Rune Knight: Book Two of The Empress Saga

CHAPTER TWENTY-FOUR

Ban reached his position beneath the easternmost point of the stormbreak. Here, the sheer edifice of limestone and marble angled inland, sheltering the roads and farmlands immediately outside of Ecclesia from the storms. Along the coastline, the Eastern Road passed beneath the bladed eaves of the stormbreak and lay within its shadow.

"Am I going mad, or is Kastus blundering?" Sasha asked. He lowered the spyglass from his eye and returned it to Uwe.

The prince was armored in gold-lacquered full plate. He rode a roan Altieri charger encased in steel barding, and the visor of his helm was raised. Sasha was at the head of the line of Lost Company cavalry forming up behind the stormbreak.

"It do be appearing so, Majesty," Trent grumbled. "The general be advancing without outriders. Swift and heedless. There be no sense in this. He makes good time, two days sooner than expected, but his men be worn out from the forced march. Waves, but he even be approaching with the sun in his eyes."

Trent had his horse on Sasha's left. He wore a deep scowl as he surveyed the ranks of First Legion infantry marching up the coastal road in the distance. Kastus' forces would arrive at Ecclesia's gates within the hour.

Before that happened, the Lost Company would make its stand.

"I hate to say it, Ban," Sasha murmured, "but it might be for the best that you were warned away from having your wedding early. The First Legion is moving much faster than we anticipated."

"I hate to hear it," Ban replied from Sasha's right, "but you're correct. I didn't think Kastus meant to tire his men out before the attack."

Ban had only just finished getting into his full plate with the aid of Hugin and Rav. By a stroke of luck, he was riding Arnln, the white charger, again. The horse's owner was a scrivener and needed atop the stormbreak; he had been insistent that Ban take his horse once more.

"Kastus doesn't blunder," Ban stated. "It's not in his nature. If he's not following his own rules for this assault, there's a reason for it. We need to know what that reason is."

Sasha made a face like he had bitten into a lemon. "He's marching as if he's headed for a homecoming instead of a siege. He can't really expect that Ecclesia's going to welcome him with open arms."

On Ban's right, Kimpo had taken her human form. Her charcoal skin and red markings carried a different air at the onset of battle. Kimpo appeared to Ban's eyes once again as a goddess of war.

"Our beloved asks that I aid you, Rune Knight," she said. "To that end, I would advise you."

Ban nodded. "Let's hear it."

Kimpo kept her eyes forward. "Whatever Kastus' reasons, he has put himself at an apparent disadvantage. It may be a ruse. It may be part of a larger scheme. However, a warrior must not act solely upon expectations but on what is plainly ahead."

"Meaning?" Sasha asked.

"Even weary and exhausted, this legion will overwhelm the Lost Company. At best, we will have two hours before we are driven off or annihilated."

"She's saying that Kastus doesn't need to attack us carefully," Ban said with a grimace. "We're bugs in his path, but we'll give him a sting he won't soon forget."

Kimpo let out a grim chuckle. "Well said. A sting to give him pause and remove his helm. Once his position on the field is known to us, we will strike."

"And strike hard," Ban agreed. He turned to Hugin and Rav behind him. "Give sendings to the forces on the stormbreak. Scriveners are to light the timed sigils once the fourth battalion has passed over them. Archers will loose their arrows once the dust settles."