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Meanwhile...
0 reviewsWhat was Mirrax doing whilst Malios was fighting for his life repeaedly before being captured?
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A.N. – sorry about the very long wait (if anybody is still reading this) but the reasons are on my profile. Thanks for the reviews; they helped me to get passed a few difficult times, including dropping out of university and returning home. BTW guild Wars still aint mine and never will be. Suing me will only get my laptop and a pack of chewing gum.
Chapter 6 – Meanwhile…
Mirrax gazed down upon the charr warband and the cage that they were guarding. She was very happy to see that Malios was still alive and barely noticed who else was been held with him. She had been devastated to learn that her father was dead and later that Malios, the man that she loved, was missing. Seeing him now took her back to how she came to be at the top of this rise five days after the ‘Searing’.
4 Days Earlier
Mirrax grasped Orion’s hand as he helped her out of the river with loud explosions still coming from the city. Looking back she could see Malios charging through the academy entrance into the city, at the same moment she was surprised to see Whistler come bounding out from the main entrance and race in their direction.
“Come on Orion, we have to move quickly.”
The two of them with a large Melandru’s Stalker not far behind raced towards Ashford. Mirrax and Whistler ignored the villagers at the top of the hill as they headed past them, through the village and on into Wizards Folley. She knew that Orion would get the villagers to safety. Once in Wizards Folley she ignored the stone elementals and went straight towards the mountains, where, just below the tree line, was Foible’s Fair, a market and meeting place for mesmers and elementalists. As Foible’s Fair sits in a hollow its inhabitants knew nothing of the attack by the charr. They were all surprised when they heard the shout from the ridge of the hollow and even more so by what they heard.
“LISTEN UP!” Mirrax shouted, when she had everyone’s attention she continued in a loud voice, “the charr have attacked Ascalon City with a strange magical projectile, the city burns.” Cries of despair issued from some of those present. “We believe that once the charr have destroyed the city they will turn their weapons on the rest of Ascalon. We are to evacuate the villages in Regent Valley and get everyone we can to Fort Ranik. I expect that the creatures in the area will flee south into the crystal desert, but be careful nonetheless. We will head to the nearest entrance into regent valley where I want two people to head to each village and evacuate them. I and one other will evacuate Griffinsford and then I will search for Master Ranger Nente. There are lone rangers all over the valley as well as a few hunting parties, so if you see anyone alert them of the situation. Those who are not going to a village should head straight for Fort Ranik and inform Lord Darrin to make space inside for everyone. Any questions?”
“Elementalist Aziure is still up at the tower,” began Ralena Stormbringer, one of the people Mirrax had trained with, “I will get her then head straight for the fort.”
“Good, is everyone ready? Alright then let’s move out,” ordered Mirrax.
The first hitch in the plan came when they reached Griffinsford, she managed to get the people moving towards Regent Valley but she could find no trace of her father. The house was empty. His boat was still at the jetty. She thought that he could be with Aidan, but it wasn’t until she had checked Aidan’s cottage that she realised that the ranger would be with the army. Praying that her father would be okay, she could do nothing more than continue onwards into Regent Valley and search for Nente.
Here came the second hitch, Nente and his entourage can normally be found near the entrance to Lakeside County, but they weren’t there. Mirrax was able to find and subsequently follow three sets of human footprints. She tracked them to a hill where Ivor Trueshot could be found. This was the first luck of the afternoon as both Nente and Ivor were there, though it was obvious they were preparing to move on, completely oblivious to the horrors occurring all around them.
“NENTE, IVOR,” she shouted as she climbed the hill, “the charr have attacked Ascalon. I will explain more on the way to Fort Ranik.”
And that was it; they were off, no arguments, no complaints, no questions, just actions like all good rangers. The trip to Fort Ranik was fairly short from there and Mirrax was not surprised to note that all the creatures were fleeing before they could be consumed by the magical fire. They arrived at the fort to see a steady stream of people going across the drawbridge and into the safety of the stronghold.
**
Later that evening Mirrax stood on the ramparts of the half buried fort, gazing at the radical changes to the land she loved. Parts of it were still burning and heavy smoke hung in the air. She, and many others, after emerging from the safety of the walls and dungeons believing the attack to be over, had seen the charr weapons resume firing and was about to shout out a warning when something unbelievable happened. One of the fireballs appeared to hit another launch site. She watched stunned as this happened again and again throughout the next few hours. Somehow, and she had no idea how, she knew that Malios was involved in the miracle they had all witnessed and it filled her with warmth. Even from so far away she believed that he was trying to protect her.
