Boulders aimed at disrupting the formation rolled down the slope, hammering into the barrier before disintegrating into a cloud of dust. It was slowing my infantry and weakening the mages. Worse, when the shield broke, the men suffered, injured or killed by the rocks.
Ivar was there. First among the men, his commanding presence dominated the battlefield. ‘Archers, keep those fuckers busy. Aim high above the rampart,’ he said, and a volley of arrows silenced even the wind. Pained cries erupted from above. The boulders stopped rolling, and my men began scaling the rampart wall, broken bodies falling like trees chopped by dwarven axes.
And I lost my fight with the beast.
My muscles swelled, and my vision blurred, lost to a golden mist. A roar tore from my throat, spreading over the battlefield as I charged. My bastard sword appeared, an extension of my will, weighing less than the pendant on my chest.
‘Erenhart! Erenhart!’ my men chanted as I leapt forward to scale the rampart. ‘For the king! For the Beast of Dagome!’
Dwarves died before they could swing their weapons, my enemy’s blood spraying across my face. With each swing, they died. Corpses fell before me, their bones splintering beneath my boots. The mud churned, turning red as I roared my fury to the heavens. My relentless attack broke the shield wall, allowing my soldiers to follow and quickly gain a foothold inside the fortifications. The dwarves didn’t beg for mercy; no one backed down or surrendered, but even lost in the berserker’s rage, I knew we were winning.
That’s enough, human. Don’t make me subdue you again,the voice in my head said irritably.
I remembered the will that had held me back when Sana rode through the killing fog. Slowly, my mind cleared.Where are they running?I thought as the last remaining dwarves rushed towards a strange building.
My answer came with a flash of fire and a blow that knocked me to the ground. The infantry were behind their shields, and together with the battlemages, they withstood the explosion. However, as one, the mages crumpled, boneless, to the ground. Some staggered back up, fighting for air, their faces ashen, whilst those unconscious were carried down from the battlefield.
‘Regroup and attack again!’ My voice was so hoarse I could barely speak. I wiped the blood from my face before pointing to the weakest part of the second rampart. ‘Concentrate the attack there. Send the archers and light cavalry to cover the flanks. I don’t care that it’s dark. I want to hear the arrows falling like rain until we get there.’
The trumpet sounded its harsh signal, commanding the soldiers, while I returned to my position.The Beast of Dagome.My jaw clenched, but the soldiers’ voices were still chanting it. I couldn’t afford to lose my mind again. If I’d stayed behind, I would have seen the explosion coming. I rolled my shoulders, adjusting my position, the iron control falling back into place.
The infantry closed ranks, the remaining men boosting their compatriots up, climbing the bastion using each other as ladders. I shouted for those unable to climb to grab the bows of the fallen and protect the clambering soldiers.One last rampart, the final barrier, before the city of Wiosna opens for me.I felt a shiver run down my spine. I was so close to my goal that it felt unreal.
‘For Dagome!’ I cried.
Blood flowed down the mountainside, churned into mud and slush by countless boots. It was pure carnage, and even the berserker in me quietened at the sight. The dwarves fought like the possessed. They no longer felt pain or fear, embracing death like a long-awaited friend.
One impaled himself on the lance of a young warrior, forcing himself along its length to kill the horrified spearman. His cheeks were hollowed, riddled with pustules that burst when he smiled, and died. Even in the battlefield’s chaos, I gagged at the stench. The dwarf’s swollen flesh was streaked with blue-grey lines, each face the same – eyes unfocused, glazed with fever and pain.
Sana had mentioned the disease that riddled their bodies, an effect of exposure to srebrec. Now I was dealing with it firsthand, fighting living corpses. My chest tightened at the sight, but my compassion only lasted a moment. A vicious swing of an axe came from my blind side, almost taking my head off. Mercy lost to the practicalities of battle, and my foot lashed out, kickingaway my opponent. A sword stroke gave the tortured soul a clean death.
The battle lasted hours, and both sides were showing signs of exhaustion as dawn broke, bright and beautiful. The sun’s appearance didn’t last long, as clouds soon obscured its light, bringing a flurry of snow. It was as if the gods themselves wanted to cover this atrocity.
It took less than an hour after sunrise to finally defeat the last of the fighters, but at what cost? There were corpses and body parts everywhere, littering the slope like a child’s broken toys. I held one man responsible for this.
It was time to end this madness and his life.
‘Gather the injured and take them to the healers. Treat the dwarves with the same respect as our own fallen,’ I said, gesturing at the elite guard. ‘Ivar, take control of the infantry and follow me. We have unfinished business with the mountain king.’
We marched up the road, undisturbed in the quiet of the gentle snowfall. Dagome’s banner stood proudly on the turret of the remaining rampart while my men corralled the remaining dwarves. There weren’t many left.
‘Any orders?’ Ivar said, pointing above where the stone gateway to the dwarven city loomed over the road. ‘After that battle, I’m afraid of what we’ll find in there.’
‘Save those you can, kill whoever attacks,’ I answered, my voice hollow like my soul. ‘See if any of those poor bastards can be saved. Gods, I should have intervened earlier, before things got this bad.’
‘You tried, my lord, but that woman blinded you…’ He paused when I raised my hand, silencing the man who didn’t know how wrong he was. It was thanks to Sana that we knew about Mlot, the srebrec, and the dwarven sickness. Because of her and Tova,the void boxes could be dealt with efficiently before they charged enough to end in slaughter.
Ivar spoke out of ignorance, and I didn’t even raise my voice when I issued a simple warning. ‘That womanis the reason why we’re still alive. Be very careful of how you speak of her.’
Chapter 26
Reynard
My one visit to Wiosna during my youth hadn’t prepared me for what I was facing now. Wherever I looked, the sturdy homes and workshops stood eerily quiet, their windows staring back at us as we passed. Haggling merchants no longer occupied the streets – no one did.
The entire city, a pearl of metallurgy and engineering, was as silent as a grave. The only sound was the passing of our army, footsteps accompanied by the subdued murmuring of soldiers.
‘Where are the dwarves? We’ve only encountered men. Where is everyone?’ Ivar whispered. The soldiers weren’t the only ones affected by the eerie atmosphere.
