Return to Jorgaldur Volume V: Reunion (2)

Bait (I)

"Arrow Formation! Everyone ready!" Caranlin shouted.

"You've heard her! Ready to support them! From now on, shoot only when necessary until the operation begins!" Elendnas ordered to the archers.

The warning from the high command had just arrived. They were prepared for one of the most ambitious and risky operations of that offensive.

Their main objective in that war was to distract the enemy, but it wasn't the only one. Furthermore, if they were successful, they would put much more pressure on their enemies.

The elves weren't the only ones who had received the news. On each of the battle fronts, the same warning spread. It was time to carry out what many had been waiting for with expectation, and others with some fear.

The catapults launched their projectiles again, thus purifying a wide area. However, they were no longer as effective as the first time, since the losts weren't as crowded together.

That was all the generals had come up with. To disperse their forces a little so as not to lose so many with each attack. In addition, they were quick to fill in the areas without miasma, and to order their troops to occupy the empty space.

Until now, the living had limited themselves to eliminating those which remained between the lines whenever this happened. They had also taken advantage of it to take a short break. However, this time, it was different.

The barbarians began to advance in a strange formation. From the defense line, a single column of living emerged determined to invade the enemy lines. It was a column of two, with Smashy and Crushy at the front.

Anyone familiar with military tactics would have found this strategy absurd, as there seemed to be no point in carrying out this type of incursion. It was a formation that was too weak, and very easy to isolate and be surrounded if the central part fell. It seemed more like a ridiculous game of the barbarians than a serious tactic.

Although, those didn't seem to care. They soon reached the purified area, and the two visitors were the first to encounter their enemies again.

The latter began to surround them, occupy the cleared space, and attack along the column. This didn't seem to be much trouble for the barbarians, who held out easily, back to back. The problem was that they were investing a lot of energy in achieving this, and they would eventually run out.

The mages and archers had approached the first line of defense, which was idle, ignored by the corrupted beings. They tried to support their companions from there, although even so the expenditure of mana and energy was excessive. The tactic didn't make sense.

Perhaps the strangest thing about this was that the same situation was being repeated on the other battlefields. It wasn't just the barbarians, but everyone else.

"Will it work?" Merlin asked himself in one of the columns, worried.

He was calculating the expenditure of the column. There was still time, but in a few minutes, they would have to retreat. He only hoped that if it was needed, they would make it out in one piece.

They were in great danger, but it was necessary if they were to deal a heavy blow to their enemies.

"Ha, ha! Now that's fighting!" a barbarian laughed, as she stabbed two spears into a bearwolf.

"Finally, some fun!" another exclaimed. He was a little further back, on the other side of the column.

He was kicking a ninety-three-pede, or so the barbarian called the centipede after having cut off seven of the legs with his axe. With the kick, he managed to finish the job of his Axe Blow, and split it in two.

They had a lot of work now. They were being attacked from both sides, in a continuous flow of enemies. At range, there was some help, but the enemies also had ranged attacks.

Given the previous dispersion due to the attack of the catapults, it was still sustainable. However, when the density of the losts increased again, their situation would worsen. They were in the middle of the enemy zone, in a precarious column of two.

"Be careful! It's coming!" Crushy announced.

It was the warning they had been waiting for. It meant that the enemy had taken the bait. Now, all that remained was to survive.

Explosions of energy and mana erupted from the battlefield, in an extra expense to reinforce their defenses. In any case, those who were to receive the brunt of the attack were two visitor siblings who were in front. Everything depended on them.

The elven column received a similar warning. In their case, large amounts of mana surged forth to reinforce the defense of the pair at the forefront. The powerful shields, both physical and magical, increased their power to unthinkable levels.

In addition, new barriers rose around them, which created new layers of protection. They had to hold on no matter what.

Merlin was near the head of the column. He hadn't launched a single attack, but had simply been conserving his mana while observing the surrounding battles.

It wasn't until he noticed a strong fluctuation of miasma that he acted.

"It's coming!" he warned.

Throughout the column, bursts of mana arose to push the losts back, or annihilate them if they were lucky. Meanwhile, the visitor mage started a chant to prepare to cast a powerful spell.

"Guardians of the world that guard its essence,

I need your strength, your presence.

Be my fortress..."

Large amounts of mana converged towards Merlin, as he waited for the right moment. It was necessary to be precise.

On each of the battlefields, different strategies were carried to face the threat looming over them. They had provoked the enemy, and now they had to deal with the consequences.

At the same time, several presences waited in the rear of the battlefield, as their senses were fixed on the fluctuations of the miasma. Those presences were as pure as they were powerful, and their appearance in such large numbers was truly an unprecedented event.

However, there was much at stake, many intertwined destinies that converged on those battlefields, and on others further away. Not even they could stay away, especially considering that the nature of some threats was closely related to them.

Not exactly at the same time, but those fluctuations of miasma ended up concentrating on each of the battlefields, to launch powerful attacks. One by one, the generals had decided to cast a Ray of Corruption, something they could only execute once every many years.