Now, as night fell, it all appeared to be over. There had been no more attacks for a while now and she realised that she was lucky to be alive. The first fireballs had hit Regent Valley before they could get everyone inside the fort. There had been a mad rush when the first fireball hit near the fort, people were pushing and shoving their way across the drawbridge. Many fell into the moat, two were even trampled to death and quite a few more were killed when a fireball impacted the edge of the wall above the drawbridge. This hit instantly killed two army recruits and rained fire and stone onto the people below, ironically those who had trampled the others in their haste to get inside were hit the worst. Mirrax had just stepped onto the drawbridge when that fireball hit, but she Nente and Ivor were at the back of the group and were able to quickly get the wounded inside.
As the people huddled in the narrow corridors of the above ground sections of the fort they could hear every impact of the fire and every breaking stone. Many, sheltered in the barracks and dungeons below, truly believed that they could feel the dust and dirt settling after every blast. Farmer, soldier, fisherman, elementalists, all were reduced to one thing at that moment – human beings going out of their minds with worry and fear. Commoners and nobles sought comfort from each other as the fear of one’s mortality crossed social boundaries that many don’t even like to believe exist.
‘Perhaps,’ Mirrax reflected as she stood gazing at the sunset, ‘the threat of the charr could even re-unite the four great nations on this continent. They may be able to look past their hatred and mistrust of one another and work together to defeat a common foe.’
Mirrax did feel a little strange to be so optimistic after such a cataclysmic event had just destroyed her home. This brought her back to worrying about her father, for whom she feared the worst. Trying to take her mind off of her missing father she decided to re-count and organise the survivors. In the morning she would gather what forces she could and head north to report to Prince Rurik.
***
T-3 Days
When morning came Mirrax, Whistler and twenty rangers began their journey back towards Ascalon City. Master Ranger Nente and Ivor Trueshot were organising a search of Regent Valley and Wizard’s Folley for any survivors from the attack.
Almost at that exact moment, although unknown to both, Mirrax and Malios were thinking the same thing – dismay at what the charr had done. The beautiful land that she had grown up in had been turned to ash; the river was slowly being replaced by tat being drawn up from underground. Already there were some villagers, sent out by Lord Darrin, stockpiling what water they could.
Luckily the main bridge wasn’t badly damaged and the trip to Lakeside County didn’t take too long. Almost immediately Mirrax and a few rangers knocked an arrow.
“There was a cave up ahead that many creatures could have used to seek refuge from the fires. Be on your guard and let myself and whistler go first. Whistler will distract them and we will fill them with arrows.”
However, the caution was unnecessary as the mouth of the cave had collapsed. Scratching, clicking and grunting could be heard from the other side.
“There must be Grawl and Devourers in there,” stated one of the rangers.
“I wonder what the Searing did to them in there?” asked another.
“The Searing? And what do you mean?”
“The Searing… well that’s what I’m calling it, the land was seared by the fire. The oxygen in that cave would have been used by the fire and yet those things are still alive.”
“How do you know that?”
“Well my father was a monk and my mother a necromancer,” was the response as if that explained everything. The staring that followed that statement was absolute, although whether it was for the statement itself or for the relationship was anyone’s guess.
“Alright that’s enough. Keep moving!” Mirrax ordered, putting an end to the conversation and the staring. Although she herself was wondering how a ranger could be produced by the union of a monk and a necromancer.
Not long afterwards the group came to the bridge that led into Ashford, or it would have if Ashford was still there. In the distance they could see the remains of the abbey, as well as a few people who appeared to be removing rubble. The group broke into a run towards the abbey and, as they came closer, they could see a few villagers moving rubble from the entrance to the catacombs.
“What’s going on?”
“Mirrax, is that you? Oh, I’m so glad you’re here,” said a visibly relieved Pitney, “most of the residents of Ashford and the abbey are trapped in the catacombs. We were heading to the bunker when they started firing on us; we swam under the bridge for safety. Really gonna have to thank that Orion when we dig ‘em out.”
“Pitney, we can’t stay and help, we’ve got to report to Prince Rurik and then out to the east gate to meet with the army,” said Mirrax, “I’ll get them to send some help up here.”
