The Darkness of Dawn

by Braden Michael

  “So, what do you propose, Lord Archard?” Asher asked, anger apparent in his eyes.

  Archard was unfazed by Asher’s intense glare. “That we use Auckland’s Arrows. The men should emerge in a secluded area, then fire the arrows near Howell’s firedust stores. It’s not unheard of for firedust reserves to detonate, we’re all aware of how volatile the substance is. When the soldiers inside go to investigate, there’ll be a window for our men to open the gate.”

  “That could start a fire,” said Asher, snidely.

  “Perhaps. Not very likely, though.”

  Asher looked at Archard, unable to muster a response.

  “That’s a good plan, Archard. We should do it,” said Vai.

  Asher looked at Vai. He maintained a sliver of anger in his face for just a moment before closing his eyes, nodding, and appearing more humbled. “Yes. We’ll do it. Make sure our best soldiers are the ones inside. Inform them of the plan, then make sure the men above ground remain ready for the gates to open.”

  “Aye, your Majesty,” Archard, Schafer, and Gorman affirmed. They all stood up and exited the tent, leaving Vai and Asher alone.

  Asher looked at Vai with a hint of irritation on his face. “You shouldn’t undermine me like that.”

  Vai’s eyes instantly widened, shocked that Asher would dare say such a thing. “Undermine you!? Who do you think I am? One of your underlings that isn’t permitted to question your ideas!?” she snapped.

  Asher flinched, seeming genuinely surprised by Vai’s reaction. “Vai… I didn’t mean it like that, I—”

  “Listen up, Asher. I know that you’re proud of the digging idea, and you should be, but one good idea does not make them all good. Killing thousands of our men needlessly is a terrible idea, so I undermined you! You understand?” Vai said angrily.

  Asher sat back in his chair, appearing much more grounded than before. “I… I apologize. You’re right, that was unbecoming.” He grabbed and held Vai’s hand gently.

  “Look, I understand the stress of your position. You’ve acquired the reputation of a strategic and tactical mastermind, which I truly believe is deserved. You’re expected to conjure up the perfect solution to every obstacle we face, but it’s important to know that you won’t always be able to do that. Even the smartest commanders and generals have poor ideas from time to time,” Vai explained.

  Asher smiled graciously. “Even commanders like Howell,” he said.

  Vai found herself laughing lightly. “Yes, even Howell.” She instantly felt at ease, remembering that, despite all his prior successes on the battlefield, Howell was still just a man, quite capable of making poor decisions. Throughout the entirety of the siege, he had not found a way to disrupt their plans; why should he find a way to do that now?

  One of Asher’s guards rushed in to the tent, appearing out of breath, as if he had just finished sprinting. He tried to say something, but his heavy breathing prevented any words from coming out. Why is he breathing so hard? Vai thought, briefly concerned.

  “Andy? What is it?” Asher inquired, letting go of Vai’s hand and standing up, walking over.

  “B—below, they told me—told me that they are just—just an hour away from being done,” said Andy, still catching his breath.

  “An hour? Good to know. Well, catch your breath, because the city will be falling not long after that,” said Asher.

  Andy chuckled. “You cooked up another brilliant plan?”

  Asher glanced back at Vai and smiled, then turned back to Andy. “Not me, Lord Archard did. Gonna fire explosive arrows onto their own firedust reserves, then the men inside will open the gates, then we’ll storm inside and take the city.”

  “Archard? Guy’s a genius. Good thing you got him to help you out,” said Andy.

  “He’s the main reason my army defeated King Hiroshi at Robinsport,” said Vai.

  Andy looked past Asher at Vai. “You two, Gorman, Schafer, and Archard? I’m surprised Howell hasn’t begged for mercy already.”

  “Soon,” said Vai.

  Andy chuckled, along with Asher.

  “Go on, Andy. Stay outside and I’ll be right out to join you,” said Asher.

  Andy nodded at Vai and then Asher, then promptly exited the tent. Asher walked back to Vai, an earnest expression on his face. “I’ll make sure to bring Howell to you, alive.”

