Under the morning mist, Ethan and the crown inspected the final preparations of the defence against the Retribution Army.

As they passed through the streets of Midlake, Ethan saw no one had been getting a rest for a week.

The able bodies trained till the sweat from the forehead dropped to the feet.

The people with more nimble hands took the role of crafting arrows, fletching from feathers of any sources they got their hands on, whether it from geese, pheasants, chickens or ducks. It was about quantity over quality.

The children also took part in the movement to defend their city. They carried any small items needed for war with their little arms and transported them toward the wall. They made it as a racing game among themselves. Their giggles and arguments livened up the dull depressing moods of the adults.

Soon, the train of glamorous carriages reached the frontline of war, the wall. It greeted Ethan, Cleo and Louise with its enormous height as tall as six metres. Ethan was no stranger to it as he had seen it and passed through it throughout his life. However, it was the first time he had stepped on it and it overwhelmed him. The sturdiness of it gave Ethan confidence that the Temple might never be able to get inside.

At every three meters apart, big rectangular boxes were placed to hold hundreds of arrows for archers mounted on the walls. Piles of stone and bricks were also seen. Bastions were mounted with ballistas to take down any siege engines approaching the wall.

The defences were solid; it was nearly impregnable if more than half of the men manning the wall were not boys but adults. A few of them were forcibly dragged away from their parents' embrace. Their eyes showed fear and lack of focus, although most of the youth were excited to finally be able to wield weapons just like their ancestors did. Their warrior dream became the truth. Their blood was boiling. Their hands were restless, aching to put their blades into enemies' flesh.

Contrary to eager new troops, the experienced battle-hardened warriors were seen as worried. Their eyes were drooping and their minds were drifting. They knew what a war was like. They remembered it deeply with every fibre muscle on their bodies. They had witnessed how frightening a war was during their services at the border of Claudia.

"How's the preparation coming?" Louise asked his commanders.

"We are ready for any attack, your majesty. I say let them come. We will send them to hell. We have a thousand archers manning the wall. Another thousand will be waiting with swords and spears to greet any enemy lucky enough to reach the top of the wall. For the gates, our crossbowmen will be waiting to take down any heavily armoured guards shielding their battling rams."

"Good. We will show them why Midlake is the city of the crown and have never been defeated once." Louise proudly threw his fist in the air and claimed. It roused the already excited young troops. They all chanted in unison. "Glorious Midlake! The Undefeated!" "Midlake! Midlake!"

As Louise was doing a good job as a king raising the morale, the lords looked at him with displease. In their mind, they were thinking 'What is a fake king put on the throne by Temple doing here?' They wished Cleo had taken charge as queen already. However, their leader, Cleo, took more interest in raising practical defensive manoeuvres than acting queen.

"Where are the spiked barricades I ordered?" Cleo asked the commanders.

"They are ready, your highness. The only problem is we can't go outside the wall to install them. Our installation unit was wiped out by enemy cavalry yesterday. We could only install a few meters around the gates. We could not install the rest."

"What were the archers on the wall doing? Did you not back up your men?"

"We did. But the enemies were Templers. Our arrows could not penetrate their spell-reinforced armours," explained a commander the reason for failure.

Even before the real battle, the army of the Crown had already faced the difference in power.

"Just as we expected, this is a huge gap we must fill if we want any chance to win," Arthur mumbled.

Without the obstacles, there would be no stopping Templers from scaling the wall easily.

"How about we drop them down from the wall?" Arthur suggested.

"No. It would break them. Even if they are intact, they are useless close to the wall. The ladders can reach the wall over the spikes. It can't be helped. We will use them inside the city instead. Block the streets. In case of a wall breached, we will put a unit of archers and pikes behind each to stall their advance in the city."

When the lords saw their sworn leader leading the conversation, they became proud. "This is what a true practical leader should be." They murmured.

Hearing the lords and commanders comparing the two siblings, rivalling them to fight, disgusted Ethan. Without their egoistic scheming, there would be no tension.

Time passed as they instructed manoeuvres while inspecting the wall.

The mist covering the plain outside the wall was slowly uncovered by the warmth of sun and fire from stoves for morning meals at the encampment.

A thousand columns of smoke arose from the massive rows of tents bearing golden wheel crest.

The sight itself told the volume of the situation they were in. There was no telling who would come out victorious.

"They have been here for only six days. I see more tents than yesterday. I wonder how many there will be after a month. Do you think more will be coming in the coming months?" Ethan asked Cleo.

"Strategically, they will wait months and watch us starve. However, the pride of Mordu' and Temple won't allow that. Also, Westex, Sousa, and Norg were not enough to repel the invading Claudians backed by black ships from the western continent. They need to end things here fast and mobilize to the Western front. Not to mention, the emperor of Indra won't accept defeat easily. As long as we, his ally, are alive, he will keep sending his armies to save his face. So, they don't have time to wait. They have superior numbers along with Templers so they will strike us soon."

When the soldiers heard that the enemy might be moving soon, they became restless. The inevitable fight was near than they believed.

Stolen story; please report.

"We will win, right." A soldier asked his friend quietly.

