Danica tightened the strap across her left forearm until the bracers fit snugly over her thick leather glove. She’d taken the time to attach small spikes across the knuckles, to give her an edge in extreme close quarters combat should it come to that again. She’d learned a few harsh and valuable lessons last time about being unprepared and did not care to repeat those same mistakes again.
Her new armor was an upgrade from the leather vest she’d previously been using. This was thicker throughout the vital areas and covered more surface area than her older gear. The downside to it was the weight unfortunately, and she’d have to retrain herself to move with the heavier equipment. She wondered if Lorik would approve or if he’d try and convince her to run into battle half naked.
She stepped into a few stretches, trying to ignore the dull ache in her leg. It made her consider for a moment if shin guards might not be a good idea as well. She refocused her thoughts and tried to make mental notes on what adjustments would need to be made and where to make them. The new leather creaked and groaned under the strain of her movements and it made her feel bound by the constraints.
A voice spoke out from behind her. “I remember we used to take our new leather and oil it up really well, then we’d beat it with sticks.”
She turned to see Landon leaning against the wall, watching her. “Not while you were wearing it I assume.”
He smiled ever so slightly. “That Depended on the mood of the commander, but more often than not, yes.”
He walked to the corner and grabbed a few wooden poles, inspecting them one by one before he finally found one he approved of. He then grabbed Danica’s practice sword and tossed it to her. She looked at him with a mixture of shock and confusion.
“Humor an old man, would you?” he said while taking a stance. “I don’t get enough practice or exercise anymore.”
She nodded in assent and stood there with the pole facing down, looking relaxed. He waited for her a moment longer before realizing she wasn’t going to take a stance. He sighed and came in half-heartedly, swinging towards her chest.
She stepped back a half a step and quickly raised her weapon, deflecting his blow above her head. Momentarily catching him off guard she stepped in with a backhand swing which he barely blocked in time. Back and forth they went like this, each testing the other's defenses until a well timed thrust landed solidly to his gut.
He held his hand up in surrender, using the other one to rub his aching stomach. “Alright, I yield. I should have worn some padding.”
She set her practice sword to the side and sat in the chair, undoing the straps holding her armor in place. It was hot and uncomfortable, but hopefully those issues could be ignored and overcome soon. He paced back and forth, tapping the training sword against the ground. Something was on his mind.
He waited until she had the bulk of the gear removed before finally speaking. “You’re going after him then?”
She didn’t need clarification for who he was referring to. “If you’re planning on trying to talk me out of it, then don’t bother. This is something I have to see to the end.”
“Do not doubt that the wish to is there, but I will not,” he said, looking somewhat wistful. “I simply do not want you to throw your life away needlessly.”
She looked over at him, understanding his concern. “Someone needs to stop him, and I know I can.”
He nodded his head and took a seat beside her, still rubbing his stomach still. “I understand as well as anyone what it means to do what you see as the right thing. Did I ever tell you anything about the battle at Honeyfield Pass?
She thought about it for a moment. “A little. I know that’s where you met Angela.”
“Yes,” he said, getting a far off look in his eyes. “Forces from Aganossis had driven an invading orc army from the north directly into Andesty. Advanced scout reports indicated they’d likely head through the pass and to relative safety in the mountains until they got another urge to invade. We planned to intercept them at Honeyfield and hold them until the Aganossian soldiers could attack from the rear. We planned to decimate the orc hordes then and there.”
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“We scrambled to get there before them and set up defenses as best we could until they arrived. We had about three days to set the defenses and prepare. Even the citizens, as tough and dedicated to their home as any, helped with the preparations. Men and women, young or old, they worked alongside the soldiers, doing what they could to help. Very few fled from the oncoming threat, and it bolstered the morale of our troops to see that.”
Danica listened with interest to the tale. She’d never heard the entire story before from either Angela or Landon as they both seemed to have reasons for not wanting to talk about it. They had only ever talked about it in passing regards or simple answers to the questions.