  Vai stood up from her chair with a mischievous grin. “I’ll make sure to find Howell alive.”

  Asher’s eyes opened wide and his eyebrows shot up. “You want to…”

  “Yes. It wouldn’t sit well with the Rockmen if I sat this one out. You’re not the only one that’s acquired a reputation,” Vai explained.

  “I, uh, can’t argue with that,” said Asher.

  Vai walked up to Asher and kissed him. “Don’t worry. It won’t be my first battle.”

  CH 59 – Asher XVI

  The sun had disappeared beneath the horizon and now the Stars themselves were to give witness to the imminent victory. The underground men were due to emerge within minutes, so Asher and Vai waited amid a mass of Guardsmen. Asher wore his usual armor along with a distinctive Emberland helm that was a much brighter red than that of any other Emberlander. Vai wore her battledress but with no helm, wanting her vision unrestricted. Asher was armed with his sword and Vai had her bow, along with a quiver filled to the brim with arrows. All the men nearby looked at them with deifying admiration.

  From atop Habwaken’s ramparts, the army must have appeared just as lax as it had throughout the duration of the siege, but every man was tense, eager to hear the cue. The emergence squads would soon set off the explosives, then the army would promptly assemble into formation and charge the moment the gates opened.

  The cue was due to happen any time now. Each passing second felt like a lifetime. Asher remembered the anticipation he had felt just before the bombing of the Furakuhold, and how time itself had stopped. The men who had once been bored and trying to pass the time throughout the siege now sat around their campfires, shivering, not from the cold of night, but from incomprehensible anticipation.

  Time… Continued… To… Slow… Silence overtook the camp, only the flickering of fire to be heard. Asher glared at the ramparts. Very few men seemed to patrol the walls, the orange glow of fire sparsely lighting up different points along the wall. Any… Second… Now…

  From within the city, a flash came and went in an instant, followed by a massive, ear-piercing explosion. BOOOOOOOOM! Everyone around Asher flinched with him. Despite expecting and knowing of the impending explosion, they could not help but experience absolute surprise.

  “Form up! Now!” Asher bellowed, unable to hear even his own voice. Nevertheless, the soldiers knew their duty and immediately shot up to their feet and got into formation. The ringing in his ears began to fade.

  Clouds of dust began to emerge from within the city as the sound of crumbling and collapsing buildings emanated through the air. Incoherent shouts and cries faintly echoed from atop the wall as the men on watch frantically ran around their post. Multiple shouts could be heard by the various commanders in Asher’s army, all echoing the same sentiment: to wait for their moment. The moment those gates opened, the war would be won.

  And so, Asher continued to wait, glaring over the nearby men at Habwaken’s gate. How long until the men reach that gate? Will they even be able to open it? Will they be spotted? Did Lord Archard and Schafer really send our best men to do the job? Asher had more questions than he could process. Only a few seconds had passed, but the wait for the gates to open was even more excruciating than the wait for the explosion. Within the city, panicked cries continued to echo, and dust continued to rise.

  Thunk. A faint sound briefly emanated from the gate, hundreds of feet away. In a glorious moment of overwhelming catharsis, the gates slowly began to open outward. The doors swung open to reveal five men pushing viciously on either one. Asher’s army roared a cheer as the beginnings of the city were revealed.

&nb
sp; “CHARGE!” Asher screamed.

  The Guardsmen around him proceeded to storm the gate, and he and Vai kept up. Behind them, the roars of the army filled the air as they followed. Asher felt his adrenaline pump greater than at any moment in his life. This is it. This is where we beat Howell. This is where we end the war. His face had both a bright smile and fierce battle-scowl at once. He glanced at Vai, who looked back up at him with the same fervor.

  When the vanguard passed through the gate, they found themselves inside a fog of dust, their noses filled with the stench of burning corpses. The air was filled with the storming footsteps of the army and the agonized screams of the people inside. Dazed and confused civilians shambled around the streets, while the Midland soldiers scurried around terrified.

