The Tagrosi Army
Violent, desperate trumpet blasts woke me up before sunrise. I sat up in bed and peered across the room at Zac, who had already thrown off his covers and run to the window in his pajamas.
“What’s going on?” he asked. “Why are they practicing trumpets so early?” His voice was groggy and he rubbed his eyes with his fists.
I rose from my bed, my legs still aching with fatigue, and stumbled over to the same window. I pulled back the curtains so I could see outside better, and turned my eyes to the hills in the distance. There I saw a force of countless men marching toward Oakbridge. The red glow of what I assumed were iron-edges illuminated this army in scarlet, making the sight all the more frightening.
It’s an invasion…
I knelt in front of Zac, reached under my bed, and produced a skeleton key. “You remember where Mr. Benji’s emergency cellar is?”
He tilted his head to one side, his bulbous eyes full of fear and confusion. “Yeah… why?”
I held his hand, gently opened his fingers, and placed the key on his palm. “You go down there and you hide, understand? Don’t come out until either me or Mr. Benji come to get you.”
“Why? What’s going on?” he asked.
“Bad men are coming,” I said. “Maybe they’ll leave us alone, but we don’t know. So you have to stay hidden.”
He glanced toward the window, then back to me. “Are you going to fight them?”
“I hope not.” I shook my head.
“I can help you!” he looked over to his wooden sword, which stood propped against the wall.
“No, these men are too dangerous for that!” I wagged a finger in front of his face. “I need you to stay safe, Zac. Can you do that for me?”
His eyes wandered back and forth from the window to me again.
“Please?” I said.
“Yeah…” he closed his fingers around the key, snatched his wooden sword off the wall and started toward the door.
“Wait!” I called out. “Why are you taking your sword?”
“In case they find me!” he called back just before opening our door and running down the hall.
I could only hope his answer had been honest and I wouldn’t see him running out, trying to fight the enemy soldiers with his favorite toy.
Once he was gone, I went to my closet and moved aside the false floor there. Underneath, I’d stored my silver-edge, which I strapped to my back. Like I told Zac, I hoped I wouldn’t have to fight these invaders, but if it became necessary it was best to be ready.
Downstairs I met with Benji at the front door. He slung over one shoulder a sledgehammer larger than any other man I knew could lift, and over his other a loaded crossbow.
Jeseka was already outside waiting for us, a two-handed sword strapped to her back. “We have any hope fighting an army that size?”
“We have plenty a hope of fightin’ ‘em,” said Benji, the curls of his mustache accentuating his frown. “Winnin’s another story.”
“Let’s just see what the Sheriff says,” I chimed in. “Maybe he has a plan which doesn’t involve fighting.
The town streets were filled with people, everyone able-bodied enough to wield a weapon stood at the ready, exchanging words of either encouragement or despair. Just on a glance, it appeared as if I was one of the extremely few with an Ancient weapon, and mine had spent so little time in drinking in the moonlight lately that I worried it might not even ignite when I needed it to.
Benji, Jeseka, and I headed toward the sheriff’s office, where everyone else seemed to be gathering as well.
Sheriff Jayden Wood stood outside the office, his wide-brimmed hat atop his head and his gray coat hanging down to just past his knees. His hair was cut short, and his jaw showed a hint of stubble. He leaned on a cane plated with gold, with a red lac stone at the top where his palm rested.
For just a moment, his eyes betrayed his dread as he peered out to the approaching army on the horizon. I could hardly blame him. Jayden wasn’t elected sheriff because of his warrior prowess, but because he was excellent at solving crimes. His education at Grofhurst University was surely poor preparation for this. But when he glanced back at his five deputies in their silver-mail, each aglow with moonlight, he managed a smirk which gave the illusion of confidence.
He raised one hand and called out, “Everyone! Quiet! I need you to listen!”
The murmuring in the frightened crowd slowly died down, and all present prepared themselves for Jayden’s words.
“Just by the look of it, this is an army we can’t hope to beat in a straight fight, but I don’t think it’ll be necessary.” He peered up the hill at the approaching soldiers again. “We can slow them down long enough for most of us to get away if we’re willing to destroy the bridge. So… where’s Keren?”
The school teacher raised her hand amidst the crowd. “Right here, Sheriff!”
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Jayden pointed to the bridge. “You gather up all the children and take them to the other side of the bridge. You still have those luma rings?”
Keren held up both her hands and a beam of golden light arced between her palms. “I do.”
“Good,” said Jayden. “These folks give me the heebie jeebies. If it turns out they’re trying to bump us off, use your rings to burn the bridge, then take everyone and run. Get to the next town and warn them of what’s coming.” Jayden turned to the rest of the crowd. “Anyone who can’t fight needs to scram with Keren. As for those of you who can fight and have weapons, you will stay on this side. I’ll see if I can talk to their leader and get them to leave us alone, but if they won’t you need to do everything you can to hold them back while the rest get away.”
He sighed, took off his hat, and scratched his head. When the hat was back in its proper place, he continued, “I know you’re scared, and no one can blame you for that. But, personally, I’m far more terrified of what these strangers might do to our women and children if we don’t make a stand here. With any luck, or with Heaven on our side, maybe they won’t want to fight. It’s possible all they want is to cross our bridge and be on their way. Mr. Strato!”
Benji raised his hand so Jayden could spot him in the crowd. An unnecessary gesture, given his size. “Yes, Mr. Wood?”
