Tales of Ayralef-The Last Campaign Chapter 3

Chapter Three- The Fallen Queen

Greenvale Town Hall, 6:45am

          Liatris stood still as her aids dressed her. She enjoyed the sensation of the buckles and straps being tightened and the weight of the armor on her. As she pulled on her gauntlets, Liatris heard a commotion outside the hall as shouts erupted all over the camp. The shouts grew louder and the sounds weapons being drawn filled the hall as she heard Azalee shouting something.

          Scowling, Liatris pulled away from her aids and headed toward the door. Before she reached it the heavy wooden door swung open and the last fairy she expected to see in all of Ayralefstood there.

        Melany, the fallen mad queen of the Western Kingdom.

        Damn. Liatris thought as a frown formed on her face.

        Melany entered the room in a flourish, her elaborate polished sable colored armor glinting in lamp light and her black cape flowing behind her.

       “Greetings, Grand Captain Liatris Aspera!”  Melany said and offered Liatris a formal bow.

       “I tried to stop her My Lady!”  A flustered Azalee almost shouted as she entered the room behind Melany.

        Melany snorted at Azalee’s outburst. “And I should have you executed for getting in my way. You should respect your queen.”

       “You’re neither her queen nor any other fairy’s queen from what I have heard.” Liatris said as her scowl deepened. “And if you threaten any of my subordinates again you will regret it.”

        Melany frowned and clenched her fists in anger, her gauntlet’s leather creaking in protest. “How dare you speak to me in such a way!” she snarled.

       “Oh I dare. I know you have been overthrown by Temi and Soinee.” Liatris said coldly.

        For a moment Melany could do nothing but sputter as she stared at the frowning fairy general. She struggled to regain her composure and closed her eyes and breathed in deeply. She opened her eyes and met Liatris’s gaze.

       “It is true. I was betrayed by my two greatest generals. I was arrested in the middle of the night and dragged to a cell fit only for a common criminal. If it wasn’t for my loyal Royal Guards freeing me I would still be in that horrid place. The day I spent there was long enough.”

       “And how much fairy blood did you spill in your escape?” Liatris asked the fallen queen while she continued glaring at Melany.

       “Only the blood that was spilled was that of traitors that deserved death for assisting Temi and Soinee. My loyal followers slew all that stood in the way of my freedom.” Melany said, smirking.

        Liatris snorted. “If a fairy isn’t one of your sycophants he or she is a traitor then. Isn’t that right?”

       “You are either with me or against me. It’s that simple.” Melany said and crossed her arms.

       “Tell me, Melany, why are you here bothering me? As you can see I am busy winning the war you started ten years ago and would have quickly lost if it wasn’t for the Crimson Wood’s army. Say what you have to say and leave.”  Liatris said as her attendants started buckling on her greaves.

        Melany suppressed the urge to slap the impudent general and took a deep breath and let it out slowly and swallowed her pride. “I need your assistance in returning me to my throne.” She said evenly.

        Liatris was silent for a moment. “No. I will not get involved in a civil war between fairies. I will not spill fairy blood.” She said at length.

        “Only the blood of the traitors and those that seek peace between fairies and the Empire will be spilled, I assure you.” Melany said quickly.

        “No. Now leave before I have you thrown out.” Liatris said, her voice growing icy.

        Melany began to tremble with rage and almost attacked the general but held herself back. How dare she speak to me in such away! I, the one and true queen of all fairies will be shown the respect that I deserve. I should kill her, but…damn it all I need her. I have no choice…  Melany’s shoulders slumped and she drew her sword and stabbed it into the wooden floor and dropped to her knees and bowed her head.    

         “Liatris, will you please help me? Please? I can’t do it alone. So please help me.” Melany said stiffly.

         Liatris stared at the former queen in disbelief. A few minutes passed before she answered.

         “What’s in it for me? What do you have to offer for my help?” Liatris asked.