With that the rangers were on their way again. Thirty minutes later the group arrived at the bunker, however there was no sign of Prince Rurik or Sir Tydus. Spotting Warmaster Grast she headed over.
“Sir, I’ve got twenty rangers from Regent Valley reporting in sir.”
“Right, Beasttamer isn’t it? What’s the situation at Fort Ranik?”
“Most of the residents of Wizard’s Folley and Regent Valley got to the fort in time. Nente and Ivor are conducting a search for survivors. We have an unknown number trapped in the catacombs under the abbey and we need to get some more people out there to help dig them out.”
“I’ll send some of the townspeople; I can’t spare any soldiers at the moment.”
“Sir, can you tell me where Malios Halcyon is?”
“The corporal left about half an hour ago with Sir Tydus and the prince. They’re heading out to Barradin’s Estate to gather his forces. They’ll head to the east gate when they can. I want you to take these rangers out there now.”
“Aye sir,” replied Mirrax, “a few of us wish to see if some of our relatives made it to safety.”
“Of course, Lina has a list of all who arrived here as well as a few of the dead. I have teams in the city searching for more survivors and to retrieve the dead. Gather some supplies and I want you to move out within the hour.”
“Yes sir and thank you.”
Unfortunately, what they found in the register was not good reading. Some still had no idea of their relatives’ whereabouts, while others discovered that their families were dead. Mirrax was among the latter group. She read that Malios had found her father, dead inside the city, but had not been able to bring him to the bunker. She wanted to cry, she wanted to curl up in a corner and forget the world for a while, she wanted – no, needed – to grieve. She just didn’t have the time; she would just have to get revenge by killing as many charr as possible. It was a situation that many would find themselves in over the next few days – making the choice between giving up or fighting, for the fight had only just begun. The charr were preparing to attack the east gate in large numbers, this is where the resilience and bravery of all of the surviving Ascalonian' would be tested once again. Looking around Mirrax could see that even some of the normal townspeople were preparing for war.
Thirty minutes later the squad of rangers were ready to move out. Whistler had already disappeared but Mirrax knew he would be there when she needed him. They left the bunker and headed to the east gate, through the ruins of the city and east along the Great Northern Wall. As they neared the gate they began to hear the sounds of battle. Ascalonian soldiers were on both sides of the gate holding both the gate itself and a former secret stairway that had been revealed during the searing. Spotting Captain Calhaan, talking to a scribe, Mirrax approached.
“Captain, I have twenty rangers ready to assist, where would you like them sir?”
“I want you to spread out on top of the wall after reporting to that monk over there,” replied Calhaan, “you are about to be let in on one of Ascalons greatest weapons. Towards the end of the Guild Wars a spell was created to make an auto-replenishing quiver. The arrows it creates are just like what you use now and can be prepared in any way you see fit. Now go and concentrate on the spellcasters and archers!”
It was mid-afternoon when the rangers arrived at the battle and they had tremendous success with their newly enchanted quivers. The battle raged until nightfall, with neither side really gaining the upper hand. The charr had many more available spellcasters but they were neutralised by the rangers in their elevated positions. Many Ascalonians' were surprised when the charr withdrew at nightfall; it was well known that the charr had much better night vision than humans. A watch was set consisting of a few men who had arrived late to the battle and hadn’t even bloodied their weapons yet.
Mirrax wasn’t exactly thrilled to be going to sleep knowing it would bring nightmares of her father dying. She was also worried about Malios who was yet to arrive from Barradin’s Estate.
***
T-2 Days
The morning brought a renewed push by the charr and it looked as though they would break through the lines by midday. The charr had made it to and then through the east gate when a small band of necromancers, lead by Munne, arrived. Immediately they began casting their spells to summon creatures and raise the dead. The charr advance was quickly halted as undead creatures sprang up everywhere and began creating havoc. Claws and teeth ripping through flesh bone and armour indiscriminately – each kill creating another corpse to use against the enemy. This sudden turnaround spurred the beleaguered defenders into a vicious counterattack. By the time that night fell again only a few hundred charr remained. They quickly fled into the night being chased by creatures made of bone. As the Ascalonians cheered Mirrax looked upon the battlefield. The remains of nearly two thousand of Ascalons finest warriors were littered across the battlefield; hundreds more had been captured before the arrival of the necromancers and were taken deep behind enemy lines. Of the twenty rangers only twelve remained and Mirrax herself was injured. She had taken an arrow to the thigh during the morning and, other than removing the arrow and binding the wound herself, had received no treatment. It was highly unlikely that she would receive any either, at least until the morning, as the few monks were extremely busy with the ground troops. A scribe assured her that she would be seen to as soon as possible.
