who had gathered the others, and were to remain so they didn't accidentally spread the news before they all knew what to do.

"Vikings, you say? Sounds just like the Nordlings to me." said Ragnir after hearing Vincent's testimony.

"I think it's safe to assume that these Nordlings and the Vikings of our world are effectively the same." said Leonardo.

"Whatever they call themselves, this is a serious matter." said George, to which Splinter nodded.

"Agreed. From what I have heard, both group have a reputation as raiders." the old rat said.

"What I want to know is why they are just waiting among the islands." said Jack. "I mean, we're right here, so why haven't they attacked yet?"

"They're waiting for nightfall." Ragnir explained. "I've seen it happen before. Tonight, all three moons will be gone, giving them a completely dark night, letting them sail right up on your shores and attack with no warning whatsoever."

"Makes sense. Not the answer I was hoping for, but it makes sense." said Jack.

"At least it gives us some time to figure out our next step." said Leonardo.

"That's an easy one." said Ragnir. "You grab your stuff and leave the village before they get the chance to attack."

"Not going to happen." said Tyroth, who had been quiet up until that point. "I am not giving up another home, never again."

"What's the plan, boss?" Jack asked.

"We use the time we have and prepare to fight them off." the dragon responded.

"Fight them?! Are you crazy?! Fighting the Nordlings is nothing short of suicide!" Ragnir objected.

"We'll see about that. I for one am sick and tired of running away when our home is threatened. Even as we prepared to leave our old home, I wanted nothing more than to just rush headlong into our enemies and tear them all to burned shreds. So this time, we stand our ground. We'll show these raiders that we are not an easy target."

"If that's your decision, then we'd better figure out what we need to do." said Leonardo and turned to Vincent. "Did you see how many were on each ship?"

"I didn't count them, but I'm guessing around fifteen to twenty?" the owl answered.

"Which would mean that we're facing up to sixty attackers, maybe even more." Leonardo continued. "Even if we have everyone fight, including our civilians, they could still outnumber us."

"Then we will have to rely on our skills and preparations." said Tyroth. "Knowing that they are coming gives us an advantage, but we still need to organise. Jack?"

"Yeah, boss?"

"I'm appointing you as our Captain of the guard, or the closest thing to it, at least." Tyroth said, leaving Jack with his jaw on the table. "Anyone that is capable and willing to defend our home will answer to you, and you answer to me and Leo. Got that?"

"Um… yeah… yeah, I think so. I'll do what I can." Jack said, rubbing the back of his head as he both tried to wrap his head around his new position and figure out what could be done. "Let's see… I reckon we should have everyone that won't fight hide somewhere, so they'll be out of harms way."

"If I may." Splinter interrupted. "I do believe that either here in Dragon Hall or the inn would be ideal to house our civilians."

"We should also consider the risk of the raiders setting houses on fire." George continued. "And if I remember correctly, our resident vampire possess ice magic that could be used to douse any fires."

"Sounds like a good idea. I'll have a talk with Devina once we're done here." said Leonardo.

"Good, and while you do that, I'll have a word with our orc guests, see if they are willing to help." said Tyroth. "There were also a pair of mercenaries among the slavers that attacked us. They claimed to want to work for us since we hold their lives in our hands, so let's see if that offer is still available."

"What about the slavers then? They are rather close to the beach. If these Nordlings attack us there, the slavers could get killed, or worse, freed." said Jack.

"We'll have to move them somewhere else for the time being." Tyroth concluded. "I can handle that myself, it will go quicker that way. Now, unless anyone has anything else to add, we're done here and have a lot to do. Dismissed."

As everyone left to prepare for the battle to come, Ragnir remained for just a moment.

"I sure hope you know what you're doing, lad. The Nordlings are not your average bandits."

"Well, we're not an average village either. We'll see who trumps the other."

Word of the impending attack travelled very quickly, and people didn't hesitate to abandon their normal tasks to help prepare the defences. Like Tyroth, most of them didn't want to loose another home, resulting in many of them volunteering to help fight off the invaders despite not being fighters themselves.

The orcs on the other hand, were not only willing to lend their, but also very eager to do so, having grown restless during their time of recovery.

Simple barricades were hastily constructed by the beach, and barrels with water were placed near the buildings closest to the coast as a precaution.

Meanwhile, Tyroth single-handedly moved all the imprisoned slavers to a new location further away from the beach, by simply picking up the cages one by one, with the prisoners still in them. This display of strength kept the slavers from trying to escape, and also the threat of being tossed into the sea.

But two of the prisoners remained, namely Graz the silver dragonborn and Dorron the minotaur, the mercenaries that the slavers had hired at some point.

"You two." Tyroth said as he approached them. "Were you serious about wanting to work for me?"

