CHAPTER 4 - III -

 

The Dawson Valley region was a strip of land running from north to south, straddling right in the border of Stadtsberg and Amaranth.  It was a rural country, populated by a few villages with considerable distance from each other.  There was no central town, nor a city, and the land was gold with wheat fields.

 

The Imperial armies that were heading towards the city of Stadtsberg had to pass the Dawson Valley; otherwise, they would have to go a long way around, through Savoy into the kingdom of Nerfes, and enter that place to its east.  The invading forces were composed of two legions of 5,000 men each, an auxiliary cavalry of a thousand horses, and a screening force of archers and magicians.  

 

Not only that, but there were also Amaranthine forces among the invading legions, led by their respective lords, and equipped with their own weaponry.  If brought to a total, the Imperial strike force heading to Stadtsberg would amount to 15,000 to 18,000 men.

 

And the importance of this army was reflected by the command to which it was given to:  a senior Imperial commander, ranking just below General Umberto Benicci.

 

“…”

 

Lily and Kuro watched the approaching legions from a field just a stone’s throw away from the main road.  Dawson valley was an uninterrupted plain of green grass and wheat fields, without a tree in sight, and so the defending army could see the invaders from afar.

 

“Ah!  Finally, we could fly this flag!” Lily commented the moment she unfurled the banner of the Human Saint, Madelaine Rubinforth, “It’s been a while since we last saw this on the battlefield.”

 

“Well, I’m hoping that this would be the last time that we’ll see it fly over sites like this,” Kuro replied.

 

“Don’t worry!  If we held them back, we could now attack them from the south, as you suggested before.”

 

“But what about the Duchy of Savoy?  Do you think they could hold out there?” Kuro asked Lily.  He was concerned that if Savoy fell, their lines of communication with their other forces in Colveente would be isolated, and the Holy Palatial Gardens could also be put at risk.”

 

“Well, from what I heard…” Lily explained, “Simon was bringing in reinforcements from Nerfes, as requested by the Duke of Savoy when he decided to throw his lot to our cause.”

 

“He did?  Already?”

 

“Yep!  You’re too busy fighting your wars, that you forgot to see what’s happening on the other aspects of this conflict.” Lily chuckled, “But, not that it’s a bad thing.  In fact, the other kings were being convinced that fighting the emperor and upholding Maddie’s peace was the right cause.”

 

“Well, in that case, let’s continue on winning!”

 

 

The legionnaires arranged themselves into a line almost of equal length from the coalition forces.  The heavy infantry took the center positions.  The auxiliaries to the flanks and the archers marched to the front to skirmish.  The Imperial magicians were at the back of the Imperial line, in reserve in case their skills are needed.

 

The coalition forces defending the road to Stadtsberg were arranged in a strange formation though.  Instead of the typical line arrangement of heavy infantry to the center and light infantry to the flanks, Lily put the heavy infantry on the front of the whole line, each was arranged according to their country of allegiance.

 

The men from Nerfes, under Lily’s leadership, which was considered the main bulwark of the coalition, took the center position.  To their left stood the mercenaries, led by Griffyth and Kuro, as well as the other mercenary captains, Stephan, Kevin, and Winters.  The right flank was composed of men from the other kingdoms of the coalition:  Colveente, Amarth, Stadtsberg, Baltes, Halveth, and Devon (another member of the League of Valley Cities).

 

The skirmishers of Stephan’s mercenary company fought the Imperial archers at the front, where they suffered casualties as well as inflicted them on their enemies.

 

The levies of Stadtsberg stood as a reserve, behind the coalition lines.

 

From the level ground, one could mistake that the number of forces of both the Imperials and the coalition was the same.  However, one look from above, and you could easily spot the disparity in size:  the Imperial line was thicker than the coalition.

 

“Attack!”

 

Trumpets from the Imperial side were blown, signifying the commencement of the main battle.  The cavalry opened the melee, clashing with the armored cavalry of the Count of Brooke to the left side of the battlefield.  Concurrent with that event, Kuro had the skirmishers of Stephan slowly retreat as the Imperial heavy infantry and archers marched closely behind them.