Mirrax settled down to a long on painful night upon the wall. At least the wall still held.
***
T-1 Day
Mirrax awoke tired, hungry and very sore the next morning as a monk finally began to treat the wound. After a meagre breakfast of dried meat and slightly stale bread, Mirrax approached Captain Calhaan again.
“Sir, I would like to head back to the bunker.”
“Why is that recruit?” asked Calhaan.
Sir, Prince Rurik, Sir Tydus and Duke Barradin were supposed to have arrived to aid us in the battle,” replied Mirrax, “someone needs to report in and try to find them.”
“Okay, I need someone to escort the monks and heavily wounded back to the bunker anyway. Take what’s left of your rangers and ten soldiers and head back,” ordered Calhaan.
While Mirrax wasn’t happy about the escort duty, as it would severely slow down the return trip, at least she would legitimately be able to look for Malios without going A.W.O.L.
The return journey was long and slow and the group didn’t arrive until the early evening. Mirrax immediately reported to Grast. After recounting the battle Mirrax enquired about the prince. The answer was most disturbing.
“The prince has not returned to the bunker. We had assumed that he had taken his group straight to the east gate. This is worrying.” The reply had not come from Grast, but from the king who had overheard the question.
“Your Highness, allow me to take some men to look for them,” Mirrax offered.
“Not tonight,” countered Grast, “it is too late and the only men we have available are those you brought with you and they are exhausted from the battle.”
“As much as it pains me, I have to agree with Grast,” added the king, “first thing in the morning you will take these men as well as Alesia Baptiste and Orion Elek and find my son!”
Even though she saw the truth in their words Mirrax was not happy with their decision. She wanted to head out now, on her own if need be. She cursed Calhaan in her head for delaying her return to the bunker.
***
T-0 days and 1 hour
About an hour before dawn, Mirrax, Orion, Alesia and the rangers were ready to move out. The Ascalon soldiers that had returned with her the previous day were needed to guard the bunker. The last group of refugees from the catacombs under the abbey had reported the appearance of strange creatures both above and below ground that had never been seen in Ascalon before.
They carefully began their journey west, wary of these new creatures. At its deepest the river was now only up to their waists. Mirrax wondered if the monks could use a variation of the spell used on her quiver on the stockpiled water. As they crested the hill by the remains of the actor’s stage they saw a few dirty and dishevelled Grawl being chased by a group of what could only be these ‘new’ creatures.
“Mirrax? Do you think you can hit one of these things so we can study it?”
“Sure thing Alesia!”
As silently as she could Mirrax followed the mob. One of them had fallen back as if sensing her pursuit, but before it could signal the others Mirrax let fly with an arrow. The creature fell with almost no sound. She then ordered two of the rangers to take it back to the bunker and straight to the first monk or necromancer they could find.
The rest of the group carried on. As they rounded the corner just past the west gate they came upon the remains of an Ascalon soldier. He had almost been picked clean by scavengers but there were obvious signs of broken bones. The group decided that it must have been stone elementals that had done this as they were the only local creatures with the physical capacity to break a mans spine. The soldiers crest and uniform placed him with those who had left with the prince.
***
Twenty minutes and a few stone elementals later, Mirrax was lying on her stomach overlooking the sight of a great battle. A warband of charr and two overseers stood guard over a cage with five prisoners inside. She could make out the distinctive large figure of Malios tending to a wounded man. The fact that the overseers had not restricted his magic meant that they wanted this wounded man alive. It had to be the prince; he would be a very valuable prisoner. She did wonder why they were being held here and not deep into charr territory.
Hearing a slight commotion behind her she turned to see Orion and Alesia standing between the rangers and a large Melandru’s Stalker. ‘Where the hell has he been?’ Sliding down the incline she approached the cat.
“Well it’s about time you showed up Whistler,” she began, “alright listen up! There are twenty-two charr down there holding the prince and four others prisoner. Orion take three rangers and circle round to the other side. Your job is to get that cage open, melt the lock if you have to. Whistler and I will draw the charr up here so you can get close. The rest of you will wait down here and fire, on my command, over that hill and right on their fowl heads. We attack as the sun crests that hill so as to blind them. That gives you ten minutes to get into position. Move!”