"Of course." said Graz. "We take great pride in our work, and would never offer our services without meaning every word."

"What he said." Dorron chimed in.

"If that's the case, then I got an offer for you." Tyroth continued. "We're expecting an attack later tonight, and we need all the help we can get."

"Say no more, we will gladly pledge ourselves to your cause." Graz said with pride. "I would bow, but the cage is a little cramped as it is."

"One more thing." Tyroth said, his eyes narrowing and his voice turned dark. "If either of you betray us, I will hunt you to the end of all worlds and make your deaths as painful as I possibly can. Understood?"

"C-crystal clear, b-boss."

"Y-yeah."

"Good, then let's get you out of there." Tyroth then proceeded to unlock the cage.

"Ah, sweet freedom and employment." Graz said as he stretched his arms outwards and took a deep breath after exiting the cage. "Out of curiosity, what foes will we be fighting?"

"Nordlings."

"Oh dear…"

"We should have talked about hazard pay first." Dorron sighed.

A little later, back in Tyroth's office.

"Tell me it isn't true!" Velnak complained. "Tell me you aren't seriously considering fighting the Nordlings!"

Tyroth looked up from engraving runes onto a stone.

"I'm not only considering it, Velnak, I'm preparing for it. We will meet them head on."

"That's lunacy! I've grown up on stories about these savages! Fighting them is nothing short of suicide with delusions of survival!"

"Enough." Tyroth said in a strong voice, standing up from his desk. "I understand if you're scared, and if you want to flee to the capital, by all means. I won't judge you. But know this, we will not abandon our home. If the Nordlings are looking for a fight, they will get one they won't soon forget."

"How can you be so calm about this?!"

"We've fought many different kinds of foes in the past, so we are no simple rookies. On top of that, my ancestors were basically the same as the Nordlings, the same kind of warrior's blood ran in my veins before it was fused with that of dragons."

Velnak stared at Tyroth, searching for answers, his eyes eventually locked with those of the dragon, and he could see not only the conviction behind Tyroth's words, but also the intensity.

"I… I understand. If you will stay and fight, then…" Velnak clenched his fists, battling with his fear of the Nordlings. "then I will… I will remain at your side. I am to be part of your village for a year, and abandoning it would bring great shame on my family."

"I'm pleased to hear that, and proud as well." Tyroth said with a smile. "If you have any kind of preparations you need to do, you should as soon as possible. There is probably several things that still needs to be done before nightfall. I actually have a few more things I need to do myself."

"Very well. I will see what I can do."

"Good. Also, one more thing. When the fighting begins, I want us to not kill anyone."

"What? Why do you do this? Your people acted the same with the slavers, but why? And why now?"

"I want to show them that we can not only beat them, but also do it while holding back, because power plus restraint equals control. We will be the ones in control of this fight."

"You are aware that they won't show the same kind of restraint."

"I know, but that won't stop us. We will aim to disarm and disable them. Killing will be the very last resort."

Later that night, after all the preparations were done, there was nothing else to do than wait.

And time seemed to move at a snail's pace as the Mutopians waited for the Nordlings to arrive, putting further strain on everyone's nerves. Hiding behind the buildings closest to the beach, they watched and listened for any signs of the anticipated attackers, but there was none to be had.

The sun had set, and its last remaining rays of light were now long gone, leaving only a group of torches as the only source of light by the dock and beach, yet the waters remained a dark void.

It was only a matter of time, truly the calm before the storm.

"Here they come. Get ready." Tyroth whispered, having spotted the Nordlings thanks to his dark vision, and the word travelled quickly to everyone.

As the three longships lined up out in the waters, the Mutopians steeled themselves for what was to come.

Suddenly, a war horn blared loudly, followed by the three ships approaching the beach at high speed, their bows sliding up on the sandy beach. Nearly three dozen Nordlings disembarked ready for a fight, cheering and yelling and roaring as axes, swords, hammers and shields rattled and clanged.

Tyroth stepped out from behind the corner of the building and hurled the stone he had been carving on at the Nordlings, quickly ducking back behind the corner.

"Viin!" he shouted and the stone lit up like a sun for a few brief seconds, but that was all that was needed.

The Nordlings had been in nearly complete darkness for hours, so for them the bright flash of light left them in another kind of darkness.

"Now! Attack!" Tyroth roared as he led his people into battle.

The tide had turned even before the actual fight had begun, something that the Nordlings hadn't anticipated, but they weren't about to simply roll over. Several of them had managed to shield their eyes or otherwise avoid the light, and they fought on until their brothers and sisters could recover.

Even so, they were met with fierce resistance, especially from Tyroth, the red dragon swatting them aside like flies with the flat side of his mighty sword.

