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  The Fallen Guardian

  ( The Guardian chronicles - 2 )

  Steven R. Burke

  Steven R. Burke

  The Fallen Guardian

  The Siege

  As Kana flew toward the southern edge of the Black Forest, she could see a massive group of orcs below her. They were bustling about, making preparations for their impending assault on their woodland neighbors. She could feel the hate and animosity growing within the ranks as they prepared for their attack. They would be her most faithful servants; she did not doubt this. As she continued to fly toward her quarry, the shadow that her winged beast cast grew larger as they descended. She was now riding an enormous dragon with fiery-red eyes and black-as-night scales that appeared to be tougher than the finest plated armor. The beast glimmered oddly in the first rays of morning, which put fear into the hearts of the soldiers as they caught sight of it. As the guardian looked down again at her minions, she could see that they were ready to move out. She smiled savagely at the sight and yearned to begin the first open battle on Tuwa since the days of the Eldar.

  She knew that this day would mark the end of the elves’ reign in the land. She guided her beast toward an opening at the head of the armies and landed with a commanding thud. She quickly dismounted the black dragon that had carefully tucked its wings against his body and sat there like an obedient pet. Kana called the five generals of the different armies to come forward. She needed to divide up the army and then devise a strategy for the attacks they would make on the elves and the dwarves who lived in Mount Adem. The orcs knew nothing of this plan to divide the armies, but they would trust her reasoning once they had heard it. General Akuji Tadok K’K arrived first and stood silently as they waited for the others to show up. Generals Maurizio G’Dang, Nero Oggoamak, Synan Thrudak, and Tomo Bruguk Tak appeared from the crowd of orcs at the same time. Kana motioned for them to follow her to one side of the dragon so that they could speak in private.

  “Generals, thank you for preparing your armies so quickly and thoroughly. It appears that you are ready to go, so let us get our plans in order without further delay. We will implement our designs right after we are done here,” she explained intently to the mute generals. Anyone who knew an orc general would have known that this stony silence was unheard of. They had a healthy respect for the witch’s powers and knew that she would provide them with an opportunity to exact their revenge on their immortal enemies.

  “We are ready,” replied General Akuji with a slight nod. The other four generals bowed slightly to indicate they were ready to listen. This was exactly what she was hoping for.

  “General Tadok K’K and General G’Dang, you will lead your armies to lay siege to King Kasim in his red mountain,” began Kana. They will do what I want, or I will make examples of these two!

  “What? Why are we attacking those stunted hole dwellers? I thought we were going to wipe out the elves?” asked General G’Dang incredulously.

  “Because, my good general, we need to capture the entire southland for a reason that will become apparent as we continue our discussion. As we speak, the goblins and rock trolls are attacking King Jarvis at Mount Carrick. If you attack the other southern dwarves, we would have control of the majority of the dwarven nations. King Edric will not leave his island fortress, so we will really have full control over one of the most powerful races. While you are securing the hole dwellers, the elves will be under attack by the remaining orc armies from the south while the high elves attack from the north. We would then have control over the two most troublesome races in Tuwa. Men will fall much easier than the rest. Remember, the high elves are laying siege already to the men of Nairi, so we would only have two kingdoms of men to contend with. By that time, we will have a combined army of high elves, orcs, goblins, rock trolls, and several creatures under my command. They will not be able to stand against us,” Kana declared boldly.

  “Your explanation makes sense,” General Tadok K’K said with a look of disgust at General G’Dang.

  “Thank you, General Akuji. As I was saying, we will need to divide the armies and lay siege to the elves and dwarves so that they do not have time to unite against us,” began the guardian. “Generals Akuji and Maurizio, you will need to leave immediately to make your march on Mount Adem. Beware of dwarven traps, and be prepared for a long siege. Those bearded folk will dig in and try to outlast you. Be persistent and do not let any of them live. I leave the tactics of your assault to you two. I trust in your abilities and know that you will succeed.”

  “We will rain down on them like fire from above!” General Akuji said with a hurried bow. He and General Maurizio did an about-face and ran to their respective armies. Within minutes, their armies were marching in a southwestern course toward the red mountain.

  “Generals Nero, Synan, and Tomo, we will attack the elves within the hour. We need a much more strategic battle plan than what Akuji and Maurizio will use on the dwarves. We must try to use the cover of the trees to our advantage. Does anyone have a suggestion about how this could be accomplished?” Kana asked coolly.

  “My witch, we could try setting ambushes using the trees as cover,” offered Tomo.

  “We could do that, but they would probably hear us waiting for them. Those pointed-eared freaks can hear a fly breathing a mile away,” countered Synan aggressively.

  “Burn it down!” exclaimed General Nero. He had a look of great distain on his face as he said this.

  “Why should we burn it down, General?” asked Kana patiently.

  “It would get the attention of those wicked elves and would rid us of the accursed Seda at the same time,” Nero explained. He did not like to mince words and got to the point right away. Kana appreciated this in her lead general.

