How ironic, Raven thought, we were supposed to let Andrew perish in battle and now he might give up his life trying to save Edward.
Edward saw what was happening as the Wickshields attacked, but before he could respond, they had separated his band and had cut them off from the rest of the battle line. What a tremendous military machine the Wickshields were, and Edward could not help but admire their precision.
These Wickshields are not what Father had anticipated, Edward thought. And he knew then the whole kingdom was in jeopardy of being lost. He shouted encouragement to his men to hold ranks. He knew if they held on long enough, help would come. He then heard the war cry of Sauron Crestlaw and saw them charge in his direction. But a large line of troops had already flowed between them and the progress was halted for the time being. Edward’s troops were doing well against the superior numbers but they were slowly falling. Then they began breaking through the ranks, and Edward surged forward on his horse and eliminated them as they came through. They were holding their own when all of a sudden two broke through. Edward took on one, but before he could turn to the other he had struck his horse and down it went. Edward sprang to his feet so swiftly the soldier was caught off guard and Edward ran him through with his sword. He then heard a blood curdling war cry, or rather a scream and saw Andrew madly hacking his way in his direction, trying to reach him.
A sadness came over Edward. How foolish his father had been. He now knew for certain, beyond any doubt, that Andrew was loyal to the throne, probably more than any other subject the king had. Their roles had been reversed. It was now he who was cut off and almost surrounded by the enemy. But instead of leaving him to perish, the Crestlaws were throwing their lives to the wind in order to try and rescue him. This gave him a new surge of strength, and he began to methodically cut down his opponents.
Raven saw then that they were going to reach Edward in time. He was holding his own and Andrew was very close. Raven looked behind him, and Sauron and his soldiers were in pursuit a short distance away. The Wickshields noticed the change in battle as well and knew it was time to retreat and regroup at the pass as was their plan, even if they failed to destroy the prince. A horn was sounded and the Wickshields withdrew. Edward, seeing this, knew the threat was gone in front so turned around to see if there were Wickshields behind. Everything seemed to slow down as Raven watched the retreating Wickshield soldiers. One stopped, turned around and drew his bow. Raven tried to yell but nothing came out of his mouth. The arrow was released and it struck Edward in the back of the neck, below the helmet, but above the mail. Edward crumpled slowly to the ground and Raven heard a scream. It was coming from his own mouth. Andrew, who had almost reached the prince’s side before the arrow struck, cried out in anguish as well.
Edward heard the horn, saw the retreat and saw the Wickshields immediately withdraw from him and begin to form ranks. Motion caught his attention behind him and he turned to see if any Wickshields were there when a lightning bolt shot through his body. His arms went numb as his sword fell from his hand and his legs began to collapse. As he was falling, he looked down and saw the arrow protruding from his neck. Then he knew that he had been shot.
When Raven reached his brother’s side, Andrew was cradling him in his arms, his face torn with anguish as he looked up at Raven.
Raven knelt by Edward’s side as Edward spoke to Andrew, “I am sorry, Andrew. This is all my fault. If I had only been stronger and stood up to the king.”
Andrew looked at Raven, not understanding what Edward was talking about, but Raven knew.
“No, Prince Edward,” Andrew said, “I have failed you in not getting here sooner.”
Edward smiled and said, “No, Andrew, you are an honorable man. I saw you fighting as I have never seen one before coming to my aid.”
And then Edward changed expressions. Fear came to his eyes. “Raven,” he said.
“I am here, Edward.”
“You must...” Edward said, gasping for breath, “You must do what is right and honorable. Save Glenfair, save it from the king.”
With that, Edward breathed his last, and Andrew sat there in shock. With his crushing sorrow, anger also burned inside of Raven. He would rid the land of these enemies and then he would deal with the king. Raven leaned forward and reached behind Edward and broke the arrow off behind his neck. He then pulled the arrow through and laid Edward flat on his back.
At that moment, the king’s trumpet sounded for them to reform ranks for another charge at the enemy. Raven stood up and commanded them to form ranks.
Andrew protested, “We cannot leave him here like this, Raven!”
Raven grabbed Andrew by the shoulders and shook him, “I do not like it either, Andrew. But unless we get things together, all of Glenfair will be lost. We will have time later to bury the dead.”
Sauron observed Raven saying this to Andrew and thought, “What strength and leadership this young man shows. He is worthy to be followed to the ends of the earth!”
King Mollen saw the commotion on the left flank and smiled to himself, everything was going as planned. Soon the Crestlaws will be eliminated and we can put an end to this battle and go home.
When he saw the Wickshields withdraw, he blew the trumpet to reform ranks.
“If the Crestlaws are not dead already, they will be with the next charge,” the king thought.
