Wings, Beasts and Claws: Violet Embers

Ch. 14 : Barren Battlegrounds

*King Dorian*

The journey to the furthest borders of my land took a toll on a lot of my men, with many of them collapsing into a heavy sleep once we finished setting up our base. And I was stunned to see many civilians still within the large border city of Lornaia, having sent an evacuation notice on the same day the declaration of war was announced to the public. Many of those that stayed behind insisted on staying within the city, offering my men and I warm food, clothes and their medical assistance once we would start fighting.

As the sun rose on the first day after settling into our base camp, I took the time to write to my Queen and kids, adding to the two letters I had already written during the journey here. And while I was in my private quarters writing, I thought back to my lovely wife and how we had met. How, when the connection we were feeling started to grow, she would fight against it and try to put some distance between us. I couldn’t stop myself from smiling when I thought back to how surprised she was when I would hold her in my arms. Or when I’d look at her a certain way or say something sweet that she was prepared for. The blush that would stain her cheek then had excited me and gave me more than enough encouragement to keep pursuing her.

“You almost done?”

I turn and smile a little, seeing my brother-in-law Arden walk in as if it were his own room.

Arden was one of the few people that I had allowed to address me so casually, since he was Amara’s dear twin brother and a Knight whose skills were on par with mine. He was permitted to barge into any room in the Palace without waiting to be announced, since he was the type to hate wasting time on mere formalities when he had something he needed to say. He had even used this special permission to waltz into the Common meeting room used by Nobles within the Palace. This was where they would speak about things that were either discussed with me already or were about to be brought up. It was also the place where Duke Zenan and his followers began spreading their dislike for my Amara after the birth of our son. And Arden would walk in unexpectedly and dare them to say something about his sister and nephew while he stood there quietly.

“Yes.” I said, sealing my letter with wax and wrapping it in a thin black ribbon along with the others. “Have the other Captains and the Commander gathered in the War-Room?” I got up and handed him my letters, smiling when I spotted a letter in his hand with the silver wax seal of his family on the front.

“We’re just waiting for you and the Commander.” He followed me out and we walked calmly towards the large tent just a few feet away from mine. “Our scouts should be back soon so we can start planning our next move.”

I nodded and watched as he handed our letters to an older woman with a large basket in her hands. It was full of many letters that were no doubt written by Knights whose families were awaiting to hear from them. And though I still wanted my people to leave this dangerous area, I was grateful that many like her had stayed behind to help us with small things like delivering our letters.

A moment later, Arden and I were inside the massive open area within the tent we named the ‘War-Room. It held maps of the area between wooden poles so we could look at the terrain, and maps of the city behind us with each building and pathway shown and named. One side of the open space had some shelves and a few benches for us to polish and clean our weapons while we spoke. And a massive table with chairs around it took up the center of the room. It was covered in different documents and held a few files with images of those we knew to be higher members of the Order that we expected to see on the battlefield. The table itself was enchanted so that we could write on it and jot down things that needed to be seen by everyone. And right now the information written on the wooden surface was an inventory of all our supplies as well as a headcount of all our men power that was divided under the command of each Captain.

“Everything is ready, Your Majesty.” Noctern said, nodding to me as I took up my place at the center of the long table.

Noctern, being a Knight as well as my aide, had joined me in the war and assumed his position as my Vice Captain of my own, smaller Knightage called the Black Claw. He was a highly skilled swordsman, along with the twenty men that were within my Knighthood. But he was a master of combat when it came to twin daggers and throwing knives, which is why he had two daggers strapped to his hips and a belt of smaller throwing knives around his right thigh. The other men under my Knightage were also well versed in other forms of weaponry and combat, which was why I had them join my Knightage. I prided myself in helping my men polish unique and rarely seen techniques and uses of weaponry, making them both lethal and high sought after.

We then spent hours discussing our numbers and supplies and the best way to handle things with the civilians that refused to leave. Each Captain was given the chance to express their opinion and concerns. And as I spoke to each of them and came up with a standard plan for the management of our base, I took note of all of their badges that were pinned over their left collarbone, just under their shoulder.

It was the size of my palm and, like the one pinned over my own uniform, held the symbol of their Knighthood. And because they were all Captains and the leaders of their men, they each had a deep red and black piece of cloth directly under the pin that labeled them as the leaders they were as well as their alliance to me and our Kingdom.

“Before we continue with our discussion, I believe we need to address the honorary satin that’s beneath our badges.” I said, grabbing a hold of the gold one beneath mine. “I don’t wish to make you targets once we enter the battlefield, so, to prevent you from becoming a bullseye to the enemy, you all must remove the red and black cloth beneath your badges that marks you as Captain.” I looked around at them all and watched as they silently struggled to follow my order. “You all have families you need to return to, and if it can prevent you from becoming a prisoner of war or a coffin delivered to the Capital, I suggest you follow my order.”

They hesitated for a moment, glancing at each other while their fingers gripped the cloth. But when Arden, Nocturne and the Commander tore off their cloth a moment later, the others followed suit and placed the small battered squares on the table in front of them.