This would be a very long ten minutes.
A.N. sorry but I finished the chewing gum and you can’t have my laptop. Well it’s my longest chapter yet and it only took me 9 months. Let’s hope the next one is done
Chapter 6 – Meanwhile…
Mirrax gazed down upon the charr warband and the cage that they were guarding. She was very happy to see that Malios was still alive and barely noticed who else was been held with him. She had been devastated to learn that her father was dead and later that Malios, the man that she loved, was missing. Seeing him now took her back to how she came to be at the top of this rise five days after the ‘Searing’.
4 Days Earlier
Mirrax grasped Orion’s hand as he helped her out of the river with loud explosions still coming from the city. Looking back she could see Malios charging through the academy entrance into the city, at the same moment she was surprised to see Whistler come bounding out from the main entrance and race in their direction.
“Come on Orion, we have to move quickly.”
The two of them with a large Melandru’s Stalker not far behind raced towards Ashford. Mirrax and Whistler ignored the villagers at the top of the hill as they headed past them, through the village and on into Wizards Folley. She knew that Orion would get the villagers to safety. Once in Wizards Folley she ignored the stone elementals and went straight towards the mountains, where, just below the tree line, was Foible’s Fair, a market and meeting place for mesmers and elementalists. As Foible’s Fair sits in a hollow its inhabitants knew nothing of the attack by the charr. They were all surprised when they heard the shout from the ridge of the hollow and even more so by what they heard.
“LISTEN UP!” Mirrax shouted, when she had everyone’s attention she continued in a loud voice, “the charr have attacked Ascalon City with a strange magical projectile, the city burns.” Cries of despair issued from some of those present. “We believe that once the charr have destroyed the city they will turn their weapons on the rest of Ascalon. We are to evacuate the villages in Regent Valley and get everyone we can to Fort Ranik. I expect that the creatures in the area will flee south into the crystal desert, but be careful nonetheless. We will head to the nearest entrance into regent valley where I want two people to head to each village and evacuate them. I and one other will evacuate Griffinsford and then I will search for Master Ranger Nente. There are lone rangers all over the valley as well as a few hunting parties, so if you see anyone alert them of the situation. Those who are not going to a village should head straight for Fort Ranik and inform Lord Darrin to make space inside for everyone. Any questions?”
“Elementalist Aziure is still up at the tower,” began Ralena Stormbringer, one of the people Mirrax had trained with, “I will get her then head straight for the fort.”
“Good, is everyone ready? Alright then let’s move out,” ordered Mirrax.
The first hitch in the plan came when they reached Griffinsford, she managed to get the people moving towards Regent Valley but she could find no trace of her father. The house was empty. His boat was still at the jetty. She thought that he could be with Aidan, but it wasn’t until she had checked Aidan’s cottage that she realised that the ranger would be with the army. Praying that her father would be okay, she could do nothing more than continue onwards into Regent Valley and search for Nente.
Here came the second hitch, Nente and his entourage can normally be found near the entrance to Lakeside County, but they weren’t there. Mirrax was able to find and subsequently follow three sets of human footprints. She tracked them to a hill where Ivor Trueshot could be found. This was the first luck of the afternoon as both Nente and Ivor were there, though it was obvious they were preparing to move on, completely oblivious to the horrors occurring all around them.
“NENTE, IVOR,” she shouted as she climbed the hill, “the charr have attacked Ascalon. I will explain more on the way to Fort Ranik.”
And that was it; they were off, no arguments, no complaints, no questions, just actions like all good rangers. The trip to Fort Ranik was fairly short from there and Mirrax was not surprised to note that all the creatures were fleeing before they could be consumed by the magical fire. They arrived at the fort to see a steady stream of people going across the drawbridge and into the safety of the stronghold.
**
Later that evening Mirrax stood on the ramparts of the half buried fort, gazing at the radical changes to the land she loved. Parts of it were still burning and heavy smoke hung in the air. She, and many others, after emerging from the safety of the walls and dungeons believing the attack to be over, had seen the charr weapons resume firing and was about to shout out a warning when something unbelievable happened. One of the fireballs appeared to hit another launch site. She watched stunned as this happened again and again throughout the next few hours. Somehow, and she had no idea how, she knew that Malios was involved in the miracle they had all witnessed and it filled her with warmth. Even from so far away she believed that he was trying to protect her.
