Orc Dominion: Conquest Ch. 04

"Yes Your Highness." Bogor turned toward Triggitt, and the younger orc ran off to relay the orders.

Over the next several days the scouts ventured further out and the Thestan camp neared completion. While not as strong as the Kingsfort, it had a strong screen of abattises and cheval de frises blocking the ascent up their hill. They were by no means impassable, but it would definitely slow his forces down if they attacked; not that he intended to.

None of his scouts had reported any sign of the Falcon Guard, though he was expecting the latest patrol later today. Sudden movement brought his attention back to the Thestan camp. What appeared to be a dozen logs on wheels were being brought forth towards the front of their camp.

"Springalds. Kovos! Sound general orders. All archers are to loose on the Thestans!" A great cheer went up from his assembled army at the prospect of battle. His orcs were able to line up faster than the Thestan springalds. Springalds were a type of siege artillery which shot large bolts across long distances. It would take them a few minutes to get in place, anchored down, and calibrated to shoot.

Most of his orcs were armed with bows, which allowed for a devastating rain of missiles down on the Thestans. King Turrogg had once boasted that his horde would blacken the sun when they loosed in unison. Agmar decided to put that to the test and loose mass volleys across the valley.

As the arrows rained down, the Thestans ran forward with prefabricated wooden planks and beams and hastily erected a ceiling over the artillery equipment. The arrows slammed into the shielded wood but didn't manage to penetrate. "Loose! We'll make those damn things so heavy with our arrows they collapse! Loose! Loose!"

More volleys sped through the air and slammed into the wooden structures, sending splinters flying through the air. The Thestans continued their work unimpeded though, and soon the first bolts were hurling back towards the orcs.

The first one smashed through the wall of the Kingsfort and smashed through a rank of his archers. As more bolts came flying through wooden splinters from the sundered walls of the fort began tearing through his troops as well. Agmar snarled in frustration. "Open ranks! Spread out! But keep firing!"

The Thestan artillery was creating large gaps in his defensive fortifications, and he knew it was only a matter of time before the walls collapsed entirely. "We're going to have to bring the fight to them." He told Bogor.

"We still don't know where Amelie is, if we commit to an attack we risk being cut off and flanked." Bogor ducked his head as a large splinter flew past him.

"If we don't attack, we have to retreat; and this is our only defensive spot. We'd have to run all the way back to Heste!" Agmar grimaced. "But we can't stay here."

To underscore his point, the Thestans began firing pots of burning pitch that exploded upon impact. The walls of the Kingsfot went up in flames, and more ports began to fall inside the walls threatening to send the whole fort up. "You're right, but we can't over commit our forces."

Agmar ground his teeth together. "Take some men and get our stores out of the fort and as far away from here as possible. I'll take the rest and attack the Thestans and to cover our retreat. Go, now, quickly!" A wall of fire shot up as a mound of horse feed burst into flames.

Bogor ran and began gathering troops to evacuate their food and arrows while Agmar ran to down the motte and began calling his soldiers to follow. "Alright orcs! These weak little humans have burned our home out because they're afraid to attack! But we're not afraid, are we?"

"No!"

"We're worth ten of them, a fact that our great King proved time and again on the battlefield. This is what we're born for; to attack! Not to defend, or hide behind walls. But to attack! Attack! Attack! Aaaaaah!" Agmar raised his hammer and shield and then began charging down the hill into the valley.

The Thestan archers began answering the orc volleys with their own. The missiles fell down like sheet rain into the enclosed space. The orcs raised their shields for cover, but their formation soon began to thin out as the deadly storm took down his warriors.

One arrow narrowly missed Agmar, nicking his chain shirt before flying off behind him. He grabbed Kovos roughly by the armor and pulled him close. "Signal our archers to aim for theirs!" His squire blasted out the command on a trumpet, and a moment later the troops still in the Kingsfort loosed their arrows in return. This time they aimed higher and farther, creating a steeper angle of descent that rained down on the Thestan archers.

The Thestans responded with a volley of their own, and for the moment at least the archers were keeping each other occupied instead of killing his infantry. He resumed sprinting up the opposing hill. The first line of his troops ran straight into the abattis. The long tree branches poked and prodded them, but were by themselves harmless. Unfortunately, the weight of the mass of troops behind them was pushing relentlessly forward.