  “THEY’RE INSIDE!”

  Confusion and chaos ensued. Detachments of Midland soldiers charged Asher’s vanguard, but were promptly executed. As more men poured through the city, they began ascending the stairways and ladders leading up to the ramparts.

  “Keep moving! Take the city!” Asher roared.

  Confusion and chaos persisted. Vai shot arrows from her bow at enemies in or on the various buildings around them, while more headstrong Midlanders continued to charge the shield wall and promptly get cut down by the Guardsmen. Grunts, screams, shouts, and cries were the sounds made by men, women, and children, while the whishes of arrows, steel clashing, and flesh ripping were made by the weapons of war.

  Asher had his sword drawn, but the line surrounding him was too strong to allow for any enemy to get remotely close to him. Give me something to kill! His body screamed at him, right down to the marrow.

  A few Guardsmen caught an arrow or Midlander’s spear, and others promptly took their place. They navigated the corpses that littered the street, most of whom were Midland soldiers.

  “INCOMING CAVALRY!” a Guardsmen screamed, almost terrified.

  In front of Asher, the line promptly bended their knees and held their shields up formidably. Over their heads, Asher saw an incoming charge of a half-dozen horsemen wielding spears and torches, chanting and roaring wildly as they bore down on his vanguard.

  “AYEEAYEEAYEEAYEEAYEEAYEEAYEE!” Their cries seemed animalistic taunts as they drew nearer.

  The cavalry impacted the shield wall with great force, sending a dozen heavy infantrymen reeling back off-balance. A few of the men caught the horsemen’s spears in their throats, necks, or chests as the enemy persisted, pushing the vanguard back several steps. Vai loosed an arrow and successfully killed one of the attackers, knocking the newly-made corpse off its horse. The animal, frightened, panicked and galloped all around, trampling a few Guardsmen, then colliding into the adjacent horse, launching its rider over the shield line and onto the ground beside Asher.

  The end of Asher’s sword quickly found itself in the skull of the collapsed rider. He swiftly pulled his sword out and let out a scream of animalistic fury, shoving his way past the off-balance Guardsmen and towards the remaining horsemen. The riders still had their spears lodged in the bodies of Rockmen and Emberlanders, so Asher stabbed and slashed his way through, facing futile resistance. The horses scattered and ran back the way they came, disappearing into the chaos of fear and death on the next street.

  “Come on! Keep moving! We’re not done yet!” Asher screamed behind him at the stunned Guardsmen.

  Asher pushed towards the next street, when a contingent of Midland infantry turned his way and laid eyes on him.

  “It’s the Firelord! Get him!” one of the Midlanders shouted, his accent thick and fierce.

  A thunderous stampede emerged just next to the enemy infantry, and a red fury ran them down and decimated them. The red fury whinnied madly. Armored cavalry, he recognized. The friendly forces rampaged through the boulevard, annihilating any and all resistance, whether Midland archers, infantrymen, or cavalry. Hundreds of them continued to run through the street, forming a red wall that blocked off Asher’s vanguard.

  Asher paused a moment, took a step back, and took in his surroundings. His Guardsmen breathed rapidly and heavily, Vai’s eyes scanned for anything to shoot an arrow at, the sounds of combat continued to rip through the air, and the general intensity and location of the sounds were dynamic and shifting throughout the city.

  “Men!” Everyone perked up at Asher’s voice. “We’re almost at the end of this! When we find Howell, we win the war! As soon as our cavalry passes through the street, we go to the palace and end the fucking war! Ya like the sound of that!?”

  “OOH!” the Guardsmen roared as they stomped their feet.

  “I like the sound of that! Now, stay tight and follow me! When I go, you go! When I stop, you stop!”

  “OOH!”

  Asher went before the red wall that continued to stampede on. The Guardsmen quickly caught up and went right behind him. Vai stood just next to Asher. He looked at her, and they gave each other a downwards nod.

