The Outlander 3 35
#36 of The Outlander
Book 3 Chapter 35
35
"Dead!" Claw exclaimed as one of his wearet guard brought him the news. "All of them?" "Oi'm afraid so, moi lord," "How?" The messenger then brought a cloth smeared in a thick black liquid. Claw took the cloth and sniffed. He recognised the scent of the black fluid, "The nectar of the black orchid?" The wearet nodded in agreement. Claw grinded his teeth together, his trump card had been completely wiped out. He dismissed his guard, telling him to report with Roygel for the expected assault. Mangetail was dumbstruck, "How did the Samurai manage to get their paws on black orchid nectar?" "It must've been someone in my former closed circle." Claws' voice trailed off as he pondered to himself. A Stormvermin? It can't be. The Stormvermin wouldn't even dare to challenge me in a theatre of war. Unless...... "Master," Mangetail motioned, "Are you all right?" Claw did not reply, instead he looked on eagerly yet anxiously through his spyglass at the plains outside the walls. Down below was the tremendous booming sounds from the courtyard. The wearets were understanding how to reload and care for their weapons but they still couldn't master the aim. However Claw took little to no interest whatsoever to the fumbling attempts of his berzerkers learning how to fire a rifle. Just out on the horizon he saw something move. It was a small group of creatures placing barriers made of wood out on the countryside. He then saw military banners fluttering on the breeze below the horizon and getting closer. Claw left the throne room with haste, as the door slid open his wearet guards stood to attention. "Tell your chieftain I seek an audience with him immediately." Roygel was quick to attend to his masters' call, fully garbed in Lons' old armour Roygel looked through the spyglass his master had given him. "So? Oi sees creatures putting bits uv wood on der meadow," he said. "Wake up! Those bits of wood are barricades to shelter that army from your rifle beasts," Claw snapped. "It seems that way, Lord," said Mangetail. "Mangetail, my friend. If there was a time I most needed your guidance, it's now." Mangetail hesitated, "Well?" Claw snapped growing impatient. "Er... Indeed. Erm, I realise now that the mouse in armour was only a, er, hallucination. This apparition has been removed from my eye within, er, and victory shall be ours." Claws' features twisted into a smile, "Excellent," he remarked. "Roygel, prepare your troops for the attack."
Roygel had assembled his tribe out in the courtyard. The wearet chieftain issued his orders "Dis is what I want you's all ter do," he began. "A whole lot of you's will be up on the ramparts overlooking dat meadow out dere. Shoot anything dat moves!" Many wearets grunted and nodded in understanding. "Der rest," he continued. "We be inside der walls demselves. If sum rat gets too big fer his boots and tries ter get through da gates, smash 'is skull ter pulp! Dat goes fer Sam-rye too. Show no mercy! Scrape 'em loik muck from yer boots!"
Claw refused to leave his throne rooms, he remained with Mangetail as they both looked through their spyglasses watching the army of Jima assemble on the meadow. Claws' face became a picture of true horror and disbelief when he saw the two beasts commanding the opposing army, "Impossible!" Mangetail looked at his master completely nonplussed. "What is it My Lord?" "Him! The rat standing next to that fox." "If I may be so bold Master, Jimanese society doesn't really exclude anybeast..." "That rat is wearing Stromvermin armour and flying a general's standard! It's Gash!" Mangetail strained his eyes hard at the sight on the meadow, "How can this be? I thought Roygel had gotten rid of him." Claw then clenched his teeth with anger, "Blithering idiots! I'm surrounded by incompetent bunglers! Must I do everything myself? Mangetail, tell Roygel that this army must be stopped at all costs. Tell him to slaughter them all!" "But Master, without scorpion cavalry..." Claw went furious with rage and struck Mangetail a blow with his heavy brazen claw to his seers' chest. "When I give you a command, I do not expect defiance!"
