Maze rested his hand on an open page and gazed towards the distant enemy. His eyes drifted from one blank face to another. They were all the same, with eyes clouded by a haze of smoke.
The mass of eerily silent soldiers all looked forward uninterested with glazed over expressions.
"What's wrong with them?" Charles asked.
Maze turned to the young man and with a sinking feeling explained. "All the soldiers you see before you have been enslaved by magic. They’re as good as dead and will keep fighting even at the brink of death."
Maze watched as Charles grimaced. Searching for the sight that repulsed the young man, he spotted a fallen soldier in the throng.
The lone soldier had fallen while getting into formation and had been trampled by his uninterested comrades. Even with arms and legs crooked and broken the man still tried to get back into line with everyone else.
"Who has done this to them?" Charles trembled in both awe and rage. "This is inhumane. This is evil."
Maze sighed. "The paranoid King. A huge mass of vermin’s moving north, and I believe the King thinks it is an intentional attack."
"Is it?" Charles asked.
"Could be. But I doubt it. Swine aren’t smart and I can't believe that any man could control an infestation of animals like that. So, his delusion has caused him to poison his own people." Maze gestured to the enslaved warriors before them. "He must have delivered the tonic to their water supply to have affected so many." Maze sighed again, feeling his age as he inspected all the hopeless faces of the villagers behind him.
The situation was hopeless.
A flicker of movement caught his attention. From beneath the line of trees to the east, a sole rider galloped towards the Bran wall from the north. Maze felt a flicker of hope as he spotted the colour of the man's cloak and saddle.
Deep brown robes billowed behind him as he rode at an incredible speed.
Good, Fredrickson had finally arrived with news from the General, Maze thought.
"Excuse me, Charles," Maze said and made his way towards the eastern side of the wall, leaving the young man to gawk at the sea of slave soldiers.
The army below barely registered the cloaked messenger, and no order was given to intercept him.
The shoulder of the field to the east had been left bear to keep a distance between the line of men and the shadow of the mighty forest. Maze knew it was both a tactical and a political decision. Uncontrollable forces lay within the borders of the forest and the King didn’t want the distraction of another war to slow his crusade with whatever madness he had his sight set on.
"Move out the way." Cried Maze as he made his way towards the messenger.
"Maze!" Shouted Fredrickson. He patted his horse's flank to ease the poor animal.
It was as Maze neared the beast and man when he spotted evidence of fallen leaves and mud upon the two. He had travelled the shadow cross. A lone twisting road between the outer walls and the forest.
"Maze!" He shouted again.
"Over here!" Maze coughed as he fought to gain his breath. "What has happened?"
"The general!" Fredrickson looked about close to despair. "He’s fallen. The tonic."
Mazes' body stiffened. His vision trembled as he grasped the edges of the wall.
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"Damn it..." He muttered to his self. "How? Was he not posted outside the city till now?"
Frederickson bobbed his head. "He was. A few days ago, a messenger came to the camp all dressed in black. Nothing happened at first but then half the camp was enslaved, and they killed the other half.”
“Damnit!” Maze yelled.
“Only a few of us managed to escape." Fredrickson grimaced under the weight of his own words. "You must all flee! Get away while you can!"
Maze fought back the fit if panic and forced to calm his composure. "And Lady Amber?" He asked cautiously.
Fredrickson shuffled in his saddle below.
"And how is the General's wife? Is she?" Maze trembled.
"No. Not yet. She is safe for now. She’s in the Dukes' keep."
Maze nodded. "I wouldn't be so sure. Go to her quickly! Meet us across the river!"
Without another word Fredrickson spun his mount around and galloped back the winding deadly trail.
⚔
"They're coming!" a familiar voice resounded, shattering the eerie silence.
Maze turned and spotted Arthur who was pointing into the distance.
“Damn!” Maze swore as fought his way through the crowd.
