I replied, "We have reports that Fallmas has eight to ten thousand troops dug in around the town. At least a dozen Grotus were seen moving around. Pass the word that if any Grotus are encountered, I want every crossbow we have firing at them and them only. Killing one of them is worth killing five hundred Grumar, so have your archers aim at the Grotus first."
The colonel turned and passed the order back through the ranks.
Garrett asked, "Do we have any information about weak points? Should we sweep in from the north, or straight in, or what?"
I shook my head. "We don't have information that specific. Go did a quick flyover of the town, and that's what he reported. He's checking on Tanningar now. He will join us after. If you hear a faint noise that sounds like yelling from a distance, stop and listen. It may be Go. It's the best he can do with the inhibitor running."
Screams erupted as a dozen hidden Grumar rose from a trench and charged our position with broadswords in hand. The broadsword was the backup weapon of choice for the Grumar. Family swords had been passed down through generations. It would be a first-time use in many generations for the Grumar, for anything other than ceremony.
For the Talisan, the selected weapon was the six-bladed mace with a folded-steel sword guard at the hand grip. On the opposite arm, a narrow forearm shield ran to just past the elbow where a blade trap would catch a deflected blade. The effect of the trap was to transfer momentum to the wearer's opposite arm. After the catch of a blade, the strike from a mace would come forward with a velocity not seen from a normal swing.
It was our first hand-to-hand encounter with the Grumar. My Talisan fighters killed twelve and lost three. For the Talisan, to die in battle for their emperor was a death of honor. The Talisan troops surrounding the fallen propped their bodies up against nearby trees and spiked their maces into the tree behind them. The effect was a Talisan with a raised mace, waiting for the next fight to begin. The soldiers following behind would be emboldened by the scene.
As we moved forward, the attacks increased in frequency. Our progress ground to a halt as we began to push up the front side of a ridge. When attacking from below, the Talisan mace was less effective. My weapon of choice was a seven-kilogram maul. My height, while going uphill, placed me on equal footing with the Grumar fighters. Their broadsword lacked the cutting power needed to break through the Grotus battle-suit I wore. My maul easily broke bones and crushed skulls. After the short slow-down, our progress continued up the ridge before us.
When we reached the top, Garrett tapped me on the shoulder, breathing heavy. "Hang on, I need a minute."
I replied, "We don't have time. Just rest up here for a few minutes and catch up to me when you can."
Garrett shook his head. "You don't get tired, you fight like a wild animal, and you like to farm galligs. I have yet to figure you out."
I replied over my shoulder as I moved forward, "When you do figure me out, please let me know!"
The run down the hill on the following side was like running a sharp knife through a raw piece of borak filet. Grumar bodies fell to either side as I viciously swung the seven kilogram maul. I was the first to reach the ravine at the bottom.
The halved bodies of two of my Talisan troops flew up into the air to my left, as a thunderous yell emerged from a darkened area of the forest. It was a Grotus, and five more Talisans died by his hand before I called my fighters away.
The Grotus spoke in a tongue I didn't understand.
I replied, speaking Grumar. "Time for you to die!"
The Grotus, also speaking Grumar, held up a double-sided axe. "So it is true. The Gruntas live!"
I replied, "We do, and today is a bad day for you and the Grumar."
The Grotus grinned. "I am a warrior. I have fought in many a battle. It will be I who walks away from this fight today!"
With that, the Grotus raised his axe as he charged. A hard swing of my maul missed to the left his Grotus' axe glanced my right shoulder. I stepped back to regain a balanced stance.
The Grotus laughed. "You are slow!"
I replied, "I don't know, I thought that exchange came out even."
The Grotus shook his head and pointed at my shoulder. "The Grotus battle-suit shoulder is vulnerable to a glancing axe blow. Look closely. Several layers of the outer armor have been removed. The next blow will see skin. The one after ... your arm lying on the ground as blood rushes from where your severed limb used to be."