"Agh!" To his right, one of his green skinned soldiers fell forward and the thick branch pressed through his leather cuirass. As the soldiers kept charging he was slowly pushed forward, impaling him down the length. Blood splattered across Agmar's face, but he ignored it and chopped his way through the obstacle.

The first rank of Thestan foot were waiting for them on the other side. He grinned savagely at the look of terror on their faces. Finally here was an enemy he could strike! The untrained troops already looked ready to run. Releasing a mighty roar, Agmar charged forward. He used his shield to bash away the first peasant's shield, and then swung his hammer down into his front and caved in his chest.

The peasant fell to the ground and Agmar looked for his next target. His shield caught the spear of some brave fool, and swinging his hammer around he snapped the tip of the spear from the heft, and then swung backhand to pulverize half the soldier's face. More blood splattered over him, but again he ignored it. The mass of Thestans tried to charge forward and press them back into the abbitis, but they lacked the power.

His own ranks held firm and cut through the lightly armored Thestans like a scythe through wheat. As more of his orcs made it through the thicket they began to push the Thestan levy back. Agmar grinned as the man before him fell back and quickly crushed him beneath his hammer. When his comrade tried to capitalize on his momentary distraction he bashed in the human's head with his shield.

The Thestans then decided they had had enough and began to turn and run towards the cheval de frises. The long, spike covered logs created an impromptu fence between them and the next rank of Thestan soldiers. "Come on! We've got them now! No stopping!"

Agmar took a moment to look up and saw that the battle of arrows had stopped. Only his own side was continuing to send arrows over the battlefield. "Signal to the archers to shift their aim to the artillery again!" He didn't expect it to have much effect, but enough arrows would miss and fall on the soldiers guarding the obstacles while still being far enough away to avoid hitting his own troops.

He charged ahead of Kovos again and ran to join up with the front ranks of the battle. The second line of defense was held by the more professional men-at-arms, who were thrusting their spears through the fortifications to stab at his orcs as they approached.

"Shield wall!" He called out and the troops nearest him began to form up. They created a wall with their shields to block the spears while the orcs inside lifted the spokes of the cheval de frises up.

"Heave! Heave! Heave!" With each command they rolled it back towards the humans. The men-at-arms lined up to push it back, but they couldn't match the strength of his people. One unfortunate soldier tripped backwards and ended up impaled on his own obstacle as it rolled over his body. "Hah hah hah! We have them now! Push! Push!" With the line of obstacles coming disjointed, gaps formed for his men to push through and engage the Thestans directly. "Signal the archers to cease their attack!" Kovos gave the signal and his army's arrows stopped flying.

"Plug the hole men! Attack!" Screamed a Thestan sergeant as he tried to rally his troops.

The humans charged into the gap, and Agmar had to admit they fought with discipline and courage. They even managed to begin pushing the orcs back, which prompted Agmar to step forward and rally his men. He pushed through and swung his hammer at the sergeant, who ducked the blow and countered with his own thrust.

Agmar parried it with his shield, and then chopped his hammer down. The sergeant stepped to the side, dodging the attack and then bashed his shield into Agmar's, but couldn't force the orc back. Agmar countered by smashing his shield right back into the sergeants, throwing him backward. The human was quick to his feet however, and met Agmar head on when the orc pressed the advantage.

"You fight well human, but you're not good enough." Agmar feinted with his hammer and then kicked out the sergeant's knee, sending him to the ground with a grunt. "You're not strong enough." Another blow from the shield made the human drop his own. "And you're not mean enough."

The sergeant suddenly hooked his sword inward towards Agmar. The tip of the blade scratched over the surface of Agmar's greave, but didn't break through the leather. The orc quickly stomped on the sergeant's elbow, breaking his arm. "Heh, nice try, I'll give you that."

The brave sergeant was groaning in pain, so Agmar quickly dispatched him. With their leader dead, the men-at-arms began to waver until finally they too broke ranks and began to run. If only we had our horse; we could roll up their whole army right here! "Find those damn firepots, set these damn springalds alight!"

