章 51: The fight for the city
Barda felt it before he heard it. The sound of thousands of horses coming at them could not be any scarier than what he heard. It was a roar of some creature, but not like one he'd ever heard before. Yet in that roar, death could be heard.
Barda turned his attention upwards, forgetting everything else going on down below. The people he had around could be trusted to solve the human enemies, but against what was coming for them, they would stand no chance.
Setting his zoom to the max, Barda scanned the skies for any signs. He found one, a few dots scattered somewhere far in the horizon, barely visible silhouettes in the blue canvas of the sky. Yet even from that distance, Barda could see them with crystal clarity.
Winged lizards, that was the best description he could come up with of the monsters coming at him, only, they were more gigantic and monstrous than any he had ever seen. From his estimate, they were about 10m long from snout to the tip of the tail. The wings measured 8m from tip to tip and there was a human on top. Only one word came to his mind as he watched the monsters appear, dragons. and there were 4 of them.
They were moving fast, super fast. Barda estimated them to be more than 15 miles away from where they were. However, by his reckoning, it would take them about 30 seconds to be on them. That was barely enough time for anyone to get off the battlefield.
Barda didn't know how to react or what to do. He didn't know how powerful this new threat was, but if the legends he had read about were anything to go by, these were the stuff of nightmares.
***
"What do you think the Tristanites will do with our landing gifts?" The prince asked one of his aides, an elder.
"If they are smart, they will run to the hills, Sire!" the aide answered back enthusiastically.
"And if they are not?" The prince asked.
"Then we'll just wait and see what happens," an enthusiastic soldier answered back.
To their defense, the Guminates had all the right to have such a bold attitude, they were going all out to take over the small city. It wasn't just about the city of Tristan. Taking on Tristan meant getting a foothold in another continent, and the prince was willing to go all out to get that.
His grandfather had built the kingdom to something more than just the scraps he picked from his father. It was he who set the tone for what the kingdom became now. Then came his father, an equally impressive man with an impressive record. What the prince didn't know was that if people were fearful of his father, they were scared, scratch that, terrified of him.
He was the kind of threat that everyone just allowed to have his way. Having grown up with a psycho for a father and a desire to please not only his father but also fulfill a duty to his people. A duty that his father had insisted consisted of blood and pillaging.
With that kind of background and a headstrong personality that was influenced to go to the gore side, the prince killed anything he came across. It wasn't as natural as his father's, but that was what made him even more terrifying. His aides and guards had to watch what they say.
This time, he had turned up the heat a little too much. He stood on the deck of his ship, watching the onslaught begin.
"Launch the catapults, soften the landing for what is to come," The prince said as he gave the signal. Far away, his commands were conveyed to the front lines, where the spear of his navy was located.
Receiving the command, the skies overlooking Tristan blackened as a momentous rain of boulders and ballistae bolts filled took to the air.
Tristan had a large coast spanning hundreds of miles, but the main bay was what led to the main sea gate. It was also the place where the walls converged and formed the deck and right where the King of Tristan was located. He was right at the edge, in a place called the King's podium. It was at least 5 miles away from the action, but he was still at a place he could monitor it and issue commands.
On seeing the coming onslaught of boulders and various war machine ammo, even he was tempted to go back to the palace, but this was no time to show fear. He needed his men ready to execute and protect his nation, which meant that he had to be ready to execute and protect his nation too.
"Sink them all!" The King commanded. While the Guminates could fire their weapons, so could the Tristanites. Theirs were built on walls, in the walls. Their boulders were refined and built to carry oil, causing a mini-explosion on landing. The ballistae bolts were also better crafted than the mobile ones.
For a time, the skies above Tristan became a death zone. Boulders and bolts flashed across each other, killing anything in their way.
The mighty Tristan wall, which was reinforced 8 times, was beginning to crumble. Despite the heavy reinforcements it had, some bits of it were beginning to come out. It should be known that Tristan walls had also been reinforced with magic.
There was a time the Eastern continent had magic and lots of it, but all that had been lost when the Magician Association was disbanded. It was as though they hit the continent one last time before disappearing. However, these walls belonged from the ancient era when magic was still rampant, their magic was strong and built to withstand almost anything flung at them. If they were chipping off then it could only mean one thing, the enemy was using magic.
On their side, the Guminates weren't fairing any better. Already, they had lost several ships, and some among them had the war machines on deck. Both sides were taking too many hits, but this was the reality of war. Keep throwing resources and lives at each other until you find out who has the bigger advantage.
Suddenly, they heard it, a roar in the skies above. The King and his entourage atop the walls were curious to see what was making all that ruckus. Turning to the side, they didn't even get a chance to breathe before they were incinerated, burned to a crisp in a split second.
Before anyone could react, 10 gigantic lizard-looking monsters had descended on the Tristan wall, wreaking unimaginable havoc wherever they went. Dragon riders were guiding them as they flew across the walls, breathing fire and destroying everything they touched.
Watching from the deck, the prince of Gumina breathed a sigh of trepidation. He had thought Tristan would be difficult to handle. He turned around to his aide and said: "Give the signal, let the Reuzean dogs get in the fight."
***
"Move faster, we have to get to the princess back to the city!" Captain Morio yelled at his men as he urged his horse forward. At some point, one just needs to realize their city has become a kingdom, he thought as he rode on. He never knew his city was this huge. He wondered how big the kingdoms were if they were bigger than this.
He had his mission, straight from the King himself. He had his people, each one reliable. They had been to hell and back together, he knew the color of the blood of his men, and they all bled for their country. He was a proud commander dedicated to keeping the name of his city proud and high. Ready to lay his life for his city.
He had been riding as hard as he could while still keeping the horses on the job. he couldn't ride them too hard or they would stall. Despite that, he was making good time, and he would be in his destination within the hour. Unfortunately, an hour is like a century in a war.
Just as he was about to celebrate their progress, he heard a blast followed by a roar. From their distance, he could see the skies above the battlefield. What he saw made his heart leap to his mouth in awe, and fright gripped his heart.
Watching the monsters flying over his own made him want to charge to the battlefield even more, even though he knew it was pointless. He had no solution for those fiends he had only heard about. However, something captured Old Morio's attention.
The beasts, which were 4 in number, were not as destructive as they should have been. They seemed to be caught in a battle with archers. The archers weren't that many, but they were very good from what he could tell. To be able to restraint the monsters. How could he know that it was just one man going toe to toe with 4 dragons?
クリエイターの想い 
kingly_sword
kingly_sword Hey guys,
Today I've decided to drop a bonus chapter. Don't forget to drop a power stone or 3, leave a comment and a review.
Yeah, my weak attempt at a bribe, let's see if it works. Gotta say though, so much fun writing down here, since there is no pesky editor to keep me in check. I can start a sentence with 'but', only, I haven't found what to say but to!
Okay, I'm done.
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