Blossoming Love (a Frazel Fanfic)

The First Battle

       General Hedge gathered his soldiers the next afternoon. "Tomorrow, we will attack the Argives!"

    Cheers rose from the ranks of soldiers. General Hedge was steady as he continued speaking, "I know you have been wondering why we have not had a battle yet. The answer is this: I wanted you to be ready to fight the Argives. I think you're ready now."

     More cheers rose from the soldiers. "We'll make them flee our land!" one soldier shouted.

     "They'll rue the day they attacked us!" Luke cheered.

    "Then we'll throw a party!" Dakota cried.

     Frank stood there, cheering, though his mind was whirling. This would be the first battle. What if it went badly? General Hedge continued speaking about courage and duty for awhile. When it was over, he called several people to convene in his tent, including Frank.

      Frank was humbled and a bit surprised. He was the least experienced of the invitees. General Hedge and General Chiron has both trained soldiers for over a decade. Percy's father, Poseidon, and Annabeth's father, Frederick, were both veterans of war.

     "Frank," General Hedge said. "I invited you here because I want you to lead a contingent."

    Frank's eyes widened in surprise. "Me?"

     General Hedge nodded. "You proved your valor during the attack."

    "But I barely know anything about war!" Frank sputtered.

   General Chiron's eyes darkened. "You'll know more soon enough. There is another reason General Hedge wants to promote you: the battle isn't just so we can attack the Argives."

      Frank's eyes narrowed. "But you didn't announce this to everyone because you think we have spies?"

     General Hedge smiled. "What did I say? He's a clever boy. Yes, unfortunately we do. Our goal is to attack the Argives, but we also want to get General Chiron and a retinue of soldiers out of Mytilene safely."

    "Once I've done so," General Chiron said, "I'll go to the other Lesbian cities and ask for reinforcements and supplies. I'll be counting on the other forces to distract the Argives, so I can slip away."

     "Can my son Tyson go with you?" Poseidon asked. "I don't want him to join the battle."

    General Chiron shook his head. "Tyson is old enough to fight now. Let him battle alongside his brother and prove his valor."

    Poseidon sighed and his eyes turned stormy, but he finally nodded. "We shouldn't attack them head on."

     "We could deploy two continents to attack the Argives," General Frederick suggested. "Have the left one filled with more experienced forces than the right. Then, when the Argives think they're winning, a third force will attack on the right side."

      "Good idea," General Hedge said. "I also suggest we have a group of soldiers assigned to aid the medics."

     Poseidon nodded. "Infection kills many men."

   Frank shivered. None of his companions had died in the raid, but tomorrow, some of them would.

***

    Frank checked his armor the next day. There was not enough metal for everyone to have bronze armor, so his was made of linen, though it was surprisingly strong. A wide sword was strapped to his belt and a bow and quiver full of arrows was flung over one shoulder.

Percy polishing his sword. It was made of bronze and was delicate-looking, though Frank would not want to meet it in battle. Percy had dubbed it "Riptide" and claimed it was better than the sword of Heracles. Nico's sword was forged of iron and in the pale man's grip, it looked wickedly deadly. "You guys ready?" Frank asked them.

They were two of the soldiers General Hedge had assigned to him. Both of them nodded. "No one hurts my friends or family," Percy said.

Nico's gaze was dark. "They'll taste death before they harm my sisters."

Frank felt a rush of affection for his two friends — new and old. "Let's do this," he said.

Frank forced down the fear building up in his thrusts and straightened his shoulders. He gathered his forces together and spoke. "Our goal is to steal their supplies," he said. "There are hungry people in these walls: pregnant woman, children, old men, the sick and wounded. It is our job to protect and feed them."

Cheers arise from the soldiers and Frank's fear solidified. He was leading some of them to their deaths. His gaze travelled through the crowd. "I want every single one of you to know that the army honors you and your friends and family will honor you for this day and for your valor and might. Now let's go fight!"

Frank led his troops out. Outside the walls, the Argives and Mytileneans were already engaged. The sounds of cries and metal clinging against metal drowned out all other noises. Frank saw Chiron's continent slipping away. He had to make sure they went unnoticed. With a cry, Frank led his forces towards the enemy's left (the Mytileneans' right) flank.

He charged at the front of them, unsheathing his sword and diving into the fray. Frank easily disarmed his first opponent before body-slamming his second to the ground. Three soldiers approached him. Frank fought defensively now and Percy came to his aid, fighting like a wild man. They were back to back and panting as the three soldiers withdrew. "You fight well," Frank told Percy.

"As do you," Percy said.

Then, he saw an opening and slipped back into the melee. Frank soon found himself facing a heavily-armored opponent. His bronze armor flashed in the sun and he carried a huge shield depicting the demigod Achilles on his chariot. Frank and the man traded blows, but neither seemed to injure each other. "You fight like Telamonian Ajax," the man said, "and you look like him too, but you won't win this battle."

He thrust his sword forward and it hit Frank's armor, tearing it. Frank shifted to avoid the blade and swiped at his opponent's left, denting the guy's armor. No matter how many blows he landed, he could not penetrate it. The man grinned. "Bye, bye, Lesbian."

Then he used his shield to catch Frank off balance before plunging his sword through Frank's breastplate.