"I don't know," answered his friend. He continued, "Even if we win, there is no telling we may be alive."

They spoke in such a low voice to not offend their officers yet Ethan could hear them faintly. He couldn't blame them. Even he felt cold feet when the giant encampment was revealed from the mist.

"Do not fear, men of Midlake! Look behind you and you shall see a city of triumph, the seat of the crown, the ground where our ancestors started to unify this land. We are their descendants and the blood of victors runs in our veins. So, never doubt yourself!"

Cleo reminded her people who they were.

"And we have the Champion with us," continued Louise. "Together we shall triumph!!"

"Huzzah!!!"

At the end of the speech, cheers and cries soared across the sky. It was so loud that those stationed at the eastern wall could also hear them.

Also those at the other side of the wall.

"Why are they yelling suddenly? Have they gone mad?" A Golden Cloak commander made fun of his opponent.

They were having a nice and warm, peaceful tea party to welcome the morning.

Unfazed by the loud cheer from the opponents, Celius Mark sipped his warm tea.

"Don't be mean. Let the cute kids scream all they want or play war games. Tomorrow, we will show them how adults play," said Celius Mark, the commander in charge of Retribution Army, with a devilish smile.

On the seventh morning of the devil being at the gate, the citizens of Midlake preparing breakfast for their loved ones were alerted by the striking alarm from the bell tower at the castle.

After the mist had cleared out by the sun, the Retribution army made the first move.

Columns of the army marched into the plain in front of the wall, the end of their lines barely visible. The clanking of metal from their armours as they moved each step was loud enough to hear it even under the ringing sound of the bell.

Before they reached within the range of archers and ballistas mounted on the wall, a golden cloak on a magnificent mount ordered a halt.

The two sides were at the distance to stare at each other and intimate.

"Woo AHH!! Woo AHH!! Woo AHH!!!"

Temple began the most primitive form of attack, the warcry. The echoic voice which came from the depth of their chests rang into the ears of their opponents like a drum. No level of the wall was strong enough to contain it. Babies were frightened and cried unstoppably till their lips turned blue.

"Damnit. We can't lose here, bastard!" A commander of Midlake shouted. "What are you waiting for!? Scream!!! Bastard! Scream till your throat coughs blood. I won't let any of you sleep tonight if our voice doesn't overwhelm them!"

Only when their commander alerted them, the soldiers of Midlake were brought out of a daze. They started screaming back.

"Rawrr!!!"

"Damnit! Did some dogs eat your voice last night!? Even I can't hear you! Louder!" As soon as the commander pushed them beyond the limit, they went wild. As they kept roaring, some bashed their shields. Those without shields bashed their helmets as if they had gone mad. Even the commander of the opponent found it impressive.

"Not bad. Then, let's start the show, shall we?"

Out of the many banners standing behind him, one was inclined forward.

Immediately, a row of soldiers was detached from the column and set forward under the cover of wooden barriers.

"What are they trying to pull? Do they think those flimsy barriers are enough to approach our wall and climb?"

"I don't think so. They must also know that ballistas can wreck them like shrubs. That's why the rest of their army didn't follow. They are plotting something. Ready our men."

Under the low blow of mountain goat horn hunted from Mount Crownback, the line of archers stepped forward on the wall. They nocked the arrows on their bows and waited for further command.

For the loud bunch of men who just yelled their lungs out a while ago, the whole battlefield suddenly turned quiet. Apart from the steps of enemies approaching the wall, no one was making a single sound. They were all focusing on the event unfolding silently. They could feel their hearts beating louder than ever, whether the reason be excitement or fear.

The people inside the city also hid inside their houses rather than staying on the streets. The windows were closed so that no stray arrows would kill their unfortunate loved ones. The mothers hugged their babies, cooing for them to fall back to sleep after the noise.

Another sound of a horn in a different melody was blown and the platoon leaders stepped up to take charge.

"Men, draw...loose!"

The first shots were fired when the enemies came into range. The arrows swooshed through the air and hit the barriers.

"As expected, arrows aren't enough. Prepare ballistas."

The heavy shots were prepared immediately so that they were ready to shoot the moment the barriers threatened the walls.

The barriers stopped after a good distance of travel. There was quite a gap between them and the main army behind them. Suddenly, golden-cloaked archers appeared behind the barriers and started to shoot at the defenders on the wall.

The rain of arrows visited heaven for a short while and fell back into the realm of men. Some fell short below the wall. Sme bounced after hitting the sturdy stone structure. Much of them reached over the wall and hit the grass or road. However, a few reached the designated place, tearing through the flesh of men.

Groans and cries took the wall. For some, it was the old traumatic past they had experienced once. For others, it was a completely new experience they never wanted again.

"What are you yapping about? Shut your piece and get downstairs." The platoon leader scolded his men who got shot. "You! Come up here and replace him. Ready for a second round. Aim over those barriers." He readied his men for the counterattack.

When they saw the golden cloaks coming out from the covers, they let their arrows loose.

The arrows flew across the winter sky, met in the middle and continued their flight in opposite directions.

At the end of their flight, a few men dropped to the ground on both sides marking the start of war that would shape the kingdom for centuries.