She felt hollow inside now. Death would soon be upon her here. Of course, she didn’t particularly care at this point about the matter of her life at the moment and was unlikely to develop any concern for it ever again. She had been here seventeen days now, holding this mountain pass against the invaders of the land that she and so many held dear.
She and five others had been here at the start of the attack. Now there was only her still alive in the fortification… well, not only her. There was the army camped outside that could count technically. She grimaced as she looked down at her wounded leg again, wondering if she could get to the battlements of the small fort without too much pain. From there she could fire her bow at the enemy a few more times. Down here, she could only die or be taken as a prisoner. She wasn’t really sure what would happen to her if the enemy came across her like this, there being few solid facts on what happened to those who clashed with the enemy beyond vague rumors.
She shouldered her bow then and stood, using her sword as a support for her wounded leg. At a crawling pace she moved across the small courtyard, her voice as soft as the wind that day as it offered up a prayer for assistance. She doubted anything would come of it but it couldn’t hurt could it. She reached the stairs and paused, taking a moment to gather herself before moving up one step at a time. Clack. Clack. Clack. Clack. Clack. Clack.
She was halfway up when she heard the sound that had been her nightmare for the past seventeen days. The horns of the enemy were being blown. They were coming. This was it. Clack. Clack. Clack. The names of the four others who had died her ran through her mind and she smiled. Soon she would be with them but first, she would take a few more of the enemy to the grave with her. Clack. Clack. Clack. Clack. She wondered whether or not the soldier she had sent to warn others had succeeded or not. She hoped he was okay as she reached the top and looked out and down the mountain pass at the enemy.
She calmly counted the banners that were displayed and smiled. There were three new ones down below and they did look quite fancy to her. She wondered who they represented and then shrugged. She took her bow off her shoulder and drew an arrow. A glance at the flag to her right and then she lifted the bow and fired. Everyone froze then as it fell back to the ground, everyone watching the arrow as it stated how far exactly the forts defender could fire at the moment.
She eyed the distance and nodded to herself then frowned. The enemy was moving forward now in a completely new formation compared to what she had seen the previous sixteen days. Shields were everywhere, covering everyone. She blinked as she pondered this development. She doubted her arrows could get through a shield and armor unless the enemy was really close and then it would be somewhat pointless.
The shielded formation passed by the arrow she had fired and then steps later she fired, another shot coming every second. She knew that the arrows couldn’t do anything but perhaps she would get lucky. Either way, the arrows falling amongst the formation would slow it to a crawl and indeed they were. It felt so good to get respect.
One of the enemy fell at last, a small victory for the lady on the battlements but it was just one fish in a sea and all present knew it. The formation pushed on and despite the now dangerous arrows raining down on them reached the walls. A ladder was put up, a ladder the lady could not push away, and the group started to work their way up one by one. The first to reach the top got an arrow to the throat, the second an arrow to the leg, the third an arrow to the chest, and the fourth received no arrow.
It was over now. The lady laid there, what was left of her life slowly draining away, a smile on her face. She blinked as someone knelt in front of her, as someone examined her. The person stood and the words he spoke were a strain for her to hear. Give this woman full burial honors. Burn the rest.
She shuddered and then closed her eyes, hoping that others had received a warning.
No comments:
Post a Comment