The Scarlet King (19 page)

As those of the Red prepared for the battle
in their way, those of the Forest worked hard digging a series of
holes which they covered with branches and soil. Heather’s plan was
to allow those from the East to penetrate almost to the end of the
grassy hill before lighting her fires along the western and
southern perimeters of the hill. The afternoon winds usually blew
strongly uphill from the west, which would fan the flames quickly.
Others of the Forest would be hidden on the northern edge and would
stay hidden until after the main force had passed. Their task was
to help prevent any retreat and disable as many horses as possible.
It was with this group that Heather positioned herself.

Scouts from the East repeatedly passed by
them, but they saw little as they traveled quickly through the
country. Those of the Forest could sense their coming long before
the horses and the riders became visible. All work would stop and
they would carefully camouflage themselves with clumps of grass.
The grass had long since gone to seed and was very dry but still
rose above Heather’s waist. A natural game trail led across the
hill, and Jeremy was certain those from the East would follow the
trail. He explained, “The animals of this land have scouted since
time began and decided long ago that this was the best route.”

Heather appreciated his wisdom but the “what
if’s” kept tugging at her mind. When they returned to their camp
they had no fire, for the enemy was now close enough that the risk
was too great. Jeremy and his scouts had figured a midday arrival
at the grassy hill by the lead troops of those of the East. Their
enemy moved in a tight formation with great discipline. The wagons
followed the marching troops and only a small contingent of mounted
troops guarded the rear. Despite the close ranks, the front of the
column would be exiting the grassy hill before the end of the
column entered the grasses. The mounted troops at the rear
concerned Heather, for they would be a potent adversary. The
commander of the Red Army echoed Heather’s concern and asked, “What
if the wind does not blow?”

Heather shrugged her shoulders and said, “If
the God of the Sacred Water gives us not the wind then he will give
us something else.” She said this with possibly more intensity than
she actually felt.

Sleep for everyone that night was fragmented
and it was only the presence of Betty in Heather’s dreams that
allowed her any rest at all.

Jeremy had everyone up before the sun made
its daily appearance. The predawn air was cool and Heather shivered
some as she prepared for the day, completing her morning ritual.
She broke the fast with the commander of the Red and final plans
were completed. Edna would act as a lookout, using one of their
mirrors to signal those of the Forest on the southwest side of the
grassy hill when to start their fires. When the fire was well
established, those of the Forest who had started the fires were to
retreat into the barren lands until they could rejoin the main
troop.

Heather and the remaining hunters of the
Forest would lay hidden in their small trenches until the smoke was
evident. They would then arise and take out as many of the drivers
and horses pulling the wagons as they could. They would retreat
back across the river where those of the Red who had accompanied
them would be waiting for the counterattack. The main force of the
Red would attack near the canyon mouth, preventing the enemy from
crossing the river and hopefully forcing them into the canyon.

As Jeremy led Heather and the hunters from
the Forest to the hiding spots, they discussed strategy only a
little. Heather instructed them, “Concentrate your arrows on the
driver first and then on a single horse, for if one horse falls the
wagon moves not.”

Heather was one of the first to be hidden.
They pulled back the sod from the trench and she climbed in with
her sword across her chest. They carefully replaced the sod,
leaving but a small opening above her face through which she had
but a glimpse of the sky. The weight of the covering was not
unbearable but the closeness and the inability to see but the one
small area of the sky seemed to close her world in completely.

As she stared through her small connection to
the outside world she noticed movement. Concentrating, she focused
her eyes on the edge of her breathing hole and saw a large
centipede starting to crawl into the hole. Her eyes crossed from
staring as the fearsome looking insect hung by its hind legs right
over her face. Then it dropped onto her forehead and slowly worked
its way down to her chin. She could take feel the individual legs
pricking her skin as the insect walked. She worked hard to control
her breathing and thought she could hear not because of the
pounding of her heart in her ears. Her anxiety continued to build
till she knew that all hope was lost and that she would need to
rise up and run to the mountains just to breathe. It was Betty who
appeared in her mind, saying, “Daniel did it, you do it too.”

Her breathing slowed and she relaxed greatly.
The morning passed ever so slowly and she may have slept at times,
despite the centipede which continued to explore her face. Then the
thunder of horses was felt as much as heard. It sounded as if they
would pass directly over her. She concentrated, trying to determine
their number, but could tell only that it was a small number. The
scouts passed by quickly and silence returned.

Later she felt rather than heard a rumble of
the earth as the main column approached. The mounted troops came
first with the horses in near synchrony. It was almost a pleasant
sensation like the drums of those of the Forest. It was about half
an hour before the tighter synchronization of the marching troops
overwhelmed the sound of the horses. The column of troops seemed to
take forever to pass by, and Heather’s anxiety again began to
increase.

Her thoughts were, “The troops are so many,
what hope had they?” Again it was Betty who appeared in her mind
and said nothing, but her mere presence calmed Heather’s mind. She
concentrated on the sound and rhythm of the marching troops, noting
the gradual transition as the main column passed by. A faint sound
of creaking and groaning became audible and she knew the wagons
were approaching. By concentrating she could separate out the
sounds of the different wagons and tried to keep count as they
passed by.

A different worry entered Heather’s mind when
she realized that she had not yet smelled the smoke and most of the
wagons had already passed by. Why had Edna not given the signal for
the fires? The synchronized sound of the rear mounted guard was now
perceptible, and their opportunity would soon be lost, for they
were a formidable enemy. As her anxiety built she again heard
Betty, but it was really Edna saying the fire was lit and
progressing quickly. She then noted a change in the motion of the
wagons; they were trying to stop but the inertia of the long column
made it a slow process. She strained harder to try to smell the
smoke and finally caught a whiff. It was enough of the signal, and
she carefully pushed away the covering of her trench, along with
the centipede which had tortured her, and rolled into a fighting
position.