The Grotus again raised his axe and lunged forward. I swung from the side, glancing off the outer part of the Grotus' thigh, knocking him slightly off-balance. Again, his axe sliced off several layers of armor.
The Grotus stopped and grinned. "Ah, finally an opponent who can actually make contact! But look at your armor. It has been defeated. My next blow will not be glancing!"
As the Grotus again raised his axe, his chest exploded out through his back. His body flew backwards, coming to rest against a rock five meters from where’d he’d stood.
An almost imperceptible voice yelled in my ear. "You can thank me later!"
I yelled back, "I was about to crush his skull!"
Go laughed. "Yeah, OK! I would suggest you see if you can salvage his upper armor as a replacement! I tried to aim low, but that was my first time shooting a Grotus with this coil gun!"
I shook my head. "Have you checked on Garrett? He was atop the hill a minute ago."
Garrett said from behind me, "I'm right here. I have to say, I didn't think that was gonna go in your favor."
I replied, "He was faster than I anticipated. I was adjusting. Anyway, we have a town to take. Go, why don't you fly ahead and see how many of those Grotus you can take out. It will save a lot of lives. He was slicing my Talisans in half with that axe."
Go yelled. "I'll be back in about ten minutes to check on you!"
Garrett shook his head. "I have got to get one of those suits."
I nodded as I pulled the upper battle-suit armor from the dead Grotus. "Imagine what an army of ten million Humans, all wearing those suits, could do. It's no wonder they defeated the Duke and the rest of us."
Garrett smiled. "That's always been a point of pride with us Humans. At one time we were the baddest of the bad. And now look at us, just another back-world species."
I laughed. "Don't be so hard on yourself. Even though you have to claim Harden Salton as a Human, you still have the likes of you and Joni to balance that evil out. I will say this for your species, you are resourceful and determined. Those are two qualities that are required to both survive and prosper. Qualities that many species lack."
We continued our push on Fallmas. Ten minutes later, Go returned with news that the Grotus were all dead. We soon forced our way onto the main street of the town and overran every defensive position the Grumar had taken up. Two hours into the campaign, a small contingent of Grumar within the town limits took their own lives. The two thousand who remained on the southern end of town turned and fled into the woods. In less than an afternoon, Fallmas had fallen.
Chapter 21
* * *
After ensuring that the area around the town of Fallmas had been cleared, I took ten thousand of our troops back toward the rally point. We met the others returning from Marito in the rocky forest north of Tanningar.
Go gave a full briefing of what he had seen, yelling at the top of his voice. "They have at least fifty thousand troops in and around the city! Could be as many as eighty thousand! I counted one hundred and forty-eight Grotus in one group! Others were scattered through the ranks! And they had at least two archers in every squad! They were practicing shooting at targets! I don't think the archers are skilled, but they are there!
"The bulk of the troops are stationed on the north side of town in four reinforced elevated fence rows! We will have to climb up and over each row as we go! This will be a lot tougher than Fallmas!"
Garrett said, "How many did we lose at Fallmas?"
Go yelled, "Too many! Eighteen hundred to their
eight thousand! Those weren't their best troops, which is why our fighters cut through them so quickly! I believe the best will be what we are facing at Tanningar! Other than the archers, they look organized! I will have to rid us of the Grotus before we stage any sort of attack!"
Go was silent for a moment before faintly screaming at me. "I have a problem! I just noticed my power is down to 10 percent! That inhibitor field is really draining my power cell! Hold on ... power calc says I have twenty minutes of juice left at this rate!"
I pointed toward Tanningar. "Get in there now and take out as many Grotus as you can! Save yourself enough power to get back to the Garmon! You can wait it out there with Jack!"
Silence returned as Go powered off in the town's direction.
Garrett said, "What will we do about the Grotus he can't get to? Should we hold the archers in reserve?"
