Over the next few days, a camp and defensive emplacements were constructed around our position. Soldiers made multiple trips to the nearby forest to fell trees and drag them back to be turned into stakes, planks, and wheels as needed. A small moat was dug to encircle the camp, providing a little extra layer of protection before the stake wall was reached. It was honestly impressive to see how efficiently the soldiers put this all together in such a short period of time.
Meanwhile, those more inclined to engineering set about constructing the siege equipment. Sure, magic could throw a boulder quite far, but there seemed to be no replacement for a good old fashion rock lobber. My guess was that they wanted to conserve the energy of the mages to counter any artillery shots that came from the city among whatever other tricks they might have up their sleeves. We had already had an incident with one of those mines exploding on the second day when a detachment of soldiers was sent out to guard the other gates.
While all these events were important, it wasn’t particularly exciting. I could tell that the soldiers were starting to get a little antsy while waiting for the inevitable siege and the chance to save those who were tied up atop the walls. At least the Thrainians were feeding their captives as evident by the occasional patrol that would walk along the wall and pour food and water into the slave's mouths.
Discipline was becoming a slight issue as many grumbled and wondered why they couldn’t charge the walls and rescue the poor souls being used as shields. While it could be said that many of the soldiers weren’t exactly prone to strategic reasoning, I didn’t think that it would be so bad that they wouldn’t see just how poorly that plan would go. Not only would they have to avoid attacks that might possibly hurt the captives, like magic and siege engine attacks, but pushing up to a fortified position without that covering fire would basically be a death sentence.
As far as I’ve heard, Durdan hadn’t figured out how best to save those enthralled to the Thrainians. Knowing him, he was currently agonizing over the ever-increasing likelihood that we would have to sacrifice these innocent lives just to have a chance at taking the walls. I did not envy him the position of having to make that call.
I’m certain that Durdan and I shared a similar concern about the towers. It was all speculation for us, but the odds were not in our favor. We would soon get our confirmation, though, because the first of the catapults was completed.
Durdan seemed to be eager to confirm what had been a deep suspicion, and one that will affect the way we go about attacking the city, because he ordered an immediate probing attack. This was a minor commitment of forces, just enough to get a general sense of things without risking anything important.
The bombardment commenced with a combination of practical and magical attacks being thrown at the fortifications. Not wanting to risk any harm to the captive slaves, the target for this first volley was one of the towers. A boulder from the catapult, a stream of fire, and a jet of compressed water all streaked through the air on a collision course.
I’m sure we all expected it, but seeing it for ourselves was still rather disheartening. The boulder dropped out of the sky like gravity had suddenly multiplied around it. The fire and water both splashed against an invisible wall, outlining it for everyone to see. It was all but confirmed that Fulvrist has similar defenses to Yol’vastume, and that was a major problem.
I very much doubted that I would be able to pull off something similar to my escapades in Yol’vastume. Those gates wouldn’t open for anyone at this point. If I couldn’t get access to those massive crystals, then the only other option was to brute force our way inside. Given the size and power contained within the massive crystals used in city defense, we could siege the walls until spring and probably not break through.
I wished to avoid a situation where we were literally banging our heads against a brick wall with the hopes of bringing it down. Times being what they are, though, that would all come down to the circumstances that present themselves. I figured I should check in with Durdan to see what his thoughts were about this initial failure.
The giant of a man was observing the attack with a grim stoicism. His facial features said it all. He had expected this outcome, though that did not lessen the disappointment in his eyes. I could imagine he was already weighing the cost of this campaign in lives spent.
When I approached him, he only gave me a quick glance before he returned his focus to the continuing bombardment of the magical wall. At this point, the attack was a symbolic gesture, only happening to give the soldiers some sense of action instead of stagnation. Idle hands and all that.
“So, do you have any plans coming to mind about how to get around the barrier?” I asked, knowing what the answer would likely be.
“I don’t think I need to tell you how difficult it is to get past defenses of this scale. The coalition had all but given up on Yol’vastume previously because we simply did not have any way of bypassing or overwhelming the crystals. To be honest, I am seriously considering using your crystal again. Despite how indiscriminate it is with who it kills, I doubt the Thrainians have had a chance to invent a counter to it.”
That was a dark path to consider. Yes, it would kill the soldiers on the walls if used from the right angle, but the hostages would also meet a similar fate. “You’re prepared to give up the lives of the civilians then?” I queried.
Durdan finally broke his gaze away from the wall. “No. And while that might make me weak, not having the resolve to sacrifice the few for the many, I am a greedy man. I want everything to unfold as I wish it to, even if that means taking the thorny path when a much simpler one exists. Still, I must accept the knowledge that those who strive to hold everything, inevitably end up with nothing.”