Now, as night fell, it all appeared to be over. There had been no more attacks for a while now and she realised that she was lucky to be alive. The first fireballs had hit Regent Valley before they could get everyone inside the fort. There had been a mad rush when the first fireball hit near the fort, people were pushing and shoving their way across the drawbridge. Many fell into the moat, two were even trampled to death and quite a few more were killed when a fireball impacted the edge of the wall above the drawbridge. This hit instantly killed two army recruits and rained fire and stone onto the people below, ironically those who had trampled the others in their haste to get inside were hit the worst. Mirrax had just stepped onto the drawbridge when that fireball hit, but she Nente and Ivor were at the back of the group and were able to quickly get the wounded inside.
As the people huddled in the narrow corridors of the above ground sections of the fort they could hear every impact of the fire and every breaking stone. Many, sheltered in the barracks and dungeons below, truly believed that they could feel the dust and dirt settling after every blast. Farmer, soldier, fisherman, elementalists, all were reduced to one thing at that moment – human beings going out of their minds with worry and fear. Commoners and nobles sought comfort from each other as the fear of one’s mortality crossed social boundaries that many don’t even like to believe exist.
‘Perhaps,’ Mirrax reflected as she stood gazing at the sunset, ‘the threat of the charr could even re-unite the four great nations on this continent. They may be able to look past their hatred and mistrust of one another and work together to defeat a common foe.’
Mirrax did feel a little strange to be so optimistic after such a cataclysmic event had just destroyed her home. This brought her back to worrying about her father, for whom she feared the worst. Trying to take her mind off of her missing father she decided to re-count and organise the survivors. In the morning she would gather what forces she could and head north to report to Prince Rurik.
***
T-3 Days
When morning came Mirrax, Whistler and twenty rangers began their journey back towards Ascalon City. Master Ranger Nente and Ivor Trueshot were organising a search of Regent Valley and Wizard’s Folley for any survivors from the attack.
Almost at that exact moment, although unknown to both, Mirrax and Malios were thinking the same thing – dismay at what the charr had done. The beautiful land that she had grown up in had been turned to ash; the river was slowly being replaced by tat being drawn up from underground. Already there were some villagers, sent out by Lord Darrin, stockpiling what water they could.
Luckily the main bridge wasn’t badly damaged and the trip to Lakeside County didn’t take too long. Almost immediately Mirrax and a few rangers knocked an arrow.
“There was a cave up ahead that many creatures could have used to seek refuge from the fires. Be on your guard and let myself and whistler go first. Whistler will distract them and we will fill them with arrows.”
However, the caution was unnecessary as the mouth of the cave had collapsed. Scratching, clicking and grunting could be heard from the other side.
“There must be Grawl and Devourers in there,” stated one of the rangers.
“I wonder what the Searing did to them in there?” asked another.
“The Searing? And what do you mean?”
“The Searing… well that’s what I’m calling it, the land was seared by the fire. The oxygen in that cave would have been used by the fire and yet those things are still alive.”
“How do you know that?”
“Well my father was a monk and my mother a necromancer,” was the response as if that explained everything. The staring that followed that statement was absolute, although whether it was for the statement itself or for the relationship was anyone’s guess.
“Alright that’s enough. Keep moving!” Mirrax ordered, putting an end to the conversation and the staring. Although she herself was wondering how a ranger could be produced by the union of a monk and a necromancer.
Not long afterwards the group came to the bridge that led into Ashford, or it would have if Ashford was still there. In the distance they could see the remains of the abbey, as well as a few people who appeared to be removing rubble. The group broke into a run towards the abbey and, as they came closer, they could see a few villagers moving rubble from the entrance to the catacombs.
“What’s going on?”
“Mirrax, is that you? Oh, I’m so glad you’re here,” said a visibly relieved Pitney, “most of the residents of Ashford and the abbey are trapped in the catacombs. We were heading to the bunker when they started firing on us; we swam under the bridge for safety. Really gonna have to thank that Orion when we dig ‘em out.”
“Pitney, we can’t stay and help, we’ve got to report to Prince Rurik and then out to the east gate to meet with the army,” said Mirrax, “I’ll get them to send some help up here.”
With that the rangers were on their way again. Thirty minutes later the group arrived at the bunker, however there was no sign of Prince Rurik or Sir Tydus. Spotting Warmaster Grast she headed over.
“Sir, I’ve got twenty rangers from Regent Valley reporting in sir.”