Those of the Forest were paired up with one
responsible for the primary attack and the other to protect their
rear from attack. Heather was paired with Jeremy who had also
rolled out of his trench. Heather nodded and Jeremy assumed a
kneeling position with his bow at the ready. A second nod from
Heather and the closest wagon driver slumped in his seat.

The next arrow found the chest of the horse
on the side but missed the heart. The horse tried to run off,
bellowing in pain, but the harness restrained it. Jeremy’s
attention rotated quickly to the next wagon and again a single
arrow incapacitated the driver. The next arrow found the heart of
the great horse pulling the wagon. It just stopped completely and
then fell forward in the harness.

Confusion amongst those of the East began to
break down their orderly column. Drivers tried to turn their wagons
to escape the oncoming fire only to encounter the arrows of those
of the Forest. Their attack had been ongoing for only a few moments
when Heather heard the distinct sound of horses being pushed hard.
The air was filling with smoke, but as she looked to the east she
could see horsemen riding hard with a cloud of dust. It was time to
flee to the safety of the river.

Jeremy listened not to Heather’s warning, for
another wagon was coming within range. As Jeremy concentrated on
the wagon, Heather watched the approaching mounted troops. They had
wisely shifted to the river side of the trail and were blocking
their escape route. Jeremy’s first arrow missed the mark but his
second arrow proved deadly. The horses responded to the slack lines
by continuing their flight from the fire. As the wagon approached,
it was only the heavy load that prevented a complete runaway.

The roar of the fire was becoming ever more
evident, and Heather had to yell to get Jeremy’s attention, saying,
“We must get out of here now.”

Jeremy responded, “How about a ride?” Without
waiting for an answer Jeremy ran to intercept the wagon and jumped
aboard. He had to rein in the horses hard before they would
stop.

Heather climbed in, saying, “The mounted
troops are blocking our escape route. We need to divert those
mounted troops so those of the Forest can gain the safety of the
river.”

Jeremy handed Heather the reins, saying, “You
drive and I’ll see if I can lighten the load.” The horses needed no
urging to resume their flight from the fire, and Heather
intentionally drove so that those mounted troops could see them
escaping towards the river. At first they responded not and Heather
was afraid they would not follow the decoy. It was only when Jeremy
began pushing off the barrels of supplies that they realized
something was amiss and began to chase them.

Heather drove the horses as hard as she
could, but the mounted troops were gaining. After backtracking far
enough to open a pathway for the others of the Forest, she turned
the wagon sharply towards the river, plunging downhill, caring not
that it was certainly destroying the wagon.

They were reaching the area of ambush that
had been set up when a rock finally broke the axle of the wagon,
tipping it dangerously to the side. As the wagon skidded to a stop
Heather and Jeremy fled on foot. The closeness of the horses was
becoming ever more evident, and as she ran it was as if she could
feel their breathing on her neck. She looked back not, but just ran
with Jeremy helping to pull her along. They had not yet reached the
region of boulders where those of the Red were waiting. She was
about to give up the flight and try to fight, for she could run no
more. As she turned to face the oncoming horses, those of the Red
suddenly appeared from their hiding places and their arrows began
to find their marks.

Troops from the East quickly pulled up on
their horses and headed back, for they knew not how large a force
they were facing. They left over half of their comrades behind with
multiple arrows protruding from their bodies. Heather and Jeremy
moved in amongst the boulders and collapsed, still trying to gain
their breath. Jeremy began to laugh, and finally Heather asked what
he found so funny.

Jeremy replied, “That was the most awesome
wagon ride I have ever had. Does Daniel know you can drive like
that? ” Heather but shook her head and could not help but smile.
They waited as the other hunters found their way to safety through
the opening they had created. Flames were now visible, and a few of
the wagons which survived the attack headed back out towards the
barren lands as did the remaining mounted troops.

Those of the Forest had paid a price for
their attack but had done considerable damage to the enemy supply
system. When their numbers had been accounted for, three were
missing. Heather called for a retreat across the river, saying,
“Our part is done for now. As soon as the smoke clears we will
search for the others.”

The main force of the Army of the Red waited
as long as possible before launching their attack at the rear of
the troop column. They crossed the river at the last crossing
before the start of the gorge. Each wave of soldiers that crossed
the river set up a defense line which gradually moved up the hill,
staying always in the rocky terrain to protect themselves from the
fire. When the giant column of those of the East had finally ground
to a halt and tried to reverse, they found themselves pinned
between the oncoming flames and the forces of the Red. Those of the
Red tried not to advance but simply held their ground against the
far greater numbers of those from the East.

The movement of the foot soldiers was only
temporarily stopped, for the fire was pushing those in the rear.
Some made their way towards the river, but the current was too
swift to cross and those that tried were swept away. Others began
the descent towards the gorge and the safety from the fire that it
represented. This huge column of humanity began to act like a thick
liquid, squeezing out wherever there was an opening between the
fire and the arrows of those of the Red.

It was only the discipline of the mounted
troops that prevented a complete division of their forces. They
forced their horses to charge through the burning line and create a
passage for the foot soldiers to escape. They could not attack
those of the Red for their own troops were blocking their way. Now
the flow of troops reversed and began to move upwards, and those of
the Red were unable to challenge it.

The afternoon was growing late, and the
commander of the Red feared a counterattack from the mounted troops
which came not. The darkness of night descended upon them with
relative swiftness, and yet the glow from the dying embers of the
fire provided an eerie light. The commander of the Red had most of
his troops stand down, for fatigue was evident.