Little did the king know that it was Edward and most of his troops who had died and not the Crestlaws. The next attack would be tragedy for the right flank, and not the left as he supposed.
As the Wickshields regrouped, the captains talked to each other about the testing of the strength of Glenfair’s army. The men they had encountered had fought like demons, and the losses were three to one. If this continued, they would lose the pass in a short time. They then decided to test the opposite side in the next charge.
Just as the Glenfair army formed ranks, the command was given to charge once more. The Wickshields did not respond again to the head-on assault until it was close, and then they surged quickly to the left this time and cut off Duke Rollins’ company. The battle was too far away for Raven to reach it very quickly, being on the opposite side. They are carving us up piece by piece, Raven thought. If things do not change, we will lose this battle.
Before Raven could reach the opposite side to help, the Wickshields withdrew back to the pass and left in their retreat mainly Glenfair casualties on the battlefield. The king called for a retreat back to the war camp to reorganize their strategy, for surely this was not working as he had planned. When the king saw the strategy and strength of the Wickshields, for he was closer to the right flank than he had been to the left, great fear gripped his heart. If the Wickshields had done the same to the left flank, Edward could have been in great danger. As it was, the majority of Duke Rollins’ company was barely able to escape being destroyed. If the Wickshields had pressed the battle a little longer, Duke Rollins would be no more.
Raven looked back toward where Edward had fallen after hearing the king’s call to retreat, and what he saw touched his heart. Sauron had gone back with Andrew and was bringing the body of Edward with them.
As the king watched the column from the left flank approaching the pavilion, he saw them bearing someone who was injured or dead. He hoped it was Andrew Crestlaw, but his hopes were dashed when he saw the red tunic and realized it was Edward.
This is the Crestlaw’s fault, the king thought. Edward is dead or gravely wounded because of them.
Raven was walking beside the body. As they approached, the king did not say anything but waited for Raven to speak.
“Edward is dead, Father, along with half of his company.”
Raven motioned for them to take the body behind the pavilion and cover it for the time being. The king just stood there, all the fire taken out of him.
Seeing his inaction, Raven spoke again, “We must have a war council Father, to decide how we can defeat the Wickshield
s.”
The king nodded and moved inside the tent, the dukes and their sons following. Once inside, there was discussion. Everyone agreed the situation was much more dire than they had anticipated. Their force of two thousand had been whittled down to seventeen hundred. Although the Wickshields had lost over fifty men, it did not look good at all for the battle. The heaviest losses were over on the right wing with Duke Rollins’ company, a greater group than Edward’s had been separated from the main army, causing more confusion and greater loss for Glenfair with less casualties on the Wickshield side.
The king listened to all the talk and finally spoke on what should be done, “We will send for reinforcements and wait here. When they arrive we will deal them a final fatal blow.”
Raven remembered what Master Fields had said about confusion and wars.
“Sire,” Raven addressed the king respectfully, “I believe our battle line has been spread out too wide. They have been separating us too easily, causing great harm with their tactics. If we narrow our forces down and make a drive up the middle and even try to enter the pass itself, the Wickshields will have no place to retreat to and will be divided as they have done to us. I do not believe the Wickshields can long endure that kind of an attack and will begin to fall apart.”
Master Fields was impressed. This was the answer he knew to the military dilemma so he spoke, “I agree with Prince Raven. We must attack in this way, not in a wide combat line as we have done, and I, too, believe this will defeat the Wickshield army.”
The king shook his head, “No, we will wait for reinforcements. We have suffered too great a loss already. I have spoken.”
Everyone looked at each other, trying to decide what to do when Raven said in a very stern voice, “Leave, all of you, now!”
No one had ever heard the prince speak this way before and most scurried to get out the pavilion. Master Fields was the last to leave. He hesitated and Raven motioned for him to leave as well.
When all were gone and the tent door was closed, Raven turned to his father and spoke quietly but forcefully, “This is all your fault. You have brought Edward’s death upon us and the deaths of everyone else today. This scheme of yours is not going as you had planned, so listen carefully and I will say this only once. If you wait a day for reinforcements to arrive, it will be too late. The Wickshields own reinforcements will arrive and Glenfair will be lost. The only hope for us is the men we have now. Lead them, Father, lead them right down the throats of the Wickshields as I have outlined and this will be over.”
Raven could see the anger rising in his father, his face turning red, “How dare you speak to me this way? I am the king. We will wait, do you hear? We will wait. Now leave me!”
“Then you have doomed us all,” Raven said as he turned to leave. Raven knew now that the king was afraid, and that his fear had lead him to inaction.
We are all afraid, Raven thought, but waiting for a larger force will not save us.
