In the Embershroud Empires camp just before sunrise, a flurry of activity was taking place illuminated by torchlight.
Soldiers put on their leather or cloth armour, died black with accents of crimson, and gathered their weapons.
Officers yelled orders at the men, desperate to get them organized into units before the Generals or the Emperor made an appearance.
Only a painful death would await them for falling short of Nikalos Ember Dunlains expectations, as he was not the type to tolerate any failure, no matter how small.
"Taros!" Yelled Emperor Nikalos while sitting on a resplendent throne in the Imperial command tent
"Yes, My Lord?" replied an old, yet muscular, and heavily scarred general.
"You shall lead the vanguard. Are you prepared?" Nikalos asked with a fiery gaze and a twisted grin
A stern gaze swept over the old generals face. Taros Geln was a veteran who had served the imperial family for decades. He fought in many wars and survived countless battles, evident by his now disfigured form. His left ear, nose, right eye, and a small portion of his lower jaw were all missing. These losses however did nothing to discourage his loyalty, in fact, he wore them as a badge of honor.
"It is my honor to draw first blood, my Lord." Taros said
"Good, very good. Then gather your men. I want the ground wet with Syrena blood with the dawn." ordered Emperor Nikalos
"It shall be done." replied Taros with a bow and he left the tent to carry out his mission.
"Ivar, you will go with a small scouting party to the hidden path. I want to make sure that the plan will work before I commit a large number of troops to it." Nikalos said to Ivar Ember Dunlain, his son and heir.
"Yes fath-, Your Highness." Ivar said with nervous energy.
Ivar had only recently come of age, so despite being the Crown Prince of Embershroud, this would be his first time on the battlefield.
Nikalos let the minor slip of the tongue pass and simply continued to instruct the young man "Don't forget to bring that traitor with you. As soon as he's shown you the way, dispose of him." He said maliciously
"Understood." Ivar replied as a shiver ran down his spine. He then bowed slightly and took his leave.
Emperor Nikalos shook his head and smiled bitterly as he watched his son leave to carry out his mission. Although he cared for the boy, he was also frustrated by him. Ivar had inherited his mother's gentle sensibilities, not his own pragmatic nature. All he could do was hope that if he pushed him the right way, Ivar would outgrow that side of himself.
-----
General Taros Geln quickly approached a tight formation of troops
"Attention!" hollered a young officer as he got near
General Taros ran his gaze over the men that stood before him with a proud expression. These were his men, the Flaming Spear Corps, and they were the most respected group in the Imperial Army. No unit could boast more kills, or more victories than them despite only being 8,000 strong.
"Brothers, I come bearing sad news...." He started to say, and after gauging his mens reactions he continued "Sad news for the enemy that is. We have been granted by our Lord the Vanguard position. We shall be the first to wet our blades with the blood of those Syrena dogs this day!" he roared drawing a huge wave of cheering from his soldiers.
He allowed them a few moments of excitement before holding up his hand to silence them.
"We'll be moving out now. Our Lord wishes for us to engage the enemy with the rising sun." Taros informed "We will also move without torches or drums until we are right upon them." He then told them.
Upon receiving their orders, the men of the Flaming Spear Corps extinguished their torches and the drummers didn't play as they began marching towards the Victory Gates pass.
Upon reaching the pass, the Flaming Spear Corps was joined by their lifelong rivals the Scorched Blade Corps that was 12,000 strong.
"Well, well, if it isn't Taros 'The Ghoul' Geln." said the leader of the Scorched Blade Corps, A young and arrogant commander named Piro Iskan.
"Watch your tongue boy, before you lose it." Taros shot back upon hearing the nickname that he had received years before due to his looks.
"Hehe, Easy there old timer. It was just a joke." Piro said with a lighthearted laugh that included a hint of mockery.
"Hmph." Taros decided to ignore the little twerp. It wasn't worth his time to stand there and argue. Not when there was a war to win.
The two groups marched into the pass. The Flaming Spear Corps in front and the Scorched Blade Corps bringing up the rear. All told the first wave of the assault by the Empire would be 20,000 strong.