         “I will put my elite Royal Guards and myself at your command. There are five thousand of them and I know you can use the them in the upcoming battle. They are at your disposal.” Melany said as a small smile formed on her face.

         Liatris pondered Melany’s offer. She could use those troops on a mission she had been considering but lacked the troops. “Leave us. The Queen and I have much to discuss.”

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27 miles from Littleton on Imperial Road 392, just outside the village of Phellos                 

           “Hurry up you slow footed slug girls! Form into line of battle! Quickly, quickly now!” Sergeant Gwin Fallroy shouted to her troops as they filed off the road and out of a column of fours into a double line of battle just outside of the village of Phellos along with the twelve ballistae assigned to the brigade. The inu sergeant watched as the heavy infantry regiment quickly formed up. She was proud of how well it was drilled and the speed it formed into line of battle. It was the 5^th Imperial Guards regiment after all. Made up of entirely inus, it was considered one of the best regiments in the 2^nd Frontier Army, if not the whole Imperial Army. It, along with the 8^th Imperial Guards regiment, which was also all inu, the 21^st Heavy Infantry Regiment, the 78^th and 11^th Light Infantry regiments made up the Second Brigade of the First Division of the Fifth Grand Division.

            She, along with the other sergeants walked the rear of the lines and shouting orders to form up, though the regiment was so well drilled no orders were needed to get them into line of battle. These were veterans of many campaigns and knew their job well. The cowards and duty shirkers were long gone, leaving behind a core of hardened steel veterans who weren’t afraid to fight and die.

            “Hot morning, eh Fallroy?” Colonel Windell Lycaon said as he walked up to where Gwin was pacing.

            She turned to the colonel, smiled and saluted. “It is going to get hotter in a bit, sir.”

            “I know. I want you to be careful today. No heroics. Not like last time.”

            Gwin grinned even more. “I had the chance to seize that flag and I did.”

            Before Windell could reply their brigade commander, General Haliford, an overweight balding human with a bit of an arrogant air, rode up on a panting, almost spent horse along with his staff. Gwin and Windell quickly saluted their commander who dismounted and returned their salute.

            “Colonel Lycaon! Things have taken a turn for the worse. General Jeffries has been killed leading a reconnaissance probe into the woods flanking the road.”

           “Damn! The General is dead?” Windell exclaimed in shock. Jeffries was a very good general and popular with his troops.

           “Yes. He was struck in the throat by an arrow while leading the 91^st Light Infantry into the wood in support of the 3^rd Scouts regiment that was heavily engaged at the time and being pushed back.” Haliford said as he took a drink from his canteen. “General Belfour has taken command of the Grand Division and I am taking over our division.”

           “Why weren’t the harpies able gather intelligence on the enemy’s position? I know I have seen plenty of them overhead the last few days.” Windell asked.

           “They can’t break through the screen of aerial skirmishers the fairies have emplace. So we have to rely on ground based recon forces. What I wouldn’t give for a fresh regiment of cavalry.” Haliford said as he capped his canteen. “The probe was repulsed with heavy losses and the skirmishers are falling back toward us as we speak. Look.”

           Windell raised his spy glass and scanned the distant tree line. As he watched figures began coming out from under the trees and running towards the forming lines of infantry. He could tell by their armor and clothing that they were the scouts that Haliford had mentioned that were probing the road behind them. Some of the scouts would stop running, turn, and shoot into the forest at the unseen enemy. Moments later the remnants of the infantry regiment also began spilling out of the forest in a panic. A few green armor clad fairies appeared at the edge of the wood and began shooting back at the fleeing soldiers, dropping many.

           “Windell, you are now in charge of the brigade as senior colonel. I want you to hold this position long enough to allow the main elements of the grand division to cross the bridge southeast of town. I am giving you two regiments of archers from the divisions reserve and an extra battery of ballistae to help you hold. You are not to give any ground, no matter the cost until you receive word that the other division has crossed the bridge and my other two brigades are beginning to cross. If you receive no word you are to hold until overrun.”

