“No Talon, not yet, you are needed here.”
Reluctantly Talon lowered his sword and remained by the wizard’s side just as he could see that the first line of the Zachanian army had reached the hill and had to begin to engage the Imperial soldiers turning the hill into a carnival of massacre. The Imperial army were dropping in their hundreds and losing ground swiftly from the might of the Zachanian attack as General Lagain walked over.
“Lord Talon, we have them on the retreat, shall I order our cavalry?”
Talon gazed upon the battlefield where he could see the Zachanian’s forcing the Imperial soldiers to break rank and run away.
“Talon shall I give the order?” Lagain asked once more but this time more assertive.
“DO IT!”
General Lagain smiled then relayed the order to his captains who in turn unleashed a hundred thousand Zachanian warriors on horseback to engage the enemy. Soon the Imperial army sounded the retreat as they scattered in all directions trying to find sanctuary.
Ganasis gave a slight smile as he turned to Talon looking pleased with himself.
“They are defeated!” he boasted before looking back onto the battlefield where he could see that the Imperial army had now lost all its shape and discipline and had become a dishevelled group of soldiers running in all directions trying to escape being put to their death.
“We have done it.” General Lagain added.
“Ganasis your plan has worked and we have won our first battle” added Talon only for Ganasis to grab hold of his arm and reply coldly.
“Yes it worked but it will not work again, we have shown the Empire that we are aware of the spinal powder but believe me they will not be fooled so easily again.”
“That goes for us as well Ganasis” replied Talon just as General Lagain called over one of his captains.
“Send the order that if we find any Imperial wizards then we want them alive for questioning captain.”
“Ha, Grarlin will not be found” added Ganasis which made Lagain turn to him.
“The moment his plan with spinal powder failed he would have left the battlefield; he would have known that he was defeated on this day.”
“And sacrificed his men.” replied Lagain.
“Grarlin would have sacrificed them just to get a good look at our tactics, do not for one moment believe you are facing an adversary who cares for his men Lagain.”
Chapter 22
There was a strange atmosphere upon the battlefield as Talon and Ganasis walked across it flanked by their captains and Generals. Only a few hours before this place was a chaotic frenzy where thousands of men committed untold acts of horror in the names of survival and victory. Now all that was here was the stink of death where thousands of bodies scattered the hillside, the Zachanian’s were busy helping their wounded and the occasional scream could still be heard from soldiers who were wounded and still in agony. Talon and his group surveyed what they had just been responsible for but remained silent as each man tried to take in the horrors that were under their feet, this was except Ganasis their first real taste of battle, they had prepared themselves for the fighting but you can never prepare yourself for the cold reality of thousands of dead and mutilated soldiers.
“General, the enemy are re-organising themselves to the north.” said a soldier who had walked over to General Lagain which had the effect of snapping Talon and his group from their private thoughts.
“What are their numbers?” replied Talon.
“It is hard to say my Lord but I would guess a quarter of their original strength.”
“They are being given to us to slaughter.” added Ganasis which made Talon look at him a look of concern.
“What?” asked Talon still waiting for the wizard to finish what he was saying?
“A sacrifice! They are a sacrifice so that the Generals and the rest of the army can retreat safely” added Ganasis.
“Then s sacrifice they will be, Captain Send in the cavalry and murder them all” General Lagain then snapped.
“And what of their wounded sir, shall I make provisions for prisoners?” asked the Captain.
“No prisoners!” replied Lagain in a stern tone of voice.
“Hold that order!” Talon suddenly interrupted which made everyone’s attention turn to him.
“We are not cold bloodied killers.” he added.
“My Lord, we have them at our mercy, I say we send a message of our intent.” replied Lagain where Talon felt the other General’s and Captain’s agreeing with him, after a short pause where Talon quickly looked each of the faces amongst his group he replied.
“Thank you General Lagain, we will send them a message; we will send them the message that any Imperial soldier who lays down his arms will be given his right to be treated as a prisoner.”
“Lord Talon if we are to be victorious then we mus” replied Lagain only for Talon to raise his hand and stop him in mid-sentence.
“The order stands General, and let it be known that if I hear of any unarmed men being brought to the sword then I will personally kill the men responsible, now relay my order that prisoners are to be taken.”
“As you wish” Lagain replied before relaying the order where Talon noticed the resentment on his face.
“You heard Lord Talon, prisoners are to be taken!” he snapped to the Captain who in turn saluted him before walking off to carry out the orders, once he was out of sight General Lagain turned angrily to confront Talon.
“My Lord I do not take kindly to being reprimanded before my men.”
“The order was wrong.” replied Talon.
“Even so my authority should not be undermined to the men I command.”
“HOLD YOUR TONGUE GENERAL!” Ganasis suddenly snapped angered at the tone he was addressing Talon.
“It’s alright Ganasis.” Talon said holding out an arm to calm his wizard friend which had the effect of making Lagain realise his place.
