Elisor and Cassius stood alone on a hill across a shallow inlet, a fair distance away from where the Old God and his dead army crept from the Caspian Sea. All the other Druids and the Vencian Knights who had crossed with them had continued on to the battle.
"Dogs are coming now." Cassius said, in part wondering if these were the dogs Elisor may have heard in his visions, and in part to fill the silence.
Elisor was looking intently at the Old God and his dead army. "Some are riding horses too. I guess Que Vitae does take animals. Who knew?" Elisor's mouth smiled but his eyes were serious. “When the knights and Druids engage, they’ll draw the Old God’s army to them. Your father is close with Hagsbane.”
Cassius was nervous at the mention of his father. He could not say why. Will he be mad? I know he didn’t want me to be around these Druids. Is he ok? “Is my mom one of them?” Cassius asked.
Elisor put his hand on Cassius’s shoulder, the wordless response was enough. Cassius’s heart fell. He had known she was gone for some time, but for her to be among the enemy army, the dead army; the thought was almost too much.
“Cassius, I understand your pain. Keep your mind on the battle, however difficult it may be. Please, pay attention.” Elisor urged.
Cassius watched the knights, numbering somewhere between seventy and a hundred, lead the twenty Druids on to the sandy shore. Half of the Druids disappeared from view. “They vanished!” Cassius exclaimed, fearing the Old God had taken them.
“No, young Juliei, they did not. They’ve become mice to sneak into the midst of the enemy. Keep watching.” Elisor said. His words were cold. Cassius considered how warm and friendly the old Druid had been. The ominous hint of discretion Elisor spoke with when they first met was gone too. Cassius thought he heard the real Elisor, stripped of all his pretense, for the first time.
The knights formed a circle around the remaining Druids who began to launch fire from the center. The dead who were caught by the flames were the only ones to change their direction and pace. They walked quickly, with un unsteady limp into the water. Some even fell and crawled or rolled to the sea. Then they returned, scorched and blackened by the flames. They marched with the others. They seemed drawn to the magic of the Druids. Several of the dogs attacked the knights first, followed by the dead legion soldiers.
Cassius watched seven bears appear in the middle of the dead army and begin a terrifyingly brutal rampage. The bears tore several of the creatures to pieces, separating limbs from bodies. The dismembered dead did not remain still, either. They pulled themselves forward through the sand with whatever they had left.
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As the Old God’s army began to overwhelm the knights, Cassius watched several Druids place their hands on the backs of the knights. Those touched began to glow and each swing of their swords or bash of their shields shot bolts of lightning through the dead army.
The lightning had an incredible effect on the dead. For a moment they were energized, attacking everything around them, both the knights and the other dead, then they fell still.
But even this did not permanently kill the creatures. In time they rose and marched as slow as they had before. The knights were able to keep the monsters at bay, and did not lose a single man, but Cassius knew they could not manage to hold off the monsters forever. And Que Vitae was now much closer to land, towering above everything and still in the water up to his ankles.
“Who are they?” Cassius shouted. He pointed to a seemingly endless stream of horsemen galloping at full speed toward the beach. As if they were a single entity, the horsemen flooded the battlefield with arrows. From the hill it looked like a black cloud had engulfed the entire shoreline.
“These are invaders from the far east. Nothing to worry about. I have been tracking them for a time, but I am surprised they seem so willing to engage. Lucky us I guess. Their efforts may buy us just enough time for your father to sweep in and save the day." Elisor's odd tone was back, but this time Cassius found some comfort in it that he could not explain.
When the black cloud of arrows dissipated from the battlefield, all of the dead army, the legion soldiers and citizens, all of the horses and dogs along with the seven Druids who had turned to bears lay still. Cassius saw the knights and Druids, still in formation, and another giant of a man standing on the beach among the bodies.
The horsemen circled, coming back for another volley. This time they took aim at the Old God, again launching countless arrows as they rushed their horses closer, then turned and continued to shoot in their retreat. The arrows had no effect on Que Vitae. They bounced harmlessly off his massive black armored legs and body.
From the walls of Joan volleys of flaming arrows began to fly at the Old God. It was the first action from the city, Cassius noted. He thought to mention it to Elisor, but Que Vitae waved a hand at the city's attack, blowing the arrows back into the stretch of grass between the beach and the walls. The grass was engulfed in flames and pillars of black smoke rose. No more arrows came from the city.
The Nu circled again to continue their attack on the Old God in the only way they seemed to know how, but before they could launch another assault, the dead army on the beach rose, riddled with arrows. At this, again as if they were a single organism, the Nu fled the field. As quickly as they came, they were gone. The smoke billowing from the flames blocked his view of the city, but Cassius could see the battle on the beach continue, with the giant, the druids and the sea creatures with as many arrows protruding from them as were stuck in the sand.
“A good effort, yet all for naught if they leave now. Very little time bought for all their theatrics.” Elisor said. Cassius was caught off guard by the ancient Druid’s composure. “Your father should be here soon, though. It is almost time, Cassius."
Cassius felt the cold bony hand on his shoulder again and looked into Elisor's green eyes. Something in them was thrilling. And dangerous.