Just like Tyroth had told Velnak earlier, the Mutopians also fought to disarm or disable their foes rather than to kill them. But that was still a tall order, even though many Nordlings were still blinded.

Those skilled in more finesse based martial arts, such as the turtles with family, were quick and nimble enough to keep their foes at bay, while others had to rely more on strength to overcome the odds.

Using her whip, Kate managed to disarm some of the attackers, with Michelangelo following up by knocking them down before they got a chance to recover their weapons.

Leonardo and Kemeko fought side by side, the turtle never taking his watchful eyes off of his adoptive daughter for long, intercepting anyone who got too close.

Pandora used her trusty meteor hammer, Mr Swinger, with great efficiency, much to the pride of her parents. However, like Raphael, she was a bit reckless, and despite her skills, this sometimes left her open. Luckily for her, both Raphael and Monalisa were nearby to cover her weaknesses, though Raphael did get a few cuts in the process, owning to his own recklessness in defending his daughter.

Others were not as lucky though. Cam the rhino failed to notice one Nordling behind him, and as a result, she managed to bury her axe in his shoulder. Barry was quick to come to the aid of his best friend, and while it took several punches, he managed to floor the female warrior before she could finish what she had started.

The orcs fought bravely, driven by their desire to repay their debt to their saviours, and met the attackers head on. But they soon found out that they were pretty evenly matched by the Nordlings that they engaged, especially now that most of them had recovered from the flash and counter attack, and fought back just as fiercely.

One man in particular, wielding a sword almost dominated Kala and Donk, giving Kala a cut across her face, while Donk was cut along the side of his waist. Both wounds were deep, but not fatal, yet the two orcs were out of commission for the moment, which gave the man more than enough of an opening to try and end them both.

Velnak dashed in between the two orcs and their foe, their swords clashing instantly. Despite his victory over Kala and Donk, the warrior from the north found a much tougher foe in Velnak, the noble-born's skill with the sword eventually proving too much. With a rising slash, Velnak knocked the weapon out of his foe's hand, following it up with a quick knee to the stomach and a pommel strike to the back of the head to finally fell the Nordling.

Looking at the downed warrior, Velnak had the perfect opportunity to end him, and while he considered it, he instead decided to spare his life, just like Tyroth had told him they should. He was quickly brought out of his thoughts when he heard the sounds of battle right behind him. Turning around as fast as he could, he saw that two other Nordlings had attempted to attack him while his back was turned, only to meet resistance in the form of the mercenaries Graz and Dorron. Tightening his grip on his sword, Velnak leaped back into the fight, aiding his former enemies with the new foes.

As the battle raged on, one of the Nordlings broke off from the main fight and hurried towards the closest building, lighting a torch as he ran. As soon as he was within range, he tossed the torch at the roof of the building, and watched as the fire began to spread.

A sudden stream of ice and cold air instantly suffocated the flames before any damage could be done. Looking at the source of the ice, the Nordling got a face full of the same treatment, as Devina now focused on him instead.

The Nordling was hardy and used to the cold and tried to force his way through it, but the constant stream of frost right in his face made it very hard for him to see or move. By the time he was almost at Devina, she ceased her spell and immediately followed it up with a punch to his face, knocking him out cold.

Despite the Mutopians' valiant efforts, the Nordlings they had beaten picked themselves up fairly quickly and rejoined the fight.

Still standing in the thick of the fight, Tyroth continued to strike the Nordlings down several at a time. With a powerful swing of his mighty sword, he struck one so hard that she was thrown over a dozen feet while her shield was shattered into little more than splinters, despite only getting hit by the flat side of the sword.

Freya and Loki had joined their father, fighting by his side. Freya used the length of her spear to keep attackers at bay, while taking any chance she got to trip or disarm them, while Loki wielded his twin kodachi to quickly parry and deflect any attacks before countering with quick slashes and swipes, as well as kicks and tail swipes.

But the Nordlings were relentless, and kept getting back up time and time again. The Mutopians needed to turn the tide back in their favour, and push back the attackers, and luckily they had planned a move just for that.

"Pull back!" Tyroth shouted, and almost instantly, everyone disengaged their foes and hurried back behind their barricades, giving up valuable ground to the enemy. But before they could capitalise on that, they were stopped in their tracks as Tyroth, Freya and Loki used their fire breaths, supported by their magic, to create a thick wall of pure flames.

With the wall in place, and maintained by the twins, Tyroth dashed through flames to keep the pressure on the Nordlings while the Mutopians took some time to catch their breath and regroup.

Again, Tyroth swatted aside his foes, punching, kicking and swiping at them with every appendage he had, all in an effort to drive them back without killing anyone.