“What I am saying sir ,is have you thought of the resources it will take to feed and keep prisoners, thousands of Zachanian warriors will be used to keep these men under control, warriors who will be better used fighting for us on the battlefield.”
“My word is final General, if the King feels otherwise then I will abide with his command but as of now it is my wish.”
General Lagain shook his head looking frustrated and turned away realising that he could go no further with Talon on this matter, Ganasis then pulled Talon to the side and spoke quietly to him away from the ears of the men.
“Reluctantly I find myself agreeing with what he is saying Talon, his words make sense, even Apollo never took prisoner’s my friend, Apollo showed mercy when it was needed but on the battlefield he was merciless.”
Talon shook his head slowly at what he had just heard.
“I oppose that notion Ganasis.”
“Why do you disagree Talon, what’s in your thoughts?” added Ganasis.
“I disagree for two reasons, one is because we must be better than the Empire, we fight for our freedom and not for the lust of blood, and secondly in the long run it will work to our advantage.”
“Advantage?” interrupted Ganasis.
“Yes, if you have a thousand Imperial soldiers fighting against five thousand Zachanian’s then on most days certain victory will be with us. Any soldier upon the battlefield knows what the probable outcome will be if he finds himself vastly outnumbered. If the Imperial soldier knows that the only fate is death then he will fight till he meets his death, in this battle Zachanian life’s will also be lost but if he knows that we do not kill unarmed men and that he has the option of surrender against overwhelming odds then the battle could be won without a single drop of Zachanian blood being spilt.”
“I see what you are saying Talon but the reality of war is that we will lose men, sometimes we must face the fact that we may lose two of ours to kill four of theirs.”
“That I will not accept Ganasis, I do believe in the ancient way
s of sending an army against an army where the last man standing is the victor, if I lose one Zachanian son on the battlefield then that is one too many. Zachanian life should always come first, in this war which is upon us we must find ways to win, and win without sacrifice, our love for our kin will be the reason that we will be victorious in this war.”
General Lagain who had been growing impatient suddenly walked over to Talon and Ganasis and commented on what he had just heard.
“Are you saying that we should send our warriors onto the battlefield and then command them to have the hearts of women!” he snapped angrily which made Talon take a step forward to meet him.
“Lagain I will not defeat a callous Empire only for another callous Empire to take its place, we are Zachanian’s and we fight with honour and chivalry in our hearts, we must never lower ourselves to cowardice and tyranny.”
Added Talon to the General who was still not listening to what was being said to him, whether it was adrenaline still pumping through him from the battle of just foolish blind courage or stubbornness still he would not yield to Talon’s demand, then he turned to Talon and answered him in a totally unexpected way.
“I was told you was a brave man, the Zararhakzar is what I have been told, but.. But all I see before me is a fraud dressed in warriors uniform” snarled the General before stepping back and placing one hand on the butt of his sword as if to challenge Talon.
“I will not obey your weak orders and I challenge your authority to command this battlefield!” he added now with a scowl on his face.
Talon stiffened and grimaced at the words he had just heard and felt his heart pump as his first thought was to pull his own sword and run the General through but he composed himself as he remembered his days as a Pangkor.
‘Discipline must be used when your emotions begin to overwhelm you, your feelings must not overcome your wisdom and belief of what is true’ he thought silently to himself.
The two men gazed intently at each other as Talon strained to hold his tongue, he could feel himself wanting to insult the General but he resisted as he knew that to answer him at this moment would be to reply to him as a worthy adversary ‘my future and destiny must be more important than the words of a foolish man with little stature’ he thought to himself just before looking at Ganasis and turning away from the General.
“Make sure my orders are carried out Ganasis.” he said as he turned and walked away.
“Ha, the Zararhakzar! I insult him and he walks away!” Lagain suddenly said as he watched Talon walk off.
Ganasis then walked over so that he was standing before the General and spoke so all the men could hear him.
“Do not be so arrogant with your words Lagain, if my Lord Talon wished it then you would be lying dead at his feet, be thankful and nothing else that you still draw breath” the wizard said before walking off in the direction Talon went.
“I will take this to the King!” Lagain shouted only to be ignored.
Talon smiled as he saw Ganasis enter the hut where he and General Kanyan and four other Zachanian officers sat around a large table studying maps and reports, Ganasis pulled himself a chair and listened to what Talon was saying to other men as he Talon poured himself some water and continued to speak sounding very pleased with himself.
“So my dear friend, we have won our first battle! The reports I have here are that the Empire are fleeing for their lives” Talon added in a tone of voice which surprised Ganasis especially as he just had a confrontation with General Lagain but now seemed totally ignorant of the fact.
“Yes Talon we have done well.” replied Ganasis before looking at the door where different soldiers were coming in and out bringing reports to General Kanyan, updating him with all the latest news from the field.
“Excellent!” General Kanyan snapped reading one of the notes that had been passed to him before he turned to face Talon.
“My Lord as we speak we are taking prisoners in their droves, we are also clearing the dead from around the hills and making preparations to have them burnt.”