As he reached Arthur, the enemy forces advanced, now a few hundred yards away from the wall, their approach accompanied only by muffled footsteps. Maze’s heart sank as he surveyed the colossal force standing before him, their sheer numbers overwhelming.
Maze found Charles kneeling by Arthur's side, slouching disheartened.
“This is all fucked up,” he said.
A myriad of banners fluttered above the approaching army, bearing various symbols that held no meaning to a slave army. Maze looked through the ranks. While most soldiers lacked proper armour, they all brandished long spears or swords.
Suddenly, a commotion erupted atop the western side of the wall. A rope flung over the fortification, and a tiny figure leaped over, heading toward the advancing army. It was none other than the former mayor, Quail, the snivelling bureaucrat who took the opportunity while everyone was distracted to rush to the safety of the oncoming troops.
"Little shit," Arthur cursed under his breath, witnessing Quail's cowardly retreat.
The former mayor ran almost skipping towards his would-be freedom, only to be swiftly cut down by the mindless soldiers. Arthur winced at the sight.
The line of marching men ignored the body and continued their advance, painting their shin guards red. Quail's lifeless form disappeared from view as the soldiers continued their persistent march.
"Charles! Arthur!" Maze said in a low tone. “We must get everyone…”
Suddenly, a massive ball of energy arced through the air, creating a deafening roar, drowning out all other sounds. The ball emitted a dark purple light as it soared, plunging everything nearby into shadow.
Maze watched baffled, as miniature explosions danced within the sphere of magic then struck the ground precisely where Quail had escaped. The magic piercing the wall, dissolving into the very stones, turning them black.
“What was that?” asked Charles.
Before Maze could respond, a powerful shockwave blasted through the wall, knocking them off their feet.
As Maze rose from the ground, disoriented and dazed, he saw a massive section of the Sorina wall had vanished, along with the villagers that had stood nearby.
Another roar reverberated, followed by yet another. Maze looked up to witness the balls of death descending like rain from the sky.
With a quick flick of his thumb, Maze slammed his hand down on his open book and shouted, “Rise!”
Tremendous pillars of earth and rock soared into the sky and crashed into the balls of energy with a deafening thud. A split second later, the earth exploded, showering both soldiers and civilians with dirt.
"Hurry!" Maze called out to the villagers as they frantically climbed, crawled, and ran away from the crumbling walls.
One of the energy spheres missed the earth pillar and struck the wall to the east. With tremendous force, it released a blinding light, ripping apart the stone wall.
Maze stood atop the crumbling wall as Charles leaped from the high wall and sprinted towards Ellie, just in time, narrowly avoiding a falling stone.
A chorus of voices filled the air, screams of panic echoed in every direction.
Maze bit his tongue, forcing himself to stifle his own rising panic. He pushed the haunting image of the fallen villagers out of his mind and focused on the task at hand.
The purple lights had vanished, and the deadly spheres of energy had ceased their assault.
"Arthur!" he yelled, searching for the farmer amidst the chaos.
The large man had retreated behind the wall and now stood Charles' side, looking dishevelled but ready for a fight. A polish pickaxe leaned on his shoulder, poised for use.
"Here!" Arthur replied, smacking Charles on the back. His niece, Rose, came forward, joining their side with a knife in hand.
Maze pointed down toward the gap in the wall, a grim expression on his face. "We’re about to get company."
Through the breach in the wall, a detachment of slow, emotionless soldiers marched forward, their long spears aimed straight ahead.
"Rose!” shouted Maze through the chaos. “There's only one choice!"
“I know!” Rose replied calmly, surprising them all with her composed tone. "We need to buy the villagers time to escape."
"Well, you heard the lady," Arthur commanded, rallying their small group.
Maze snarled as he turned his attention to the soldiers. He needed to buy enough time so that they could ferry all the villagers across the Brancourt river bridge.
Maze flicked the book's pages over and narrowed his eyes on his targets then shouted, “crush!”