“I know” Dax replied. “I aim to hold this line with you and send those Saul bastards to the pit.”
“Are you serious?” the man said shocked.
“You think I just painted one of my gauntlets golden?” Dax asked. “I earned it and I want the enemy to know that our nobles don’t shy from a fight. From here on out I am going to be right in the thick of it.”
Dax could hear whispering around him of the men telling others who were on the front lines about him being there. They were soon silenced by the sounds of a horn and running feet. Dax could see the enemy coming down on him and raised his sword and started screaming. Men around Dax echoed the scream as he braced himself for the enemy. When the enemy was twenty meters in front of him Dax pointed his sword and let lightning pour along it and at a stunned enemy. The attack branched off into other targets as the enemy fell and were trampled by their comrades behind them who in turn were tripped up. Dax watched as the middle of the enemy line faltered as arrows from behind him started streaking into the sky followed by all manner of fire and ice spells. When the enemy did finally reach him, Dax was ready and electrified his shield and used it to move men out of the way, whenever one dropped he would stab at the man if his initial attack wasn’t fatal. The battle was a slog Dax thought as the mud and blood soon made it hard to do anything other than stand your ground and fight. Occasionally Dax would send lightning around him to stun the enemy but for the most part he worried about the man in front of him. Battle was not what he expected, he could hear men from both sides scream in pain and fear as they were wounded or killed. Dax thought war was something glorious at first but now understood why Linus had trained him as hard as he did. His father was scared of losing him to war and wanted to make sure he did everything in his power to prepare him, Dax would not let him down. Dax let out a roar and started fighting even harder, whenever he could use a spell he did. The men around him saw the magic and began taking advantage of it, if one enemy went down they made sure the man stayed down. Dax was unsure of how long the battle lasted but knew he was practically drained of magic, his sword arm was sore and he was on the verge of retreating. Both armies ended up breaking off, the Saul retreated back towards wherever their camp was as Dax breathed a sigh of relief.
Dax looked down at himself and could see he was no longer some majestic figure, he was covered in blood and bits of gore as was everyone around him. Plenty of the men who had started out on the front lines with him lay slain but Dax could see a lot more of the enemy had died. Bodies were piled up around him as he surveyed the carnage.
“That was a complete shit show” Dax replied. “I thought those bastards would never leave.”
“Milord I have never seen anything like that” said the man who tried to warn Dax to back away before the fighting started.
“What is your name?” Dax asked.
“Funkhoser” the man replied. “Shane Funkhoser, my family has served Baron Wellington for generations.”
“Interesting name” Dax replied. “I don’t think I have ever heard it before. Were you keeping count of all this?”
“I wanted my own black band but I lost count thanks to you” Shane replied. “I don’t know if I can claim a kill if most of my enemies were already on the ground practically defenseless. I just stayed behind you on your left and tried to block any enemies and kill the ones that fell near me.”
“I did the same thing Milord” another man said. “I suck with a sword, no way in hell were we supposed to make it out of this, not with the numbers they threw at us. Most of the mages ran out of magic not even halfway through this fight, your little bursts were the only thing magical on the field but I think you ran out towards the end. I was counting my kills but stopped when I realize how many you were doing. Between just the three of us I think we killed at least fifty, we started out over there and were slowly driven back. Just look at all of those bodies over there, I don’t want to count them.”
“I don’t either but I am going to loot this battlefield before the rest of you get your wits about you” Dax replied.
“Milord?” the man said confused.
“I think I have seen you around” Dax replied. “Kyle Kovar, right?”
“Yes Milord” Kyle said confused.
“I know who you are because you keep making eyes at the female mage” Dax said with a grin. “If you want her, you can have her. One of my men looked into who you were, Harris has a big mouth and was probably the reason you went from being a cook to out here on the front lines. Now Kyle, are you a rich man?”
“No Milord” Kyle replied.
“What about you Shane?” Dax asked.
“Me neither” Shane replied.
“And I am guessing neither are any of those poor bastards cooling over there in the field” Dax replied. “But they might have things on them we can use or sell. All of them had swords or axes or something, I am going to take them all.”
Dax left the two men and started searching bodies, to his dismay he found a couple of notes in their pockets. The notes they carried were for their families, it was an unspoken rule that whoever found the notes sent it back to their families so they would know what happened to their loved ones. Dax gathered these up and would make sure the Saul found them as he let his mind wander. Dax had gathered some good throwing knives, a couple of decent swords and so many coins that he had to carry them in a shirt he cut off a dead man. By the time Dax headed back in he had many swords and axes strapped across his body along with a shield or two. Dax walked over towards his tent and saw Martins talking with Harris as he passed them by.
“Milord” Matins said as he rushed in behind Dax.
“What is it Vince?” Dax replied. “I am sore, tired and in need of a good bath and some food.”
“I talked to Baron Wellington and his men had quite a tale to spin” Martins said as he helped Dax take off the various weapons he had on.