“Right, Beasttamer isn’t it? What’s the situation at Fort Ranik?”
“Most of the residents of Wizard’s Folley and Regent Valley got to the fort in time. Nente and Ivor are conducting a search for survivors. We have an unknown number trapped in the catacombs under the abbey and we need to get some more people out there to help dig them out.”
“I’ll send some of the townspeople; I can’t spare any soldiers at the moment.”
“Sir, can you tell me where Malios Halcyon is?”
“The corporal left about half an hour ago with Sir Tydus and the prince. They’re heading out to Barradin’s Estate to gather his forces. They’ll head to the east gate when they can. I want you to take these rangers out there now.”
“Aye sir,” replied Mirrax, “a few of us wish to see if some of our relatives made it to safety.”
“Of course, Lina has a list of all who arrived here as well as a few of the dead. I have teams in the city searching for more survivors and to retrieve the dead. Gather some supplies and I want you to move out within the hour.”
“Yes sir and thank you.”
Unfortunately, what they found in the register was not good reading. Some still had no idea of their relatives’ whereabouts, while others discovered that their families were dead. Mirrax was among the latter group. She read that Malios had found her father, dead inside the city, but had not been able to bring him to the bunker. She wanted to cry, she wanted to curl up in a corner and forget the world for a while, she wanted – no, needed – to grieve. She just didn’t have the time; she would just have to get revenge by killing as many charr as possible. It was a situation that many would find themselves in over the next few days – making the choice between giving up or fighting, for the fight had only just begun. The charr were preparing to attack the east gate in large numbers, this is where the resilience and bravery of all of the surviving Ascalonian' would be tested once again. Looking around Mirrax could see that even some of the normal townspeople were preparing for war.
Thirty minutes later the squad of rangers were ready to move out. Whistler had already disappeared but Mirrax knew he would be there when she needed him. They left the bunker and headed to the east gate, through the ruins of the city and east along the Great Northern Wall. As they neared the gate they began to hear the sounds of battle. Ascalonian soldiers were on both sides of the gate holding both the gate itself and a former secret stairway that had been revealed during the searing. Spotting Captain Calhaan, talking to a scribe, Mirrax approached.
“Captain, I have twenty rangers ready to assist, where would you like them sir?”
“I want you to spread out on top of the wall after reporting to that monk over there,” replied Calhaan, “you are about to be let in on one of Ascalons greatest weapons. Towards the end of the Guild Wars a spell was created to make an auto-replenishing quiver. The arrows it creates are just like what you use now and can be prepared in any way you see fit. Now go and concentrate on the spellcasters and archers!”
It was mid-afternoon when the rangers arrived at the battle and they had tremendous success with their newly enchanted quivers. The battle raged until nightfall, with neither side really gaining the upper hand. The charr had many more available spellcasters but they were neutralised by the rangers in their elevated positions. Many Ascalonians' were surprised when the charr withdrew at nightfall; it was well known that the charr had much better night vision than humans. A watch was set consisting of a few men who had arrived late to the battle and hadn’t even bloodied their weapons yet.
Mirrax wasn’t exactly thrilled to be going to sleep knowing it would bring nightmares of her father dying. She was also worried about Malios who was yet to arrive from Barradin’s Estate.
***
T-2 Days
The morning brought a renewed push by the charr and it looked as though they would break through the lines by midday. The charr had made it to and then through the east gate when a small band of necromancers, lead by Munne, arrived. Immediately they began casting their spells to summon creatures and raise the dead. The charr advance was quickly halted as undead creatures sprang up everywhere and began creating havoc. Claws and teeth ripping through flesh bone and armour indiscriminately – each kill creating another corpse to use against the enemy. This sudden turnaround spurred the beleaguered defenders into a vicious counterattack. By the time that night fell again only a few hundred charr remained. They quickly fled into the night being chased by creatures made of bone. As the Ascalonians cheered Mirrax looked upon the battlefield. The remains of nearly two thousand of Ascalons finest warriors were littered across the battlefield; hundreds more had been captured before the arrival of the necromancers and were taken deep behind enemy lines. Of the twenty rangers only twelve remained and Mirrax herself was injured. She had taken an arrow to the thigh during the morning and, other than removing the arrow and binding the wound herself, had received no treatment. It was highly unlikely that she would receive any either, at least until the morning, as the few monks were extremely busy with the ground troops. A scribe assured her that she would be seen to as soon as possible.
