“What?” he asked.
“You’re wounded,” she said. “You need to be in the infirmary!”
“Would you be?” the Prince retorted. “I can fight. And you need everyone you can get.”
“You’re still wounded?” Tomaz asked, his eyes narrowing.
“No,” the Prince insisted. “I’m fine.”
A sharp, pointed finger dug into his ribs, and he gasped in pain. He shook his head and rounded on Leah, who had jabbed him.
“Do that again,” he growled.
“That’s enough,” Tomaz rumbled. “This is neither the time nor place for you to act like spoiled children.”
The gravity of the situation fell on them once more, and the Prince felt his anger at the girl fade away. The shaking under their feet was growing more pronounced, and the Prince knew that his brother was somewhere on the other side of the gate. For what seemed like an eternity, they waited there, watching the barred wooden doors under the gate through which the enemy would attempt to come.
BOOM!
All of the soldiers recoiled at the noise.
BOOM!
The Prince felt as though something invisible had been placed over his ears, silencing all sound. The pounding of the ram was so loud that the silence that followed was almost unbearable.
BOOM!
Cracks splintered through the wood of the gate. The sound of arrows being shot from the force manning the wall continued, but it slowed the ram not at all.
BOOM!
The cracks widened, and the doors bowed inward under the weight of the enormous ram in the hands of the Daemons.
“AAAAAHHHH!!!”
The Prince started so violently at the noise, coming from directly behind him, that he jumped nearly a foot in the air. It was Tomaz, roaring in his huge voice, shouting his defiance.
“Ahhhh!”
“For the Kindred!”
“For Aemon!”
“FOR AEMON!”
Cries sounded from throats on all sides of the Prince, and he found to his surprise that he was screaming with them, wordlessly shouting against his brother, against this force that had come to kill him as assuredly as it had come to kill the Kindred. He roared so loudly it felt as though his throat would split.
And then with a final crash, the doors crumpled inward and two Daemons with Bloodmages riding on their shoulders forced their way through the debris, giant maces swinging and flattening anything and everything in their path.
The Rangers, led by Davydd, his red eyes glowing with a murderous light, stood ready in a clearing in the center of the large courtyard. The giant poles, held by theashandel, lanced out with amazing accuracy and battered the Daemons from all sides, keeping them far enough away to prevent them from attacking. Theeshendaibegan swooping in so quickly that the slow-moving Daemons couldn’t react in time. The smaller, lighter fighters cut at the straps holding the Bloodmages in place and tried to haul them off their enormous mounts. Arrows rained down on the Bloodmages and their Daemons from the wall above, but as the Prince had warned, they did little damage.
But slowly, step by labored step, the Daemons advanced, moving out of the way of the gate, where the Prince could see a swarming red-and-white horde of soldiers waiting to attack.
Tomaz turned to the Prince and thrust his enormous greatsword into his hands.
“Hold this,” was all he said, and then he was running straight at the Daemons, Leah right behind him.
The Prince had no time to respond, but watched in complete shock as Tomaz ran at the closest Daemon and rolled forward inside its reach as itswung its mace. Leah drew her two daggers and hurled them both straight at the Bloodmage riding atop it.