  The intensity of the red wall began to wane, until eventually the last armored horse galloped past. Asher immediately sprinted out into the street, Vai and the rest of the men just behind him. The street was littered with the corpses of Rockmen, Emberlanders, Midlanders, horses, and civilians, but Asher’s tunnel vision was too powerful for him to acknowledge the dead or dying.

  Asher continued, carefully navigating the bodies, and analyzing the street. The map had explained that the palace would be impossible to miss, placed right in the center of the city. Surely enough, a grandiose rectangular building embroidered all over with countless precious gemstones sat atop a massive marble foundation just a few hundred feet away. The sounds of combat emanated from all around but seemed to be centralized towards the palace.

  “Ready yourselves! Howell will be in that building!” Asher bellowed.

  Asher, Vai, and his vanguard seemed to gain incredible speed, bearing down on the palace in seconds. The palace was protected by a modest wall, but the front gates were already open: Emberland, Rockland, and Midland corpses were strewn about the ground outside. More combat was taking place inside.

  Asher quickly stormed inside the palace gates to find a vast courtyard filled with pockets of fights involving many dozens of men on either side. He scanned for the largest groups of Midland soldiers and charged. He briefly turned his head towards his vanguard. “Fight anyone that needs fighting!”

  Asher quickly caught up with an assortment of Emberlanders who were outnumbered by the attacking Midlanders. He quickly ran around the side and began hacking and slashing through them. When they broke rank to try and take on the infamous Firelord, their attacks were met with swift parries and counters that ultimately led to their deaths. All throughout the courtyard, Asher dashed around and systematically wiped out any contenders.

  When the nearby hostiles were dead, Asher felt his adrenaline start to wane. He climbed up the stairs a few steps and Vai joined him. They looked at one another with cocktails of happiness, relief, and major tension on their contradictory faces.

  “How are you holding up?” Asher inquired.

  “I thought we were done when the cavalrymen charged and broke our line, and when the enemy infantry spotted us, just before the armored cavalry wiped them out.” Vai spoke with a certain dryness and authority that seemed completely unlike her. None of us are ourselves in battle, I suppose.

  Asher looked at the soldiers, all of whom were still taking stock of their surroundings.

  “I need ten men with me, now! The rest of you will secure the courtyard and make sure none of Howell’s men can come here to save him!” Asher called out to them.

  “OOH!” all the men affirmed, quickly moving to carry out their orders.

  A few of the men from the vanguard and seven of the courtyard fighters quickly hobbled up the steps, eagerly awaiting their next command.

  “You men found your way to the palace already, yeah? Can you tell me anything about the situation?” Asher inquired.

  “Colonel Schafer is inside with a dozen men a
lready. He ordered us to fight the men in the courtyard so he could go capture Howell during the distraction,” one of the Emberlanders informed.

  “All right. We should get inside then,” said Vai.

  “Agreed. C’mon men, let’s go!” Asher ordered.

  “Aye sir!” the ten men affirmed.

  They charged up the stairs onto the landing just before the main doors. The doors had already been broken open, so Asher ran with his sword out. The main room inside was several magnitudes more lavish than the Furakuhold, caked all around in gold and marble furnishings, a silver fountain, and countless gemstones embroidering the furniture and pillars throughout the room. A few Emberlanders waiting inside were startled by Asher’s sudden entrance, and they drew their swords defensively. They exhaled with relief when they recognized him.

  “Colonel Schafer! They’re here!” one of the Emberlanders called out.

  Schafer emerged from around one of the corners, his sword sheathed, holding his helm beneath his left armpit. He had a disconcerted facial expression, but he did not seem affected by the fighting; rather, it seemed by something else. Asher sheathed his sword and took his helm off as well, looking at Schafer both curiously and concernedly.

  “Schafer? Did you get Howell?” Asher inquired.

  Schafer, maintaining his distressed posture, handed his helm to one of his men, and stopped, looking off at nothing. He paused a moment, then looked up at Asher, despair in his eyes. “He isn’t here.”