“You come with me when I speak to their leader,” said Jayden. “I figure one look at you and at least a few of them will shake in their boots. Choose one more to come with you.”
Benji turned to me, “Ahv, you’re with me.”
“Mhmm.”
As Benji and I walked with Jayden and his deputies to face the approaching army, I glanced back at the inn and wondered if I ought to go back and tell Zac to cross the bridge with Keren. Would he be safer with the other people fleeing the town? As I thought about it, it seemed far more likely that this enemy army would pursue the people trying to flee so they couldn’t warn the next town. Zac was probably safer hiding in the cellar than trying to run away.
Assuming he didn’t come out and try to fight the strangers.
Ahead of us we saw the enemy army. On a glance it must have been over two-thousand men strong. Each soldier wore a white military uniform with black trim and a collar rising up to just under his chin. All of them held iron-edges which glowed with the light of the red comet.
Such a force couldn’t be here simply to capture our little town, a thought which gave me some hope that they would not do us harm. The thought did occur to me that they might be here for Zac, given his strange origins, but I quickly dismissed it as impossible. I was the only one who even knew that Zac might actually be Zahac.
For a moment, I wondered how such a force had marched through the night without encountering darklings. In the direction from which they came, there wasn’t an Everburn for many miles, far further than they could have marched in a single night. No army could be composed of such great warriors that they could fight off the darklings all night.
At the front of the horde there rolled an ornate, gold-plated chariot pulled by two horses. Golden light danced around the chariot, which told me it was shielded by magic. The man riding it had a pale face, half-lidded sky-blue eyes, and blood-red hair in soft, messy locks. He wore a white military uniform with a high collar and scarlet and gold trim. His cheeks were shaven so smooth I might have thought him a child were it not for his height. Golden earrings hung from both ears with lac stones on the end. The earrings were far from the only pieces of jewelry he wore which held lac stones, for he also wore a gold ring on each finger, gold wristbands, and a golden medallion, each clearly an Ancient relic of some sort.
Upon our approach, the man in the chariot raised his right hand and the ring on his index finger glowed, sending a golden flare into the sky. Within seconds, the whole army stopped its thunderous march. He pulled his horse’s reins to bring them to a halt, then gestured for us to draw closer.
Jayden looked at us, then did as the stranger bid him. The rest of us followed, our weapons now in hand and ready for the fight ahead of us that we knew we could not win. I put on a stony face, but deep inside I begged Heaven above to prevent a battle from breaking out that day.
The leader of this invading army spoke first. “I am Consul Eon Maganti,” he said. “Ruler of the Republic of Tagros and leader of the Free Army.”
Jayden’s fingers clasped tighter on the handle of his cane. “I’m Sheriff Jayden Wood, protector of the town of Oakbridge.”
“A pleasure to meet you, Sheriff.” Eon smiled, but his eyes did not. “You are understandably worried about this army approaching your town, am I correct?”
“More worried about what we might have to do to this army,” said Jayden with a confident smirk. He gestured to Benji and I. “We may be few, but we are strong, and we love our home.”
Eon folded his hands together and tilted his head to one side. “I like you, Jayden. May I call you Jayden?”
“Whatever you like, Mr. Maganti,” said Jayden with a shrug.
“You’re a man of great integrity, who understands his duty to his people,” said Eon. “A duty to keep them safe, secure, and free. The truth is, I have no intention at all of harming the people of Oakbridge--” I exhaled my relief, until his next statement, “--unless they give me a damn good reason. No doubt this raises the question of why we are here.” Eon gestured back at his army. “Here with a force far larger than we would need to take ten Oakbridges. We are on our way to the lands beyond your town, lands we seek to bring the light of freedom and liberty.” As he spoke, his head tilted back, as if he were slowly bringing them up to gaze upon a heavenly figure which had appeared in the distant sky. “Oakbridge is merely on our way to our real goal.”
“So,” Jayden said, “if we let you and your army pass through, you will leave us alone?”
Eon’s smile widened, but there was no friendliness to it. I’d seen that same smile on Master Kedar’s face, years ago, just before he mocked me. “The truth is a little more complex. That is the essence of it, yes, but what you see here is only one of many legions I intend to take across your bridge. We are here to secure the area so that the rest of the army may cross safely.”
Eon raised both his hands reassuringly. “You need not worry about feeding or housing us, we have brought our own supplies. We’ll set up camp around Oakbridge and hold the area while the rest of the army comes. Once all our soldiers have safely made it across, we will be on our way, and you can go about business as usual. In the meantime, my soldiers will buy from your shops and offer their protection against bandits, marauders, monsters, darklings, and anything else that might threaten your little town. Does that sound fair?”
Jayden hesitated for a moment, but finally said. “Yes, that sounds like a fair deal to me.”
“Splendid!” said Eon, clasping his hands together again. “Most wonderful news indeed. I shall allow you a little time to go back to Oakbridge and explain the situation to your people.”
“Thank you, Mr. Maganti.” Jayden gave a tip of his hat and turned to leave. All of us followed suit.
Once we were far out of ear-shot of Eon Maganti and his soldiers, I turned to Jayden and said, “You don’t really think they’ll just leave once they’ve gotten all their troops through, do you?”
Jayden shook his head. “Of course they won’t, that’s complete bushwa. But what else can we do? He’s got far too many bruisers on his side. So, what else can we do? At least they don’t intend to just bop us all and take our stuff. For now, it seems Oakbridge is under the control of the Republic of Tagros.”