He closed his eyes and sighed, entering a state of deep thought for a moment before continuing. “The siege will continue for a time, and perhaps a few non-magical methods of getting atop the walls will be attempted. I can only pray that an answer will present itself.” He looked directly at me. “If you come up with any ideas, I will gladly bring them into consideration. We need every advantage we can get.”
I fully intended to try and puzzle out the defenses around Fulvrist. However, the needle that would need to be threaded to come out of this situation in a favorable way was small indeed. Sure, I had many devastating ideas that I could unleash upon the Thrainian and their capital, but I doubted that Durdan would wish to sift through the rubble that would be left in my wake if I chose that path. Not to say that I wanted to, but it was an option.
Nothing can ever be easy, can it? While I lamented the situation, a call for retreat was sounded as the defenders of Fulvrist attempted a counterattack on our siege equipment. Several ballista bolts rained down around the catapult. It was intimidating to see giant stakes embed themselves in the ground around you, each one capable of impaling someone into the ground. Pushing everything out of range was dangerous for the soldiers in charge of that. An Ulgor nearly lost their leg when a bolt clipped them, tearing a gaping hole in their limb that left the leg almost dangling by sinew.
It wasn’t pretty, but we came out of it mostly unscathed and regrouped at the siege camp. Because I was already there, I helped the injured soldier who was yelling out in pain. I had to act fast to prevent his body from going into shock. Grabbing a crystal, I instructed some soldier to hold him still, so he doesn’t make it worse. If the leg was completely severed, I don’t think it would have been possible to heal it completely. A partial sever would mean that it would take time to get back to normal, but it was possible.
The first thing I did was set the bone in place so it could heal easier, a process he did not like as a blood curdling scream tore itself from his lips. Then, I placed my other hand on his chest and began to pump magic into his body. The bleeding slowed as I used magic to clamp down on the blood vessels. Once he was no longer at risk of bleeding out, I mended the bone so that way his leg at least had a solid foundation again. Afterwards, I started to promote a steady regrowth of his flesh starting with the bits that were still attached to the foot and working outwards. It will never not be weird seeing an accelerated healing process. Not only is it a gruesome affair watching flesh grow in real time, but the process itself, when working on someone as injured as this, was agonizingly slow.
The best I could tell, it was this speed for a few reasons. Energy flow was the primary one. I could testify personally to what it was like to have enormous amounts of energy flow through your body, and the results weren’t pretty. Another reason was that I had to visualize the process and remember how this Ulgor’s body was put together so I could do it right. The last thing I could think of was more of an educated guess than anything, but us healers were likely toeing the line between medicine and creating super cancers. The people of this world certainly didn’t know about the dangers of rapidly multiplying cells, but I suppose magic tends to circumnavigate many of the problems that normal biology would face if they hadn’t had any notable issues with it thus far.
I continued to work on the soldier until Velshi arrived to relieve me of the duty. She had brought several more fist sized crystals with her, which was good because the one I had borrowed was running out of energy. Half of the injury was fixed, and she asked me for the details of what I had done up to this point. Once I had given her a short list of the changes I had made to his body, she picked up where I left off. Her progress was on the healing was quicker than my efforts, but that wasn’t a surprise considering she was much more familiar with her people’s biology than I was.
A few minutes later, the soldier had his leg back in working order. He was still reeling from the adrenaline and shock but was steadily recovering. After a quick check to make sure that blood was flowing to his foot like normal, Velshi approached me.
“Well done, James. You may have saved his life by being here. If it was worse than what I had arrived to, he may very well have lost too much blood for his body to handle the trauma. I’m glad to see that my lessons seem to have taken with you.”
I chuckled at her praise. “Well, when you are taught via long stick, you tend to commit things to memory quickly.”
Velshi gave a small laugh of her own. “Indeed. My own master’s instructions were not gentle, but they were effective.” Suddenly, her gaze became very distant as she appeared to be lost in thought. “If I may, James, I would recommend that you prepare yourself for the coming days. I will be needing your assistance now more than ever.”
The grim way she said that immediately cast a somber tone over the interaction. “Of course,” I replied succinctly, understanding the nature of what we were doing here.
She nodded at me. “Good. I imagine it will only be a few short days before we are suddenly wading through rivers of blood.”
A dark foretelling of future events, but most likely an accurate one. I shuddered to think of the bodies, broken and torn as they lay at the foot of the walls. A part of my mind pictured my friends in place of those bodies, and I had to quickly kill the thought before it was allowed to spread.
