Only a few hours after the meeting in the war room, Kothar stood at the gate of the keep. His parents had rushed off, joining the stream of soldiers heading west from Balin. Boson and Serena headed east, in an effort to delay the armies of the Phintus Federation, until the battle to the west had concluded or Kothar succeeded in his mission.
Everyone rode out with grim faces, this could very well be any one of their last battles.
Jonas had prepared a fine horse for Kothar, it definitely had beast blood, evidenced by the patches of green scales around its hide, and the massive plumes of air that it sometimes huffed out. It stood much taller than Kothar, even though he had grown much over the past year, he stood taller than Ophil now, but Tam still towered well over him.
[The way you're standing here, lost in your thoughts, you'd think we didn't have a kingdom, saving mission to attend to.] Silane interrupted Kothar as he ruminated on the new family he had gained.
[Sorry, I was just lost in my thoughts.] Kothar apologized and mounted the tall, slender mount.
[No need to explain yourself, I share your thoughts, and your emotions too.] Silane said softly, aware of how much the both of them had changed.
[Yes, I know that. But sometimes it's nice to just say things.] Kothar explained, spurring the horse along the narrow bridge that towered over the plunging moat.
[It sure is, why do you think I do this, instead of just projecting words over your vision.] Silane said while she projected the same sentence across Kothar's vision.
Kothar only smiled in response, before urging the horse into a gallop through the abandoned streets. Once their plan had been finalized, Rotan had the bells tolled to signal an imminent invasion, and while many citizens had sought shelter in the keep, others left the city in droves, heading north to the foothills of the Fidour mountains.
The ancestors of most of the citizens of Ursten had lived in the very same foothills, and the people of Ursten often fled to their ancestral home in times of crisis, where they could disappear into vast networks of caves and shelters dug deep within the hills.
As Kothar galloped on horseback through the city, he only spotted groups of soldiers, creating outposts on the roofs of buildings, or constructing the beginnings of a barricade.
If all else failed, Ursten could hold Balin indefinitely.
The plains just south of Balin were empty, but the further Kothar got from the capital the more people he saw, evidently words hadn't travelled so far yet. Farmers paused and watched the young man gallop by on his tall greenish horse, marvelling at the sight.
Kothar passed a herald on his way south, a pompous man with elaborate curled mustache, who was loudly announcing the invasion to an unfortunate farmer who had strayed much too close to the road.
Kothar galloped on and on even as a reddish glow covered the sky, the landscape grew drier, with fewer farmhouses visible along the horizon, and fewer people plowing the earth. Kothar stopped for a few minutes, feeding his horse an odd purple colored grain that Jonas had packed.
Jonas had been very adamant to feed the horse only the purple grain for as long as it lasted, and had reassured Kothar many times that the horse would be more than capable of galloping day and night. If they did stop at all, it would be so Kothar could rest.
Kothar stopped to rest for a few hours that night, the moon had set and the night was pitch black, He awoke at dawn and rode on, forks in the road south led to the frontier cities, famed for the unique goods they traded for the Southern Tribes.
The border with the tribes was not well marked out, with only a stone pillar on the road marking where Ursten ended and the territory of the tribes began.
The air here was noticeably drier than in Ursten, and the rising sun revealed a desolate landscape, Kothhar reined his horse to a sudden stop, herd of heavy set, horse like creatures, covered in scarlet fur and with massive horns that swept back from their skulls, gallop across the road in front of him, completely ignoring his presence.
While Kothar waited for the herd to cross his path, Tam and the armies of Ursten had made a quick march to Janul, and were camped outside the town. Like Balin, Jalun was largely abandoned by the citizens, so the army had repurposed the city into a barracks and headquarters.
"General Tam, my scouts await your orders." Baron Leynish stood outside in the door of the town hall which Tam had converted into a makeshift headquarters.
Leynish was a short, wiry man, who wore a long mustache that he liked to keep waxed so that it stuck out at right angles to his face. He wore armor crafted out of the black scales of a large python, and his helmet was formed in the likeness of the same creature.
Having seen only skirmishes with bandits in the north west, Leynish's greatest battle had been with the beast who's scales he wore as armor, and he made the most of it.
"Baron, please have your men sweep east, with roving patrols to the north and south. We need to ensure the Kalun don't sneak by us and attack Balin with their full strength." Tam stood over a massive wooden table, on which a map of Ursten and her neighbors lay. Tam outlined the route he wanted Leynish to take with a set of ivory markers.
"Surely they won't try such a gambit, if we found them, we'd crush them between us and the armies of Balin." Leynish pulled at his pointed mustache as he spoke, deep in thought.
"No, they know well that Balin's guard cannot leave the city, because of the threat Phintus poses from the east." Tam patiently explained.
"What of your troops to the east, and the eastern lords?" Leynish continued to prod at Tam, not confident in the General's abilities.
"Without a campaign general, they'll be hard pressed to fight a better organized force." Tam's tone remained patient.
"Of course, General. I will take my men and patrol the east now." Leynish gave Tam a shallow bow and backed out of the doorway.
"He's got a chip on his shoulder." A mellow voice seemed to speak from the deep shadows in the corner of the large hall.
"I knew you wouldn't abandon the kingdom." Tam replied, not flustered in the slightest.
"You were always a hard one to scare." Simon stepped out of the shadows of the hall, he looked faded, like an old painting.
"You'd have a better chance without that cloaking spell, I felt the mana of it the moment you climbed in through the window." Tam grinned at Simon.
"Ophil know you're here, she won't be happy if she finds out after me." Tam added.
"Of course, I'm not getting on the wrong side of my sister. I dropped by your tent earlier and spoke with her. You've sent Kothar south?" Simon raised an eyebrow, lounging against the poorly finished stone of the walls.
"He's more than capable, and I'd rather not have him making a name for himself on the battlefields just yet, it's a good way to lose one's head." Tam's voice became downcast.
"The Last Hawk." Simon murmured.
"You know that's not a name I like to be called." Tam frowned and gave Simon a glare..
"Why not? Keep their memory alive, don't bury it away." Simon met Tam's glare with one his own.
"This sigil is more than enough. I don't want any young soldiers getting ideas about following in our footsteps." Tam patted the hawk emblazoned on his breastplate.
"But it would inspire-" Simon began to explain, but Tam cut him off.
"Enough. Now tell me, are you going to fight under my command or do whatever it is you do." Tam almost snapped at Simon, a hint of annoyance in his voice.
"What do you need, general?" Simon said in a mocking tone, giving Tam a lazy salute.
"For now, shadow Leynish, make sure he doesn't do anything stupid. The man's got something to prove." Tam pointed out the routes he had assigned Leynish.
"And, if you get a chance, wreak some havoc in their ranks. They're much too confident for my taste, remind the Kalun why exactly they fled from this town all those years ago." Tam added.
"Of course, General. Anything for Ursten." Simon replied in the same mocking tone as before, a vicious grin on his face. While he wouldn't abandon his friends and family, it didn't mean he was pleased with being banished.
"For Ursten." Tam replied with a sigh, as Simon faded from view again, with only a small gust of wind signalling he had left the hall.