Quest: book 3

by Yufeng Zhuang

5

  Hairt ran a step forward, he dragged the wingman scout up from the ground, that guy’s face was scratched broken on the ground.

  "What did you say?" Hairt almost got his face stick close to the scout's face together, "say it again!"

  "Sir!" not even considering to wipe the blood off from the wound on the face, the weak scout said, "we seventeenth scout squad found a large number of light cavalries before dawn yesterday, they were thirty miles south of the desert entrance!"

  "Light cavalries?" Hairt turned around and looked at me, "let me call the people!"

  "What hurry for?" I stopped him, "just a few cavalries."

  "Let him sit down," I pointed at the scout and talked to everyone, "give him some water to drink, and call a sorcerer to here."

  The poor scout sat down, he took the water from Jack and began to drink it in a hurry.

  "Messenger!" I called to the outside of the tent, the messenger team leader rushed in.

  "The senior officers of the command department, the supervisors of the city hall, and the chiefs of all ethnic groups, all line up immediately outside of my tent!"

  "Yes!" after I issued the command, I turned around and began to talk to the red nose grandpa in a low voice. Feline and Wensly arranged things to get ready to write the commands, Kelly and Hairt them spread out the biggest map that we could have so far in the middle of the tent... Everything looked exactly the same like when we studied at uncle Turnasi there.

  Not for a while, outside of the tent were all the footstep sounds, people continued coming. All the people are waiting outside, only the sorcerer had the order to come in and had the blood-stopping and healing for the scout.

  The talk with the red nose grandpa was also almost over, so I began to order.

  "Senior command officers! Senior liaison officers! Clan chiefs! Into the tent!" the guards loudly repeated my words outside of the tent.

  No redundant voices, the coming in more than ten people bowed to me and then stood around the map in order.

  "Are you better now? Your mind is clear now?" I asked the scout who just wiped the blood off from his face, he just kept nodding.

  "Good! Now you repeat it once again," I stood in front of the map, "I want everything you know about, nothing a bit missed!"

  "Yes!" after he had a salute, he took over a long thin iron rod from an officer.

  "We're the seventeenth scout squad! we're keeping a close watch on this area, it's four hundred miles straight distance from the Darkness city."

  He pointed at a spot on the map with the iron rod and said, "yesterday everything is very normal before dawn..."

  "After midnight, my captain and I had the launch reconnaissance. We flied circle along the desert entrance. The ninth time when we passed through this place, we found that there are a lot reflections on the ground," he moved his rod to the right a bit, "when we observed closer, we found there are no less than three hundred light cavalries. It's too dark, this is an about number, only more no less. From their messy clothes and armors, they look like the bandits. But, their team formation is very neat, and they are not very tired neither."

  "What else?" an officer asked.

  "They stopped right here, it seems like that they are the vanguard guarding the desert entrance, but both the front and the back they laid out are the defensive battle formation. The captain ordered me to come back to report immediately, they continue to keep watching over there, they will send somebody back every once in a while. Oh right! The captain worried that there are not enough people in hand, he has called for the other scout teams nearby." the scout added.

  This is the reason why I let him drink and rest. Because a person is very easy to make a mistake in the tense situation, especially these having not that rich experience new recruits, they will often miss some very important information. At this time, a short rest can let him relieve the pressure and reorganize the thoughts. It's the same why let the sorcerer to give him the healing treatment at the first time, because the pain will also distract his attention.

  "They didn't detect you?" the red nose grandpa asked.

  "No! I'm sure!" maybe because of his mighty, the scout couldn't help to stand straight upright his body to answer.

  "Why are you so sure of that?" the red nose grandpa kept asking, "soldier, this will affect a lot of people's lives!"

  "It was very dark right then," the scout said, "we have been paying attention our own traces very much. In addition, we didn't get to the within close range which they can detect us!"

  "When did you leave?"

  "Dawn, because it's getting bright and fear of the other party has the sorcerer, so I always flight sticking to the ground."

  The red nose grandpa nodded to me, signaled it is passable.

  "You can go to rest now, soldier, you have already finished your task pretty well." I said to him, "if you can think of anything else, you can come to me here right away."