Velshi’s prediction inevitably came to pass. After the camp had been fortified to Durdan’s liking, the work force committed toward the building of siege equipment increased significantly. Everything from a simple ladder to a complex engine like a trebuchet was put together in a matter of days. A more committed assault was being planned, and I think our enemies knew that as well because there was more activity from atop the walls as of late. A boiling point would soon be reached.
The order to attack wasn’t explicitly given by Durdan, but the order he did give, that of getting an early night’s rest, was implicitly understood by all. We all did as was instructed, knowing that it was likely we would receive a quiet, early morning wakeup call. My nervousness was unfiltered as I lay awake on my cot next to Kala, who despite everything, was still sleeping soundly. I wanted to be optimistic about tomorrow, but the realist in me would not allow it. Plans to keep all my friends safe were being sorted in my head even as I finally began to nod off for the night.
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I was right about the wake-up call. In the early hours of the morning before dawn, a quiet voice called into our tent. I awoke to the sound to see that Otar was leaning through the gap in the flaps. He seemed to realize that I hadn’t exactly understood what he said the first time, so he repeated it.
“James, get up, we’re moving out.” His expression was set in stone, an unflinching and resolved look that I had seen on many of the soldiers.
The knowledge that we were about to launch an attack immediately brought me to lucidity. I wiped the sleep from my face and nodded at Otar who returned the gesture before disappearing outside again. Even now I could hear the gentle sounds of soldiers moving about outside, all of them attempting to be as silent as they possibly could.
I woke Kala up and collected her thick fur coat as she fought with her grogginess for a moment. She snapped out of it quicker than normal due to the circumstances, and I quickly handed her the cloak so she could keep warm as we began to dress for the coming battle. Adorning myself with the gambeson and chain shirt, I tied the last few laces into place and was ready to go. Kala was wearing a similar outfit under her cloak, and I nodded approvingly as I double checked her attire. While I was still close to her, she leaned forward and nuzzled into the underside of my chin. Returning her affection with a kiss on top of her head, we remained in a hug for a moment before eventually having to separate.
As ready as we would ever be, we stepped outside into the waiting dark. The weather favored us as the cloudy sky covered the moon. Soldiers moved quickly from point to point. It was difficult to see exactly what was going on because there was not a single fire or torch lit in the camp whatsoever. Those few who had heavier plate armor were walking around with thick wrappings on their feet and between the joints in their armor to muffle the movements even further.
Our group of friends were waiting for us outside. Velian and Ulthises were still strapping the last pieces of their armor on, but the rest of them were ready to go. It was of some small comfort to know that they would not be attempting to charge up the walls with the rest of the soldiers. They were still, technically, assigned to be my personal guard, so wherever I went, they would follow. That didn’t mean that I would be completely out of harm's way, though.
I had been in talks with Velshi the last few days as we hashed out a plan for this inevitable attack. It was my personal opinion that the only people who planned just as much as the leadership of an army were the medics. Logistics was a massive pain in the ass, after all. We needed a constant stream of bandages, hot water, and crystals all while keeping the operating area clear of obstructions.
My role in all of this was that of battlefield medic. I’d be in the mud picking up the injured and making sure that they survived their journey back to the medical tent. I would be equipped with a whole satchel of crystals that Velshi and I prepared beforehand, including ones specifically created for the patient’s comfort like numbing crystals. A small smile appeared on my face as I remembered the first time I had used those crystals. Those days seemed so long ago, and I had come so far from struggling with simple tasks in a world where everyone hated me.
We stopped by the triage tents to grab my supplies. Counting myself, there were five healers currently in the army, each in command of their own tent and a team of non-magical doctors. There were several other groups like my own whose sole purpose was to drag the wounded off the battlefield, but naturally, my group reported directly to Velshi.
Entering the medical tent, many of the assistants were moving about, preparing cots, and making sure that they had enough for the initial wave of wounded that would undoubtedly be showing up. Even Kala’s mom, Silia, was here helping where she could. Velshi was overseeing the set up, but turned away from her work as I approached her.
“Morning, James. I hope you got enough rest last night.”
“As much as I could, given the circumstances.”
She nodded. “Yes, I too find it difficult to rest before a battle. To still one's heart when thoughts of tomorrow persist is a difficult task. Regardless, I assume you are here for your equipment? It’s waiting for you on the table over there. Gather it quickly and then make your way to the front. You don’t want to be late.”
I gave her a dip of my head in appreciation and went to collect the satchel of crystals+. Once properly equipped for the job ahead, I was ready to face the coming storm. Only one thing remained, and that was to convince Kala that she wasn’t going with me.
