Their Battle Lord's Sacrifice

Chapter 4

Chapter 2

Wallis

“How long will we stay in Wallis?”

Yulen D’Jacques cast a glance in his second’s direction. A little smile creased the corner of his mouth. “That remains to be seen.” He didn’t say anything more, but waited to hear what Mastin would say next. If this question had been asked three years ago, he might have chastised the man for his impertinence. But that was history. Cole Mastin had proven his loyalty for the Battle Lord and Lady to the point where Yulen and Atty considered him more family than employee.

They continued at their leisurely pace along the roadway, keeping the horses at a constant but non-tiring speed. The clip allowed everyone to stay warm on this brisk day.

Yulen glanced back at where his wife and sister-in-law were in animated discussion. His newborn daughter was sound asleep in her mother’s arms, swaddled in a thick blanket as she was rocked by the mare’s steady gait. Atty caught him checking on her and gave him a loving smile. Smiling back, the Battle Lord returned to observing the road ahead. He took her at her word that she would return to riding in the wagon if she grew too tired or uncomfortable. In the meantime, Atty and her sister were making up for lost time. Let them have this time together. Later tonight, Atty will tell me what they talked about.

Let them have this time together. Later tonight, Atty will tell me what they talked about.Once they’d dismantled camp and gotten on the road, he’d debated with himself about joining her and Keelor. To listen to them, perhaps join in on their conversation. At home, his and Atty’s days were involved in what was going on at the compound. It was becoming rare for them to find time just to be together. More often than not, their only contact on most days was when they finally fell into bed, often too exhausted to make love, much less share any news. These trips away from Alta Novis gave them that opportunity to reconnect.

Today he decided to abstain and leave the women alone, and easily slipped back into old habits to take the lead. Sometimes he felt like chatting during these long treks to and from Alta Novis. Sometimes he preferred silent company. At other times he preferred to be alone with his thoughts. This morning was one of those silent company days, even when Mastin road up to join him.

They would reach Wallis by noon. Yulen had sent a soldier ahead to let the compound know of their impending arrival, knowing the people would want to welcome the troops with a meal. His grin widened, which caught Mastin’s attention.

“I can’t wait to see how the people will react when they find out about the newest addition to the D’Jacques Dynasty.”

The D’Jacques Dynasty.

Yulen snorted. “Strange you should put it that way. Up until less than a handful of years ago, I would have scoffed at the thought of spawning a dynasty of any sort. Yes, I’ll admit I’d entertained the idea. I’d wished I might have children who would take up the reins after I was gone. But I honestly didn’t believe I would be that blessed. Not until Atty came along.”

“I’ve overheard the women talking. Keelor is nervous about the reunion.” The man wiped sweat from his forehead with the back of his wrist. “I don’t understand why. She’s a strong woman.”

“She had to be to survive what she’s gone through.”

They continued down the roadway. Traffic was minimal, mostly peddlers with their wagonloads of wares who often traveled the road between compounds. One such man hawking pottery joined their caravan on his way to Foster City.

Because Yulen hadn’t given his second a definite answer to his first question, the second took the hint and pulled away from the Battle Lord to give him his space. Mastin knew Yulen would let him know his intentions when he was ready to share them and have them implemented.

The Battle Lord checked behind him again to find Mastin riding next to Paas. The couple rode in front of Atty and her sister, somewhat blocking his view of his wife. He was debating whether to move to the side and let them catch up to him when he spotted Paxton galloping toward him. The expression on the man’s face immediately put him on guard. Turning his horse around, he met the man halfway. Before he could ask what was wrong, Atty’s second pointed back in her direction.

“She’s got that look.” That was all Paxton said, and it spoke volumes.

Yulen dug his heels into his stallion and rushed down the line in time to see Keelor shaking her sister’s arm, trying to get Atty’s attention. Atty remained upright in the saddle. Her face had gone pale, her eyes wide open and staring into the distance. Immediately, he could tell she wasn’t observing the landscape. Neither was she aware of Keelor’s pleas.

He had seen this sort of thing before, and a coldness filled his veins. Taking one of Atty’s hands where it held the reins, he leaned closer to her. “What do you see, my love?”

Her head rotated in his direction. Although her gaze remained inward, she reacted to her husband’s presence.

“Atty, what’s wrong?”

