Waters of Aqnis, Second Story of Nypre

Chapter 8

"I've been doing the best I can. But they may not wake up." Lina whispered out of respect for the fallen. She stood in the room of an inn, separate than the one she had been staying at. The room was very plain, holding no decorations and two small beds. It was the only room that could hold the injured Melanie and Tawarln. Deren and Norris stood with her. "Tawarln has multiple wounds, and has lost a lot of blood. Melanie is in better shape physically, but still won't wake up."

"It's my fault. I wasn't fast enough." Deren frowned. He looked over Melanie, hoping his incompetence didn't cause her death. Deren turned away and began walking towards the door, ready to leave.

"Deren, don't blame yourself for this." Lina told him.

"I don't blame myself, I blame Falkner. He pay for this, even if I have to lead the armies myself." Deren replied, his cold voice filled with malice. Lina was surprised. She had never seen Deren like that. Before she could comment further Deren left the room. It was clear he wasn't in the mood to chat.

"Deren is letting his anger control him more than it should." Norris commented. Lina didn't reply. "Hurry and say your prayers of these two, then we will leave."

"Norris, what are we supposed to do now?" Lina asked, ignoring his command.

"I don't know." Norris admitted. "With Tawarln out, his army has no leader. Without Aqnis, the town has no leader. I don't think we'll be able to hold Falkner off again should he attack."

"It's both frustrating and sad. There is true evil in this world, yet we battle with another human nation. If we could just work together, we may stand a chance against the Night Land." Lina sighed.

"That is true, but war is a force of evil far older than the Night Land. There is no reason to think war will just disappear because a greater evil appears. It doesn't work like that." Norris explained. Lina looked away. She dropped to her knees in front of the beds, and began her prayers. It was up to Ana to help Tawarln and Melanie survive.

"Our lord is incapacitated. Our people are refugees. Our army is broken." A man with long blonde hair, wielding a powerful looking sword and shield, wearing the strongest pristine leather armor stood upon a raised platform in an open area outdoors. He addressed Tawarln's remaining army. The army stood at attention, and standing around the army were curious citizens of Aqnis. It was a small army, much smaller than it was last time it gathered in a single spot.

"The enemy out numbers us, but victory is not impossible. We will protect this town. As long as we stand strong, we can protect those around us no matter how many soldiers they have." The blonde man yelled. His words were inspiring, bringing a sense of hope to an otherwise grim time. The army cheered, and the citizens of Aqnis applauded.

"Call back the scouts. Falkner is notorious for altering his troop movements and camps to give us false intelligence. Instead, the scouts will take to the skies, giving us an advanced notice for when he does attack. We will be working with the army of Aqnis, setting traps, preparing for his next attack to disable his armies before they even reach the city. We were caught unaware before, it will never happen again." The man yelled.

The man who had addressed the crowd was named Jordan. He was second in command under Tawarln. With Tawarln unconscious it was up to Jordan to lead. His first orders were to keep the mages in the air to protect he town and unite the two armies. With Aqnis missing, the army of Aqnis would need a leader. There was no reason they shouldn't act as one unit. Jordan did not believe in the petty politics that would prevent that if the lords were still in command.