“Kala, I think you should stay here and help Velshi and your mom.”
Her head snapped to me with a look of shock and a hint of betrayal. “James, we’ve been through this. I’m going with you, no matter what,” she replied adamantly.
I sighed. “Kala, you’re lethargic right now. I can see it in the way you move and how slow you are to react to things. Normally you would be fine if you were dressed warmly and the sun was out, but this early in the morning, with not a hint of light or warmth, I don’t want to risk you being that close to danger when you aren’t at your best.”
She stammered for a moment, trying to come up with a good counter argument. I shut her down before she could begin again. “You’re not the only Trelnval being sidelined right now, Kala. Many of the soldiers who are more sensitive to the cold are taking up supporting roles for this siege. Besides, you can think of it as spending some time with your mom. You haven’t had a lot of time for that recently, right?” My attempt at bringing some levity to the discussion fell rather flat as she looked at me unamused.
Suddenly, she looked very defeated, and the sadness in her eyes really hit me in the heart. “I just... I want to help you, James.”
I put my hands on her shoulders and rubbed them gently. “You are, Kala. Not only will you be helping keep the people I send back alive, but you’re giving me peace of mind. If I know that you are safe, I can focus on doing my job to the best of my ability.”
“Am I a burden to you?” That question really hit me where it hurt.
“No, of course not. You are my strength and the main reason why I want to fight as hard as I can to make this world a better place. Without you, I would be nothing right now. Knowing your own limitations is not a weakness. If I wanted to, I could probably enforce some decisions on the movements of the army using my status, but I’m not. I don’t know anything about warfare in the practical sense, so I'm letting those who do take the lead.”
She took a deep breath and seemed to calm herself. “I suppose you’re right. It just feels frustrating that I can’t do more sometimes.”
“We all experience that at some point, the desire to be better or do more than we normally can. It can drive you, but also tear you apart if you let it. Don’t feel like you have to force yourself to match me, or anyone else for that matter.”
She leaned into me, and I gave her a quick hug. It didn’t escape my notice that Kala’s mom was giving me a small glare from the corner of the tent as I got affectionate with her daughter. In the interest of time, and not pissing off mama bear, I think I should get going.
Pushing away gently, I said some final goodbyes and received a hesitant look from her. Kala then gave me a stern glare. “Don’t you dare do anything stupid out there. I swear I will leave you tied up in the tent for the rest of this siege if you step out of line.”
I huffed in amusement. “Tell me something I don’t know.” She was unamused. With a chuckle, I reassured her. “I promise. What do you expect? For me to take the wall single handedly?”
“I wouldn’t put it past you to try.”
With a laugh and another kiss on the cheek, I left her in the safety of the tent to brave the horrors of the battlefield. A good portion of the camp was already waiting on the edge of the camp when I exited. With a nod of solidarity from my friends who were waiting, we all rushed over to join the formation at the rear.
Not a word was spoken by anyone in the ranks of the soldiers, lending an eerie quiet to the atmosphere that was disturbed only by the occasional crunch of snow. There would be no speeches, no blaring horns, or deep drums, only a hushed signal being given that started the soldiers marching forward. They staggered their steps, making sure not to create a synchronized thud. Even so, the movement of thousands of bodies still created a significant amount of noise. This strategy would only take us so far.
Everyone’s ears were open, listening for some sign that the Thrianians were on to us. The mobile siege engines made it to the proper range and began to load, bracing for the moment when they would unleash. The tension in the air was at a climax, everyone expecting it to snap any second now. Then, it happened.
A loud, piercing, gong of a bell rang out multiple times in rapid succession. Everything then exploded into motion as orders were shouted, and guttural war cries echoed out over the field as the army charged at the walls with undaunted bravery. Tall ladders were hoisted over shoulders as the possessors rushed as fast as they could towards the sheer stone surface that jutted out from the land.
Barely a minute after the bells started ringing, the magic started flowing down upon us. Streams of flame fell upon the soldiers as our mages did their best to protect their fellows. Magically propelled stones flew at a breakneck speed, intent on crushing their targets. A few of them were redirected, or outright stopped, but our mages could not handle the deluge of attacks coming our way, and a few of the stones crashed down onto the soldiers.
There were two reactions to this: either screams of pain, or immediate silence. I was drawn to the screams as it was now time for me to get to work. I found the mangled bodies of the soldiers who were hit, all of them with grisly looking breaks in their bones. One of them was lucky he was wearing a plat cuirass because that massive dent in it could have been in his chest instead. Others weren’t so lucky, and I tried to get to the ones who were the most hurt first.
