Chapter Seventeen
It was a typical winter's morning in Coldstream when the five of them met outside, a strong wind assailing them from the southwest and a thick layer of snow upon the ground. It was just before sunrise, with the sky only beginning to lighten, and everyone who didn't need to be up and about was sensibly still in bed.
Their breath misted heavily in the frigid conditions, and Aiden smacked his gloved hands together, trying to generate some warmth. The heavy, white winter cloaks they wore protected them from the worst of the bitter wind, but the real test would come when they moved out of the foothills and over the High Plains, a large expanse of empty land in the southern region of the kingdom that gradually became the Highmarch Mountains.
Colt seemed remarkably alert considering the early start, and apparently able to avoid any drinking altogether for this mission. The big ranger was however, eyeing Pacian and Aiden suspiciously as they checked their gear one last time.
“I hear tell from the innkeeper that something happened last night,” he remarked to nobody in particular. “Bit of a local disturbance, as it were. I don't suppose either of you two heard about it?” Aiden shook his head after a moment of fake thought, and Pacian merely shrugged.
“I spoke with a drunken man in town last night,” Nellise casually mentioned. “He had been creating quite a scene, as it happens, so perhaps that's what the innkeeper meant?” Colt looked her straight in the eye for a long moment, as if trying to determine if she was lying or not.
“Yeah, that was probably it,” he grunted, hefting his greatsword over his shoulder. Aiden caught the young cleric's eye for a moment, and noticed a quick wink in his direction. He had to give credit where it was due, for Nellise hadn't actually lied about anything she'd said, and he silently thanked her for it.
“Alright, let's move out,” Colt ordered. “We're supposed to meet up with Duncan ten miles or so upstream, and he'll lead us into enemy territory from there. Sally is relaying word on their patrol movements and fortifications to him, so we'll have everything we need moving forward. The rest is up to us.”
“I know that's putting a lot on your shoulders Sayana, but that's the truth of the situation. If at any time you don't think you can help us get in there and take this bastard out, you let us know. We won't think any less of you for it, you understand me?”
The sorceress nodded, continuing the silence she had begun this morning after they'd woken up. Wordlessly, Colt turned and started trudging up the road, the snow crunching underfoot as the rest of them fell into line behind him. The two miserably cold militiamen still on duty at the south gate gave them a terse farewell and returned to their vigil.
Just outside of town, they crossed the bridge over the river Coldstream, which was iced over at this time of year. There was no trail visible beyond this point, for there had been almost no trade between the akoran tribal people and the town of Coldstream for months. Even before they closed their borders, the mountain folk weren't known for their open, sociable nature.
Much of their land had been taken from them over the past century, as Aielund slowly expanded its borders as far as it could without running afoul of another major power. There was little else of value in the mountains to the south however, so an uneasy truce was forged.
This left the akorans with the least valuable lands under their control and their continuing antipathy towards Aielund over the years came as no surprise. Aiden had met several akorans in his life and found them to be a hard, uncompromising people, accustomed to living in a place where life was short and brutal.
Aiden's thoughts dwelled on historical matters for an hour or so, but after stepping on a branch and causing Colt to whirl around, he decided to focus more on his surroundings.
The terrain was gradually ascending as they travelled, and signs of life such as trees, bushes and animals slowly disappeared into the thickening mist blanketing the landscape.
Presently, a huge, dead tree loomed ahead of them out of the fog. Its branches clawed at the sky, an ominous omen if ever there was one. It stood beside the frozen river, watching over the land like an ancient guardian. Colt signalled for them to stop beneath its empty boughs, then pursed his lips and whistled a lyrical bird call. They crouched in silence, expecting an answer from beyond the misty veil, yet there was only silence.
“This is where we were told to meet Duncan,” he whispered, glancing around cautiously. “He should have seen us coming and contacted us by now.”
“You sure you haven't been sipping a little of the 'holy water'?” Pacian asked spitefully.
“Remind me to punch you in the face when we get out of here,” Colt growled at him ominously.
“I'll make a note of it in my journal,” Pacian replied with a healthy dose of sarcasm. “'Dear diary, when we get back to town, Colt wants to express his manly affections for me through violence.’”
“Enough,” Aiden said gruffly, in no mood for their usual repartee. “Do we wait here, or find our own way forward?”
Everyone looked to Colt for an answer, but had to wait while the big ranger looked around for signs of any tracks, or indeed any indication that something unpleasant might have befallen Duncan.
“Something’s not right,” he muttered, glancing around in consternation. Aiden mimicked him, suddenly finding the cold, misty air oppressive. Their visibility was counted in yards, and anything could be hiding out there. Colt drew his bow and a moment later, an arrow whistled past him to thud into the trunk of the dead tree.
“Ambush!” he roared, nocking an arrow and kneeling in the snow to aim at something nobody could see. They drew their weapons as more arrows flew past, and Aiden’s heart raced as no less than a dozen hulking silhouettes appeared from the mists around them, weapons ready and the roar of their battle-cries echoing across the frigid landscape.
Colt loosed his arrow into their ranks before the charging akorans closed the distance. Aiden spoke the command word to summon his force shield and as it shimmered into existence his mind analysed the situation, trying to figure out what had gone wrong. He didn't have time to think about it however, as three warriors bore down on him with spears poised to strike.
Sayana let out a stifled scream as her worst nightmare came to life, and she reflexively huddled towards the centre of the group, unable to face the oncoming storm of her people. Pacian threw a pair of knives at one large figure, striking true yet barely slowing his advance. Nellise began cranking out bolts from her crossbow. Shooting at close-quarters targets was precisely what it was designed to do and she struck down one after another in quick succession.
Colt threw aside his longbow and drew his greatsword as the front line of akorans closed in, managing to take a swing at his nearest enemy with his first swing. After their furious charge the akorans began working together to defend their flanks and take advantage of any mistakes. They closed in around the group, preventing any escape. Aiden was fighting on a purely defensive level as the relentless attack pushed him back towards Colt's position.
Colt swung his blade back and forth with all his strength, striking down first one warrior, then another but they were replaced as quickly as they fell, showing no fear at the sight of their fallen comrades.
Nellise was eventually forced to discard the crossbow and whirled her quarterstaff around, keeping the enemy at bay as best she could. Their situation was looking worse with every passing moment, but it could be turned around in a heartbeat if they could just break out of the surrounding warriors.
It was at that moment Sayana finally overcame her fear. She screamed the same war-cry the akoran's had and threw her shining mithral axe at the largest of their foes, almost splitting the man in half. She drew the weapon back to her hand with sorcery, and took her place in the defensive circle to hold back the rest.
Holding the axe in her left hand, she conjured flames from her extended right, enveloping the nearby warriors in fire. Sayana's flames abruptly died almost as soon as they began
, however, at the shouted words of a venerable man wearing a black bearskin robe who stood beyond the ring of warriors. In one hand he held a staff etched with many runes and sigils that glowed with an eldritch light.
“A shaman,” Sayana breathed, fear evident in her voice. Although he appreciated her respect for the newcomer, Aiden had a different reaction to the scene before him. He realised the futility of their situation and understood there was no escape from the ambush. Nellise’s quarterstaff whirled and hit with precision, breaking limbs until she was struck with the butt of an axe and dropped to the ground, unconscious.
The last thing Aiden remembered was Sayana looking at him in despair, right before a thrown axe hurtled into his field of view it strike him right between the eyes. Then everything went black.