  “That is why you are my first in command, General Nero. We will burn the forest, and we will avoid the Seda altogether. They are too dangerous to trifle with and cannot be killed by any means you have at your disposal,” Kana explained smoothly.

  “Won’t the fire attract the Seda to our presence?” asked General Tomo.

  “Not if we set the fire northeast of their home. They will think that the elves are trying to push them out of the forest,” explained the Elemental.

  “How will we accomplish this?” asked General Synan.

  “I will take care of the burning while you approach from your positions here. I will fly to where the Seda are purported to reside and set the fire. Then, I will head north over the elven capital, Tarisdell. I will try to get their attention and lead them to the high elves, which are waiting for the signal to attack. As soon as I leave here, you will begin your march into the forest. Take a northeastern approach so that the size of your armies remains hidden for the time being. When you reach the capital city, you should find the elves in disarray. They should be relatively easy to capture at that point. Be careful. They do possess formidable magic and could fight against us with great efficiency if you are not cautious. Surprise will be your greatest weapon,” Kana said pointedly.

  “How exactly should we conceal our approach? Surely our massive armies will not be able to hide from their farseeing eyes,” said Tomo doubtfully.

  “I will cause the winds to move a mist into your path making it impossible to see. I will have my bats accompany you with instructions to guide you to where the elven outposts are positioned. You can take out the sentry units before they could report back to the king that you are coming,” explained the guardian.

  “How big is the army of the elves? ” asked General Nero.

  “The elves do not have a standing army. They have about twenty-five thousand soldiers that comprise the home guard and another ten thousand that make up the king’s guard. However
, there are nearly five hundred thousand elves in the capital city alone. They could assemble an army of considerable size quickly if your approach is detected,” she said sternly.

  “What about the high elves?” asked General Nero undeterred.

  “They have about forty thousand troops. They are being led by a powerful warlock who could easily make up for the smaller numbers by himself. I believe that three hundred and forty thousand against the pitiful defenses of the elves should be sufficient. Make sure to keep a vigilant rear guard to protect against an attack from the men of Aran. I do not believe that they will get involved, but it is better to be prepared for anything,” explained Kana.

  “What is our main objective then in this assault?” asked General Tomo.

  “Once you have attacked the capital, take it. I want you to secure Tarisdell and hold it. Let the high elves hunt down their brethren,” replied Kana. She really appreciated how the orcs did not waste their breath on pointless queries. They were all about business and getting the job done.

  “We will return to our armies and begin our northeastern march as soon as you depart then,” said General Nero with a bow.

  “If you have need of me, send one of the bats with your message. I will be observing from above. I will provide assistance to the areas that need it the most. However, my eyes cannot see everything all at once, so use the bats or the ravens to communicate with me,” she said decisively.

  “As you command,” the generals said in unison. They turned about and marched back to their waiting armies.

  Kana walked slowly to the head of her winged beast and bent close to one of his ears. She whispered for some time and then mounted the foul creature. The wings of the dragon spread wide as it lurched into the air. Within moments, the pair was nothing more than a black dot in the sky. The soldiers stood watching the odd pair fly northwest over the sea of trees. They were so caught up in watching the departure that they were not prepared for the surprise attack from the elves of the forest. A sharp whistling sound could be heard in the air about the ranks of General Tomo’s army. Several orcs went down in the first volley of arrows. Tomo wasted no time in rallying the troops; he ordered a counter attack. A sea of orcs began to rush toward their assailants with great ferocity. As Tomo’s army marched into the forest, an owl shot up into the sky and turned northward toward the capital city. The command was given to shoot the bird down, but it was too late. The messenger owl belonged to Anlon Marowael, the legendary elven warrior. The bird had out-distanced herself from the darts of the orcs within moments of flight. The beast would raise the alarm, so they had to act swiftly and take a more direct course of action.

  The other two armies caught on pretty quickly to what was happening and hastened to their comrades’ aid. Within minutes, the three armies of the orcs were engaged with the outer defenses of the elven home guard. As the foot soldiers neared the hiding place of the elven archers, they were blindsided with a mixture of different magical attacks. One side was hit with a cold blast that froze several orcs instantly while the other side was hit by bolts of lightning. Chaos ensued among the ranks, and blood curdling screams echoed through the canopy of trees. General Nero reached the front of the assault with his troops and immediately took command of all three armies. He had them spread out so that they could move in from the south, east, and west. He was going to force their attackers to flee or die where they were!

  ***

  Kana could sense the presence of the Seda just below her after only a few minutes of flying over the southwestern part of the forest. She urged her dragon to dive down from his high course, and as he did so, he unleashed a long uninterrupted stream of fire upon the forest below. Within moments, the forest was ablaze and they were off at once to Tarisdell. While Kana and her dragon were starting the fire, a messenger owl was flying past them toward the capital city with the alert of the southern assault by the orcs. Kana did not know of the ambush yet, so she took her time in her flight to the elves’ central city. The messenger of Anlon was considerably slower than the dragon, but she was able to fly through the trees and alert some of the king’s guard as she flew. The guard was able to pass the word along of the attack and also warned about a dragon heading their way. There had not been one of those fell beasts in Tuwa since the days of the Eldar. All the dragons were thought to have been killed or banished to the icy wastes of the north lands.