They stopped panicking as much once I numbed their injuries with a crystal and I had them hauled off one by one by my friends and any passing soldiers I could grab. Some required a bit more attention as I closed bleeding wounds and immobilized the heads of anyone who looked like they might have a spinal injury. After this batch of injuries was dealt with, I turned my attention back to the ongoing siege to see the progress being made.
The ladders had reached the base of the wall, and soldiers were attempting to scale them as arrows and spells knocked them back to the earth. My brow dropped as I watched soldiers fall in droves, many of them dead on the spot. We’re fucking fish in a barrel charging this wall.
I tried to focus on my job, running around the field and dragging the injured out of the line of fire. I encountered every type of wound, from burns, to crushed limbs, to perforating arrows and deep gashes. The minutes of adrenaline-fueled movements felt more like hours. Then, a ladder broke as a stone made it through our mage’s defense and snapped it in half.
The cascading failure of this doomed assault only intensified as the Thrainian defenders steadily destroyed our means of continuing. At times I got too close to the walls attempting to save struggling Nactren soldiers who were trying to crawl away, and my reward was getting shot at by archers. An arrow pierced my arm, making me grunt and diverting my attention away from saving people. With a quick jerk, I yanked the intrusive splinter out of me and quickly healed it with one my crystals before grabbing another soldier and throwing them over my shoulder. I sprinted away, but not before flashing a middle finger at whoever shot me. They wouldn’t know what it meant, but it made me feel better about this utter travesty.
I passed the man off to Otar who had returned from a recent run to the medical tent and then went back in for more. Listening for cries of pain amid the roars of battle and crashing of spells upon the city’s shield or the ground was difficult. Sometimes the work would come to me as an Ulgor who was once standing next to me got caught in a blast of flame and rolled on the ground trying to douse it. I threw some snow and mud on him to help, then extracted him from the battle.
Before I could return, I saw another ladder knocked off the wall, leaving only one still standing. I guess Durdan saw the futility in trying to take the walls with a single ladder, because the retreat was sounded. The ladder was abandoned and soon broken as the Thrainians shot at the retreating soldiers, cheering and jeering as we had to tuck our tails and run.
The knowledge that there were probably wounded still on the field pained me. I could only grab one more sorry soul out of the mud, and as they were a Valus, even throwing them over my shoulder left a lot of their body dragging behind me. If I was a normal person, I doubt I’d be able to lift him like that.
I was relieved of my burden once I reached the camp as a pair of Ulgor took the Valus to the medical tent for me. After that I did a quick head count, going around looking for my friends to make sure they all got out alright. Ulthises had a few arrows in his tail, but other than that everyone made it out relatively unscathed, so I considered that a minor victory.
As the soldiers licked their wounds and cleaned their bodies, the sun started to come over the horizon, casting its light upon the battlefield. For the first time since we started the attack, I was able to get a full view of the field we were fighting on. A grisly sight would have been an understatement.
Bodies littered the ground leading all the way up to the wall. Hundreds of corpses splayed out on the ground, crushed, charred, or perforated. The snow was dyed red with blood, the ground glinting in the early morning light with a sinister visage. I wasn’t the only one whose mood was soured by the sight. I could see it in the faces of the soldiers, their morale was shaken by this failure to do more than scratch the wall.
As I glowered at the sight, Hargon stepped into my peripheral vision. He looked upon the dead with sorrowful eyes for a moment before speaking. “We knew this was likely going to be the result, but we still had to try. This is what it means to be a soldier.”
I sighed. “I still wish it would have worked, though. At least then they wouldn’t have died pointlessly.”
“A soldier's death is never pointless, so long as we achieve victory in the end.”
Finally turning away from the carnage, I faced him directly. “I wish I could share your same optimism. If these are indeed similar defenses to Yol’vastume, then it looks like our only option is a sustained siege that could last for months. I don’t know if there are other parts of the Thrainians army out there that may try to interfere, but either way it will be an uphill battle.”
Hargon nodded. “True. We’ve walked into the wyrm’s lair this time, but I’m confident we can prevail with careful planning.”
“Maybe, but it will probably be a good idea to expand our defenses and-” I blinked, a word resonating in my brain. “Wait, what did you just say?”
Hargon looked at me, slightly confused. “We can win with careful planning?”
“No, no, the other thing.”
He furrowed his brow at me. “We’ve walked into the wyrm’s lair?”
My heart leapt in my chest, and I immediately sprinted into the camp. Hargon shouted out, befuddled. “Wait! What are you doing?!”
I only replied with, “I have an idea!”