His men swept through the defensive fortifications protecting the siege equipment and grabbed all the burning pitch pots they could find. They then smashed them onto the springalds, setting them alight. Soon the protective coverings went up as well, creating a dozen bonfires for his celebrating troops.

"Good work! But it's not over yet, we sent them running home but they aren't beaten, not yet. Get the wounded and-" before he could finish the sentence the fire spread to the grass in front of them, which exploded into an improbably large wall of flame. Fire arrows began to rain down around them, setting the cheval de frises on fire. Soon the whole Thestan encampment was burning, and the screams of his men filled the air. "Go! Go now! Run! Back to the Kingsfort!"

Agmar pushed through his forces and began running back towards the valley. Flames licked at his armor, singing the leather as he fled the encampment. His mind raced back to the history lessons of his childhood. This is just what King Connor did in the Second War he thought. That damn bitch-knight Amelie pulled the same trick and I blundered right into it!

He instinctively knew the danger lying ahead of him. The abattis was going to burn worse than the cheval de frises did. He sprinted even harder as his lungs burned. He forced his way through the obstacles well ahead of his men. Just as we cleared them he felt a blast of heat behind him which burned the back of his head.

More fire arrows fell into the branches, setting them all ablaze. He looked behind him and saw Kovos screaming in agony as the inferno consumed his body. His son's flesh was bubbling off his body as the smell of roasted flesh filled the air. Rage swelled inside him as he watched his legacy literally going up in smoke.

Agmar looked into his son's eyes until he at last perished, and then turned away. He continued running down into the valley, finally collapsing at the bottom to catch his breath. He pulled out his wineskin and took a long drink of water, before turning to look up towards the burning Thestan encampment.

Thick black smoke filled the sky and began to float across the valley, obscuring everything. The screams of his burning orcs filled the sky as they continued to rush as a mass through the fire. At last it seemed the abattis had either burned out or been snuffed out under the weight of his retreating orcs. As more of his soldiers filtered down the valley, he saw Triggitt helping a wounded orc.

"Your Highness, did we do it? Did we save the camp?" The young orc asked. Blood was streaming down his green-skinned face from a gash above his eye.

"We did. Bogor has saved our supplies, and we destroyed the Thestan artillery. This is a great day for-"

Agmar was interrupted by a javelin slamming through the top of Triggitt's head and sinking into the ground behind him. He spun around to look up towards the Kingsfort and saw a wave of javelins descending into the valley. He dove to the ground and pull Triggitt's body over himself while covering his head with his shield. More screams erupted from the shattered ranks of his army as they suffered the taunting cheers of the Thestans holding the heights.

Well, at least I know where the Abyss damned Falcon Guard is. "Come on boys, our work isn't done yet. That's the Princess-Knight up there! Now remember what I said, a lordship for whomever brings her to me! Come on, let's go get her. Let's get them all!" Summoning all his strength he leapt up from the ground and began charging up the hill. The cheer his army was weaker than before, both from loss of manpower and depleted strength. But it would be enough.

At least the arrows and javelins have stopped. Agmar's thighs burned as he hauled himself up the hill. At the top, the Thestans were already waiting for him in a tight, disciplined line. As the remnants of his army formed around him he raised his shield above his head and pushed the last of the way up the slope.

The orcs crashed into the humans, but the line held firm. Agmar's shield rattled as it absorbed the blows of the Thestan warriors. His shoulder ached from holding up the shield, and he quickly took an opportunity to lash out at the soldier in front of him. He stabbed forward with the hammer, punching it into the knee of the Thestan and taking him to the ground. As the warrior screamed in pain he grabbed him by the front of his armor and pulled him down further, tossing him into the ranks of the orcs coming up behind him.

A low, guttural groan rang out beside him as a Thestan sword cut deeply into an orc. Blood sprayed across the side of Agmar's face as his warrior fell. Another orc stepped up in his place, bellowing fiercely. But all along the line more orcs were falling beneath the Falcon Guard's blades. We have to get off this slope, he thought. "Forward! Keep going! To me! We have to punch through their lines!" As a Thestan to his left cut down an orc Agmar brought his hammer down atop the man's head, collapsing his skull. He pulled the hammer back quickly and swung it in the other direction to shatter the arm of a human on the other side.