The king had allowed a force to enter Glenfair that he thought he could control. Edward’s death proved otherwise, and now the whole kingdom of Glenfair might be lost. Raven pondered the fate of the kingdom and decided on a course of action. It was the Kallestor’s fault this had happened, so it was up to a Kallestor to pay the price and make it right again.
As Raven left the pavilion, Master Fields followed. He wanted to speak to Raven, but Raven neither slowed or paid Master Fields any mind. He went straight to the cook he had given the sack containing the crossbow. Just as he grabbed the sack, Master Fields caught up with him, but still Raven ignored him and started off west.
Master Fields asked him bluntly, “Where are you going off to?”
“I am leaving,” was all Raven said.
Master Fields was stunned, “Prince Raven, you can not leave a battle just because you believe the king has made the wrong decision. People will think of you as a traitor and a coward.”
Raven stopped and sighed, “You do not understand.”
“No I do not, boy, but give me a chance will you? Besides, I have some information on that knife I need to tell you, but it will be hard to hear.”
Raven waited patiently as Master Fields first produced the knife thrown at Andrew. Raven recognized it, and then the master produced an identical one that Jerddin had bought.
“I do not know how to say this,” Master Fields went on, “but it was the king who hired an assassin to kill Andrew.”
Now Master Fields thought this would shock Raven to know it was his father who had tried to kill Andrew.
But Raven nodded and said, “I suspected as much.”
Now Master Fields was the one who was surprised, how could Raven have suspected the king in such a murderous plot?
“What did this assassin look like?” Raven wanted to know.
“No identifying features,” Master Fields went on, “except a huge scar across his right arm.”
Raven nodded, cataloging this fact in his mind. Then Raven decided to risk everything and tell Master Fields the whole story, how his father suspected the Crestlaws of plotting to take over the throne, how Andrew’s love affair with Lorriel in the king’s mind was only a way to steal the throne as well. When he got to the part about the battle being a tool to kill the Crestlaws, Master Fields began to get angry so Raven stopped. He had never seen Master Fields angry before.
“Of all the stupid things to do,” Master Fields fumed. “We may lose it all because of a king’s suspicions.” Then Master Fields cooled a little, “How do you know, my prince, that the Crestlaws are not plotting as the king suspects?”
Raven related how Andrew had saved both Lorriel from the falls, and himself from a Twainlar Serpent. And during the battle, the Crestlaws had thought little of their own lives trying to deliver Edward.
Master Fields looked sad now, “I can understand why you want to run away. I would, too, if I were in your place. When the truth is learned, no one will think the less of you. I need to go now and persuade the dukes to override the king’s strategy so we can end this.”
Raven reached out his hand and grabbed Master Fields as he started to leave, “You cannot tell them what I have told you, do you swear?”
Master Fields nodded, “As you wish, Prince Raven.”
Raven then spoke firmly, “I will deal with Father after this is over, do you understand? Besides, I am not running away as you suppose. There is a secret tunnel that goes from the cliffs to the pass gate. It is hidden so no one knows it is there. It starts in a small canyon over there,” and Raven pointed to a place in the cliffs. “Andrew showed it to me some time back. I intend on going through the tunnel and starting my own little war behind the Wickshield army. That is why I am taking the crossbow.”
“All by yourself?” Master Fields asked amazed once again at Raven.
“Yes,” Raven said, “a Kallestor got us into this mess. It is up to a Kallestor to get us out. I have the armor and your training. I should be able to kill quite a few before they get me. When the confusion starts in the Wickshield army, that is the time to attack, understand?”
Master Fields nodded and then took off running back to the camp. Raven watched him go and then turned and slowly headed over the knoll out of sight of the main camp toward the secret tunnel.
Master Fields reached the camp and the first person he saw was Mostell.
“Good,” said Master Fields, “just the man I want to see. Get Jerddin and four other men who are not afraid to die for the kingdom and wait for me at the west end of camp.”
Mostell nodded, not understanding, but trusting Master Fields. Next Master Fields ran to find Sauron Crestlaw.
When he found him, he came right to the point; “I need your help. Soon there will be confusion in the Wickshield’s ranks. When that happens form the kind of attack that Prince Raven has described and come to our aid, do you understand?”
Sauron was confused at first, then stated with recognition; “The secret tunnel, wh
at has my boy done?”
“It is not your son,” Master Fields said to him. “It is Prince Raven. Your son showed him the tunnel some time back and he has gone there alone.”
Sauron looked distressed, “Andrew and I must go now to his aid. We have sworn to protect the Kallestors with our lives.”
“No”, Master Fields said, “you must stay here and organize the counter attack as I have stated. We need fighters like you to try and break through to us if we are still alive. But if not, remember Raven is doing this for the kingdom, and you must honor him by doing the same. Do not tell the other dukes, but make sure they are ready, will you?”
The King's Folly Page 17