  "Yes," the scout left with the sorcerer...

  All the people stood around the map, I had to give them some time to think.

  "What do you think?" seeing they had considered it almost, I began to asked their ideas. To see from my military knowledge, this thing is not that simple, but now I can say it out yet. These people in front of me are mostly "novices", I have to guide and train the thoughts of my subordinates, let them think toward the right direction.

  "What else need to think?" as I expected, Moah shouted loudly, "just give me five hundred people! are they not just a few bandits?"

  "Good, have boldness of vision." I said, "but I want to know according what that makes you to judge there are just a few bandits?"

  "Didn't the wingman say just now?" it seemed that Moah was still not understand yet, "just only three hundred people!"

  "Four hundred miles!" I point to the map, "it takes the wingman a day to fly. Even I give you the cavalries to leave right now, it still will take you a day and a half. Or you can arrive in a day, maybe the other party has already had three thousand people there. As a leader, you must keep the placid state of mind, understand?"

  "Yes! I see."

  "Who is next?" I asked everyone. He seems to know my intention, the red nose grandpa hadn't been cut in.

  "Sir viceroy!" Mogardi said, "our information is not sufficient."

  "It is," I said, "we will have more information coming later!"

  "I think..." Hairt said, "in the situation that it is not that clear, we should increase the reconnaissance."

  "This is the correct view." I nodded my head and agreed, "Wen!"

  "Yes!" you could not see the grinning cheekily on his face any more at this moment.

  "Go ask all the great ones in your race to wait outside of the tent" I said.

  "Yes!" He started to run out.

  "Do you have any other ideas?" I looked at them with the encourage glance, "say it out! We still have time."

  But everyone is deep in thinking again.

  "Well! What about this," I said, "I ask, you answer. I hope that we can get a clue."

  "The first step, we come to judge the enemy's identity. Looks like bandits?" I walked in the tent in small steps, "do we have bandits around the Darkness city?"

  "No!" Waldi said loudly, "the only group of bandits was destroyed many years ago!"

  "Then who they may be? Have such strict discipline should not be the general mob." I continued to say, "we can think it more complicated, more far away."

  "We really don't have any bandits around us," one just came from my eldest brother officer pointed at the map and said, "if say it is army, there are only two places have army on the borders with us. Of course the Dark Moon can be excluded. This place left is the fief of a noble general, he has a close relationship with the Prime Minister. His name is Harrick."

  "Right!" Marf also pointed at the map and said, "you look, his fief has a very wide place to connect with our Darkness city. His men can come and go at any time."

  "What you given is just a hypotheses, bu
t now I want you to use evidence to prove that!" I was glad that they noticed that, although it's a bit slow.

  "First!" the atmosphere was getting alive, Moah stepped forward and said, "we have conflicts with the Prime Minister, and the Prime Minister drool with envy for the Darkness city, they have the motivation!"

  "Count it as one," I said, "there is this possibility, keep going."

  "Second! From the military," the been silent Hairt said, "there are many routes that they can tap into, the offense is very convenient. Just from these already been discovered people to see, exclude the local bandits of the Darkness city, they can only come from here!"

  "Why?" I asked.

  "They are light cavalries, they come in from the entrance of the desert." listen to Hairt's sober analysis, I was very happy, "the horse could not go very far in the desert, they can only come from Harrick's fief to go into the desert. There is even less than one hundred miles from the entrance to the nearest place, even the army showing up here is not Harrick's, he still can't get away with it!"

  "Good! But there's a problem, one of the most important problem!" I asked, "why did they stop?"

  ......

  "Wait for the help!" after a while, Moah just said a words.

  "Instead of waiting for the help," the red nose grandpa gave some direction at the side, "isn't it better to combine the soldiers to set off together?"

  "This...?" Moah shook his head.

  "Moah," I smiled and encouraged him, "you can think about it again, if you are their commander, in what kind of circumstance, you will set out this kind of battle array in this very narrow entrance?"

  "In defense." Moah answered me.

  "Why do you want to defense?" I continued to ask, "behind you is your own territory, you are in the dark, you are initiative, you should attack, then it’s just right!"