 

“!!!”  Someone from the Imperial side blew another trumpet, and with that cue, the Imperials rushed to cover the remaining gap between them and the coalition lines.

 

“Here they come!” Lily cried out to her forces.  The men from Nerfes braced for the Imperial attack.

 

“Remember the battle plan, guys!” Griffyth shouted, “We’ll defeat them even though we’re outnumbered!”

 

The clash was on!  The men from Nerfes valiantly stood their ground as the Imperials mercilessly cut down their comrades who fell on the initial charge.  Swords swinging to deflect the spear thrusts, men falling from being skewered with spearheads, skulls breaking after being bashed by shields, and agonizing screams coming from those who were injured, yet got stepped upon because of the extreme proximity of the belligerent forces to one another.

 

“Damn it!  Where are the others?” Kuro looked around as the chaotic battle raged.  The Imperial charge caused him to be separated from Griffyth and his men.  Forced to defend himself; for now, he was fighting with a spear, striking a legionnaire with it on the legs and following his attack with a knee to the poor man’s face.  The moment the legionnaire fell, he stabbed him in the neck.

 

The battle continued to be fought, even though the coalition center was budging from the extreme pressure being put upon their line by the Imperial legions.  Their intention was to break their enemies’ line in two by smashing the middle.

 

“Just a bit longer…” Kuro was muttering to himself as he tried to go back to his lines, pursued by some Imperial legions, “Come on…hold…”

 

Then from somewhere, he heard Griffyth shout, “Kuro!  The cavalry has broken through!”

 

“!!!”

 

Grabbing his gun from behind, Kuro shot towards the sky.  And then, something terrible happened.

 

“Retreat!  Retreat!  The center is breaking!”

 

“What?  That’s not—” Kuro, though bewildered by what he had just heard, continued to parry and counter the attacks thrown at him by the legionnaires.  As if driven into a frenzy when they heard the shout that the coalition center was breaking, the Imperials intensified their attacks.

 

“!!!” Kuro then finally could break free from the legionnaires that surrounded him.  He was quickly rescued by Griffyth’s men, who grabbed him when they had the chance.  Mistaking the blood and guts all over his body for injuries, they hurriedly brought him over to an elevated spot quite a distance from the battle line to be healed.

 

From there, Kuro could see the men of Nerfes, with Lily in the center, being slowly pushed back by the legionnaires.  However, Griffyth’s line and the right flank were holding up, forming a familiar, crescent-shaped line…

 

…just like how he played it.

 

With a nasty smirk on his face, Kuro reloaded his matchlock and took another shot upwards.

 

 

On the Imperial side, the legionnaires’ morale shot up when they noticed that the men from Nerfes—their most potent adversary in that battlefield—retreated.  As their commanders instructed them, they would present a ‘solid’ front, no space in between that could be exploited by their enemies.

 

And so, with the retreat of the coalition army, men from behind rushed in to take the vacant spots from their fallen comrades, or the expanded line.  Their archers were shooting from behind them, accompanied by their own magicians, who were casting spells and counter-spells.  They could easily make out that they were taking a toll against the coalition forces.

 

“Push them back!  Give them no mercy!” the Imperial commander ordered, “We’ll raze Stadtsberg before we sleep!”

 

“Aaaaaagggghhhhhhh!!!” the legionnaires kept their pressure on the coalition center.

 

“We’re winning!” one Imperial officer cried out, “Butcher them, boys!  Women and ale are on me later!”

 

And then came a faint bang.

 

“!!!”

 

With that, there was a sudden change in the battlefield.  The men of Nerfes stopped on their retreat and faced the legionnaires with extreme hatred on their faces.  A few seconds later, and the Imperials realized they were now facing a counter-attack from the coalition forces, headed by the…

 

“It’s the Iron Princess!”

 

Lily led her men, while under the Bloodbath spell, killing, maiming, and crushing her enemies and unfortunate allies alike.  The sight of her blood-red eyes, grim face and body that was bathing in blood was enough to intimidate every soul present on that battlefield.  She was an unstoppable force, and the Imperials that finally realized their impending doom turned to run.

