The Robber Knight

35. Hypothetical Arrows

And then she saw them. The sight hit her in the stomach like a fist of iron.

Boats. Dozens of rough, small, wooden rowing boats. Some of them had the marks of axes and bits of bark still on them. All of them carried soldiers, moving determinedly across the river, using rough wooden paddles. They weren't going very fast, but the river wasn't very broad, either. They would be across soon. And there were many. Too many.

Behind them, clearly visible on a small hill overlooking the river, the red robber knight sat on his stallion and watched the proceedings calmly. The deadly aura radiating off him was almost palpable.

“Shoot them,” Ayla yelled, pointing to the soldiers on the river. Was it only her imagination or did her voice sound slightly higher than usual? “Shoot them all! Now!”

Before all the words were out of her mouth, she spotted Waldar on the bank of the river beside a company of archers, his arm raised. Suddenly, the fat man didn't seem quite so silly to Ayla anymore. He had already given the orders. Now, his arm came down, and the arrows took flight.

The soldiers in the boats, however, had apparently just waited for this. Quickly, they discarded their paddles in favor of wooden shields, holding them up over their heads as the hail of arrows came down upon them. The arrows stuck in the shields or even bounced off harmlessly. Laughter erupted from the boats, and Ayla's eyes widened in shock.

Nothing! Their counter-attack had had no effect whatsoever. Her eyes darted towards the red robber knight. He still sat on his horse which hadn't moved an inch. He didn't need to shout commands or run about. He was master of the battlefield. Slowly, he raised his arm in her direction and held up his hand in the most threatening greeting she had ever seen.

Near tears, Ayla wrung her hands in desperation. What was she supposed to do now? Was there another way of counter-attack? Anything else her soldiers could do?

As if in answer to her silent question, Sir Waldar turned and saw her standing on the barricade. For once, he was not laughing or making jokes. Fixing her with his eyes, he shook his head.

That was it. He didn't know how to repel the soldiers. And Ayla? She had no idea. There were at least a hundred of them in the boats. Once they were across, there would be no stopping them. They had already covered a quarter of the way. Regardless of how many arrows Ayla's men fired, they would only distract their enemies, not destroy them. Soon they would come ashore, and then it would be over.

Ha! Bitter self-disgust shot through Ayla. She had played at being a leader for these last couple of days, but that was all it had been—a play. When things got dirty and bloody, she had no clue what to do. How could she? No one had ever prepared her for something like this. She was no commander.

Unlike the red robber knight.

There was only one person who could help her now. Only one person who could possibly know what to do.

Suddenly decided, she slid down the ladder and ran to her horse. The poor animal could hardly stand, but she swung herself into the saddle regardless. If she didn't do this, they would all suffer the consequences. She, her people, even the poor animal panting underneath her as she drove it on towards the castle.

For that matter, they might still suffer—if God in his mercy didn't work a miracle today for the man she needed.

Please let Isenbard be awake, she prayed. Please let him be awake!

*~*~**~*~*

By the time Ayla arrived at the keep, her horse was half dead. It tore at her heart to have to hurt a faithful animal so, but she couldn't spare any thoughts on it now.