Out on the meadow, Gash and Sandokhan arranged the army into groups who took cover behind the barricades. Gash then peered into his spyglass to observe the activity on the palace walls. He saw wearets mounting the ramparts with rifles in paws. Fujokai and his archers were ready and waiting for their first volley while Elmtail and his archers had taken position up in the tree line where they were shrouded from view by the foliage. Gash then turned to his troops, "Stand by for attack!" Sandokhan and the others needed no second bidding to take cover. The fox had taken cover next to Gash who narrated their enemy's' movements. Then the massive booming sounds rang through the air. "First volley," said Gash as the the barricade were bombarded by numerous hard thumps. Splintered wood flew off in all directions. Then came a second boom. "Second volley," said Gash. There was a long pause, "They're reloading," the general said. Sandokhan saw his chance, "Elmtail, now!" Elmtail and his archers set light to their arrows and took aim at the bundles of wood shavings. The bundles made more smoke than fire, nevertheless it was what Sandokhan wanted. The plumes became thick in little time, but Farlo grew impatient. "Now, let's attack!" Farlo shouted as he took his group and charged towards the palace walls. "Farlo, wait!" Sandokhan shouted. Before anybeast could react, the sound of horn fanfares echoed over the scene. The fox snatched Gashs' spyglass and looked through it, the palace gates opened and a horde of rampaging wearet berzerkers charged towards Farlo and his group. Flugg watched on with great anxiety and clutched the Blue Samurai's' paw. "Chin up, Flugg." The Blue Samurai said as she handed some jagged metal throwing stars. "What are these?" "Shurikens. Think of them as throwing daggers." "Fujokai, release your volley," Sandokhan shouted. The rays of the bright sun became blocked as arrows filled the sky like a dark cloud. Several wearets fell while others were horribly wounded. Farlo had escaped death as one barbed shaft tore through his attackers' eye socket. The dormouse looked around and saw most of his group had been killed in the charge. The ground started shaking violently as Gashs' Stormvermin battalions tore past the confused dormouse The wearets suddenly lost heart and withdrew back to the palace walls, while several others ignored their compatriots and continued to fight on. Farlo felt somebeast grab hold of his paw and drag him to his footpaws. Sandokhan was not pleased, "What's wrong with you Farlo? You want to die that badly?" "I saw an opportunity and I seized it!" "Days of careful planning could've been put at risk. " Sandokhan argued. All around them, Stormvermin troops started to encircle the stray wearets. One armed with a lance made a swipe. Stormvermin rats were catapulted and bowled into the air by the ferocious strength of the attack. However, one wearet still on the walls aimed his rifle in the wrong direction and sent a lead pellet through the attacking wearets' head. Gash let out a dry laugh, "Wearets are fine berzerkers, but really bad marks-beasts!" With all the wearets outside the palace walls subdued, mainly to their comrades' very bad aim, the fight could now be brought to the forces inside the palace walls. Gash ordered over three score of Stormvermin to rush inside the gates, but Roygels' tribe rushed them as soon as they set foot inside the walls. Sandokhan and his council assembled their soldiers to cover the rear of the attacking rats. The wearets met the attackers with a terrible ferocity, but the Stormvermin fought back with greater strength and resolve. The battle was now joined. Sandokhan, Mattimeo and Wataru fought back to back, slashing, parrying and stabbing. The poor condition of the wearets' armour was no match for the katanas' bite. Flugg refused to leave the Blue Samurai's' side, while George, Tigerlilly and Cheek with their lesser Samurai continued with their onslaught. George was knocked down by a berserker, who stood over him with his club ready to strike. Suddenly numerous barbed shafts thudded into the back of the wearets' neck and started falling forwards. The nimble hare managed to dodge out of the way as the husk fell to the ground. Roygel looked on from the front door. One of the GOUSIM shrews charged at him, but the chieftain simply clubbed him into the air. He looked around and noticed his tribe being pushed back by the invaders. "Withdraw!" He barked loudly over the clamour. Some of his tribe were so headstrong that they refused to fall back and carried on fighting, whilst the others withdrew inside the palace itself. Mangetail stood in the middle of the entrance hall which led to the gardens, "Roygel, what is this?" But the wearet ignored him, "Barricade dat door! Wotever's out dere, stays out dere!" "I asked you a question!" Shouted Mangetail, stamping his foot. Roygel grabbed Mangetail in a choke hold and lifted him off the floor so the two beasts were at eye level. "For da last time, Yous don't tell moi tribe worra do," he bellowed before hurling the seer into a wall. Doubled over in pain, Mangetail scurried off to find a hiding place. He wished he'd never told Ikkit Claw anything now.