'Where's Stryke?' he yelled.
'They had an ambush planned. He's dealing with it.'
He looked shocked. 'But how — '
'Later, Brelan, later!'
They spiralled off into fresh opponents.
Moments later she noticed he'd gravitated to Chillder, and the twins were fighting in harmony.
Spurral eschewed her usual staff and chose to arm herself with a pair of long knives. Her other weapon was less tangible: the bewilderment of the humans when confronted by a dwarf. Moreover, a female dwarf. If incredulity meant a split second's hesitation she gladly exploited it, and more than one dumbfounded foe paid with his life.
Faced by a couple of troopers less impressed with her otherness, she nimbly plunged her knives into both their torsos simultaneously. Then she spun to avoid a rushing spearman, tripped him as he passed and planted the double blades in his back. The warrior who took his place reeled off clutching an open throat.
Coilla appeared at her side. 'We're forgetting the gates!'
Humans were massing there again, intent on closing the breach.
'What do we do?'
'Follow me!'
They weaved through the fracas, gathering as many Vixens as they could. With six or seven in tow they ran towards the gates. That caught the attention of several archers on the battlements. They targeted the sprinting females.
Barely ten paces had been covered when one of the Vixens was struck in the eye by an arrow. She was dead before she hit the dirt.
' Shit! ' Coilla cursed.
' Heads up! ' Spurral exclaimed, pointing with a knife.
A mob of troops had spilled out of one of the barrack blocks and was dashing to intercept them.
The small contingent of Vixens stood their ground. With a battle raging behind them, a crowd of troops milling at the gates ahead and knots of soldiers all around, there was little choice.
The fresh troopers swept in. Almost immediately one of the Vixens let out a piercing scream. A spear buried in her chest, she staggered a few steps before collapsing to her knees. Then she toppled, lifeless.
In short order one of her comrades was knocked senseless by a vicious head blow. Another sustained a wound that near severed her arm.
'This is getting hairy!' Spurral yelled. 'We need reinforcements!'
There was uproar at the gates. Soldiers went down like scythed corn as Pepperdyne's wagon ploughed through them. Nimbler humans leapt aside when it shot over the square. About halfway across, Pepperdyne applied the handbrake. The wagon skidded, turned almost end on end and came to a juddering halt. But its crew wasn't entirely unscathed. One was dead, and the defenders' arrows had injured a couple more. The rest jumped clear and joined the set-to.
'Looks like we got 'em,' Coilla said.
At the top of the hill, the third wagon was launched.
Dallog shared the steering lever with a dour resistance member. Wheam was in the rear with the rest of the attack team.
Turning, Dallog said, 'Expect this to be bumpy. Hang on back there.' He addressed it more to Wheam than the hardened fighters sitting with him.
The youth gave a weak nod, his complexion chalky.
Having seen off the wagon, Haskeer and the remainder of the force charged down the hill in its wake.
Stryke's group, dealing with the ambushers behind the barracks, had been oblivious to the greater picture. But with the last of the humans quickly and brutally dispatched, their task was done.
'We've wasted enough time here,' Stryke announced, jerking his blade from a trooper's lifeless breast.
'Then let's get back to the main event!' Jup replied in a tone that sounded almost gleeful.
They rushed out to the parade ground.
The scene that greeted them wasn't far short of anarchy. There were no defined lines of battle, just a mass of fighting orcs and humans.
'Where to, Stryke?' Jup asked, scanning the confusion.
'Looks like Coilla could use some help.' He pointed towards the ruined gates.
'Seems as good a place as any.'
Stryke swiftly formed his troop into a wedge formation and led them into the fray.
They traversed the square by the simple expedient of cutting down any humans who came near. Once they reached Coilla's group the wedge broke up and splintered into a dozen separate scraps.
'About time!' Coilla said.
'Been busy,' Stryke told her, batting away a soldier's blade.
'Hey, look!' Jup yelled.
Through the gap where the gates used to be they saw the third wagon heading towards the fort.
It was having a rough time. Arrows came down continuously. With the orc archers part of the ground force running behind the wagon, their shields above their heads as though deflecting rain, no one was returning fire.
Apart from their helmets and chainmail, Dallog and his co-driver had no such protection. It proved telling. An arrow struck the co-driver in the neck. He fell heavily against the steering lever, then went over the side. The wagon veered sharply to the right and came off the road. Dallog struggled to control it.
One or two orcs in the back of the wagon managed to jump clear. The rest hung on grimly as it picked up speed. Dallog tried applying the brake. It snapped off in his hand.
Bumping over grassland, the wagon swerved further to the right. It passed the side of the fort, a spear lob to its left, travelling ever faster. Arrows were still raining down on them.
Dallog shouted something, but his words couldn't be heard. Wheam squealed.
Then the wagon ran out of land and plunged over the cliff.
A company of soldiers arrived furtively at the row of ramshackle buildings by the foot of the cliff. They forced the doors, and armed with lanterns poured in to begin their search.
The wagon of bellowing orcs shot over the precipice above. Like a great bird downed by a giant's slingshot, it crashed through the roof of one of the buildings. With a thunderous roar the entire structure collapsed.
The impact sent shockwaves through the unstable buildings on either side. Imitating a line of playing cards swiped by a spoilt child, the ripple effect had them falling into each other. Walls buckled and went down. Roofs caved in. Smoke and flame erupted from the debris, ignited by the lanterns and brands carried by the ill-fated troopers.
They heard the reverberation up in the fort, even above the noise of battle.
'Those fucking archers!' Coilla howled.
Stryke nodded. 'That's our next objective.'
The ground force, with Haskeer in the vanguard, jogged through the gates. Its archers immediately took issue with the bowmen on the ramparts and started swapping bolts with them. The others piled into the battle on the square, with Haskeer taking the lead.
Stryke spotted Pepperdyne finishing an opponent nearby. He left Coilla marshalling her Vixens and went to him.
'Feel like a task, human?'
'What do you have in mind?'
'Clearing those battlements.'
Pepperdyne glanced up at the archers. They looked to be at least thirty strong. 'I'm game.'
'We can't spare many for the job.'
'I said I'm game.'
'Right.' He cupped his hands. 'Haskeer! Haskeer! ' Catching his sergeant's attention, Stryke waved him over.
Haskeer cut down a trooper on the way to keep his hand in.
'What?'