  "I...I...I," slowly, Moah's eyes began to let out the different light, "I am coordinated with some other people!"

  "That's right! You smelly boy!" the red nose grandpa knuckled at Moah's head mercilessly, "you just think of that, you make me suppress very hard!"

  "Good!" I said to everyone, "through everybody's efforts, we know what these people want to do. Now the problem is, who are they coordinated with? We need to have further information to figure it out. So in this time, we have to be well prepared."

  "Yes!"

  When they were answering me, Wen came into the tent, he gave me a no problem gestures.

  "Wen!" I said, "send out all the scouts you have, search back and forth for me along the boundaries between our and Harrick's fiefs! Focus on the route to the Dark Forest mines, the route to the Darkness city, and the routes to all the settlements of all the races. Notice the forest mines and all the races, ask them to get ready, evacuate once they detect any enemies getting close, the commands will come right after. And, I just want the information, no contacts!"

  Wen just ran out, I chased him to the outside of the door, I pulled him aside and whispered to him, "and, send the most outstanding people to Harrick there to take a look. On the other side of the desert, we must find out where their coordinating place is within Harrick's territory!"

  Wen nodded his head, he ran to a group of wing-men aside to give them the commands. Immediately, the first wing-man began to run, still not ran out of the fence of the tent, he took a jump, and spread his wings to fly over the heads of a lot of officials. The rest behind him followed his lead, they made here like a nest. Seeing the subordinates not mind at all, I had a smile, and walked back to the tent to issue the orders.

  The orders came out from my mouth, they turned into writing in Wensly's hands. After I signed my name, Feline drew a special mark on it again, they were handed to the wing-men by the Wen who was standing at the door, and finally disappeared in the sky...

  I ordered the armies in the back two directions to put on the new equipments and to move gather to a place. Under the guidance of the wing-men scouts, directly to move across the Darkness city and to mass at the border of Harrick's side, absolutely can't let the enemy perceive. All the construction sites in the routes that the enemy might go through must stop the works and evacuate, the sites need to be hid into the abandoned way, the near the Darkness city ones withdraw directly, the rest find a place nearby to hide, all the guards must take seizure all the strangers in the first time since they receive the order, if there is resistance, kill! The enemy must leave some informers along the route, but because they are in quick dash, the informers could not be too many, we must take these people off!

  I judged that the main purpose of the enemy assault at this time is for the Dark Forest mines and the disturbance to the urban construction, but they can leave or hide after the fight if it is only disturbance, they don't need any coordination, so there should be the despoiling the ores as the main purpose.

  I explained especially in the orders to the elves, they must drop down the defense for the mines. As soon as the enemy get close, the people left in the mines must flee. Let them take the ores as much as they want to take, the more the better. Once the enemy begin to retreat, then join the arrived wing-men to chase down the enemy, attack with arrows and magic, be sure to make the enemy not getting any rest. But absolutely no close distance contact!

  The coming back intelligence proved my thought, the enemy didn't have any change in the desert entrance, the coordination place within Harrick's territory was also found, there are about five hundred infantries, not even have the disguises on, they are all in the standard empire infantry dress. Finally, we found the enemy's main force in the edge of the Dark Forest, they are all the same light cavalries, they are moving directly to the Darkness mines, there are more than three thousand of them! I couldn't help but shook my head, the borders of the Darkness are too large, I have too few people in my hand... I let three thousand cavalries to rush in my Darkness territory, they do it like in a place there is no one in unexpectedly! If I am defeated this time... I will be laughed at to dead by the Prime Minister.

  The total of the enemy is about four thousand, it's not that much. But the just built army of the Darkness city is at most about three thousand, it also is very scattered. It seems that the enemy is very familiar to our situation, they know that they can beat me absolutely by these many people. Three thousand cavalries, I'm afraid that they can move away all the mining tools cleanly. The headquarter is in my tent, we have carefully analyzed the situation we have right now, we decided to play this melee with the advantage of our information and the great fighting tribes. I hoped that they still don't know the special relationship between the alien races and me. Among them, the rapid redeployment of the troops is the matter of life and death.

  After I sent out dozens more orders again, I know clearly in my mind, it is the stage time for the Darkness forces.