We then resumed our discussion and made more plans for the handling of different things as well as an evacuation plan and a procedural plan with our wounded. It was during this conversation that three scouts rushed into the tent and instantly quieted the room. All three were in solid black uniforms with hoods to cover their hair and breathable face covers that stopped just under their eyes. They huffed and folded over with their hands bracing their knees in an attempt to catch their breath while the rest of us waited to hear their report.

“The Order has set up their own base across the barren dry plain a good ten miles away, Your Majesty.” Said the middle man, pulling down the fabric away from his mouth so he could be heard. “They have amassed a large number of men, both who appear to have formal training and those who look to have never held a sword in their life.”

“There are women among them as well, and they are dressed as if they will join in their fight.” Added the man to his left. “We watched them run drills and they are beginners at best, with very unsteady footwork and low stamina present.”

“It appears like they are getting ready to make the first move, but nothing can be confirmed from what we could see.” The last man said, looking deep in thought. “And their command center appears to be vacant as well… though someone somewhere within that camp is giving out orders.”

I nodded, taking in their intel as I slowly approached them. Having women among our Knights wasn’t strange and each one of my Captains had a handful of women that were fighting alongside us. But to bring those we were still beginners or hadn’t even had proper training to hold a sword was pathetic and a clear marker of poor leadership that only cared about numbers and not skill. So more of their people would likely die uselessly if they truly stepped out to fight us.

“What about their weapons, their medical supplies, or possible battle tools like horses or traps?” I asked them, wanting to know everything possible to be prepared and save as many of my men as I could.

“They have an unbelievable amount of weapons and traps that’s being stored and guarded heavily behind their main center tent.” The first scout said, furrowing his brow. “But when we looked over at their medical tents they had next to nothing set aside for their men, just a few crates of gauze, healing elixirs and some herbal satchels… it doesn’t even look like the people running the tents have much experience either.”

The man to his right chimed in then, still looking concerned about something.

“They have enough horses for a battalion and simple tunics for those that plan to fight in their animal form… “ He paused and stared at the floor, seeming anxious and unsure.

“Speak freely.” I told him, making him look back at me. “I value any opinion or thought you may have that can help our men.”

“It’s just that…” He started, glancing at his friends who nodded at him. “When we split up to gather the intel… I spotted a smaller, shabby looking tent hidden behind a cluster of the others and I caught a group of men gathering in front of it before they went inside…” He paused again, looking even more nervous as he took in a deep breath before continuing. “They were all wearing cloaks and their hoods were up so I couldn’t really see what they looked like… But one of the men had on a pair of cufflinks that I could see clearly before they went inside.” I nodded for him to keep going, feeling something heavy and cold settle on my spine. “And those cufflinks were etched with a pair of bright white dragon wings embracing a copper diamond that lay over an icy blue scepter….”

I could feel everyone's eyes on me as his words sank in. The tension in the room quickly grew tenfold and an anxious energy started to spread over my men while I thought.

A pair of white dragon wings hugging a copper diamond that was on the handle of an ice blue scepter… this is the crest of the Royal Wyvern family. They were the opposite to my bloodline since we were the Black Dragons of Night and they, the White Dragon of Dawn. They were gifted dragons like my father and I, only they were able to manipulate and morph all types of metal into anything they wished. Their family was also much larger than my own, with the current King being two years older than me and Crown a year before me. His father, now retired like mine, had had five children with his wife before she had vanished into thin air two years before I met Amara and hosted the Queeness competition. And only one of the Royal children in that family wasn’t born a dragon, so there were a total of five white dragons within their family, and three that were old enough to fight.

I stepped back and sighed as I took a seat back at the table, looking around at my Captains as they waited for my response.

“We will hold this information amongst ourselves, for now.” I said, seeing them all relax slightly. “And keep our eyes open for any more evidence that shows that the Wyvern Kingdom has broken the Unity Treaty.” They all nodded along with serious expressions, their anger starting to rise. “But if it is proven that the Royal Wyvern family has broken the peace and chose to support our enemy, they will leave us no choice but to declare war against them as well, and call upon our allies for support.”

After finishing up our meeting and giving out new tasks to a different trio of scouts so the first could rest, Arden Noctern and I made our way to the battlefield.

Once there we stared at it in silence, seeing the wide open plain of cracked earth and patchy grass sprawled out in front of us. There were dips and slight hills throughout the open space and a sad scattering of shrubs here and there. The main road that led into the city was to our right and heavily guarded, with a large lake on the other side of it. And to our left was a small, thickly packed wooded area that climbed up the side of a mountain that was miles beside us.

“Are you going to let them make the first move?” Asked Noctern, while Arden stepped ahead of us to inspect the terrain.

“Yes.” I nodded, slowly moving my gaze from side to side. “I want to see what their strengths are and what they plan to do, since I suspect they’ll use cheap tricks and underhanded ways to overtake us.” Arden nodded grimly in agreement, turning to face us. “I want them to show me their hand before I reveal mine, and let them waste their strength and effort before we ever break a sweat.”

They agreed with me and we turned away, rejoining our camp and preparing ourselves for the first attack they no doubt are preparing for.