I thought for a moment. "Organize the archers into groups of twenty. Keep half of those groups in the back ranks, only sending them forward if a Grotus is sighted. I'll have to take care of the rest of them."
Garrett laughed. "You? You almost got chopped down by the first one you encountered!"
I nodded. "As I said, I needed time to adjust. I believe I can sufficiently defend against their slicing blow now."
Garrett continued, "And what if they have other effective tactics?"
I replied, "If so, I will again have to adjust."
Boni Marrik walked up from behind. "Emperor, all troops are here and ready. Our force numbers near twenty-eight thousand. Given our current kill ratio, I believe victory will be in our grasp shortly."
I shook my head. "Reports from Go place their numbers possibly as high as eighty thousand. And these appear to be their more hardened troops. Their defensive positions will also be difficult to assault, as the town itself sits on a hill. We are attempting to take out as many of the Grotus fighters as we can before we begin, but we may be losing our secret weapon."
The general bowed. "We will persevere. These soldiers fight for you. With you being in and among them, their wills have been strengthened more than you could know."
I nodded. "They might be motivated, General, but we are facing a formidable force just through those woods. If Grotus remain in their ranks when the fighting begins, we will lose many."
Fifteen minutes had passed with no word from Go. From our vantage point, I could see a half dozen Grotus moving about on the enemy lines. I had to wonder if Go was already back at the Garmon, waiting out the rest of our fight. A runner was dispatched to check.
I turned to Boni Marrik. "General, I think we have waited long enough. It's time we move forward. The longer we wait, the better prepared they will be."
The general concurred. "I will send out the order to ready for your signal."
I pointed at a map. "We'll move west and come at the defensive rows from an angle. If the line can be overrun at one end, the enemy's primary defense would be defeated."
The general pointed to an area on the map. "And what of this field? Should we break through the end of a row, they could easily reinforce from here. I propose we immediately set up a defensive line to counter that threat before pushing down those rows."
I nodded. "Good observation, General. Confer with your commanders to make that happen."
Boni Marrik bowed and signaled her staff.
Garrett remarked. "If we can keep those Grotus bottled up in those rows long enough, we can establish a real foothold in that west end."
I replied, "If we can't, I'm afraid they may push us all the way back to the ships. We have to break through those rows if we want any chance of taking that town. The fact that they still have Grotus that we can see has me worried."
Garrett slapped me on the back. "We'll get there. We always do."
As we began our preliminary movement west, a scout runner came through the woods.
"Sir, there are troops moving northwest toward Fallmas! Our observer places the number at or near ten thousand. And they have at least half a dozen of the Grotus with them."
I balled my fist. "Garrett, round up ten squads of archers, and, General, halt our current effort. Pull five thousand troops from our reserves. We're going to stop that advance."
I pulled out the topology map for the area between Fallmas and Tanningar. "This short ridge, it runs for a hundred meters with a two meter rise. This is where we fight them. I want the archers set up top, aiming down in this direction. Regular fighters back them up."
Garrett replied, "What will we be doing?"
I placed my hand on Garrett's shoulder. "We aren't doing anything. You will remain with the archers. Your goal is to have them focus on any Grotus that come through those woods. Nobody else, just Grotus. I'll be heading over here. If I can draw them to you, we will have the high ground advantage."
Garrett nodded. "OK, and what if they don't take the bait?"
I half smiled. "I believe they will. A single Gray running through the woods would be too tempting to let go. If I can draw at least two of the Grotus out and kill them, I believe our chances of defending Fallmas go up substantially. If this works, we can then fall back to this position. It offers a natural chokepoint where we will have them concentrated. If you place your archers on this rise, you should have an open shot at anyone coming through the choke."
Garrett frowned. "So that's it, then? I've become the archer king?"
I replied, "Given the way you were breathing so heavily after the run toward Fallmas, I should think you would be thrilled with commanding the archers. I also believe you to be the best suited for keeping their fire focused on the Grotus. Is this a challenge you are willing to accept, or is it beneath you?"