For the next two hours reports continued to come in as General Kanyan sat reading and then relaying new orders. Only when they heard the sound of several men on horseback arriving outside did they get up from their chairs. Kanyan rose first followed by Talon and Ganasis then they walked outside the hut to find some of the Captains of his cavalry dismounting
“We have victory sir” the first Captain said smiling and greeting his General with an embrace.
“The Empire have scattered from all directions, they are beaten sir” he added.
“We have detained thousands sir, the ones that got away have headed in the direction of Zanlia” added another captain.
“What of our men Captain?” asked Ganasis concerned about casualties.
“Minimal sir, we have won a great victory today” replied the Captain.
“Yes we have given the Empire a bloody nose, one which they will find hard to forget.” added General Kanyan proudly as he patted the captains firmly on their backs and ushered them into the hut.
“Have we taken a count on the Empires dead” asked Ganasis.
“The count is on-going as we speak but at first reports they have fallen in vast numbers, tens of thousands are expected to be counted.”
Ganasis nodded his head and allowed himself a slight smile.
“Excellent news my General.” he replied before turning to Talon noticing he seemed distracted from the glorious news.
“What’s wrong?”
“Nothing is wrong I am just trying to think what the Empires next move will be” replied Talon as Ganasis scowled his face and rubbed his beard.
“I would say that they will regroup and recruit more numbers from Zanlia and launch an attack from the north and maybe the east as well” said Ganasis.
“I think we can be certain that the next time the Empire attacks then they will increase their numbers against us.” added General Kanyan.
“You discussed such events with King Ganasis.” replied Talon.
“Your right, I did Talon and it was decided that our first action would be to secure our position here, it is imperative that we keep the ground we have won today.”
“Are we not advancing?” Kanyan asked Ganasis.
“First we secure this position; I want a ditch filled with spikes dug in all directions.”
“Such a task could take weeks Ganasis.” replied Kanyan slightly shocked.
“Whatever time it takes, it must be done General, this ground here will be the heart of our campaign, we will strike from it and we must not allow ourselves to be cut off from Zachania, whatever happens we must have control of this border.”
“I will begin with this immediately Ganasis.” replied Kanyan as Ganasis sat down and began to draw a map.
“This is a rough sketch of where the ditch should be General, use it to visualise my wishes, I have also put marks where we should place lookout positions, I have not had time to study the surrounding landscape so I will leave it up to you to decide the exact positions.”
General Kanyan took the sketch from Ganasis and gave it a quick look over.
“Understood, I will make the order my first priority.”
“Excellent!” replied Ganasis before picking up a report that had just been delivered.
“The prisoners we have captured are being rounded up and taken to the southwest of here, near the ocean” he said turning to Talon.
“Do we have their numbers?”
Ganasis looked on the table at the numerous reports that soldiers had been bringing to him and reached for a report, he held it up and read it before replying.
“Nothing exact Talon but by this report they have captured in their hundreds.”
“Good” Talon sighed before getting to his feet and stretching his back and legs.
“Are you alright Talon?” asked Ganasis.
“Fine my friend I just want some fresh air” replied Talon as he headed for the direct
ion of the door where he stopped and called one of the guards closer.
“I want you to find General Lagain and ask him to come here.”
Hearing what Talon had asked Ganasis rose to his feet.
“Talon, Lagain has returned to Zachania.”
“What!” snapped General Kanyan sounding confused and slightly angered?
“Lagain and I had a disagreement General, it seems he is not in agreement with the taking of prisoners” added Talon.
“And he aired his disproval upon the battlefield!”
“That man was a disgrace Kanyan! I do not want him anywhere near the front lines again” snapped Ganasis raising his voice.
General Kanyan noticed the fury in the wizard’s stance and quickly realised that Lagain must have done something totally unacceptable, he shook his head despairingly and addressed Talon.
“My apologies Lord Talon, Lagain can be hot tempered at times, I will reprimand him personally and make sure that this kind of thing never happens again.”
“Don’t worry General; I fully understand that emotions can run high during the heat of battle.”
“Your too kind Talon, he lost all control” remarked Ganasis.
“His temper frayed” added Talon trying not to make too much of it.
“He said he was going to the King about us Talon” Ganasis replied which only made Talon realise that the King would be more interested in learning how the battle went from Ganasis and himself.
“Kanyan are we secure here?” Talon turned and asked the General.
“Yes my Lord, feel free to return to Zachania, I will attend to what is needed to be done here” replied Kanyan.
Talon acknowledged the General before turning to Ganasis.
“We will return immediately then.”
As Talon and Ganasis rode their horses back through Death Valley Ganasis began thinking about what had happed with General Lagain.
“For one moment Talon I thought you were going to kill Lagain back there.”
Talon turned and looked coldly back at him.
“For a moment I was Ganasis.”
“What stopped you then, if you would have struck him down you would have been right to do so, those were harsh words spoken by him.”
Zachania Page 37
