Incarnation | Wandering Stars Volume One

Chapter 27

MUDENA DEL-EDHA

The sky began to lighten in the east, while shouts of retreat could be heard across the battlefield. Having fought for hours to break through the angelic force holding the land entrance to Semjaza's fortress, Danduel's soldiers had sustained much damage. Though they originally outnumbered Semjaza's forces two-to-one, the high ground and arrangement of the passage gave a considerable advantage to the enemy. Danduel's numbers had been steadily whittled down to roughly sixty Anduarym and he was no longer able to maintain the attack. His Iryllurym had sustained even greater casualties.

"Horfa! Horfa!" he commanded.

As his soldiers backed away from the wall, cheers rose up among the enemy force. The ground forces raised their spears and shields high in the air, while the humans laughed and made crude gestures. The winged angels hovered in the air above the gate, while the holy Iryllurym backed away, covering the retreat of their counterparts on the ground.

Danduel shook his head in frustration, then turned to lead his army down the road, away from the gate. Trying to maintain some semblance of order, his Anduarym lined up and began marching. Within minutes, the retreat was in full force. The Fer-Rada quickly made his way to the head of the retreat and led them around a sharp bend.

A smile came to his lips as he saw Ananel standing to the side of the road, waving to him. Danduel marched toward the newly formed hole in the side of the eastern-facing cliff.

"Are you ready?" he asked the Myndarym as he approached.

"They'll punch through as soon as you're in position."

Danduel nodded, then ducked into the cave. Without anything to light the way, he held his shield in front of him and marched as quickly as his legs would carry him. Luckily, the tunnel was level and smooth, having been shaped by the Myndarym. If it had been dug by any other method, the debris alone would have made it impassable.

Semjaza will never be expecting this!

 

"Fer-Rada?" came a voice from the darkness.

"I'm here. Just wait until the tunnel is full," Danduel replied, coming to a stop. He felt another presence behind him as his soldiers packed themselves into the passage beneath the mountain. "Come in and make room for the others," he commanded.

Though completely dark, he could nevertheless hear a change in the way sound traveled through the tunnel. After waiting patiently for several minutes, he heard the message being relayed from the back of the line.

"We're ready," the soldier behind him stated.

"Go ahead," Danduel told the Myndarym. "Make it as fast and wide as you can."

After a moment's pause, a low note sounded, accompanied by another, then another harmony. The music filled the tiny space until the very rock seemed to resonate with it. As each harmony was layered onto the growing force of sound, Danduel had to cover his ears to keep from losing his balance. His head began to ache and his hands shook.