"To me! To me! Forward! Forward!" The orcs around him cheered and surged forward, pushing into the small gap created by the dead Thestans. "Aaaaah!" Agmar screamed out a ferocious war cry as he hacked his way through the Thestan soldiers. Even as the orcs started to push them back the humans continued to fight valiantly. Agmar ignored the pain of a half a dozen cuts around his body as the Thestans slashed and stabbed at him, trying to prevent their breakthrough.

Their efforts were to no avail. Despite his weariness, he still had strength enough to overcome the humans. Finally the last rank gave way and he crashed through into their rear. Agmar could feel the blood pooling in his armor, but it didn't matter now. He was free! He looked down the line and saw that only a small section of the Thestan line was broken, but it would have to be enough.

A savage grin crossed his face as he spotted the Amelie sitting atop her horse with a small personal guard. "There she is, men! The Princess-Knight herself! Take her! Take her and they'll break!" He roared out again and began charging towards his nemesis. Battle lust consumed him, invigorating his muscles and making him forget his injuries. He just had to make it a little further!

To Agmar's delight, Amelie turned towards him and began riding out in front of her guard. The bitch was coming to directly! Time to see how good she really is. Ahead of him, Amelie readied a javelin and launched it forward. Agmar quickly raised his shield to deflect the blow, but in doing so he didn't see the second javelin she threw. He blocked the first, but the next one slammed into his foot and buried deep in the ground.

"Agh! Bitch!" He grunted in pain and tried to raise his foot, but it was stuck. He could probably yank out the javelin, but then he'd bleed uncontrollably. Instead, he braced himself into a defensive stance to let Amelie come to him.

As his orcs charged past him, Amelie's guard moved to intercept. They swept them out of the way, leaving Agmar open for Amelie herself. So, that's how she wants it? Well that suits me just fine. All the more glory to me for ending the whore!

His heart began beating faster as Amelie charged forward. She's not going to stop he realized. She's going to run me down! It was too late to move out of the way, not with his foot stuck. He threw down his shield and clasped his hammer with both hands. As the horse neared he pulled back and then swung it towards the horse with everything he had.

At the last moment, Amelie leaped off the horse and rolled on the ground. His hammer crashed into the side of the horse's face, but it wasn't enough to stop the beast's momentum. The heavy war horse crashed into him, violently ripping his foot from the ground and shattering Agmar's body.

The orc flew backwards and collapsed in a heap on the ground. As the world began to grow dark he saw Amelie standing above him. He tried to reach for his hammer, but his mangled body didn't listen. He couldn't even scream in rage as he saw the Princess-Knight's blade descending towards him.

****

"So ends the reign of King Agmar the First."

Amelie looked at her lieutenant, Sir Phillipe Renard. "You shouldn't make light of it. He did a lot of damage here, and for what?" She shook her head sadly and looked out over the battlefield. Despite the last minute charge of Agmar's forces, the battle was well in hand. The main force of her infantry was already reforming on either side of the valley to box the remaining orcs valley. Her reserves had closed the gap Agmar created and were pushing them back down the hill.

The plan had worked almost flawlessly, though she had taken more casualties to her peasant levies than she would have liked. Thesta had long hewn secret paths into the Hills to deliver their armies against Heste. Fortunately, her outriders were waiting for the orc scouts when they came to interrogate the local villagers. Of course, it helps when your men are sheltered and hidden until the perfect moment to strike by grateful Tribesmen, she mused.

"What do you think Queen Jeanette will do?" Phillipe asked.

"War. Vengeance. She'll want blood."

"So you really think he was her son?"

Amelie nodded. "Yes, in this case the stories are likely true. She never would have let a mere knight invade the Catabrians, especially not if it risked a war with Thesta."

"Was it worth it, then? War with Heste and Zentara and the Elfs just to save the barbarians?"

"Yes, definitely. Even if not to relieve the horrors we've heard about, then because after the Catabrians we'd be next. Jeanette won't rest until her brood control all the Western Kingdoms."