himself blessed you. Even that blade thing you did last night is a spell I have not heard
about. I don’t think even high mages have that spell.”
UH-OH.
“Then we better kept quiet about it then,” said Tyler who continued to the cabin. I
shocked the man! YES! A victory against Jorund, the icon of chill!
His nap turned out to be a three-hour exercise. When he woke up, he was angry at himself for wasting such time. But realization dawned that last night’s events
contributed to a lack of sleep on his part. His body was just catching up. And he needed
to be in the best condition possible considering what’s coming. He stood up and went
out of the cabin.
The stone water bins have already been filled and Jorund was on watch, the three low
barricades having been finished. Some small boulders stood beside the trail’s entrance,
loaded on a makeshift wooden cradle. On one side was a big stone, one which was
clearly intended to block the entrance if it comes to that. How did Jorund move that
massive thing? Putting it out of his mind, he went to their cooking area and had his
meal.
Just as he finished eating, he could hear someone running up the trail. Alarmed, he
grasped his staff and went out. It was Habrok. Tyler and Jorund went to him.
“My lord, the jotnar and dokkalfr army have already entered the Gap. They are about
three miles from the edge of the forest and on their way to Scarburg. But I saw a
separate group going this way, ahead of the host. I expect them to be a mile from here
by now. They move fast.”
“How many?”
“Around one to two hundred, my lord. I couldn’t stay a moment more to be certain
when I noticed their speed.”
SHIT. There goes my timetable. I thought I would have an extra day.
“It’s game time, my friends. Get what you need from the cabin. Bring some food and a
waterskin each. We will go meet them down on the clifftop as usual. But if we are
forced to release the logs of the barricade Jorund made, that’s the signal to go up.
Block the trail as we go up. DON’T DIE.”
The three got what they needed and went down the trail quickly. For Tyler, the
afternoon light was a problem. It will make them visible to enemy eyes. As they waited,
Tyler thought about possible options to deal with what’s coming. It was obvious that
only area of effect spells would enable him to cut down the odds rapidly. He activated
the barrier spell of his staff.
But he also generated a barrier on top of them, a wide three-sided barrier with two
sides serving as walls to support the top. Enough to protect their heads from falling
projectiles. He angled down the top enough to allow the two archers to shoot. He
couldn’t put a frontal barrier as it would prevent the two from using their bows.
Shielding finished, he advised them of the barrier and settled down to wait. While waiting, he whittled an opening between two logs of his covering barricade.
Finally, he saw the advance group of the attackers reach the edge of the clearing. They
halted, keeping within the trees. But that didn’t stop Jorund and Habrok from using
their bows. He could see some drop, leading the rest to move further back. A few fired
back but their arrows struck the barricades.
Tyler thought most of the attackers were still coming. The leading elements were ice
elves, mounted on armored wolves, and some dokkalfr. After a while came a hail of
arrows from the forest. Most struck their top barrier. Glancing at his companions, he
noticed that the two were using some of the captured dokkalfr armor as shields, with
branches propping them up. I should have thought of that. Or ordered them to do the
same for me.
Two more volleys and Tyler heard the thundering feet, hooves, paws of an assault.
Peering through the slit, two mountain giants were leading the charge, each holding a
tree. Clearly intending to use it as ladders for the giant vargar and the other unfamiliar
beasts following them. Tyler was alarmed. The moment those giants get the trees in
place, the position will become untenable. He doubted if they have the time to
withdrew up the trail. Quickly forming two fiery blades, each the size of a plate, he
launched them at the two giants and when each hit, exploded them.
It was a macabre and bloody scene. One giant got hit directly on its chest while the
other had the presence of mind to use the tree to try to block the blade. But to no avail.
The blade sliced through the tree and cut off an arm before burying itself at the giant’s
side. The loud explosions rained body parts and sprayed blood all over the clearing.
Even the giant wolves and other beasts halted.
He then launched a rain of fiery balls on the forest, knowing that most will catch on the
treetops. When he ignited them, the treetops were ablaze, with fire quickly spreading
through the trees. He then launched another volley farther out and did the same thing.
The enemy was in a panic. They were milling about and the beasts have starting
slinking back to the forest, sensing the fear of their companions. The fire at the back
now became an inferno, Tyler having exploded them at a lower height.
The two archers were having a field day, with some enemies pushing into the clearing,
trying to escape the fire and the forward rush of others at the back trying to escape the
hellish scene at their rear. He then created fireball spheres at the frontal edge of the
forest and detonated them, this time expanding the area of effect of the fire. The
separate fires coalesced into a burning wall. While it was still active, Tyler cast the
strongest AWAY! spell he could manage, this time directed at the fiery hedge. As a
result, the wall of fire flowed back into the forest, together with the enemies caught in
the blast zone. With the additional air, the fire became hotter, stronger and widespread.
It burned like crazy, with burning trees falling into the midst of the destruction. Smoke and flying sparks from
