The Will Of The Kings.

Rise of the Dalon. Part 1.

Borrock had nearly flinched when he had seen the mass of Farnbreth cavalry, and he had cursed the fact that Firminor's Southmen cavalry had strayed too far to the flanks. He had harboured hopes that they might have held the line, but his seasoned eye had quickly discerned otherwise. The struggle for the high ground on the north side had been conceded before it commenced. His blood had simmered, and no one in his vicinity had dared to seek orders. As he gazed down at his finely embroidered saddle, he had shut his eyes momentarily. An observer might have mistaken it for a hint of despair, but they would have been mistaken. When he raised his gaze anew, Borrock issued fresh commands with haste. He had committed two thousand troops, and not all of his forces had been expended. There stood an additional nine thousand soldiers in his ranks, awaiting instructions with eagerness to secure another victory.

Roahna's men were better equipped, but Borrock's forces outnumbered them, and they were no less capable or zealous for the impending fray. Borrock promptly dispatched his fresh wave of troops forward. He intended to hold the bridge and crush the enemy's right flank. With his orders given, Borrock allowed his thoughts to wander to considerations of his covert allies, ones that Firminor and Sansarris remained blissfully unaware of— the final piece of the quartet. They were now mobilising to sever Roahna from his city and leave the pathway open for Borrock. All that Borrock needed to accomplish here was to maintain their position, but he harboured no intentions of settling for a stalemate.

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The Dalon had moved north and crossed the river long before Rook had found their tracks, surrounding their main force with a ring of scouts. The last of those scouts had crossed the river just after Rook had sprinted back to warn the others. They did not see Rook, but they did see Fox and heard Crals' voice. Fox had been just a few feet away from a scout, but all he had seen was water, mud, grass, and a rock at the water's edge. With Fox out of sight, the scout had uncurled itself from the water's edge and dashed off with great leaping strides; she had to alert the others and then deal with the men.

The Dalon were Borrock's secret ally. Secret because Firminor and Sansarris would never have marched north with them had they known, because they could not see what would need to be done to win such a war. That was why Borrock led the Alliance. The Dalon were a race as old as time. When standing straight, they would reach ten feet in height, although they moved with arched backs. They were great reptilian beasts, with no need for clothes or armour, and possessed unbelievable strength. Only a few in their tribe wore jewels and bands of gold as a sign of authority. Their last stronghold lay in the White Mountains. In the distant past, they had fought another enemy, now a fairy tale to most humans, for possession of them and had lost. The Dalon had been saved from extinction as the power that hunted them was destroyed by yet others, whose name was lost in the past, but the Dalon had never recovered, and even now, there were still only a few settlements in their mountain home.

Their Queen Elcess had brought them down to the plains, on the promise of new lands. A chance for them to recover from their decline. A chance to gain true power over new lands. Something that, since they had come into being, they had never completely achieved. She had brought almost all the Dalon who were of age, and they had moved fast against Farnbreth. She felt no particular hatred towards the city, but then she had little regard for any race other than her own; her commitment to the Alliance was slight but convenient.

As such, Roanha and Farnbreth would face beasts of legend and myth. Monsters of the past, walking dragons that only a few would have learned of and even fewer seen. The Dalon was an image from the common man's nightmares. ...................................................................................................................................................................................