-----
Ivar, with the help of the nameless traitor, lead his small band of 15 scouts near an ancient looking tree and through a small crevice in the cliff hidden behind it.
Practically invisible, the narrow passage was nearly impossible to squeeze through. All the men, including Ivar, had to suck in their bellies just to enter.
"Follow me" whispered the traitor when all the men had entered the secret path
"Lead on" replied Ivar with a gruff tone. He wanted to display an air of authority to his men since it was obvious one or more was under orders from his father to monitor him.
The traitor guided the scouts along the steep and very narrow path in which they had to travel in single file while watching their step. One false move would result in a fall of a hundred feet or more to their death.
Fortunately, a bright 3-quarters moon made up for the lack of torches, as they would undoubtedly reveal their position to the enemy if they used any.
After nearly an hour, and with the sky beginning to brighten, Ivar and his group made it to a wide overhang that was just big enough for them to rest.
"That's the other side of the Victory Gates pass." The traitor said pointing into the near distance while standing near the edge.
"Good. And where does the end of this path exit from on the other side?" Ivar asked nonchalantly
"The exit is similar to the entrance. There is a narrow passage obscured by a boulder near the Syrena side of the pass. It should allow you to sneak a sizable force into their camp." the traitor explained.
"Excellent." Ivar said with a satisfied grin "You have served the Empire well." Before leaving the mans side he clapped him on the shoulder, making him feel appreciated.
Upon returning to his men he whispered "Do it."
With a simple nod and no hesitation, two of the scouts approached the traitor from behind and grabbed him tightly.
"Wait, what are you-, No, wait! Sto-....AHHHHH!"
The mans voice disappeared with the wind as he was lifted and thrown off the overhang, His purpose in life now fulfilled. His reward would be waiting for him in the underworld.
"Report back to the Emperor. Tell him 'The path is steep and narrow but passable. No more than a thousand men are recommended'." Ivar ordered one of the scouts.
"As you command." The scout said before hurrying back on the treacherous path to relay the message.
Ivar then sat on a decent sized rock and waited for sunrise.
-----
General Taros stopped his men when he heard the sound of screaming come from overhead.
Suddenly the body of a man smashed into the rocks on the side of the pass, his limbs and blood flying every direction.
'I guess that's as good a signal as any' He thought to himself
With a wide smile he shouted "Sound the drums!"
In just a moment the loud banging of drums echoed throughout the pass.
*thum* *thum*...*thu-thum* *thum* *thum*
Taros began to lead the march to attack again but after just a few feet he noticed a row of lights suddenly appear.
'Torches?' He questioned silently
Had the Kingdom somehow predicted that they might attack at sunrise?
His suspicions were answered a moment later, but not the way he thought.
General Taros' eyes widened when the row of lights he had assumed were torches suddenly arched into the sky and streaked towards he and his men.
"Fire arrows!" he warned loudly as the incoming projectiles threatened to claim the lives of he and his men
The Flaming Spear Corps all braced for the volley of arrows that was sure to claim the lives of many. However when the flaming arrows made contact only a couple dozen were wounded while only 2 or 3 died from head or neck wounds.
Seeing this Taros felt that the enemy he was now facing was just a small advance party meant to slow them down.
A grizzly smile appeared on his face as he thought about how foolish the Kingdom was. If he and his men could kill these Syrena troops quickly enough he might be able to charge all the way into their camp before the main force was even alerted.
"Charge!" He ordered
The Imperial Army troops rushed forward with a bloodthirsty fervor. They even chose to ignore the incoming arrows. What they didn't realize though was that the closer they got to the enemy, the more the arrows increased. Hidden within the flaming arrows was an even greater number of normal ones.
After charging forth for nearly a minute, Taros finally understood his error as the sun began to rise, revealing the tight spear formation that stood guarding the devilish archers.
With a hored of men behind and the enemy before him, he did not stop or slow. Instead Taros increased his speed, crashing into the front row of Kingdom soldiers, wanting nothing more to spill their blood to appease his growing rage.