            Windell lowered his scope and swallowed hard as he took it all in. Going from senior regiment commander to brigade commander and then being ordered to hold till possibly overrun and killed was a lot to take in.

            “Do you understand what I am asking of you Windell?”

            “Yes sir. This brigade is to be sacrificed as the rearguard in order to allow the rest of the grand division to escape.”

             Haliford scowled. “I wouldn’t say sacrificed. You would simply be holding a position until ordered to pull out.”

             “Yes sir.” Wendell said simply as he turned and watched the archers falling in behind his troops. The ballistae had also arrived and were deploying in front of his regiments alongside his brigade’s artillery. Eight hundred archers and six more ballistae... Will they make much of a difference against a legion?

              Haliford appeared satisfied and started writing out orders to his other commanders. While he was doing that one of his staff officers edged her horse next to Windell. The big inu female grinned as she looked down at him.

              “Morning, Colonel Lycaon!” She said merrily as she saluted him.

             “Morning Major Seris. Enjoying your new position as a staff officer?” Wendell said as he returned the salute.

             She frowned. “Not really. I am a frontline soldier, not a messenger.”

            Windell knew she spoke the truth. Her freckled, fair skinned face was crisscrossed with pink scars and her wavy white hair failed to hide the large notch in her right, black furred ear.

            “I know you are. I remember Angkora.”

            Indris Seris let her smile return as she sighed. “Ah, the glory of that day… If I live to have pups it will make a splendid story.”

           “So what is really going on to the rear? How bad is the situation?” Windell asked Indris as he offered her a drink from his canteen.

           She gratefully accepted it and took a long drink of the cool water and handed it back to him.

           “Not good. We were routed. The scouts and the infantry regiment are falling back toward your position, as you can see.” She said as she pointed to the wood line.

           Windell raised his spyglass again and looked toward the woods again saw that Indris was right.

           The remnants of the scouts had taken up a position in a shallow ditch about two hundred yards away from the wood and were sniping at the green armored fairies that dashed out from the edge of the tree line firing back at the scouts as they formed an open skirmish line. The battered 91^st Infantry regiment had reformed and was heading for Lycaon’s lines in a hurry just as the first elements of a fairy infantry century exited the wood along with a ballistae battery that galloped fast towards Wendell’s lines.   

          “Damn. Not many of them left. ” Lycaon muttered as he lowered his glass.

          “I have asked to be transferred to you staff.” Indris said as she unfastened her bow from her saddle.

          “What?!” Lycaon almost shouted. “Indris, do you know what is going to happen here?”  

          “I do and you are going to need me, isn’t that right Sergeant Fallroy?”

          Gwin, who had remained silent and had observed the exchange between Haliford and Lycaon looked up at Indris and nodded. “I agree with Major Seris, sir. You are going to need all the help you can get.”

          Lycaon shook his head. “Very well.” He sighed in defeat and looked over as Haliford mounted his horse and nudged it over by Wendell.

         “Colonel, I leave it to you. As I said, await orders to pull out. Luck be with you.” Haliford said as he saluted and then rode off toward the village followed by his staff.

         Lycaon saluted and turned to his regimental staff that had gathered around him. “Go find all regimental commanders and bring the here for a quick briefing on the situation. Go. Fallroy, I want you to see that the regiment reserves are ready to plug any breach.” The staff hurried off in various directions and Fallroy saluted and headed down the line barking orders.

         “Colonel Lycaon, may I have some fun with those fairy ballistae crews?” Indris said as she strung her bow.

         “Yes you may, but don’t play too long.” Lycaon said with a grin. Indris was, perhaps, the best inu archer in the Imperial army. He pitied the ballistae crews. He watched Indris ride through the forming lines and silently wished her luck. He then leaned against a tree and waited for the summoned officers to arrive.