“There you are” Dawn said as she rushed into the tent. “What are you trying to do? Ruin our plan?”
“What in the pit are you two talking about” Dax replied. “I just got here from a battlefield, if you didn’t come with food or ale then piss off.”
“I could arrange for a woman to visit your tent” Martins said.
“Do it and I will kill you” Dawn said shaking her staff at him. “The only woman allowed in here is me.”
“Are you two a couple?” Martins asked.
“Not exactly” Dax replied. “It is a long story, what did you need Martins?”
“There are rumors flying around camp that you slain two hundred men” Martins said.
“That is ridiculous” Dax replied. “There was no way to keep count in all that. The two men next to me though killed a good amount. One of them is the former cook who was making eyes at Lady Nettleton, the other is a man named Funkhoser.”
“Funkhoser?” Martins asked. “I think that was the name of Baron Wellington’s man. He was the one telling everyone about your prowess. That was the biggest charge the enemy ever mounted, I think they planned on outlasting the mages with the number of bodies they could throw at us. We used a lot of our reserves just fighting them off and I thought anyone in the initial contact was done for. I was going to send a squad to search for your body, until the Baron found me. As you know he is in charge of fighting off the Saul until the fight for the crown is finished. The Saul should have forced us to back away and give a lot more ground than what we did. I count nearly five or six to one in the death count, this is a battle they won't forget anytime soon.”
“Well those numbers are probably rubbish” Dax replied as he took off his cape and looked at it. It was tattered, filthy and not worth him cleaning as he tossed it on the floor then went for one of his belt straps.
“Those numbers are exactly what we are going to use and I’ll make sure your two fighting buddies get a couple of bands around their blades as well” Martins replied. “Baron Wellington wants to have dinner with you, he is an old friend of yo
ur adopted father.”
“Basically I can't refuse” Dax replied. “What else you got?”
“Nothing” Martins replied. “Just know your status here has risen considerably.”
“Well I am sure I killed a bunch of people today too” Dawn replied. “I don’t hear anyone talking about that.”
“Milady, Lord Bartlett was in the teeth of the enemy army” Martins replied. “You were in relative safety just casting spells until your magic ran out then you were ushered far to the rear of the fighting just in case the Saul broke through. Lord Bartlett stood like a large boulder in the middle of a river, the enemy had to react to him instead of the other way around.”
“If they were smart enough to load the front with archers I would be a dead boulder” Dax replied. “Now what did you want Dawn?”
“You are not going back out to the front” Dawn said as she crossed her arms. “You nearly died and ruined everything for us. What if one of those magi got a hold of you?”
“What mage?” Dax said confused. “We are the only group with mages.”
“How could you miss them?” Dawn asked. “They were responsible for a lot of the deaths on our side.”
“I was busy fighting the people in front of me” Dax replied. “Where in the pit did the Saul get mages from?”
“We think it is King Jason” Martins replied. “I think he is trying to make a pact with the Saul and needs their help. Maybe that is part of the mission your friends were on.”
“They didn’t take any mages” Dax replied.
“Not that you saw but who said they were the only group” Martins replied. “Maybe they were playing the role of escort and couldn’t risk having their magic users killed in a meaningless fight when they were so close to the border.”
“Makes sense” Dax replied.
CHAPTER 10
The Hard Part
“This thing is finally over” Dawn said as she walked into Dax’s tent.
“What do you mean over, my sword saw an awful lot of Saul just yesterday” Dax replied. “And what are you doing in my tent, I could have been naked in here.”
“I have seen one before” Dawn replied. “And I am not talking about this war, I am talking about the fight for the crown. Prince Jason has abdicated and is allowed to take his family into exile, probably the same island the rest fled to.”
“Wow that is news” Dax replied. “How do you know they fled to an island?”
“Because Duke Bartlett owns the island and promised safe passage” Dawn replied. “Right now they are nothing more than commoners who are getting by thanks to the Duke’s generosity. Their children though now have to learn a trade, The Duke is only taking care of King Jason’s immediate family, not his grandchildren. They will get enough food and a very small house like what a commoner would get but no servants. I wish I were there to see them have to cook their own food.”
“I cook my own food” Dax replied.
“Not anymore” Dawn replied. “When I become a Baronetess, I think I want an army of chefs at my command.”
“About that” Dax replied. “I don’t know if we would work out.”
“Don’t you start” Dawn replied. “You get more money than you have ever seen and a woman at home that will not take any other lovers. I even said you can adopt some commoner unless you want me to become pregnant but your status as a wizard is well known and no one would believe you were the father anyway.”
“I will throw your shitty friends right out of my house” Dax began.
“Do so” Dawn replied.
“And I don’t want to be expected to go to any social engagements” Dax finished.
“I won't invite you to even one” Dawn replied.
“How do you know about the war being over?” Dax asked.
“Royal messengers came bearing the news” Dawn replied. “The royal army is on their way here along with some of Duke Bartlett’s and my grandfather’s men. We have done better than could be expected by holding off a much larger force despite the four mages they have.”
