Both Ways (20181228)

CH1

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The rain. It just started out as small specks, here and there. Then slowly and steadily, the pattern began to accelerate, the specks turning into heavy, laden drops that carried more weight than they seemed they should. Soon, the rains fell down in a torrential downpour, a disaster to their already desperate situation. Tavi cursed their fortune. He himself was in a percarious position. His real name was Gaius Octavian heir to the throne. His made him a target for assasination, so now he was masquerading as Captain Rufus Scipio of the First Aleran Legion. He had to organise the defense again their vicious Canim foes. These huge, bipedal wolves drove an onslaught through their humanoid foes, having arrived at the Aleran West shore not yet two months prior. Those long months had been filled with fierce clashes between armies, leading to heavy losses on both sides. Nevertheless, the advantage was toward the Canim. Their natural stature, senses, and extended longevity gave them a one-on-one advantage to the average Aleran. Of course, the Alerans had a few tricks that had kept them alive during the war. They had magical crafting abilities, able to shift the elements at their will, with great bear on ones' stamina and strength. They could also wield furies, which behaved similar to familiars, but again tied to the elements to determine their character. While the Canim could summon magical attacks powered by the blood of sentient beings, they could not project furies. Instead, they used their natural advantages to turn the tides of battle, relying on large, sweeping weapons. Moving with speed far exceeding that of an Aleran. Most effectively, they would concentrate their military operations around hours of darkness, using their more keen nocturnal vision to give them a serious advantage.

To counter this, Tavi had his legionaries use alcohol to light bonfires of furnitures collected from overrun towns and villages. These fires provided the Aleran camp and walls with the precious light they needed to be able to fight their foes at least half decently. Now with the rain suffocating the giant fires, darkness slowly surrounded them. Within minutes, scouts returned of the news Tavi already new; Canim invaders had been spotted, in a dozen parties at least 50 strong each. The picket line had no hope of countering them, in the dark. As such, they fell back to the main line, where the precious few fury lamps were able to keep lit enough to see and fight. Tavi ordered a few horsemen out to keep an eye on the Canim's distance, and to see if they could strike a few ranks of their foes down. He knew it was almost an exercise of futility; the horses were weary of the Canim, and were unlikely at best to cooperate enough to near them, should they smell the raiders.

The riders started returning at regular intervals to relay their findings. A patrol here, a column of raiders there, not more than a mile away. As funny as it seemed, a mile at night sure did feel like a far greater distance than during the day. At least for an Aleran. The Canim, he knew, did not share the same phenomenon.

"Captain, come quickly!" A hurried voice called through the darkness from near the wall's gate, little more than a hole in their hasty battlements. "They found more of them!" Tavi hurried his pace. Crows! he thought. If things weren't already bad! He reached the gate in time to see a wounded rider being pulled off his horse, bloodied hands trying to keep from falling off outright.

"What's happened?" Tavi asked. He dreaded the answer. It was quite strange for a rider to return wounded, yet his horse intact. The Canim raiders were typically equipped with makeshift hand weapons. This had to be the work of the Canim warriors, who were far more practiced and feirce.

"Was about a mile and a half out," The rider managed as he finally dropped from his horse. "Got around a few Raider parties to see what was behind them. Slammed right into a huge group of them, sir. At least fifty Canim wide, and a hundred deep. I suspect it was deeper, but that was all I could see." The rider paused to catch his breath. "They got my other two riders seconds after we saw them and turned about. Giant arrows, with great speed and accuracy." He examined his wound. "This one grazed me, just barely, I thought. It got me as I rode across them, no less than two hundred feet out, at speed."