“When cooler heads prevail, so are wiser decisions made.” - Old Clangeddin Proverb.
“This is not looking good at all, Al-Nairi,” stated Xingl Liat grimly when the Imperial generals – or rather, what was left of them – gathered together later that evening in the safety of their encampment. “The old man’s gone,” continued the tribal woman, referring to the late Long Jiangjun Leung Hua-Jeong, whose dead body was brought back to the camp by his guards. “So is old Liu. Even Ishak didn’t make it…”
During the battle that day, Zhong Jiangjun Liu Zhong-Feng, the old general’s right hand man, had brought up the rear. When his troops reached the encampment, however, the others discovered that the enemy had mounted a headhunting strike during the final moments of the battle that he unfortunately fell prey to. All his soldiers managed to bring back was his headless corpse, with his head claimed by the enemy that slew him.
As for Xiao Jiangjun Ishak mil Sharif, he had the misfortune to have caught a stray crossbow bolt right between the eyes during the day’s battle. It was not even an attack targeted at him specifically, as the dwarves just rode past at high speed while launching dozens of heavy bolts from their infuriating repeating crossbows. One of the bolts just happened to have struck him dead, without the enemy even realizing it.
That left only Xingl Liat, Aswan ibn Musir, and Zahira Al-Nairi as the generals of the Imperial army, and as the one with the highest rank between them, the unenviable responsibility of the command fell onto Zahira Al-Nairi’s shoulders.
“Are the soldiers aware of our losses?” asked Zahira after a painful moment of silence.
“Mostly not, but we would not be able to hide it for long. They will question things if we go to battle and nobody sees the old man, though,” said Aswan with a shake of his bald head. “The guards kept quiet about it and only reported to their officers, who relayed it to us. I don’t think any of the people fighting noticed our losses yet… and the ones that do likely know better to stay quiet about it for the time being.”
“It won’t last for long either way, though. Morale would plummet with the old man. He’s pretty much an idol to most of the rank and file,” added Liat with a frown. “These foes we face have elites that put ours to shame in every respect, and now we don’t even have a numerical superiority over them. I don’t see how we’re supposed to fight this battle.”
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“I concur. I feel that this battle is a lost cause by this point,” said Aswan in affirmation. “What is your opinion, Zhong Jiangjun?”
“I agree with the two of you. We had been blinded by our early successes in the invasion and had taken our foes too lightly. Perhaps the old man had succumbed to that mistake as well… we’ll never know,” said Zahira Al-Nairi after a moment of thought. “The situation is untenable here, and to continue to force a battle would just cost us what’s left of the army. Order the men to prepare for withdrawal. The entire army.”
“You mean…?”
“We will make use of the darkness to withdraw before the enemy notices. That should buy us a day or two before they give chase,” said Zahira in a hopeful tone. “The walls on the city of Oleynuos previously taken by the late Da Jiangjun Taouan are still damaged, but the citadel in the center of the city has been repaired, so I intend to lead a small force of elites to make a stand there and buy time. The rest of you should retreat to our forward base further west.”
“Isn’t His Imperial Highness the Eighth Prince still in that citadel?” asked Aswan as he broached the sensitive topic with his fellow generals. The situation with the Eighth Prince was a touchy one, and while many of the generals sympathized with him, next to none would have sided with him instead of the Emperor. “Will we take him with us to the forward base… or…?”
“I will ask his Highness in person when we get there. Let him make the decision himself,” said Zahira with a shake of her head. She too was one who felt sympathetic but was unwilling to risk herself for the Eighth Prince. “Aswan, I’ll have to trouble you with leading the bulk of the troops to the forward base. One way or another I will not be able to join you there.”
“It is my honor to have served with you, Zhong Jiangjun,” replied Aswan as he gave a slight bow. “How many troops will you take with you? I imagine there would be quite a few… volunteers amongst the old man’s and Liu’s guard details who would join you willingly in order to wash away the taint of their failure with a heroic last stand.”
“The citadel at Oleynuos is quite large. I would say it could probably house up to ten thousand for an extended siege comfortably, but we all know that there won’t be an extended siege with the foes we face. I plan to take twenty thousand for that reason. It would be a bit of a tight fit, but it would also allow us to fight harder when they arrive,” said Zahira Al-Nairi. “I do not intend to make it easy for them, either way.”
“So shall it be, then. I will oversee the preparation for the withdrawal together with Liat while you take your pick of volunteers from what we have left for this endeavor,” said Aswan with another respectful salute. “I know we sometimes have our differences, Zhong Jiangjun Al-Nairi, but at this moment, I truly wish you good fortune and overflowing courage for having chosen to do this when you could have ordered either of us to take your place instead.”
“Come now, Aswan. I wouldn’t be much of a general if I’m not willing to face death together with the soldiers I have condemned to an early end by my orders, wouldn’t I?”