ICE

96. A Calculated Loss

THE BAKER ABANDONED her. She watched, mildly amused, as he rushed back inside the restaurant. The door slammed shut behind him. Other townsfolk followed his lead. Ravenna hesitated, unsure where to turn to or what to do. The world around her was pure chaos. It was hard to concentrate.

From the corner of her eyes, she saw Vyses step through the portal and into the market place. She rushed toward him, weaving through the sea of ice soldiers that marched through the streets.

"What is going on?" she hissed at him as she approached.

Vyses smiled at her. It appeared forced. "It seems as though our predictions were wrong," he said. He sighed. "There is a small army just beyond the city wall. The rumors that Lyth heard were a bit outdated."

"Just a bit?" Ravenna repeated, her eyebrow arched.

He pursed his lips. "It wouldn't be as much of a concern if it weren't for the fact that the Blood Knights are with them. I was on my way to one of the watchtowers to observe the fight."

Ravenna stiffened at the mention of the Blood Knights. "I'll come with you," she told him.

He nodded. She followed him through the streets, toward the main entrance gate. As they approached the massive stone wall, the amount of soldiers around them increased. Vyses reached out, his fingers curling around her hand so that they didn't get separated.

Vyses led her to a small, partially concealed doorway. It opened into a narrow passageway that was used by guards to travel along the outer gate and between the various watch towers.

The closest tower was just east of the main entrance. It overlooked the vast forest that surrounded the city. Ravenna and Vyses raced up the spiraling steps, toward the top. When they reached the plateau, the space opened into a large room, filled with training equipment and a small desk area. They both immediately rushed toward the the window-like opening and peered out.

It was hard to see the battle at first. The trees that clustered below them shielded most of the action. Vyses lifted a glowing red hand. Clouds of red magic formed around the tree-tops, swallowing them whole and rendering them invisible.

Ravenna's jaw clenched. Below them, her ice soldiers clashed against hundreds of iron-armored knights. Their bodies appeared so small to her, it was almost like watching a swarm of blurred lightning-bugs zip around, colored silver and ice blue. Corpses littered the battlefield —mostly covered in silver. As the swords cracked against the icy bodies of Ravenna's soldiers, she noticed that the spell weakened. Four solid strikes was all it took for her soldiers to be "killed". The fallen ice soldiers turned into goo that melted back into the earth.

"Are you sure that we have enough soldiers?" she asked. Her voice shook as waves of anxiety ricocheted between her inner organs.

Vyses didn't answer at first, his gaze focused on the fight. "I think so," he muttered under his breath. He glanced at her from the corner of his eyes. "If we do happen to run out, would you prefer to stay and fight? Or should we flee to another city? I would suggest that we could start making more of them. I am worried, however, that we wouldn't be able to keep up. Not at the rate that we are losing soldiers."

"We can't leave. We won't find another city like this," she said simply.

He nodded and squared his shoulders. "The biggest hindrance is the Blood Knights. Their presence has altered our chances at winning."

Her gaze drifted back down toward the forest. The Blood Knights were relatively easy to spot, due to their elaborately colored armor and the sheer amount of gooey remains surrounding them. There were about five of them total —their faces were too distant to distinguish individually. Their fighting styles weren't as aggressive as the other Imperial soldiers. Instead, they seemed to sit back and observe, waiting for their magical opponents to strike first.

One Blood Knight stood out, however, even amongst the others. His movements were quick and limber, yet very well calculated. Any ice soldier that lunged toward him became melted goo within seconds.

Ravenna's palms pressed against the stones that comprised the window ledge. The rugged rock scraped at her skin. "We don't have enough," she remarked absently, watching the Blood Knight obliterate five of her ice soldiers in one strike.

Vyses hesitated. "How do you wish to proceed, lass?"

Ravenna bit her lip. Her thoughts raced around inside her head. She chanced a small glance at Vyses.

"What if we let them win?"

hey friends! 

I'm sorry again for how short these next few chapters are! Thank you so much for your continued patience and support!!! I really appreciate and love y'all so much! ❤