章 31: Defence Of Mistwood
More clansmen charged out under the darkness of the night sky and from the green leaves of the forests. They sprinted where the palisade walls were not complete, stopped by the spears, shields, rocks and arrows of the villagers. They were as relentless as hungry dogs that saw fresh meat, however, and began to force the issue.
"Dirty fucking beggars."
Sandor cursed as the clansmen began to leak through the left flank. He walked over and pushed the struggling villager to the side before clashing against a mountain clanner. He smashed his head against his head, which made the man stagger back in shock. The Hound drove his sword through the outlaw's chest without hesitation, pushing him down to the ground with his free hand.
Clang.
Not even a split second later, he was faced with another… no, three of them. Their sheer numbers had overwhelmed most of the ordinary villagers, and seeing some of them die led to their courage wavering.
"Make way!" Arthur shouted, riding towards the line with his horse.
He was followed by Ser Loras, Garlan, Mandon and the four Vale Knights who had formed a wedge formation behind him.
The villagers retreated to the side, letting the knights ride straight into the wall of clansmen.
CLAANG.
Their horses charged right through, with five clansmen dying to lances alone and another two to Arthur's Nightfall. Quite a few clansmen retreated, not wishing to be trampled.
"Surround the horses!"
Their leader, Badog, roared as he swung his massive club at Ser Loras' horse. He struck its head directly, which made the mare rear back in pain. Loras was unable to concentrate, to which Badog smashed his club against the horse once more... leading to it falling to the ground- along with Loras.
Loras pushed the horse off himself, but not quickly enough. Badog was already on him, wooden club raised.
Slash.
In the blink of an eye, a charging knight separated the lower half of his left arm from the rest. By the time he had blinked, the knight had turned his horse to face him and extended the sword's black glow.
Slash.
His head rolled off so quickly...
It was like a flame to paper.
"Come on, Flowerknight." Arthur raised an eyebrow. "Get your ass off the grass."
Loras drew his sword, taking on the two combatants that charged him. Arthur turned his attention elsewhere, riding to slash away at the archers. With Edric's mounted troops riding out of the village and flanking the mountain clanners, there was less pressure on the defences.
However, they still greatly outnumbered them and chose to force the issue on the main line of defence.
The Hound had already put down ten while Ser Balon shot down another seven, but only more came to replace them. He was forced to take steps back, and so were the rest of the villagers. Their line was on the brink of collapse as more fell to the clansmen.
The earth suddenly rumbled...
Was it a heavy stallion?
The judgement of the gods?
No...
It was a horned demon charging at full speed... with a colossal Warhammer in hand.
"WITH ME!"
His voice boomed like thunder and rallied the retreating villagers like a metal chain. He charged right in, his eyes sparking purple with power.
BANG.
His first swing smashed right into one man's head like a collapsing boulder, brutally crushing it along with his helmet. The next tried to swing at him with a sword, but he weaved out of the way, smashing his warhammer into his shoulder. He swiftly followed up with a thunderous blow into the abdomen.
That man... was dead.
Seeing the mighty fury of their golden-caped, stag-horned and fearless King... the rest of the villagers swiftly rallied to his side. Whether they were able to fight or not, everyone contributed. From atop the palisade walls, Ser Balon shot down more of them alongside his archers. Women and children threw down stones of various sizes to distract them or even cause some damage.
Edric strong-armed the vanguard alongside the Hound, aiding the villagers who needed it and terrifying his enemies with mighty Warhammer blow after mighty Warhammer blow. Meanwhile, the knights continued to slaughter the flanks of the clansmen.
Their numbers fell and fell...
"SEND THESE FUCKING DOGS PACKING!"
Edric's roar boomed like thunder, inspiring his people and terrifying the clansmen. They roared with him, feeling their blood rush with lust for blood as he did. Suddenly, these men were not ordinary men at all... they were demons armed with swords, spears and axes. And these demons... knew no mercy.
When they began to retreat... it was too late.
The clansmen were hunted down like rodents, put down by the armed villagers and knights.
By the end, corpses littered the entrance of Mistwood. The grass had gone dry red with blood. Heavy rain reduced the stench, but it was strong regardless. Edric stood at the centre of it all... over the corpses of his trampled foes, helmet and warhammer in hand, as the rain poured down his face.
The once eager villagers lost their adrenaline, beginning to mourn over the fallen.
"Every great victory comes at the loss of good men," Edric spoke softly, garnering the attention of all those around him. "Honour them and their sacrifice by cherishing the life they fought for. Cry, weep and mourn... but do not forget your smiles and cheers. That is what the fallen would have wanted."
After his speech, Edric put on his helmet and returned to the village, where a second dinner was due after all the fighting. Despite the losses, the villagers found joy in their victory. Without their training and the defences they had built, they would've been trampled by the mountain clan that had been a hundred and fifty strong.
Of course... another factor was their heroic King, who looked like the Warrior brought to life with Warhammer in hand, and his heroic knights. They were celebrated by everyone heartily.
...
"... You have my thanks, Ser Arthur." Loras suddenly stated as they ate.
"What sworn brother of the Kingsguard would I be if I let you fall to some stinking mountain clansman?" Arthur countered, smiling slightly. "Ser Garlan would never forgive me."