He took a drink and continued. “As the third day arrived, we could see them in the distance. Big, green, and heavily muscled nightmares coming directly for us. When they get worked up into a frenzy for battle, they show no mercy and kill everything and everyone in their path. The army from Aganossis should have been behind them, driving them on.”
Danica finally spoke out unable to contain herself. “But they weren’t.”
He shook his head. “We were called into the command tent and told to retreat the troops. They instructed us to leave the civilians behind as a distraction so we could escape. There were about a dozen sub-commanders there in that tent, including myself, and we all knew what would happen to those left behind. He wouldn’t listen to reason and so I acted almost immediately, doing what I felt as if I had to do. I ran the commander through with my sword and took control of the troops.”
She looked at him stunned. Never would she have imagined Landon, a man of discipline and honor killing his own commander, even under those circumstances. It was so uncharacteristic of him, but him exaggerating stories would be even more outlandish than what she was hearing now. She believed him, but it was just quite the tale to take in.
He gave her a moment before resuming. “The other men decided to join me, even after witnessing what I’d done. We all knew the choices at that time would be either fleeing like cowards or dying like heroes in some children’s tale. Well, we chose the latter obviously.”
“A short time later we’d set our positions and had our plans in place. The orcish horde charged ahead screaming for blood, and it made my blood curdle, but we held the line. Damned things fell into the spike traps we’d dug out, and the ones behind them just stepped on their brethren. We fired hundreds of arrows into their lines as well, dropping quite a few, but nothing short of death would stop them it seemed.”
Landon Shook his head, and finished his drink. It took him a few moments to get himself together enough to resume talking. “They hit us head on and it sounded like thunder from the worst storm you could imagine. They charged into raised spears, knocking the men holding them into the back lines.”
“One of those things got through the ranks and stood before me, a great slobbering brute covered in animal hides and metal scraps. It held a big branch-like club with nails driven into the end. A wicked weapon like that can kill a man in a single hit and it was coming right at me. I barely dodged its attack and stabbed that creature right in the throat, severing the spinal column.”
“We fought hard, but it just wasn’t enough. They pushed through the center and we flanked them on either side, but we just didn’t have enough man power left to completely stop them. One of those bastards ripped up a wooden spike from a barrier and nearly ran me through with it.” He moved his shirt to the side, exposing a horrific scar on his shoulder. “If it wasn’t for Sabin, Angela’s husband, I’d be a dead man. He killed that orc, but took a spear through the chest for saving me. There wasn’t anything I could do except watch it happen.”
“Their rage had been tapped out by then, I guess, and they retreated through the pass. Our remaining troops took care of the stragglers and helped the wounded as best they could. We all hoped they had decided not to come back and finish us off. There wasn’t too much to come back to though as most of the town was a blazing inferno by that point.”
“We had evacuated the smaller children to a shelter, but an orcish scout party had discovered them.” He stopped and wiped away a single tear from his eyes. It was a moment that seemed to still haunt him so many years later. He didn’t need to finish that part. Their fate could easily be determined by the way he trailed off, not finishing that part of the story.
He shook himself out of his temporary stupor. “We buried our dead and came back to Norport. I turned myself over to the Judicial Council for murdering a superior officer. That damn fool Alric heard about our heroic stand and promoted me to a command position in the city guard.”
He began to walk out, but stopped and turned, looking more tired than usual. “Point is girl, I did what needed to be done. We lost many more lives than we saved that day, but we fought, and in a way, we won. We pushed those filthy green vermin back into the mountains where they came from. We paid the price for it though, and that’s something you have to be willing to do. You have to be willing to shoulder the burdens of your own actions, and nothing in the bottom of a bottle will ease your mind after the fact.”
“If you go after him, you do not have to do so alone.” And with that he walked out of the room, leaving her to contemplate the story.
She sat there in stunned silence trying to imagine the horrors he’d faced down and the choices he’d made that weighed upon him. Neither Landon, nor Angela, made it out of that battle unscathed it seemed. They’d fought against a dangerous foe, and lived, but at a terrible cost it seemed.
She finished removing her gear and started making minor adjustments to it. She had much to think about now, and this would help occupy her time while she processed his story.