Garrett chuckled. "Yeah, I'll take on the archers. And don't worry over my motivation. I'll do my best to keep them effective."
The march back through the woods took three hours. Garrett moved his archers into position on the short ridge as I turned toward the road where the enemy was to be expected.
Garrett called out: "Don't be a hero out there! Just bring them to us!"
I nodded as I turned and sprinted away. The canopy of the woods was dense. The undergrowth was sparse, but the shadows made for excellent hiding. As I came to the roadway that led to Fallmas, I crossed the road and took cover behind a short clump of trees. The dark gray of my Grotus battle-suit blended well with the forest shadows.
After crouching for nearly an hour, I could hear the sound of marching boots.. I peeked out to see a long column of Grumar fighters. Three Grotus walked in front with three more a half kilometer behind.
The Grotus talked and joked as they marched forward, again in their native tongue, a language I didn't understand. I waited until they had passed beyond having me in their peripheral vision before I made my move. Sprinting from the trees, I caught the marching column by surprise.
A swing of my Maul caught the closest Grotus in the neck, nearly severing his head. I continued across the roadway up into the trees on the other side. The two remaining Grotus reacted instantly by following in close pursuit.
The two Greens were gaining ground. I increased my pace, finding the forest footing difficult to master. On more than one occasion a boot slipped sideways, throwing me at a glancing angle into the trunk of a tree, but my short separation of less than ten meters held.
When I came into the area below the ridge, Garrett and the Talisan archers were well hidden and at the ready. In a barrage of flying steel shafts, the two Grotus warriors took several hits each. I ran forward to the ridge wall, planting my feet midway up and pushing off hard. Rolling over in the air, I took two long steps. I caught the first Grotus high in the shoulder as he swung his axe wildly. Aside from the three crossbow bolts protruding from his torso, he now had a crippled arm.
The second Grotus retreated into the trees before taking a stand against me. His first swing again made a glancing blow against my shoulder, except my countering twist prevented the layers of armor from being sliced off. Grabbing the trunk of a small
tree I swung around for a direct attack. The Grotus raised his axe too late. A crushing blow from my maul caught him at the base of the neck, driving deep into his upper torso.
I spun the maul in my hand as I came in for the death blow. It was a grisly scene. Seven kilograms of dense metal struck the kneeling Grotus in the side of his helmet. I then pulled back and turned for a second attack on the first Green. But he lay dead on the ground before me, dozens of crossbow bolts sticking from all parts of his battle-suit.
As I stood over the dead Grotus, Grumar arrows began to fly from the woods behind me. With three long steps, I sprang up onto the ridge wall and was quickly over the top. The Grumar came screaming from the woods toward our position. Garrett and his archers were relentless.
After a horrific culling of their numbers, the Grumar fighters made their way to the ends of the ridge and up onto the high ground we occupied. Our fighters were at the ready. Grumar casualties were high.
I stood by Garrett with my maul as he clubbed away with a Talisan battle-mace. The Grumar fighters continued to come, forcing us back with their sheer numbers. My dark gray battle-suit ran blue with Grumar blood.
Garrett swung his mace. "You look good in blue!" he yelled. "I think it brings out your eyes!"
I replied in confusion, "What? What is that supposed to mean?"
Garrett hammered away at an opponent until his mace stuck in the Grumar’s helmet. "It was a joke. Don't tell me you didn't pick up on that!"
I pushed my maul forward, driving it hard into a Grumar's chest, knocking him from his feet. Before I could bring another swing, two Talisan fighters jumped at the opportunity to take out the stunned Grumar.
I said, "I don't get Human humor in situations like this. People are losing their lives!"
Garrett shook his head as he pulled his mace from the head of another victim. "For some of us it's a coping mechanism. Sometimes the mind needs a break from the constant adrenaline rush we have to maintain during a fight. The remark is only funny given the context of what we are in the middle of."
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