Meinyt and surveyed what lay before them.
The approach to Caernyn was suited far more to defense than attack. The river road followed a tongue of land, likely man-made, through a marshy lowland before leaving the swamp and rising along the right side of a slope that extended a half mille or so before flattening out. The marsh continued around the base of the slope as far as the eye could see, turning into a lake at some point. The far left end of the slope was heavily wooded, and the woods angled westward away from the marsh. The river road rose from the swampy lowland into a gradual slope that bordered a bluff overlooking the River Aluse. Near the top of the slope a waist-high brick wall some five yards from the right shoulder of the road marked the edge of a steep drop-off down to the River Aluse. Between the road and the woods was an expanse of meadow that held grass and a few low scrub bushes. At the top of the slope, between the road and the woods, was a pair of long walls rising two yards above the matted grass that grew right up to the ancient stones.
At the river end of the wall flew a banner bearing the emblem of a chateau in the center of a yellow sunburst against a vivid blue background. At the southwestern end of the walls was a second banner, bearing a jagged lightning bolt of green and yellow crossed with a stylized halberd, all against a bright maroon background.
“Subcommanders, do you have any suggestions as to how we might best attack?” Skarpa raised his eyebrows.
“Go around them if we can, and attack from the rear,” suggested Meinyt.
“It’s twenty-five milles around the southern end of that swamp and lake,” replied Skarpa. “Might be farther than that, and it looks like the approach from the west isn’t much better.”
“Why’d they build a town here, then?” asked Meinyt.
“Just for that reason,” said Quaeryt. “In the early years it was probably hard for river reavers to get to flatboats who tied up here.”
Skarpa nodded. “It’s a good spot to stop on the river, and the higher ground along the river goes for maybe eight milles. The map shows the marsh and the lake as just one long lake. Could be the place was an island in the river a long time back. Anyway, it’s here, and we can’t just go around it and leave an Antiagon regiment sitting here.”
“They were sent here to stop us,” suggested Quaeryt. “They’ll have Antiagon Fire and who knows what else. They might even know that you’ve got imagers.”
“That thought had occurred to me,” said Skarpa. “Do you have something in mind?”
“Just that I’d rather not lose a lot of troopers this far from Variana.” Quaeryt paused. “Is there any way to get to those woods over there?”
Skarpa smiled crookedly. “The marsh is filled with swamp lizards, some of them three, four yards in length, with teeth as long as a man’s hand. If you stay away from the water, you’ll be exposed, but it’s a bit far for their archers.”
“Can you send scouts to see what the woods are like?”
“I already have, but none of them have come back … and they should have by now. That means I’ll need to send a squad, because we don’t want to mount an attack and discover another regiment on our flank.”
Left unsaid was the fact that the casualties would likely be high for a recon squad.
A quint later, Quaeryt watched as a squad from Third Battalion rode across the lower part of the grassy slope, some fifteen or twenty yards above the reeds that marked the edge of the marsh. A few shafts flew from the stone ramparts, but fell short. Then, when the scouting squad was less than a hundred yards from the woods, scores of shafts flew out, and four riders slumped in their saddles immediately, and several others were hit. The squad turned and withdrew, not quite at a gallop, and not quickly enough to avoid having three other troopers take shafts.
“I’d say that they’ve got two companies of archers there, maybe more,” observed Meinyt.
“There is one way,” mused Skarpa. “We could do exactly what they want. Just do it at a time and in a way that they won’t expect.”
“A night attack?” Meinyt frowned.
“That or an attack well before dawn,” said Skarpa. “We’d have to make certain that there aren’t any pits in the road or on the shoulder or in the grass beside the road.” He looked to Quaeryt. “Could your imagers put smoke and pepper behind the stoneworks just before we attack. With that and in the dark…”
“I’d have to get them within a few hundred yards. First company would need to be one of the lead companies.”
“Why not all Fifth Battalion?” asked Meinyt. “The Khellans need to do their share.”
“That might be best,” agreed Quaeryt.
Skarpa nodded. “Once it’s dark, I’ll have men walk the road. They should be able to get within a few hundred yards before the Bovarians-or the Antiagons-start lofting shafts. They can mark any pits or traps with reeds.”
“Getting the reeds might be a problem,” said Quaeryt.
“There are enough along the part of the road we just traveled away from the swamp lizards,” replied Skarpa. “Once the pits are marked, we’ll wait a time, then form up silently-or as quietly as the troopers can-just out of range of bows and catapults…”
After another half glass or so, Quaeryt returned to Fifth Battalion. First, he briefed Zhelan, Ghaelyn, and the imager undercaptains on what they could expect, with possible tactics with which they could respond. Then he summoned all the Khellan officers. Once they had gathered, he surveyed them, then began, in Bovarian.
“There are likely two regiments at the top of the slope. One is Bovarian, the other Antiagon. The Antiagons may have their fire. They also have filled the woods to the west with archers. The idea behind their defense is to force us to take the road, and then pin us against the wall and the cliff … or to require us to make a direct attack on stone ramparts. It would take two to three days to withdraw and then make our way around the swamp and lake … and the western approach is almost as bad. The marsh and the lake to the west are filled with swamp lizards, and we don’t have boats.”
Six pairs of dark eyes studied Quaeryt, along with those of Zhelan and the undercaptains.
With a smile Quaeryt wasn’t certain he felt, he went on. “So we’re going to do what they expect in a way they don’t expect, and Fifth Battalion will be among the lead forces. After dark, scouts will walk and creep up the road and mark any pits or traps…” He went on to explain the details of the planned attack.
When he finished he asked, “Is that clear?”
Major Calkoran nodded politely, then asked, “Do you wish us to give quarter?”
Quaeryt responded, “If someone has fallen or is too badly wounded to fight, leave them. Do not pursue those who flee-unless Major Zhelan or I give the order to do so. Our task is to defeat those who oppose us and take the town, not to slaughter the helpless.” He smiled. “This is not kindness on my part, or that of the commander. Slaughtering those wounded who cannot defend themselves wastes strength and takes time. We need to defeat and scatter them so they cannot re-form those who might delay us on our way to take Variana and to destroy Rex Kharst.”
“Then we must make every blow count,” replied Calkoran.
Quaeryt understood what he meant, but there was little help for that. Still, with the Khellan companies attacking first, he doubted they would find many of the enemy helpless or already wounded. “Any other questions?”
Calkoran looked to the Khellan majors and captains and said something in Pharsi. They all nodded. Then he turned back to Quaeryt. “No, sir.”
“Then rest your men. We will not attack until shortly after eighth glass.”
Once the Khellans had left, Quaeryt motioned to Shaelyt, then waited until the undercaptain stepped up to him. “What did he say to them?”
Shaelyt smiled. “His Pharsi is a little different, but I think he said, ‘Do not waste your efforts on the cowards and the weak. To avenge Khel, we must first destroy the strong.’”
Quaeryt couldn’t disagree with that.
