Blade(Part 1): Dawn

Chapter 42: Atreus

King Atreus could see the city of Noglidas on the horizon once he and his army cleared the jungles, and the sun reached its midday position. It would still be another day before he and his army arrived there, though. Before the further jungles was a clearing of tall, green grass. It would make thousands of sky-scaled draconians obvious to just walk right out into a large clearing, but Atreus could see a group of hundreds of people standing on their side of the fields. They didn't wear Skaolan colors, so they must have been rebels. They carried pitchforks, shovels, and a few hunting spears as weapons, though. None of them were warriors, yet they stood against an army. A thousand soldiers of Skaola stood on the other side of the clearing. Some were swordsmen, some were spearmen, and Atreus could swear he saw a few Undying.

"Those rebels will be slaughtered without our help," said Anorae.

"I know," Atreus agreed, then he turned to his forces and roared, "Charge!" The army of Acran charged through the trees. Atreus could hear the leader of the Skaolan forces shouting at the rebels, calling them traitors and ordering them to stand down. They wouldn't stand down, so the Skaolans charged forth. The rebels pointed their pikes and hand axes forward, ready for the Skaolan soldiers to crash against them. Right as they were about to clash, though, Atreus and his draconian forces burst from the trees, charging straight past the militiamen. The sky-scaled draconians crashed into the Skaolans' shields, smashing right through them with their own before impaling them on their spears. The entire first line of Skaolans was killed in just a few minutes, then the draconians formed a phalanx wall with their spears and shields. Anorae and Cytheris were at either side of King Atreus with their shields up and spears out. The Skaolan soldiers stared at the draconians with dread. They were prepared to fight untrained, poorly equipped, and undisciplined rebels, not battle-hardened draconian warriors of Acran. There was no hesitation in the Skaolan General, though. He drew his black khopesh and pointed it forward.

"Attack!" he ordered. He rushed forward in front of his forces. Atreus and his soldiers charged forth in return. Atreus' mithril shield deflected a black spear before he drove his xiphos straight through his skull. The King then pulled his blade from the soldier's head, bashed a swordsman with his shield, then sliced him straight in half. A spearman then charged straight at Atreus. Before the soldier's spear could touch him, a mithril spear from Acran went straight through him, punching all the way through his body and armor. It was Anorae who threw the spear. She had saved Atreus' life again. Anorae drew the Blade of Posidas and swung it at a charging Skaolan swordsman, cutting across his chest before turning around and stabbing the makhaira through another one. She had grown so much since the war in Acran started, and Atreus couldn't help other than to be proud of her. After some more time of fighting, the Skaolan force that stood before them was wiped out. None of the rebels were killed, but a lot of them had injuries that could be recovered from if they were treated right.

"Father," Anorae called. "There's more rebels between here and Noglidas. These ones can't stay here."

"But we've been trusted to hold this position," one of the rebels suddenly said, from behind Atreus. It was a boy, probably fifteen or sixteen years old, and half even Anorae's size. He wore a jacket that was covered in dirt and mud, and held a winged spear with blood on its tip.

"May I see your weapon, boy?" Atreus requested.

"Jake," the boy corrected.

"May I see your weapon, Jake?" asked Atreus. The child handed his spear to the King. It had an iron shaft, but a mithril spearhead, and it was long enough to reach from behind a shield to penetrate armor.

"A fine spear," King Atreus complemented, handing the weapon back to Jake. "You are no farmer, are you, Jake?"

"My dad fought in the Colonial War, ten years ago," said Jake. "He died a few years ago. The spear was his."

"Did he train you to use it?" Atreus wondered.

"Oh, yes, sir," Jake answered.

"Show me," the King ordered. Jake grabbed his spear near the pommel with his right hand, and grabbed it on the underside, closer to the front, with his left. He put his left foot in front of this right, and leaned forward. It was an ideal stance for both attacking and defending. Jake then took a step in front of him as he thrust his spear forward, then returned to his defensive stance.

"Nice thrust," said Anorae.

"The only thing you need is a shield," Atreus added. "But ours may be too large for you to use."

"Maybe I will get one when this war starts in earnest," Jake hoped.

"Maybe," Atreus agreed. "Now, go see to your injured comrades."

"Yes, sir," said Jake, and he walked off. He must have been the youngest rebel in the field that they were fighting in. A child was standing against one of the mightiest empires on Zenartha.

"My King," Cytheris called. "This place will be swarming with enemy soldiers soon enough. We cannot leave these rebels here."

"I know," Atreus agreed. "Have you found their leader?"

"He's wounded, but alive," Cytheris reported.

"Tell him that he and his forces must come with us to Noglidas," King Atreus ordered. "They will die here if they stay."

"Yes, my King," said Cytheris, and she ran off. If the rebels truly needed this position in order to defend it, then whoever was leading them chose the right spot. It was the perfect place for open combat, and it was only a day's march from their city. Atreus would leave three thousand of his soldiers to hold it.

"We move out as soon as the rebels are prepared to do so," he declared. "The faster we reach Noglidas, the better."

"Understood, father," said Anorae. "But what will happen when we do reach the city?"

"We offer our assistance," Atreus answered. "As we should have before."