"Aye, Loras. You need to be more careful." Garlan added. "You had me worried there, little brother."
"I will be." Loras nodded. "Don't you worry."
"You saying that makes me worry even more." Garlan smiled. "Truthfully, these mountain clans pose little danger even with greater numbers. Their stone axes are only fit to shave sheep and could only dream of penetrating plate. Except... giants like the one who came up on you."
"Next time, aim for his head with your lance first. That will put him down."
"I'll take note of your advice." Loras nodded.
~
After the battle, we would spend another week ensuring everything was perfect. The palisade wall was complete, along with a wooden gate that would be the sole entrance and serve as a barricade in case of an attack.
I went out for a little hunt with Arthur, who looked in good spirits.
"Your Grace..."
"You don't need to call me that fancy title when no one else is around," I stated. "I hear enough of it already."
"Understood." He nodded. "I just wanted to say that... this time has been insightful. Defending the young, innocent and those who cannot protect themselves... serving justice, fighting bravely and completing all tasks necessary of me, no matter how hard or humble or dangerous they might be."
"It's... the first time in my life that I've felt I'm living up to what a true knight should be."
"... That's good." I nodded, smiling slightly. "Though, you have been brave before. You fulfilled those other vows before as well, albeit less directly. You are a little harsh on yourself."
"I am chasing the ghost of Dawn," Arthur admitted, smiling. "How could I not be harsh on myself?"
Chasing the ghost...
"If you seek to be the best, you should not aim to chase anyone. Take inspiration from the deeds of great knights, take note of their techniques and learn from them... but don't chase." I spoke, shaking my head. "If you truly want to be the greatest knight to ever take breath, you need to carve your own path. Your own legend."
"Not as Ser Arthur the Second, his shadow... but as yourself, Ser Arthur, the Knight of Nightfall."
"You're wise as ever, Edric..." Arthur smiled, nodding. "I'll try to live up to the name that you've given me."
"There is no try." I countered almost instantly, channelling my inner Yoda. "You either do it, or you don't."
"Then... I'll do it." He nodded with more confidence this time.
"Good..." I smiled, patting his shoulder. "I know you have it in you."
His brown eyes had a slight amber turn, as if they were burning.
"Does that count as a royal command?"
"Consider it one." I chuckled. "If Nightfall does not eclipse Dawn by the end of my life, you will have failed me."
"Very well..." Arthur nodded with a rather serious expression, turning away. "I have a long way to go."
"That... you do."
I noticed a pure white falcon looking at me from a tree trunk. It was bloody huge for a bird.
'It's not nice to eavesdrop.'
...
On the way out, we were accompanied by practically every last one of the villagers. I acted with courtesy and talked with everyone. Then... five youths stepped forward.
"We want to keep fighting."
I raised an eyebrow. "Fighting?"
"The mountain clansmen." He replied.
"Not just them... I want to be a knight. I want to fight for you, Your Grace." Another added, looking at my knights and then at me. "Please..."
I looked behind them.
"You all have families to help care for, no?"
"If we all work together, it should be no trouble, Your Grace." The elder reassured me. "If you can... grant the dream of these boys. Let them see the endless fields of green, the castles and the capital where all kinds of folk gather. Let them defend the people who can't defend themselves, as they did before and strive to do again."
"... Very well." I nodded, looking back at them. "I will take you boys under my wing."
The funny thing was that all of them were technically older than me... though, they certainly did not look it.
Regardless, My Little Warband.... was growing.
~
Edric began taking a more offensive approach to the mountain clans, tracking them down and eliminating every member in sight except those strung along by their barbaric ways. Sometimes, he'd approach a hideout alone and shoot every member dead with just his arrows. At other times, he fired from absurd distances that left everyone baffled... the ghosts included.
Once, he stormed a hideout with his knights, and they surrendered almost immediately. He chose to recruit them temporarily... leading them against the rival mountain clans and the more prominent clans after gaining intel on their whereabouts. These incursions were absurdly dangerous, ensuring they died off one after the other. Only the strongest of them survived.
Edric began to see potential in recruiting clansmen to kill each other, doing so more often. His warband continued to grow and grow, expanding to a hundred and then even two hundred.
His efforts spread so much fear that the remaining mountain clans put aside their grudges and united to destroy the horned demon. They numbered nearly seven hundred and began raiding local villages. Though, this alliance was exactly what Edric wanted... and it would not last long.
Their strength had been hiding from the Vale Knights in the mountains with their small numbers... but a group this large, in open fields?
Checkmate.
(Or Barbeque Chicken if you're Shaq.)
...
The clansmen had charged into Mistwood, of all places, smashing their axes against its wooden gate.
Shew. Shew. Shew.
Some of the clansmen turned, seeing three of their comrades fall. They looked back and saw a daunting figure atop a hill. His figure shined under the radiance of the sun, blinding them. The shadow of his horned helmet loomed large while the golden cape at his side fluttered wildly.
'All so nicely cramped together...'
He drew one arrow... except this would be not like the rest. His eyes glowed purple as he channelled his Storm magic. The wind curled around his bow, and the entire arrow began to light up with purple lightning.
Crack...
He let it fly... and the lightning of the skies followed their lord's arrow.
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