  As the capital city of Tarisdell came into sight, Kana was met with a storm of arrows that appeared to have been poisoned in some way. The elves believed that the only way to kill a dragon was to poison it, so their archers were employing that line of thinking when they attacked. The missiles snapped or were deflected as they came into contact with the impenetrable scales of this black dragon. The legends said the black dragons were the most fierce and unstoppable breed. It was very unusual for one to appear in the first place, but it was even more disconcerting to have a black one assailing them.

  As the arrows continued uninterrupted, Kana chided her fierce beast to unleash his fiery breath on the assailants. Kana also called upon the clouds to gather together, and in moments there were flashes of lightning everywhere. Huge fireballs rained down from the skies and smashed into the southern part of the outer wall. As the battle grew in intensity, the dragon soared high into the air as if it were leaving. Just as the beast became a black dot in the sky, a series of red fire balls were heading right for the elven defenders. They smashed with great force into the wall, sending debris flying fifty feet into the air.

  As the hail of fire continued from Kana’s storm, a deafening roar ripped through the air that sent chills downs the spines of everyone in the city. The barrage of arrows halted suddenly as the archers ran for better cover. The furious guardian created a wall of fire along a portion of the defensive wall instantly consuming the elves that had been firing on her. She landed her dragon atop the wall and dismounted elegantly. She immediately sent out a strong gale of wind that drove any would-be attackers flying through the air. The dragon leaned over the wall and began snatching up helpless elves. The entire southern part of the city was ablaze now, and the king’s guard was now making their way toward the fray. They hesitated once they saw who and what it was that was attacking them. Verandos Tenowernal appeared out of nowhere to urge the soldiers on. The druid then changed into an enormous white bear and ran to the front of the guard. He stood up on his hind legs and roared ferociously into the air. Heartened by this display of leadership and courage, the guard joined the attack.

  Kana caught sight of the king’s guard and the venerable druid Verandos and decided that she had their attention. She returned to her steed and mounted him right away. As the dragon took off into the air, he ripped chucks on the wall off with his powerful talons. He dropped them into the approaching troops as they departed in haste. Several of the king’s guard were unable to avoid the massive blocks and were smashed into the cobble stone pavement. The dragon roared again as it gained altitude, sending a renewed shudder down the collective spines of the elves. The capital was in complete disarray after this vicious attack. Many could not believe that there was a dragon on the loose after all these years. They were troubled by the invincible person that appeared to be controlling the beast. No one knew what or who she was. Terror gripped their hearts as they stood there surrounded by fire and scattered debris. The messenger owl had warned them about the orcs and the dragon, but the bird failed to mention anything about the mysterious rider.

  As Kana made her way swiftly to where the high elves were waiting for the signal to attack, she wondered what went wrong with their plans. She did not worry about what had happened for too long because she totally trusted in General Nero to handle the situation. She knew that he was capable of employing several different battle tactics and his command over his troops was built on mutual trust. She turned her wondering thoughts to the high elves that were waiting just minutes away. She was flying much faster now because of the early warning that the elves received about her
approach. If they knew she was coming, then they must already know about the orc army. They probably do not know about their brethren waiting for them on their northern border. This thought brought a satisfied smile to her face. She knew that their approach would go unnoticed until it was too late. She knew that she could count on their stealth capabilities, whereas the orcs could be relied upon for the brute strength and fierce loyalty to their generals.

  As she climbed a bit higher over a series of hills, the high elven army came into view. They were standing silently just out of the reach of the shadows cast by the tall trees of the Black Forest. Kana closed her eyes as she reached out with her mental power to ascertain their true status. The high elves were adept at hiding their emotions on the surface, but she could delve into their psyche to find out the truth of the matter. She saw flashes of events that recently occurred. The high elves had eliminated all outposts and spies already. They were merely waiting for the signal to move into the interior of the forest. She sent out her web further to find Lord Dukker. She wanted to know how things went with the giants. She could not find him anywhere. By this time, she had arrived at the waiting army, and she descended slowly toward the ground and landed. She immediately dismounted her fell beast and looked around expectantly.

  “Looking for me, malady?” said a sly voice from behind her.

  “Dukker, how in the name of Kedem did you hide from me?” she asked fiercely. She did not like the fact that he could keep her out of his mind and even conceal his whereabouts from her.

  “Years of practice,” replied the warlock. “I sense that you wish to talk to me about the giants. Follow me.” He beckoned her to follow him to tree line where they would not be overheard by the army.

  “The giants that camped near Mount Quang were merely interested in the noises they heard. I eliminated the ignorant brutes as a precaution.” He made it sound as if it were no more difficult than killing an insect.