But this time, he had gotten the attention of a certain raider, the leader himself. A grin spread across the man's face, framed by his braided beard, as he raised his shield hand, the light of the fire wall reflecting on the ram head of his silver ring.

A brief and faint flash emanated from the ring, and a large, spectral head of a ram shot out from it, heading straight towards Tyroth. But the dragon saw the incoming projectile, and met it with a mana coated fist. The two magical attacks collided, and created a shockwave that pushed away anyone near the centre of impact, even Tyroth was forced back a couple of steps, his fist shaking and pulsating with pain from the force.

"This one is mine!" the Nordling leader shouted, and at once, all the others formed a wide half circle around their leader and Tyroth, with the wall of fire closing off the remaining beach. While it wouldn't stop Tyroth, he understood what was going on. The leader wanted a one on one battle with him.

And that suited Tyroth just fine.

The two began trading blows, and much to Tyroth's surprise, the Nordling leader was quicker than he seem, and even managed to score a few cuts on the dragon.

But for as strong as the warrior was, Tyroth was far stronger, and when he pressed down on the Nordling's blade with his own, the Nordling couldn't hope to overpower Tyroth.

However, the warrior hadn't become the leader of his people for his brawn only. Taking a quick step backwards while pulling back his sword, and before Tyroth was able to react, he got back up close and swung his shield up, hitting Tyroth across his face.

While the dragon was staggered, the Nordling quickly aimed his sword against Tyroth's chest and thrust it forward. Regaining his stance, Tyroth managed to grab the blade before it cut deep, though it drew blood from both his chest and his hand.

With the sword caught in Tyroth's strong grip, the Nordling was unable to pull it free, but he had yet another card to play. Lightning began to crackle around the blade, surging into Tyroth's flesh, and the Nordling smirked, but that quickly faded when he noticed that the electricity only seemed to tickle Tyroth.

With a swift motion, Tyroth kicked the Nordling away before he could recover. Igniting his blade, Tyroth then followed up with a powerful swing, forcing his foe to block it with both his shield and his lightning blade. Despite that, he was thrown backwards several feet from the impact, his shield shattering.

Landing on his back, the Nordling tried to get back onto his feet, only to find Tyroth's blade at his throat. It was clear that he had lost the fight, and was soon to loose his life as well, but he was okay with that. Falling to such a foe, it would be a good death, though he regretted that he couldn't bring any spoils back to his people.

But death never came, instead Tyroth withdrew his blade, extinguishing the flames.

"There will be no warrior's death for you." Tyroth said in a loud voice, glaring first at the leader and then at the surrounding Nordlings. "Not for any of you. You will leave here with only the shame of being defeated by those who restrained themselves."

The battlefield fell silent, and the Nordling leader looked at Tyroth for a long time, then he laughed heartily.

"Never before have we faced such foes! Worthy indeed!" the leader said with a wide smile. "Brothers and sisters, we have been bested! Regroup at the ships!" he then shouted to his troops.

And just as he had said, the Nordlings all picked themselves up from the fight and calmly made their way back to their longships, together with their leader.

The fight was finally over, and the Mutopians stood victorious.

Even though the battle had been won, there were no cheers of victory from the Mutopians, who instead kept a close eye on the Nordlings as they seemed to ready themselves to leave. But after a couple of minutes, the Nordling leader again approached them, though this time with his sword sheathed.

"You." he said pointing at Tyroth. "You are the one our seer spoke of. One blessed with fire."

"What are you talking about?" the dragon asked with a raised eye ridge.

"She also told me that it was unclear whom the gods would favour in this fight. With your people besting us, yet not slaying anyone, I say that they favoured both you and us."

"Your point being?"

"That while I consider you all to be worthy foes, I believe you would make even more worthy allies."

"Allies, huh?" Tyroth said, thinking it over. "I'm not afraid to fight, but I would rather find peaceful alternatives, if possible. As such, we might be willing to put this conflict behind us if you are."

"Then with Odin as my witness, I pledge our allegiance to you. Let the brothers and sisters of our clans join together as we face the future."

"That's something I can get behind." Tyroth said, and the two shook each other's hands. A wide grin spread across the Nordling's face, and he turned around, bellowing to his people.

"Break out the casks and the good food! Tonight, we all feast!"

Cheers erupted from the Nordlings, while the Mutopians were left perplexed, and a little more worried than before.

Large battles are always difficult to write, you can either focus a lot on a few, or a little on many, or just gloss over it all in one fell swoop. Not easy to find a good balance, so I hope that I made the right decisions here.

As for the battle as a whole, I think we can call it a draw, for the sake of simplicity, and it looks like our heroes will have new allies for the future. How will that turn out, I wonder.