“Go. We gotta go!” Suddenly, she snapped back to reality and blinked. “We gotta go now!”

“Code Red!” Yulen bellowed the order and threw up his arm, signaling a rapid advance. Wheeling around, he remained close to his wife as the entire battalion began racing toward Wallis.

Mastin took the lead. Paxton placed himself opposite of Yulen, bracing Keelor and the Battle Lady between them. Directly behind them, Fortune, Twoson, and Paas protected their rear. Atty hunched over her saddle as she clutched her daughter tightly against her.

Yulen heard a yell behind him. He tried to glance over his shoulder, but he couldn’t tell who had called out until he spotted Garet Renken trying to catch up with him. Seeing he finally had the Battle Lord’s attention, the ex-mercenary waved an arm over his head, then cupped a hand around his mouth.

“Bloods!”

They pushed their mounts as they tried to stay ahead of the grotesque mutants that were coming toward them through the trees perpendicular to the road the caravan was following. Yulen remained even with Atty as she protected their daughter. With both hands occupied, she was unable to draw her bow and arrow, leaving him to be her first line of defense.

The horses pounded the road. As Mastin veered off into the trees, the animals were given their heads to stampede after him. Limbs and leaves whipped their arms and legs, but the steeds never faltered. It wasn’t long before the outer wall of the Mutah compound came into view and more shouting could be heard coming from behind and above the buttresses. The two huge wooden doors slowly cranked open to let them in.

Yulen pulled away from the others to watch Atty vanish inside the fortress. Soldiers continued to fly past, leaping from their mounts and running toward the battlements to take a stance. The Battle Lord continued to remain at the side of the gates, sword at ready, and made sure everyone got inside safely. At the same time he kept his eyes peeled for signs of the horde, but never spotted any. The creatures seemed to have vanished into the trees. Mastin and Paxton swiftly joined him and also pointed out that fact.

“Where are they?”

“They’re out there. Somewhere,” Yulen swore.

When the last of the caravan disappeared inside the compound, the doors began to ponderously swing shut. Yulen and the two seconds slowly backed inside, still keeping a watch out for the enemy until the portals were firmly shut and secured.

Unexpectedly, the doors stopped moving with a jolt, swaying slightly. Jumping off his horse, Yulen rushed to see what was keeping them from closing. Mastin and Paxton, along with two Mutah sentries, also ran outside the gates to check out the problem.

“It’s the rope!” one of the sentries yelled from overhead. “The rope’s tangled!”

“Untie it from the anchor!” Yulen yelled back. He stared at the knot that had somehow been entangled in the thick hemp, keeping the cable from passing through the rings and allowing the doors to close. From where he stood, he couldn’t reach the obstruction and hack it apart to free the doors, but the sentry could. As the Mutah used his sword to cut the rope, Yulen and the two seconds stood inside the narrow opening.

Yulen remained tense, nervous. The hair stood up on his head. The woods before them were unusually quiet. Not even a bird made a sound, having fled the trees. Behind them came the heavy thunks of the sentry cutting through the thick cable.

Where are they? How far behind are they?

Where are they? How far behind are they?“They’re out there,” Paxton mentioned in a low voice. “I can almost feel them myself.”

“It’s done! The rope’s cut!”

Paxton and a sentry grabbed one door, Mastin and the other sentry took the other one, and together they started pushing on the doors to close them. Yulen remained outside until there was only enough room for him to slip inside.

Someone screamed from overhead. At the same time, nearly a dozen Bloods burst from the cover of the forest and rushed the front entrance. It was a massive, silent assault, bent on taking them by surprise.

Yulen raised his sword, prepared to fight the onslaught. One Blood in a dirty red vest came right at him, a tree limb in its hand. Without warning, the Blood dove into the dirt, face first, skidding several feet before coming to a stop. Two more Bloods scrambled to take its place when they also dropped to their knees unexpectedly. This time Yulen noticed the feathered tips of an arrow piercing each face. He braced himself for the next onslaught when hands grabbed him by the back of the shirt and pants, and literally jerked him backwards, through the narrowed opening just as the doors came together.

Breathing heavily, he glanced up at the catwalk to see Atty smiling down at him. She blew him a kiss, then turned her attention back to the attack to continue the fight. Yulen smiled and went to find the ladder to join her.