Mirrax settled down to a long on painful night upon the wall. At least the wall still held.
***
T-1 Day
Mirrax awoke tired, hungry and very sore the next morning as a monk finally began to treat the wound. After a meagre breakfast of dried meat and slightly stale bread, Mirrax approached Captain Calhaan again.
“Sir, I would like to head back to the bunker.”
“Why is that recruit?” asked Calhaan.
Sir, Prince Rurik, Sir Tydus and Duke Barradin were supposed to have arrived to aid us in the battle,” replied Mirrax, “someone needs to report in and try to find them.”
“Okay, I need someone to escort the monks and heavily wounded back to the bunker anyway. Take what’s left of your rangers and ten soldiers and head back,” ordered Calhaan.
While Mirrax wasn’t happy about the escort duty, as it would severely slow down the return trip, at least she would legitimately be able to look for Malios without going A.W.O.L.
The return journey was long and slow and the group didn’t arrive until the early evening. Mirrax immediately reported to Grast. After recounting the battle Mirrax enquired about the prince. The answer was most disturbing.
“The prince has not returned to the bunker. We had assumed that he had taken his group straight to the east gate. This is worrying.” The reply had not come from Grast, but from the king who had overheard the question.
“Your Highness, allow me to take some men to look for them,” Mirrax offered.
“Not tonight,” countered Grast, “it is too late and the only men we have available are those you brought with you and they are exhausted from the battle.”
“As much as it pains me, I have to agree with Grast,” added the king, “first thing in the morning you will take these men as well as Alesia Baptiste and Orion Elek and find my son!”
Even though she saw the truth in their words Mirrax was not happy with their decision. She wanted to head out now, on her own if need be. She cursed Calhaan in her head for delaying her return to the bunker.
***
T-0 days and 1 hour
About an hour before dawn, Mirrax, Orion, Alesia and the rangers were ready to move out. The Ascalon soldiers that had returned with her the previous day were needed to guard the bunker. The last group of refugees from the catacombs under the abbey had reported the appearance of strange creatures both above and below ground that had never been seen in Ascalon before.
They carefully began their journey west, wary of these new creatures. At its deepest the river was now only up to their waists. Mirrax wondered if the monks could use a variation of the spell used on her quiver on the stockpiled water. As they crested the hill by the remains of the actor’s stage they saw a few dirty and dishevelled Grawl being chased by a group of what could only be these ‘new’ creatures.
“Mirrax? Do you think you can hit one of these things so we can study it?”
“Sure thing Alesia!”
As silently as she could Mirrax followed the mob. One of them had fallen back as if sensing her pursuit, but before it could signal the others Mirrax let fly with an arrow. The creature fell with almost no sound. She then ordered two of the rangers to take it back to the bunker and straight to the first monk or necromancer they could find.
The rest of the group carried on. As they rounded the corner just past the west gate they came upon the remains of an Ascalon soldier. He had almost been picked clean by scavengers but there were obvious signs of broken bones. The group decided that it must have been stone elementals that had done this as they were the only local creatures with the physical capacity to break a mans spine. The soldiers crest and uniform placed him with those who had left with the prince.
***
Twenty minutes and a few stone elementals later, Mirrax was lying on her stomach overlooking the sight of a great battle. A warband of charr and two overseers stood guard over a cage with five prisoners inside. She could make out the distinctive large figure of Malios tending to a wounded man. The fact that the overseers had not restricted his magic meant that they wanted this wounded man alive. It had to be the prince; he would be a very valuable prisoner. She did wonder why they were being held here and not deep into charr territory.
Hearing a slight commotion behind her she turned to see Orion and Alesia standing between the rangers and a large Melandru’s Stalker. ‘Where the hell has he been?’ Sliding down the incline she approached the cat.
“Well it’s about time you showed up Whistler,” she began, “alright listen up! There are twenty-two charr down there holding the prince and four others prisoner. Orion take three rangers and circle round to the other side. Your job is to get that cage open, melt the lock if you have to. Whistler and I will draw the charr up here so you can get close. The rest of you will wait down here and fire, on my command, over that hill and right on their fowl heads. We attack as the sun crests that hill so as to blind them. That gives you ten minutes to get into position. Move!”
This would be a very long ten minutes.
A.N. sorry but I finished the chewing gum and you can’t have my laptop. Well it’s my longest chapter yet and it only took me 9 months. Let’s hope the next one is done
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