“Does this mean the enemy will not keep adding to their supply of magic users?” Dax asked. “First it was two and yesterday it was four, but I think a clipped one of them pretty good yesterday.”
“Hopefully they will not be resupplied” Dawn replied. “Those mages have began to hunt for you, you were lucky you spotted him before he could do some damage.”
“The fool kept casting spells trying to clear the area” Dax replied shaking his head. “He never saw me coming, once I got his amulet off him he was an easy target.”
“You got his amulet?” Dawn said surprised. “Let me see it” Dawn said as she started looking around.
“What has your small clothes in a bunch” Dax asked as he reached into his shirt and took off the amulet.
“Amulets are something mages take very dearly” Dawn replied. “I can probably tell you which family this came from.”
“Well here you go” Dax replied and handed over the amulet.
“This belongs to the Botweilers” Dawn began. “They don’t have many mages I know of.”
“Give me back that amulet” Dax said as he looked over the chain and could see two different spots where he fused the chain together. “I know the tosser that wore this, this is Connor’s chain.”
“Connor Botweiler?” Dawn asked. “The one who was constantly trying to romance me, Bethany and Ashley?”
“The very same one” Dax laughed. “For the three months we have been here we have been going against that idiot. Good thing this war is going to wrap up soon or I would die of embarrassment.”
“The Saul has slowly been pushing us back” Dawn replied. “Our numbers have dwindled compared to theirs, we would have been overran soon if the battle for the crown hadn’t wrapped up.”
“I bet Baron Wellington will be happy to hear that” Dax replied.
“I don’t like that man” Dawn said angrily.
“Because he is trying to marry his widowed daughter to me?” Dax asked. “Baron Wellington is a good man and a great commander.”
“I don’t care” Dawn replied. “He needs to find his daughter someone else. Do you know she is ten years older than you are?”
“So she has experience then?” Dax asked just as Dawn swung her staff and barely missed him.
“Well she will be too late by the time you ever meet her” Dawn replied. “The entire royal army should be no more than a month away and cavalry will be here long before that. I think we have two weeks before the battle will really start to turn, when the rest catch up then maybe we can do some fighting in the Saul instead of here. Pay them back for the towns they have taken over or set to the torch.”
“Just having this whole thing over will be nice” Dax replied. “I wish I could have an ale with my crew.”
“Your crew are just hanging around you for personal favor” Dawn replied. “That is the problem with commoners.”
“Harris and I go back to army training and Kovar and Funkhoser have been fighting next to me since I got here” Dax began. “They are all banded soldiers and worthy of a lot of praise.”
“Everyone here is a banded warrior almost” Dawn replied waving Dax off. “I told you they hold raffles to see who gets to fight next to you. Your two so called friends just allow the winner to make enough kills for their band. I told you they were using you.”
“No one uses me” Dax replied with a smile. “Rather they work for me, I got a lot of money and equipment off of those raffles. Why do you think it is so crowded in here?”
“You are involved in this pettiness?” Dawn asked.
“Of course I am, I just feign ignorance” Dax replied. “And before you even think of running your mouth, remember I have something you want.”
“I can't believe you would stoop so low and use death to make money” Dawn replied.
“Those men had to die anyway” Dax replied. “They were planning on killing me. Best thing about it is that enough armor h
as been taken off the field to completely outfit all of our men and still have extra suits available when the rest shows up. I might as well make some money off the entire thing.”
“Dax, Baron Wellington needs you now” Kovar said as he burst into the tent.
“Don’t you mean Lord Bartlett?” Dawn said crossing her arms.
“Kyle can call me Dax” Dax replied as he got up out of his cot. “What is going on?”
“Some Saul have been spotted and they have a white flag of truce” Kovar replied. “The Baron screamed out of his tent to have you brought to him.”
“Dax the Baron is looking for you” Funkhoser said as he came into the tent.
“I just told him” Kovar replied. “Let us help you at least put on your breastplate, I think a few of the men they came over with were mages.”
“Mages?” Dawn asked. “I need to get our own people in case this is some sort of trick.”
Dax hurriedly put on his breastplate, cape and helm with some help and ran over to the Baron’s tent. He could see guards were all around it and they parted as he walked through the door. Inside he saw the Baron along with one of his two commanders and Lord Appleton, Duke Bartlett’s most trusted mage. This Dax expected, the other commander was hidden somewhere in case this was a trap and would be expected to lead the force in case of Baron Wellington’s death. What Dax didn’t expect were the other faces he recognized in the tent, Runes and Tenkay were there along with Jennings, a man Dax had done his army training with. Three mages were there that Dax did not know along with two Saul, all were looking uncomfortable as he walked in the tent.
“You are the Wolf?” Runes said shaking his head. “All this time I thought we were fighting the devil himself and it turns out my former student is the cause of all this.”
“The wolf?” Dax said confused. “Is that what they are calling me over there?”
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