 

However, Lily and the men of Nerfes were only two of their problems, for the left and the right flanks moved inwards, hacking their way into the Imperial battle line.  The legionnaires then noticed that their ‘solid’ formation became a liability for them, for, in their much-reduced territory, they could not even lift their swords to defend themselves.  The coalition forces had a field day killing them off, assisted by the cavalry of the Count of Brooke, who earlier routed their Imperial cavalry opponents by breaking through them.

 

Kuro had an exhilarating feeling within him when he understood he had just executed a perfect ‘Battle of Cannae’.

 

 

***The city of Amaranth, 22^nd of February***

 

The royal castle was wrapped in gloom, as the commander of the Imperial forces in Amaranth, Umberto Benicci, demoted several Imperial officers for the debacle at Dawson Valley.  He had to do it, though he may be reluctant to, for the officers were talking of requesting the emperor to replace him.

 

It’s not like he truly wanted the position, but Umberto would never relinquish it for now…not until he had his vengeance on that Saint, Madelaine Rubinforth.

 

“…”

 

“I told you, cooperate with your other enemy, the Crown Prince David of Amaranth.” Seirna explained to him, “Your pride would only lead to nothing, Prince Umberto, but your ruin is assured.”

 

“You won’t understand, Your Holiness, they killed my entire house!  How could I ally with such people?  My ancestors would only look at me with shame.”

 

“That doesn’t matter now unless you want your vengeance on the Human Saint denied.”

 

Umberto fell silent when Seirna dropped the reality of his situation.  While it’s true that the Amaranthine Crown Prince’s family caused the deaths of the members of his own house, right now, he needed all the support he could get, be it a friend or former foe, so that he could reach his goals.  Losing two entire legions in Dawson Valley made it clear to him he wasn’t cut-up for a military command; the Saint of the Flame knew this, and yet she still prodded the emperor to appoint him as the over-all commander.

 

“Of course, I made it so that you could avenge your family.” she defended her actions, “Without you at the helm of the Imperial army, the best that you can do against Maddie was to spy on her from afar.  That’s why I wanted you to cooperate with the Crown Prince.  At least he could command properly!”

 

Umberto only gave Seirna the cold shoulder.  He never intended to listen to her, anyway.  

 

“Playing the stubborn card, aren’t we?” Seirna just shrugged, “Alright, have it your way.  My goals here are done, anyway.  Chersea’s back in the world of war, and that’s what I wanted.”

 

“You really want to watch this land burn, aren’t you, Your Holiness?”

 

“But unlike you, I wanted to burn it because I have a clear purpose:  to enable humanity to rise from the other races.  Lord Gaius would be proud.  In the end, we only wanted what’s best for humans, and you’re missing your chance.”

 

“My goal is to kill Lady Madelaine, not to help this wretched race.”

 

“I know, and I’m helping you.  But you won’t listen.”

 

“Why would I?” Umberto countered, “You wanted me to defeat this Kuro and kill him before going for the Human Saint?  Aren’t I wasting further resources?”

 

Seirna then caught him in his cheeks and gripped him tight there, “Listen here, you fool!  You know yourself what that man can do.  He defeated you in Hagena Castle, crushed your legions in Bere and Dawson Valley, and you wanted him free?”

 

“Of course.  I’m a prince and not a murderer.  He and I have no quarrels.”

 

“Enough of that nonsense!  Soon, this Kuro would be as much as powerful as Madelaine, and as he was her servant, you’ll soon have difficulty getting near even to the Human Saint’s shadows.  Everything that has kept you alive so far will be for naught!”

 

“Well, what do you want me to do?”

 

“I’ll talk to your emperor about sending in more reinforcements and you keeping your command.  Go to Savoy, where the legions were still fighting, and lead your forces there.  Draw the army that defeated your invasion of Stadtsberg by threatening their flanks.  Make sure you cooperate with the Crown Prince David in leading these legions.  Understood?”

 

General Umberto Benicci nodded, and Seirna finally let him go.